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UWinnipeg receives SSHRC grant money for research
Posted on: 05/31/18 | Author: Communications | Categories: All Posts, Feature Story, Research
Dr. Ryan Bullock, 2018 SSHRC Insight Grant Recipient
WINNIPEG, MB – The University of Winnipeg has received a total $876,253 for six UWinnipeg researchers thanks to Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) grants announced earlier this week.
“These grants from SSHRC help promote and foster excellence and innovation in social sciences and humanities research at the University of Winnipeg,” said Dr. Manish Pandey, Acting Vice-President Research and Innovation. “We are proud of our excellent researchers who continue to contribute to the research landscape in Canada and provide opportunities for our students.”
The Insight Grant Recipients (in alphabetical order):
Dr. Darlene Abreu- Ferreira, (history) – Black African children in pre-modern Portugal
Dr. Olya Bullard, (business and administration) – For the benefit of others: how consumption activities that benefit others relate to consumer goals
Dr. Ryan Bullock (environmental studies) – Climate learning and adaptation for northern development (C-LAND)
Dr. Justin Friesen, (psychology) – System justification and immigration: how motivated defence of the status quo affects stereotypes and attitudes about newcomers
Dr. Jeremy Frimer, (psychology) – Civility and the reduction of social biases
Dr. Mark Ruml, (religion and culture) – Indigenous spiritual biography as the matrix for truth and reconciliation
SSHRC is the federal research funding agency that promotes and supports postsecondary-based research and research training in the humanities and social sciences.
“SSHRC-funded scholars and researchers can provide guidance on important societal changes,” said Ted Hewitt, President, Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council. “Through these projects, SSHRC is helping to develop talent and to connect Canadian and international researchers and partners across disciplines and sectors to support world-class research that provides critical insights on the challenges of today and tomorrow.”
The University of Winnipeg gratefully acknowledges the funding we receive from the Government of Canada Research Support Fund in aid of our research infrastructure. Every year, the federal government invests in research excellence in the areas of health sciences, engineering, natural sciences, social sciences and humanities through its three granting agencies. The Research Support Fund reinforces this research investment by helping institutions ensure that their federally funded research projects are conducted in world-class facilities with the best equipment and administrative support available. Please visit Research Support Fund.
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Mongabay Series: Global Forests
Social media, e-commerce sites facilitate illegal orchid trade
by Stephanie Parker on 21 December 2018
Wild orchids are collected for their beauty and are also used in traditional foods and medicines. This demand has left the plants prone to illegal trafficking.
Despite having some of the best legal protections afforded to plants, wild orchids remain under immense threat globally for the illegal trade.
While many orchids sold online are grown in greenhouses and have proper documentation, wild orchid traffickers are increasingly poaching the plants from protected forests, posing grave risks to the impacted species.
There is often an overlap between legal and illegal online orchid sales, sometimes involving the same platforms, buyers and sellers, and little enforcement to prevent illegal transactions.
Reports of illegal trafficking in elephant ivory or rhino horn abound, but plants are actually more frequent victims of the illicit trade than wildlife. In fact, roughly 30,000 of the 35,000 species covered by the Convention of International Trade in Endangered Species of Fauna and Flora (CITES) are plants.
Orchids are especially vulnerable to illegal trafficking due to their beauty and popularity. The nearly 30,000 species of orchids make up roughly 10 percent of the Earth’s plant species, yet represent more than 70 percent of the species listed on CITES.
“It’s really an orchid convention,” Amy Hinsley, a postdoctoral research associate and fellow in the Oxford Martin Programme on the Illegal Wildlife Trade, told Mongabay. She recently published a report that outlines the impact of the internet on the orchid trade.
On one hand, it’s become easier to track the illegal trade now that it’s online, according to Hinsley. In the past, a researcher needed to go to orchid shows to find out what was being traded. Online, Hinsley can visit websites, look at postings, and sometimes observe the interactions between sellers and buyers in comments or on message boards. But on the flipside, the internet also allows illegal traders to access global markets much more easily.
Technologies that speed information transfer in mainstream commerce also allow traffickers to use the internet to deliver products more effectively, receive payments, encrypt communications, or thwart law enforcement agencies through digital attacks. In the case of wild plants, traffickers can identify and map the locations of target species through online databases and then advertise sale of those species. Both information collection and dissemination can be done remotely, lowering the barriers to entry into criminal markets.
These Asian slipper orchids grown from artificial seeding, at the 22nd World Orchid Conference in Guayaquil, Ecuador in November 2017, show how expensive buying orchids through proper channels can be. Photo courtesy Kingsley Dixon.
Hinsley has found illegally harvested orchids on sites like eBay and other popular websites and social media platforms. According to her report, these illegally harvested orchids can sometimes be found under certain hashtags, like #Paphiopedilum (a genus of tropical Asian orchids known as Venus slipper), #orchidforsale, #jungleorchid and #wildorchid. Representatives for eBay could not be reached for comment by the time this story went to publication.
“There are numerous examples of orchid species being harvested to near or extinction,” Hinsley said. One such example is Paphiopedilum canhii, a species that was discovered in Vietnam in 2010 and was subsequently nearly wiped out by over-collection. According to Hinsley’s report, “The rapid collection of more than 99 percent of all known plants within just six months of the species’ discovery was linked directly to the internet. In particular, the spread of pictures on social media fueled this intense demand and allowed collectors to locate wild populations.”
Lackluster online enforcement measures
The problem of online orchid trafficking is not helped by the fact that websites don’t seem especially interested in taking down illegal postings, according to David Roberts. An associate professor at the University of Kent who studies trafficking in wild species, including orchids, Roberts says he’s been in touch with eBay to report illegal sellers, and none of them have ever been taken down.
“The resources they put in to stop the ivory trade is little to nothing, so they’re not going to do much for orchids that I can see,” he said.
Legality can be a tricky subject in general. The cost of a CITES permit can be prohibitive, leading sellers to sometimes ship otherwise legally grown or harvested orchids internationally without one. “You’re potentially getting illegal trade occurring in things that aren’t wild-collected but it’s illegal because they’re not having permits,” Roberts said.
It’s also not always easy to tell if an orchid being sold online is legal or illegal, especially for hobby collectors without much experience. However, there are a few ways to tell. One is if the species being sold is listed in CITES Appendix I, for which commercial trade of wild-harvested species is prohibited. (There are also some species on Appendix I that can be found in a regular garden store because they were not wild-collected.)
A mockup of an eBay posting of an illegally-harvested species from Amy Hinsley’s Global Initiative report. The species and seller here are fictional, but the layout of the sales page mimics exactly how these species are sold. The photo used is of a Paphiopedilum slipper orchid. Image courtesy Amy Hinsley, University of Oxford and Sam Sinclair, Biodiversify.
Another is if it says “wild-collected” or if it’s a new species that wouldn’t have had time to grow in a greenhouse. For example, Paphiopedilum papilio-laoticus, discovered in Laos in June of this year, needs a minimum of 22 months and up to 66 months to produce a plant that meets the CITES definition of “artificially propagated.” Yet in her report, Hinsley says it has already been found for sale online, which means it couldn’t have been cultivated and must have been illegally harvested.
Hinsley’s report also says the offer of “worldwide shipping” can be a clue, because most of these plants need CITES permits to be shipped internationally, and when prices are low, it’s unlikely that the plants have a permit.
Roberts said photos could help: if they show microflora growing on the leaves, the plant was probably wild-harvested. Additionally, photos of plants with broken or damaged roots or with leaves or flowers that show signs of pest damage are evidence of possible wild harvesting.
Who profits?
The beneficiaries of the online trafficking in wild orchids are diverse.
In China, many harvesters are poor farmers digging up plants and selling them to intermediaries. In Indonesia, middle-class and rich people enjoy jungle adventures that involve collecting and selling orchids. Some operations function as organized crime, where collectors send their own people into the jungle.
Of course, it comes down to money. Rare plants can fetch a higher price, and operating on the black market lowers costs. It may be cheaper to pick an orchid in the wild than grow and harvest it in a greenhouse, and cheaper to export it without proper permits.
Newly discovered orchid species Paphiopedilum papilo-laoticus in Laos this past June. These plants have already been found for sale online. Photo courtesy Adunyadeth Luang Aphay, Orchideen Journal.
These lower prices can also lead buyers to unwittingly purchase illegally harvested orchids. Many do so knowingly, and some cite conservation as a justification.
“People hear about deforestation and think ‘I have a good greenhouse so I can save them,’” Hinsley said. “They think about themselves as conservationists.”
This was the case for Brian, a 25-year-old from Manila, who asked Mongabay not to use his last name. He said he found a Ceratocentron fesselii, the most endangered species of orchid in Southeast Asia, online for under $10 and initially considered buying it, thinking he could give it a good home.
“I think I wanted to get it because I thought I could raise it and propagate it,” he said. “It’s a nice dream to have I think, as a budding plant enthusiast, to help save the species.” In the end, he opted not to buy it, saying that by buying it, he felt it would just raise demand and encourage the seller.
A world of orchids
Orchids are found around the world, everywhere from the forests of Southeast Asia to the meadows of the United Kingdom. This can make it difficult to say with certainty what effect the decimation of populations of particular species will have, because there is such a variety of species and habitats, many of which have not yet been properly studied.
Kingsley Dixon, an orchid expert and professor at Curtin University in Perth, Australia, said the value orchids provided was not to ecosystems but to people. “The trade is not so much about what you do to the ecology,” Dixon said, “but what you do to the social value of that ecosystem.”
Orchids have woven themselves into human cultures throughout history and are used in traditional medicines, food, and for weaving among certain groups. Losing certain species could threaten these traditions and the people who engage with these traditional products. That said, the use of orchids in food and medicines also contributes to the over-harvesting.
One thing that is known is that orchids are an important indicator species and can tell scientists about the health of an ecosystem, as they tend to be some of the first species to disappear when conditions deteriorate.
A sign at Kadoorie Farm and Botanical Gardens in Hong Kong, which works to conserve several species that are important in trade. Collecting wild orchids is against the law in many countries, but the illegal trade persists.” Photo courtesy Amy Hinsley.
“Orchids are like the canary in the coal mine,” Roberts said. “You remove the canary and you can still mine, but one day the gas will build up and you won’t know.”
More broadly, the decrease in biodiversity as species die out in forests changes the surrounding ecosystem.
For example, orchids have symbiotic relationships with other species, such as orchid bees (Euglossine). The male bees use chemicals from the orchids to create a scent for mating with females. The bees also pollinate Brazil nut trees, so potential declines in orchid bee populations associated with declines in orchid populations would affect Brazil nut trees.
Orchids also have a symbiotic relationship with fungi, from which they draw nutrients. Some of these orchids have “leaky” roots and provide sugars to the fungi. However, other orchids are so lazy that they don’t even photosynthesize and don’t seem to offer the fungi anything. There are also ants that live inside certain orchids, but it’s not known whether these ants are specific to the plants.
Banner image: Wild orchids still attached to tree branches, for sale in a street market in China. Photo courtesy Amy Hinsley.
Article published by Genevieve Belmaker
Ecosystems, Environmental Crime, Forests, Illegal Trade, Medicinal Plants, Orchids, Plants, Rainforests, Supply Chain, Surveillance, Technology, Trade, Tropical Forests, Wildlife Crime, Wildtech
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Reply to Obama’s State of Union Speech
Posted on January 31, 2014 by Rawclyde!
from the website of Hamid Karzai, President of Afghanistan
In his State of the Union Address to the American nation, President Obama reaffirmed his country’s commitment to a unified Afghanistan.
President Karzai welcomed these remarks, which indeed is a reaffirmation of Afghanistan’s long-standing position and called it in the good interest of the two countries’ bilateral relations.
As any timeline for signing the Bilateral Security Agreement (BSA) was put aside in the address, the President called it positive and believes that the two countries can work together with patience and due diligence in helping Afghanistan’s peace process to start.
President Karzai urges that it is time now to put an end to the negative propaganda against Afghanistan.
The President stresses that it is peace that assures a country’s stability, progress and unity, and it is for this reason that Afghanistan considers the effective and public launch of the peace process as the key prerequisite for signing the BSA.
http://president.gov.af/en/news/28802
Posted in Afghanistan War | Tagged Afghanistan, Karzai, Obama, peace | 2 Replies
Shrapnel From Afghanistan III
Historic Shrapnel #20
Despite Pakistan’s assertion that the Taliban had solid Afghan roots, these had atrophied over time and would be hard to rebuild. Taliban ideology was more Pakistani than Afghan, and while its popularity surged in Pakistan’s NWFP, fewer Afghans saw it as a model for the future. Its Pakistani-based leadership could not wage an insurgency without the recruits, bases, and safe refuge it had access to there. If Pakistan ever reversed its policy of support, as it did to Mullah Omar in 2001, the insurgency in Afghanistan would be dealt a fatal blow…
The Taliban’s condemnation of the Karzai regime as subservient to the United States looked hypocritical in light of their own subservience to Pakistani interests…
excerpts from the book
A Cultural and Political History
by Thomas Barfield
Afghanistan had always been the “other war” under the Bush administration, starved of resources, attention, and troops in favor of Iraq. By mid-2009 that status was reversed. The number of casualties and war costs in Afghanistan exceeded those in Iraq for the first time. The first surge of seventeen thousand U.S. troops was designed to both provide greater security for the Afghan election in August 2009 and lay the foundation of a new counterinsurgency strategy. That strategy was confirmed in December when after months of deliberation, President Obama announced the dispatch of another thirty thousand additional troops to Afghanistan, putting U.S. forces over the one hundred thousand mark in 2010. The planned size of the Afghan army and police was also greatly increased…
Afghanistan was the only place in the region that the United States had a direct presence that could prevent the reconsolidation of Islamic extremists, and serve as a base for responses to potential state collapse in the surrounding countries of central Asia and Pakistan. And the fear that nuclear-armed Pakistan might either disintegrate in the face of an Islamist insurgency or that its government could be seized by a radicalized military faction that supported the insurgency’s cause gave a U.S. presence in Afghanistan even more importance. As had many foreign powers before it, the United States found its Afghan policy as much driven by events in south and central Asia as those within Afghanistan itself…
Qandahar in the south, Mazar in the north, Kabul in the east, and Herat in the west, remain the leading cities that dominate their own large regions in Afghanistan…
Both the United States and India have given priority to eliminating the power of radical Islamists, and hence are more in sympathy with each other than either is with Pakistan. Such an alliance, if it were to occur, would mark the end of the cold war legacy that has undergirded U.S. support of Pakistan for more than a half century…
Pride in the past is no bar to change in the future. Perhaps the best recent example of this was the Pashtun leader, Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan, in the NWFP. Inspired by Mohandas Gandhi, he founded the nonviolent Khudai Khitmatgar (“Servants of God”). After taking an oath to foreswear violence, retaliation, and revenge, its eight thousand members divided into trained regiments, and devoted themselves to village improvement, education, and reform. They also led the resistance to British rule in the region in which hundreds of their members lost their lives in nonviolent protests in the 1930s. When the British left India, Ghaffar Khan remained a gadfly. He was jailed by the Pakistani government in the 1960s when he protested against military dictators there. That such a nonviolent movement could emerge and thrive in a culture that had raised revenge to a holy principle should caution anyone against believing that people or cultures are forever prisoners of the past. It also stands as a challenge to the Afghans themselves to take the lead in breaking the cycle of violence that has generated so much suffering for so little benefit for far too long.
edited by Rawclyde!
Posted in Afghanistan War | Tagged Afghanistan, Barfield, history, map, photo story | 2 Replies
Afghaneeland Adventure Series
starring Col. Sheena Johnson & Capt’n Chuck Fiddler
Rawclyde
The New Cartoon Afghaneeland
https://oldtimerchronicle2.wordpress.com/2013/10/29/the-new-cartoon-afghaneeland
The Legend Of Col. Sheena Johnson
https://oldtimerchronicle2.wordpress.com/2013/11/08/the-legend-of-colonel-sheena-johnson
Col. Johnson Wakes Up In Pluckame
https://oldtimerchronicle2.wordpress.com/2013/11/17/col-johnson-wakes-up-in-pluckame
The Colonel’s Arrow Hits Its Mark
https://oldtimerchronicle2.wordpress.com/2013/11/27/the-colonels-arrow-hits-its-mark
episode four
https://oldtimerchronicle2.wordpress.com/2013/12/11/afterglow
episode five
Sheena Time!
https://oldtimerchronicle2.wordpress.com/2013/12/27/sheena-time
She Who Is Obeyed
https://oldtimerchronicle2.wordpress.com/2014/01/04/she-who-is-obeyed
episode seven
Col. Johnson & The Holy War
https://oldtimerchronicle2.wordpress.com/2014/01/05/col-johnson-the-holy-war
episode eight
Blue Burqa Destiny
https://oldtimerchronicle2.wordpress.com/2014/01/12/blue-burqa-destiny
episode nine
The Strange Reality Of Afghaneeland
https://oldtimerchronicle2.wordpress.com/2014/01/14/the-strange-reality-of-afghaneeland
episode ten
Lament For Long-Gone Col. Johnson
https://oldtimerchronicle2.wordpress.com/2014/01/27/long-gone-col-johnson-lament
episode eleven
Capt’n Chuck Fiddler
https://oldtimerchronicle2.wordpress.com/2014/02/06/captn-chuck-fiddler
episode twelve
Burqa Time
https://oldtimerchronicle2.wordpress.com/2014/02/10/burqa-time
episode thirteen
Dervish Whirl
https://oldtimerchronicle2.wordpress.com/2014/02/20/dervish-whirl
episode fourteen
Taliban Polka
https://oldtimerchronicle2.wordpress.com/2014/02/28/taliban-polka
episode fifteen
https://oldtimerchronicle2.wordpress.com/2014/03/09/mosque
episode sixteen
Vagina Envy
https://oldtimerchronicle2.wordpress.com/2014/03/14/vagina-envy
episode seventeen
Voting-Card Envy
https://oldtimerchronicle2.wordpress.com/2014/03/15/voting-card-envy
episode eighteen
Capt’n Fiddler’s Afghanistan Vision
https://oldtimerchronicle2.wordpress.com/2014/03/20/captn-chuck-fiddlers-afghanistan-vision
episode nineteen
Reinforcements Arrive At Pluckame
https://oldtimerchronicle2.wordpress.com/2014/03/30/reinforcements-arrive-at-pluckame
episode twenty
https://oldtimerchronicle2.wordpress.com/2014/04/18/interlude
episode twenty-one
Taliban Focus
https://oldtimerchronicle2.wordpress.com/2014/04/22/taliban-focus
episode twenty-two
Battle Aftermath In Afghaneeland
https://oldtimerchronicle2.wordpress.com/2014/04/26/battle-aftermath-in-afghaneeland
episode twenty-three
Capt’n Fiddler Parachutes Into Pluckame
https://oldtimerchronicle2.wordpress.com/2014/05/02/fiddler-parachutes-into-pluckame
episode twenty-four
https://oldtimerchronicle2.wordpress.com/2014/05/08/a-new-breed-in-the-village
episode twenty-five
Capt’n Fiddler’s Crash Landing
https://oldtimerchronicle2.wordpress.com/2014/05/13/captn-fiddlers-crash-landing
Hobnobbers Going Going Gone
https://oldtimerchronicle2.wordpress.com/2014/05/14/hobnobbers-going-going-gone
episode twenty-six
https://oldtimerchronicle2.wordpress.com/2014/05/19/coma
episode twenty-seven
Coma II (Taliban Brains)
https://oldtimerchronicle2.wordpress.com/2014/05/20/coma-ii
episode twenty-eight
Coma III
https://oldtimerchronicle2.wordpress.com/2014/05/22/coma-iii
episode twenty-nine
https://oldtimerchronicle2.wordpress.com/2014/06/10/rug-rats
Capt’n Fiddler’s Sufi Bubble
https://oldtimerchronicle2.wordpress.com/2014/06/18/captn-fiddlers-sufi-bubble
episode thirty
Floating Low Floating High
https://oldtimerchronicle2.wordpress.com/2014/07/02/floating-low-floating-high
episode thirty-one
Floating Above Afghanistan
https://oldtimerchronicle2.wordpress.com/2014/07/07/floating-above-afghanistan
episode thirty-two
Sufi Arrows
https://oldtimerchronicle2.wordpress.com/2014/07/09/sufi-arrows-from-above
episode thirty-three
Flying Booger
https://oldtimerchronicle2.wordpress.com/2014/07/23/flying-bugger
episode thirty-four
An Order From Col. Sheena Johnson
https://oldtimerchronicle2.wordpress.com/2014/07/29/an-order-from-col-sheena-johnson
episode thirty-five
https://oldtimerchronicle2.wordpress.com/2014/08/02/commander
episode thirty-six
https://oldtimerchronicle2.wordpress.com/2014/08/04/transformation
episode thirty-seven
The Elder Inside The Sufi Bubble
https://oldtimerchronicle2.wordpress.com/2014/08/22/the-elder-inside-the-sufi-bubble
episode thirty-eight
Hymn Hope
https://oldtimerchronicle2.wordpress.com/2014/09/12/hymn-hope
episode thirty-nine
Sheena’s Teepee
https://oldtimerchronicle2.wordpress.com/2014/09/16/sheenas-teepee
episode forty
https://oldtimerchronicle2.wordpress.com/2014/10/02/ants-2
https://oldtimerchronicle2.wordpress.com/2014/10/05/pop
art above
Sheena: Queen of The Jungle
by Matt Merhoff
Posted in Time Machine | Tagged poems | 7 Replies
Shrapnel From Afghanistan II
Historic Shrapnel #9
The presence of international forces and outside aid had ended the civil war. Millions of refugees had rapidly returned from exile in Iran and Pakistan. A political process for creating and ratifying a constitution had run smoothly, allowing the popular election of a national leader, Hamid Karzai, for the first time in Afghan history. On the other hand, the military and financial resources allocated to the country were grossly inadequate to provide security and improve one of the world’s lowest standards of living. The large sums of money pledged for reconstruction first raised the expectations of ordinary Afghans to unreasonable levels, but as the years passed people had a right to be disappointed by how little was being accomplished at such great expense. Worse, project priorities were set by the funders, not the Afghans, so they rightly questioned the wisdom of building schools and hospitals without teachers and doctors to staff them, or repairing roads with foreign labor while local people remained unemployed…
The high point of the constitutional process came with the successful presidential election in October 2004. While there had been parliamentary elections in the past, this was the first time in Afghan history that a national leader had ever sought electoral approval. Karzai was therefore keen to see elections held quickly once the constitution had been approved despite the concerns of international critics, who doubted the ability of the Afghans to organize the balloting and feared that the elections would be marred by violence. The Afghan people instead seemed genuinely motivated by the election process and turned out in large numbers, including a relatively high participation by women. Opponents of the Karzai regime, including the Taliban, failed to disrupt the process, in part because it had such popular support. Despite many irregularities the election was deemed relatively fair…
The U.S invasion that expelled the Taliban and al Qaeda from Afghanistan created an odd circumstance in its wake. The usual priority among the Afghans of expelling foreign invaders was replaced by a tacit strategy of keeping them there to guarantee security and finance the development of the country. This was because the Afghan population was looking for stability after decades of war and protection against predation by factions within Afghanistan as well as from neighbors seeking to exploit its weaknesses…
The new NATO command would take responsibility for all of Afghanistan except for the east, where the United States would retain direct control…
Later in the summer, British and Canadian troops deployed to Helmand and Qandahar confronted a well-armed and full-blown insurgency led by a reinvigorated Taliban…
U.S. Army outpost
There was also trouble in eastern Afghanistan, which experienced a sharp rise in cross-border attacks from Pakistan’s autonomous tribal territories, where al Queda and Taliban forces were becoming dominant…
Indeed, the strongest base for Islamists inside eastern Afghanistan was not among the Pashtuns but instead among the more remote Nuristanis in the high mountains northwest of Jalalabad…
A foreign presence in Afghanistan
Hekmatyar’s Hizb-i-Islami was the best known of those factions opposing a foreign presence in Afghanistan. It was most influential in the provinces of Kunar, Nangarhar, and Nuristan. The lack of early U.S. resistance to Hekmatyar allowed Hizb-i-Islami forces to take control of many villages in mountainous Nuristan, where they linked up with al Qaeda forces on the Pakistan side of the border. Despite Hekmatyar’s radical rhetoric, some members of his party joined the Kabul government, and Hekmatyar hinted at a willingness to cooperate if Karzai ceded enough power to him. A more radical insurgency based on Pastun tribal networks arose further to the south in the provinces of Paktia, Paktika, and Khost that straddled the frontier with Pakistan’s FATA. Commanded by Jalaluddin Haqqani, a prominent resistance commander against the Soviets, its greatest influence was among the resident Pashtun tribes, particularly Haqqani’s own Zadran people in Afghanistan and FATA’s north Waziristan, where he had his headquarters. Hazzani’s influence extended well beyond the frontier. His network orchestrated the majority of terrorist attacks in Kabul itself (at the behest of Pakistan’s ISI, according to the Afghans). His faction also included many foreign fighters and was closer to al Qaeda than Hekmatyar’s Hizb-i-Islami…
The largest and most intense insurgency was centered in Qandahar and Helmand provinces, and led by Mullah Omar’s Taliban…
The absence of any earlier economic development left the region dependent on an illicit opium economy. This provided the Taliban with a revenue source to tax and gave them allies among those benefiting from the illicit trade. In the absence of any significant international military presence, the Taliban were able to regroup unimpeded in any area they knew well for at least two years before NATO troops were deployed to confront them…
While the Musharif government proved willing to hunt down foreign al Qaeda members, Pakistan still saw the Taliban as allies, and had not abandoned its goal of controlling Afghanistan through a Taliban regime or faction in the Afghan govern- ment when the United States withdrew…
Posted in Afghanistan War | Tagged Afghanistan, Barfield, history, Nuristan, photo story | Leave a reply
I try to report what is true
Read ‘tween the lines of stories I find
Look for photos that do not lie
Bumble & stumble around the distant war
From an easy chair thousands of miles away
My penetration is shallow indeed
Will peace get forged one way or another in that far away land
Does anyone in America know ~ Afghanistan?
My infinity machine doesn’t always work right
And flying saucers are so undependable
Every time I think I’ve landed on that nation’s sand
I end up in a ridiculous bubble ~ called Afghaneeland
I lost the most beautiful woman on the planet Earth
Col. Sheena Johnson, U.S. Army
In the mirage-brimming bubble of Afghaneeland
A blue burqa dangling from my trembling hand
(Text Copyright Clyde Collins 2014)
The Afghaneeland Adventure Series | Old Timer Chronicle II
top photo:
Cannibal Bikini by Kynokefalos
http://www.deviantart.com/artisan/?q=+kynokefalos
bottom photo
courtesy of U.S. Army
http://www.goarmy.com
Posted in Time Machine | Tagged Afghaneeland, Col. Sheena Johnson, doggerel, poetry | Leave a reply
Shrapnel From Afghanistan I
The campaign against the Kafirs, an ancient society that still maintained its pagan religion in mountainous eastern Afghanistan, was fought mostly for symbolic reasons. Abdur Rahman, the amir of Afghanistan, had been portraying himself as a paragon of Islamic leadership, and the opportunity to engage in a war against true (and relatively powerless) infidels was too good to pass up. He also feared that if he did not assert his direct control there, the British or Russians might do so. A winter campaign in 1895 when the region was snowbound led to a quick victory. Unlike the incitement to violence in the Hazara campaign, the amir prohibited the enslavement of prisoners or the pillaging of property. The mass conversion of the region went quickly, and the region was renamed Nuristan, which means “Land of Light”…
During the 1960s, the economic and social development of Afghanistan accel-erated at the fastest pace that the country had every known as it opened itself more to the outside world, ending the severe isolation first imposed by Abdur Rahman…
Also, in the 1960s, Kabul University became a particular hotbed of political radicalism, spreading among the disaffected. Advanced educational opportunities drew talented youths from the countryside; they were introduced to new ideas, new opportunities, and each other at the university. After graduation, they stayed in the capital whether or not they found employment because it was the country’s primary city, overshadowing everywhere else. Radical politics flourished in Kabul with secret societies formed to seek the overthrow of Afghanistan’s social and political order. At opposite ends of the spectrum, the two most important actors were the Islamists and the Communists, who often clashed violently on campus and in the streets of Kabul…
The Soviets assumed that they could begin withdrawing their troops after a few months when order was restored. Instead, the intervention marked the beginning of a decade-long occupation that would result in the death of one million Afghans, the flight of four million refugees to Pakistan and Iran, and the displacement of millions of others internally…
The United States had financed a war to bloody the Soviets, and achieved that result. The Saudis had paid for a war to expel an infidel occupier, who was now gone. Only Pakistan saw benefits from further fighting because it desperately wanted to dominate Afghanistan’s postwar government…
Chaos in the south led to the rise of the Taliban in 1994, a religious movement led by clerics from Qandahar that pledged to restore order in the name of Islam…
The Taliban seized Kabul in 1996 and by 1999 controlled all of Afghanistan, except the northeast…
The Taliban granted training bases to various international jihadists groups with whom they shared common values, such as Osama bin Ladin’s al Qaeda. The cost of this cooperation proved fatal when al Qaeda operatives attacked New York and Washington, DC, on September 11, 200l. Before the year was out, the United States and its coalition allies expelled the Taliban from Afghanistan, and helped establish a new government in Kabul…
Posted in Afghanistan War | Tagged Afghanistan, Barfield, history, photo story | Leave a reply
U.S. Congress Cuts Afghan Aid
by Missy Ryan
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The Obama administration is considering ways to ensure future financial assistance for Afghanistan after U.S. lawmakers halved development aid to the country.
In a massive spending bill signed into law on Friday by President Barack Obama, lawmakers provided $1.12 billion to Afghanistan for fiscal 2014 for overall civilian assistance, a 50 percent reduction from the previous fiscal year. It was still unclear, however, how much aid the country would actually receive for 2014.
U.S. officials said they were looking at the details of the bill, and would also explore if they could use unspent money from the previous year or from elsewhere in the budget to increase the amount of funding for Afghanistan.
“While overall levels for the major civilian assistance accounts have been reduced, the bill itself does not include any specific cap for Afghanistan,” an official at the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) said on condition of anonymity.
“Over the next few months, we will finalize bilateral assistance totals for the fiscal year,” using a summary that accompanied the legislation as a guide, the official said.
The summary also suggests that USAID and the State Department could supplement the $1.12 billion with unspent funds from fiscal 2013, but it was not immediately clear how much flexibility that might give them.
“While everyone was expecting a cut, no one was expecting it to be 50 percent. That sets a dangerous precedent that might be hard to reverse in coming years,” said Andrew Wilder, who directs Afghanistan and Pakistan programs at the U.S. Institute of Peace and spent years working in the region.
USAID, which along with the State Department administers development and assistance programs overseas, had asked for $1.67 billion for Afghanistan in the administration’s budget request for fiscal 2014. The overall aid request for fiscal 2014 for Afghanistan was $2.19 billion, according to U.S. officials.
A major cut in U.S. assistance could endanger plans to continue health, education, farming and other aid programs in the desperately poor country. It could also stoke uncertainty as the United States and other NATO countries move to end their long war in Afghanistan, and as Washington seeks an agreement that would permit some U.S. forces to stay there beyond 2014.
The reduction sends a signal to other donor nations, which gathered in Tokyo in 2012 to announce their intentions to provide aid to Afghanistan for years to come. While the United States did not pledge a specific amount for future aid, it promised to seek aid near current levels of just over $2 billion at least through 2015.
Wilder said the administration may not be able to provide much more than the $1.12 billion that lawmakers earmarked for Afghanistan, at least in part because levels of global civilian aid have already been set. “I think (the administration) might be trying to put a brave face on things because they don’t want to alarm Afghans,” Wilder said.
The sharp reduction in aid reflects frustration in Congress with State and USAID’s management of assistance to Afghanistan, and with the Afghan government itself. Aid programs have been plagued by reports of waste and fraud since 2001.
Administration officials have been unusually candid in voicing their frustration with Afghan President Hamid Karzai, who has refused to sign a bilateral agreement that would enable the United States to keep a modest force in Afghanistan beyond this year, even after Afghan elders approved the deal.
“U.S. policymakers should be careful not to punish the Afghan people, or undermine U.S. strategic interests in Afghanistan, based on their frustrations with an Afghan president who should be stepping down following presidential elections in less than three months,” Wilder said.
National elections in April could bring Afghanistan a new leader for the first time since 2001.
U.S. lawmakers have expressed concern that oversight of U.S. assistance would become even more difficult as troops withdraw, and if security further deteriorates.
In the same bill, in response to those concerns, lawmakers provided funding for the inspector general offices at State and USAID and for the office of the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan (SIGAR) at the level requested by the administration.
The inspector general offices at the State Department and USAID and SIGAR conduct reviews of U.S.-funded programs overseas, with the goal of ensuring U.S. taxpayers’ money is not misspent.
Posted in Afghanistan War | Tagged Afghanistan, news | Leave a reply
The Weapons of Islam
We who are in Islam must remember that Allah is our only helper every second, every minute, every hour, every time of prayer. Allah is our Ruler, the Ruler of Grace, the One who is Love, the Compassionate One, the One who calls us back to Him, the One who questions us, and the One who judges us. His grace exists in all lives, concealed in a tiny piece of flesh within the innermost heart. Just as the flesh of the tongue knows taste, just as the flesh of the nose perceives smell and the flesh of the ear hears sound and the flesh of the eye perceives light ~ like that, there is a tiny piece of flesh in the heart which worships Allah, looks at Him, hears Him, and prays to Him.
This is the throne of the true believer. This is where Allah dwells. This is His throne within the innermost heart, from which He rules and dispenses justice…
My brothers, you must quench the thirst of all lives. You must try to heal the sufferings of the world. This is the mercy and compassion of all the universes, the wealth that has been given to mankind, and we who have faith must strive to offer it to all. We should not carry a sword in our hands; we should hold patience in our hearts. We should not arm ourselves with guns; we should be armed with contentment. We should not put our trust in battles; we should have trust in God. We should not cling to the world; we should cling to the praise of God. These are the true weapons of Islam…
The Prophet had no warlike qualities. He had only the qualities of patience, contentment, trust in God, and praise of God. If those qualities are reestablished in each heart, if they flourish and grow there, then Islam will become a vast, protective canopy for the world.
If everyone in the community of Islam understood this and tried to establish peace, tolerance, and patience, that alone would bring peace to the world. The weapons of peace and tranquility will grant us victory no matter what enmity, what hostility, threatens us. We must realize this, my brothers in Islam. If we do, we will triumph in all three worlds, in the primal beginning, this world, and the hereafter.
In the name of Allah and His Messenger, I beg you to forgive me if anything I have said is wrong. Please forgive me if I have made any mistakes. I am only telling you what came to my heart. I am only telling you what I understand in my innermost heart…
Islam & World Peace ~ Explanations Of A Sufi
by Muhammad Raheem Bawa Muhaiyaddeen
A Sufi Tale
by GreenViggen
The Great Horned Toad
Posted in Time Machine | Tagged art, Muhaiyaddeen, sermon, spirituality, Sufism | 3 Replies
Taliban Reject U.S. Peace Pipe
Written by Bill Roggio
The Long War Journal
A top spokesman for the Afghan Taliban rejected the US’ call for the group to “put down their arms and begin peace talks,” a request that was made just one day after a Taliban suicide assault team killed 21 people, including two Americans, at a restaurant in Kabul.
“We strongly reject the American demand,” Zabihullah Mujahid, an official Taliban spokesman, said in an email sent to The Long War Journal. Mujahid’s statement was also published on the Taliban’s website, Voice of Jihad.
“America wants to turn a blind eye from a manifest reality and conveniently skip over the primary reason for the problems of Afghanistan,” he continued. Mujahid said that “the American invasion and its resultant barbarity” was the Taliban’s reason for continuing the fight.
“If America truly wants peace and stability for Afghanistan then it should immediately withdraw all its forces from our land and leave the Afghans to their own wills and aspirations,” he continued. “If America is adamant on war and occupation then it should wait for more deadly attacks.”
Mujahid was responding to an official statement by the White House that condemned the Jan. 17 suicide assault on a Lebanese restaurant in Kabul that killed 21 people, including the IMF’s representative to Afghanistan, three UN workers, two Americans, two Brits, two Canadians, and a Danish citizen.
The Taliban claimed the Kabul attack was retaliation for the Jan. 15 raid in Parwan province that targeted a senior Taliban commander who is linked to the Haqqani Network and supports suicide bombings and attacks in the capital.
In the White House statement, the US reiterated that it wants to negotiate with the Taliban.
“We call again on the Taliban to put down their arms and begin peace talks, which is the surest way to end the conflict in a peaceful manner,” the White House statement said.
The US government has unsuccessfully pursued peace talks with the Taliban for the past five years as the Obama administration seeks to withdraw the bulk of the forces from the country by the end of 2014. Vice President Joe Biden is pushing for a residual force of less than 3,000 troops to remain in country, while the ‘zero option,’ or no US forces in country, is a distinct possibility. The administration believes that a peace deal with the Taliban will end the fighting and prevent al Qaeda from operating in the country.
Previously, the US has demanded that the Taliban denounce al Qaeda and join the Afghan political process. The demand that the Taliban denounce al Qaeda was dropped last year as the Taliban were permitted to open an office in Qatar. Western officials wanted the Taliban to use the office to conduct peace talks, but the Taliban insisted it was to be used to raise the profile of the group in the international community and serve as a “political office.” Additionally, the Taliban wanted to use the office in Qatar to secure the release of five al Qaeda-linked commanders who are being held by the US at Guantanamo Bay.
The Taliban signaled in early 2012, during another US push for peace talks, that they had no intentions of disowning al Qaeda, and refused to denounce international terrorism. A Taliban spokesman even said that al Qaeda is officially operating under the banner of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan.
“They [al Qaeda] are among the first groups and banners that pledged allegiance to the Emir of the Believers [Mullah Omar, the leader of the Afghan Taliban], and they operate in Afghanistan under the flag of the Islamic Emirate,” a spokesman to jihadist forums known as Abdullah al Wazir said in February 2012.
“They are an example of discipline and accuracy in the execution of missions and operations entrusted to them by the Military Command of the Islamic Emirate,” Wazir continued, calling al Qaeda “lions in war.”
Posted in Afghanistan War, Geography, Time Machine | Tagged Afghanistan, Native Americans, news, peace, peace talks, photo story, Taliban, USA | Leave a reply
Taliban Target Foreigners in Kabul
Grand Mosque of Kabul constructed 2001-2009, no doubt payed for by “foreigners”
The Afghan Taliban claimed credit for a suicide assault in Kabul today that killed more than 20 people, including the International Monetary Fund’s representative to Afghanistan and three UN employees.
A three-man suicide assault team targeted a Lebanese restaurant in a secured area of the capital that is frequented by Westerners, foreigners, and the Afghan elite. A suicide bomber detonated outside of the restaurant, while the other two Taliban fighters entered the building, shot at the customers, and fought with the guards for 20 minutes before being killed.
Twenty-one people, including the IMF’s representative to Afghanistan, three UN workers, two Americans, two Brits, two Canadians, and a Danish citizen were killed in the attack, according to Reuters.
The Taliban released a statement on their website, Voice of Jihad, taking credit for the attack. The Taliban claimed that their fighters “killed many foragers [foreigners], mostly German invaders.” The group routinely exaggerates the effects of its operations. The German foreign ministry has not confirmed that its citizens were among those killed.
Today’s attack took place just two days after Afghan and Coalition special operations forces targeted the Taliban’s deputy shadow governor for Parwan province, which borders Kabul. The Taliban leader, Qari Nazar Gul, is linked to the Haqqani Network and “transports weapons, fighters and suicide bombers to Parwan and Kabul,” ISAF stated. He supports the Kabul Attack Network, an alliance of jihadist groups that includes al Qaeda and the Haqqani Network and is tasked with executing attacks inside the capital.
The Taliban later released a statement claiming that the attack in Kabul was executed to avenge the Afghan and Coalition raid in Parwan province that targeted Gul.
The Afghan Taliban lauded suicide attacks against Western and Afghan targets as “heroic operations of the Mujahideen” in statement released on Voice of Jihad last summer.
The suicide assault, or coordinated attack using multiple suicide bombers and an assault team, is a tactic that is frequently used in Afghanistan by the Taliban and their allies, including the Haqqani Network, the Movement of the Taliban in Pakistan, al Qaeda, and the Lashkar-e-Taiba. Suicide assaults are also commonly executed by al Qaeda and jihadist groups in Iraq, Syria, Yemen, Pakistan, Somalia, and Nigeria.
The Taliban have launched numerous suicide assaults against Coalition and Afghan bases. One of the more prominent attacks over the past several years was the Afghan Taliban’s assault on Camp Bastion in Helmand in September 2012; two US Marines were killed, and six Harriers were destroyed and two more were damaged.
The Taliban launched a failed suicide assault on an Afghan base in Nangarhar on Jan. 4; the seven members of the Taliban team were gunned down by security forces. One ISAF soldier was killed in the attack.
http://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2014/01/taliban_suicide_assa_17.php
Posted in Afghanistan War | Tagged Afghanistan, Kabul, news, Taliban | Leave a reply
~~~ Beautiful mosque in Herat
by Kathy Gilsinan
Historically a crossroads of commerce and culture linking Persia and Central Asia, the ethnically mixed western region of Afghanistan has more recently been notable for the stability and wealth of its most important province, Herat, and its capital city of the same name. The province of Herat, which borders Iran and Tajikistan, owes much of its prosperity to customs revenue, which in turn is one of the two main domestic sources of revenue for the central government in Kabul. Herat’s growth and integration with the rest of Afghanistan, however, are threatened by instability and poor infrastructure in the surrounding provinces.
Since 2005, Italy has served as the lead nation of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Regional Command West, which includes Herat and the surrounding provinces of Ghor, Badghis and Farah. There are currently about 5,000 ISAF troops in the region, from a peak of about 8,000 in late 2011, and under the draft U.S.-Afghanistan bilateral security agreement currently pending signature, the military base south of the city of Herat would be one of nine across the country the U.S. would retain access to after 2014.
The Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF) began to assume lead responsibility for security in Herat in late 2011, and have gradually taken over in the rest of the western region since then. Herat itself has remained secure in the transition period, according to Aziz Hazim of the Herat Government and Media Information Center. “Given the relative stability” of the provincial government, he says, after the handover to Afghan forces, “there was not much change in the security situation in Herat province.” Col. Stefano Cianfrocca of the Italian air force, deputy chief of staff for stability in Regional Command West, says the ANSF passed the crucial early test of securing the voter registration process ahead of the presidential election set for this April. “There have been elections before, but they have been closely supervised and supported by ISAF and international organizations,” Cianfrocca says. “This time the Afghans have taken the lead on the elections.”
Working in the ANSF’s favor in western Afghanistan is the absence of conditions faced by Afghan forces in other parts of the country. “Western Afghanistan has not had a history, like that of the east and south, of intertribal fighting over the decades,” says Karl Eikenberry, who served as U.S. ambassador to Afghanistan from 2009 to 2011. (Disclosure: I worked for Eikenberry as a graduate research assistant at Stanford University from 2011 to 2012.) “There were sources of violence and instability in the west, but not to the degree we found in Regional Commands East, South and Southwest,” he adds.
It also helps that western Afghanistan does not share a border with Pakistan. Iran has demonstrated a keen interest in western Afghanistan’s development, and though there have been reports of Iran arming and training militants there, its alleged support for the insurgency has not been nearly so widespread and well-funded as Pakistan’s. Iran has meanwhile provided some $500 million in aid to Afghanistan, most of it concentrated in the western region; it has granted Afghanistan access to its Chabahar port, freeing Afghan businesses from nearly exclusive reliance on Pakistan’s port at Karachi; and it is constructing a railway link between eastern Iran and Herat, which could further cement Herat’s role as a regional trade hub.
But if geography has given western Afghanistan, and Herat in particular, some advantages, it also presents dangers. Iran has deported thousands of Afghan refugees, exacerbating a potentially destabilizing flow of migration along Afghanistan’s western border. Meanwhile, rising instability in Herat’s neighboring provinces could suffocate Herat’s growth or damage its links to the rest of Afghanistan. A recent Pentagon report noted rising violence in Farah, which borders Herat to the south, attributing it to militants pushed out of neighboring Helmand province by the 2009 U.S. military surge.
But the conditions for Farah’s instability predated the surge. Farah is a large province with poor infrastructure, making it difficult and expensive for Afghan security forces to control; they rely instead on local militias known as the Afghan Local Police, which are controversial for their history of abusing residents. “Just keeping the road infrastructure safe must be . . . a nightmare,” says Fabrizio Foschini of the Afghanistan Analysts Network, who has documented “a serious deterioration in security” as the province transitioned to Afghan security lead. Farah is also the only province in western Afghanistan heavily affected by the opium economy. “We’ll see it again in a couple of months come harvest time—you have Taliban and communities fighting side by side against the government,” Foschini says. “The situation can become problematic in the next few years in what lies around this sort of security oasis” in Herat.
Even Herat’s wealth has attracted its own kind of violence, more opportunistic than ideological. While the province rarely makes headlines for spectacular attacks—though a suicide attack on the U.S. consulate last September, claimed by the Taliban, showed the city was not immune—insurgents and criminals more often resort to kidnapping for ransom. “Herat has long been the kidnapping capital of Afghanistan,” Foschini says. Criminal networks that may not be formally allied with the Taliban have a freer hand to extort locals given that the police are, in Foschini’s words, “fighting basically a war”—in turn, the unsafe environment they create may scare off the businesses Herat depends on, creating opportunities for the Taliban through rising instability.
The Taliban’s fall, and international investment in infrastructure and development, have allowed western Afghanistan to capitalize on some of its geographical advantages. Through expanding trade links and improved customs collection, Herat’s growth in particular is less dependent on international aid than that of other pockets of relative wealth in Afghanistan, making it more likely that most of Herat’s gains over the past 12 years will outlast the international presence there. Whether and to what extent those gains can benefit the rest of the country, given the belt of instability that surrounds Herat, is unclear, though, and protecting western Afghanistan’s “security oasis” will test ANSF for many years to come.
http://www.worldpoliticsreview.com
Posted in Geography | Tagged Afghanistan, essay, Herat | 3 Replies
US Marine in Helmand Valley
Stamp the valley with a footprint
Light as you can be
Don’t wanna get too heavy
Floating naturally
Got yourself a boat
Looking fine as can be
Got yourself a drink
We know you very well
We’ve met you in our dreams
Stay alert, keep your balance
So beautiful & free
If you happen to get captured
Capture them right back
When you’ve got them all knocked out
Float away quietly
from Rawclyde!
Posted in Time Machine | Tagged art, female soldier, photo story, poetry, Rawclyde! | Leave a reply
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Posted on June 14, 2019 by Rawclyde!
by Zulfiqar Ali
Kharlachi, Pakistan
For generations, families on both sides of the Pakistan-Afghanistan border worked together to till the fields of wheat, corn and rice that spread across the rugged plains.
With no physical boundary between the countries, the families joined forces every year to desilt the canal that irrigated the lands. They shared not only ethnic and blood bonds, but also the harvests from the fertile soil.
But a year and a half ago, the cross-border farming came to a stop. The Pakistani army began erecting a chain-link fence topped with coils of razor wire.
Syed Gul, a Pakistani farmer who owns 20 acres that straddle both sides near the Pakistani town of Kharlachi, cannot access the Afghan side, and Pakistani soldiers have told him not even to approach the land that lies inside Pakistan because getting too close to the fence would constitute a security breach.
“The land has been made barren since the government fenced the border,” said Gul, 55.
The barrier is part of the Pakistani government’s response to long-standing criticisms that it has failed to control the movement of militants across the porous border.
Its border management plan, launched in 2017, calls for a divider along all 1,600 miles of the frontier, with backing by closed-circuit television cameras and drone footage, along with hundreds of checkpoints. The army said in January that about 560 miles of fence had been completed at a cost of about $460 million.
The region, which consists of 10,400 square miles of tribal land, was once considered a haven for Al Qaeda, the Taliban and other militant outfits. Some 3 million civilians have been displaced there over the past decade.
The area has been relatively calm since the army launched an offensive beginning in 2014 that it said cleared out the insurgents.
Islamabad says the fencing will disrupt militants plotting terrorist attacks in Afghanistan and Pakistan. But in an impoverished and undeveloped region, where farming and illicit cross-border trade were among the only sources of income, the fence has upended lives.
Gul’s Pashtun ethnic group has seen both sides of the border as its homeland for centuries. Pashtuns moved freely across it during the British colonial era, even after the 1893 Durand Line agreement formally demarcated the boundary.
“We never considered it a border between two countries,” Gul said. “People did not seek verbal permission from the officials patrolling the border when they needed to work in their fields on the Afghanistan side.”
Pakistanis from certain tribes living along the border once needed only a “red pass” issued by the Pakistani tribal affairs department in the city of Peshawar that allowed unlimited movement back and forth across the border. The pass was gradually withdrawn in the 1970s and 1980s, but since then most Pakistanis crossed into Afghanistan without visas.
“I got on the bus with my friends in Peshawar and went to Kabul by bus to watch Indian movies in the cinema,” recalled Ziaul Haq Sarhadi, a 65-year-old trader in Peshawar.
The fence has cut off thousands of families who share the same culture, traditions, language, religion and land. Many people in Pakistan’s tribal region sold their lands inside Afghanistan when the border management plan was introduced.
“We sold 100 acres of land in Paktika” — a border province in eastern Afghanistan — “at a throwaway price,” said Dilawar Wazir, a resident of Pakistan’s South Waziristan tribal district.
Official trade between the two countries has also fallen, harming Afghanistan’s landlocked and war-battered economy. Pakistani exports to Afghanistan, which amounted to $2.6 billion in 2010-11, fell to $1.4 billion last year, according to government statistics.
Ibrahim Shinwari, a small businessman living in the Khyber tribal district, said Pakistan’s border plan has left 2,500 people jobless in the border town of Torkham, formerly a major transit terminal for goods between the two countries that was also used by U.S.-led international forces to bring supplies into Afghanistan.
Six out of nine restaurants in Torkham have closed, he said, and the daily flow of vehicles crossing in and out of Afghanistan has slowed from the thousands to the hundreds.
“No more is the place buzzing with economic activity as it once did,” Shinwari said. “All that hustle and bustle has died down into economic depression.”
Azmat Hayat, former director of the Area Study Center at the University of Peshawar, said that before the U.S. invaded Afghanistan in 2001, the border was ignored.
“The Durand Line is a reality because of the changing geostrategic situation in the region,” Hayat said.
Traditions are also dying, with families on either side of the border unable to celebrate festivals together or visit the houses of sick or deceased relatives on the other side to offer condolences.
“It has brought an end to family relations,” said Nadir Manan, a Pakistani who said he couldn’t attend the recent wedding of his niece in Afghanistan.
Pakistan’s former ambassador to Afghanistan, Rustam Shah Mohmand, called the fencing “disastrous” and said it violated more than a century’s worth of agreements between the countries to allow free movement, particularly of families with historical ties to the land.
“The government cannot stop cross-border movement of terrorists by erecting the fence,” Mohmand said. “It just cuts off families and will cause acrimony between the two countries.”
https://www.latimes.com/world/asia/la-fg-pakistan-afghanistan-border-wall-20190527-story.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Afghanistan%E2%80%93Pakistan_barrier
Posted in Geography | Tagged Afghanistan, Pakistan | Leave a reply
press trust of india – islamabad
january 28, 2019 (5 months ago)
The Pakistan Army has said that the fencing of a substantial portion of the over 2,600-km-long Afghan border has been completed and the rest will be finished by next year to check the movement of terrorists.
Pakistan has spent billions of rupees for putting fence on the porous border.
Army spokesman Major General Asif Ghafoor said that the fencing of the entire border will be completed next year with the cost of about Rs 70 billion, Radio Pakistan reported.
Gafoor said that of the total 2,611 km, fencing of 900 km has been completed.
He said besides fencing, the project also includes gadgets and surveillance equipment to keep strict vigilance on illicit movement from across the border.
“The fence has amply helped to check the movement of terrorists from across the border and it would further assist after completion of the project,” Ghafoor said in an interaction with a group of media during a visit to border tribal district of North Waziristan
Media representatives visited Ghulam Khan, Miranshah and other parts of North Waziristan for the first time after the military operations.
He said the fence had helped check the movement of terrorists from across the border and the situation would further improve after the completion of the project.
Giving a break-up, Gafoor said that about 1,200km of the total 2,600km border with Afghanistan was in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province and the rest is in Balochistan province.
The work on the erection of about 1200 km chunk, the most sensitive portion out of the total 2,600km border with the war-torn country, had commenced last year.
The fence has made it difficult for terrorists to cross the border. It will stop
cross-border terrorism and uncontrolled movement of the people even if the law and order situation gets worst again in Afghanistan after the withdrawal of US troops, The News International reported.
In December, President Donald Trump decided to pull a significant number of American troops from Afghanistan.
Earlier, briefing the media representatives at Corps Headquarters Peshawar, Commander 11 Corps Lt Gen Shaheen said after the end of war in the area, the troops are now in the process of consolidation.
He said ninety five per cent work of resettlement of Internally Displaced Persons has already been accomplished.
He said following the operation against militants, there is no “No Go Area” in the tribal region.
https://www.business-standard.com/article/pti-stories/pak-to-complete-fencing-of-2-600-km-long-afghan-border-by-next-year-119012800498_1.html
by Rahimullah Yusufzai
Russia hosted the second intra-Afghan meeting in less than four months as it continues to seek a role as a credible mediator for ending the Afghan conflict.
The first meeting, which brought together Taliban leaders and Afghan opposition politicians, was held in Moscow in February. It was a landmark event because the commencement of intra-Afghan dialogue is considered essential for national reconciliation.
The second intra-Afghan dialogue organized on May 28-29 was a repeat of the previous one, but with a crucial difference. It was the first time Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, the Taliban deputy leader and head of the movement’s political commission in Qatar, came face to face with prominent Afghan politicians, including Hamid Karzai, Hanif Atmar, Ata Mohammad Noor, Younas Qanooni and Mohammad Mohaqiq, following his release last October after spending eight years in Pakistani custody. It was also his first visit to Russia, which has used its growing contacts within the Taliban to step up its own diplomatic initiative for ending the Afghan war.
Moscow timed the intra-Afghan conference with the 100th anniversary celebrations of diplomatic relations between Afghanistan and Russia. This is a remarkable turnaround in the relations between the two countries as the invasion of Afghanistan by the erstwhile USSR in December 1979 to prop up a struggling Afghan communist regime had fueled a fierce war of resistance until 1989.
The Taliban took home happy memories from the first intra-Afghan conference in Moscow as the joint declaration issued on the occasion endorsed major Taliban demands. It called for the complete withdrawal of US-led foreign forces from Afghanistan, the release of Taliban prisoners and the removal of Taliban leaders’ names from the UN Security Council blacklist.
The second intra-Afghan meeting in Moscow, however, didn’t reach any agreement, and caused disappointment as Afghan politicians unsuccessfully pushed the Taliban to agree to a cease-fire. As some delegates reported, the two sides worked on a 12-article joint statement, but disagreement about the cease-fire caused them to merely issue a short press release.
The statement said both sides discussed important issues linked with the destiny of the Afghan people including the continuation of intra-Afghan talks, cease-fire, release of prisoners and women’s rights, among others. Without elaborating, it noted that some progress had been made on a number of issues, but no agreement was made “because reaching agreements needed more discussions.”
So the discussions will continue in the next round of intra-Afghan talks likely to be held in Qatar. An earlier plan to convene a broader intra-Afghan conference in Qatar involving representatives of the Afghan government didn’t materialize as the Taliban objected to the large size of the delegation coming from Kabul. The Taliban also did not want the Afghan government to play the lead role in finalizing a list of 250 delegates to attend the Doha meeting. Besides, they had imposed the condition that all participants, including Afghan government officials, would participate in their personal capacity.
Though Russia has twice managed to hold an intra-Afghan dialogue in Moscow, the process was incomplete due to the absence of the internationally recognized Afghan government.
Despite facing isolation at home due to growing internal opposition and abroad on account of his government’s non-representation in the Taliban-US talks in Doha and intra-Afghan meetings in Moscow, President Ashraf Ghani made the point that only his elected government had the mandate to make decisions about the peace process and Afghanistan’s future.
It cannot be kept out forever, even though the twice delayed presidential election, now due on Sept. 28, has created uncertainty about who will eventually represent the government in the peace process.
Russia has an abiding interest in Afghanistan due to its regional proximity. As former Afghan president Karzai noted, relations between the two countries are among the oldest and most important.
Though the Taliban are officially a terrorist organization in Russia, that didn’t stop Moscow from engaging with the group and inviting its leaders to meetings in a bid to make itself relevant to the Afghan peace process.
The US also made an effort in April to engage its rivals, Russia and China, to reach a consensus on efforts to end the Afghan conflict. But global politics and regional rivalries could pose problems as the US, Russia and China, as well as Pakistan, Iran and India, vie for influence in determining Afghanistan’s future.
Rahimullah Yusufzai is a senior political and security analyst in Pakistan. He was the first to interview Taliban founder Mullah Mohammad Omar and twice interviewed Osama bin Laden in 1998.
Disclaimer: Views expressed by writers in this section are their own and do not necessarily reflect Arab News’ point-of-view.
http://www.arabnews.com/node/1508381
Posted in war & peace | Tagged Afghanistan | Leave a reply
Posted on June 4, 2019 by Rawclyde!
for u.s. president
Posted in war & peace | Tagged campaign, courage, democracy, Democrats, duty, elections, freedom, politics, US President, USA | Leave a reply
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« Judge: Catholic hospital must not be forced to sterilize people
Medical holograms »
Father Fredy Angel
https://www.catholicextension.org/about-us/lumen-christi-award/2015-lumen-christi-award-finalists/fr-fredy-angel-building-mission
Father Fredy Angel, a native of Bogotá, Colombia, serves as pastor of Queen of Peace Parish in Lakeland and of the parish’s mission in nearby Ray City. In the Diocese of Savannah in southern Georgia, only 3 percent of the population is Catholic. When he began his term as pastor in 2008, there was only a small group of parishioners attending Mass. Today Sunday Masses in the Lakeland church draw so many area Catholics that the congregation is spilling out of the church and into the street. Originally founded to serve a small population of African-American Catholics, the parish today is racially diverse and serves whites, African-Americans and the growing Hispanic population in the area.
Despite many difficulties early on in his pastoral appointment—Father Fredy had to travel more than 150 miles each week to celebrate up to eight Masses in four different locations, and he had to live in a run-down rectory—he persevered and has poured his heart and soul into turning this previously struggling small Catholic parish into a thriving, dynamic and growing multi-ethnic community. He has established religious education programs that draw both children and adults to the parish. Many Catholics who had previously stopped attending church have come back to worship, not only because of his outreach and dedication to the community, but also because of his charismatic personality and passion for his ministry. He has also earned the respect and admiration of many Protestants in the two towns, who see him as a leader of their community.
Today there are 100 children enrolled in the religious education classes. In the seven and a half years of being their pastor, Father Fredy has celebrated 32 marriages. In the 19 years prior to his time there, only 19 were celebrated. He has brought 154 people to celebrate their first Communion, when in the past 29 years, a total of only 140 people did so. His flock continues to grow, and with Father Fredy as their shepherd, it is easy to see why.
He has led his parish by example, always the first to pick up a mop to clean the buildings or lend a hand in washing the dishes. His congregation has seen how he cares for the sick. They have seen how he has bridged the long-standing gap between English- and Spanish-speaking parishioners. They have seen how he has hosted potlucks after Mass. They have seen how he has worked outside of the church walls to help them with daily struggles such as family problems, counseling needs, social services and the many challenges the area’s young people are facing. This kind of devotion has brought more life back to the church, as well as people.
As the parish has continued to grow, Father Fredy has had to realize that a new and larger church needed to be built. He is now leading and involving his congregation in building that new church in a centralized location—within 20 minutes of driving for any of the parishioners from the three towns it will serve. The new parish, to be named St. Anthony of Padua, is scheduled to be dedicated in early 2016 and will have enough space for every religious education class to have a single classroom, rather than the current situation of combining groups in one classroom, or being forced to use the kitchen as a substitute classroom. In addition, it will include soccer fields and the parish also owns a property across the street where Father Fredy hopes to one day build a parish school.
Father Fredy is a priest in the Pope Francis mold, a shepherd who, in the pope’s memorable expression, is “living with the smell of his sheep.” His perseverance, commitment to his community, his leadership in bridging the various ethnic communities, and his close collaboration with Bishop Gregory Hartmayer to build a sustainable new church for the parish are just a few of the ways he is bringing the “light of Christ” to the people in the Diocese of Savannah, Georgia.
This entry was posted on Tuesday, January 19th, 2016 at 8:19 am and is filed under News & Commentary. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.
Self-Giving Love Code: KSGL
Better by the Dozen, Plus Two Code: BBBD
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Co-operatives are a different kind of business model that are driven by people, planet and profit. The Ontario Co-operative Association (OCA) is the provincial trade association for Ontario’s 1,500+ English-speaking co-operatives. Our job is to ensure that people across the province understand the benefits and versatility of the co-operative business model, and to promote our member-owned co-operative businesses that contribute $6 billion to the Ontario economy.
OCA wants communities across Ontario to grow and thrive, and we believe that the co-operative model has a significant role to play in capturing opportunities for new business, creating stronger and more vibrant local economies, increasing community engagement and building a more sustainable social economy overall.
We support groups wanting to build new or develop established co-operative businesses. We provide co-operatives with support and services in the areas of business development, advocacy and education, and create opportunities to unite, collaborate and celebrate as ONE voice and movement. By encouraging co-operatives to connect, work and act as a co-ordinated group, we strive to build a higher profile with the public, government and with each other.
OCA is a non-profit co-operative that was originally formed in 1989 as CCA Ontario Region, and officially incorporated in 2002. We are one of nine provincial associations that serve English-speaking co-operatives and co-op member organizations across Canada, that are linked through a national committee, the Council of Regional Executives (CORE).
Learn more about us by clicking on one of the links below.
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Home World Africa Laurence Pope Appointed as US Charge d’ Affairs to Libya
Laurence Pope Appointed as US Charge d’ Affairs to Libya
Mina Fabulous
Fri October 12, 2012
The United States today appointed Laurence Pope as the new Charge d’Affairs to Libya. He is the successor to the slain ambassador Chris Stevens.
Reports say the US State Department announced on Thursday that Laurence Pope, a veteran diplomat, has already arrived in Tripoli.
In her statement at Washington DC today, Department Spokesperson says Mr. Pope’s selection as Charge d’ Affairs emphasizes the commitment of the United States to the relationship between our two countries and to the people of Libya as they move forward in their transition to a democratic government.
“We will continue to assist as Libya builds democratic institutions and broad respect for the rule of law – the goals that Ambassador Stevens worked hard to achieve.” -Ms. Nuland
According to Ms. Nuland, Mr. Pope looks forward to working with the Libyan Government and the Libyan people during this historic and challenging time, as the US builds strong economic, social, political, and educational bridges between our two people.
Ms. Nuland says that Pope served as a Foreign Service Officer from 1969-2000.
Mr. Pope was the former Director for Northern Gulf Affairs (1987-1990), Associate Director for Counter-Terrorism (1991-1993), U.S. Ambassador to Chad (1993-1996), and Political Advisor to the Commander-in-Chief of United States Central Command (1997-2000).
In 2000, President Clinton nominated him as Ambassador to Kuwait.
Laurence Pope retired from the U.S. Foreign Service on October 2, 2000 after 31 years of service.
Ms. Nuland cites Mr. Pope continues to consult with various institutions and is a respected author.
A graduate of Bowdoin College, Charge Pope also had advanced studies at Princeton University and is a graduate of the U.S. Department of State Senior Seminar. He is also a Senior Fellow at the Armed Forces Staff College.
Mr. Pope also speaks Arabic and French.
Last month, the United States of America mourned the death of four American personnel in Benghazi who died in a rocket attack on Wednesday.
Reports say Chris Stevens, the U.S. ambassador to Libya were killed along with three others in a rocket attack on the American Consulate in Benghazi.
Laurence Pope
Mina Fabulous follows the news, especially what is going on in the US State Department. Mina turns State Department waffle into plain English. Mina Fabulous is the pen name of Carmen Avalino, the NewsBlaze production editor. When she isn’t preparing stories for NewsBlaze writers, she writes stories, but to separate her editing and writing identities, she uses the name given by her family and friends.
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Sudha Murthy
February 13, 2019 February 13, 2019 / Nimz / 1 Comment
In life, we often look up to some people with awe, totally bowled over by their persona. In my case, I was always in awe of women who dared to do something different and something which goes against the social stigmas. I had this perfect ally in the form of my friend, Eivine Renny, who works in a reputed Web Designing Company based in Chennai and Tirunelveli. We both used to delve deep into the lives of awesome women who made the world stop and look at her in awe. We would read about such women together and also discuss how these women are a perfect example of a role model.
Recently, we stumbled on the tale of Sudha Murthy, the chairperson of Infosys Foundation, a well-known philanthropist, an intriguing author, the seed investor and backbone of Infosys. The tale of Sudha Murthy is indeed awe-inspiring one as she was one badass who dared to tackle all the hurdles thrown in her way and move forward with the determination to achieve more.
Clad in simple cotton sarees, she sports the adornment of simplicity and casts spell with her actions and talks. Sudha Murthy is undoubtedly a woman who sports different hats all at once. Being someone who loves to travel a lot, she is a globetrotter who is ever ready to pack her bags and explore the world. Besides that, she is an excellent homemaker, a smart engineer and an irrepressible social worker. She made heads turn back in the 60s by boldly opting for a bob haircut which was in those days considered as a highly outrageous act by a woman.
Stepping Into The Male-Dominated Engineering!
Unlike the present advanced era of smart women engineers, back in the 1960s, engineering was not considered as a woman’s cup of tea. Defying norms, Sudha decided to pursue engineering and stepped in as the only female engineering student among 150 students. The college never had a female student and hence, didn’t have any facilities for females, not even a women’s toilet. She was greeted with jeers; boys never left a stone unturned to insult her by spilling ink on her chairs and shooting paper planes her way. But, she remained strong and focused on her studies. In any exam, everyone knew the exam results beforehand. Sudha would always top the exams, and her name would be the first one that goes on the wall. Sudha remained unfazed at the taunts of her classmates as her goals were much bigger even in those teenage days.
Courtship With Narayana And Pre-Infosys Plannings!
When Narayana and Sudha started to court each other, Narayana was penniless and broke. The couple used to explore almost all restaurants and cinema halls in Pune and Narayana would always ask Sudha to pay his share, and he would return it one day when he gets a proper paying job. Sudha used to jot down the money Narayana owed her in a book, and after long three years, the debt counted to Rs.4000. Later, Sudha tore up the book just before her wedding with Narayana and Narayana too never returned the money as the relation had turned to be a bond of love rather than money.
Reaching Out To The Horizons With Solo Trips!
Even in today’s advanced world, still, some of us may hesitate to embark on a solo trip. But, Sudha was never the one to be stopped. After marriage, Sudha decided to explore the world on a solo trip with due encouragement by Narayana. She stepped out with a backpack and explored the world on solo for long three months. She was even arrested once by the New York police as they mistook her to be a part of the Italian drug trafficking mafia group. She also spent one night with an old couple under the Grand Canyon. We had thought we only see such things in films whereas Sudha proved that it could happen easily in real life too if we have the determination to go ahead and live life in our terms.
Grabbing The First Female Engineer Post In TELCO!
While Sudha was scanning the papers for job opportunities, she stumbled on a job requirement for TELCO. As she was about to apply for it, she noticed a footnote below it which stated: “female candidates need not apply.” She found that unjustifiable and immediately wrote a letter to JRD Tata questioning him on how he can show a gender bias when he heads an innovative and prime house which is said to “think ahead of time.” Much to her surprise, JRD Tata was impressed by the fire in her and immediately granted her permission to attend the interview and also offered to pay for her trip. She went on to impress the interviewing panel and grabbed the job effortlessly. She went on to join the largest auto manufacturer company, TATA in the post of a Development Engineer and served in various locations like Pune, Jamshedpur, and Mumbai.
The Pillar Of Infosys
When Sudha moved to Mumbai, Narayana approached her with the idea of Infosys. He had no money to start with and only had dreams as an asset. Sudha encouraged him and asked him to go ahead and reach out for his dreams. She gave Rs. 10,000 to Narayana as an initial investment and asked him to chase his dreams and succeed within three years. She said that she would take up the responsibility of managing the finances of their house for three years but not longer than that.
She later left her job at TELCO and joined Narayana to be the pillar of support to achieve his dreams. She took up the role of a Senior System Analyst at Walchand Group of Industries so that their financial needs will be met. In addition to that, she worked as a programmer, cook, and clerk at Infosys as it bloomed and prospered in the hard work and perseverance of Narayana and Sudha.
In addition to all this, Sudha is also one of the best-selling authors of more than 1.5 million books which is a collection of short stories, novels, travelogues, nonfiction, technical books, and children’s books. She is a well-known philanthropist who believes that money can give certain comforts, but not all. It can be a heavy bag, and hence we need to donate it to those who deserve it so that we can travel the journey of life with a lightweight soul.
Sudha is undoubtedly one of the best role models for the women of today as she proves that hard work, determination, and the grit to live life in own terms can lead you to success and help you achieve the even the unachievable!
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505 Games launches Discovery Kids pet simulation
Posted on March 30, 2009 by Brian(@NE_Brian) in DS, News
Ponies and Kittens and Dolphins, Oh My! Owning, Raising and Caring For a Pet Has Never Been More Fun
LOS ANGELES (March 30, 2009) – Discovery Communications and global videogame publisher 505 Games announced today their line of Discovery Kids-branded pet simulation games have shipped to retail outlets nationwide. Exclusive for the Nintendo DS™, the new titles include Dolphin Discovery, Puppy Playtime, Pony Paradise and Kitten Corner. All four titles have an MSRP of $29.99 and rated “E” for Everyone.
”It is a privilege for 505 Games to work with such a prestigious brand as Discovery Kids,” said Adam Kline, president of 505 Games U.S. “Our new line of pet simulation games serves up the perfect combination of entertaining game play and pet-care problem solving skills that make this new series a great extension of the Discovery Kids experience.”
Dolphin Discovery invites kids to plunge into training and caring for one of the most awe-inspiring animals in the ocean. Players need to earn the trust of their pet dolphin in order to teach them amazing tricks by using the DS Stylus. Mastering a wide selection of tricks will fully prepare their dolphin for performing in front of huge crowds of appreciative spectators. Players can gauge their success by the reaction of the audiences watching the shows at the aquatic park, and are rewarded with even more dolphins to train. The game features realistic scenery that changes with the time of day, offering clear blue skies, spectacular sunsets and dreamy night views.
The life of a rescue dog is much more than fun and games! In Puppy Playtime, players raise and train their very own rescue dogs to eventually take on more than 30 missions alongside the police force, fire department and lifeguards. Three of the most popular rescue dog breeds are featured in the game, including the Dalmatian, German Shepherd and beloved Labrador Retriever. Players train their puppies from two months to one-year-old through a series of 20 mini-games, helping them become the best rescue dogs they can be!
Pony Paradise gives kids the unique chance to care for and train a pony from birth to adulthood. Players can choose from four realistic horse breads to groom, feed and take on rides in five different 3D environments, including the meadow, forest, circus, pony school and stables. More than 60 special items can be collected and used to customize the ponies, making them the most stylish in the stables.
In Kitten Corner, kids can own and raise their very own kitten. Players can select from a variety of favorite feline breeds and through 35 unlockable features, customize their adorable new friend with distinctive coloring and markings. Playtime begins as soon as the game begins, with 20 different mini-games, and 15 unique and challenging levels. Players care for their kitten with trips to the veterinarian center for check-ups, making sure it is in good health for entering contests and competitions.
To learn more about each of the games, visit http://www.DiscoveryKidsGames.com for game overviews, video, and even downloadable activities.
For more information including press materials and box art, please visit our press site at http://bhimpact.gamespress.com/client_page.asp?i=167
About Discovery Commerce
Discovery Commerce is the e-commerce, direct-to-consumer, home video and licensing arm of Discovery Communications, the number-one non-fiction media company. Discovery Commerce extends the viewer experience through a wide array of entertaining and informative products and services, including innovative and enriching toys for children of all ages, fan gear for Discovery’s popular series, and the best of Discovery’s non-fiction programs and series on DVD. Discovery Commerce’ selling channels include a robust online shopping site, www.discoverystore.com, the Discovery Channel® Store Catalog, direct-to-response television (DRTV) and strategic third-party retail, ecommerce and merchandising partnerships. Domestic Licensing translates network brands into a wide variety of innovative product lines that are sold through well-known retailers throughout the United States.
About 505 GAMES (U.S.)
Based in Los Angeles, CA, 505 Games (U.S.) is the North American division of 505 Games, a global videogame publisher. The U.S. operations launched in May, 2008 to bring quality interactive entertainment to North America on all game platforms including Microsoft Xbox 360™, Sony PlayStation® 2, PlayStation® 3, PSP, Nintendo Wii™ and DS, as well as PC, online, and mobile. The company’s management team hails from the leaders in global entertainment including major motion picture studios, videogame publishers and leading game development studios. With the company’s deep experience and proven success in interactive entertainment worldwide, 505 Games is looking to drive the industry forward with innovative game experiences that integrate next generation game play, immersive stories and integrated brands that can take the business to a new level. The company offers a broad selection of videogame titles in all genres for players of all ages.
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Emphasizing New Jersey's successful efforts in business retention and growth, Lt. Governor Kim Guadagno joined officials from GENEWIZ, Inc.on June 16, 2014, to mark the company's 15th anniversary during a ribbon cutting ceremony for their new 11,000 square foot administrative facility.
The biotech company began as a start-up and is a graduate of the state's Commercialization Center for Innovative Technologies (CCIT). CCIT provides service, support and resources for new and existing small businesses whose success will be significant to the growth and diversification of New Jersey's economic base.
GENEWIZ, Inc. received state tax incentives that allowed the company to stay and expand administrative and laboratory operations in South Plainfield creating approximately 30 new jobs.
Last Updated on Friday, 09 November 2018 04:11
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New York’s Efforts to Reform Surprise Medical Billing
NYSHealth
Surprise health care bills have recently been front-and-center at the national level. @nys_health issue brief on New York's efforts to reform medical billing:
A $2,000 bill for three stitches? See how New York is working to protect patients from surprise bills like this one. @nys_health issue brief:
In 2014, New York State was the first state to enact surprise bill legislation. Following New York’s lead, 24 other states now have some form of surprise bill protections; of these, only 9 states, including New York, are found to have comprehensive protections for consumers. A surprise bill generally refers to an insured patient being charged for services inadvertently received by an out-of-network health care provider regardless of the patient’s knowledge of the physician’s network status. Surprise bills have recently been front-and-center at the national level: U.S. senators have introduced bills to address the problem, the Trump administration met with a group of patients to hear their personal stories and concerns, and the American College of Emergency Physicians has released its own framework to protect patients from this frustrating process.
This NYSHealth issue brief provides details on New York’s groundbreaking surprise bill legislation, the impact of the law to date, and further enhancements that can be made to continue New York’s leadership on an issue that is increasingly receiving attention as a pro-consumer and pro-price transparency priority.
While much progress has been made at the State level, the brief offers further opportunities to build upon the success of New York’s law, including enhancing elements related to network adequacy standards and enforcement, network disclosure requirements, caps on provider billing, and expansion of the law to private companies.
A Conversation on the Status of Surprise Bill Laws and Future Challenges
Video: Empowering Health Care Consumers
New York’s Emergency Medical Services and Surprise Bills Law: A Conversation with an Advocate and an Enforcer
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NBA Expands from Two-Team Race
Alex McNicoll, Sports Editor|April 13, 2018
Since the 2015–2016 season in the NBA, when the Golden State Warriors — the reigning champions — passed Michael Jordan’s 1995–1996 Chicago Bulls for a seemingly unbreakable record of 73 wins and nine losses in a single season, the NBA regular season has largely been considered boring and predictable. While finals duels between the Warriors and Cleveland Cavaliers are always entertaining, fans of the league often prefer following player’s Instagram accounts or pre-game outfits during the regular season, and then only tune in for LeBron James’ yearly championship cameo. However, if this past regular season has proven anything, it’s that the Warriors and Cavaliers matchup we’ve grown accustomed to isn’t going to last much longer.
First and foremost, the Warriors and Cavaliers didn’t even come in first place in their conferences this year. In the Western Conference, the Houston Rocket’s James Harden not only did enough to earn the MVP award, which he will undoubtedly receive on June 25, but also led his team to an NBA-best 65–17 record. While the Warriors — who ended up in second place — battled injuries throughout a large part of the year between Stephen Curry and Kevin Durant, they still finished seven games behind Harden’s Rockets. The Rockets have a history of floundering in the playoffs, especially against the Warriors, but this year, with another season under his belt and superstar point guard Chris Paul joining him in the back court, Harden may have enough to take the conference.
Although the Western Conference has been a two-team race, there have been several teams at the heels of the Warriors and Rockets that can only get better. The Utah Jazz, led by rookie Donovan Mitchell and potential Defensive Player of the Year Rudy Gobert, were expected to fold after their star player Gordon Hayward left for the Boston Celtics last offseason, but they finished fifth in the stacked conference. In fact, just one game separated them and third-place Portland Trailblazers, whose star, Damian Lillard, has been one of the best players in the league this year. With Anthony Davis leading the New Orleans Pelicans to the sixth seed without DeMarcus Cousins, and the Oklahoma City Thunder having a full season of reigning MVP Russell Westbrook gelling with superstars Paul George and Carmelo Anthony, the West is full of teams just one or two pieces away from taking the top spot next season.
In the Eastern Conference, James has made it clear several times over his 15-year career that seeding isn’t important to him, and in all fairness, it shouldn’t be. As the all-time postseason scoring leader, James’ legendary playoff performances, including eight finals appearances and three victories, speak for themselves. Even this year, when his team underwent a complete midseason roster overhaul, his game has been strong enough to make his team a perennial threat. If anything, this has been his best year yet, as he set his career records in both rebounds and assists.
Cleveland fans shouldn’t be worried about the Cavaliers’ fourth-place finish in the Eastern Conference this year, but it is definitely a sign of things to come. Finishing ahead of them were the first-place Toronto Raptors, whose stars DeMar DeRozan and Kyle Lowry have finally matured into legitimate threats.
The Celtics are sure to pose a threat next season, as they locked up the second seed without their two best players. Kyrie Irving missed most of the end of the year with knee injuries, and Hayward — who broke his ankle in the season-opener — did not even play a full game. Despite this, second-year Jaylen Brown and rookie Jayson Tatum didn’t just keep the team afloat, but allowed them to thrive. While the 76ers don’t quite have a player like Irving, they are also a team full of young stars in the making. Whenver Joel Embiid, the electrifying second-year center who missed his first two full years to injury, is healthy, the 76ers instantly become a contender. However, even when he went down with an eye injury in the final month this season, the 76ers were able to finish on a sixteen-game winning streak in which they beat top teams like the Cavaliers and clinched the third seed. During this stretch, Ben Simmons, their 6’10” point guard who is a virtual lock for Rookie of the Year, averaged a triple-double. In just his first year in the league, he has drawn comparisons to the likes of James and Magic Johnson, and is sure to be one of the league’s premier talents for years to come.
Giannis Antetokounmpo, the fourth-year forward who finds himself playing all five positions for the Milwaukee Bucks, earned the moniker “The Greek Freak” with his preternatural abilities on all areas of the floor. While the Bucks haven’t been able to surround him with enough great players, at 23 years old, he will likely be battling Simmons and Irving for the Eastern Conference soon enough. Also rounding out the conference are likely Most Improved Player Victor Oladipo and the Indiana Pacers, who shocked everyone by locking up the fifth seed despite trading away Paul George this summer. In other words, the Eastern Conference isn’t the cake-walk it once was, and James won’t have such an easy path to the finals in years to come.
The NBA has always taken on WWE tactics to attract fans. While the MLB and NFL strive to have parity amongst all of their teams, the NBA’s appeal has always been rooted in its superstars. Between 30-foot three point shots, reverse slam dunks, and some of the best Twitter beefs in the sports world, the NBA is a big-personality league. Over the course of an 82-game season, the league has had to rely on these qualities a bit too much in the past four years. But with so many young players on the verge of dominating the league, the next regular season might just be exciting again.
Tags: Alex McNicoll, Cavaliers, nba, Warriors
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NASA probe back to map Saturn’s icy moons
Edited By Odishatv Bureau Published By IANS On Mar 31, 2015 - 4:27 PM
Washington: After almost two years of hovering high above Saturn’s poles that limited its ability to encounter the moons apart from regular flybys of Titan, NASA’s Cassini probe has finally returned to the realm of icy moons.
The spacecraft returned to equatorial orbits around Saturn in March after nearly two years, allowing the mission to once again have close encounters with Saturn’s moons other than Titan.
The latest dual view of Saturn’s icy moon Rhea marks the return of NASA’s Cassini spacecraft to the realm of the planet’s icy satellites.
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The two views of Rhea were taken about an hour-and-a-half apart when Cassini was about 50,000-80,000 km away from the moon.
The views show an expanded range of colours from those visible to human eyes in order to highlight subtle colour variations across Rhea’s surface.
In natural colour, the moon’s surface is fairly uniform. Cassini’s orbit will remain nearly equatorial for the rest of this year, during which the spacecraft will have four close encounters with Titan, two with Dione and three with the geyser-moon called Enceladus.
Cassini officially began its new set of equatorial orbits March 16. The Cassini mission is a joint project of NASA, European Space Agency (ESA) and the Italian Space Agency and managed by NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California.
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Demi Lovato (also known as Demetria Devonne Lovato) is an actress, singer, and songwriter who was born on August 20, 1992 in New Mexico. Active in the entertainment industry since she was 10 years old, she is best known for her pop and pop rock musical career.
Demi began her career as an actress, and was part of the show Barney & Friends from 2002 to 2004. In 2008, she acted in the Disney Channel series Camp Rock. During this time, she also released her debut single “This is Me”. This song reached number nine on the US Billboard Hot 100 charts.
Due to the success of Camp Rock and “This is Me”, Demi quickly became a household name. This landed her a contract with Hollywood Records, and she released her debut album in 2008. It was called Don’t Forget. The album peaked at number two on the US Billboard 200.
While experiencing a flourishing music career, Demi was also cast in another TV series called Sonny with a Chance. Soon after that, she released her second album called Here We Go Again. This was her first album to reach the top of the Billboard 200 chart. She was also once again cast for another installment of the Disney television series Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam.
Her career was put on hold in 2010 due to some personal issues. During this time, she entered a treatment center for addiction and an eating disorder. She was diagnosed with bipolar disorder. After completing treatment, she continued to work on her third album called Unbroken. This album was released in 2011, and in it she discussed some of her personal issues. In 2012 and 2013, she was cast as one of the judges on the American version of The X Factor.
Over the next few years, Demi Lovato released three more albums: Demi in 2013, Confident in 2015, and Tell Me You Love Me in 2017. The lead single from Tell Me You Love Me, “Sorry Not Sorry”, is the highest charting single of her career so far. It peaked at number 6 on the US charts.
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Mütter EDU
The Center for Education of The College of Physicians of Philadelphia
Out4STEM
Out@Mütter
Girls One Diaspora Club
Karabots Junior Fellows Program
TEVA Pharmaceuticals Internship Program
Now Accepting Applications for the Teva Pharmaceuticals STEM Internship
Posted in Teva Pharmaceuticals Internship by mutteredu
Are you a Philadelphia high school sophomore or junior who is interested in learning more about science, technology, engineering or math? Do you have a passion for social justice? Have you been affected by personal or community violence? If you answered “YES,” then you may be a strong candidate for the Teva Pharmaceuticals STEM Internship Program. We are currently accepting applications for students for our 2018-2019 cohort.
The Teva Pharmaceuticals STEM Internship Program is a one-year summer and after-school internship directed at Philadelphia high school students with an interest in STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) who have been impacted by community violence. Interns take part in lessons and activities designed to cultivate their strength and interest in science, technology, engineering, or mathematics; meet and interact with professionals in various STEM fields; learn to devise methods of coping with and responding to personal violence and violence in their communities; and cultivate a network of professional and emotional support among their peers. The Program also takes advantage of the unique resources of the College of Physicians of Philadelphia, including the world-famous Mütter Museum, the Historical Medical Library, and our vast network of Fellows to create an engaging experience unlike any other youth program.
The program focuses on the following themes:
Learning and applying forensic techniques such as crime scene investigation, fingerprinting, and ballistics.
Understanding the health system’s response to individuals with traumatic gunshot wounds, including emergency room procedures, rehabilitation, and physical therapy
Understanding the body’s physiological response to stress and stress relief techniques
Learning to talk, heal, and build community with your peers.
Learning to network with STEM professionals and future mentors.
The program consists of two parts. The first is a four-week summer internship that takes place through the month of July 2019. The second part is an after-school program that takes place once a week through the 2018-2019 school year. Transit keycards to and from all events will be supplied by the Center for Education. Students will also receive a stipend upon successful completion of the program. With the exception of off-site field trips, all activities will take place at the College of Physicians of Philadelphia (19 South 22nd Street).
If you are interested in learning about exciting careers in STEM and want to help make a difference in your community, you can fill out our online application. Any rising 11-12th grader (will be in 11th or 12th grade in the upcoming school year) currently enrolled at a school in the Philadelphia School District (including charter schools) is welcome to apply; however, students from private schools are NOT eligible to apply. There are no costs to enroll or be enrolled in the program. We require all students receive permission from a parent or guardian and provide contact information for a teacher or other adult mentor (coach, youth group leader, religious leader, etc.) who will serve as a reference. In order to better get to know you, we ask that you include in your application the answer the following question:
“Based on your personal experience, explain how violence have affected your life or your community. What is one possible solution to reduce the impact of violence on you or your community?”
Your answer can take the form of a brief essay (MAX 750 words) or a video (MAX 10 minutes). If you choose to create a video, the format is up to you; just remember to answer the above prompt. Application materials must be submitted no later than 11:59PM on Friday, May 31, 2019.
If you have any questions, contact Sarah Lumbo, Teen Health Programs Coordinator. You can also learn more about the Teva Internship Program by consulting our website.
The Teva Pharmaceuticals Internship program is made possible through a generous grant from Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd.
Careers in STEM, community violence, forensic science, Social Justice, Teva Pharmaceuticals Internship, youth programs Leave a comment
Now Accepting Applications for the Out4STEM Program
Posted in Out4STEM by mutteredu
Attention, Philadelphia high school students: we are excited to announce the College of Physicians of Philadelphia is now accepting applications for the 2019-2020 cohort of the out4STEM Internship Program!
The out4STEM Internship Program is a one-year, summer and after-school internship program aimed at LGBTQIA high school students in Philadelphia who have an interest in healthcare/medicine or science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). The Program also seeks to address the unique challenges facing Philadelphia LGBTQIA youth in an accepting, STEM-oriented safe space. The Program takes advantage of the unique resources of the College of Physicians of Philadelphia, including the world-famous Mütter Museum, the Historical Medical Library, and our vast network of Fellows to create an engaging experience unlike any other youth program.
During the course of the program, students will achieve the following goals:
Learn about careers related to science, technology, engineering, mathematics, and healthcare/medicine.
Cultivate relationships between like-minded, motivated Philadelphia LGBTQIA students and professionals.
Develop a greater understanding of the body’s physiological response to stress.
Facilitate stress-relieving techniques.
Address the impact of bullying and discrimination and develop responses.
Learn to communicate, heal, and build a community.
The program consists of two parts. The first is a four-week summer internship that takes place through the month of July (the upcoming summer internship will take place July 5-27, 2019). The second part is an after-school program that takes place once a week through the 2019-2020 school year. Transit tokens to and from all events will be supplied by the Center for Education. Students will also receive a stipend upon successful completion of the program. With the exception of off-site field trips, all activities will take place at the College of Physicians of Philadelphia (19 South 22nd Street).
In order to be eligible for the Out4STEM Internship Program, candidates must meet the following requirements (Note: There are no costs to enroll or be enrolled in the Out4STEM Internship Program):
Currently enrolled in a high school within the Philadelphia School District, including public, private, parochial, or charter schools.
Possess an interest in healthcare, medicine, or STEM (science, technology, engineering, or math)
Interested students must submit an application form form accompanied by the following items:
If you are interested in joining the out4STEM Internship Program, you can fill out our online application. We require all students receive permission from a parent or guardian and provide contact information for a teacher or other adult mentor (coach, youth group leader, religious leader, etc.) who will serve as a reference. In order to better get to know you, we ask that you include in your application the answer the following questions:
1) “What aspect of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) is most interesting to you and why?”
2) “What do you hope to get out of being a member of the out4STEM Program?”
Your answer can take the form of a brief essay (MAX 750 words) or a video (MAX 10 minutes). If you choose to create a video, the format is up to you; just remember to answer the above prompt. Selected applicants will be asked to take part in an interview. All applicants must be prepared to submit a work permit (information on how to obtain one can be found here).
Application materials must be submitted no later than 11:59PM on Friday, May 31, 2019.
If you have any questions, contact Victor Gomes, the out4STEM Coordinator (vgomes@collegeofphysicians.org). You can also learn more about the out4STEM Internship Program by consulting our website or checking our Frequently Asked Questions.
The out4STEM Internship program is made possible through a generous grant from Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd.
Careers in STEM, healthcare professions, LGBTQ youth, LGBTQ+, Out4STEM, youth programs Leave a comment
Philly 9th Graders: Join the Karabots Junior Fellows Program!
Posted in Karabots Junior Fellows by mutteredu
Are you a Philly 9th grader with an interest in health care or medicine? Are you a Philadelphia public or charter school teacher or counselor who knows 9th graders who are interested in careers in medicine?
The Center for Education of the College of Physicians of Philadelphia is now accepting applications for the Summer 2019 installment of the Karabots Junior Fellows Program.
Founded in 2009, the Karabots Junior Fellows Program is for Philadelphia high school students interested in pursuing careers in medicine. Through hands-on activities, innovative educational programming, interactions with healthcare professionals, and engagements through the unique resources of the College of Physicians of Philadelphia (including the world-renowned Mütter Museum and the Historical Medical Library), the Program introduces students to the diverse fields available in healthcare and medicine. It also empowers students to take charge of their health and encourage healthy lifestyle choices for their families and their communities.
The next summer program will take place August 12-23, 2019. This year’s theme is “Defeating Disease,” focusing on the biology, treatment, and response to infectious disease from a variety of scientific, medical, and historical perspectives.
Participants may also have the possibility to stay for a multi-year after-school program focused on healthcare, STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics), academic and career advisement, and college preparation that goes through twelfth grade.
Students interested in joining the Karabots Junior Fellows Program must fulfill the following requirements:
They must be entering the 10th grade in Fall 2019.
They must be a Philadelphia resident.
They must be attending a Philadelphia public or charter high school.
They must have an interest in biology and the healthcare professions.
They will be the first in their immediate family to graduate from a college or university.
They must qualify for a FREE or REDUCED PRICE school lunch.
They may not have any disciplinary problems on their school record.
They must have permission from a parent/guardian to take part in the program.
They must be prepared to provide a work permit if they are brought in for an interview (more information on obtaining a work permit).
Interested students can complete our online application form. The application must include the name and contact information of an adult supporter (parent, guardian, or adult over the age of 18 willing to vouch for the student), a reference from a teacher or counselor, and a brief personal statement in the form of an essay, video, or audio clip. The deadline to apply is 11:59PM on Friday, May 31, 2019.
To learn more about the program, please consult our website or check out our FAQ. Direct all inquiries to Kevin D. Impellizeri, Assistant Director of the Karabots Junior Fellows Program (email: kimpellizeri@collegeofphysicians.org; phone: 215-372-7313).
careers in medicine, Careers in STEM, healthcare professions, Karabots Junior Fellows, Out4STEM, youth programs Leave a comment
A Disturbingly Informative Trip to the Woodlands Cemetery
On October 21, students in the Karabots Junior Fellows Program traveled to the Woodlands to give visitors a small glimpse into the interesting and surprising specimens and objects in the College of Physicians of Philadelphia’s vast collection. Longtime readers will recall the Woodlands is a common field trip location for students in the Karabots Program and representatives of the Mütter Museum, including Karabots students, have participated in numerous events hosted by the Woodlands.
Established as the country home of Philadelphia socialite William Hamilton, the Woodlands became an active cemetery in 1840; it is the final resting place of numerous noteworthy Philadelphians, including several Fellows of the College of Physicians, such as Silas Weir Mitchell, John Ashhurst, and William Williams Keen, and the founder of the Campbells Soup Company among other notables. It is also the site of the largest grave marker in the United States, an 84-foot tall obelisk constructed for famous dentist and Penn Dental school founder Thomas Wiltberger Evans.
Our students were on-site as part of the Woodlands annual Halloween Family Fun Day, where visitors come to the historic rural cemetery to take part in fun activities. Visitors of all ages came dressed in costumes for Halloween and there was even a pet costume contest in which a dog dressed as a pumpkin took the grand prize. Our students spent the afternoon in the Hamilton Mansion demonstrating “Mini Mütter,” a sampling of the unique items on display at the Mütter Museum. The Junior Fellows displayed such items as anatomical models, replicas of bones and museum specimens (such as an arm with smallpox and a foot with elephantiasis), preserved brain slides, and a collection of Civil War medical tools. Several students even led anatomy-themed games, challenging visitors to identify bones, label pieces of the heart, and demonstrate using different parts of their brain. Our students acted as great ambassadors for the College of Physicians of Philadelphia, showed off their knowledge, and honed their public speaking skills. Just as important, they introduced people young and old to the amazing collections available at the Mütter Museum and offered insights into medicine and human anatomy.
educational outreach, Halloween, Karabots Junior Fellows, The Woodlands Cemetery Leave a comment
Portrait of a Fellow: Chevalier Jackson
Posted in Mütter EDU Chat by mutteredu
Greetings and salutations, fellow historico-medico aficionados. Today’s installment is the second in a series we are calling “Portrait of a Fellow,” where we introduce you to notable medical professionals who make up our esteemed body of Fellows of the College of Physicians of Philadelphia. The first article in this series highlighted noted physician and civil rights activist Nathan Francis Mossell. Today, we welcome another guest author to make you better acquainted with another of our past Fellows. I turn the floor over to Xavier Gavin, one of our dedicated team of Mütter Museum docents and an alum of the Karabots Junior Fellows Program. He is here to talk about noted otolaryngologist Chevalier Jackson.
Take it away, Xavier!
The Chevalier Jackson collection is a large assortment of objects that were once swallowed by people accidentally. The collection has over 2000 objects, most of which are on display inside of the staircase in drawers on the lower level in the Mütter Museum. The objects range from pins, to buttons, to animal bones, to Cracker Jack figures, and so on.
Swallowed Objects from the Chevalier Jackson Collection, College of Physicians of Philadelphia
Chevalier Jackson was born in Pittsburgh in 1865. Jackson’s childhood was full of trouble and trauma. He was bullied in school continuously because of his sensitive demeanor and small stature; once, bullies threw him into an abandoned mine. However, as a child, he always seemed to be drawn to statistics and recording information. When he became interested in skating, he recorded his falls and casualties for reference, which may have helped lead to his interest in records and the like for a future career. Later he worked with pipes and plumbing, inspiring his future endeavors in developing medical tools.
Jackson attended Western University of Pennsylvania, now known as the University of Pittsburgh. While in college, Jackson dabbled in art, specifically that of decorating glasses and china. This side work helped him support his family, pay for his medical school, and helped him cultivate his illustrating skills, which he later put to use when illustrating his techniques in bronchoscopy, helping further his goal of educating others in the field.
Jackson earned public recognition through his work as an otolaryngologist, more commonly known as an ear nose and throat specialist. This field was still relatively new in the late 1800s and the early 1900s, the time when Jackson was practicing. It was during this period that he started collecting swallowed objects he extracted from patients. Jackson created and tended to this collection in order to help educate doctors on the field and to let them know more about what to expect in the field. Jackson never charged a patient any money for extracting an object. All he asked was that he could keep the object for his records. In 1924, Jackson donated his collection of swallowed objects and records to the College of Physicians of Philadelphia.
Safety pins are probably the most abundant type of object in the collection. It was likely such a commonly swallowed object because seamstresses would hold pins in their mouths, or parents would hold them in their mouths while changing a baby’s diaper, or babies removed them from their diapers. Jackson was said to be even good enough at this craft of removing objects to push a pin down into the stomach where there’s more room, close it, and then safely extract it without puncturing anything vital.
X-ray showing safety pin and button in a 10-day-old infant’s airway, 1934, Historical Medical Library of the College of Physicians of Philadelphia
Jackson’s accomplishments earned him the nickname the “father of laryngoscopy.” In addition to his swallowed objects collection, Jackson invented a special tool called a laryngoscope. Jackson’s laryngoscope included a light he used to see into a patient’s throat as well as a long pair of tweezers with clamps on the end to grab the object. Jackson also had a doll named Michelle made so he could practice the procedure on something human-like and teach others his methods for extracting objects swallowed by children.
Chevalier Jackson demonstrating Michelle the Choking Doll, Historical Medical Library of the College of Physicians of Philadelphia
Jackson is also credited with campaigning for proper labeling and classification of anything containing poison. In all of the procedures of removing swallowed objects he endured, Jackson noticed various burns and injuries due to children consuming lye and other poisonous substances. Jackson realized this was a common problem due to the lack of essential warnings on packages or any federal regulation of hazardous substances. Jackson held countless meetings, presentations, and lectures, and his efforts eventually led to the creation of the Federal Caustic Poison Act in 1925.
Chevalier Jackson has many achievements to his name. Whether people realize it or not, his work is extremely vital to the safety of people of all ages and the advancement of this particular field in medicine. His work goes much further than just what you see in those drawers.
Thanks for the article, Xavier! If you’d like to see the Chevalier Jackson collection for yourself, it is on display (along with lots of other interesting items from the history of medicine) here at the Mütter Museum!
Chevalier Jackson, Chevalier Jackson collection, College of Physicians Fellows, Federal Caustic Poison Act, otolaryngology Leave a comment
The Karabots Junior Fellows Visit the Karabots Center
Frequent readers will know we strongly believe in bringing students in our youth programs to the places where healthcare and science take place. Last week, the students in the fifth cohort of the Karabots Junior Fellows Program visited the Karabots Pediatric Care Center of the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. Observant readers will notice the Center shares its name with our program, as both were made possible through generous contributions from Nicholas and Athena Karabots and the Karabots Foundation. While at the Center, our students toured their facilities and met with members of their dedicated healthcare staff.
Opened in 2013, and located in West Philadelphia, the Karabots Center offers a host of different healthcare and outreach services for communities in West Philadelphia and beyond. In addition to a variety of health services, the Center offers community health and wellness programs, assisting in such capacities as literacy, education for new mothers, asthma prevention, homeless assistance, support for victims of domestic violence. Their facilities see roughly 60,000 patients per year.
During their visit, they met with Tyra Bryant-Stephens, MD, a renowned specialist in childhood asthma. Dr. Bryant-Stephens is the founder and Medical Director of the Community Asthma Prevention Program (CAPP) at CHOP. She shared her personal journey, her work in asthma prevention, as well as some health and wellness tips. They also met with Andrea Bailer, MSN, CRNP, one of their experienced pediatric nurses who talked about her personal and professional experience.
The students were excited to briefly tour the Center’s medical facilities. They also got to visit their community garden. Maintained by members of the West Philadelphia community, the garden produces healthy fruit, vegetables, and herbs for patients and families in the Healthy Weight Program. In 2016, the garden yielded roughly 1,000 pounds of herbs and vegetables.
We are thankful for CHOP opening their doors and sharing their wonderful work with our students.
asthma prevention, childhood asthma, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, CHOP Karabots Pediatric Care Center, healthcare professions, Karabots Junior Fellows, nursing Leave a comment
CPP Curiosities: Ted Williams and Cryogenics
Posted in CPP Curiosities, Mütter EDU Chat by mutteredu
Greetings, medico-historico aficionados, and welcome to the latest installment of CPP Curiosities, our semi-regular foray into weird and interesting chapters in medical history. Past articles have addressed treating syphilis by infecting patients with malaria, a fake Persian mummy who may have been a real murder victim, and graverobbing on top of graverobbing.
The leaves are changing, people are gearing up for Halloween and the subsequent two-month mad dash to the holiday season (only 75 more shopping days until Christmas, everyone!). We are in the midst of an annual American tradition: Major League Baseball’s postseason. The road to the World Series is heating up, and even though our hometown Philadelphia Phillies have long since been eliminated from playoff contention (sometime around the July All-Star break if my memory serves) there are many ball fans of more successful teams who are excited. In the spirit of the postseason, I thought we’d dive into a topic that marries both baseball and weird medical history. With that in mind, read on to learn about possible life after death, the science (or lack thereof) of human preservation, and one of the greatest hitters in baseball history.
Cryonics
Some of you may have heard of cryogenics. Also known as cryonics, cryogenesis, or cryopreservation, it is the practice of having all or part of a person’s body stored at sub-zero temperatures. The ultimate goal, in theory, is they can eventually be thawed and revived. Its medical applications generally involve freezing a patient with an incurable disease or traumatic injury in the hopes that future medical/scientific advances can heal them or that technology advances enough to allow human consciousness to be transferred from the body to another vessel (i.e. preserved and stored electronically). Conceptually, the idea of placing a person in suspended animation, by freezing or otherwise, has a long history in fiction, from Shakespeare’s Romeo & Juliet to Mark Twain’s A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court, to Philip K. Dick’s novel Ubik to Matt Groening’s Futurama. However, modern attempts to bring the concept off the page and screen date and into the real world back to the 1950s. While academic articles circulated in the 1940s and 1950s, the first work on the subject directed at a mass audience was Robert Ettinger’s 1964 book The Prospect of Immortality, a treatise on the scientific feasibility of human cryopreservation. His work led to public interest in the practice and several entrepreneurial enterprises. The first attempt to preserve a body via freezing occurred in April 1966, when Cryocare Corporation froze a recently-deceased elderly woman from California. The following year, on January 12, 1967, technicians froze deceased psychology professor James Bedford (cryonics enthusiasts celebrate January 12 as “Bedford Day”).
As described in a pro-cryonics journal, advocates for the scientific feasibility of cryonics cite four principles: (1) metabolic function is arrested in bodies preserved under sufficiently low temperatures, thus allowing them to be effectively preserved indefinitely; (2) the use of specialized chemicals can reduce or prevent the risk of damage to the body when frozen; (3) biological death, as opposed to legal death, is a process not an event; and (4) future scientific/technical methods could potentially allow cryogenically preserved people to be revived.
In the case of modern cryopreservation, after physicians establish time-of-death, representatives from a cryopreservation group or one of its subsidiaries preserve the body for transit to a cryonics facility. The body is placed in an ice water bath and attached to devices designed to maintain blood flow and respiration (to minimize deterioration) until the body reaches its destination. When it arrives, blood is replaced with a specialized solution designed to protect the body from damage while freezing. If only the patient’s head is being preserved (described in the business as neurocryopreservation or simply “neuro”), technicians remove it from the body. The body or head is then placed into a storage container called a “dewar” and frozen with liquid nitrogen, remaining in a frozen state until science catches up with science fiction (More on the procedure here).
A Dewar used in cryopreservation
Photo courtesy of Alcor Life Extension Foundation
It may not surprise you to know there are some key challenges to cryopreservation. For one thing, its efficacy is difficult to test. There’s currently no way to revive a cryopreserved patient and it’s difficult (and illegal) to subject human test subjects to a procedure that effectively has a 100% fatality rate. A patient cannot legally be preserved until after they’re dead. Alcor Life Extension Foundation, one of the more prominent cryonics services, concedes cryopreservation on a living subject is legally considered murder or suicide depending on who initiates it. This leaves cryotechnicians with the trouble of curing death in addition to whatever ailment brought about the patient’s end. As a result, cryonics leaves a lot of the work up to future scientists to help finish the job for them. Failure rates and deterioration of specimens are also issues. Modern cryonics facilities claim to make every effort to minimize the amount of deterioration due to extreme temperatures; however, there is a risk. According to a report from Alcor, with the exception of Bedford, every other cryonics patient preserved before 1974 eventually suffered some manner of failure. The general scientific consensus is, while it’s certainly possible to preserve a body under extremely low temperatures for a long period of time, the odds of revival are so low as to invalidate the endeavor. Advocates, meanwhile, retort that even an astronomically small chance of transcending death is better than no chance at all.
Image Source: 20th Century Fox. Used under fair use.
Another challenge for cryonics enthusiasts: the process is extremely expensive. While companies like Alcor assure that much of the cost can be covered through life insurance, aspiring patients need to be prepared pay between $80,000 and $220,000 (depending on whether they opt for “neuro” or “whole body” plus additional fees) upon the event of their death. According to Alcor, the cost covers the initial procedure, general storage and maintenance as well as a trust patients can access after their reanimation. (A small price to pay for immortality?)
The Strange Case of Ted Williams
Often when one brings up the subject, as was my experience, people often mention Walt Disney. This refers to a persistent (and discredited) myth that the founder of the now-monolithic company responsible for most of our youthful amusement had himself cryogenically frozen following his death in 1966. However, perhaps the most famous person who was actually cryogenically frozen was legendary baseball player Ted Williams.
Theodore Samuel “Ted” Williams (1908-2002) was a longtime outfielder for the Boston Red Sox. During his nineteen-year career, 1939 to 1960 with a brief hiatus in the 1940s to serve in World War II, he was a two-time American League (AL) MVP (Most Valuable Player), a six-time AL batting champion (highest batting average in the league for the season), and an AL All-Star in every season he played. When he retired in 1960, he ranked in the top ten all time in career home runs, batting average, slugging percentage, and RBI (runs batted in). Williams still holds the record for the highest on-base percentage in major league history (full stats). He was a first-ballot Hall of Famer in 1966, and he ranks among one of the greatest baseball players of all time.
Ted Williams in 1939 (Source: Wikimedia Commons)
Ted Williams died of congestive heart failure on July 5, 2002. Following his death, representatives from Alcor shipped Williams’ body from Florida to their facilities in Scottsdale, AZ. There, technicians separated his head from his body, placing the head and torso in separate Dewars.
His passing and subsequent preservation triggered a bitter legal battle among Williams’ three children over the ultimate fate of his remains. His oldest daughter, Bobby-Joe Ferrell along with several other relatives and family friends, argued Ted Williams’ final wishes were to be cremated. However John Henry and Claudia Williams, his son and youngest daughter, respectively, argued Williams had had a change of heart before his death, opting instead for cryopreservation. John Henry developed an interest in cryonics in the late nineties and reached an agreement with Alcor to have his remains along with his father and sisters’ be preserved and stored at Alcor following their deaths. A legal battle ensued: John Henry asserted his power of attorney over his fathers’ affairs, while Bobby-Joe accused John Henry and Claudia of falsifying a consent form from their father. Eventually, Bobby-Joe allowed her brother and sister to keep Williams frozen on the condition that they not attempt to sell her father’s DNA (perhaps so he could be cloned and attempt to re-break his old hitting records). She also agreed to not publicly discuss Williams’ cryopreservation. In exchange, John-Henry and Claudia agreed to pay Bobby-Joe her share of her inheritance.
There was no shortage of press attention for the salacious details of Williams’ afterlife. It didn’t take long for accounts to circulate that Alcor was mishandling Williams remains. In July 2002, reports came out that his head had to be refrozen after cracks began to appear. In 2009, Larry Johnson, Alcor’s former chief operating officer, published a tell-all book about the company’s most famous tenant; among the more shocking accusations he levied against Alcor was that technicians reportedly hit Williams’s head multiple times with a wrench to jar it loose from a pedestal made out of a tuna can. (It hasn’t been the only scandal surrounding the company. In 1988 rumors circulated former Alcor executive Saul Kent poisoned his mother before cryopreserving her head). Moreover, a series of misfortunes brought his cryogenically-frozen future into jeopardy. An August 2003 article in Sports Illustrated reported John Henry still owed Alcor $110,000; according to Johnson, Alcor executives joked they would send Williams’s thawed body back to his son in a cardboard box.
It isn’t clear how matters were resolved between John Henry and Alcor; when John Henry died of leukemia in 2004, his remains were brought to Alcor for cryopreservation and his father remains there in frozen stasis to this day.
If this grisly story hasn’t satiated your need for accounts of preservation (or lack thereof) of notable figures, you can check out my previous article on the preservation of Vladimir Lenin’s body.
Until next time, catch you on the strange side!
baseball, CPP Curiosities, cryogenics, cryonics, cryopreservation, Ted Williams, Walt Disney Leave a comment
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DIE WISE Book Reading, Signing in Sacramento, CA
Fri. October 9th, 2015 (7- 8:30pm)
TICKET: We will reserve a seat for ticket holders until 6:45pm: link
HOST & VENUE: Time Tested Books, 1114 21st Street, Sacramento – info@timetestedbooks.net
walking, cycling, public trans, car pooling encouraged; or arrive early for best parking
SHARE: https://www.facebook.com/events/728571683920564/
Die Wise – A Manifesto for Sanity and Soul, is Stephen Jenkinson’s new book about grief, and dying, and the great love of life. (Published by North Atlantic Books March 2015). Stephen is also the subject of the feature length documentary film Griefwalker (National Film Board of Canada, 2008), a lyrical, poetic portrait of his work with dying people.
Die Wise teaches the skills of dying, skills that have to be learned in the course of living deeply and well. Not a seven step coping strategy, not an out-clause for trauma or sorrow, Die Wise is for everyone who, hell or high water, is not going to pull off eternity after all. Dying is not the end of wisdom and wisdom not exhausted by dying. Dying could be and must be the fullest expression and incarnation of what you’ve learned by living. It’s a moral obligation to die well. If you love somebody, if you care about the world that’s to come after you, if you want somebody to be spared the lunacy of what you’ve seen, you’ve got to die wise. This evening begins to imagine a way of doing so.
About Stephen Jenkinson, MTS, MSW spiritual activist, teacher, author
Stephen teaches internationally and is the creator and principal instructor of the Orphan Wisdom School, founded in 2010. With Master’s degrees from Harvard University (Theology) and the University of Toronto (Social Work), he is revolutionizing grief and dying in North America. Stephen is redefining what it means to live, and die well. Apprenticed to a master storyteller, he has worked extensively with dying people and their families, is former programme director in a major Canadian hospital, former assistant professor in a prominent Canadian medical school, consultant to palliative care and hospice organizations and educator and advocate in the helping professions. He is also a sculptor, traditional canoe builder whose house won a Governor General’s Award for architecture.
He is the author of Die Wise: A Manifesto for Sanity and Soul (2015), Homecoming: The Haiku Sessions – a live recorded teaching (2013), How it All Could Be: A work book for dying people and those who love them (2009), Angel and Executioner: Grief and the Love of Life – a live recorded teaching (2009), and Money and The Soul’s Desires: A Meditation (2002), and former contributing author to Palliative Care – Core Skills and Clinical Competencies (2007).
The Orphan Wisdom School is for anyone with a desire to be useful to those who will inherit an endangered and often dangerous world. It is for those who have an instinct and a desire to be an ancestor worthy of being claimed. It is for those wishing to learn something of the skills of grace in a graceless time, of mentorship and fierce and exemplary compassion. It is for elders in training.
Die Wise Video Trailer
Die Wise, Evening Talk
Time Tested Books
Sacramento, CA United States + Google Map
« Die Wise: A Night of Grief and Mystery ~ Berkeley, CA
Griefwalker Film Screening and Q&A, in Sacramento, CA »
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Conservatives slammed as ‘laughable’ after criticising inequality in Wales
Russell George AM. Picture by the National Assembly
The Welsh Conservatives have been slammed as “laughable” by another party after they criticised the Welsh Government about inequality in Wales.
Welsh Conservatives will take to the floor of the Senedd this afternoon to call for the Government to close the gap between the economic fortunes of the different regions of Wales.
They said that the gap between the richest and poorest regions of Wales has created a country of “unforgivable inequality”, with gross value added in some local authority areas almost twice that of others.
In 2017, GVA in Cardiff was £25,964, compared with £13,957 in Anglesey.
But Plaid Cymru seized on their comments, saying that it was “laughable that the Tories are trying to claim the moral high-ground on this issue”.
“Westminster’s austerity and obsession with investing in London has led to the UK becoming the most unequal country in the EU,” Jonathan Edwards MP said.
“Thanks to decades of investment in the south-east of England, London and its surrounding areas are the richest in Europe, whilst the west of our nation and the valleys are some of the poorest.
“For decades, Westminster has squeezed Wales for its resources. Labour and Conservative alike have built an economic system which continues to keep Wales down.
“It is the Tories that are taking away our EU investment at a time when we have more need for it than ever before.
“The only sustainable long-term answer to closing the economic divide is to provide Wales with a full portfolio of job creation leavers and ultimately independence.”
‘Vision’
The 2017 ONS figures, released this morning, show Wales ranked worst in Great Britain for productivity.
Productivity levels in all regions of Wales have been revealed as below the average for the UK, with the best-performing county of Flintshire and Wrexham still 4% below the UK average.
The worst-performing county of Powys is at 35% below average productivity, the lowest figure in the UK.
Welsh Conservatives said they would this afternoon call for the Government to close the gap between the economic fortunes of the different regions of Wales.
Commenting on the figures, Shadow Cabinet Secretary for Business, Economy and Infrastructure, Russell George AM said that the problem was “stark”.
“It is completely unacceptable that after 20 years of Welsh Labour at the helm of the country’s economy, certain parts of Wales are enjoying half the prosperity of others,” he said.
“Today’s productivity figures have also highlighted the trouble this Welsh Government is having with closing the inequality gap.
“Welsh Conservatives are absolutely clear in our vision for developing the Welsh economy and boosting the economic fortune of Wales’ poorest areas.
“We must prioritise supporting Wales’ small and medium-sized enterprises, housing developments, and creating a fit-for-purpose transport network in order to boost jobs, growth and wages in every part of Wales.”
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Chess at POP
Chess Nuts
The origin of chess is not clear but many people say it came from India and then moved through China. From there it gained popularity through the countries of Europe. The game has developed a lot since it first started.The game was made for people who where lonely to enjoy something. The world's first chess tournament was in 1886 and the winner was Wilhelm Steinitz.
Above is a Picture of Wilhelm Steinitz
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Tag Archives: weakest
Religious Conversion Worst Form of ‘Intolerance,’ Bhutan PM Says
Propagation of religion is allowable – but not seeking conversions, top politician says.
THIMPHU, Bhutan, April 13 (CDN) — In the Kingdom of Bhutan, where Christianity is still awaiting legal recognition, Christians have the right to proclaim their faith but must not use coercion or claim religious superiority to seek conversions, the country’s prime minister told Compass in an exclusive interview.
“I view conversions very negatively, because conversion is the worst form of intolerance,” Jigmi Yoser Thinley said in his office in the capital of the predominantly Buddhist nation.
Christian leaders in Bhutan have told Compass that they enjoy certain freedoms to practice their faith in private homes, but, because of a prohibition against church buildings and other restrictions, they were not sure if proclamation of their faith – included in international human rights codes – was allowed in Bhutan.
Prime Minister Thinley, who as head of the ruling party is the most influential political chief in the country, said propagation of one’s faith is allowed, but he made it clear that he views attempts to convert others with extreme suspicion.
“The first premise [of seeking conversion] is that you believe that your religion is the right religion, and the religion of the convertee is wrong – what he believes in is wrong, what he practices is wrong, that your religion is superior and that you have this responsibility to promote your way of life, your way of thinking, your way of worship,” Thinley said. “It’s the worst form of intolerance. And it divides families and societies.”
Bhutan’s constitution does not restrict the right to convert or proselytize, but some Non-Governmental Organizations have said the government effectively limits this right by restricting construction of non-Buddhist worship buildings and celebration of some non-Buddhist festivals, according to the U.S. Department of State’s 2010 International Religious Freedom Report.
It adds that Bhutan’s National Security Act (NSA) further limits proclamation of one’s faith by prohibiting “words either spoken or written, or by other means whatsoever, that promote or attempt to promote, on grounds of religion, race, language, caste, or community, or on any other ground whatsoever, feelings of enmity or hatred between different religious, racial, or language groups or castes and communities.” Violation of the NSA is punishable by up to three years’ imprisonment, though whether
any cases have been prosecuted is unknown, according to the State Department report.
Bhutan’s first democratic prime minister after about a century of absolute monarchy, Thinley completed three years in office last Thursday (April 7). While he affirmed that it is allowable for Christians to proclaim their faith – a practice commanded by Christ, with followers agreeing that it is the Holy Spirit, not man, that “converts” people – Thinley made his suspicions about Christians’ motives manifest.
“Any kind of proselytization that involves economic and material incentives [is wrong],” he said. “Many people are being converted on hospital beds in their weakest and most vulnerable moments. And these people are whispering in their ears that ‘there is no hope for you. The only way that you can survive is if you accept this particular religion.’ That is wrong.”
Thinley’s suspicions include the belief that Christians offer material incentives to convert.
“Going to the poor and saying, ‘Look, your religion doesn’t provide for this life, our religion provides for this life as well as the future,’ is wrong. And that is the basis for proselytization.”
Christian pastors in Thimphu told Compass that the perception that Bhutan’s Christians use money to convert the poor was flawed.
The pastors, requesting anonymity, said they prayed for healing of the sick because they felt they were not allowed to preach tenets of Christianity directly. Many of those who experience healing – almost all who are prayed for, they claimed – do read the Bible and then believe in Jesus’ teachings.
Asked if a person can convert if she or he believed in Christianity, the prime minister replied, “[There is] freedom of choice, yes.”
In his interview with Compass, Thinley felt compelled to defend Buddhism against assertions that citizens worship idols.
“To say that, ‘Your religion is wrong, worshiping idols is wrong,’ who worships idols?” he said. “We don’t worship idols. Those are just representations and manifestations that help you to focus.”
Leader of the royalist Druk Phuensum Tshogpa party, Thinley is regarded as a sincere politician who is trusted by Bhutan’s small Christian minority. He became the prime minister in April 2008 following the first democratic election after Bhutan’s fourth king, Jigme Singye Wangchuck, abdicated power in 2006 to pave the way toward democracy.
Until Bhutan became a constitutional monarchy in 2008, the practice of Christianity was believed to be banned in the country. The constitution now grants the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion to all citizens. It also states that the king is the protector of all religions.
Thus far, the Religious Organisations Act of 2007 has recognized only Buddhist and Hindu organizations. As a result, no church building or Christian bookstore has been allowed in the country, nor can Christians engage in social work. Christianity in Bhutan remains confined to the homes of local believers, where they meet for collective worship on Sundays.
Asked if a Christian federation should be registered by the government to allow Christians to function with legal recognition, Thinley said, “Yes, definitely.”
The country’s agency regulating religious organizations under the 2007 act, locally known as the Chhoedey Lhentshog, is expected to make a decision on whether it could register a Christian federation representing all Christians. The authority is looking into provisions in the law to see if there is a scope for a non-Buddhist and non-Hindu organization to be registered. (See http://www.compassdirect.com, “Official Recognition Eludes Christian Groups in Bhutan,” Feb. 1.)
On whether the Religious Organisations Act could be amended if it is determined that it does not allow legal recognition of a Christian federation, the prime minister said, “If the majority view and support prevails in the country, the law will change.”
Thinley added that he was partially raised as a Christian.
“I am part Christian, too,” he said. “I read the Bible, occasionally of course. I come from a traditional [Christian] school and attended church every day except for Saturdays for nine years.”
A tiny nation in the Himalayas between India and China, Bhutan has a population of 708,484 people, of which roughly 75 percent are Buddhist, according to Operation World. Christians are estimated to be between 6,000 to nearly 15,000 (the latter figure would put Christians at more than 2 percent of the population), mostly from the south. Hindus, mainly ethnic Nepalese, constitute around 22 percent of the population and have a majority in the south.
Religious ‘Competition’
Bhutan’s opposition leader, Lyonpo Tshering Togbay, was equally disapproving of religious conversion.
“I am for propagation of spiritual values or anything that allows people to be good human beings,” he told Compass. “[But] we cannot have competition among religions in Bhutan.”
He said, however, that Christians must be given rights equal to those of Hindus and Buddhists.
“Our constitution guarantees the right to freedom of practice – full stop, no conditions,” he said. “But now, as a small nation state, there are some realities. Christianity is a lot more evangelistic than Hinduism or Buddhism.”
Togbay said there are Christians who are tolerant and compassionate of other peoples, cultures and religions, but “there are Christians also who go through life on war footing to save every soul. That’s their calling, and it’s good for them, except that in Bhutan we do not have the numbers to accommodate such zeal.”
Being a small nation between India and China, Bhutan’s perceived geopolitical vulnerability leads authorities to seek to pre-empt any religious, social or political unrest. With no economic or military might, Bhutan seeks to assert and celebrate its sovereignty through its distinctive culture, which is based on Buddhism, authorities say.
Togbay voiced his concern on perceived threats to Bhutan’s Buddhist culture.
“I studied in a Christian school, and I have lived in the West, and I have been approached by the Jehovah’s Witness – in a subway, in an elevator, in a restaurant in the U.S. and Switzerland. I am not saying they are bad. But I would be a fool if I was not concerned about that in Bhutan,” he said. “There are other things I am personally concerned about. Religions in Bhutan must live in harmony. Too often I have come across people who seek a convert, pointing to statues of our deities and saying
that idol worship is evil worship. That is not good for the security of our country, the harmony of our country and the pursuit of happiness.”
The premise of the Chhoedey Lhentshog, the agency regulating religious organizations, he said, “is that all the different schools of Buddhism and all the different religions see eye to eye with mutual respect and mutual understanding. If that objective is not met, it does not make sense to be part of that.”
It remains unclear what the legal rights of Christians are, as there is no interaction between the Christians and the government. Christian sources in Bhutan said they were open to dialogue with the government in order to remove “misunderstandings” and “distrust.”
“Thankfully, our political leadership is sincere and trustworthy,” said one Christian leader.
Asserting that Christians enjoy the right to worship in Bhutan, Prime Minister Thinley said authorities have not interfered with any worship services.
“There are more Christian activities taking place on a daily basis than Hindu and Buddhist activities,” he added.
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PAKISTAN: MUSLIMS ATTACK PASTOR’S HOME, RELATIVES
After shooting into air, assailants strike mother, sister-in-law with rifle butts.
LAHORE, Pakistan, June 12 (Compass Direct News) – In a growing culture of violence here, a traffic incident in Punjab Province this month led to Muslim assailants later mounting an attack on the home of a Christian pastor they have increasingly resented for his evangelism and justice ministries. The attackers threatened more violence if the pastor does not drop assault charges.
A few of the 17 assailants struck the mother and sister-in-law of pastor Riaz Masih with rifle butts after the pastor’s brother, who lives at the same multi-housing complex as Masih in Kila Sardar Shah, Sheikhupura district, on June 1 complained to a local councilor about the official nearly driving into his sons. Christian leaders said the roadside incident was only the fuse igniting hostilities that have grown due to meetings held by Christ for All Nations Ministries (CANM).
The meetings have attracted many youths, including some Muslims. Pastor Masih is national coordinator of CANM, a self-supported church-planting ministry. Saqib Munawar, chairman of CANM, said the attack on the pastor’s home in the remote village is an indication that as Islamic extremism rises amid a military attempt to flush Islamic militants from the Swat Valley in the country’s northwest, a growing culture of violence means minor incidents more easily erupt into attacks.
“As the Swat operation is going on, hostilities against Christians are on the rise,” Munawar said. “Extremism, which has flourished in the last few decades, is now creating problems for all Pakistanis. This attitude has promoted violence in the country.”
Pakistanis are becoming more violent, he said, and extremism has increased partially in response to evangelism efforts by Christians, he said.
In the triggering incident, pastor Masih’s 17- and 18-year-old nephews were standing on the side of a road with their backs to traffic in Kila Sardar Shah when Malik Younus, a village councilor, passed in a vehicle that nearly struck them. The teenagers immediately complained to Younus that he should have at least honked to warn them to step aside.
Younus got out of his vehicle and beat them, Munawar said. They complained to their father, Mushtaq Masih, who then called Younus. Younus threatened to beat them again, and Mushtaq Masih responded that he would have no choice but to call police. Younus became furious, according to Munawar.
Within an hour Younus, his brother Malik Falak Sher and 15 other men armed with automatic weapons and wooden clubs arrived at the multi-family complex where Pastor Masih and his brothers live with their families. The pastor was some distance from home when his 12-year-old daughter called and told him that the Muslim attackers were outside firing into the air.
Rushing to the scene, Masih approached the house from the backyard as the assailants were breaking down the main gate. The pastor managed to lock himself with members of his family inside a room, but his sister-in-law – wife of his younger brother Ilias Masih – and his mother were outside at the time.
Having broken down the main gate and wall and had entered the courtyard, the assailants struck the two women with rifle butts and demanded to know where the boys and their father were. Pastor’s Masih’s brother, Mushtaq Masih, had also locked himself and his family in a room. The attackers were trying to break down the doors of rooms in pastor Masih’s home when one of them called off the assault and they left.
The family reported the assault to police, but officers have done nothing as they have close ties with the attackers – and the assailants also have links with various local government leaders, Munawar said. The intruding Muslims warned pastor Masih and his family that if they contacted police and media, they would face “retribution.”
The Station House Officer told Compass that Younus and his cohorts had been released on bail; he would not comment further.
Munawar said the Masih families will likely seek a settlement instead of jail terms.
“The family will probably go for an out-of-court settlement, as they have to live,” he said. “However, fears are that such flare-ups may hit back, which would certainly hamper our evangelical efforts.”
Rumors spread that a former member of the Punjab Assembly, Agha Gull, was involved in the traffic incident, but Gull told Compass that he was in Iraq at the time of the incident and had nothing to do with it. Gull said someone told him that a clash took place on the road, but that “none of the parties came to me.”
Certain that the remote village Muslims would not have access to Compass news, pastor Masih told Compass that the antagonists were upset with him also over his efforts to take back lands stolen from Christian families. There are four Christian families in the village of 40 to 50 families.
The Christian villagers had paid for land they have lived on since 1989, but they never received documents for the transfer, leaving the real estate in the hands of Muslim businessman Syed Izhar Shah – whom villagers say is involved in land theft in collaboration with those who instigated the June 1 attack, Younus and his brother Sher.
Last year pastor Masih offered 20,000 rupees (US$250) to the landowner to legally transfer the property with proper documentation, but the owner declined. Pastor Masih’s father has also paid some 10,000 rupees for his share of the land. Additionally, Akram Masih, who heads one of the four Christian families in the area, has paid an additional 27,000 rupees (US$335) in an effort to legally obtain his share of the land, but the landowner forbid him to take possession as well.
Younus and Sher are behind a land-grab designed to drive the few Christian families from the area, pastor Masih said. They have illegally taken over a nearby, eight-acre tract of land zoned for a housing tract called Royal Town. Christian villagers had paid for this land also in 1989 – and also without receiving documentation – and the legal land owner, Syed Izhar Shah, is pressuring them to either pay the current price or leave the village, pastor Masih said.
“The attack has been unleashed on the weakest, because there are only four Christian families living in this village,” said pastor Masih. “They are vexing us so that we leave the area.”
Pastor Munawar said that anti-Christian hostilities resulted in the cancellation of CANM’s youth program, which was scheduled for last Monday (June 8).
“The fate of our next program, scheduled on June 21, is also hanging in balance,” he said.
Munawar added that last year’s annual youth program, held in May, had been secured by armed Christians after an area Muslim tipped them off that their worship could be targeted. The guards were provided licensed .222 Remington rifles.
Posted in Christianity, Islam, Pakistan | Tagged .222 Remington, ;province, access, additional, Agha Gull, air, annual, antagonists, anti-Christian, approached, area, armed, arrived, assailants, assault, assembly, attack, attackers, attacks, attempt, attitude, attracted, automatic, back, backyard, bail, balance, beat, behind, boys, breaking, brother, businessman, butts, called, cancellation, CANM, certain, chairman, charges, choice, Christ for All Nations Ministries, Christian, Christianity, Christians, church planting, clash, close, clubs, cohorts, collaboration, comment, complained, complex, contacted, coordinator, councilor, country, courtyard, creating, culture, current, daughter, decades, declined, demanded, distance, district, Documentation, documents, doors, drive, driving, drop, easily, efforts, entered, erupt, evangelism, extremism, families, fate, Father, fears, firing, flare-ups, flourished, flush, forbid, former, furious, fuse, gate, government, growing, grown, guards, hamper, hanging, home, honked, hostilities, housing, igniting, Ilias Masih, illegally, immediately, incident, including, increased, increasingly, indication, instigated, intruding, involved, Iraq, Islam, Islamic, jail, justice, Kila Sardar Shah, Lahore, land-grab, landowner, lands, leaders, least, leave, legally, licensed, Links, live, lives, local, lock, main, Malik Falak Sher, Malik Younus, managed, means, media, meetings, members, militants, military, ministries, ministry, minor, mother, mounting, multi-family, multi-housing, Mushtaq Masih, Muslim, muslims, national, nearby, nephews, northwest, officers, official, operation, out-of-court, owner, paid, Pakistan, Pakistanis, partially, parties, passed, Pastor, pay, Persecution, police, possession, pressuring, price, problems, program, promoted, property, provided, Punjab, real estate, received, relatives, released, remote, reported, resented, responded, response, resulted, retribution, Riaz Masih, rifle, rifles, rises, road, roadside, room, rooms, Royal Town, rumors, rupees, rushing, Saqib Munawar, scene, scheduled, secured, self-supported, settlement, Sheikhupura, shooting, side, sister-in-law, sons, spread, standing, Station House Officer, stolen, strike, struck, Swat Valley, Syed Izhar Shah, targeted, teenagers, terms, theft, threatened, ties, tipped, tract, traffic, transfer, triggering, unleashed, upset, vehicle, vexing, village, villagers, violence, violent, wall, warn, warned, weakest, weapons, wife, women, wooden, worship, younger, youth, youths, zoned | Leave a comment
INDIA: STAKES HIGH FOR CHRISTIANS IN ELECTIONS
Posted on May 3, 2009 by particularkev
Beleaguered minority has much to lose, gain in polls.
NEW DELHI, May 1 (Compass Direct News) – With elections underway in India, its 2.3 percent Christian minority – which faced a deadly spate of attacks in the eastern state of Orissa last year – is praying for a secular party to come to power.
Along with the Muslim community, Christians fear that if the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and its allies form the next government or an ideologically loose coalition comes to the helm, their already compromised welfare may further deteriorate.
Dr. John Dayal, secretary general of the All India Christian Council, said that the end of the Congress Party’s monopoly on power in the 1990s led to the rise of several major individual groups, including the BJP, political wing of the Hindu extremist Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) conglomerate.
“The rise of regional and linguistic or caste-based parties spells a danger for pan-national minorities, as parties with a narrow and localized outlook will have neither the strength nor the political need to come to their defense,” Dayal told Compass. “What is at stake now, as never before, is the stability and consistency of India’s constitutional institutions in their response to critical situations, their zeal to correct wrongs and their commitment to the welfare of the weakest and the lowest.”
Religious minorities, Dayal said, were hoping for a strong showing by a secular party, “possibly the Congress [Party],” supported by regional groups of a secular character.
“Personally, I would even welcome a Third Front [a grouping of anti-Congress Party and anti-BJP parties led by the Communist Party of India-Marxist] government supported by the Congress Party,” he added. “Certainly, a BJP-led government is the least desirable, as we fear major erosion and even regression in issues of freedom of faith, Dalit liberation and affirmative action for the poor.”
With the BJP in power, directly or as part of the ruling alliance, in 10 states – Madhya Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, and Punjab in the north; Chhattisgarh and Bihar in the east; Gujarat in the west; Nagaland and Meghalaya in the northeast; and Karnataka in the south – he said Christians believe it is important that a strong, secular government comes into power at the federal level.
The federal government can issue warnings and ultimately dismiss state legislatures and state executives if they fail to protect the lives of their people or major unrest erupts. The federal government can also make laws applicable across the nation.
The BJP-ruled states have become “absolutely inhospitable” and “hostile” to Christians thanks to the “inaction of the federal government,” said Sajan K. George, national president of the Global Council of Indian Christians (GCIC).
Orissa, Andhra Pradesh
The eyes of Christians are also on state assembly elections in Orissa state.
Orissa is ruled by the Biju Janata Dal (BJD), which on March 7 broke its 11-year-old alliance with the BJP over the latter’s involvement in Kandhamal district violence. Elections in Orissa, held on April 16 and 23, are particularly important given that the results will either embolden Hindu nationalists to launch more attacks to polarize voters along religious lines or compel them to abstain from violence.
In December 2007, a series of brutal attacks began in Kandhamal. The violence that lasted for around 10 days killed at least four Christians and burned 730 houses and 95 churches under the pretext of avenging an alleged attack on Swami Laxmanananda Saraswati, a leader of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (World Hindu Council).
Violence re-erupted in the district following the killing of Saraswati on August 23, 2008. A Maoist group took responsibility for the murder, but BJP supporters claimed that Christians were behind the assassination.
The BJP has made the killing of Saraswati its main election plank. The party’s two candidates from Kandhamal – Manoj Pradhan for the G. Udaygiri assembly seat and Ashok Sahu for the Kandhamal parliamentary constituency – contested the elections from jail. Pradhan, a primary suspect in the August-September 2008 violence, has been in jail for the last few months. Sahu, a former senior police official, was arrested on April 14 for delivering a hate speech against Christians in the run-up to elections. He was released on bail on April 17.
In its election campaign, the BJD promised to provide protection to the Christian community in Kandhamal and elsewhere in the state, putting the blame of the Kandhamal violence entirely on the BJP.
“It was important to break up with the BJP because I don’t consider them healthy any longer for my state after Kandhamal – which I think is very apparent to everyone,” Orissa Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik told CNN-IBN on April 19. “Before Kandhamal, we were lucky in the early years of the state government not to have a serious communal problem at all. But Kandhamal was very tragic and serious.”
According to the CNN-IBN private news channel, the Congress Party could benefit from the divorce of the BJD and the BJP. Nevertheless, the BJD is expected to form the next state government in Orissa.
The Congress Party, on the other hand, blamed both the BJD and the BJP for last year’s violence.
Elections in Kandhamal took place despite the fact that over 3,000 Christians were still in relief camps and hundreds of others had fled to others parts of the state fearing more tensions. Father Ajay Kumar Singh of the Catholic Archdiocese of Cuttack-Bhubaneswar reached Kandhamal from the neighboring Gajapati district early on April 16, election day.
“Along the way, we came across numerous felled trees blocking the road in at least six places,” Fr. Singh told Compass. “The roads were deserted, and my colleagues and I were scared. But we somehow managed to reach Kandhamal.”
He added that in Dharampur in Raikia Block and in Kattingia near Tiangia in G. Udaygiri Block – where eight Christians were killed during last year’s violence – Christians were threatened if they did not vote for the BJP.
In Nilungia village, seven kilometers (four miles) from G. Udaygiri, where a Christian was killed, at least 40 Christians did not cast their votes out of fear of a backlash, Fr. Singh said.
“They feared tensions if they returned to their village and stayed out of the district,” he said.
The Catholic Church in Orissa had urged the Election Commission of India to postpone elections in Kandhamal, but polls were held as scheduled.
According to the district administration, the poll turnout on April 16 in Kandhamal was around 55 percent.
The violence following Saraswati’s murder lasted for over a month, killing more than 127 people and destroying 315 villages, 4,640 houses, 252 churches and 13 educational institutions, besides rendering more than 50,000 homeless.
The incidence of Christian persecution is high in Andhra Pradesh, too. Analysts anticipate a neck-to-neck competition between the ruling Congress Party and the regional Telugu Desam Party (TDP), which recently allied with Left parties in the Third Front. The BJP is also in the fray but doesn’t appear strong enough to stake claim to power in the state.
Obscure Prognosis
With election results not due until May 16, the outlook at this point is murky.
“About all that can be said with certainty in the resulting alphabet soup of political parties is that the BJP won’t be aligning with Congress, or with the Left. Beyond that it’s a numbers game,” The Times of India noted in an editorial today. “Most observers agree that alignments determining who will form the next government will be decided only after the elections.”
The national daily added, “As India’s long, hot election summer grinds on, with the third phase held yesterday and the fifth and final phase not scheduled before the 13th of this month, it’s regrettable that no overarching themes have emerged even at this late stage, which can define the election.”
With 714 million eligible voters of the more than 1 billion people in the country, the five-phase elections for the 15th Lok Sabha (Lower House of Parliament) and for the state assemblies of Orissa, Andhra Pradesh and the north-eastern state of Sikkim began on April 16.
The three main parties are the left-of-center Congress Party (officially known as the Indian National Congress), which leads the governing United Progressive Alliance (UPA); the Hindu nationalist BJP, a leading party of the opposition National Democratic Alliance (NDA); and the Third Front.
A party and its allies need 272 members to rule in the 545-member Lok Sabha.
Expediency over Ideology
The regional and caste parties involved include the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), headed by Dalit (formerly “untouchable”) woman Mayawati, chief minister of Uttar Pradesh state in the north; and the Samajwadi Party (SP), also a powerful party in that state.
Other significant parties are the Janata Dal-United (JD-U) party and the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) party in the eastern state of Bihar; the BJD in Orissa; the Trinamool Congress party in the eastern state of West Bengal; the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and the Shiv Sena party in the western state of Maharashtra; the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) party and the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) party in the southern state of Tamil Nadu; the TDP and Telangana Rashtriya Samiti (TRS) party in the southern state of Andhra Pradesh, and the Janata Dal-Secular (JD-S) party in the southern state of Karnataka.
The Congress Party is hoping that it will be supported by the SP, the RJD, the Trinamool Congress party, the NCP, the DMK, and the TRS in case it emerges as the single-largest party post-elections. The JD-U, the Shiv Sena and the AIADMK, on the other hand, are likely to extend their support to the BJP-led NDA. The BSP, the BJD, the TDP, and the JD-S are expected to join the Third Front.
Most of these smaller parties, however, are keeping their options open and will formally declare their allegiances only after the results are announced on May 16.
Decade of Persecution
The concern of Indian Christians can be understood against the backdrop of the decade since 1998, when the BJP, under the aegis of the NDA, came into power at the federal level, marking the beginning of systematic persecution of Christians.
In January 1999, an Australian missionary, Graham Staines, and his two young sons were burned alive in Orissa’s Keonjhar district. From 2000 to 2004, around 200 anti-Christian attacks were reported each year from various parts of the nations. In March 2004, India’s second massive spate of anti-Christian attacks took place in the Jhabua district of the central state of Madhya Pradesh.
The incidence of persecution remained high despite the change of the federal government in mid-2004 – after the Congress Party-led UPA defeated the BJP-led NDA.
At least 165 anti-Christian attacks were reported in 2005, and over 130 in 2006. Including the Orissa attacks, the total number of violent anti-Christian incidents rose to over 1,000 in 2007. And 2008 turned out to be the worst year for the Christians as violence returned in Kandhamal.
“The results of the elections on May 16 will show whether the ideology of Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, the father of the nation who promoted communal harmony, will prevail in India, or that of his killer Nathuram Godse, allegedly a member of the RSS,” said George of the GCIC.
Posted in Australia, Christianity, Hinduism, India, Islam, Politics, Roman Catholicism | Tagged 15th, absolutely, abstain, action, administration, aegis, affirmative, agree, AIADMK, Ajay Kumar Singh, aligning, alignments, alive, All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, All India Christian Council, alleged, allegedly, allegiances, alliance, allied, allies, alphabet soup, analysts, announced, anti-BJP, anti-Christian, anti-Congress, anticipate, apparent, applicable, arrested, Ashok Sahu, assassination, assembly, attack, attacks, Australian, avenging, backdrop, backlash, Bahujan Samaj Party, bail, beginning, behind, beleagured, believe, benefit, Bharatiya Janata Party, Bihar, Biju Janata Dal, BJD, BJP, blame, blocking, brutal, BSP, burned, campaign, candidates, cast, caste, caste-based, Catholic Archdiocese of Cuttack-Bhubaneswar, certainty, channel, character, Chhattisgarh, Chief Minister, Christian, Christianity, Christians, churches, claim, claimed, CNN-IBN, Coalition, colleagues, committment, communal, communist party, community, compel, competition, compromised, concern, conglomerate, Congress Party, consider, consistency, constituency, constitutional, contested, correct, country, critical, daily, Dalit, danger, deadly, decade, decided, declare, defeated, defense, define, delivering, deserted, desirable, deteriorate, determining, Dharampur, dismiss, district, divorce, DMK, Dr. John Dayal, Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, east, eastern, editorial, educational, Election Commission of India, elections, eligible, embolden, emerged, emerges, erosion, erupts, executives, expected, expediency, extremist, eyes, faced, fail, faith, Father, fearing, federal, felled, fifth, Final, fled, following, form, formally, former, formerly, fray, freedom, G. Udaygiri, G. Udaygiri Block, gain, Gajapati, GCIC, Global Council of Indian Christians, governing, government, Graham Staines, grinds, group, grouping, groups, Gujarat, harmony, hate speech, healthy, helm, high, Himachal Pradesh, Hindu, Hinduism, Hindus, homeless, hoping, hostile, hot, houses, ideologically, ideology, important, inaction, incidence, India, India-Marxist, Indian National Congress, individual, inhospitable, institutions, involved, involvement, Islam, issue, issues, jail, Janata Dal-Secular, Janata Dal-United, JD-S, JD-U, Jhabua, join, Kandhamal, Karnataka, Kattingia, keeping, Keonjhar, killed, killer, killing, known, late, launch, laws, leader, leads, least, left, legislatures, level, Liberation, lines, linguistic, lives, localized, Lok Sabha, long, loose, lose, Lower House of Parliament, lowest, lucky, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, major, managed, Manoj Pradhan, Maoist, massive, Mayawati, Meghalaya, members, minority, missionary, Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, monopoly, murder, murky, Muslim, muslims, Nagaland, narrow, Nathuram Godse, nation, national, National Democratic Alliance, nationalist, Nationalist Congress Party, nature, Naveen Patnaik, NCP, NDA, need, neighbouring, New Delhi, news, next, Nilungia, north, north-eastern, northeast, noted, numbers game, obscure, observers, official, officially, open, opposition, options, Orissa, outlook, overarching, pan-national, parliamentary, part, parties, party, people, Persecution, phase, plank, polarize, police, political, polls, poor, postpone, power, powerful, praying, President, pretext, prevail, primary, private, problem, prognosis, promised, promoted, protect, protection, provide, Punjab, Raikia Block, Rashtriya Hanata Dal, Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, re-erupted, reached, recently, regional, regression, regrettable, released, relief camps, religious, remained, rendering, response, responsibility, resulting, results, rise, RJD, road, RSS, ruled, ruling, run-up, Sajan K. George, Samajwadi Party, scared, scheduled, seat, Secretary General, secular, senior, serious, Shiv Sena, showing, significant, Sikkim, situations, smaller, sons, south, southern, SP, spate, spells, stability, stage, stake, stakes, state, strength, strong, summer, supported, supporters, suspect, Swami Laxmanananda Saraswati, systematic, Tamil Nadu, TDP, Telangana Rashtriya Samiti, Telugu Desam Party, tensions, The Times of India, themes, third, Third Front, threatened, Tiangia, tragic, trees, Trinamool Congress, TRS, turnout, ultimately, understood, United Progressive Alliance, unrest, untouchable, UPA, urged, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, various, village, violence, Vishwa Hindu Parishad, vote, voters, votes, warnings, weakest, welcome, welfae, West, West Bengal, wing, woman, World Hindu Council, wrongs, young, zeal | Leave a comment
ABORTION LAW REFORM PASSED IN AUSTRALIA: A DAY OF BETRAYAL
The passing of the infamous Abortion Law Reform Bill by the Victorian Legislative Assembly marks a day of shame in the history of human rights in the State of Victoria, says Ken Orr, the spokesperson for Right to Life New Zealand Inc. The first duty of the State is to protect the right to life of all of its citizens. It has a special duty to protect the lives of the weak and defenceless in society. The State has an overwhelming interest and duty to protect the lives of its future citizens. The unborn child is a member of the human family and is the weakest and most defenceless member of society. The Bill also denies the personhood of the unborn child. We should remember that it was the denial of the personhood of the Negro that gave the world slavery and the denial of the personhood of the Jew that gave us the holocaust. It is the denial of the personhood of the unborn that is giving us the abortion holocaust.
Human rights are conferred by our Creator, not by the State or by the community. The unborn child is a bearer of human rights. At conception the unborn child is conferred with an inalienable right to life. and should be accorded the respect due to the human person. The passing of this Bill entails the State withdrawing its legal protection for the human rights of the unborn child. It is now no longer a crime to kill an unborn child. This is a violation of the rights of the child. It is also a violation of the human rights of the mother who has a right to have the protection of the State for herself and for her child. The Bill is thus an attack on the dignity of women and of motherhood. The Bill is falsely touted as an empowering victory for women, it is not, it represents further oppression. A woman distressed with an unplanned pregnancy deserves from the community love, compassion and help, not assistance to destroy her child.
The Bill will encourage the further exploitation and abuse of women. Studies have linked abortion to increased substance abuse, suicide and psychiatric ill health. Studies conducted overseas reveal that 64% of women who have an abortion are coerced by the father of the child, family and friends. This Bill will further encourage men to coerce women into having an abortion against their will with threats of abandonment and violence in order to reject their responsibilities for the mother and the child they have fathered.
The Bill is also a violation of the conscience of doctors. The Bill makes it obligatory for a doctor whose conscience is opposed to abortion to refer the women seeking an abortion to another doctor who is prepared to destroy the child. The unborn child is a patient; a doctor has a duty to do no harm and maintain the utmost respect for human life from the moment of conception. This Bill is a threat to the lives of the unborn of every other State and New Zealand.
Posted in abortion, Australia, Christianity, crime, Jews, Law and Legislation, New Zealand, Victoria | Tagged abortion, Abortion Law Reform Bill, abuse, accorded, assistance, attack, Australia, bearer, betrayal, bill, child, citizens, coerce, coerced, community, compassion, conception, conferred, conscience, creator, crime, defenceless, denies, deserves, destroy, dignity, distressed, doctor, doctors, duty, empowering, encourage, exploitation, family, Father, fathered, friends, future, harm, health, help, History, holocaust, human family, human rights, ill, inalienable, increased, infamous, interest, Jew, Ken Orr, kill, law, linked, lives, love, member, mother, motherhood, Negro, New Zealand, obligatory, opposed, oppression, overseas, overwhelming, passed, patient, personhood, pregnancy, prepared, protect, psychiatric, refer, reform, reject, represents, respect, responsibilities, reveal, right to life, Right to life New Zealand Inc, shame, slavery, Society, special, spokesperson, state, studies, substance abuse, suicide, unborn child, unplanned, Victoria, Victorian Legislative Assembly, victory, violation, weak, weakest, women | Leave a comment
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Tuija Peltomaa
University Teacher
MA from the University of Helsinki in 1996. Major in art history. Secondary subjects aesthetics and philosphy. Has been working as a teacher, lecturer, writer and as a specialist in art, design and antiques in the media as well as the art market. Has twenty years of experience of evaluating art, design and antiques and is now reflecting mechanisms behind the formation of prices. Interested in contemporary art, Northern renaissance, non-western cultures and Finnish early 20th Century design, especially the history of material imitations and substitute materials used in the 1940s Finland. Currently pondering two questions, inspired by earlier research of ceramic artist Michael Schilkin and marine painter Oscar Kleineh. What it takes from an emigrant or a refugee to be able to pursue and obtain status as an artist in a new homeland and foreign culture? How the relationship between art and tourism evolved in the late 19th Century Europe, as well as in late 19th - early 20th Century Finland. How cultural tourism of today is shaping the contemporary art world and our environment?
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PIME in China
PIME in HK
PIME HKC Members
Martyrs in HK
Rev. KWOK, King-Wan Renatus
Rev. WONG, Chi-Him Francis
Rev. TERUZZI, Emilio PIME
PIME House
eService
St. Alberic Crescitelli (1863-1900)
Martyr in China
St. Alberic Crescitelli was born on June 30, 1863 in southern Italy. He entered the seminary at age 12. An excellent student, he earned bachelor’s degrees in philosophy, theology, and canon law and was ordained in 1887 for the Pontifical Seminary of Sts. Peter and Paul in Rome. The next year, he made the rigorous journey to his mission post in southern Shaanxi, China where he immersed himself in Chinese culture. To assimilate with the Chinese people, he adopted their style of dress and changed his name to “Kuo Si-Teh.” In 1900, after working in various missions, he was assigned to Ningqiang Province.
On July 20, 1900, in the village of Yanzibian (where there were many catechumens), his friends warned him of terrorists on a campaign to kill all foreigners and urged him to escape and hide. But a traitor among them entrapped him, causing his capture. He was viciously slashed and beaten, and the next morning he was dragged along the riverbank and beheaded as an example for all to see.
For his heroic faith, he was beatified by Pope Pius XII on February 18, 1951, and proclaimed a saint on October 1, 2000 by Bl. Pope John Paul II, along with many other Christians martyred during China’s Boxer Rebellion.
Blessed John Mazzuconi (1826 -1855)
Martyr in Papua New Guinea
“My dear friend, try constantly to love and like those who are our companions in our journey through life. To develop the habit of caring for others ennobles the heart and mind and makes us worthy children of that God Who is Charity.”
A member of the first expedition to Oceania in 1852, Mazzuconi was known for his intelligence and sensitivity. John had faith in the power of prayer over action, a faith that he practiced to a heroic degree. As a missionary on the remote South Pacific island of Rook, he suffered poverty and illness, and saw no real conversions. In human terms, it seems his missionary life was a failure. However, when he endured a martyr’s death, he brought forth the “first fruits” of the missionary work of PIME. Mazzuconi was beatified by Pope John Paul II on January 13, 1983.
Blessed Clement Vismara (1897-1988)
“I knew the Gospel. I loved it. I put it into practice. But I could not keep it in my heart only for myself.”
Blessed Fr. Clement Vismara carried out his work for 65 years in the Asian country now known as Myanmar. From 1923 to 1988 he served the people there, earning for himself the unofficial title of “Patriarch of Burma.” He returned to Italy only once, in 1957, because of illness. He died on June 15, 1988, in Mong Ping, in the Diocese of Kengtung, on the border with China and Laos. He was immediately invoked as “protector of children” because of his devotion to the orphaned children of his mission. He was beatified by Pope Benedict XVI on June 26, 2011.
Blessed Clement’s inspiring letters have been preserved in the book Clement Vismara: Apostle of the Little Ones. The children’s book The Man Who Never Grew Old is a colorful tribute to Bl. Clement.
Blessed Paolo Manna (1872-1952)
“The whole Church for the whole World!”
Blessed Fr. Paolo Manna was the first Superior General of PIME, although his heart remained in the missions of East Burma (now Myanmar) where he had served for 12 years. Pope John XXIII attributed to him the title of “the Christopher Columbus” of missionary cooperation and Pope Paul VI described him as “one of the most effective promoters of missionary universality in the 20th century.” He is also acknowledged for his “prophetic role” in promoting Ecumenism. Father Paolo Manna died in Naples on September 15, 1952.
His book Thoughts and Reflections upon Vocations to the Foreign Missions was published in 1909. An edited version entitled Forward with Christ was published by Fr. Nicholas Maestrini, PIME in 1954. Limited copies are available through the PIME Missionaries.
Blessed Mario Vergara (1910-1950)
Martyr in Burma.
An adventurous, fun-loving child who felt an early call to the missionary life, Fr. Mario Vergara entered the PIME seminary in Monza in 1929. After enduring a life-threatening illness his first year in seminary, he finally returned to his studies in 1933. He wass ordained in August of 1934 and left one month later for Burma. Known for his love for children and the sick, he was always on the move, undeterred by discomforts, bad weather, and attacks of malaria. When WWII broke out, and Italy declared war on England, all Italian missionaries were declared “fascists.” Vergara was sent with the other missionaries to a concentration camp in India. He was released in 1944, assigned to the mission of Toungoo. The British were no longer in control, but rebels sought to overthrow the government. Vergara was killed by the rebels, along with a catechist, on May 24, 1950.
PIME Martyrs and Saints
843, Clear Water Bay Road, N.T.
Website : //pimehkc.catholic.org.hk
Telephone : (852)2719 8360 / (852)2719 0572
PIME Hong Kong Family
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6 Ways Christians Can Fight the 'Cultural Marxism' on College Campuses
Is there any place more hostile to Christianity than the modern college campus? Two Christian college professors explained why, and how believers can fight for their faith in the intellectual hub of the modern world.
"The university is the single most influential tool of Western Civilization," Corey Miller, adjunct professor of philosophy and comparative religions at Indiana University-Kokomo and president of the outreach group Ratio Christi, told PJ Media. "We need to reclaim the voice of Christ at the university."
Ratio Christi (Latin for "The Reason of Christ") is a non-profit organization seeking to do exactly that — to strengthen the faith of Christian students and professors while preaching the Gospel in an intellectually sophisticated way befitting elite institutions.
"I think the church doesn't realize what they're up against when they're sending our kids to the secular baptismal font," Miller declared. He argued that the modern college campus has been overtaken by the ideas of "cultural Marxism," an ideology particularly opposed to faith in Jesus Christ. He laid out six different ways Christians can fight back — not just to keep Christian students from converting to secularism, but to reclaim higher education for the Christian principles which founded it.
1. Understanding the threat: Cultural Marxism.
"Stalin once said ideas are more powerful than weapons: we don't allow our enemies to have weapons, so we shouldn't allow them to have ideas," Miller told PJ Media. He argued that the anti-free speech culture of "safe spaces" where students can go to avoid challenging ideas, "microaggressions" when usual speech can be interpreted as offensive, and "trigger warnings" where any idea which might offend people must be preceded by a warning, comes from the Marxist tactic of shaming any potential dissent.
"The general Marxist approach is to shame or eventually stop any ideas beyond what is politically correct at the time," the professor argued. "When we think of Marxism, we think economics, but that was his third concern. His second was politics and the first was religion. America's had its strength in Christianity in the past, and I think Marxism is a philosophy about the state owning everything and it's got to compete in all the institutions with a Christian presence."
Miller said Marxism must "marginalize the dominant ideology in opposition to it — I think you're seeing that take place in a lot of different institutions."
Carol M. Swain, professor of law at Vanderbilt University, agreed. "The failed ideas of Karl Marx led to the rise of the cultural Marxists who believed that the way you could bring about utopia was to change the culture," she told PJ Media in an interview. Cultural Marxists came from Europe to American universities in the 1920s and 1930s, but their struggle for power flared up in the 1960s.
"The attempt to suppress other viewpoints started back then, but they didn't have the power and positions to enforce it broadly," Swain explained. But over the last 50 years, "they gradually went into universities and started to impose their worldview which involves suppressing anyone who would dissent." She explicitly referenced "microaggressions" as a tactic of silencing dissent.
Now that these people are in power, they no longer call themselves Marxists. "They have imposed a dangerous space and totally antithetical to the idea of what a university is supposed to be about," namely the free inquiry into truth and the fundamental questions of the mind.
"When you hear them describe what's important, it's in terms of race, gender, sexual orientation," Swain noted. These divisions create interest groups which clamp down on dissent, claiming the ideas which undergird Western Civilization are racist, sexist, and homophobic. This ideology unravels the long, hard work of reform Christianity has wrought in the West, and threatens to undo the social good Christians have done across history.
How C. S. Lewis Predicted Today's College Campus Craziness—in 1944
Next Page: The goodness of Christianity, the root of Western Civilization.
https://pjmedia.com/faith/2016/10/06/6-ways-christians-can-fight-the-cultural-marxism-on-college-campuses/
Related: Culture, college, political correctness, Christianity, Ideology
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Saving Souls and Resisting Temptation
January 27, 2018 | Pulitzer Center
Natan Tobias, 13, said he was frightened after authorities brought him to an orphanage near Cochabamba. "I was afraid. I didn't even want to come out of my room." Image by Tracey Eaton. Bolivia, 2017.
Some children wind up on the streets after their parents are jailed or divorced. Natan Tobias, 13, got lucky. Authorities took him to an orphanage after his father disappeared.
"It was difficult at first," the fifth-grader said. "I didn't know anyone. I was afraid. I didn't even want to come out of my room."
Tobias said authorities took him to the orphanage after his father was accused of stealing. He said he doesn't know what happened or whether he'll see his father again.
Ivan Ramirez, who founded the orphanage near Cochabamba, said no one is doing enough to help children.
"Neither the government nor non-profit organizations have enough resources to deal with the many challenges facing the country’s children and adolescents," he said
Ivan Ramirez credits God for helping him rescue children in need. "God gives you direction, you know?” Image by Tracey Eaton. Bolivia, 2017.
Ramirez said he had his own problems before starting the orphanage. He got in trouble with the law and wound up in jail in the early 1990s. Alcohol was freely available in prison and he started drinking.
“Inside jail, I became an alcoholic,” he said.
After he was freed, Ramirez said he lived on the streets before finally getting his life under control. He gives God the credit.
“God was taking care of me so I could make it to this moment,” he said.
The orphanage started with just one child—a boy from the streets.
“He was a delinquent in miniature,” Ramirez recalled. “The next day another one arrived.”
Kevin Ramirez, 19, gets a little choked up when talking about the orphanage he calls home. "I don't know under what circumstances I got here, but I always thank God," he said. Image by Tracey Eaton. Bolivia, 2017.
The orphanage grew quickly, taking in street children and kids addicted to glue and other inhalants. Unfortunately, Ramirez said he can’t save them all.
“Many have died because of drug use,” he said. “Some are in jail, which is the most painful thing. We continue with our work. God gives you direction, you know?”
He said he worries because he sees more young people getting mixed up in drugs.
"It's getting out of hand," he said.
Kevin Ramirez said selling drugs is easy money, but he resists the temptation. He's been at the orphanage since age 2. Now 19, he hopes to study medicine.
"I don't know under what circumstances I got here, but I always thank God," he said. "Sometimes I think, 'Who were my parents? Why did they leave me and what was the reason?'"
Wherever they are, he prays for them and hopes they are OK.
"They brought me to light, to the world. I didn't know them, but I always think there will be a moment when God will bring them to me."
Bolivian Youth: In Harm's Way
Tracey Eaton is an award-winning writer, producer and multimedia journalist. He has worked throughout Latin America and is a former Fulbright scholar in Ecuador.Eaton headed Dallas Morning News...
Human Rights, Youth
Article, Field Notes
Bolivia: Chulumani, Chicaloma, Ocobaya, Irupana
Bolivia Wrestles with Protecting Child Workers as Young as 10
Would You Let Your 10-Year-Old Kid Work? It's Perfectly Legal in This Country
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Premier League Predictions Game
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Premier League Standings: Top 5
1 Adrian George 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
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Weekly Standings: Top 5
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Professional Paper 1798–F
>> Pubs Warehouse > PP 1798–F
In cooperation with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
Sediment Transport and Deposition in the Lower Missouri River During the 2011 Flood
By Jason S. Alexander, Robert B. Jacobson, and David L. Rus
Chapter F of
2011 Floods of the Central United States
Floodwater in the Missouri River in 2011 originated in upper-basin regions and tributaries, and then travelled through a series of large flood-control reservoirs, setting records for total runoff volume entering all six Missouri River main-stem reservoirs. The flooding lasted as long as 3 months. The U.S Geological Survey (USGS) examined sediment transport and deposition in the lower Missouri River in 2011 to investigate how the geography of floodwater sources, in particular the decanting effects of the Missouri River main-stem reservoir system, coupled with the longitudinal characteristics of civil infrastructure and valley-bottom topography, affected sediment transport and deposition in this large, regulated river system.
During the flood conditions in 2011, the USGS, in cooperation with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, monitored suspended-sediment transport at six primary streamgages along the length of the lower Missouri River. Measured suspended-sediment concentration (SSC) in the lower Missouri River varied from approximately 150 milligrams per liter (mg/L) to 2,000 mg/L from January 1 to September 30, 2011. Median SSC increased in the downstream direction from 355 mg/L at Sioux City, Iowa, to 490 mg/L at Hermann, Missouri. The highest SSCs were measured downstream from Omaha, Nebraska, in late February when snowmelt runoff from tributaries, which were draining zones of high-sediment production, was entering the lower Missouri River, and releases of water at Gavins Point Dam were small. The combination of dilute releases of water at Gavins Point Dam and low streamflows in lower Missouri River tributaries caused sustained lowering of SSC at all streamgages from early July through late August.
Suspended-sediment ranged from 5 percent washload (PW; percent silt and clay) to as much as 98 percent in the lower Missouri River from January 1 to September 30, 2011. Median PW increased in the downstream direction from 24 percent at Sioux City, Iowa, to 78 percent at Hermann, Missouri. Measurements made in early January, when SSC was low, indicate that suspended sediment mostly was composed of bed material, but by mid-February, runoff from the plains caused PW to increase at most streamgages. Total suspended-sediment discharge (SSD) during water year 2011 at the selected streamgages in the lower Missouri River ranged from approximately 29 to 64 million tons. Total estimated SSD had the lowest exceedance frequencies in the reaches between Gavins Point Dam and Nebraska City, Nebraska, but exceedance frequencies increased substantially downstream. In 2011, total SSD with low exceedance frequencies were reported at Sioux City, Iowa, Omaha, Nebraska, and Nebraska City, Nebraska, despite moderate-to-high exceedance frequencies for annual average SSC, indicating that the duration of high-magnitude flooding was the primary driver of total SSD.
Comparison of median SSC for samples from water year 2011 with samples in the 20 years prior indicated that median SSC for high-action streamflows (streamflows likely to produce a stage exceeding the National Weather Service’s “action stage”) in 2011 were lower than those typical for high-action streamflows. Multiple-comparison analysis indicated that median SSC values for low-action streamflows (streamflows likely to produce stages lower than the National Weather Service’s “action stage”) and high-action streamflows sampled in 2011 at 4 of 6 streamgages were not significantly distinguishable from median SSC values for low-action streamflows in the previous 20 years. Longitudinal comparison of streamflow and SSD exceedance frequencies for 2011 with corresponding frequencies for 2008 and 1993 indicated the important role of tributary contributions to total SSD in the lower Missouri River. In 1993 and 2008, tributaries were the primary source of floodwater in the lower Missouri River, which resulted in a 20-fold increase in total SSD from Sioux City, Iowa, to Hermann, Missouri. In 2011, releases at Gavins Point Dam were the primary source of floodwater in the lower Missouri River, and total SSD at Hermann, Missouri, was only twice that estimated for Sioux City, Iowa.
Sand deposition was estimated using analysis of multispectral satellite imagery collected in October and November 2011. Distributions of sand in the flood plain of the lower Missouri River also were quantified in relation to distance from the banks of the main channel for seven discrete river segments bounded by Gavins Point Dam and selected downstream tributaries. The areal extent of overbank flooding and flood-plain sand deposits increased downstream from Sioux City, Iowa to a broad peak near Rulo, Nebraska, and then decreased to levels near the lower limit of quantification downstream from Kansas City, Missouri. Most of the flood plain inundation and sediment-deposition damage to agricultural fields was observed between river miles 480 and 700, where 2011 peak streamflows had low exceedance frequencies, and the lower Missouri River channel was less incised or had aggraded recently. As channel capacity increased in the downstream direction, the relative magnitude of the flood decreased downstream, and overbank flooding was less extensive. In the constricted reaches, flood-plain sand deposits mainly were observed in association with levee breaks.
First posted December 6, 2013
Report PDF (18 MB)
Dataset https://dx.doi.org/10.5066/F7BG2M2N
Chief, Office of Surface Water
415 National Center
12201 Sunrise Valley Drive
http://water.usgs.gov/osw/
Part or all of this report is presented in Portable Document Format (PDF). For best results viewing and printing PDF documents, it is recommended that you download the documents to your computer and open them with Adobe Reader. PDF documents opened from your browser may not display or print as intended. Download the latest version of Adobe Reader, free of charge.
Alexander, J.S., Jacobson, R.B., and Rus, D.L., 2013, Sediment transport and deposition in the lower Missouri River during the 2011 flood: U.S. Geological Survey Professional Paper 1798–F, 27 p., https://dx.doi.org/10.3133/pp1798f.
Sediment Transport and Deposition in the Lower Missouri River in 2011
URL: https://pubs.usgs.gov/pp/1798f/
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Darren M. Friedman
Partner at StepStone Group LP
Citigroup Private Equity LP
StepStone Group Holdings LLC
RelSci Relationships are individuals Darren M. Friedman likely has professional access to. A relationship does not necessarily indicate a personal connection.
Jason Paul Ment
Partner, General Counsel, Chief Compliance Officer at StepStone Group LP
Monte Brem
Co-Founder at StepStone Group LP
Johnny D. Randel
Partner, Chief Financial Officer at StepStone Group LP
Jose A. Fernandez
Ronald J. Rose
Thomas A. Bradley
Michael I. McCabe
Thomas Keck
David Jeffrey
Scott William Hart
Royal Caribbean escapes jury award in injured skater's suit
The Deal Pipeline
Laureate Education to return to public markets
Paths to Darren M. Friedman
B.S. in Finance
The University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign is a public research-intensive university in the U.S. state of Illinois. It is the flagship campus of the University of Illinois system. The University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign is the second oldest public university in the state (after Illinois State University), and is a founding member of the Big Ten Conference. It is considered a Public Ivy and is a member of the Association of American Universities.
University of Pennsylvania - The Wharton School
The Wharton School is the business school of the University of Pennsylvania, an Ivy League university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Wharton was the world’s first collegiate business school and the first business school in the United States. It was established in 1881 through a donation of Joseph Wharton.
StepStone Group LP
StepStone Group builds private equity portfolios through a combination of fund investments, co-investments and secondary purchases. When designing private equity programs and optimizing portfolio exposure, the firm employs a proprietary, institutional investment approach that seeks to maximize risk-adjusted returns. Their approach includes program design, portfolio construction, portfolio analytics and monitoring and reporting.StepStone's investment approach focuses on utilizing proprietary research to identify strategies and geographies that will outperform in the future and on selecting the top-performing fund managers, co-investment and secondary opportunities in these areas. The firm utilizes proprietary research to identify the segments of the private equity market they believe will outperform over the next fund cycle (4 to 6 years). StepStone then uses this research to over allocate and/or under allocate assets to specific strategies and geographies within an overall framework of a diversified portfolio. They refer to this process as 'Targeted Diversification.' StepStone seeks to avoid index-based returns and the costs of over diversification. This allocation strategy provides the framework for the firm's selection of specific fund investments, secondary purchases and co-investments.
Citigroup Private Equity (CPE) manages private equity fund commitments, non-control direct private equity investments and mezzanine investments on behalf of Citi's proprietary accounts and third party clients. They focus on identifying and investing with leading private equity firms across all geographies and investment styles and sizes that have demonstrated an ability to generate attractive returns in their areas of specialty. This includes LBOs, venture capital, mezzanine, distressed debt and direct and secondary investing. CPE's business allows all investment professionals to be active in both fund investing and direct co-investing alongside CPE's fund partners. Their direct equity co-investing and mezzanine orientation allows them to deepen relationships and investment perspectives and to conduct on-going due diligence of their portfolio managers.
StepStone Group Holdings LLC specializes in venture capital and private equity. The company is headquartered in La Jolla, CA.
PADI Holding Company LLC
Padi Holding Co. LLC operates as a holding company and manufactures recreational products. The company is headquartered in Wilmington, DE.
Casedhole Solutions, Inc.
Casedhole Solutions, Inc. provides oil and gas services. The firm is an oilfield service company catering to the oil and gas industry in the U.S. It provides a variety of wireline services for its customer completions and pipe recovery needs. The company was founded in 2005 and is headquartered in Weatherford, OK.
2010 - Prior
C&J OldCo, Inc.
C&J OldCo, Inc. engages in the provision of hydraulic fracturing, coiled tubing and wireline and other complementary services. It operates through the following segments: Stimulation and Well Intervention Services, Wireline Services and Equipment Manufacturing. The Stimulation and Well Intervention Services segment provides hydraulic fracturing and coiled tubing, stimulation services, and directional drilling services. The Wireline Services segment offers cased-hole wireline and other complementary services, including logging, perforating, pipe recovery, pressure testing, and pump down services. The Equipment Manufacturing segment manufactures, refurbishes and repairs equipment and provides oilfield parts and supplies for third-party customers in the energy services industry. The company was founded by Joshua E. Comstock in 1997 and is headquartered in Houston, TX.
C&J OldCo, Inc. issued Common Stock
Boston, MA, United States
6th Annual SuperReturn U.S. Conference
Event designed to open up disucssion around some of the pricklier issues in Private Equity
Renaissance Boston Waterfront Hotel-Boston, MA
Darren M. Friedman is affiliated with StepStone Group LP, Citigroup Private Equity LP, StepStone Group Holdings LLC, LaSalle National Bank, C&J OldCo, Inc., Salomon Smith Barney, Inc., PADI Holding Company LLC, Casedhole Solutions, Inc., C&J OldCo, Inc., Laureate Education, Inc., The ServiceMaster Co., ServiceMaster Global Holdings, Inc., Educate, Inc., PADI Worldwide Corp., Meteor Learning, Inc., Silverstone Iii LP
This web site is not endorsed by, directly affiliated with, maintained, authorized, or sponsored by Darren M. Friedman. The use of any trade name or trademark is for identification and reference purposes only and does not imply any association with the trademark holder. The Presence of Darren M. Friedman's profile does not indicate a business or promotional relationship of any kind between RelSci and Darren M. Friedman.
https://relationshipscience.com/person/darren-m-friedman-3624788
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Authored by Dr. James Pauley in Issue #5.3 of The Catechetical Review
This year marks the twentieth anniversary of one of the most important publications the U.S. Bishops have ever written: Our Hearts Were Burning Within Us. The ideals and principles expressed in this document are deeply convicting and can be summed up with these stirring words: “adult faith formation is essential to who we are and what we do as Church and must be situated not at the periphery of the Church’s educational mission but at its center.”[1]
Clergy and catechists have collectively awakened to this need to help Catholic adults (and not just children and teens!) encounter Christ and grow in the faith he has entrusted to us. We have seen this awakening: in the groundswell of support for Bishop Robert Barron’s Catholicism series; in the many conversations that have taken place at the parish and diocesan levels as a result of Sherry Weddell’s Forming Intentional Disciples and Fr. James Mallon’s Divine Renovation; in the inspiring vision of the Amazing Parish conferences; in how many adults have benefitted from Alpha and Formed; and in the publication of many other extraordinary books, programs, and resources. In fact, we are living in a kind of “golden age” of Catholic resources intended to call adults to a deeper faith and life in Christ.
In many ways, Our Hearts Were Burning Within Us was a precursor to all of this development and inspiration, by identifying some significant needs. Through the working of the Holy Spirit, many new initiatives have arisen in these past twenty years to be placed at the service of Catholic adults.
However, in many of our parishes and schools, this treasury of new resources has not made a demonstrable “dent” in the unconscious Catholicism lived by so many. This is because a deeply rooted cultural problem cannot be fixed by throwing books, resources, and programs at it.
The majority of Catholic adults in the United States operate under two misconceptions regarding the need for catechesis. These misconceptions surface in how we might answer this question: when is catechesis important? Many would respond that the faith should be “studied” when we are children and when we are preparing for a sacrament.
First, catechesis is for children only. A former supervisor in a previous job of mine frequently joked that we ought to rename it “kiddy-chesis” due to this prevalent mindset within Catholic parish culture.
A second misconception: catechesis is reducible to sacramental preparation. The idea becomes ingrained that we are catechized when it’s time to prepare for a sacrament. Policies and programs are created to prepare young Catholics to receive the Sacraments of Reconciliation, Communion, and Confirmation. Later, should they decide to marry in the Church, they are required to attend marriage preparation. Finally, they might go through one last round of sacramental preparation if they have their children baptized. Most catechetical leaders face the challenge of a precipitous drop in catechetical participation post-Confirmation and throughout adulthood, because why would we be catechized if we’re not preparing for a sacrament?
These are powerful undercurrents. Of course, children’s catechesis and sacramental preparation are both important and deserve our best efforts. But, with a few notable exceptions, the Gospels show us that Jesus primarily engaged adults—and certainly today’s adults stand in tremendous need of being challenged by his truth and presence. Years ago, I used to marvel at a non-denominational church down the street from a parish where I worked. Three times a week, their parking lots were full in the evenings, with adults attending various bible studies. Our parish parking lot was also very busy three nights a week, but only for twenty minutes each night, as parents dropped off and picked up their children for parish catechesis and youth ministry.
What must we strive for today? Culture change. For diocesan and parish catechetical leaders, the questions that must define our work are these: how do we establish a culture in our parishes and schools where encountering Christ and maturing in our understanding of his teaching—his way of seeing the world—is embraced as a lifelong responsibility and adventure? How do we prioritize opportunities for adults to encounter and be changed by God? How do we adjust our catechesis so that it stirs up a deep desire for God and for a vibrant Catholic life? How do we raise up witnesses who can speak from their own experience of how growing in faith has improved their relationships—with God, within their families, with their brothers and sisters in their parishes, and with the broader community?
These are just a few of the important questions provoked by Our Hearts Were Burning Within Us. Today, these questions must receive our full attention and creativity.
Dr. James Pauley is Professor of Theology and Catechetics at Franciscan University of Steubenville and author of Liturgical Catechesis in the 21st Century: A School of Discipleship (Liturgy Training Publications, 2017).
Photo credit: George Martell/The Pilot Media Group @ Flickr.com, Creative Commons License.
[1] USCCB, Our Hearts Were Burning Within Us (1999), par. 42, accessible at http://www.usccb.org/beliefs-and-teachings/how-we-teach/catechesis/adult-faith-formation/our-hearts.cfm
This article orginally appeared on page 5 of the printed edition.
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Appendices to the Journals of the House of Representatives, 1869, A-12.
Freda Dudley Ward Collection, Letters from Prince of Wales, 27 April-2 May 1920, Alexander Turnbull Library MS-Papers-8780-1-3.
Internal Affairs Files in Archives New Zealand. Nos: IA 1, 184/2, part 1; IA 1, 184/40, part 1; IA 1, 184/108; IA 1, 184/136; IA 1, 815/17; IA 1, 3015, 158/214.
Maori Affairs Files in Archives New Zealand. Nos: MA 24, 5/11; MA 25, 5/11; MA 28, 7, 9/31/1; MA 28, 9,11, 31/4/2.
Bassett, Judith. "'A Thousand Miles of Loyalty': The Royal Tour of 1901." New Zealand Journal of History 21, no. 1 (1987): 125-138.
Belgrave, Michael. Dancing with the King: The Rise and Fall of the King Country, 1864-1885. Auckland: Auckland University Press, 2017.
Bolitho, H. Hector. With the Prince in New Zealand. Auckland: Edwin Sayes, 1920.
Carter, Sarah and Maria Nugent, eds. Mistress of Everything: Queen Victoria in Indigenous Worlds. Manchester: Manchester University Press, 2016.
Colquhoun, David. "Royal Scenes from the Empire City: The Prince of Wales in Wellington, 5-8 May 1920." Turnbull Library Record 41 (2009): 13-33.
Cowan, James. The New Zealand Wars: A history of the Maori Campaigns and the Pioneering Period: Volume 2. Wellington: Government Printer, 1922.
Hardingham, John. The Queen in New Zealand. Wellington: Reed, 1954.
King, Michael. Te Puea: a Biography. Auckland: Hodder and Stoughton, 1977.
Loughnan, R.A. Royalty in New Zealand: Visit of Their Royal Highnesses The Duke and Duchess of Cornwall and York, 1901. Wellington: Government Printer, 1902.
New Zealand Journey: A Tour of New Zealand by Her Majesty the Queen and His Royal Highness the Duke of Edinburgh 1953-1954. Wellington: Government Printer, 1953.
O'Malley, Vincent. The Great War for New Zealand: Waikato 1800-2000. Wellington: Bridget Williams Books, 2016.
O'Malley, Vincent, and David Armstrong. The Beating Heart: The Political and Socio-Economic History of Te Arawa. Wellington: Huia, 2008.
Orange, Claudia. The Treaty of Waitangi. Wellington: Allen & Unwin, 1987.
Phillips, Jock. "Musings in Maoriland - or was there a 'Bulletin' School in New Zealand?" Historical Studies 20, no. 81 (October 1983): 520-535.
Phillips, Jock. Royal Summer: the Visit of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip to New Zealand 1953-54. Wellington: Daphne Brasell Associates Press, 1993.
Reed, Charles V. Royal Tourists: Colonial Subjects and the Making of a British World. Manchester: Manchester University Press, 2016.
Richards, J. H. ed. The Royal Visit to New Zealand of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II and His Royal Highness the Duke of Edinburgh. Wellington: Reed, 1954.
Scholefield, Guy H. Visit of His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales to the Dominion of New Zealand, April-May 1920. Wellington: W.G. Skinner, 1920.
Stafford, D.M. The Founding Years in Rotorua. Auckland: Ray Richards, 1986.
Stafford, D.M. The New Century in Rotorua: A history of events since 1900. Auckland: Ray Richards, 1988.
Stocker, Mark. "An imperial icon Indigenised: the Queen Victoria Memorial at Ohinemutu." In New Zealand's Empire, edited by Katie Pickles and Catherine Coleborne, 28-50. Manchester: Manchester University Press, 2016.
Waitangi Tribunal. Report on the Orakei Claim. Wellington: Government Print: 1987.
Ziegler, Philip, ed. The Diaries of Lord Louis Mountbatten: Tours with the Prince of Wales. London: Collins, 1987.
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It's Your Life - It's Our Future
Smoking cessation program designed for American Indians in California. (1999)
Current Smokers
NCI (Grant number(s): CA52279)
Browse more programs on Tobacco Control
Smoking is a significant problem in Indian communities. The 2000 National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) found that American Indians/Alaska Natives had the highest smoking rates (36%) among racial/ethnic groups. Other NHIS data show that American Indians/Alaska Natives were the only group for whom smoking rates did not decline from 1978 to 1995.
Studies have shown that smoking rates decrease when physicians advise patients not to smoke. For this reason, smoking cessation advice from physicians and health providers, along with a motivational videotape and follow-up by a community health representative, play an important part in It's Your Life -- It's Our Future, a smoking cessation program designed specifically for American Indians in California.
The program consists of three parts: (1) identification of the clinic client as a smoker, (2) delivery of a stop-smoking message from the physician to the smoker, and (3) a follow-up visit from a community health representative, who provides educational materials and support to help the smoker quit and remain a non-smoker. To accomplish the smoking cessation goal, the program materials were developed with guidance from local clinic staff, artists, and American-Indian advisors.
Implementation of this program consists of a 15-minute Train-the-Trainer video, the It's Your Life -- It's Our Future smoking cessation video (15 minutes), and a follow-up visit by a community health representative 6 months after the smoking cessation intervention. The educational materials were provided by the CHR as part of the intervention.
Study participants were American Indians and Alaska natives residing in Northern California.
The program can be administered in community health clinics.
Required resources include the motivational video (It's Your Life) and a self-help guide provided by a community health representative.
The It's Your Life - It's Our Future project consisted of five phases: (1) working with the American-Indian community to identify needs and barriers related to smoking cessation, (2) designing or revising quit-smoking materials, (3) conducting the prevalence survey, (4) implementing the program, and (5) evaluating the program. These steps were used to gather support from the American-Indian communities, to provide the most practical and efficient smoking cessation methods, and to ensure that the project was culturally appropriate and accessible to the community.
In order to identify culturally appropriate messages, the researchers used targeted focus groups and questionnaires. Three topics were found to be the most culturally appropriate: 1) cultural identity, 2) responsibility to family and tribe, and 3) respect for tobacco products for ritual use.
Results of the study include the following:
The percent of smokers who quit smoking after the intervention was 6.8%, compared with 3.4% of those who received standard clinic care.
Smokers were more likely to quit if they were younger, female, did not have a smoker in the house, smoked fewer than 12 cigarettes a day, did not smoke within 30 minutes of waking up, and were highly motivated to quit.
After 6 months, the program had a greater effect among those who were interested in quitting at baseline than among those who were not.
The program had a greater effect on light smokers than on heavy smokers.
Hodge F, Casken J. (1999). Characteristics of American Indian Women Cigarette Smokers: Prevalence and Cessation Status. Health Care for Women International, 20, 455-469.
Hodge F, Cummings S, Fredericks L, Kipnis P, Williams M, Teehee K. (1995). Prevalence of Smoking among Adult American Indian Clinic Users in Northern California. Preventive Medicine, 24, 441-446.
Hodge F, Fredericks L, Kipnis P. (1996). Patient and Smoking Patterns in Northern California American Indian Clinics; Urban and Rural Contrasts. Cancer, 78(s), 1623-1628.
Hodge F, Fredericks L, Kipnis P. (1999). Chapter 6: "It's Your Life - It's Our Future" Stop Smoking Project. Native Outreach: A Report to American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian Communities (NIH Publication #98-4341).
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Explore Sackville
Move Here
Resident FAQs
Your Town Hall
Documents and Notices
Doing Business in Sackville
Serving the needs of residents, visitors and businesses since 1762
Sackville Town Council meets twice each month. You’re invited to attend.
Our Discussion Group and Regular Town Council Meetings, held on the first and second Mondays of each month, are open to the public. Find our meeting dates and join us at Town Hall. Archives of previous meeting minutes are also available.
Our Discussion Group meetings are Special Council Meetings, which take place on the first Monday of each month in the Town Hall Council Chambers at 31C Main Street. Start time is 7:00 p.m. These are public meetings, and generally serve as information meetings regarding various subjects. It is often the first opportunity for an item or issue to be presented to Council and therefore, decisions are not generally made at this meeting. This allows time for Councillors to reflect on the information and/or seek further information as necessary in order to assist in their decision making at a later date, of which normally occurs during the Regular Monthly Council meetings.
Discussion Group meetings are also open to the public to make a presentation to Council. Interested individuals / groups are asked to submit a written request to the Clerk’s Office no later than two weeks prior to the meeting date in order to be confirmed on the agenda and allow appropriate notice of the agenda. The Town of Sackville will make every effort possible to accommodate requests in a timely manner and topics will be placed on upcoming agendas subject to availability. Given the number of items on most agendas, presentations are generally limited to 10 minutes.
Regular Town Council Meetings
The Regular Monthly Council Meeting occurs on the second Monday of the month with a 7:00 p.m. start time. The Regular meeting is also a public meeting and is the opportunity for Town Council to conduct their business. During our Regular Meetings, monthly departmental reports are presented and decisions of Council are addressed by way of motions.
Other Special Meetings
Town Council may also hold other Special Meetings from time to time to consider matters that require immediate attention and/or a decision. With the exception of Emergency Meetings, all Special meetings are advertised 48 hours in advance via local media, as well as through the Town’s social media venues. All Special Meetings are held in the Town Hall Council Chambers at 31C Main Street unless otherwise noted.
In-Camera Meetings
In accordance with subsections 68 (1), (2) and (3) of the Local Governance Act, Town Council may go “In Camera” for confidential purposes to discuss matters that are legal, human resources, or property related in nature, as well as those that pertain to a third party agreements. Council may decide to go “In Camera” during a Regular or Special Council meeting. “In Camera” meetings are not open to the public, and Council is only permitted to provide direction for follow up on such matters. All matters requiring a decision of Council must be made during a public meeting of Council.
Town Hall Overview
Tel. (506) 364-4930 | Toll-Free 1-800-249-2020 | Fax (506) 364-4976
Town of Sackville P.O. Box 6191, 31C Main Street, Sackville NB E4L 1G6 Canada
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Dan Morris
178cm / 5’10”
90kgs / 198lbs
Edina, Minnesota
2016 World Match Racing Tour - Gold
Dan Morris grew up sailing on the family cruising boat, falling in love with the sport. Since then he has focused his sailing career around high-performance boats, including a campaign in the Olympic 49er class. He is a multiple World Match Racing Tour champion and has competed on the Extreme Sailing Series.
He loves the team aspect of sailing, recalling one of his favorite moments standing on top of the World Match Racing Tour podium alongside his teammates.
Morris has raced at the highest level in the sport across a variety of classes including International 14s, 49er, Farr 40s and Melges, but says the highlight of his career is still to come. He is hoping to add SailGP success to his CV.
Morris has a degree in Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering from the University of Michigan. True to his Minnesota roots, Morris plays ice hockey, but also enjoys exploring in the mountains whether it’s rock climbing, mountain biking or trekking.
“The races that stand out the most for me are those the team has prepared really well for. Then you head into the final day knowing if we each do the best in our jobs - nothing special or heroic - we will win.”
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I MADE A FILM… by Emily Lomas
Posted by Salisbury Museum in Education, schools, children, Interns, placements, work experience
Children's activities, Museum, Schools
Hello! My name is Emily Lomas and I’m a Year 12 student at Godolphin. For my A levels I’m studying Latin, History of Art, Maths and Chemistry. I hope to go on to study Classics or History of Art at university, and I am considering working in a gallery or museum after that.
One of the reasons I chose to come to Salisbury Museum for my work experience was because it is a familiar place for me, having come here a lot with my family when I was younger, and having volunteered at the Festival of Archaeology last year. I also wanted to learn more about what it would be like to work in a museum and the different types of jobs that you can do.
During my first two days, I helped with school ceramics workshops, where the children were encouraged to look around the museum and gather ideas which they then combined with inspiration from the artist Antony Gormley to form designs for clay structures which would be part of an art exhibition at their school. I found it very rewarding to see children who had initially been reluctant to join in sketch some ideas and eventually produce some really good work.
I also helped with after-school art workshops for teenagers, which was more relaxing as they were smaller groups than the ceramics workshops, until I was asked to join in myself! Not being much of an artist, I was slightly reluctant at first to produce a sketch of an object from the collections, but it didn’t turn out too badly and it helped me to focus more closely on one particular object, rather than scanning a whole display case quickly without really examining each item.
On Wednesday morning I made a film using footage of students exploring stories and the Salisbury History Gallery collections using the Glow Wall. This was really fun to make and I really enjoyed seeing all the ideas they had come up with and incorporating them together into a short video. (We hope to put this video up for your enjoyment soon.)
On Thursday I assisted with a group of primary school children who came to learn about the museum. They were taught about the history of the building and then we helped them dress up and do some Tudor role play, which they really enjoyed! The most difficult bit was sorting out the costumes afterwards, and trying to match the ‘Tudor Lady 2’ petticoat with the ‘Tudor Lady 2’ skirt! However, it was worth it to see the children laughing as they were instructed to bow and curtsey to the visiting “prince”.
In the afternoon I went round Salisbury to deliver leaflets about the upcoming Festival of Archaeology, which, although I was a little nervous at first and I had to cope with the 30 degree July heat, turned out to be an enjoyable and valuable experience, and everyone I spoke to was very friendly.
I had an extremely enjoyable and useful week, and I would like to thank everyone at the museum for making me feel so welcome and for offering me the opportunity to do my placement here.
Thank you Emily. You are always appreciated!
About Salisbury Museum
Salisbury Museum is based in the King's House, a beautiful medieval building, located opposite Salisbury Cathedral. As a grade I listed building the King's House has a history as fascinating as the collections it now holds. And the museum is once again adding to that rich history as it begins an exciting new phase of redevelopment. Over the next few years Salisbury Museum will be renovating its galleries, breathing new life into its wonderful collections. The museum's archaeological collections are of outstanding national significance, including some of the most important finds outside a national museum in Britain, and include artifacts from the Stonehenge World Heritage site, the Pitt Rivers Wessex collection, and the Amesbury archer. In June 2012 the museum was awarded £1.8 million by the Heritage Lottery Fund towards the redevelopment of its archaeological galleries in recognition of the importance of the collections. The archaeological collections are currently in storage awaiting their new home in the new Archaeology of Wessex gallery, which will be open in Spring 2014. Although the archaeological collections are pack away, there is still loads to see and do at Salisbury museum. The museum holds rich and diverse collections relating to the people of Salisbury and the history of the city and surrounding area. Collections include a wonderful medieval collection, with finds from the medieval city, as well as sites like Old Sarum and Clarendon Palace; fascinating displays of costumes and ceramics; and an impressive art collection that includes works by J M W Turner, John Constable, Augustus John and Rex Whistler. The museum also host regular temporary exhibitions.
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Statement to the Hearing of the Subcommittee on Energy Conservation and Power Committee on Energy and Commerce | 1983
Excerpt: “Energy is an essential input for agriculture, which uses more petroleum than any other single industry. It accounts for about three percent of annual energy consumption nationally, equivalent to about 353 million barrels of oil a year. The energy input into agricultural production has increased fivefold since 1940. Most of this increase is due to mechanization and extensive use of farm chemicals.” –R. Blobaum
Statement Prepared by Roger Blobaum, Roger Blobaum and Associates
For The Hearing Of The
Subcommittee on Energy Conservation and Power
My name is Roger Blobaum. I am the president of Roger Blobaum and Associates, Inc., an Iowa-based consulting firm that has managed several national and regional farm and rural energy projects. I appreciate this opportunity to comment on the importance of renewable energy and energy conservation to people living in rural America.
There have been better times to discuss renewable energy applications on the farm. Farmers are experiencing severe financial problems, with interest rates high and cash flow low, and are not likely to put money into renewable energy systems at this time. A poll of Iowa farm families this spring showed, for example, that few planned large purchases of any kind in 1983. Only nine percent planned to make a major farm equipment purchase. This is a major change for a sector of the national economy that normally accounts for at least $30 billion annually in outlays for farm machinery, equipment, and supplies.
Energy is an essential input for agriculture, which uses more petroleum than any other single industry. It accounts for about three percent of annual energy consumption nationally, equivalent to about 353 million barrels of oil a year. The energy input into agricultural production has increased fivefold since 1940. Most of this increase is due to mechanization and extensive use of farm chemicals.
The cost of energy used in rural America is higher than most people realize. A community energy planning project my firm completed in 1980 in Clearfield, Iowa, for example, showed that the people in that one small community were paying nearly $1 million a year for energy and that almost every dollar involved was leaving the community. The project covered about 700 people, including about 350 who live on nearby farms and rural home sites.
Rural areas also are the potential source of enormous amounts of renewable energy. A recent study prepared for the Solar Energy Research Institute (SERI), for example, concluded that 539 counties in 41 states have high wind energy potential. The potential for converting livestock manure to methane and corncobs and other crop residues to heat for drying grain and heating buildings is feasible but largely unrealized. These possibilities are discussed in the scientific literature and specific examples of on-farm applications have been described in articles in farm magazines.
Little has been done to help agriculture develop its potential to meet its own energy needs or to reduce its vulnerability to energy supply interruptions or price increases. It has been five years since the Secretary of Agriculture announced a goal of net energy self-sufficiency in agricultural production by 1990. Yet, the overall USDA energy plan started at that time has never been completed. The Office of Energy, set up initially to coordinate all USDA energy-related matters, has had neither the funds nor the status it needed to do its job right. Congress has also been remiss in failing to follow up to make certain that this important effort was being carried out.
An assessment of the status of federal support for agricultural energy programs that my firm prepared last year for the Renewable Energy Institute (REI) documents drastic cuts in money and commitment. It describes how this administration has, for all practical purposes, abandoned the federal effort to facilitate the adoption of renewable energy applications in rural America. We are offering a copy of this unpublished report to the subcommittee and urge you to make it part of the record.
Congress did not make the right decision, in my judgment; in having DOE and USDA share responsibility for assuring adequate supplies of energy for agriculture and improving the energy efficiency of agricultural production. Although the two agencies have operated under a memorandum of understanding, the level of cooperation has fallen far short of what is needed. The uncertainty of DOE’s continued existence as an agency and the budget cuts made in renewable energy programs in 198l and 1982 have made matters worse.
The goal of energy self-sufficiency in agriculture is too important to be left to administrators caught up in the usual inter-agency turf battles. These agencies sometimes appear to be spending more time negotiating the terms of their joint activities than they spend implementing public policies and serving the needs of rural America. It is time to end this by putting responsibility for all agriculture-related energy programs in a single agency. Congress should complete the phase-out of DOE’s involvement in this area and give USDA a clear directive and adequate funding to implement the energy self-sufficiency commitment made five years ago.
The federal government also has a continuing responsibility to help remove institutional and other barriers to adoption of renewable energy applications in agriculture. Although considerable work has been done on non-agricultural applications, such as utilizing solar in residential buildings, little has been done to address this problem in agriculture.
One of the most important considerations is the strong tendency of farmers to stay with proven technologies until convinced that adopting an alternative would be both economically feasible and technically reliable. This risk abatement response is a critical factor in all farm management decisions. It is a much less important factor in areas like the farm home, where crop or livestock production is not involved, or in situations where a backup system remains in place.
Probably the most effective way to address this barrier is through on-farm demonstrations that test both manufactured systems and those built by farmers themselves. Demonstrations also provide an opportunity to collect data and monitor performance. Unfortunately, nearly all the federal support for on-farm demonstrations was eliminated at the same time much of the research work on systems designed for use by farmers was nearing completion.
Another important barrier is the perception that renewable energy systems are less reliable than conventional systems. This applies specifically to higher-cost manufactured systems that have not been tested under actual farm conditions. A lot of money is at stake when pigs are farrowed or grain is dried and most farmers are unwilling to take a chance with a system that may break down or perform at a level lower than promised.
This perceived reliability problem can be largely overcome by establishing a network of dealers providing renewable energy sales and services in rural communities. The needed services include maintenance, repair, and warranty work. The need for these specialized services is even more critical for alcohol and methane systems, where both biological and mechanical problems may develop.
The Small Business Administration could help in this area by making small loans to business people who want to establish energy stores or to existing businesses that can take on a renewable energy dealership. The potential for businesses of this kind in agricultural areas is described in a recent In Business article entitled “Rural Energy Market Place.” I believe this article would be a valuable addition to the hearing record. It is likely that businesses like the one described will eventually become as common in rural communities as those that now provide television sales and service. But little progress has been made in this area so far and, with the agricultural economy in the shape it is in, even the small gains made thus far may be lost.
Another way to address this is to concentrate on renewable energy systems that supplement conventional systems rather than those that replace them. This includes systems that pre-heat air or water, for example, or wind-powered generating systems that are tied into the local grid. When risk is alleviated in this way, the reliability barrier becomes much less important.
Risk can also be reduced when farmers build their own renewable energy systems. Owner-built solar grain dryers and solar heaters built into the south-facing roofs and walls of agricultural buildings can be constructed at low cost and perform well. Our experience in providing technical and other assistance to twenty-four farm families in a national research and demonstration project showed that they liked these low-cost systems because they were not too complicated, were reliable, and required a minimum of attention. These farmers wanted simple systems they could build, maintain, and repair themselves. A copy of the report on this 39-month effort is attached for your use and possible inclusion in the hearing record.
Another important obstacle, and one that receives little attention, is personal preference. Unlike most industries where decision-making is centralized and institutionalized, agriculture involves more than 2.5 million decision-making units that must be convinced before a sale is made. They also know that adopting certain systems, like one that converts livestock manure to methane, involves a commitment to keeping a large number of animals at least until the system has paid itself off.
It is also important to note that what is usually involved on a farm is the substitution of renewable energy for fossil fuel rather than an attempt to fill an unmet energy need. The wind chargers that were installed on so many farms in the 1930’s did fill a specific unmet need–to have electric lights like people in town. Farmers now have the full range of energy-related services delivered in an efficient and convenient manner and the advantages will have to be substantial to get them to switch to a renewable source of energy.
Another barrier is the difficulty of obtaining long-term financing for renewable energy systems in rural areas. Policies covering livestock, farm machinery, and operating loans, for example, do not fit the financing needs of most renewable energy systems. Many lenders are also unsure of the collateral value of renewable energy property and often assign a high risk rating to the loan. What is needed is an educational effort designed specifically for rural lenders. It would help them ask the right questions about renewable energy systems, apply accepted financial analysis methods, factor in the energy tax credits a farm customer is entitled to, decide when a feasibility study is needed, and help farm customers set up energy record-keeping systems.
The government’s role as a lender could be greatly expanded through revised Farmers Home Administration guidelines that included renewable energy improvements to qualified buyers. More funding should be provided for the Small Business Administration’s direct loan program for new and expanding renewable energy businesses. Congress should also continue to provide funds for the Solar Bank.
Perhaps the most important barrier of all is the difficulty farmers have in obtaining the kind of information they need to make farm-specific decisions related to renewable energy. Although ample information is available, it is often considered too general or too technical to be applied to a specific farm situation.
An important step in helping farmers make energy-related decisions for their own farming operations is to use farm energy audits that show the amount and type of energy used and the on-farm energy resources available. With this kind of information it is not that difficult to go a step further and determine the cost effectiveness and appropriateness of a range of renewable energy options for a specific farm. This process can be facilitated by the use of computer programs designed to handle information farmers need to make management decisions related to renewable energy technologies. A farm energy plan, much like a soil and water conservation plan, would complete this farm-specific renewable energy approach.
To accomplish all these needed changes, Congress should enact the SENSE Act. This bill does a good job of embracing and clarifying the advantages of renewable energy. Enacting it would be an important first step in the formation of a consistent and comprehensive national energy policy.
R. Blobaum, Statement at the Hearing of the Subcommittee on Energy Conservation and Power Committee on Energy and Commerce Washington, D.C. June 28, 1983. Summary: Discussion on renewable energy applications on the farm.
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King’s Lynn Docks Branch – Part 3
The Featured image at the start of this post shows the Bentinck Dock and its surroundings in a satellite image from Google Earth.
The Dock Branch from King’s Lynn Station to John Kennedy Road and the area around the Alexandra Dock were covered in previous posts:
https://rogerfarnworth.com/2018/09/24/kings-lynn-docks-branch-part-1
The Bentinck Passage – the channel between Alexandra and Bentinck Docks
We concluded the last post with an image from Google Earth showing the Alexandra Dock and the channel between it and the Bentinck Dock, and a short series of pictures of the channel. This post starts with that the Google Earth satellite image from the last post and a few of the photographs of the channel and bridges which introduce us to the Bentinck Dock and ts surroundings.
The Dock from above on Google Earth in 2016 the two swing bridges over the channel are easily picked out. The one closest to the top of the image was reserved purely for road traffic and has become a public highway. The other bridge allowed for rail and road access and remains within the limits of the Dock fences. This Google Streetview Image shows both of the swing bridges, the internal docks bridge can be picked out to the left of the control signals for the bridge on Cross Bank Road. This image gets us the closest to the Alexandra Dock that we can using Google Streetview. It shows both swing bridges and the dock beyond. A similar but older view of the Alexandra Dock with the railway/road swing bridge in the foreground. A closer shot of the internal docks bridge which once carried the dock railway. [16] The channel in use in the early years of the 21st century. [21]
Bentinck Dock
In the last post we noted that traffic volumes resulted in the need for an expansion of the docks. The measure put to parliament was strenuously resisted by the Norfolk Estuary Company whose land was required for the new dock. The company was not opposed to the extension in principle but implied that then development would block access to its own land.
The development of the new dock required the Cross Bank Road to be cut by the access channel. This channel would have prevented the Duke of Portland accessing the eastern half of his farm. [10: p51]
“In order to offset the inconvenience to road users, the dock company proposed to cross the breach by men’s of a swing bridge and to construct a diversionary road (now known as Estuary Road) from the Cross Bank which could be used as an alternative route by the Duke of Portland when the swing bridge was open for shipping.” [10: p51]
The reference in the quote above to Estuary Road refers to the road which is now know as Edward Benefer Way, and already was known as this in the time I lived in King’s Lynn in the 1970s. On the 1893 plan below, this road is marked ‘ROAD’. The Estuary Company argued that the diversionary road should be continued into the town across the fan of sidings that served Alexandra Dock to join up with St. Ann’s Street. They hoped that this would avoid the awkward route via North Street and Pilot Street. The route proposed was from the junction between Cross Bank Road and the modern Edward Benefer Way (to the left of the Iron Works on the plan below) almost directly South to St. Ann’s Street and would have resulted in the demolition of a small section of the old town walls next to the site of St. Ann’s Fort. As can be seen below, on plan, this seemed to make a great deal of sense. The junction between Edward Benefer Way and Cross Bank Road in the 21st Century. The view South from the above junction across the docks at the location where the fan of points/sidings would have been crossed by the proposed road.
However, there were real problems with this proposal. The Dock Company showed that the average time that the crossing gates on Pilot Street were closed to road traffic each day was 33 minutes but, on an average day, locomotives on shunting duty crossed the fan of sidings 156 times and any road across that location would be closed for very large parts of the day. [10: p53] The view North from St. Ann’s Street in the 21st Century.
The ‘Engineering Works’ on the 1893 plan just below Estuary Road were the same works as those marked on the OS Map as ‘Iron Works’. These were the works of F. Savage. His house is seen in the image below. The house was placed adjacent to the works entrance and faced onto Cross Bank Road. The image comes from Mike G. Fell’s book [10] and shows the fan of sidings close to Alexandra Dock before Bentinck Dock and Estuary Road had been constructed. Fisher Fleet is in evidence across the middle of the picture. Savage’s Works were known as St. NIcholas’ Works and stretched along the Southeast side of the site of Bentinck Dock. Savage’s was a local engineering firm with a national, if not international, reputation and is worth a detour from our survey of the Dock railways. Throughout much it their life the Works were rail-served.
F. Savage Engineering Ltd: The company was founded by Frederick Savage in 1853. He worked from several locations, including a forge in the “Mermaid and Fountain” Yard in Tower Street, a forge in Railway Road, and the former premises of St James’ Workhouse on London Road before moving to this site on St Nicholas Street, known as St Nicholas’ Works. In 1873, eight years before construction started on the Bentinck Dock, four acres were purchased for the Ironworks, and a further five acres were added later. The site included a foundry, boiler and fitting shops, warehouse, and drying sheds and a railway access was eventually added. “Estuary House” was constructed adjacent to the yard as the residence of Mr. Savage. The firm became well known for its agricultural machinery, particularly steam engines and steam roundabouts, and gained an international reputation for steam-powered fairground rides. Savage himself became Mayor of King’s Lynn in 1889. [11] Until recent years, no fairground was complete without its share of Savage-built merry-go-rounds, switchbacks and showmen’s engines. Each machine was a masterpiece, not only of engineering ingenuity, but also of flamboyant art and craftsmanship. Savages’ fairground machinery was exported all over the world, but the root of this success lay in agricultural implements originally made for local farmers. [12]
The mid-nineteenth century drainage of the Fens by steam power opened up new agricultural opportunities. Savage was quick to exploit these and built and developed carts, hoes and steam threshing machines. From these, the manufacture of traction, or self-moving, engines was a logical development. His Juggernaut, c.1856, was an extremely advanced model. At a time when most engines were driven by an endless chain, the Juggernaut had its rear wheels gear-driven from the crank-shaft which could be disengaged on sharp bends and was therefore easy to manoeuvre. In spite of a warm reception at the Long Sutton Show in 1858, it was never developed and Savage returned to more orthodox chain-engines. [12]
Expansion led to the firm’s move to St. Nicholas Street in 1860, where Savage is described as a machine maker involved in the ‘noisome trade or business of making and repairing steam engines’. In 1873 he was able to purchase reclaimed land off Estuary Road for the St. Nicholas Ironworks site. His biographer, William Sparkes, stated that ‘the securing of the first four acres well nigh exhausted all his money, of which there only remained some £10 or £12 in the bank’. This financial problem was short-lived, however, for Savages was now about to enter its most prosperous era in which it was to receive international acclaim. All activity was now focused at St. Nicholas Ironworks which was equipped with the most modern machinery and staffed by up to 400 employees. [12]
It was in the sphere of fairground machinery that Savages reigned supreme. In the words of their 1902 Catalogue for Roundabouts ‘we have patented and placed upon the market all the principal novelties that have delighted the many thousands of pleasure seekers at home and abroad’. As the expanding railway network made goods cheaply and nationally available, the ancient trading fairs turned to showmanship and public amusement for their survival. Prior to the mid 1860s, roundabouts were driven by young boys or horses pulling round the spinning frame. Similar technology had been applied to horse-driven threshing machines, which Savage was manufacturing at the time. Frederick Savage did not invent the steam-driven roundabout; that privilege probably belongs to Sidney George Soame of Marsham, Norfolk, who exhibited his steam organ engine and roundabout in the 1860s. Nevertheless, Savage was a major pioneer whose engineering skill and commercial flair rapidly outstripped any potential rivals. His Velocipedes and Dobby Horses which proved so popular at the Lynn Mart quickly received nationwide admiration. [12]
As showmen jostled with each other for trade, they required larger, faster and more opulent rides to attract the punters’ attention. Savage responded not only with Racing Peacocks, Jumping Cats and Flying Pigs as variations on the Gallopers theme, but also with the Switchback, the forerunner of most modern rides. Patented in 1888, eight cars ran on an undulating track to which a third compensating rail was added. The undulations of this rail, on which only the front wheel of each car ran, were out of sequence with the inner and outer rails and thereby corrected the proneness of the cars to overbalance. Switchbacks were the most lavish machines ever produced, their cars taking the form of Baroque-style gondalas, gilt-encrusted dragon carriages and the newly invented motor-cars. When steam centre engines were replaced by electric drive, rides became known as Scenics. [12]
Further thrill and amusement was provided by Steam Yachts, Sea-on-Land, Tunnel Railway (incorporating a model locomotive), Razzle Dazzle, Wheely Whirly, Cakewalk and Aeroflyte, to name but a few. These machines could transport people to new realms of ecstasy with their faster speed and sickening dips, all accompanied by the noise, smoke and smell of steam centre engines, the strident music of steam organs and glittering lights provided by Savage Sparklers – new steam-powered electric light engines. It was the golden age of the showman. According to William Sparkes ‘immense sums of money have been paid for the purchase of these respective sets, and as much as £100 to £150 has been received by their proprietors in one day in penny and two penny fares’. [12] The interior of the Works Yard at Savages in the middle years of the 20th Century. [13]
From 1914 to 1918 the factory was used to manufacture Voisin biplanes (patents acquired from Bleriot in 1914). A field was also aquired to use as a landing strip for testing the aircraft. This airfield may have been location to the north of the factory, but the exact location is uncertain. The aircraft factory itself is said to have been constructed from the buildings of a brick-works at Sedgeford. [11]
The company struggled in the middle 20th century and, although it managed to survive beyond the life of almost all of its competitors, by the late 1960s it was in real trouble and it eventually closed in the early 1970s after a number of rescue bids/attempts. The site was cleared by 1974 and many of the original buildings have been demolished. Savage’s own house dominated the area around Fisher Fleet. A member of King’s Lynn Forums (‘old-git’) cleverly provided in 2004 a superimposed image showing the house in relation to the modern 21st century layout of the area. [13] The site of the old Savage’s Works is on the near side of the modern grain silo next to Bentinck Dock. Edward Benefer Way is between the Silo and the Savage’s site, (c) John Fielding. [23]
Bentinck Dock, its Railways and Buildings
The Act authorising the construction of the Bentinck Dock received Royal Assent on 23rd July 1877 but construction work was delayed by problems raising capital. It was not until 1881 that the directors were able to report that all the obstructions thrown in their way had been overcome. The Dock was completed in October 1883 and it was named after William John Arthur Charles James Cavendish-Bentinck (1857-1943), the Sixth Duke of Portland, who officiated at the opening ceremony. [10: p55]
The Dock had vertical walls rather than the originally battered walls of the Alexandra Dock. It was over 10 acres in area. Its opening coincided with an economic downturn which lasted until 1890, when began to pick up once again. [10: p56]
Trade figures show the downturn which followed the opening of the Dock. … In 1883, the total traffic in tons was 280,605. The figure dropped to a low of 155,250 tons on 1888 and gradually increased again, only surpassing the 1883 figure in 1891. After this date, traffic increased to as much as 780,587 tons in 1907 before dropping back to a more steady figure of round 450,000 tons before the First World War. [10: p56]
After the grouping, the LNER became responsible for working the Docks branch and the shunting of dock traffic under an agreement with the docks company. In 1925 the Anglo-American Oil Company constructed five storage tanks with a capacity of over 1.25 million gallons on Estuary Road. These tanks were linked by a pipeline to a berth on the Dock. [10: p61]
The first seaborne oil cargo arrived in September 1925. Soon after this a whole series of different oil companies were using the docks and their logos could be seen on tank wagons using the docks branch.
Molasses were also stored in tanks alongside the docks. They were a by-product of the processing of sugar beet. A large storage tank was erected on the West side of Bentinck Dock with a capacity of 2,500 tons. It was connected to another berth by pipeline. [10: p62] A 1935 Development Plan shows the layout of the railways around Bentinck Dock. Estuary Roadbis marked to the Southeast side of the dock and although Savage’s Works are not shown, the spur into the Works is shown crossing Estuary Road. It the ran down the Southeast shoulder of the road and entered the northern corner of the Works. This aerial image shows Bentinck Dock in 1928. The coal lift can be seen on the Northwest side of the dock. The large warehouse was known as No. 3. While the dock is empty of shipping the railway sidings appear to be busy and wagons wait close to the dockside cranes for loading or unloading. [24] The same image appears below as a postcard of the docks. This later aerial image shows further development of the buildings around Bentinck Dock. In the bottom left we can see Savage’s Works. The sidings alongside the dock warehouses are particularly busy. The coal lift is still visible to the Northwest side of the dock. Development around the Dock now stretches alongside Fisher Fleet all the way to the River Ouse.
The large warehouse known as No. 3 Warehouse is shown in a series of pictures below from different eras in the life of the docks. In most of the images the rail sidngs which ran along the quay are visible and frequently the travelling cranes which served the dockside can be seen as well. This image is taken after 1960 when the old hydraulic cranes were replaced by more modern cranes.
In this image 4 hydraulic cranes were being used to transfer goods from the steamship Moidart into No. 3 Warehouse. “This was the first time that four cranes had been used simultaneously on the same ship to discharge cargo into the warehouse. There are about 15 bags in each sling, all of which had to be individually man-handled in the holds and again in the warehouse.” [10: p82] Careful inspection of the image will show that the furthest crane of the four from the camera is discharging these bags to a makeshift stage supported by two wooden-bodied railway wagons. At a higher level there are two other stages jutting out from the side of the warehouse upon which the bags were landed. They are supported by packing placed on the more solid platforms below. Dockworkers lives were at risk throughout these operations! [10: p83] This aerial image is taken from the South. St. Nicholas’ Chapel is prominent in the foreground. Bentinck Dock is close to the top centre of the image. Savage’s can be seen to the right of the Dock with the owner’s house prominent to the right of Estuary Road facing Cross Bank Road. The fan of sidings to the West of Pilot Street are centre-stage. [25] There were 8 hydraulic cranes along the east side of Bentinck Dock. They are evident in a number of pictures above. They had capacities from 30 cwt to 5 tons and were often used to transfer goods directly from ships into No. 3 Warehouse. The two images immediately above are taken on the Northwest side on Bentinck Dock in 1911 looking North towards the buildings of Sydenham & Co Ltd. In the first image the hydraulic coal lift just sneaks in on the right-hand side of the picture. There were a number of timber merchants with premises aroun Bentinck Dock in the early and middle 20th century. These included: Bristow & Coply; F. E. Chapman; J. T. Stanton; and a little later, Travis & Arnold. The two images above show the hydraulic coal lift which was sited on the Northwest side of Bentinck Dock at different times in its life. [26] These three excerpts from the OS Map of 1928 show the railway layout around the east side of Bentinck Dock at the time. This map shows the much later layout of the Docks with a considerably reduced rail network (1970s and later). The extension which served Dow Chemicals can be seen north of Bentinck Dock.
Dow Chemical Company arrived in King’s Lynn in the 1950s establishing a large site to the Northwest of Bentinck Dock. Dow Chemicals Plant stretched from Cross Bank Road in the south to Estuary Road in the North – the Grey area north of Fisher Fleet on the plan above. This picture shows the Dow Chemicals site in the mid-1970s just before the major incident in 1976 during the very hot summer of that year. [27] The Fisher Fleet can be made out just below the top of the picture. The River Ouse crosses the top right of the image. The fact that the site was rail served is also evident – rail tracks can be made out on the laft of the image.
The plant was served by rail until the closure of the docks branch. The track layout at the time of the explosion in 1976 is drawn on the plan immediately below. [27] The plan is not aligned north-south but uses the River Ouse to define its alignment. The main site railway travels in an approximately northwesterly direction from the site gates. Details of the explosion, its aftermath and the learning which followed are contained in a report promulgated on-line by the Institution of Chemical Engineers – www.icheme.org. [27] The report was first published by the Health and Safety Executive in March 1977. This image in the 1977 Health and Safety report was taken to show steel flooring embedded in the roof of the boiler house, 99 metres from the area of the explosion, but for the purposes of this post, it shows another view of the rail sidings in the plant. [27]
The next three pictures show the rail approach to the Dow Chemicals site from the lines on the East and North of the Bentinck Dock. The third image is taken inside the gates of the site. The image below shows another location close to Bentinck Dock. There was a spur that headed north across Estuary Road which then ran alongside New Cottages on the 1928 OS Map above. This became the location for an oil tank farm which is still in use in the early 21st Century. The tank farm north of Estuary Road taken in June 2008. The picture was taken from the road not, as suggested by Wikipedia Commons, within the Dow Chemicals site. The site at this location is, in 2018, operated by Pace Petroleum Ltd. A number of the tanks have been removed, as can be seen below.
References: (NB: these references cover parts 2 and 3 about the Docks Branch, if you cannot find the location to which a reference refers in the text of this post, please check in Part 2)
http://www.geograph.org.uk, accessed on 24th September 2018.
http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/5824045, accessed on 24th September 2018.
http://www.kingslynn-forums.co.uk/viewtopic.php?f=14&t=633, accessed on 24th September 2018.
http://norfolkmuseumscollections.org/#!/collections/search?q=Kings%2BLynn%2BDocks, accessed on 24th September 2018.
http://www.kingslynn-forums.co.uk/viewtopic.php?f=14&t=1386&hilit=docks+railway, accessed on 23rd September 2018.
http://www.kingslynn-forums.co.uk/viewtopic.php?f=14&t=1386&hilit=alexandra+dock, accessed on 24th September 2018.
http://www.edp24.co.uk/news/bird-s-eye-view-of-king-s-lynn-half-a-century-or-more-ago-1-5015740, accessed on 24th September 2018.
Mike G Fell; An Illustrated History of The Port of King’s Lynn and its Railways; Irwell Press, Clophill, Bedfordshire, 2012.
http://www.heritage.norfolk.gov.uk/record-details?MNF13622-Savage%27s-Engineering-Works&Index=12818&RecordCount=56734&SessionID=61d2a652-a74b-4c81-a979-dc394157106a, accessed on 29th September 2018.
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http://www.kingslynn-forums.co.uk/viewtopic.php?f=14&t=1386&hilit=docks&start=15, accessed on 28th September 2018.
http://www.jcbarrettphotographic.co.uk/portoflynn_railways.html, accessed on 25th September 2018.
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https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@52.7607969,0.3925969,3a,75y,167.73h,83.45t/data=!3m8!1e1!3m6!1sAF1QipM1J3080sMdNrn1EEah9fq3d7RFvQ8zYEXfIBCD!2e10!3e11!6shttps:%2F%2Flh5.googleusercontent.com%2Fp%2FAF1QipM1J3080sMdNrn1EEah9fq3d7RFvQ8zYEXfIBCD%3Dw203-h100-k-no-pi-0-ya215.55334-ro0-fo100!7i5028!8i1477, accessed on 30th September 2018.
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https://britainfromabove.org.uk/en/image/EPW021481, accessed on 29th September 2018.
https://www.cambridgeairphotos.com/areas/kings+lynn+and+west+norfolk, accessed on 23rd September 2018.
http://www.kingslynn-forums.co.uk/viewtopic.php?t=95, accessed on 3rd October 2018.
https://www.icheme.org/communities/special-interest-groups/safety%20and%20loss%20prevention/resources/~/media/Documents/Subject%20Groups/Safety_Loss_Prevention/HSE%20Accident%20Reports/The%20Explosion%20at%20Dow%20Kings%20Lynn.pdf, accessed on 6th October 2018.
https://commons.m.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Dow_Chemical_spur_5.jpg, accessed on 6th October 2018.
This entry was posted in Railways Blog on October 7, 2018 by rogerfarnworth.
← King’s Lynn Docks Branch – Part 2 Tramways de l’Aude – Caunes-Minervois to Siran →
6 thoughts on “King’s Lynn Docks Branch – Part 3”
Part Time Spotter October 8, 2018 at 4:05 pm
Reblogged this on Part Time Spotter and commented:
Wonderfully written and researched article on Kings Lynn Docks railways. Part 3.
Really enjoyed reading through this wonderfully written articles.
My family originates from Kings Lynn in the early 1800s and I have worked on the railway for over 30 years so reading up on a place that is associated with both family and railwas is always a pleasure.
Will you write something in the future on the station and the passenger line ?
rogerfarnworth Post author October 8, 2018 at 8:22 pm
I might do. I tend to go where the fancy takes me with these things. I have had a few people ask me about some of the other industrial lines around King’s Lynn as well.
I am currently trying to finish off some posts on the Tramways de l’Aude, and the Chemins de Fer du Sud de la France in Provence. The latter is the end of a long series of posts, the former is part way through.
Thanks for your positive comments.
sed30 October 9, 2018 at 2:23 pm
Reblogged this on sed30's Blog.
Very comprehensive history of Kings Lynn. Thank you for posting hope the weblog is ok.
Thank you for the positive comments. Of course it is fine to reblog! Best wishes. Roger.
Leave a Reply to Part Time Spotter Cancel reply
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White genocide
We're going to link this as many times as we goddamn have to.
Some dare call it
What THEY don't want
you to know!
2016 Orlando nightclub shooting
Eon8
Nueva Orden Mundial
Ĵakvo la Buĉisto
Sheeple wakers
Jarrah White
Richard C. Hoagland
The colorful pseudoscience
Hating thy neighbour
Racial pride
Amero
Armenian Genocide denial
Rhetoric of Donald Trump
Tomatobubble
Dog-whistlers
Peter Duesberg
“”As far as I can tell, practically the only thing that white supremacists don’t consider genocide is the actual Holocaust.
—David Futrelle[1]
The idea of a white genocide (or white extinction scenario) refers to any of several doomsday scenarios describing Caucasians or some demographic group associated with white people (typically Westerners, Protestants, or Christians, with perceived "pure" white ancestry) would be heading towards a demographic crisis, becoming a minority in some or all countries, possibly followed by extinction. The term was coined by racist ex-Reagan appointee to the Office of Personnel Management Bob Whitaker.[2] Whitaker, unsurprisingly, also coined the strawman phrase, "Anti-racist is a code word for anti-white." Every white nationalist believes in this be it Ku Klux Klan, neo-Nazi, white power skinheads, alt-right, Identitarian and others.
These scenarios are a kind of framing used to promote white supremacy or similar movements as self-defense, by describing non-whites, mixed-whites, non-Christians, and/or non-Westerners (notably Arabs, Hispanics, and black people, depending on context) as the aggressors in a clash of races or civilizations. When it comes to Arabs or Muslims, claims about white extinction might be associated with the Eurabia scenario. These scenarios can draw a parallel with genocides that have really happened, such as the Holocaust. A similar canard focuses on the perceived decline in specific genetic traits associated with white people, such as blue eyes or blonde hair, rather than the "white race" itself.[3] Some variants of the white genocide scenario are the South African genocide conspiracy in South Africa and The Great Replacement in France and Europe.
1 Some statistics and definition of genocide
2 Purported tactics
2.1 Actual genocide
2.2.1 If you're not white, you can't be British!
3 Fallacies
3.1 Definition of race and ethnicity
4.1 Definition of religious groups
4.2 Demographic factors
4.3 Perspective
Some statistics and definition of genocide[edit]
Let's begin with some statistics on population change in Europe and the United States:
Graph #1
Predicted European population by religion, without adherence to race. As most European countries neither keep census records for race nor religion, the Muslim identity is usually based on country of origin. The number of "Muslims" almost certainly includes non-Muslims from Muslim countries, as they are more likely to emigrate to secular countries.[4]
Predicted Muslim population in Europe, without adherence to race.[5]
Predicted population in the United States by race, without adherence to religion. As people of mixed origin, as well as white Hispanics are categorized as non-white, the ratio of whites is deflated. The US census definition of "white" is also the unusually broad "having origins in any of the original peoples of Europe, the Middle East, or North Africa." [6][7]
A frequent (usually deliberate) mistake people make in discussing whites as a minority is lumping every non-white race as a blob of indistinguishable other. This mistake usually betrays the prejudices of the speaker. In actuality, given the 2010 United States Census with whites at 223.5 million and the next largest demographic of African Americans at 38.9 million, it's going to be a very, very long time before whites could potentially become a minority for legal purposes.[8]
Purported tactics[edit]
Some claims usually made together with the white extinction scenarios are that:
Low birth rates among white/Western communities could lead them to extinction, caused by abortion and family planning. Claimants might argue to restrict abortion or contraception to increase birth rates.
Immigration could decrease the ratio of white people/Christians/Westerners in certain countries. According to conspiracy theories such as Eurabia, immigration into Western countries might be a deliberate strategy for colonization and/or demographic warfare.
Miscegenation could cause a decline in "racial purity," leaving fewer unmixed white people with each generation.
Multiculturalism could erode "white" or Western identity or values perceived as Western, including cultural traditions, "family values" or even democracy.
Unorganized violence against white people, Christians or certain ethnic groups (such as the South African farm attacks) could be part of a persecution campaign.
Actual genocide[edit]
Let's examine the United Nations' Convention for the Prevention and the Punishment of the Crime of Genocide' definition of "genocide"; namely, one or more of the following:
(a) Killing members of the group;
(b) Causing serious bodily or mental harm to members of the group;
(c) Deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part;
(d) Imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group;
(e) Forcibly transferring children of the group to another group.[9]
Contrary to what some may believe (or shout about on message boards and comment sections), there are currently few places in the world where such events are taking place against white or fair-skinned people.[10] The change in the demographics of a nation over time due to migration, immigration, and emigration are not the same thing as systematically and deliberately exterminating a group of people in a somewhat organized fashion. These demographic changes do not even come close to meeting any of the definitions above.[11]
While there have been historic genocides against people who would be classified as "white" by some today, they were not targeted due to being "white" and the perpetrators were often (a different kind of) "white" themselves. For instance, victims and perpetrators of the Nazi Holocaust were both mostly white, as long as one doesn't subscribe to the belief that Jews and the Slavic peoples are somehow non-white.
Brought to you by Christian Miller of the "White Genocide Evidence Project":
“”Many realize the 'open borders' movement is a thinly-veiled attempt to dilute and thereby destroy all white nations — Africa for the Africans, Asia for the Asians, White countries for everybody ... White people are libeled and demonized by cultural Marxists in academia, vilified by public slander and robbed of the right to self-identify all in order to instill a destructive sense of false white guilt... These malevolent social engineers yearn for a blended humanity in white nations — mocha-skinned people and societies without race by homogenous default. What they never mention — and what is left to nationalists to publicly emphasize — is that this plan for 'diversity' only applies to white nations.[12]
"White Genocide Project" declares that "White Genocide", in addition to Christian Miller's comment, is:
“” Legally chasing down and forcing White areas to accept diversity. [13]
If you're not white, you can't be British![edit]
British "Freedom" Party leader Paul Weston has claimed that mass immigration into England is a form of genocide by demographics [14]
Ex-BNP leader Nick Griffin has argued that identifying non-white people as British, is "a sort of bloodless genocide."[15]
Fallacies[edit]
White extinction scenarios usually rest on several logical fallacies, to feign an urgent threat towards white people.
Definition of race and ethnicity[edit]
The concept of separate races is, by itself, controversial. Add to that the difficulty of defining racial categories. Many Western racial concepts, such as the racist and arbitrary one-drop rule, would see people of mixed origin classified as non-white. As miscegenation has occurred through centuries, such definitions would make the ratio of white people smaller than more neutral definitions. The claims might rest on a confusion between race, religion or nationality, to inflate the ratio of non-whites. Some examples are defining ethnic groups that are traditionally Muslims and white (Albanians, Bosniaks,[16] Tatars, Turks, Levantines, etc.), or white Hispanics, as non-whites or excluding non-whites from a particular nationality (e.g. assuming any nonwhite British citizen is not British).
While some polities (United States, United Kingdom, etc) record self-identified race and religion in census data, other countries (France, Sweden, etc.) have no such records; one reason is the experience from World War II, where the Nazis used census records to facilitate the Holocaust. Therefore the statistics of people of a specific race or religion in a country might be an estimate, based on place of birth, parents' place of birth, etc. A Christian person descending from Iraqis could count as a Muslim. A white person in Europe descending from white colonists in Africa could count as an African, or as a black person.
The term "white" can vary by country and so can "percentage", and also the perception of who a white person is. For example, a person of white and mestizo (i.e., part-Native American) ancestry would be classified as white in Latin America, but probably not in the United States of America. Supporters of white-genocide theories might regard colonized territories, such as the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand or South Africa, as "white homelands," to find more case studies for the hypothesis. One can find a declining ratio of white people in parts of the western United States, but one should also be aware that whites have only been the majority population in those areas for 150 to 200 years. South Africa has never had a white majority population. And various people who are today classified as "white" would have historically been discriminated against (and viewed as a threat) due to being "German", "Irish", Catholic, Jewish or whatever.
The definition of white also confounds the conclusions. Ignoring that many white people whose families have been in the US for several hundred years also likely contain "Cherokee" ancestors and other euphemisms for having notably darker features, defining mixed-race people as completely non-white is misleading. If an "interracial" couple has kids, all the offspring are "non-white" in spite of being genetically half-white. A town with 50 white couples and 50 interracial couples is 75% white, but according to the stats the next generation is only half white. Even if the interracial couples have half the number of kids, the stats will say that the next generation is 2/3 white, less than the previous generation, in spite of non-white genes being squeezed out.
This all assumes the one-drop rule applies only to whites too, a case of racist special pleading. Logically, the one-drop rule should also apply to other races and those mixed Asians should be technically non-Asians and mixed blacks should be non-blacks, so there should be less of those races too in the long run.
An immigrant might be broadly defined as a person with one parent born abroad (or two, in some countries). This would count a natural-born British citizen with parents born in Ireland as an immigrant, no matter how white and English-speaking they might be. Of course, this kind of definition inflates the ratio of immigrants. Countries with significant (former) diasporas may also have "immigrants" that were only let into the country because of their supposed ethnic similarity to the native population. There are for example more Irish citizens outside the Republic of Ireland than inside it, and during the 1990s the vast majority of immigrants to Germany were classified as "ethnic Germans".[17]
Problems[edit]
Even if the above were all incorrect, there are several problems with worry about a "white genocide".
Definition of religious groups[edit]
There is no universal demographic measure for the size of a religion in a country. Different countries can use any of these variables:
Membership of religious congregations
Country of origin (see above)
Self-identification in census
Self-identification in opinion polls
Reported attendance to church (or other house or worship)
In the United States, statistics for number of Christians are based on church membership. However, up to the late 19th century, only a minority of Americans were members of a church.[18]
Demographic factors[edit]
The tempo effect: as the age of childbearing is increasing (which it is, in most high-income countries), the birth rate per capita, or current number of children per woman, declines, even though the total number of children per woman during fertile life stays largely constant.
Most of the world's nations pass through a demographic transition, where family size decreases from 4-8 children per woman, to stable reproduction around 2 children per woman. Several countries (most of Asia and Latin America) have a birth rate at or below 2 children per woman; however, due to increasing life expectancy, and high birth rates a generation ago, their population is increasing.
Their equivocation of decrease in the percentage of white people with decrease in the actual number. If we look at US census results, we see that whites comprised 75.1% of the total US population in 2000, and 72.4% in 2010 — giving the impression that whites have declined in number. But if we look at the actual population numbers we see that, between the ten years, the total number of whites actually rose from 211,460,626 to 223,553,265.[19]
Perspective[edit]
Why does it matter what color your descendants are? Your black ancestors didn't seem to care,[20] and even then, their descendants who eventually became "whiter" mingled like crazy with basically everyone near them. At this point, "racial purity" is a nonsensical concept.
Proponents might compare the claimed decline of white people to genocide (as in a conspiracy), while diminishing real genocides, such as in Holocaust denial.
Many far-right proponents of this concept in Western Europe also, somewhat bizarrely, oppose the immigration to their countries of white Eastern Europeans such as Poles almost as vehemently as they oppose non-white immigration, even though this is increasing the white population they claim to be so concerned for.
Proponents also often chalk the scenario up to non-white immigration, ignoring the role of declining birth rates amongst whites. William Beveridge (a eugenics supporter) spoke of a need to "ensure the continuation of the British race [which at] its present rate of reproduction… cannot continue" as early as 1942,[21][22] long before there was a substantial non-white presence in the United Kingdom.
Even if you accept the dubious premises that the entire argument rests upon, there is no way of preventing the situation without banning international travel, banning international students and eliminating international lust. A substantial number of immigrants to "white" countries are on marriage visas, because some white person couldn't maintain their "commitment to racial purity" and fell in love with a non-white.
Skin lightening occurred independently from different gene alleles in east vs. west Eurasia due to similar genetic pressure (the need for more vitamin D from reduced Sun exposure), i.e. convergent evolution.[23]
The false attribution by proponents of white genocide conspiracy theories of literally genocidal motives to others who do not share their poisonous ideology - typically focusing explicitly or implicitly on Jews - is likely a case of psychological projection of far-right motives onto others. They, or at least many of their ideological brethren, support the exact same kinds of virulent racial hatred and ethnonationalism that have actually lead to ethnic cleansing, and genocides such as the Holocaust, in the past, when they became widespread in a population through fake news and other propaganda.
It is similar to, and feeds into, other bizarre reality inversions deployed by the far right, such as claims like "by criticising what they say is racist behaviour from white people like me, anti-racists are the real racists!"
"Anti-racist is a code word for anti-white" - aka "The Mantra" by Robert Whitaker
The Daily Caller - the former home of Unite the Right rally aka the Charlottesville riots organizer and white nationalist Jason Kessler.
Islamophobia - a similar theory called Eurabia is linked to it.
Genocide conspiracy - the source of all these theories.
South African genocide conspiracy - the South African version of this theory.
Yellow Peril - which demographic racists were picking on generations ago.
Christchurch terrorist attacks - the shooting inspired by this theory.
The Poway synagogue shooting - yet another shooting inspired by this theory.
↑ http://wehuntedthemammoth.com/2015/11/17/do-these-sweatpants-make-me-look-like-im-supporting-white-genocide/
↑ Bob Whitaker, Author of the Racist 'Mantra' on White Genocide, Has Died
↑ See the Wikipedia article on disappearing blonde gene. See also "Blonde Extinction" at Snopes.com for examples of the meme, some of them dating back to the 19th century.
↑ http://www.pewforum.org/2015/04/02/religious-projections-2010-2050/
↑ http://www.pewforum.org/2011/01/27/the-future-of-the-global-muslim-population/
↑ http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/percentage-non-hispanic-whites-hits-all-time-63-article-1.1371772
↑ https://www.census.gov/topics/population/race/about.html
↑ If you look at this graphic's total box, it lists Whites as 72.4% (223,553,265) while the second largest racial group are Black Americans at 12.6 (38,929,319)
↑ http://www.preventgenocide.org/law/convention/text.htm
↑ http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2013/10/131011-albino-killings-witch-doctors-tanzania-superstition/
↑ White Genocide, Eurabia, and Other Denialist Nonsense. Debunking Denialism. http://debunkingdenialism.com/2014/01/11/white-genocide-eurabia-and-other-white-supremacist-nonsense/
↑ White Genocide Evidence Project
↑ White Genocide Project
↑ Liberty Great Britain
↑ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/8011878.stm
↑ See the Wikipedia article on Bosniaks.
↑ See the Wikipedia article on Volksdeutsche.
↑ http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/is-the-end-of-white-christian-america-a-good-thing/article/2599494?custom_click=rss
↑ "Overview of Race and Hispanic Origin: 2010" (PDF). http://www.census.gov/prod/cen2010/briefs/c2010br-02.pdf.
↑ A lot of Southern whites are a little bit black] by Christopher Ingraham (December 22, 2014) The Washington Post.
↑ David Kynaston, Austerity Britain, 1945-1951 (London, Bloomsbury, 2008) p. 25
↑ Peter Hennessy, Having It So Good: Britain in the Fifties (London: Allen Lane, 2006), p. 123.
↑ Genetic Evidence for the Convergent Evolution of Light Skin in Europeans and East Asians by Heather L. Norton et al. Mol. Biol. Evol. 24(3):710–722. 2007. doi:10.1093/molbev/msl203
Retrieved from "https://rationalwiki.org/w/index.php?title=White_genocide&oldid=2090393"
Authoritarian wingnuttery
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Shamanka Phoenix: Destination
https://shamankaphoenix.bandcamp.com/album/d-e-s-t-i-n-a-t-i-o-n
This could be a case of the grass looking greener on the other side, but there’s something about European artists that always seems so cool. For example, how does a John Ford western transform into a Sergio Leone western? How did they know to replace the classical Hollywood orchestral arrangements with Ennio Morricone’s bizarre western music? How did they decide to use extreme close ups between each character’s eyes right before the shoot out?
It’s an ability to transform art into something so much more stylized, with so much more substance that separates American and European art. Listening to Shamanka Phoenix’s album feels so cool in the same way. It’s the coolness that comes from a long line of European artists who redefine genres, offer new styles, and revolutionize sounds.
It’s no surprise that the tracks on Shamanka Phoenix’s album Destination are named for European cities. Each track sounds remarkably well crafted, to the point where any slight rearrangement would drastically alter the sound. Shamanka Phoenix is an artist who knows what she’s doing. From the beautiful melodies of each track, to her phenomenal vocals and lyrics, make no mistake, this is no amateur making these songs; this is master craftsmanship.
Take B E R L I N (Dappled Sunlight) for example. There are so many little nuances in the beat of the song. An echoed snare, the faint sound of a tambourine; it’s these little touches that show Shamanka’s attention to detail, an absolute asset to her tracks.
Often when an artist devotes that level of attention to detail, the gestalt of the track can be obscured, like the artist is no longer able to separate the forest from the trees, yet Shamanka Phoenix can get that granular and still make incredibly beautiful and melodic music like on I B I Z A (Sexbot). The track is absolutely beautiful right from the get go. With a melodic harp in the beginning and lush, indulgent piano chords sprinkled throughout, it’s an extremely melodic and beautiful song with an amazing sound that balances both the organic and synthesized. It conveys both a highly intimate feeling, and yet sounds detached, which is fitting for a song about sexbots. It takes impressive ability to convey such complex emotions.
S H E F F I E L D (remember me) is a real showstopper. It’s in this track you realize how gifted Shamanka Phoenix is as a musician, singer, songwriter, and producer. In the age of DAW producers, autotune, and ghostwriters, it’s a rare artist who actually owns their own talent. Yet this talent has a purpose, it serves the song; it makes something so beautiful and stylized possible.
Listening to the last track, S T O C K H O L M, you can’t help but bring a smile to your face. It’s like watching a star athlete play a perfect game. Throughout the whole spectacle your jaw drops down to the ground, but then when it’s all finished you can’t help but smile at such a phenomenon. This song is her victory lap at the end of an already impressive album
D E S T I N A T I O N’s not an album to just listen to, but to learn from as well. Listening to these tracks, the musical world feels more expansive and exploratory than ever before. If you haven’t listened to to this album, please give it a chance. Definitely would give this album a recc.
Author fatherartoisPosted on March 3, 2019 March 12, 2019 Categories ReccsTags Destination, Electronic, Europe, European, neo-classical, Shamanka Phoenix
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FSD3220 Finnish Working Life Barometer 2016
Statistics Finland. Interview and Survey Services
career development, employment, employment opportunities, flexible working time, job characteristics, job satisfaction, labour and employment, occupational life, social media, wages, working conditions, workloads, workplace bullying
The annual survey studied employee opinion on the quality of working life in Finland. Main themes included organisation of work, development opportunities and flexibility, learning and training at work, wages, workplace bullying, capacity to work, and changes in working life. Questions in the barometer have mainly remained the same each year. The 2016 collection round included new questions regarding automation at work, the flexibility of work and free time, and dividing work tasks between employees.
First, the respondents were asked about the number of people employed at their workplace, changes in the number of staff, distribution of work and tasks, and implementation of new working methods and systems over the past 12 months. Satisfaction in the working environment was charted with questions about openness, encouragement and equality in the workplace, job stability, and opportunities for employees to develop and apply new ideas. Further questions covered measures taken to improve employees' capacity to work, safety of work environment, and skills of employees. Discrimination at work based on ethnic group, age, gender, type of job contract, and health status was explored. Incidents of bullying, harassment and violence at work were surveyed.
The next set of questions investigated the respondents' membership in a trade union or professional association, flexible working time arrangements at the workplace, pay and bonus systems, and satisfaction with the pay level. The respondents' participation in job-related training and the development of the workplace was investigated. The use of virtual workspaces and social media services such as Facebook, Twitter and blogs as part of work tasks was charted.
Autonomy at work was surveyed by asking about influence over the respondents' own work tasks and working pace, over the distribution of work in the workplace, and about working on a tight schedule. The respondents were asked about working outside the main workplace in the past 12 months and work-related emails they had had to tend to outside their official working hours.
One set of questions investigated the employees' perceived workload, capacity to work, estimates of own mental and physical capacity to work, and sickness absences. The respondents were asked how likely they thought it was that they would be dismissed or laid off, or that their tasks would change over the next year. Views were probed on the respondents' likelihood of getting an equal job if they became unemployed, on the general employment situation in Finland, possible changes in working life in general, and the employer's financial situation. Finally, the respondents were asked how often they felt a community spirit at work, received appreciation from colleagues and partners, were able to fully utilise their professional skills, and had time to come up with new ideas.
Background variables from the Labour Force Survey 2016 were utilised in the Finnish Working Life Barometer. Background variables included, among others, the respondent's year of birth, age, gender, region, type of municipality, education, economic activity, status in employment, industry of employment, occupational group, employer type, type of contract, weekly working hours, overtime, and additional jobs.
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Joffrey Ballet presents four World Premieres by ALAANA artists March 11-12
February 15, 2017 Michael J. Roberts
February 14, 2017 The Joffrey Academy of Dance, Official School of The Joffrey Ballet in collaboration with Chicago Public Library present four world premieres in the seventh annual Winning Works program, the culmination of Joffrey’s national call for ALAANA (African, Latino(a), Asian, Arab and Native American) artists to submit applications for the Joffrey Academy’s Seventh Annual Winning Works Choreographic Competition. This year’s Competition winners – Shannon Alvis, Sean Aaron Carmon, Karen Gabay and Jimmy Orrante each have choreographed an original work created on the Joffrey Academy Trainees and Studio Company. The Joffrey Academy of Dance’s Winning Works program is presented at the Cindy Pritzker Theater, Chicago Public Library Harold Washington Center, 400 South State Street, over three performances only: Saturday, March 11, at 2:00 PM and 7:00 PM and Sunday, March 12 at 2:00 PM.
“The artistry and diversity of the Winning Works choreographers provide an inspiring look at the world in which we live allowing us to deepen our understanding of the art form”, said Ashley Wheater, Artistic Director of The Joffrey Ballet. “The Winning Works program is an invaluable experience for our Joffrey Trainees and Studio Company providing them the opportunity to grow artistically and perform works created by important voices of dance today.
“Winning Works empowered me as a female choreographer”, said Mariana Oliveira, 2016 Winning Works Choreographer. “Being a part of this program has opened many other doors for my career. It was a pleasure to work with fearless young talent. I will always hold this experience close to my heart.”
Shannon Alvis is originally from Greenwood, Indiana and received her training at Butler University and the University of Utah. She began her career with the second company of Hubbard Street Dance Chicago (HSDC), then went on to dance and perform professionally with HSDC for nine years. In 2009, Ms. Alvis went on to further her growth as a dancer at Nederlands Dans Theater under the direction of Jim Vincent and Paul Lightfoot.
Her world premiere for the Joffrey Academy of Dance – Moonlight – is a contemporary piece with 5 men and 5 women featuring solo and partner work set to music by Debussy’s Clair de Lune. Moonlight is inspired by the poem Clair de Lune by Paul Verlaine, and the beautiful potential that lies within each of the dancers.
Sean Aaron Carmon is originally from Texas and joined Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater in 2011 and has performed major solos and featured roles in ballets by many notable choreographers. His choreography has been performed all across the U.S. and internationally and is lauded as “everything and then some…”, “powerful,” and “seriously flawless” by major national print and online publications such as The New York Times, Newsweek, JET Magazine, BroadwayBlack, Dance Spirit, and
Dance Magazine.
His world premiere for the Joffrey Academy of Dance – Suite Hearts explores young love in all its varieties — romantic, friendly, playful, emotional, heartbreak, resilience, and the interconnectivity between each. This piece will be performed by 6 men and 10 women.
Karen Gabay grew up in San Diego and has had a career as a ballerina that spans over 35 years. Ms. Gabay made her professional debut at the age of 18 as a principal dancer with Ballet San Jose (BSJ). Her repertoire includes Odette/Odile in Swan Lake, Giselle in the title role and her most favorite role of Juliet in Romeo and Juliet. As a choreographer, she created numerous ballets for the company including the 2012 production of BSJ’s annual production of The Nutcracker which led to her first children’s book, The Nutcracker: A Story in Verse. Gabay is the co-founding Artistic Director of her own ballet troupe, Pointe of Departure,which performs in the bay area and in Northeast Ohio.
Her world premiere for the Joffrey Academy features 10-15 dancers with the women dancing en pointe. The concept of the piece explores the lives of coming-of-age teenagers and will feature a combination of classical and neo classical ballet, acting, and theatrics.
Jimmy Orrante is a native of Los Angeles and has danced with Nevada Ballet Theatre, Memphis Ballet, and 20 years with BalletMet where he had the opportunity to choreograph 15 premieres for the company. In addition to BalletMet, he has created ballets for Ballet Austin, Motion Dance Theatre, Rochester City Ballet, Ballet Arkansas, Atlanta Ballet’s Wabi Sabi, and UC Irvine’s National Choreographers Initiative. Mr. Orrante’s repertoire includes two full-length ballets, The Great Gatsby, which premiered with BalletMet in 2009 and was reprised in 2015, and the children’s ballet The Ugly Duckling for Rochester City Ballet.
His world premiere for the Joffrey Academy features 6 men and 6 women with the women dancing en pointe. The movement is inspired by the energy within the music, a combination of cascading momentum and a more formal, processional quality.
“The Joffrey is honored to collaborate with the Chicago Public Library Harold Washington Library Center for the first time to present this meaningful and innovative program”, said Greg Cameron, Executive Director of The Joffrey Ballet. “We are grateful for the support of Brian Bannon, Chicago Public Library Commissioner and Mayor Rahm Emanuel as we embark on fulfilling our shared mission and commitment to empowering the community through dance and storytelling.”
“By co-hosting these ambitious programs with The Joffrey Ballet, we are remaining dedicated to supporting lifelong learning for patrons of all ages, in this case, through performing arts”, said Brian Bannon, Chicago Public Library Commissioner. “We hope to inspire people of all backgrounds and ages to engage with both the Joffrey and the library in new and exciting ways.”
Tickets for “Winning Works” at the Chicago Public Library Harold Washington Library Center are FREE. Tickets can be reserved at WinningWorks2017.Eventbrite.com.
The Joffrey Ballet is grateful for the support of its Winning Works Sponsor, The Edward and Lucy R. Minor Family Foundation, Video Production Sponsor Big Foot Media and to its Official Provider of Physical Therapy, Athletico.
About the Joffrey Studio Company
The Joffrey Studio Company is a scholarship program of the Joffrey Academy of Dance, Official School of The Joffrey Ballet. The Joffrey Studio Company consists of 10 outstanding students selected by Joffrey Artistic Director Ashley Wheater and Head of Studio Company and Trainee Program Raymond Rodriguez. The Joffrey Studio Company and Trainees have performed on some of the most prestigious stages, including Lincoln Center in NY, the Auditorium Theatre, Harris Theater for Music and Dance, Cadillac Palace Theatre and MCA Stage in Chicago, Music Hall in LA, The Kennedy Center in Washington D.C. and more. The individualized training and performance opportunities provided by the Joffrey Studio Company offers students unique insight into the life of a professional dancer, assisting students in preparation for a professional career in dance and helping them expand their technique and artistry.
About the Joffrey Academy Trainees
The Joffrey Academy Trainee Program is a one to two-year program for students ages 17 and older who are preparing for a professional dance career. Students are selected to participate in the Trainee Program by invitation from Artistic Director Ashley Wheater and the Head of Studio Company and Trainee Program Raymond Rodriguez. This esteemed and rigorous program gives students a unique and well-rounded experience to prepare them for the next step in their careers. Trainees rehearse and perform classical and contemporary works from The Joffrey Ballet’s extensive repertoire and have the opportunity to work with guest choreographers throughout the year. Graduates of the Academy have gone on to dance professionally with companies throughout the world including The Joffrey Ballet, American Ballet Theatre, New York City Ballet, Staatsballett Berlin, Dresden Semperoper, Complexions, Milwaukee Ballet, Memphis Ballet, Kansas City Ballet, BalletMet, Polish National Ballet, Slovak National Ballet, and many more.
For more information on the Joffrey Academy of Dance, Official School of The Joffrey Ballet and its programs please visit joffrey.org/academy.
About Chicago Public Library
Since 1873, Chicago Public Library (CPL) has encouraged lifelong learning by welcoming all people and offering equal access to information, entertainment and knowledge through innovative services and programs, as well as cutting-edge technology. Through its 80 locations, the Library provides free access to a rich collection of materials, both physical and digital, and presents the highest quality author discussions, exhibits and programs for children, teens and adults. CPL received the Social Innovator Award from Chicago Innovation Awards; won a National Medal for Library Services from the Institute for Museum and Library Services; was named the first ever winner of the National Summer Learning Association’s Founder’s Award in recognition of its Summer Learning Challenge; and was ranked number one in the U.S., and third in the world by an international study of major urban libraries conducted by the Heinrich Heine University Dusseldorf in Germany. For more information, please call (312) 747-4050 or visitchipublib.org.
Showbiz Chicago Feature Story
« BLUE MAN GROUP REMAINS INVENTIVE AND RELEVANT
Applications are open for the 6th annual Chicago Women’s Funny Festival at Stage 773 »
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Stan Berenstain
Geographic Connection to Pennsylvania: Solebury, Bucks County
The Berenstains are the award-winning authors of over 200 Berenstain Bears books.
Awards: The School Bell Awards, Best Book Award from the American Institute of Graphic Arts, The University of Chicago Best Book Award
Award-winning children's book author of The Berenstain Bears series Stan Berenstain was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in 1923 and attended The Philadelphia College of Art and the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts. Read more here.
"About the Berenstains." The Berenstain Bears website. 2018. 5 November 2018.
Stanley (Stan) Berenstain was born on September 29, 1923, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. His parents were Harry and Rose Berenstain. In 1946, he married Jan Grant, an author and illustrator, with whom he had two sons, Leo and Michael.
Berenstain attended The Philadelphia College of Art from 1941 to 1942, where he met Janice Grant, his future wife. In 1946, he attended the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts. Stan and Jan Berenstain began their collaborative career drawing cartoons for magazines. The Berenstains were also co-creators of “It’s All in the Family,” an illustrated feature first published by McCall’s magazine. In 1962, Berenstain and his wife published their first children’s book The Big Honey Hunt.
Together, the Berenstains created The Berenstain Bears children’s book series. They started writing these books to help their own children learn how to read, but the books quickly became favorites of young children learning how to read everywhere. Currently The Berenstain Bears series has more than 150 books in publication. The series also led to a series of animated television specials including The Berenstain Bears’ Christmas Tree. In 1995 the Berenstain’s released The Berenstain Bears Scouts Book Series, which currently has nine titles to its credit.
Stan Berenstain and his wife have received numerous awards for their work on The Berenstain Bears series. They have received multiple Philadelphia Library Children’s Reading Round Table honor book awards. They have also received a Silver Diploma in 1980, 1982, and 1987 for The Berenstain Bears’ Christmas Tree television special. They have received The School Bell Awards from the National Education Association, The Best Book Award from the American Institute of Graphic Arts, and The University of Chicago Best Book Award, among many other awards that are too numerous to count.
In article for the Philadelphia Inquirer, Gayle Simms noted this:
In 2002, after many more Berenstain Bears books, Stan and Jan wrote a joint autobiography, Down a Sunny Dirt Road. In it, he responded to the question of why they hadn’t retired: “Why would we retire? We thrive on what we do. We travel extensively. We go to a lovely, salubrious place where honeybees hum, where rainbow trout match rainbow skies, where the rivers run clean and the air is sweet, where there’s beauty around every bend in the sunny dirt road. It’s a wonderful place. It’s called Bear Country. We go there every day.”
Stan Berenstain died of cancer on November 26, 2005, in a Doylestown hospital. He was survived by Jan, four children, and legions of fans whose childhoods he had enriched.
The Berenstain’s Baby Book. New York: Macmillan, 1951.
Inside, Outside, Upside Down. New York: Random House, 1968.
Bears in the Night. New York: Random House, 1971.
He Bear, She Bear. New York: Random House, 1974.
The Berenstain Bears and the Missing Dinosaur Bone. New York: Random House, 1980.
The Berenstain Bears’ Christmas Tree. New York: Random House, 1980.
The Berenstain Bears Visit the Dentist. New York: Random House, 1981.
The Berenstain Bears and Too Much TV. New York: Random House, 1984.
The Berenstain Bears Learn about Strangers. New York: Random House, 1985.
“Jan and Stan Berenstain.” Authors Online Biography. 2001. 17 October 2001. <http://teacher.scholastic.com/authorsandbooks/authors/beren/bio.htm>.
Sims, Gayle Ronan. “Father of Berenstain Bears dies - Stanley Berenstain rivaled Dr. Seuss for children’s affections.” Philadelphia Inquirer. 30 Nov. 2005: A1.
“Stanley Berenstain.” The Gale Literary Database: Contemporary Authors Online. 2006. 26 Sept. 2011.
Tim Godfrey
Written by Tim Godfrey, Fall 2001; revised 2005; updated 2015
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Doug Band revealed as buyer of David Rockefeller’s $20M townhouse
By Richard Johnson
April 18, 2018 | 9:23pm
146 East 65th Street Realtor.com
Jorge Pérez, Miami big wigs celebrate new skyscraper
Sting and Trudie Styler's new apartment is anything but ordinary
Mom's purchase hints Vanessa Trump could be getting massive divorce settlement
Billionaire Harry Macklowe to demolish pad estranged wife planned to buy: suit
Doug Band, of Teneo Holdings, didn’t buy the late David Rockefeller’s townhouse on East 65th Street as an investment.
He plans to live there with his wife, Lily, and their growing brood once the four-story building is renovated.
The Bands have a fourth child on the way, and a men’s homeless shelter is coming to West 58th Street, near their current digs. Time to move.
Band had no trouble with the $20 million purchase price, discounted more than $12 million from when it was first listed in June 2017, because he was an early investor in Alibaba, a friend told me.
And his Teneo consulting company is booming, too, with 730 employees in 18 countries.
Plus, the 40-foot-wide townhouse is much bigger than its listed 9,000-plus square feet, because it has a 3,000-square-foot basement, bringing the total to about 12,000 square feet.
“It was a steal,” said my source. “But it needs a lot of work. He’s already got an architect and a designer.”
Filed under luxury real estate
Now anyone can play dress-up with Jeff Goldblum
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Comments from young men who took part in the Passions project
Posted on July 17, 2016 by passionsofyouth Standard
‘Coming here every Wednesday morning was good. When I first did it I thought I wasn’t going to like it, but it was good, I wanted to do it’.
‘At the start I didn’t think I would be into something like this but then I ended up liking it’.
‘I’m proud of really wanting to complete the films’.
‘We got more sensible. When we first started we used to act silly, mess about, and then we started taking it a bit more seriously. When you learn how to do it, it’s pretty good’.
Tommy Mcdonagh, Moston and Collyhurst Lads Club ABC
‘The project, it opens new doors for them. When they went to look round the university you could see they were looking at it, it opened their eyes. One of them said “I might go to college, if I do well next year and keep doing it, I could go to uni”. There’s no chance he’d have thought that if he’d not visited, not a chance. It’s opened their eyes and they won’t settle for what people say they should do. Now they can choose to do whatever they want to’.
Visit to the Archives at Manchester Library
‘It’s the first time I’ve been anywhere like that [the archive]. It was good. And we wouldn’t have done stuff like going to see that play. We went to the library and it’s got stuff about the gym a hundred years ago. We saw that film about Brian [club manager] and found he’d made his own short film, 30 or 40 years ago, filmed here at this gym. I’ve learned about the history of this gym and stuff about people who used to come here. It’s good, interesting, the old clips’.
‘We’ve learned how to be interviewed without looking stupid, more con dence in front of the camera. Sometimes we used to mumble or keep moving around whereas now we know what to do’.
‘I can speak to new people now’.
‘I thought I’d be dead cringey and feel stupid but it feels good’.
‘I was interested in sport but this opens up a whole other circle’.
‘I would maybe carry on lming for boxing shows, you could lm it and make money from that’.
‘I’ve never done something like this – technology and lming, so would consider it in future, now we’ve made lms and interviewed people, it’s the beginning of something’.
At first I was hoping it [the film] wasn’t going to get on anything like Twitter or Facebook but I wouldn’t be bothered now if it did’.
Andy Cheshire, FC United
‘This has been a fantastic experience for the boys involved. They have had opportunities that none of their peers have had and have learnt new skills that can be used for the rest of their lives. The work they have completed is a credit to them and the club and they should all be extremely proud.’
Passions of Youth Awards Night: Film Premiere, Celebration and Reception, 23rd November 2015
Forever Young: eight decades of youth culture told by people who were there.
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Coca-Cola Classic 600 50th Anniversary NASCAR race
Coca_Cola_600_109.JPG
Paratroopers float from the sky during opening ceremonies for the Coca-Cola Classic 900 NASCAR Race at the Lowe's Motor Speedway, in Concord, NC, held on Memorial Day 2009 (the race was delayed a day because of rain). Driver David Reutimann won his first Cup race during the rain-shortened event, held May 25, 2009. NASCAR's longest scheduled race went only 227 laps, or 340.5 miles, before officials ended it because of rain. The 2009 race was the 50th running of the Coca-Cola 600. Ryan Newman...
Paratroopers float from the sky during opening ceremonies for the Coca-Cola Classic 900 NASCAR Race at the Lowe's Motor Speedway, in Concord, NC, held on Memorial Day 2009 (the race was delayed a day because of rain). Driver David Reutimann won his first Cup race during the rain-shortened event, held May 25, 2009. NASCAR's longest scheduled race went only 227 laps, or 340.5 miles, before officials ended it because of rain. The 2009 race was the 50th running of the Coca-Cola 600. Ryan Newman and Robby Gordon finished second and third respectively.
Copyright: PatrickSchneiderPhoto.com Created: Size: 5401x3600 / 16.8MB
Lowe's Motor Speedway, LMS, NASCAR, stock car auto racing, Bruton Smith, Concord North Carolina, Charlotte Motor Speedway, Charlotte NASCAR, North Carolina racing, famous NASCAR tracks, super speedway, NASCAR Nationwide Series, race teams, things to do in Charlotte, racing, car racing, auto racing, Charlotte photographer Patrick Schneider, Charlotte photography, sports photography, Charlotte events, Charlotte sports, North Carolina sporting events, spectator sports, pit road
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Category: Practice
On February 9, 2019 April 25, 2019 By mandersonIn Common Core, content, content knowledge, literary analysis, Literature, pedagogy, PracticeLeave a comment
The first thing that happened to reading is writing. For most of our history, humans have been able to speak but not read. Writing is a human creation, the first information technology, as much an invention as the telephone or computer.
—Mark Seidenberg, Language at the Speed of Sight
A growing contingent of scholars argue that our “superpower” as a species is not so much our intelligence as our collective intelligence and our capacity for what’s called cumulative culture: that is, our ability to stockpile knowledge and pass it down from generation to generation, tinkering with it and improving it over time.
—Steve Stewart-Williams, “How Culture Makes Us Smarter”
The written word emerged from the fogs of the distant past in places as disparate as the hills of Oaxaca, the banks of the Huan River, and the dry yet fertile expanse between the Tigris and Euphrates. Some of this early transcription was record-keeping, the accounting of ownership, an empirical truth-telling that extended the reach of commerce. Yet there were also the words of the prophets and priests—the divinations, omens, prophecies, and revelations—and the words of the scholars and poets—the stories, laws, and myths. A reckoning with the enduring and the sacred. The Akkadian texts, the Vedas, the Avestas, the Torah and the commentaries that were made to explain them.
In such scripture, contradictory accounts, allegories, and the use of a more complex language not spoken on a daily basis presented challenges beyond the pragmatic literacy of record-keeping. Clearly, the word of the godhead cannot be so easily confined by the shallow tongue of humans, however divinely inspired. The act of understanding sacred texts has thus always been one of interpretation.
And from the start, there have been two broad approaches to interpretation: a literal interpretation, which sticks to what is most plainly evident in the text itself, and an inferential interpretation, which situates a text within a larger framework. These approaches can work together as a progression towards a fuller understanding, though they can also exist sometimes in opposition.
Scriptural Exegesis: the literal and the nonliteral meaning
Scholarly interpretation of scripture, termed exegesis, has a storied tradition, extending to formalized methods termed hermeneutics. Hermeneutics has since developed far beyond scripture into a theory of knowledge and understanding itself.
The early usage of “hermeneutics” places it within the boundaries of the sacred. A divine message must be received with implicit uncertainty regarding its truth. This ambiguity is an irrationality; it is a sort of madness that is inflicted upon the receiver of the message. Only one who possesses a rational method of interpretation (i.e., a hermeneutic) could determine the truth or falsity of the message. (Jean Grondin via Wikipedia)
Hermeneutics spans a wide gamut, from theology and philosophy, from Hillel to Heidegger, and also parallels the development of literary criticism, from Plato and Aristotle, from Russian Formalism to Reader-response Theory, with both threads leading, quite fascinatingly (if you follow edu stuff at all) to E.D. Hirsch, Jr., who argued that an objective interpretation of literary texts is possible (by adhering to the author’s intention). And this lineage extends all the way up to the Common Core Standards and its promotion of a particular form close reading.
But I’m getting ahead of myself. Let’s keep with the exegesis thing for a minute. I just said there’s literal interpretation and interpretation which goes beyond what is in the text, both approaches which often interweave.
Here’s how both of these approaches work together in Zoroastrian commentaries (zand) on the Avestas:
A consistent exegetical procedure is evident in manuscripts in which the original Avestan and its zand coexist. The priestly scholars first translated the Avestan as literally as possible. In a second step, the priests then translated the Avestan idiomatically. In the final step, the idiomatic translation was complemented with explanations and commentaries, often of significant length, and occasionally with different authorities being cited.
Here’s how both Hebrew and Akkadian methods of exegesis try to resolve contradictions between the approaches:
…in order to clarify the interpretation of a text, it may be necessary to adopt a solution that goes beyond the immediate and literal sense of the text. Indeed, the tension between the literal sense of a text and the sense of the text in its larger context is a perpetual concern of Akkadian and Hebrew commentators alike. An awareness of this tension is reflected in commentaries that attach two interpretations to one phrase from the base text: the literal interpretation, which does not necessarily agree with the context, and a nonliteral interpretation that succeeds in reconciling the phrase with its larger context.
In the rigorous and rich Judaic traditions of textual interpretation, extensive commentaries have been developed, and the midrash of the Torah and the halakhah (Talmud) were formalized into hermeneutic rules. There was no distinction initially drawn between literal meaning, peshat, and inferential interpretation, derash, but over time the two terms became more distinguished from each other. In halakhic, or legal, interpretation, scholars had to not only attempt to reconcile tensions within a text itself, but further reconcile laws in relation to changing economic and cultural circumstances. In the attempt to resolve such problems, “scholars…first and above all sought to find the solutions in Scripture itself, by endeavoring to penetrate to its inner or ‘concealed’ content.” In the non-legal rabbinic midrash of the Torah, there was even more room for creative interpretation. Stories termed aggadah could be interpreted at both a literal and allegorical level. Some believe there are hidden layers of meaning that can only be unveiled to those properly trained to unlock them. In the tradition of Kabbalah, exegesis moves far beyond allegorical into the realm of the mysterious and mystical.
What is interesting is how extremely literal methods could be used to move into the realm of the occult. As an example, a hermeneutical method termed notarikon takes out a letter of a word to make the initial letter of another word, such that one word could become an entirely new sentence. Another method termed gematria assigns numerical values to words based on the letters, and then use the numbers to make esoteric inferences.
While such methods may seem bizarre at first glance, remember that scriptural exegesis assumes the premise that scripture is sacred in nature, and thus, without error. If you follow this premise all the way through, that means every single letter of every single word has a divine purpose and meaning, even when it is not immediately evident, and even when some verses or texts stand in seeming contradiction to others.
In Christian Biblical exegesis, scholars also approached interpretation from various angles, some of them in opposition and others within a progression:
… whereas some have argued that the interpretation must always be literal, or as literal as possible (since “God always means what he says”), others have treated it as self-evident that words of divine origin must always have some profounder “spiritual” meaning than that which lies on the surface, and this meaning will yield itself up only to those who apply the appropriate rules of figurative exegesis similarly developed hermeneutics based on literal, allegorical, moral, and anagogical interpretations. (Britannica.com entry)
There’s even a Latin rhyme that encapsulates the four methods, or quadriga, of figurative Biblical exegesis:
Litera gesta docet, Quid credas allegoria,
Moralis quid agas, Quo tendas anagogia.
The rhyme roughly translated:
The literal teaches what God and our ancestors did,
The allegory is where our faith and belief is hid,
The moral meaning gives us the rule of daily life,
The anagogy shows us where we end our strife.
A Talmudic scholar, Rashi, provides an instructive example of moving between different levels of interpretation:
Rashi’s Bible commentary illustrates vividly the coexistence and, to some extent, the successful reconciliation of the two basic methods of interpretation: the literal and the nonliteral. Rashi seeks the literal meaning, deftly using rules of grammar and syntax and carefully analyzing both text and context, but does not hesitate to mount Midrashic explanations, utilizing allegory, parable, and symbolism, upon the underlying literal interpretation. (Britannica.com entry)
In Islamic exegesis, or tafsir, the classical Arabic language itself is central to the task of interpretation through intensive study of rhetoric, etymology, morphology, syntax, and metaphor. The verses, or ayah, of the Qur’an can be delineated into “those that are clear and unambiguous (muhkam) and those that are allegorical (mutashabeh).” It is said that the Qur’an is revealed through seven different forms of recitation, or arhuf. Yet there is debate about what the meaning of arhuf even is. Here is a hadith that elucidates the difficulty in pinning down that meaning:
From ʿAbdallâh Ibn Masʿūd: The Messenger of Allah said: “The Quran was sent down in seven ahruf. Each of these ahruf has an outward aspect (zahr) and an inward aspect (batn); each of the ahruf has a border, and each border has a lookout.”
What is common in all scriptural exegesis is the belief that the text is divinely inspired in origin, and thus, worthy of intense scrutiny to unfurl that revelatory meaning, down to the deconstruction and reconstruction of letters, morphemes, and syntax, as well as righteous attempts to ensure that any contradictions within and between sacred texts are resolved.
The truth is, truth and meaning in the written word can be a slippery thing, subject to abstraction and contradiction. Herein lies its power—the power to reveal or to deceive, both sacred and dangerous. While the word of a prophet or god requires painstaking exegesis to unspool into moral or legal guidance, poets and storytellers can craft and bend language at will to elicit desired reactions from their audience.
Literary Criticism: the significance of a text and its context
Plato feared this deceptive power. He even went so far as to advise that poets should be banned from his ideal republic. In The Republic, written in 360 BCE, Plato argued that poetry is a mere imitation of nature, and thus, inferior. Yet in this shallow deception lay great power, for the poet, through the use of melody, rhythm, and other “ingenious devices,” could take advantage of the irrational “weakness of the human mind. . . having an effect upon us like magic.”
Plato instead argued for the supremacy of the rational “arts of measuring and numbering and weighing.” While he did have an appreciation for poetry, he believed that the primary function of art should be to serve a moral purpose. Anything else was not only frivolous, but dangerous.
Yet a decade later, in Poetics, Aristotle offered an alternative vision of the power of poetry. While he acknowledges that poetry is an imitation of reality, he argues that the most potent of the dramatic arts, tragedy, “imitated noble actions, and the actions of good men,” thus providing the virtuous guidance that Plato found so lacking.
Aristotle examined the “ingenious devices” of poetry closely and provided a clear description of effective literary techniques such as character, plot, and diction, while introducing concepts like catharsis and mimesis that are still applied in literary study today. He also argued that poetry serves a different function than the more quantifiable arts of the specific and the particular, and that it serves an even higher purpose:
…it is not the function of the poet to relate what has happened, but what may happen,—what is possible according to the law of probability or necessity. The poet and the historian differ not by writing in verse or in prose. . . The true difference is that one relates what has happened, the other what may happen. Poetry, therefore, is a more philosophical and a higher thing than history: for poetry tends to express the universal, history the particular.
Aristotle also tackled problems of interpretation. He suggests a number of issues and solutions, but the following one especially stood out to me due to later literary debates about whether a text should be studied based solely on what is within the text, or with consideration of an author’s intent and biography:
Things that sound contradictory should be examined by the same rules as in dialectical refutation whether the same thing is meant, in the same relation, and in the same sense. We should therefore solve the question by reference to what the poet says himself, or to what is tacitly assumed by a person of intelligence.
What’s fascinating is that this tension between Plato and Aristotle’s stances on poetry can be seen resounding in centuries of literary criticism since. As the Encyclopaedia Britannica puts it: “Although almost all of the criticism ever written dates from the 20th century, questions first posed by Plato and Aristotle are still of prime concern, and every critic who has attempted to justify the social value of literature has had to come to terms with the opposing argument made by Plato in The Republic.”
In the Medieval period, Plato’s staunch focus on the service of art for moral good is echoed in the largely unimaginative and depressing body of artwork produced by the Western world. The truly exciting action was taking place, instead, in the scholarly exegesis of biblical texts.
But in 1440, hermeneutics moved beyond its role of merely explaining the “true” meaning of the Bible. An Italian humanist and literary curmudgeon, Lorenzo Valla, proved that a document used by the papacy to claim that emperor Constantine the Great had transferred authority of Rome to the Pope was a forgery by using evidence solely within the text itself. How did he do this? As a scholar of Latin grammar and rhetoric, he explained that the crude Latin used by its anonymous author did not match the form of Latin used in the time of Constantine.
During the Renaissance, the recovery of classical literary texts spurred a flowering of literary criticism. At the same time that Aristotle’s Poetics was translated into Latin and regained a new audience, hermeneutics shifted into a fully Aristotelian appreciation for the beauty of well-crafted art. In his Defence of Poesie, Sir Philip Sidney, echoing Aristotle, argued that the poet was superior to the historian:
So then the best of the Historian is subject to the Poet, for whatsoever action or faction, whatsoever counsaile, pollicie, or warre, strategeme, the Historian is bound to recite, that may the Poet if hee list with his imitation make his owne; bewtifying it both for further teaching, and more delighting as it please him: having all from Dante his heven to his hell, under the authority of his pen. (Renascence Edition)
This new concern with the subjective mind of the author and the reader themselves, rather than on rigid methods, became a growing focus throughout the decline of Neoclassicism and into the Romantic era, during which “The poet was credited with the godlike power that Plato had feared in him.”
This isn’t to say that Biblical exegesis faded away. Instead, new methods were developed that focused on reframing the Bible within a broader context.
The rationalist Enlightenment led hermeneutists, especially Protestant exegetists, to view Scriptural texts as secular classical texts. They interpreted Scripture as responses to historical or social forces so that, for example, apparent contradictions and difficult passages in the New Testament might be clarified by comparing their possible meanings with contemporary Christian practices. (Wikipedia entry)
This takes us into the 20th century, where a renewed formalism led to methods that refocused on interpretation of the text itself, without reference to anything else. In France, Gustave Lanson, a literary critic, promoted a pedagogical method in French universities termed l’explication de texte, in which a text’s structure, style, and literary devices are objectively examined. In Russia, a Formalist method “attempted a scientific description of literature (especially poetry) as a special use of language with observable features.” Russian Formalism stood in sharp contrast to Plato’s argument that poetry was a mere imitation of reality; the stance of Formalism is that “words were not simply stand-ins for objects but objects themselves.” Meanwhile, in Britain and the United States academia, New Criticism became the dominant form of literary interpretation, in which the author’s intent and a reader’s responses were viewed as largely irrelevant distractions. Similar to Russian Formalism, New Criticism took the stance that “everything that is needed to understand a work is present within it.”
Scholars of New Criticism even coined terminology to make it explicit that an author’s background or intent or a reader’s personal and emotional responses were invalid methods of interpretation. They termed these “The Intentional Fallacy” and “The Affective Fallacy,” respectively.
This discounting of the author’s intent and biography and of a reader’s responses both generated opposing schools of literary criticism in the latter half of the 20th century. New Historicism focuses on the social, cultural, and philosophical contexts within which an author wrote, to the point that the text and author seemed to have been almost inevitably created by their context, rather than vice versa:
In its tendency to see society as consisting of texts relating to other texts, with no ‘fixed’ literary value above and beyond the way specific cultures read them in specific situations, New Historicism is a form of postmodernism applied to interpretive history. (Wikipedia entry)
Reader-response theory, on the other hand, “argues that a text has no meaning before a reader experiences—reads—it.” This approach rejects the grounds for objectivity in the interpretation of texts, suggesting instead that meaning arises out of personal reactions and the particular context that a reader is situated within.
Other forms of criticism that drew heavily upon wider contexts beyond the text itself also became more widespread in the late 20th century, such as sociological, psychoanalytic, Marxist, feminist, or post-Structuralist criticism. Increasingly, criticism was viewed as a subjective and highly specialized academic endeavor.
Into this fray stepped E.D. Hirsch, Jr. with a book titled Validity in Interpretation, in which he argued that an objective interpretation of a text was possible, in contrast to the positions of New Historicism or Reader-response theory. However, he also took issue with the stance of New Criticism that authorial intent was a distraction from the text itself. Instead, Hirsch argued that determining authorial intent was the basis for a valid, more objective interpretation. He drew a distinction between the meaning of a text and its significance. The meaning, an understanding as determined by authorial intent, is something that is stable and does not change, while a text’s significance changes in accordance with new explanations and connections to new contexts. In his own words:
Meaning is that which is represented by a text; it is what the author meant by his use of a particular sign sequence; it is what the signs represent. Significance, on the other hand, names a relationship between that meaning and a person, or a conception, or a situation, or indeed anything imaginable. … Significance always implies a relationship, and one constant, unchanging pole of that relationship is what the text means (Validity in Interpretation).
Meaning . . . may be conceived as a self-identified schema whose boundaries are determined by an originating speech event, while significance may be conceived as a relationship drawn between that self-identified meaning and something, anything, else (“Meaning and Significance Reinterpreted”).
This distinction stood out to me because it seemed analogous to one made by Christine Counsell about two main types of knowledge in school curriculum. She distinguishes between substantive knowledge and disciplinary knowledge. Substantive knowledge is knowledge that is relatively stable and can be taught as established fact, while disciplinary knowledge engages students in the use of tools and pathways of inquiry fundamental to the discipline, and which is always evolving.
I find both of these distinctions, between meaning and significance, and substantive and disciplinary knowledge, to be useful, as they allow us to see that there are some forms of understanding that are more static than others, and also that the interpretation of a text is always situated within a wider context, and that interpretations will shift in accordance with that context.
The crucial point, then, is that any text has an envisioning historical and cultural context and that the context of a text is itself not simply textual—not something that can be played out solely and wholly in the textual domain. This context of the texts that concern us constrains and limits the viable interpretations that these texts are able to bear. The process of deconstruction—of interpretatively dissolving any and every text into a plurality of supposedly merit-equivalent construction—can and should be offset by the process of reconstruction which calls for viewing texts within their larger contexts. After all, texts inevitably have a setting—historical, cultural, authorial—on which their actual meaning is critically dependent (Nicholas Rescher, as quoted by a Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy entry on hermeneutics)
Another important aspect of E.D. Hirsch’s analysis is that it represents a convergence between literary criticism and the discipline of hermeneutics, which had been developing along largely separate tracks. Hermeneutics sprung originally out of the study of scripture, then developed into philosophical explorations of epistemology, while literary criticism clung more closely to aesthetics and classical literature.
Before we move from the topic of hermeneutics and of the relationship of a text to wider context, I think it’s important to touch on the concept of the hermeneutic circle, which very much relates to the movement between literal and nonliteral in scriptural exegesis, as well as the interpretation of the meaning and significance of a piece of literature.
The hermeneutic circle refers to the recursive movement between part and whole, whether within a text itself, in connection between texts, in connection between a text and something else, or even more broadly, in the relationship between an individual and the world he or she inhabits. We will see this circle in action in our next section on close reading.
One other fascinating thing to note about E.D. Hirsch, Jr., which can help us transition into our next section on primary and secondary public education: he has become more widely known for his promotion of cultural literacy, the idea that literacy is founded on background knowledge relevant to a culture, and that therefore a shared body of core knowledge and vocabulary should be taught explicitly in each grade. He founded an organization, Core Knowledge, which developed K-8 curricular materials to address this need. This was a contentious idea when first introduced in the late 1980s, and continues to generate debate today.
The Common Core Enters Stage Left
Ever since the exhortation of the Common Core ELA standards for students to “read closely” and “cite evidence,” close reading has been a thing in K-12 education.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.R.1
Read closely to determine what the text says explicitly and to make logical inferences from it; cite specific textual evidence when writing or speaking to support conclusions drawn from the text.
As you will see, debates about close reading closely echo the ancestry of the textual exegesis, hermeneutics, and literary criticism that preceded them.
Advocates and developers of the Common Core, such as David Coleman and Sue Pimental, promoted a form of close reading in which analysis is confined to the text itself, similar to the approach of Formalism, l’explication de texte, and New Criticism. This approach could be viewed as an explicit reaction to a trend in K-12 classrooms of providing only easily accessible texts and questions and too much background context prior to reading, most especially to those students who already struggled with reading. This seemed to ill prepare graduating students for college-level tasks oriented around highly complex academic texts, nor for the reading of technical texts required for advancement in many careers.
The solution proffered by the standards was to engage students in reading increasingly complex texts throughout the span of their education, and to ensure questions were “text-dependent,” rather than answerable without any evidence.
However, there was a backlash against this form of close reading.
For example, Nancy Boyles wrote in ASCD that asking students only text-dependent questions doesn’t explicitly prepare students for engaging independently in their own close reading practices. She recommends asking four generic questions that students can apply independently to any text.
“The final, most compelling reason I don’t care for the Student Achievement Partners [text-dependent] questions is that although they teach the reading—the content of the text—there’s no attempt to teach the reader strategies by which that reader can pursue meaning independently. . . Teaching is about transfer. The goal is for students to take what they learn from the study of one text and apply it to the next text they read.”
Educators Kylene Beers and Robert Probst further argued in Notice & Note: Strategies for Close Reading that it is essential to support students in making personal connections to texts because meaning and engagement are created via the interaction between a text and its reader, a view similar to Reader-Response Theory:
“Meaning is created not purely and simply from the words on the page, but from the transaction with those words that takes place in the reader’s mind. . . Close reading, then, should not imply that we ignore the reader’s experience and attend closely to the text and nothing else. It should imply that we bring the text and the reader close together. To ignore either element in the transaction, to deny the presence of the reader or neglect the contribution of the text, is to make reading impossible. If we understand close reading this way, when the reader is brought into the text we have the opportunity for relevance, engagement, and rigor.”
Another knock against confining a close reading solely to what is within a text is that a reader may miss the wider social or historical context that a text is situated within. As the Odegaard Writing and Research Center at the University of Washington puts it:
“Remember that every writer is in conversation: with other writers, with history, with the forces of her culture, with the events of his time. It is helpful, for example, to read Karl Marx or Sigmund Freud with some knowledge of their moment in history. Virginia Woolf and Simone de Beauvoir were responding to writers and events in their cultures, too. When you understand the context of a work, you can better see the forces that moved the author to write that work.”
Kate Roberts and Christopher Lehman, in Falling In Love With Close Reading, suggest that you can have your cake and eat it, too.
“Instead of seeing this as a debate between two opposing sides, we believe there is a way to achieve both goals–to teach students to read more analytically, while also valuing their lives and experiences. In fact, in this book we argue that by learning to read more closely, our lives and experience grow richer as well.”
This made me think of a related conversation regarding critical thinking skills. In “What REALLY Works: Optimizing Classroom Discussions to Promote Comprehension and Critical-Analytic Thinking,” P. Karen Murphy et al. lay out two broad approaches to text-based inquiry in the classroom: an expressive approach, which taps into a student’s personal experience and emotion, and an efferent approach, which is a more objective attempt to acquire and obtain information. P. Karen Murphy et al. argue that it is not one or the other, but rather both working in tandem, that can best develop critical-analytic thinking:
We propose that the solution lies not in either an efferent or an expressive approach to text and other content, but in pedagogical approaches such as small-group, classroom discussions that value knowledge-seeking, in concert with lived-through experience, to promote critical-analytic thinking.
If we agree with P. Karen Murphy et al., then we end up with a model something like this:
All of that said, however, it must be acknowledged that state ELA assessments ask students to answer efferent text-dependent questions about a written passage in complete isolation from any wider context. A student’s personal opinion and experience, as well as the author’s biography, plays no role in the analysis students are asked to conduct. So students will need to have some level of practice with this form of close reading, whatever one believes that textual interaction should ideally be, so long as the coin of the realm is test scores.
So what is close reading, then, exactly? Here’s a few definitions to complicate your understanding:
Close reading is thoughtful, critical analysis of a text that focuses on significant details or patterns in order to develop a deep, precise understanding of the text’s form, craft, meanings, etc.
—“A Close Look at Close Reading” by Beth Burke
Close reading is a strategic process a reader uses in dealing with a complex text to acquire the information needed to complete a task. There is no single correct way to read something closely.
—“A Close Look at Close Reading” by LEAF (WestEd)
People read differently for different purposes. When you read in order to cram for a quiz, you might scan only the first line of every paragraph of a text. When you read for pleasure, you might permit yourself to linger for a long while over a particular phrase or image that you find appealing. It shouldn’t come as a surprise, then, that when you read in order to write a paper, you must adopt certain strategies if you expect your efforts to be fruitful and efficient.
—“Close Reading” by Odegaard Writing & Research Center
Close Reading of text involves an investigation of a short piece of text, with multiple readings done over multiple instructional lessons. Through text-based questions and discussion, students are guided to deeply analyze and appreciate various aspects of the text, such as key vocabulary and how its meaning is shaped by context; attention to form, tone, imagery and/or rhetorical devices; the significance of word choice and syntax; and the discovery of different levels of meaning as passages are read multiple times.
—“Implementing the Common Core State Standards: A Primer on Close Reading of Text” by Sheil Brown and Lee Kappes
Love brings us in close, leads us to study the details of a thing, and asks us to return again and again. … we argue that teaching readers to look at texts closely–by showing them how one word, one scene, or one idea matters–is an opportunity to extend a love affair with reading. It is also a chance to carry close reading habits beyond the page, to remind students that their lives are rich with significance, ready to be examined, reflected upon, and appreciated.
—Falling In Love With Close Reading by Christopher Lehman and Kate Roberts
Close reading should suggest close attention to the text; close attention to the relevant experience, thought, and memory of the reader; close attention to the responses and interpretations of other readers; and close attention to the interactions among those elements.
—Notice and Note: Strategies for Close Reading by Kylene Beers and Robert Probst
Reading nonfiction, in many ways, requires an effort not required in the reading of fiction. We must question the text, question the author, question our own understanding of the topic, and accept the possibility that our views will change as a result of the reading we’re doing. All those demands mean that the reader has great responsibility when reading nonfiction.
—Reading Nonfiction by Kylene Beers and Robert Probst
Close reading is important because it is the building block for larger analysis. Your thoughts evolve not from someone else’s truth about the reading, but from your own observations. The more closely you can observe, the more original and exact your ideas will be.
—“Close Reading of a Literary Passage” by Dr. Kip Wheeler
There is a multiplicity of sources providing a methodology and form for close reading. Here’s just a snapshot of the different sources I’ve reviewed in my own research on the topic in preparation for a professional development series:
A Close Look at Close Reading: Teaching Students to Analyze Complex Texts (K-5) by Diane Lapp, Barbara Moss, Maria Grant, and Kelley Johnson
A Close Look at Close Reading: Teaching Students to Analyze Complex Texts (6-12) by Barbara Moss, Diane Lapp, Barbara Moss, Maria Grant, and Kelley Johnson
Closing in On Close Reading by Nancy Boyles
Close Reading Resources from Amplify
IFL Patterned Method of Reading, writing, and speaking by University of Pittsburgh’s Institute for Learning
Close Reading Poetry by University Writing Center
Close Reading Literature by University Writing Center
Wit & Wisdom’s Content Framing Questions
Wit & Wisdom’s Visual Arts close reading
Guiding Principles for the Arts L-12 by David Coleman
There are some essential components to a close reading process that become evident from these different approaches:
It is performed with a short text or short snippet of a longer text
There is a specific focus and purpose to reading that particular text
There are multiple reads, through which the meaning discovered in a particular portion becomes extended across or beyond that text
A system of annotation is applied
Textual understanding and interpretation typically moves from literal to inferential (though in the case of French l’explication de texte, analysis is maintained at the literal, more objective level of summary) based on patterns identified in initial observations
The end product is a written response or discussion
OK. So there it is. I’m pretty sure there’s a lot more to say on any and all of these things, but writing this has already taken way too much of my very limited time these days. I mean seriously, I’ve spent over a month writing this.
What have I learned? I don’t know if I can concisely articulate it, but it seems to me that textual interpretation, in any form you can name, whether scriptural exegesis or close reading, is most fruitful when it is viewed in a more flexible, rather than rigid, manner. That is, whatever stance and method one adopts, one recognizes there will be limitations based on that stance and method. Furthermore, it seems to me that methods which are able to accommodate and balance both literal and nonliteral meanings, and bear significance that is both objective and subjective, while acknowledging both the text itself and its relationship to a broader context, will be the most compelling.
But maybe that’s just me. What do you think?
On October 7, 2018 By mandersonIn content, content knowledge, curriculum, Design, PracticeLeave a comment
In my last post, way back in August (things got busy!), we examined the problem of incoherency in literacy instruction, and I proposed the following hypothesis:
So how can a school come to a clearer understanding of what they teach, how they will teach it, and a rationale and vision for literacy?
Define What You Want Kids to Know and Be Able to Do
A good place to start is for a school to define what knowledge and skills they believe children should walk out of their building equipped with when they graduate. And by define, I mean truly define discretely, not simply generate a set of feelgood statements like, “I want kids to be lifelong learners and passionate, independent readers who have 21st century learning skills. . .”
A hearty chunk of skills are already defined by state standards (which was already contentious enough of a process) but due to the decentralized nature of American schools, as well as a strong anti-intellectual current, there’s reluctance to define the content–in the form of topics or texts–that students should study.
And so here we are, like I said in my last post, in the situation wherein parents and the wider public have nary a clear what is actually taught in most public school classrooms.
I think that much of this is attributable to confusion between knowledge and skills. Some school officials, if challenged, will point to state standards and say, “There’s what we teach.” But standards are relatively abstract goals composed of various strands of skills wrapped together. They require significant work on the educator’s part to “unpack” in order to break them down into more concrete subskills and targets for learning.
But even then, you’ll still be missing a critical component of literacy.
Let me give you an example. Let’s say you’ve broken down the third grade Common Core reading literature standard which states, “Determine the main idea of a text and explain how it is supported by key details.” You’ve broken down the ability to meet this standard into a few subskills, such as, “I can distinguish between the important and unimportant details in a text” (look familiar? This is from my post on scaffolding a while back!).
That would be a typical “learning target” in a classroom. But there’s a key element missing: Which text? What details?
Because that’s really where the rubber hits the road. We pretend academic literacy can be developed from an isolated set of skills, but vocabulary and background knowledge are a critical component of literacy. And academic vocabulary and knowledge are built cumulatively from the study of related texts and topics over time.
Knowledge vs. Skills
Knowledge and skills are not the same thing, and it’s important to be able to delineate them. They exist on different planes, but they share a point at which they converge.
Here’s a little graphic I came up with to demonstrate their convergence and differentiation:
Where lies the point of convergence between literacy knowledge and skills? It lies in the texts that students read.
Do the texts cumulatively build knowledge of key topics and themes? Or are they happenstance and scattered, dependent on the teacher?
This is why you’ll hear literacy experts talk about the importance of “text sets” that focus on key topics and themes. This is how academic vocabulary and knowledge is built.
Speaking of “experts,” I had an extended dialogue with an author and professional development facilitator who claimed that rather than two strands, like the one above, that there are in fact three strands, or “three dimensions” of learning: concepts, facts, and skills. She and I went back and forth about whether and how conceptual knowledge is distinguished from factual knowledge. Rather than refer me to research or other verified sources, she would just tell me that I needed to read her book. Color me skeptical.
Maybe she’s right, but I ain’t reading her book (unless she sends me a free copy. Then, maybe). But I figured I should put it out there in case you do find that distinction useful.
I’ll stop there for this already overlong post. There’s a heck of a lot more to dive into. But I’m hoping that even just drawing that line between knowledge and skills might help you to redefine how you talk about literacy in your school. Do your students have text sets available to them that build knowledge around key topics and themes that they can use to practice and apply key literacy skills more independently? Has your school defined key topics and themes?
Does the curriculum your school uses build knowledge around key topics and themes? Does it build it vertically across grades and horizontally across subjects? Or is it so heavily skills-based that it’s entirely unclear what texts are actually to be read?
Start there, and your school can begin to tackle the sticky problems of literacy at a much deeper level, and that approach can pay dividends in student learning over time.
UPDATE: Student Grouping: What is effective?
On July 25, 2018 By mandersonIn collaboration, complexity, constructivism, daily practice, guided learning, pedagogy, Practice, research, Science, TheoryLeave a comment
This is an updated version of an earlier post, based on new research I included. The decision-tree has been updated! You can find a Google Doc version of this here.
Student Grouping: What is Effective?
How do we leverage student grouping to best promote achievement?
This is a question teachers and administrators ask themselves almost daily. Unfortunately, there are few clear or easy answers. But we can draw out a few general principles from recent research and other sources of knowledge that may help to inform our instructional practice.
It’s important to acknowledge there’s often a steady pressure on teachers to utilize group work. And for some teachers, grouping students by ability can make serving a wide disparity of different levels of students more manageable.
But there’s an often unstated assumption: group work is inherently superior to whole class or independent learning. But is group work always better than other modes of learning?
Tom Bennett, a British behavioral specialist, argues in an article in American Educator, “Group Work for the Good,” that there is little research to suggest group work is better for academic learning. Bennett cautions teachers to only “use group work when you feel it is appropriate to the task you want your students to achieve, and at no other time.”
OK, but what are the times when group work is appropriate?
When I first investigated this, a particular passage from Douglas Fisher and Nancy Frey, in their book, Guided Instruction: How to Develop Confident and Successful Learners, struck me:
“. . . an understanding of memory systems has profound implications for instruction, which include creating systematic and intentional scaffolds of students’ understanding rather than leaving them alone to discover information independently. That’s not to say that students should not work together in collaborative learning; they should. We have argued for productive group work in which students interact with one another and generate ideas to produce individual works (Frey et al., 2009). But this work must center on the consolidation and application of content that students already know. It’s neither the time nor the place to introduce new information. Doing so would overload the working memory system and fail to ensure learning” (Bold added).
In other words, Fisher and Frey suggest that new concepts and information should not be introduced during group work. Group work should instead be used for reinforcing, consolidating, and applying information students have already been exposed to.
But I later came across another study by Paul Kirschner, John Sweller, Femke Kirschner, and Jimmy Zambrano, “From Cognitive Load Theory to Collaborative Cognitive Load Theory,” that contradicts this. Instead, Kirschner et al. suggest that working as a group creates a collective working memory, and that therefore group tasks should be more complex.
They state, “… learning in a team is more effective than individual learning if the complexity of the to-be-learned material is so high that it exceeds the limits of each individual learner’s working memory.” They furthermore suggest that greater complexity will make the task more engaging for the group: “Collaboration will occur when the task is complex enough to justify the extra time and effort involved in collaborating with others.”
Therefore when assigning group work, ensure that the task is complex enough to warrant collaborative effort.
So we’re engaging groups of kids in complex tasks. Now how do we ensure students are productive during the times when they do work as a group? Here it can be instructive to look at some of the analysis coming out of the business sector. Fostering productive teams, after all, is critical to the success or failure of many modern businesses.
One finding from the business realm that will make immediate sense to educators is that creating a context that fosters shared identity promotes productivity. You can read more about this research in “Spaces the Signal Identity Improve Workplace Productivity,” in the Journal of Personnel Psychology. We know that giving our students a sense of belonging and recognizing who they are and what they bring is critical to fostering a positive school community. But it’s good to know that it also can improve group performance.
Another finding is that how a team communicates is what determines its effectiveness. As presented in an article, “The New Science of Building Great Teams” in Harvard Business Review, effective teams communicate more equitably and with higher engagement. And even more critically for consideration in a school context, socialization outside of formal meeting time has a huge influence on team effectiveness. What this means for educators is that fostering effective group work requires time and training. Furthermore, as described in a passage “Group Dynamics for Teams” by Daniel Levi, this training requires norming, socialization, and building cooperative skills. Educators know that many of our students struggle with social skills and working productively together. These skills must be taught and developed.
Similarly, moving into research from higher education, in “What makes a ‘good group’? Exploring the characteristics and performance of undergraduate student groups” the authors argue that if “team working skills” are “important as a learning outcome, they must be assessed directly alongside the task output.” In other words, if a teacher is going to utilize group work for a task, they must establish explicit learning objectives for the skills practiced in the group work itself, not only for the content of the task. This again reinforces the idea that when we do use group work, we must do so strategically.
This builds off of Robert Slavin’s review of educational research, as outlined in an ACSD article, “Cooperative Learning and Student Achievement,” which suggests that not only must effective group work have group goals and rewards, but also must hold each individual accountable for their contribution. Group work which incorporates only one aspect of those two critical components (group goals and individual accountability) demonstrates little benefit to learning, whereas group learning which incorporates both is far more effective.
Even adult research teams require training and practice to develop intrapersonal awareness, foster shared norms, and to understand that conflict is normal, as suggested by a paper “Creating and maintaining high-performing collaborative research teams: the importance of diversity and interpersonal skills.” The authors further suggest that fostering diverse teams is essential to productivity.
This latter insight, that diverse teams are more productive, may be one of the most useful within a classroom context. Various studies, as presented in an article on Harvard Business Review, “Why Diverse Teams Are Smarter” by David Rock and Heidi Grant, suggest that ethnic and racial diversity makes for more effective, deliberative, and innovative teams. This is an important consideration for teachers when forming groups.
A recent study by P. Karen Murphy et al., “Exploring the influence of homogeneous versus heterogeneous grouping on students’ text-based discussions and comprehension” provides useful guidance for teachers in deciding between homogenous vs. heterogenous grouping:
“. . . teachers’ goals and expectations for small-group discussions should guide their decision to compose the groups homogeneously or heterogeneously. For example, if teachers desire to focus on enhancing students’ basic comprehension or if they desire to support students’ engagement in the discussion, they may find that grouping the students homogeneously is more advantageous for low-ability students. Alternatively, teachers should employ heterogeneous ability grouping if their focus is on building students’ high-level comprehension of the text.”
In other words, group homogeneously to engage low-skilled students; group heterogeneously to deepen comprehension.
However, it’s important to note that research on homogeneous vs. heterogeneous grouping is mostly unclear. Ultimately, how a teacher chooses to group students must be strategic and based on the task and learning outcomes. But overall findings seem to suggest that our default should be mixing students of different backgrounds and ability.
A synthesis of findings on effective group work
Ok, so we’ve reviewed a fair amount of information on grouping. Let’s summarize what we have so far:
Use group work only when it is necessary to achieve the task you are planning
When assigning group work, ensure that the task is complex enough to warrant collaborative effort.
Create a classroom and school environment that fosters a shared identity
Provide norming, time for socialization, and training in the cooperative skills students will require to work productively as a team
Set explicit learning targets for group work skills when engaging in a group task, while holding each individual student accountable for their work within the group
Group students heterogeneously to promote greater critical thinking and creativity
Bennett, T. (2015). Group Work for the Good. American Educator. Retrieved from http://www.aft.org/ae/spring2015/bennett
Channon, S.B. (2017). What makes a ‘good group’? Exploring the characteristics and performance of undergraduate student groups. SpringerLink. Retrieved from https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10459-016-9680-y
Cheruvelil, K. S., Soranno, P. A., Weathers, K. C., Hanson, P. C., Goring, S. J., Filstrup, C. T. and Read, E. K. (2014), Creating and maintaining high-performing collaborative research teams: the importance of diversity and interpersonal skills. Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment. 12: 31–38. doi:10.1890/130001. Retrieved from http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1890/130001/abstract
Greenaway, K.H., Hannibal A. Thai, S. Haslam, A., and Murphy, S.C. (2016). Spaces That Signal Identity Improve Workplace Productivity. Journal of Personnel Psychology. 15(1), 35–43. Retrieved from https://www.researchgate.net/publication/301277968_Spaces_That_Signal_Identity_Improve_Workplace_Productivity
Fisher, D. & Frey, N. (2010). Scaffolds for Learning: The Key to Guided Instruction. ASCD. Retrieved from http://www.ascd.org/publications/books/111017/chapters/Scaffolds-for-Learning@-The-Key-to-Guided-Instruction.aspx
Kirschner, P.A., Sweller, J., Kirschner, F., and Zambrano, J. (2018). From Cognitive Load Theory to Collaborative Cognitive Load Theory. International Journal of Computer-Supported Collaborative Learning. Retrieved from https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs11412-018-9277-y
Levi, D. (2001). Group Dynamics for Teams. Sage Publications, 322 pp. Retrieved from http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?doi=10.1.1.840.9487&rep=rep1&type=pdf
Murphy, P.K., Greene, J.A., Firetto, C.M., Li, M., Lobczowski, N.G., Duke, R.F., Wei, L., Croninger, R.M.V. (2017). Exploring the influence of homogeneous versus heterogeneous grouping on students’ text-based discussions and comprehension. Contemporary Educational Psychology. 51, 336-355 Retrieved from: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0361476X17302540
Pentland, A.S. (2012). The New Science of Building Great Teams. Harvard Business Review. Retrieved from https://hbr.org/2012/04/the-new-science-of-building-great-teams
Rock, D. and Grant, H. (2016.). Why Diverse Teams Are Smarter. Harvard Business Review. Retrieved from https://hbr.org/2016/11/why-diverse-teams-are-smarter
Slavin, R. (1988). Cooperative Learning and Student Achievement. ASCD. Retrieved from http://www.ascd.org/ASCD/pdf/journals/ed_lead/el_198810_slavin.pdf
Wang, Z. (2013). Effects of heterogenous and homogenous grouping on student learning. Chapel Hill. Retrieved from https://cdr.lib.unc.edu/indexablecontent/uuid:ac391807-1cca-447e-801d-d65183945ad0
Yee, V. (2013.). Grouping Students by Ability Regains Favor With Educators. NY Times. Retrieved from https://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/10/education/grouping-students-by-ability-regains-favor-with-educators.html
Group Work Decision Tree
Student Grouping: What is Effective? by Mark Anderson is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
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DLTK's Standard Printable Greeting Cards - these are the cards we've always had on the site. They include birthday cards, thank-you cards, birthday invitations and a wide variety of other types of cards you can print in either color or B&W. Over 1000 cards in over 100 different themes are available. You cannot type your own messages on-line on these ones.
The Graphics Fairy is a resource for Home Decorators, Graphics Designers and Crafters. Find over 6,000 FREE Vintage images, Illustrations, Vintage Pictures, Stock Images, Antique Graphics, Clip Art, Vintage Photos, and Printable Art, to MAKE craft projects, collage, Mixed Media, Junk Journals, DIY, scrapbooking, etc! DIY and Craft Tutorials, and Home Decorating Ideas are offered as well. Daily vintage image downloads since 2007. Most are Jpegs, or PDFs, but there are some Vectors as well. As far as I know these are all Royalty Free Images that are in the Public Domain in the US. However I cannot guarantee that. Please see my Faq page to find info on copyright laws in your country.
The origins of "Happy Birthday to You" date back to at least the late 19th century, when two sisters, Patty and Mildred J. Hill, introduced the song "Good Morning to All" to Patty's kindergarten class in Kentucky.[10] Years later, in 1893, they published the tune in their songbook Song Stories for the Kindergarten. Kembrew McLeod stated that the Hill sisters likely copied the tune and lyrical idea from other popular and similar nineteenth-century songs that predated theirs, including Horace Waters' "Happy Greetings to All", "Good Night to You All" also from 1858, "A Happy New Year to All" from 1875, and "A Happy Greeting to All", published 1885. However, American law professor Robert Brauneis disputes this, noting that these earlier songs had quite different melodies.[21]
If you don’t have a print at home option just save the JPEG files to your computer and upload them onto a site like walgreens.com to print them online. They are specifically formatted to fit into an 8×10 inch frame. If you want to and know you you are certainly welcome to change the size although printing quality my be reduced at sizes larger than 8×10
There is a plethora of photo editing tools that come with Mac computers, but it’s easier creating greeting cards when tools are in the same program. It has more than 165,000 royalty free images and 4,800+ templates to help you build a customized card for any occasion. All the editing tools are on the main page, which looks a bit cluttered. You hover the mouse over each tool for its name if you are having a hard time deciphering the images. You can print and export your finalized projects, but PrintMaster Platinum doesn’t have a sharing feature for popular social media platforms.
Sarah lives in Washington State with her husband and three daughters. She creates printable organizational tools and planners and actually took our ideas and inspiration and brought them to life with her work on the Brilliant Business Planner! Sarah has been such a wonderful part of our Brilliant Business Moms community since it first began. She's kind, brilliant, and crazy talented!
Don't you love hearing Happy Birthday/Feliz Cumpleaños sung to you? The personalized Happy Birthday song is so fun that it makes a great birthday present for friends and family. The Happy Birthday song combines English, Spanish, dogs, your name and fun. Old or young, hip or hop, you'll have 1 Happy Birthday. So what's it going to be, Happy Birthday or Feliz Cumpleaños? The best Happy Birthday.
If your customer would be benefitted by having the high-res or high color print professionally printed, suggest it. Even if it’s at your local Staples® make the suggestion to save them time and aggravation. If your products are business forms, to-do lists, etc., a home printer will do, so let them know. Have your cover sheet also include any specific instructions about your product, and a thank you.
November came along (5 months after I had launched the Life Binder) and I was packing my bags for Europe. The "cha-ching" sound from the Etsy app on my phone was a part of my daily life now...and life was good. As a single lady with not a lot of expenses, making even $1000 a month in passive income was a game changer. I was able to make better decisions in my business because I was not longer stressed out by money. In fact, I was working less and less, but making more and more.
For price like around 200 breakfast still not included. Luxury I mean for such not clean room (floors, corners, under furniture and bed spots). The cleaning lady came into the room without knocking (wow!) 30 minutes before the checkout (wow!), I was in the bathroom half-naked (wow!). We stayed in the city only one night and wanted to find a late supper in a good restaurant (we were dressed for a glamorous dinner) and asked advice from the receptionist lady (local resident?) and she advised only ‘Hot wings’ (‘hey, do you see that I'm in the long evening red dress?!’). I mean, the pictures that are used for promo are much better than what they really are.
"Happy Birthday to You", also known as "Happy Birthday", is a song traditionally sung to celebrate the anniversary of a person's birth. According to the 1998 Guinness World Records, it is the most recognized song in the English language, followed by "For He's a Jolly Good Fellow". The song's base lyrics have been translated into at least 18 languages.[1] The melody of "Happy Birthday to You" comes from the song "Good Morning to All",[2] which has traditionally been attributed to American sisters Patty and Mildred J. Hill in 1893,[3][4] although the claim that the sisters composed the tune is disputed.[5]
This feature is another plus factor in this edition of the Silhouette software. Under the Help menu, you can get a pull down box that gives you a list of the skills you want to learn in the software with a note on on it’s complexity. When you click on the video tutorial, a small pop up box expands from the left side with step-by-step gif instructions of the skill you want to learn. You can also click thru to view the actual Silhouette Studio video on Youtube. I will rate this feature 5 stars.
Periods in a logbook, (for example, years and months) are more often than not, however not really, synchronised with the cycle of the sun or the moon. The most widely recognised kind of Printable Calendar Templates pre-current timetable was the lunisolar schedule, a lunar date-book that at times adds one interplanetary month to stay synchronised with the sunlight based year over the long haul.
Warner/Chappell Music acquired Birch Tree Group Limited in 1988 for US$25 million.[10][11] The company continued to insist that one cannot sing the "Happy Birthday to You" lyrics for profit without paying royalties: in 2008, Warner collected about US$5,000 per day (US$2 million per year) in royalties for the song.[27] Warner/Chappell claimed copyright for every use in film, television, radio, anywhere open to the public, and for any group where a substantial number of those in attendance are not family or friends of whoever is performing the song. Brauneis cited problems with the song's authorship and the notice and renewal of the copyright, and concluded: "It is almost certainly no longer under copyright."[3][16]
If something is a HUGE seller for you and it is not evergreen, then for sure it is worth updating frequently yourself or by hiring a Virtual Assistant to help. I am not saying you should make everything evergreen or not, just that if you want to keep it truly passive it is best to pick something that is going to stay “in fashion” for quite a while.
Artist Notes: Could there be a more fun and colorful way to Happy Birthday to friends, family or business colleagues this year? The message "Wish Big for your birthday" appears in big, colorful letters, overlapping each other, with both of the letter "i's" transforming into candles, with flames atop them. The black background makes the brightly colored letters pop out in celebration. The inside wording of the card is "May all your birthday wishes come true!"
My Plan, Do, Review kit continued to sell, but I had another collection of useful templates bubbling in my mind. Before I had even ever started this blog, I had been using a system called the Ultimate Life Binder as a way to keep track of my life. It was my central hub for setting goals, measuring my progress, and generally just being aware of where I was, where I was going, and what I was working on a day to day basis. It was comprised of life-management printables that I had printed out from my findings on the web and some that I had created myself to suit me even more personally.
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NBC Developing 'Wolfman' TV Series Based on the Benicio Del Toro Movie
by Rob Frappier
– on Dec 02, 2013
One of NBC's biggest assets is Universal's collection of classic movie monsters. You know the gang, The Creature from the Black Lagoon, Frankenstein's monster, The Mummy, The Invisible Man. The list goes on and on.
The peacock network has already turned one of its most famous monsters, Dracula, into a contemporary TV show with Jonathan Rhys Meyers (read our review). Now, they're looking to bring The Wolfman to the small screen.
Deadline reports NBC is in the process of developing a TV adaptation of The Wolfman based on the 2010 feature film starring Benicio Del Toro and Anthony Hopkins. (You would be forgiven if you don't remember that movie, which was both a critical and box office flop.)
According to the Deadline article, "The show is described as a supernatural thriller that explores what it means to be a man and to be human. It centers on Lawrence Talbot, who is afflicted by an ancient curse and jacks into the powerful, primordial soul of the alpha-predator."
The project is being headed up by Daniel Knauf, who is also the executive producer and showrunner of Dracula. There's no word yet on whether Knauf will take a similar route with The Wolfman as his current show, which pumps up the sex appeal and puts a more modern spin on the classic story. However, given Dracula's steadily declining ratings, maybe that isn't the best direction.
Despite Dracula's declining ratings, Grimm continues to perform well for the network on Friday nights, so it's understandable why NBC is pursuing more supernatural-focused series. This could be a potential Plan B if Dracula ends up getting canceled. Werewolves have also worked for other networks - namely, Teen Wolf on MTV - so it's not as though there isn't any precedent for werewolves, television, and success.
What do you think about a TV adaptation of The Wolfman? Would you be interested in a weekly series about a werewolf in the vein of NBC's Dracula? Let us know in the comments.
Stay tuned to Screen Rant as more information on The Wolfman becomes available.
Tags: the wolfman
Jason Momoa to Guest Star on The Simpsons, Character Image Revealed
Three Game Of Thrones Emmy Nominees Had To Submit Themselves When HBO Didn’t
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Here's What Scott Eastwood Could Look Like As Wolverine
by Molly Freeman
Update: Scott Eastwood tells us that he 100% would love to play Wolverine
Digital artist BossLogic imagines what Scott Eastwood could look like as Wolverine after the actor said he'd like to play the X-Men superhero. As one of the most iconic characters from the pages of Marvel comics, it seemed like a no brainer for the hero to lead Bryan Singer's 2000 film adaptation of the X-Men team. Played by Hugh Jackman, Wolverine went on to star in all three of the original X-Men films, then appeared again in a cameo role when 20th Century Fox rebooted the franchise with X-Men: First Class. Wolverine returned again as a major player in X-Men: Days of Future Past - and starred in his own trilogy that concluded with the release of James Mangold's Logan this year.
Although comic fans were originally displeased with the casting of Jackman as Wolverine when Singer was putting together his X-Men, movie fans have grown incredibly attached to the actor's take on the mutant. As such, many were saddened to learn that Logan would be Jackman's swan song as Wolverine - in addition to the film being Patrick Stewart's last appearance as Professor X. The critical acclaim and praise from fans indicates Mangold and Jackman gave this version of Wolverine a proper sendoff. Still, though Jackman's Wolverine died in Logan, producers are open to recasting the role within the X-Men universe.
Related: Fox Is Open To Rebooting Wolverine With A New Actor
Undoubtedly, many actors in Hollywood would jump at the chance to play Wolverine, even if they are quite big shoes to fill. One such actor is Scott Eastwood, who said he'd like to play Wolverine while doing press at New York Comic Con last weekend. In response to Eastwood's comment, digital artist BossLogic - who's well known for his work depicting actors as various Marvel and DC Comics heroes - released two images of Eastwood as Wolverine, one with the character's comic book cowl and one without. Take a look below:
Some weekend fun @ScottEastwood #wolverine, probably will refine more later on (there was articles about him expressing interest) pic.twitter.com/Jh5Tphed92
— BossLogic (@Bosslogic) October 7, 2017
Since Jackman departed the role of Wolverine earlier this year, it's not surprising that fans especially would discuss when the part should be recast and who exactly would fill Jackman's shoes. However, X-Men producer Hutch Parker indicated Fox may be hesitant to discuss recasting Wolverine after Jackman's departure, since the actor's performance as the mutant hero was "definitive" and would certainly be difficult to follow. Though, of course, Fox chairman and CEO Stacey Snider has since mentioned "anything's possible" within the world of the X-Men.
As for Eastwood, the actor made a name for himself by appearing in David Ayer's Fury and co-starring in the Nicholas Sparks adaptation The Longest Ride. He has since has joined a number of high profile blockbuster franchises in recent years, even taking supporting roles in Warner Bros' Suicide Squad last year and Universal's The Fate of the Furious earlier this year. He's next set to star alongside John Boyega in Pacific Rim Uprising, the sequel to Guillermo del Toro's 2014 cult favorite sci-fi/action film.
Whether Eastwood would be a good fit for the Wolverine role is up for debate among fans. He hasn't quite led an action franchise on his own, and it remains to be seen how he and Boyega fare in Pacific Rim Uprising, though Eastwood does have some experience with movies based on comic book characters. Still, it may be some time before Fox recasts the role of Wolverine, so Eastwood may not get a chance to vy for the part. That said, BossLogic's art offers fans an idea of what the actor could look like in the comic book character's blue and yellow X-Men suit.
Next: Hugh Jackman Compares Wolverine Role to Batman & Bond
Source: BossLogic
New Mutants (2020) release date: Apr 03, 2020
Deadpool 2 (2018) release date: May 18, 2018
X-Men: Dark Phoenix (2019) release date: Jun 07, 2019
Gambit (2020) release date: Mar 13, 2020
Tags: x-men, wolverine
IT Chapter Two Poster & SDCC 2019 Footage Description
Why So Many Star Trek TV Shows Are Currently In Development
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Join the Convo! 3 Neighborhoods that will soon be better connected by Link light rail in 2021!
September 28, 2018 by Jeanne Clark
Capitol Hill Station Opening Day, March 19, 2016
By now, most of you know that how you get around downtown Seattle is rapidly changing.
We’ve made investments around the city to help you get around and for many travelers, the time is now to adjust and adapt to the new normal.
The University District (U District) is no different. This urban center adjacent to the University of Washington is seeing investments that will change how people get to and from the neighborhood – including the opening of a new Link Light Rail station in 2021.
To assist residents and commuters, as well as a focus on small business support, U District, Let’s Go! connects people working, living, and visiting the U District with transportation resources and assistance so that they can navigate and leverage the increased economic capacity and growth brought by light rail.
“I’ve heard a lot over this past year,” says Miriam Castro, U District, Let’s Go! Program Manager. “I’ve heard people’s excitement for Link light rail and the opportunities it will bring; I’ve also heard uncertainty around how the neighborhood might change.”
The value of shared insights – because we’re in it together.
Image by rachelsgingerbeer.com
Earlier this year at the recent U District, Let’s Go!‘s (UDLG) Transit Talk, Rachel Marshall, co-founder of Rachel’s Ginger Beer (and two small businesses near the Capitol Hill Link light rail station), shared her insights on what she learned when her neighborhood was preparing for the light rail, one of which was the value of looking at what other neighborhoods are doing. Connecting, talking, and learning from each other is what is inspiring the next U District, Let’s Go! Transit Talk, We’re in it Together, on October 4, at 6:30 PM at the Urban Luxe Café.
We’re in it Together is the convening of three neighborhoods, U District, Roosevelt, and Northgate that will soon be better connected by Link light rail in 2021.
“I’ve seen several examples of how organizations have stayed ahead of changes and have heard a lot of great ideas too,” said Castro.
The Transit Talk is a way for these neighborhoods to showcase what they are working on, what concerns they have, and maybe get a few interested volunteers.
What’s happening in the next two years.
Representatives from neighborhood organizations and from public agencies like King County Metro Transit and Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) will talk about what lies ahead in the next two years and beyond. Another goal is to learn about upcoming transportation projects associated with the light rail station opening, discuss changes these neighborhoods can expect between now and 2021, and how community stakeholders can engage in getting ready for these three new light rail stations.
The event will be moderated by Miranda Redinger, a Senior Planner with the City of Shoreline who spent four years planning for two light rail stations that will be operational in 2024, and also a resident of Northgate. When asked about her role in the evening, she replied,
“I understand how the process can be frustrating for the public and public agencies alike, especially with regard to the effectiveness of public input. Timelines and budgets are outside of how households plan, and transportation and land-use planning can seem counter-intuitive to people, but there are ways that residents can leverage this regional investment to improve their neighborhoods.”
Redinger and Castro hope that the event will help attendees gain valuable information, inspire creativity, and bring meaningful dialogue on how communities can engage with each other and with public agencies.
“Our three neighborhoods are about to get closer, we should start talking now,” said Castro.
Join the convo! RSVP.
Let’s learn from our collective creativity! Save your seat and engage with the entire line up of speakers. RSVP.
U District, Let’s Go! is a collaboration with Transportation Choices Coalition, Seattle Department of Transportation and U District Partnership, supported by a WSDOT project using Congestion Mitigation & Air Quality (CMAQ) funds.
Filed Under: ADA, Bikes, Capitol Projects, Commute, Commute Trip Reduction, Construction, CPRS, Driving/Commuting, ORCA, Peds, Projects, SDOT, Transit, Transit and Mobility
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Solent Richard's Cruise Blog
Welcome aboard and nice to meet you. My wife and I are seasoned cruisers having first dipped our toes into the world of cruising in 1990, a one week cruise on board the Cunard Countess. The majority of our cruising has been with two cruise lines, Cunard and P&O. We have, however, sailed on 21 different cruise ships, some many times over, on 11 different cruise lines while completing 619 cruise nights on board.
About Solent Richard
Cruise Forums Revealed
We are Cunard
One way to do Santorini
July 14, 2017 · by solentrichard · in Port Reviews. ·
Santorini is probably the most archetypal of Greek islands on the Mediterranean cruise ship circuit, and on most days of the season can accommodate upwards of six ships.
It is one of the Cyclades islands in the Aegean Sea and was devastated by a volcanic eruption in the 16th century BC, forever shaping its rugged landscape in a crescent-shaped island…
The whitewashed, cubiform houses of its 2 principal towns, Fira and Oia, cling to cliffs above an underwater caldera (crater).
They overlook the sea, small islands to the west and beaches made up of black, red and white lava pebbles…
The next part of this review describes what cruise ship passengers can expect as they step ashore below the main town on the island, Fira. Fira will then be covered in detail before other options, on how to spend one’s day on Santorini, are explored. Hopefully this review will be of benefit to new visitors to Santorini as well as those who are returning.
Santorini is a tender port for visiting cruise ships. The landing point is at Ormos Firon – The Old Port – which is situated directly below the town of Fira…
The landing jetty has limited facilities including a number of cafes/restaurants and gift shops…
…and a Tour Agent…
To reach the main town of Fira there are three options. The first, and most popular is the Cable car…
Currently for 2017, a one-way ticket costs €6.00…
The cable car website states the lift can move 1,200 people per hour between the port and Fira — which often isn’t adequate capacity for the demand when a number of cruise ships are visiting on the same day. Even worse are the queues to return which often stretch around the local square with passengers eager to return for their lunch onboard…
The second choice is to take a ‘donkey’ up the steep zig-zag path…
A one way donkey/mule ride will cost €5.00 and sadly are all too popular with many tourists…
The third alternative is of course to walk the ‘donkey’ path. However, this can be risky. Apart from anything else you’ll also have to contend with donkeys going up and down the path, sometimes at speed …
…and of course there is the small matter of the 588 steps…
…to reach the top…
Other options are to take a boat from the tender port which will be described later in this review.
Exploring Fira
Fira is the capital of Santorini and its white-washed houses, built on the edge of the 400 metres high ‘caldera’, are the iconic face of both cruise ship and shoreside holiday brochures.
The town itself consists of mainly a labyrinth of narrow traffic-free streets filled with cafes, bars, restaurants, hotels and shops. The majority of the cafes and restaurants offer panoramic views over the ‘caldera’ and some even boast several levels of terraced patios and balconies.
There are some idyllic pathways that fan out from both the cable car upper station and the donkey path…
One follows the cliff top and is the recognised route to Fira’s adjacent town, Imerovigli…
The town bustles once the tender boats arrive and the cafes fill up with ships’ passengers eager to make use of the usually complimentary wifi on offer.
Without any doubt it is Santorini’s vernacular and ecclesiastical architecture that make the island a photographer’s dream and Fira offers an easily navigated microcosum of the whole island…
On the subject of religion, for those interested there are two Cathedrals, The Greek Orthodox Metropolitan Cathedral…
…and the Roman Catholic Cathedral Church of St John…
This cathedral is in great contrast to many of its Byzantine neighbours. The peach exterior and its size make it stand out from afar. There is a wonderfully ornate clock tower overlooking the town. The interior is beautifully decorated with large religious portraits framed with pillars while the dome from the interior is lilac blue with other areas coloured orange and cream…
Meanwhile other quirky churches can be found while exploring the many intertwined terraced paths…
Fira also supports two museums, the most popular being the Museum of Pre-Historic Thera, which can be found the opposite side of the Orthodox Cathedral pictured above…
The fun of Fira though is in the exploring, finding the perfect restaurant for lunch…
or the perfect positioned Cafe with a view for that all important coffee…
The souvenir shop…
…or the typical British pub for a few beers…
…while not forgetting that tiple to take back onboard…
Fira is also the hub for cross island transport. This map shows where the local bus terminal is in relation to the cable car…
..basically a 5 minute walk…
There is a pretty good local bus service. Buses leave around every 20 minutes to most of the island’s tourist spots. Fares are generally a fixed price of €1.80 no matter the length of the journey. As the sign says at the terminus, tickets are bought on the bus.
Having now covered Fira it is time to look a little further at what Santorini has to offer. First up is…
Imerovigli is a village that almost blends into Fira and, like Fira, enjoys some excellent panoramic views of the Caldera. Its position at the central and highest point of the caldera rim is graphically illustrated in the picture below…
… where the break between the two enclaves is easily visible.
One of the highlights of Imerovigli is that it gives access to the promontory where once stood Skaros Castle, seen here from the water…
…and from Imerovigli…
…and here from the path leading to Skaros from Imerovigli…
For those capable of the hike the views from the top offer a whole new aspect of the surrounding caldera…
and back to Imerovigli…
…and out over the active volcanic island, Nea Kamenh…
In addition to Skaros Rock Imerovigli has a number of prime photographic options…
…particularly the Anastasi Church
It goes without saying that Imerovigli, Fira and Oia are popular places for Japanese couples to have their wedding photographs…
There is on the island of Santorini another town with outstanding photographic opportunities that also boasts some high end boutiques and a somewhat more upmarket ambiance than that of Fira. It is the town of Oia (pronounced Ear!)…
Located on the northern tip of the island, on a peninsula some 10 kilometres by road from Fira, Oia sits directly opposite the island of Thirasia which will be covered later.
Oia stands slightly lower than Fira, nearer the sea, and can be reached by local bus or, alternatively, by ferry or speedboat from Ormos Firon – The Old Port – described earlier. Remember this photograph?…
A word of warning though. To reach Oia having utilised the ferry from the Old Port there are, depending on the drop off point, one of two sets of steps to climb. From Ammoudi there are 214 steps…
…or from the jetty below Armeni, there are 286 steps…
Oia is particularly popular with honeymooners and the chic in crowd. The town is pedestrianised and criss-crossed by a myriad winding alleyways and cobbled streets while its coastal paths offer dramatic views…
The unique appeal of Oia lies in its houses, many hewn out of the volcanic rock, and windmills…
Central to Oia is its town square with the Ekklisia Agios Onoufrios Church…
…and a short walk from the square, the ruins of its Venetian Castle…
Oia is also the home of Santorini’s Maritime Museum…
Visiting the three townships covered above are not the only options available when visiting Santorini. The main island, a horse-shoe shaped area of some 70 sq. kilometres, offers a number of the best archeological sites, beaches and water born scenic activities to be found in the Aegean.
What else is there to do on Santorini?
How’s about a boat cruise around the Caldera?
One of the most popular of these water born activities is a cruise around the Caldera with a visit to the live volcanic island of Nea Kamenh and the picturesque island of Thirasia. As with the ferry/speedboat to Oia, these cruises can be booked at the ‘Old Port’…
Berthing alongside at Nea Kamenh…
there is a guided walk…
…to the top of the crater…
…where there are great views over Palia Kamenh Island…
On the return to the boat there is a short distance cruise to the channel between Nea Kamenh and Palia Kamenh…
…for a chance to swim in the hot springs flowing from the Volcano…
The next destination on this excursion is the island of Thirasia, seen here from Nea Kamenh…
…and the approach to the harbour village of Korfos on Thirasia…
Once ashore there are excellent restaurants in the village while for the more adventurous there is the hike, or donkey ride, up to…
It’s an exhilarating hike but well worth the effort. Alternatively there is a great atmosphere to be experienced in the busy waterfront restaurants …
I had set my heart on reaching the summit of Thirasia in order to capture the views which began to unfold as I climbed the path in the direction of Manolas.
The higher I reached, the more panoramic the view and once I had reached Manolos my destination became visible…
My photographs tell me that it took 31 minutes to reach Manolas and then another 15 minutes to walk along the ridge…
…to the point where I was able to capture the view towards Oia…
Our boat trip also included a stop at Oia and that has already been covered earlier.
What about a day on the beach?
There are a number of beaches on Santorini, though there are no sandy beaches on the island. The two main beach resorts are at Kamari…
…and Perissa…
The two beaches are, in fact, divided into two separate resorts by Mesa Vouno mountain: a fact I will revisit when I cover the visit to Ancient Thira.
Both are easily accessible by local bus though we found the Kamari service to be more frequent and the resort somewhat more vibrant. Both beaches have a mixture of black sand and fine pebbles rather than fine golden sand. Each is well served with sunbeds which are usually free in return for the exclusive purchase of lunch and drinks from the restaurants and cafes that offer access to them…
On Santorini there are two important archeological sites, both worth a visit. The first of these is the Prehistoric Town of Akrotiri…
The Prehistoric Town of Akrotiri was the centre of a highly advanced civilisation around 1500 BC. It is without doubt the best preserved such site in the Aegean and is easily reached by local bus from Fira.
The site is completely covered and there is a reasonable admission charge…
There is a recommended route around the complex though it isn’t mandatory. Each individual site/excavation is named and descriptive plaques are informative…
Some areas, including the Triangle Square…
…allow closer inspection…
All in all the Akrotiri Prehistoric Town is well worth a visit, particularly for those with an interest in such sites. Ancient Akrotiri is a Minoan outpost at the southwestern tip of Santorini. It is the most important archaeological discovery in the Eastern Mediterranean, being the largest Minoan city outside of Crete. The site was first discovered in 1866 after a volcanic eruption.
The area of the site also offers a chance to visit two local beaches, the first of which is just a 5 minute walk from the site entrance, Akrotiri South Beach…
and a 15 minute walk along the shoreline, the famous Red Beach…
Ancient Thira
The second of the Santorini archeological sites worth visiting is that of Ancient Thira.
The ruins of Ancient Thira are located on a headland called Mesa Vouna between the two popular beaches of Kamari and Perissa. In addition to its ancient ruins, the site offers spectacular views over cliffs that drop into the sea on three sides.
A visit to Ancient Thira is somewhat more physically challenging than to the Akrotiri site. That’s it over there on the left of this photograph…
…or, seen from Kamari, the route up to Sellada Ridge which joins the two mountains of Mt. Elias and Mt. Mess Vouno...
Worth pointing out at this stage that for those who wish, there is a bus transfer operated by a number of tour operators in Kamari. One, Kamari Tours & Excursions, is conveniently situated on Kamari’s main street…
However the alternative, and much more of a challenge, was to tackle Sellada Ridge from the Perissa side using the water taxi from Kamari beach…
…and trek the path up to Ancient Thira…
The water taxi takes 15 minutes to sail around Mt. Mesa Vouno peninsula…
…to Perissa beach…
As always on Santorini a donkey taxi is usually available for those not up to the walk…
Setting out one is instantly impressed at the position, at an altitude of 200 metres, and view of the church of Panagia Katefiani…
…seen here with an added zoom…
Built on a huge rock circa 1650, the name Katefiani comes from the word ‘katefio’ meaning refuge or hideaway and it was used in the past as a refuge for the locals in times of war and pirate attack. Behind the chancel, there is a small cave with an ancient fountain whose water is believed to have therapeutic effects.
Apart from the views back over Perissa, and in particular over one of the largest churches on Santorini, the Church of Holy Cross…
…the hike up gives a chance to view the many burial grounds used by the ancient Thirans…
…while some tombs have been unearthed over time…
The climb to the top…
…and according to the timings on my photographs, it took 32 minutes and, what a view…
The mountain of Profitis Ilias, Santorini’s highest peak, runs eastward into the lower rocky outcropping of Mesa Vouno. These two mountains are joined by a ridge named Sellada. At an altitude of 369 metres, Mesa Vouno extends from west to south and its steep slopes plunge to the coast at Kamari to the north side and Perissa to the south.
A naturally fortified spot, it was an ideal place for the Spartan colonists to found their city. They built two roads, one to Kamari, where they had their port, and the other to Perissa.
Excavations began in 1896 and revealed ruins of a town which bore evidence of settlement as early as 9th century BC.
The archaeological site of Ancient Thira is open daily except Mondays from 08:30 am until 14:30 pm.
Admission cost is €4.00 or €2.00 for concession (Proof was needed)
Once accessed, there is another short climb from the ticket office to the first excavation of note, the Sanctuary of Aphrodite...
…and the remarkably preserved Early Christian Basilica...
From the Basilica the city extends along the long narrow ridge with the main axis a road that traversed it lengthwise. Continuing along the path the next site worth a stop is Temenos ( Shrine) of Artemidoros…
The temenos was founded in the mid 3rd c. B.C. by a priest named Artemidoros.
The open-air sanctuary was chiseled out of the rock by Artemidoros himself: altars, relief sculptures and numerous inscriptions cover the front side of the rock, including the Lion of Apollo, the Eagle of Zeus…
…and the Dolphin of Poseidon and a portrait of Artemidoros depicted wearing a wreath …
Ancient Thira could effectively occupy a whole ‘One way to do…’ subject and certainly could hijack this one with ease. However, here are just a few more highlights to possibly whet the appetite for a visit…
The central main square, or Agora…
Dominating the Agora, the Basilica Stoa entrance…
…and lengthwise view
The Sanctuary of the Egyptian Gods…
A city Water Reserve...
…and no need to guess what occupation went on in this house…
Okay, some zoom on that corner stone…
Ancient Thira is a fascinating site to explore and certainly around two hours should be allocated for a visit. It is amazing to be able to walk around a site, not only of such archaeological importance but one with such incredible views.
I hope that this review has illustrated that a port visit to Santorini isn’t just a chance to wander a few streets of the islands capital, Fira.
There are many places to visit and many options on how to get to them including car hire. Indeed, hiring a car opens further options to explore places such as Emborio with its Venetian castle…
…and fascinating alleyways…
or exploring Cape Akrotiri with its Lighthouse…
and the Hristos ta Thermi Church…
…balanced precariously on the Thermi cliff tops above cliff hewn houses.
But, whatever one chooses, enjoy your visit to Santorini, there is lots on offer.
If you have enjoyed this review of Santorini and would like to be amongst the first to hear of new reviews including a forthcoming cruise review of Star Clipper and a Mississippi river cruise onboard the American Queen, plus port reviews of Bordeaux and Hong Kong, why not join over 580 followers by clicking on the ‘Follow’ link on the front page.
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5 responses to “One way to do Santorini”
teecee46 July 14, 2017 at 10:16 am · · Reply →
Hello RichardI really enjoyed reading your blog for Santorini and indeed all of your blog entries! May I ask if you stayed in Santorini and, if so, which area did you stay in? I do hope that you win the blogging award, I have voted for you anyway!
John Lindsay July 14, 2017 at 11:01 am · · Reply →
Richard, A real pleasure to vote for you, good luck and keep up the blogging, always a pleasure to read.
Ruth Rosenthal July 14, 2017 at 2:25 pm · · Reply →
Excellent blog! . We’ve been to Santorini twice now on cruises, yet I still learned something from this excellent blog. You’ve also inspired me to put Ancient Thira high on my list of “must sees” if I get back there. We rented a three-wheeler both times we were there and had amazing days exploring the island. It’s our favorite place of all the places we’ve visited.
Pingback: One way to do Santorini | Continuity LifeStyle·
Erin July 15, 2017 at 5:20 pm · · Reply →
Thanks for the additional ideas for things to do during a visit to Santorini.
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January 31, 2016 Science & Technology
President salutes Professor Vilakazi
President Jacob Zuma has extended condolences on the passing of Professor Herbert Vilakazi.
The Presidency on Friday said Vilakazi was a renowned sociologist and one of the most insightful intellectuals in the country.
“We deeply mourn his passing and wish to convey our deepest condolences to his family and colleagues. May his soul rest in peace,” said President Zuma.
SOURCE: SOUTH AFRICAN GOVERNMENT NEWS AGENCY
AFRICAN UNION URGED TO HELP END CONFLICTS IN BURUNDI, SOUTH SUDAN
ADDIS ABABA, The Founder of the Mo Ibrahim Foundation, five other entrepreneurs and human rights campaigners have written to the African Union to use upcoming summit to sort out conflicts in South Sudan and Burundi, as a matter of urgency.
In an open letter to the African Union, the Sudanese-British philanthropist and his colleagues said the meeting starting on January 30 should be “both opportunity and a responsibility to respond to these crises.”
“This is a grave test of AU credibility, and of the continent’s ability to solve its own problems,” they wrote on Wednesday.
“Failure to act now would dent the reputation of the institution and those at its helm, and constitute a betrayal of the ordinary civilians in both countries whose lives are gravely affected by continuing violence and a lack of accountability.”
The AU will hold the 26th Ordinary Session of the AU general Assembly for heads of State and government this Saturday under the theme “2016: African Year of Human Rights with a particular focus on the Rights of Women.”
But it comes amid rising tensions in Burundi where about 400 people have been killed and 230,000 displaced in a conflict following President Pierre Nkurunziza’s bid for third term.
It also comes at a time when South Sudanese leaders have failed to agree on a transitional government as stated in a peace agreement signed last August.
President Salva Kiir and his former Vice President Riek Machar have disagreed over the 28 new states Kiir created last December.
As is tradition, a report on the crises in Africa prepared by the Peace and Security Council, AU’s top organ charged with security matters, will be tabled before the leaders during the AU’s 26th Ordinary Summit.
On Wednesday, the entrepreneurs said: “The people of Africa and the world are watching closely. We urge you to fulfill their trust, and act in the interests of the continent, the institution that you serve, and of your fellow Africans.”
This is the first time Mo Ibrahim, the founder of the Mo Ibrahim Foundation which publishes annual governance rankings of African countries, is calling on the AU to make a move on the crises.
The letter publicised on Wednesday was also signed by South African, Jay Naidoo, who chairs the Board of and the Partnership Council of the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN) and Uganda’s Victor Ochen, the Director of African Youth Initiative Network and 2015 Nobel Peace Prize nominee.
Others are Dr Chidi Odinkalu, the Chair of the Governing Council of Nigeria’s National Human Rights Commission, Ms Navi Pillay South Africa’s former Rwanda Tribunal (ICTR) judge and UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and Mr Ashish J Thakkar, founder of the Mara Group.
The group charged that despite various pronouncements by the AU on the two countries, the implementation has been slow, leading to more human suffering.
In Burundi, the AU Peace and Security Council endorsed the deployment of 5,000 troops to protect civilians back in December.
But Bujumbura rejected the decision calling the troops an invasion force. The AU has spent most of January trying to convince Burundi to allow the peacekeeping forces.
In South Sudan, the campaigners argued there has been no hybrid court to prosecute violence perpetrators, four months after the peace agreement was signed.
“It is critical that the AU’s decisions on Burundi and South Sudan are implemented immediately, in order to fulfill our collective commitment to prevent crimes against humanity? and assist those at risk of grave harm.
“Vested interests and political allegiances cannot be allowed to prevail,” they said.
They called on the AU to use “all diplomatic means and political leverage” to convince Burundi to allow the troops in.
SOURCE: NATION KE
AFRICA LEADS IN WOMEN EMPOWERMENT, SAYS THE AU
ADDIS ABABA, Africa is making progress in women empowerment with African Union (AU) member states slowly bringing more women on board in traditionally male dominated sectors, according to the AU Commission for Political Affairs.
The AU is celebrating the fact that the continent is leading the world in the number of women parliamentarians as out of 37 African countries with the highest number of women legislators, 16 are from Africa.
The continental body has dedicated 2016 to Women’s Empowerment and the theme for this year’s annual summit of AU Heads of State and Government this week is “Year of Human Rights with a Special Focus on the Rights of Women”.
The continental body is pushing ahead with gender parity, starting at the AU headquarters in Addis Ababa. AU Commission Chairperson Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma has implemented a 50-50 representation with five of its 10 Commissioners now led by women and slowly more women are being included.
The Head of the AU Commission for Political Affairs, Dr Aisha Abdullhahi, says: ”The AU currently has the highest number of women in peacekeeping forces and the highest number of women in political decision-making bodies globally.
“It is gratifying to indicate that, there are currently 37 countries in the world that have at least 30 per cent of women representation in their parliaments and 16 of these countries are in Africa. Rwanda is currently the leading country with the highest number of women in parliament worldwide.”
She also praised the Southern African Development Community (SADC) sub-region, commending the member countries for establishing ministries and parastatals to promote and protect women’s rights.
”Some of the above developments on gender transformation had also been replicated at the sub-regional level leading to the evolution of policies such as the SADC Women’s Rights Protocol. Further there are impressive numbers of AU member state that have toed the above continental and sub-regional pragmatic paths,” she notes.
“South Africa, Namibia, Mauritius, Malawi, Lesotho, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Cape Verde and Madagascar are doing pretty well and making remarkable progress in terms of respect of women’s rights, women’s access to land and credit facilities, promotion of equal access to education for male and female child. At the political front our continent takes the lead,” adds Dr Abdullahi.
SOURCE: SABC
AFRICA NEEDS PARADIGM SHIFT IN EDUCATION, TRAINING
ADDIS ANANA, Africa should make paradigm shift in its education and training system for the implementation of Agenda 2063, the continent’s 50-year development blueprint, says the African Union (AU) Commissioner for Human Resources, Science and Technology, Dr. Martial De-Paul Ikounga.
Briefing the media here Thursday on the final draft of the Continental Education Strategy for Africa (CESA 16-25), he said it was imperative to put in place a qualitative education and training system which focuses on African core values for the creation of new African citizens capable of becoming effective as change agents for sustainable development.
He pointed out the need for liberating education from its colonial legacy to promote the achievement of the African vision and ambitions aligned with Agenda 2063.
The commissioner said the pillars for the implementation of the strategy included strong political commitment, a peaceful environment, gender equity, domestic resource mobilization, and strong institutional capacity.
Dr. Ikounga underlined the importance of expanding education infrastructure to make quality education accessible by creating a student-friendly environment at schools.
The dissemination of scientific and cultural knowledge focused on curricula for science, mathematics and information communication technology (ICT) should be given priority, according to the commissioner.
He also stressed the need for expansion of Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) opportunities in Africa, both at secondary and tertiary levels, over the next ten years.
Campaigns to eradicate illiteracy across the continent, revitalization of teaching staff, building the capacity of educational leadership and strengthening the coalition of stakeholders are cross-cutting strategic intervention areas in the coming decade, he added.
He called on partners to provide meaningful and consistent support for the implementation of the ambitious programmes embedded in CESA 16-25 which is expected to be endorsed by African leaders who hold their annual summit here this weekend.
SOURCE: ENA
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Sports Spectrum By Sports Spectrum Sep 26, 2017
Sports Spectrum Devotional - Tuesday, September 26, 2017
Derek Carr playing for the Oakland Raiders. (Photo Courtesy: Erik Drost (Flickr) [CC BY 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons)
“He was going to quit football to go become a minister. That’s how real he is of a person and how serious he is about his faith.” – Justin Tuck, former NFL player
In a recent interview, Justin Tuck, a New York Giants legend and former teammate of Derek Carr in Oakland, shed some more light on who the Raiders QB really is. Carr is a successful NFL quarterback, one of the top players in the NFL. Many of his former and current teammates testify of how serious Carr is about his faith.
He is currently the second highest-paid quarterback in the league and is poised for another great season. When he received his contract extension this year, the first thing he said he was going to do was tithe, which over his five year contract would be an estimated $12.5 million (if he did a 10% tithe). But before this big payday happened, Carr was considering leaving his football career to become a full-time minister, according to Tuck. Everyone has a unique calling in life. We all face decisions that can cost us financial success or success in our careers, but the ultimate goal is to bring glory to God through what we do here on Earth.
Derek has achieved great success and a big platform, but despite all the fame and glory, he was willing to go all in for the sake of the cross.
Going all in looks different for everyone: whether it’s becoming a full-time minister or leading your franchise to a Super Bowl. We cannot think one is less than the other because God wants us to be all in regardless of our profession or position in life.
How about you? Are you willing to go all in?
Following Christ can be scary. Going all in for Christ can look terrifying. But Scriptures give us countless examples of people of faith who have gone all in and have seen the glory of God in their lives. I think of Gideon, who went to battle with only 300 men or Rahab who risked it all by saving the two Hebrew spies. In modern day, I think of people like Derek Carr who go out of their way to minister to people and risk their career to do it. I think of Jason Romano, who left an amazing job at ESPN to pursue ministry in sports full-time. There are countless examples out there.
My prayer is that one day our names will be mentioned, even if it’s in our own small community, as a person who was willing to risk everything to go all in. Today we all have a choice: either we’re with God or against Him, there can’t be middle ground. He equips us with what we need and prepares our path ahead of us. I’m ready for it. What do you say? You in?
“I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called.”- Ephesians 4:1
–Richard Salgado, Sports Spectrum Reader
If you would like to submit a reader devotional, please email all submissions to jason@pao.org.
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Afrin Conflict Diverted SDF Leaders, Limiting US-Led Coalition's Ops - Spokesman
© AP Photo / Syrian Democratic Forces
WASHINGTON (Sputnik) - The US-led coalition has had to scale back its fight against Daesh in eastern Syria as scores of commanders from the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) have left the area to battle Turkish forces in the northwestern town of Afrin, Operation Inherent Resolve spokesman Col. Ryan Dillon told Sputnik.
"Clearly, with the amount of fighters that have left — the SDF had announced 1,700 [fighters] — a lot of those are, and I’ll be very blunt about this as well, the majority of the leadership of these elements are Kurdish. So a lot of the leaders of these elements in the Middle Euphrates River Valley have departed," Dillon said in a phone interview from Baghdad on Thursday. "We’ve been limited now in our ability to conduct intensive operations and really put the pressure" on the Islamic State terror group.
Dillon said while the vast majority of SDF fighters have remained behind to continue battling Daesh, the loss of allied military leaders has taken its toll on anti-terror operations.
"Things have slowed down because of the operations that happened in Afrin," he said.
The spokesman said that most of the newer recruits to the SDF, which was previously a predominantly Kurdish force, are Arab. He added that Arab fighters currently make up the majority of the SDF's forces, while Kurds are now a minority.
READ MORE: Bomb Explosion Kills 3 Turkish Soldiers in Syria's Afrin — Reports
In January, the Turkish military launched an offensive to seize control of Afrin from the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG), a group that makes up a major component of the SDF's forces. The SDF has said that 1,700 of its fighters left eastern Syria to battle Turkish forces in Afrin.
Turkey considers the YPG an affiliate of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), which Ankara has designated as a terrorist organization.
On Civilians' Return to Raqqa
Local security forces in Syria's Raqqa are preventing civilians from returning because the city is still riddled with scores of booby traps planted by Daesh*, Dillon continued.
"Unfortunately, there are many families who want to come home, who want to return, and many of them are attempting to do so," Dillon said in a phone interview from Baghdad. "But there are Raqqa civil council members and Raqqa Internal Security Forces [RISF] that are… preventing people from going back to their homes, but largely it’s because these areas have not been cleared of these booby traps."
The RISF is a police unit formed by the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and made up of local volunteers. Its commanders are appointed by the Raqqa Civil Council, a US-backed body created to govern the city.
Dillon said Daesh had peppered the entire city with booby traps and improvised explosive devices, placing them in ovens, baby toys and even Qurans.
READ MORE: Local Syrians Form Militia to Evict US-Backed Forces From Raqqa — Reports
The US-led coalition is training local security forces to counter improvised explosive devices and booby traps, while non-governmental organizations are assisting with de-mining efforts, Dillon said.
US-backed forces drove Daesh out of Raqqa in October 2017. The city previously served as the de facto capital of the terrorist group's self-declared caliphate.
*Terror organisation, also known as Daesh, IS, ISIL or ISIS; Banned in Russia and many other countries.
OPCW Does Not Confirm Reports of Chemical Weapons Use by Turkish Army in Afrin
Syrian Opposition: Citizens' Council to Be Established in Afrin
Turkish Foreign Ministry Insists Afrin Invasion Targets Terrorists, Amid Censure
US-led coalition, Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), Afrin, Turkey
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A sentence is a half-formed thing
A Girl is a Half-Formed Thing
by Eimear McBride
Rape, incest, terminal cancer and death by suicide are things you don’t often find all together in the same novel. As many teachers of creative writing are aware, this sort of excess can lead a writer to disaster, especially when coupled with an experimental and difficult style that is emphatically not, as one shrewd critic has put it, ‘a beach read’. A Girl is a Half-formed Thing is, rather, a piece of high modernism a century on, recognisable in its stream-of-consciousness ways as using a version of the techniques practised by James Joyce, and also by Virginia Woolf, who might have approved its style but would have hated its subject matter. The fact that these things combine to make a remarkable and riveting novel rather than a train wreck is a measure of Eimear McBride’s imagination and skill, especially when you take into account that she wrote it in six months at the age of 27.
The voice of the book is the voice of the Girl – we never learn her name, and there is some complex significance and poignancy in that – who is born into a family already riven with misfortune and grief. Her older brother has had brain surgery in his early childhood (‘It’s all through his brain like the roots of trees’) and her father abandons the family before she is even born (‘He left her with a fifty pound note. Take care!’). The children are brought up in rural Ireland (‘Cold and wet with slugs going across the carpet every night’) by their harsh and pious mother (‘I’ll give you something to cry about. Making a holy show with that big lip. Stop your gurning’). The Girl is close to and protective of her brother, whose brain has been damaged by the cancer and the surgery (‘At school why do you talk like that? … It’s in your sums X and red lines through a copy book for no no no. Wrong, the teachers writing, I explained all this to you’).
Increasingly resistant to her mother’s Catholic catchwords and scolding ways – whatever else her mother might be, she is still full of a kind of bitter energy and vitality – the Girl is the recipient of hand-me-downs from her well-off aunt (‘And second-hand knickers with butterflies for me. Second-arsed. Amn’t I the lucky one.’) Shortly after this she is raped by her uncle (‘Went about me tooth and claw that I wanted. Felt within the time has come. No Christ here on the kitchen floor. Against the back of the kitchen chair.’) This may or may not be technically incest – he is her mother’s sister’s husband – but in spite of her conflicted sexual response it is certainly rape, for she is only thirteen, which makes it paedophilia as well.
You would hope for the Girl’s sake that the protracted awfulness of her life might stop there, but it does not; in the wake of the initial encounter with her uncle, she becomes the girl at school with the lifted skirts behind the sheds (‘Now I had two or three behind the prefabs. Consecutive days mind’) and then the girl at university who uses sex in a way she scarcely understands herself, but which seems an oddly joyless and violent compulsion reminiscent of nothing so much as the self-harmers who cut themselves as a form of release from unbearable emotional stress. (‘Does that hurt? Yes. A lot. A lot and relieves me for a while.’) She also uses her sexuality as mode of self-definition and autonomy – ‘Offer up to me and disconcerted by my lack of saying no. Saying yes is the best of powers’ – but not in some antiseptic psychobabble way: ‘Nicer is not what I am after.’
And in the background, like some ominous soprano continuo in a minor key, is the angry Catholic virtue of her virago mother, expressed in speech rhythms that catch with uncanny accuracy the way that people actually talk:
Don’t you turn your back on me. What do you mean? Nothing Mammy. I’ve had enough do you hear me? Enough of you. Your face. You’re a state. Making a show of yourself on today of all days … Go out of the room. Get out of my sight she says.
And then, when the siblings have become young adults, her brother’s cancer returns.
This combination of extravagant talent, extreme subject matter, emotional intensity, and a radical and difficult style has led McBride to be generally regarded, since the publication of her novel, as the literary love child of two writers she is eager to acknowledge as influences: James Joyce and Edna O’Brien. McBride is very conscious of her identity as a female Irish writer and is philosophical about not being able to get away from it:
You know, being Irish, oh God, sex, death, religion, shame, here it all is … I thought I really don’t want to write this book but, you know, it’s a bit like asking English male writers not to write about the war. It’s just there and it’s going to come out at some point.
In almost every interview and profile featuring McBride since her novel was shortlisted for the 2014 Baileys Women’s Prize for Fiction, the style and its Irish-atavistic origins have been central to the discussion: Joyce is repeatedly cited by reviewers as a major influence, and perhaps more importantly is mentioned by McBride herself as the jumping-off point for her own writing. Asked in an interview ‘What was the starting point of this novel for you?’ she replied:
The starting point was the quote from James Joyce: ‘One great part of human existence is passed in a state which cannot be rendered sensible by the use of wideawake language, cutanddry grammar and goahead plot.’ After happening on that, I realised where I wanted my work to go … Joyce was the main influence on the style. Not so much that I was trying to emulate his, rather, in seeing what he had achieved, I realised that – with a little thought – the English language is capable of far more than it’s usually given credit for.
Quarter of a century ago, when a young woman I know was still a baby in the early stages of learning to talk, the circus came to town. It set up camp, as circuses always do when they come to Adelaide, in the West Parklands. Every morning, passing the place where the elephants were tethered, the baby would listen to her mother singing at the wheel: ‘Hay-dee, hay-dee ho, the great big elephant is so slow! Hay-dee, hay-dee ho …’ But one day the circus packed up and moved on, as circuses will, and the next morning there was nothing to be seen from the car but a lot of squashed yellow grass and empty space. The baby, who had quite a large vocabulary but had never yet been heard to move beyond one-word pronouncements, looked at the abandoned ground and electrified her mother with her first-ever attempt at a sentence, prompted and saturated by loss. ‘Gone haydees,’ she said, mournfully.
A Girl is a Half-formed Thing is full of gone haydees: fragments of language struggling towards reason in the teeth of strong emotion or sensation, unformed by grammar as we know it, but still somehow establishing a direct line, with no interference, to the reader’s heart. Or, sometimes, a sucker punch to the gut:
… and sticks his fingers in my mouth. Piull my mth he pull m mouth with him fingers pull the side of my mouth til I no. Stop that fuck and rip.
By the time she gets to this point the Girl is a young woman, a long way now from the mouths of babes; but the directness of feeling is still the same, and so is the unexpected, visceral clarity. When she says to her brother ‘You white-faced feel the needle go in. Feel fat juicy poison poison young boy skin’, we don’t need grammar to understand.
At least one critic has complained that the Girl’s language is still as fragmented in her teens as it is when she is very small, but that is missing the point. While this sort of style has a lot in common with the unmediated and still ungrammatical utterances of small children, and while the language-acquisition theories of Noam Chomsky on the one hand and Jacques Lacan on the other have much to offer to a reading of this book, it is ‘pre-linguistic’ more in the sense that what is written down represents the immediate experience of Joyce’s ‘state which cannot be rendered sensible by the use of wideawake language’. One of the functions of grammatical language is to impose order on chaos, to process and contain sensation and emotion before they can derail or overwhelm us. McBride takes the reader back, in this process, to the moment of the half-formed sentence, where language is still trying, and often failing, to wrestle sensation and emotion to the deck. The Girl’s language is at its most broken up when violence, sex, grief or dreams are having their way with her. She is what Julia Kristeva calls a ‘deject’; those familiar with Kristeva’s theories of abjection will recognise her at once:
There looms, within abjection, one of those violent, dark revolts of being, directed against a threat that seems to emanate from an exorbitant inside or outside, ejected beyond the scope of the possible, the tolerable, the thinkable.
While the Girl is still a child, the style of her storytelling suggests to the reader a kind of filtering of bewilderment. It is the record of experiences that don’t yet make sense to her. When she is raped by her uncle, she is bewildered not only by his behaviour but also by her own conflicting and conflicted sexual responses, saturated with the language of her religious mother:
I am sweating here. Ready to give and not. Not at all ready for what I think I’ll get. But I’ll give it. I’ll give it. Take this cup. I’ll drink I’ll not. Thy will be done. Let him kiss me. If he wants. I. Brink it.
This writing could be (and has been) characterised as stream-of-consciousness, but a lot of it feels more like stream of semi-consciousness, or sub-, or un-. To get into the act of reading it, you have to yield yourself up to the current in its dark underground stream of language, a rhythmic mutter in extremis from the depths of the body, and answer silently in the same language. This may be easier for female readers than male ones, since even a reader like me, whose formative years were happy, uneventful, non-religious and uncle-free, will recognise at once the horrors and the recklessness of being an adolescent girl who cannot or will not explain. Book word girl-self I read. Yes mummy no mum. Where is she what’s she doing she’s only reading. Eye roll. Family I don’t no. Boys men. Know that confuse know that hard look sideways. Know that hard hard lesson oh yes I yes. Words not do.
I couldn’t say how a man would read it, except that I think he would read it differently, and from further away.
On May 4, delivering the Arthur Miller Freedom to Write Lecture as part of the 2014 PEN World Voices Festival, Colm Tóibín discussed the fraught relationship between Irish literature and Irish nationalism in the early years of the twentieth century, citing the riots that broke out in 1907 at a performance in Dublin’s Abbey Theatre of J. M. Synge’s The Playboy of the Western World. The riots, he says,
continued for a week. They broke out because members of the audience were shocked at the way in which Irish women were presented on the stage as earthy and sexually alive, in which there was no effort made to idealize the Irish peasantry … In order to create the conditions for Irish nationalism to thrive, the image of the Irish peasant would have to be cleansed, idealized. Irish women would have to seem more pure, more fully Victorian than their English counterparts. The play was a disruption of this project by a brilliant imagination.
The free expression of women’s sexuality was seen, as is so often the case, as a threat on a national scale. But Synge’s Pegeen and Widow Quin ushered in some of Irish literature’s greatest twentieth century characters: Joyce’s Molly Bloom with her yes I said yes; Kate and Baba from Edna O’Brien’s banned The Country Girls (1960); Roddy Doyle’s noisy, funny, bashed-up alcoholic Paula Spencer from The Woman Who Walked Into Doors (1996):
And I felt the sweat when I saw Charlo. This wasn’t a crush – this wasn’t David Cassidy or David Essex over there – it was sex. I wanted to go over there and bite him.
This is the tradition, or one of the traditions, to which McBride’s Girl belongs: she is located, like them, within the wider context of the way that Ireland sees and defines itself, and like them she cracks that mirror from side to side.
And like so many characters from Irish literature (and, presumably, life), she lurches wildly back and forth between the forms and ideals and language of the Catholic Church and the chaos of her own defiant behaviour, to which she occasionally refers as sin in a way that makes it impossible to tell whether she is being ironic or not. In one quite beautiful but slightly sinister scene, during her aunt and uncle’s first visit to the family home, when an unambiguous but cut-short encounter with her uncle has piqued her curiosity and her troubling (indeed, half-formed) desire, she goes for an early morning walk and finds herself wading into the lake and floating:
I sink baptise me now oh lord and take this bloody itch away for what am I the wrong and wrong of it always always far from thee. Ha.
Less than an hour later, she is on the kitchen floor with her uncle: ‘I want. And this is what it’s like after all. After all I’ve heard. It hurts me.’ The pre-rape dip is something to which she refers, while it is happening, as a baptism, but the question is, baptised into what? This scene at the lake, as it turns out, is one we need to bear in mind for future reference; the end, when it comes, is less of a surprise than it might otherwise have been.
It would be facile in the extreme to ‘explain’ this character by saying that it’s all about the absent father, but the Girl is certainly haunted by him and that ghost plays its part in the trajectory of her life. At thirteen, not long before the arrival of her uncle, she thinks:
Where’s that father? Mine? Who belonged to was part of me? Imagination of fathers sitting by me on the bed. Stroking my hair you’re my girl, belong to me pet. I have heard of seen those things somewhere on the telly.
And from this point to the end of the book, as I read, a line of poetry kept recurring to me, the saddest line that Sylvia Plath ever wrote. ‘Starless and fatherless, a dark water.’
Read the correspondence for ‘A sentence is a half-formed thing’.
Julia Kristeva, Powers of Horror: An Essay on Abjection (Columbia University Press, 1982).
Sylvia Plath, ‘Sheep in Fog,’ Collected Poems (Faber, 1981).
Susanna Rustin, ‘Eimear McBride: “I wanted to give the reader a very different experience,”’ The Guardian (17 May 2014).
Colm Tóibín, ‘The Censor in Each of Us,’ The New Yorker (6 May 2014).
Waterstones Blog, ‘“Give your manuscript to anyone who will read it.” Eimear McBride,’ (12 May 2014).
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Tag: county clare
Snapshots into the Past
All photos are in the public domain.
While looking for images for this site, I found some wonderful old photos from the National Library of Ireland. You can see examples in Casement’s Last Stand and Are Ye Right There, Michael? I couldn’t resist sharing some more of their historic photos from along the Wild Atlantic Way.
Oh I do like to walk along the prom
Promenade, Lahinch, Co.Clare
This photo was taken “between 1896 and 1914”. Lahinch opened up for tourism in the 19th century thanks to the West Clare Railway, but it wouldn’t become a prime surfing spot until the late 20th century. No idea if these are visitors or locals out for a stroll; that woman with the pram (mother? nanny?) is probably just trying to get the child to sleep. Hard to tell the weather from this photo; everyone seems well wrapped up, but most people were in Edwardian times.
Grazing on the edge
From “circa 1910”, but if it wasn’t for the woman’s dress, this could have been taken yesterday. Achill Island is still a wild place. It’s the edge of Europe, “next stop America” (or to be specific, Newfoundland). I love the way the woman and the cow on the left are both striking a pose for the camera.
St. Nicholas’ Church, Galway, taken by Robert French c.1890
St. Nicholas’ Church, Galway, taken by B. Lawlor in 1990
Here are two photos from the same spot — outside St Nicolas’ Church in Galway — taken 100 years apart. The dress and transportation has changed, and the tree has grown significantly, but otherwise there’s a similar energy about the two scenes. The Saturday market is still going strong in the same area, a great place to buy your olives and woolly hats.
There are loads more photos on the National Library of Ireland page on Flickr. Be careful: you could lose yourself for a long time in those archives.
Author fionahurleyPosted on January 25, 2017 Categories PhotosTags 19th century, 20th century, achill island, county clare, county galway, county mayo, galway city, lahinch, national library of irelandLeave a comment on Snapshots into the Past
Father Ted filming locations
Photo of a lovely horse by P.J. McKenna
July the 19th. Why does that strike me as important?
— Father Ted
As all Father Ted fans know, today is a very special day. On the 19th of July, the Ice Age ended, Marathon bars became Snickers, and most importantly of all, its time for holidays!
Three series of Father Ted were aired between 1995 and 1998. But 20 years later, fans are still enjoying the surreal and manic antics of Father Ted Crilly (“That money was just resting in my account”), Father Dougal Maguire (“That’s mad, Ted!”), Father Jack Hackett (“DRINK!”), and their housekeeper Mrs. Doyle (“Ah go on, go on, go on, go on, GO ON!”).
Most of it was filmed in the west of Ireland, near to the Wild Atlantic Way (most of the links below go to YouTube snippets from the series).
Inisheer, Aran Islands — Opening shots of Craggy Island. Inisheer still runs TedFest every year.
Glanquin Farmhouse — The house where the three priests lived and Mrs Doyle served many cups of tea.
Doolin ferry offices — John and Mary’s shop.
Fanore Caravan Park — Where Ted and Dougal went on holidays on that fateful 19th of July, and Ted tried to explain the difference between small and far away.
Ailwee Caves — The Very Dark Caves.
Fall’s Hotel, Ennistymon — My Lovely Horse, running through the fields.
OK, so at least one key scene was filmed in the east of the country.
Ormonde Cinema, Greystones — The cinema where “The Passion of Saint Tibulus” was shown. Careful now!
Author fionahurleyPosted on July 19, 2016 July 17, 2017 Categories Movies & TVTags ailwee caves, aran islands, county clare, doolin, ennistymon, fanore, father ted, greystones, inisheerLeave a comment on Small and Far Away
Legends of the Burren
Some tales from the Burren, that rocky and mysterious land in north county Clare. Reblogged from Ali Issac’s site.
aliisaacstoryteller
Last weekend, I hiked part of the Burren Trail with my friend, walking buddy and guide, Jenni. The Burren is an expanse of karst landscape located in Co Clare, stretching some 250 km between the villages of Ballyvaghan, Kinvara, Tubber, Corofin and Lisdoonvarna. Its name derives from the Irish Boireann, meaning ‘great rock’, or ‘stony place’.
The unique rocky lunar-like appearance of the Burren is due to it being composed of huge limestone pavements gouged by the last ice age. Over time, fissures and cracks have formed along lines of weakness, and these are called ‘grikes’. The slabs between grikes are known as ‘clints’.
Jenni advised me not to step on any patches of greenery; although they look solid, they often disguise grikes, which can be quite deep, causing the unsuspecting walker to fall and sustain injuries. I did get caught out by one or two, too busy applying my…
Author fionahurleyPosted on June 28, 2016 June 28, 2016 Categories MythologyTags archaeology, burren, county clare, guest post, wanderingLeave a comment on Legends of the Burren
The Red Lady of Leamaneh
Leamaneh Castle, County Clare
Photo of the Burren by P.J. McKenna
In the early 165os, refugees wound their way westwards across Ireland, displaced from their homes in a policy known as “to hell or to Connacht.” Long years of war and slaughter had culminated in Cromwell’s conquest. Many Irish people were “ethnically cleansed” from the best land and resettled in the poor soil of Connemara and the Burren.
A country where there is not enough water to drown a man, wood enough to hang one, nor earth enough to bury him.
— Edmund Ludlow (1652), describing the Burren
Maire Rua Ní Mahon (Red Mary MacMahon) already lived in the Burren; she was a Clare-woman born and bred. She watched from the window of her home at Leamaneh Castle, and then looked at the children who now depended on her alone. She was in her mid-30s and already widowed twice. Her first husband, Daniel Neylon, had been an arranged match to bond families together, but her second, Conor O’Brien, was her true love. Now he lay dead, carried home from a battle against the Cromwellian soldiers, nursed by his wife until his final breath.
Her future looked grim. When Conor organized ambush gangs against the invading army, she rode alongside him and killed men with her own hands. So not only would Conor’s estate be forfeit by his actions, but if anyone identified Maire, she could find her neck in a hangman’s noose. She had already lost two daughters to the plague that travelled with the conflict. Her remaining children — three by Daniel and six surviving by Conor — could end up as paupers.
But Maire had a plan. She called her servants and made them dress her in her finest gown and jewels. She must have been an imposing sight: tall, with the red hair that gave her the nickname Rua. She travelled by carriage to Limerick, to the garrison of the invading army, and offered to marry the first officer who was willing.
English soldier John Cooper stepped up to the challenge, becoming the third husband of Maire Rua and master of Leamaneh Castle and its estate. He and his wife had a son together and became wealthy through land dealings, although they eventually overstretched themselves and were forced to leave Leamaneh.
One legend says that John made the mistake of taunting Maire about Conor’s death while they were on the third storey, and she responded by pushing him out the window. Another legend has it that she made him ride a horse over the Cliffs of Moher. Neither is true; both Maire and John lived into old age, although in later years they lived separate lives.
Other unflattering legends attached themselves to the notorious Maire Rua. She was supposed to have had 25 husbands and to have murdered each one. It was said that a maid who displeased the mistress of Leamaneh would be hung by her hair from the castle tower. The locals found it hard to forgive a woman who slept with the enemy instead of allowing herself and her children to starve as any decent woman would.
Donough O’Brien, Maire and Conor’s oldest son, moved the family home to Dromoland Castle, which remained in the O’Brien family until the 20th century. Maire Rua died in 1686 and was most likely buried alongside Conor at Ennis Abbey. Leamaneh Castle fell into ruin, and rumour says that a red-haired ghost still haunts there.
To Hell or to Connacht, Irish Cultural Society, April 2004
Máire Rua (MacMahon) O’ Brien , Garry Bryant, O’Brien Clan Foundation, 2015-06-15
Leamaneh Castle, Abandoned Ireland
Author fionahurleyPosted on June 24, 2016 August 5, 2016 Categories Castles & HousesTags 17th century, burren, county clare, ghosts, leamaneh castle, maire rua, oliver cromwell, tough women1 Comment on The Red Lady of Leamaneh
A Match Made in County Clare
Lisdoonvarna, County Clare
Photo of Lisdoonvarna pub by Fionn Kidney, licensed under Creative Commons
Matchmaker, Matchmaker,
Make me a match,
Find me a find,
Catch me a catch
— Matchmaker, song from Fiddler on the Roof
In the autumn a middle-aged farmer’s fancy lightly turns to thoughts of love. The harvest is in and he’s facing a cold and lonely winter. But where will he find himself a wife? Perhaps, come September, he can head to the Matchmaking Festival in Lisdoonvarna.
The village of Lisdoonvarna is Ireland’s only active spa town, built around a spring rich in sulphur and iron. Tourists have been “taking the waters” here since the 18th century, but it was the opening of the West Clare Railway in the 19th century that opened the area to mass tourism. Visitors would take the train to Ennistymon and a pony from there to Lisdoonvarna.
All the lonely people,
Where do they all come from?
– All the Lonely People, song by the Beatles
Post-famine Ireland had a high percentage of single people. Mass emigration took potential partners out of the country, and among those who remained, men were concentrated in the countryside and women in the towns. Perhaps also a tendency to shyness and a puritanical attitude to sex put a dampener on courtship. In any case, the Matchmaking Festival was established, and the romance business flourished.
Willie Daly, the fourth generation matchmaker in his family, has been introducing couples to each other for 45 years and is responsible for over 3000 marriages. During the festival, he can be found in the snug of The Matchmaker pub; just follow the long queue of potential mates and put your name into his enormous scrapbook of profiles. Legend says that if a single person holds the 150-year-old book in their two hands, they will find a mate within six months, while a married person doing the same will find their passion rekindled.
Today, Internet sites such as match.com and plentyoffish have become a year-long matchmaking festival. But there is still room for the old-fashioned approach practiced by Willie Daly.
Love is waiting there for everyone, it’s there just waiting to be found. When it is, it’s a lovely feeling.
— Willie Daly, matchmaker
Not all visitors arrive for the purpose of finding a lifelong mate. Music and drinking are also a big part of the festival’s appeal, and many singles and couples arrive in September out of curiosity or in search of “the craic”, turning this tiny village for a short period into a bustling place.
The following month, Lisdoonvarna holds “The Outing”, a matchmaking festival for gay people from Ireland and around the world. The Outing first ran in 2013, but received a boost in 2015 when Ireland became the first country to bring in same-sex marriage by public vote. Rainbow flags will fly, and Willie Daly will be ready to add new names to his big book.
Lisdoonvarna Matchmaking Festival, official site
Lisdoonvarna’s answer to the love doctor set up 3,000 marriages… so far, The Journal.ie 2013-08-31
The Outing: Ireland’s gay matchmaking festival, The Guardian 2015-10-15
Author fionahurleyPosted on June 21, 2016 June 21, 2016 Categories Food & FunTags county clare, gay ireland, Lisdoonvarna, romance, willie dalyLeave a comment on A Match Made in County Clare
The Cliffs of Insanity
Cliffs of Moher, County Clare
Photo of Cliffs of Moher by P.J. McKenna
Vizzini: He didn’t fall? Inconceivable!
Inigo Montoya: You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.
– The Princess Bride, 1987
Actor Wally Shawn was terrified of heights. He sat into the bicycle seat, which was attached to a forklift, which was on the side of a rubber-faced mountain. Each of the other actors — Robin Wright, Mandy Patinkin, and André the Giant — took their own seats beside him.
The 2.24 metre (7ft 4) André was supposed to be carrying the others, but he was due to have back surgery and in constant pain throughout the filming. He self-medicated with alcohol, carrying around a beer pitcher that looked like a regular glass in his huge hands. All the scenes where he carried other crew members were done with ramps and harnesses, or occasionally a body double.
Before the actors were a few inches off the ground, Wally was about to pass out. André petted him on the head like a child and said “Don’t worry, I’ll take care of you”, and his gentle voice relaxed Wally so that the take went without further problem.
There had been several attempts to adapt William Goldman’s 1973 novel, The Princess Bride, to the big screen. Early casting choices would have seen Arnold Schwartzenegger as Fezzik, Danny de Vito as Vizzini, and Carrie Fisher as Buttercup — parts that eventually went to André the Giant, Wally Shawn, and Robin Wright when the book was finally brought to screen in 1987.
In the film, Vizzini and his sidekicks Fezzik and Inigo Montoya (played by Mandy Patinkin), kidnap Buttercup and sail away with her, pursued by a mysterious man in a mask. Ahead of them loom the terrifying “Cliffs of Insanity”, which are in fact the Cliffs of Moher in County Clare, Ireland. The scenes are a mix of matte paintings and the actual cliffs.
As the quartet scale the cliffs, they are followed by the masked man (Westley, played by Cary Elwes). Stuntmen dangled on harnesses over the cliffs to get these dramatic shots. When they finally reached the top, Vizzini cuts the rope, but the masked man hangs on and continues to climb.
The ruins at the top of the Cliffs of Insanity are quite different from the green landscape atop the Cliffs of Moher; this part was filmed in studio. Mandy Patinkin and Cary Elwes trained for several months so they could fence both left and right-handed, their sword fight has gone down as one of the most famous in film history.
Mandy had been offered his choice of parts, but he chose that of Inigo Montoya for a personal reason. The “six-fingered man” who killed Inigo’s father became the cancer that had killed Mandy’s father 15 years earlier.
I’ll become the greatest sword fighter, and my reward will not be to be in this movie that ended up being what it’s become to all these people; my reward will be that my father will come back.
– Mandy Paninkin, interviewed by Cary Elwes for his book As You Wish: Inconceivable Tales from the Making of The Princess Bride
The Princess Bride had only modest success at the box office, but when it was later released on home video it became a cult classic and is one of the most frequently-quoted films of all time.
My name is Inigo Montoya... oh, you know the rest!
Cliffs of Insanity (video clip from the film)
Mandy Patinkin describes filming the scene (video clip)
Movies made at the Cliffs of Moher from Cliffs of Moher Cruises
Author fionahurleyPosted on June 17, 2016 June 17, 2016 Categories Movies & TVTags cliffs of moher, county clare, the princess brideLeave a comment on The Cliffs of Insanity
Lahinch, County Clare
Photo of Lahinch Surfer by TOF2006, licensed under Creative Commons
Let’s go surfin’ now
Everybody’s learning how
Come on and safari with me
– Surfin’ Safari, song by The Beach Boys (1962)
In the summer of 1972, an international group of surfers held their boards upright on the sands of Lahinch in County Clare and looked despairingly at the sea. The day was unusually calm and the waves were barely six inches high. The sea at Lahinch, usually turbulent enough to provide optimal surfing conditions, might as well have been a lake.
Surfing at that time was a very new sport in Ireland. Indeed, it barely existed until 1963, when Kevin Cavey picked up a copy of Reader’s Digest.
One day I read in the Readers Digest about the sport of the Kings in the Hawaiian Islands, and saw a picture of them riding head height waves, the sort of which I had often seen in the west of Ireland. I immediately determined to put Ireland on the map as a surfing country. So as to test if surfing would work, I built an 8 ft long plywood and aero foam board and launched it in Bray in August 1964. I immediately formed Ireland’s first Surf Club and called it ‘Bray Ireland Surf Club’.
– Kevin Cavey
He linked up with other interested surfers in Ireland and the U.K., and organized “surfaris” to places like Tramore, Strandhill, Enniscrone, and Lahinch. He even established networks in Northern Ireland, a remarkable instance of cross-border co-operation at the height of “The Troubles”.
By 1970, Ireland boasted about 400 surfers. Irish surfers competed abroad and started to win, and in 1972 it was decide to hold the European Surfing Championships at Lahinch. Surfers travelled from Britain, France, and Spain for the chance to ride the Atlantic waves.
Unfortunately, the waves didn’t co-operate and only the junior competition went ahead.
The day after this anti-climax, there was a swell off Spanish Point, produced by a reef that had never before been noticed. The French contingent had already left, but those remaining became the first to ride this newly-discovered reef. They followed this with a “surfari” to Donegal, and most of the surfers returned home with exciting tales of the wild and unpredictable surf on the west coast of Ireland.
Surfing continued to grow in popularity. The 1997 the European Surfing Championships were held again in Ireland, this time in Bundoran, County Donegal. Today, there are around 40 surf schools and 20,000 surfers in Ireland. Kevin Cavey is now known as “the grandfather of Irish surf”.
I’ll end this post on a personal note. In September 2006, my work colleague told me he was going surfing in Lahinch with his brother and a friend, and asked if I’d like to join them. I didn’t have anything better to do that weekend, so I accepted the invitation.
The sea that Saturday was just as calm as it had been for the European Surfing Championships in 1972. We ended up walking the beach, drinking smoothies, and enjoying the sunshine. My colleague’s friend had a lovely smile and, as we chatted away along the beach, our companions decided to give us some space to get to know each other.
Two years later, P.J. and I were married. So I owe a great deal to the fickle waves of Lahinch.
Vintage Surf Footage of Lahinch 1972 (video), Surf Around Ireland
Irish Surf History, Kevin Cavey’s web site
Sea Fever: An Irish Surfing Odyssey, Irish America magazine 2012
Author fionahurleyPosted on June 14, 2016 December 2, 2016 Categories Food & FunTags 20th century, county clare, kevin cavey, lahinch, romance, surfingLeave a comment on Surf’s Up
Tales of the Wild Atlantic Way Create a free website or blog at WordPress.com.
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Tag Archives: David Cameron
Stalking is not just a Women’s Issue
Posted on March 7, 2012 | 2 comments
The related legal problems and the ambiguous definition of stalking have been an ongoing issue for victims of such crimes. The Protection from Harrasment Act 1997 has been largely ineffective in prosecuting stalkers, while police still seem to fail to respond appropriately to complaints of stalking.
Forms of harrassment can be very complex issues and can be both direct and indirect. There is also an increasing problem of online harrasment and cyber bullying which can be anonymous, making it difficult to trace the perpetrator. Due to the nature of these crimes they can be notoriously difficult to prosecute. This is not only due to the lack of clear and defined legislation, but also the inaction of the police, who often fail to take stalking seriously.
David Cameron is expected to announce that he will be backing a change in the law, making stalking a criminal offence. He is planning to use this Thursday – International Women’s Day – to make the announcement. The significance of trying to make this a women’s issue seems a little misguided however, as stalking does not only affect women. Women can be both victims and perpetrators in these crimes, as can men. Although women have to deal with safety concerns on a daily basis, stalking should not be labelled as an issue relating to a particular sex.
Clare Bernal
For some this change in the law has come too late. A notable, high profile case has been that of Clare Bernal, killed by her ex boyfriend after he had stalked her for some time. She had reported him to the police several times, however nothing was done. Without a change in the law it has been difficult for the police to address stalking as a crime because the only existing statute is unclear. These cases are often underreported, the main reason this particular case hit the headlines was because the murder was carried out in a department store in central London.
It is yet to be seen whether this law will be an effective tool with which to address stalking. However, the police do need to approach stalking as a serious problem and provide support for victims, whether they are male or female. This is not exclusively a women’s issue, it would be absurd to claim that only women were affected. After a long wait, stalking seems to have become a subject for public debate. Making such an announcement on International Women’s Day will bring the discussion of stalking into the public sphere, which is welcome, but it will falsely label it as a women’s issue. This would be misrepresentative of the range of people it actually affects, stalking is a serious concern and it is something anyone could be faced with regardless of their sex.
Tagged Clare Bernal, David Cameron, domestic violence, harrassment, Harrassment Act, International Women's Day, men's issues, police, Stalking, Women's Issues
Sentenced for looting? What about corporate fraud?
The sentencing of rioters this summer appeared to be harsh, disproportionate and policy driven. The government tried to influence sentencing and the judiciary went along with it, handing down long sentences for crimes that would normally barely even reach the court. The damage caused by the riots, especially to small businesses, came at a high cost. The government and the public wanted there to be a consequence for all those involved. The courts proceeded to make an example of those who had looted goods, by giving them prison sentences of up to several years.
Andrew Wetherall outside the court with his wife, who due to her expensive tastes, he claims he committed fraud for
There was a father of two jailed for 18 months for stealing a flat screen tv, a 19 year old was sentenced to 2 years in a young offenders institution for drinking stolen champagne and picking up a pair of stolen trainers, and then the case of the 6 month sentence for stolen water from Lidl. What about ex Labour minister Elliot Morley? He was freed last year after serving only a quarter of his 16 month sentence for claiming 30,000 pounds in expenses. While Andrew Wetherall, the director of KPMG who stole 500,000 pounds by fiddling his expense claims. He was sentenced to 4 years, for a crime that vastly outweighs the cost of a flatscreen tv. The theft of the damage caused by the riots is not insignificant or justifiable, but a custodial sentence is in my opinion highly unsuitable for most of those involved in the riots (community service and restorative justice would be much more helpful in rebuilding communities). It is also completely inconsistent with the large scale theft committed by individuals in government or in charge of running large corporations.
Although figures show that the majority of those arrested for theft last summer were not in fact children, the rioters were still overwhelmingly young people. The media were quick to once again demonize the British youth, even last week there was debate about the discipline of children and whether restrictions on smacking children should be lifted. However, the public seems to ignore the great examples being set by adults in the form of fraudulent businessmen, MP’s and executives of large corporations. These individuals are portrayed in a completely different light to those who stole a tv, a pair of trainers or a bottle of water last summer.
Combined with the lack of prospects, how will the next generation gain respect for our society when those at the top are regularly looting assets to lead lavish lifestyles. When young people see the anarchic behaviour of the rich and the often mild consequences of this behaviour if any, how can we expect them to develop different values? Many people who got caught up in the moment and took part in the chaos, behaved as if it was their right to appropriate goods e.g. a pair of trainers, even trying them on before leaving the ransacked shop. The public were shocked by these details, but how is this different, in fact it is hardly comparable to the behaviour of Bill Godley, Andrew Wetherall, Elliot Morley, Lord Taylor or the cases of Alstom, BAE etc… The recent corporate fraud cases are too numerous to name.
I’m not condoning stealing, but why is corporate fraud treated like a relatively harmless and victimless crime? On the UK’s Fraud Prevention Service (CIFAS) website, the Chief Executive, Peter Hurst states that although violent/aggravated burglary and scams are different crimes, their consequences are often the same. There are many different fraud cases and many different types theft, but the money stolen is also money lost by others. Those sentenced for looting or theft took goods as if they were entitled to it, just like those who have committed fraud. If judges are quick to make examples of those who looted during the summer riots, why are they not applying the same tactic to those who commit corporate fraud?
Tagged CIFAS, corporate fraud, David Cameron, discretion, entitlement, Fraud, judiciary, KPMG, looting, policy, Riots, Sentencing, Sentencing guidelines, wealth, youth justice
Turkey’s Violations of ECHR Highest for 3 Years
When Nicolas Bratza, the head of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR), released the figures for ruling against states in 2011 last week, Turkey was again the country with the highest number of violations of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). With 159 cases that violated the ECHR, this is the 3rd year in a row Turkey has been at the top of the list, painting a dim picture of Turkey’s human rights record. Russia (with 121 cases) and the Ukraine (105) were not lagging far behind. Britain fared comparably well with only 8 violations. However David Cameron’s comments earlier in the week stating that the ECtHR was in danger of becoming a “small claims court”, were not so well received by the Strasbourg based court.
Despite not being an EU Member State, the ECHR, drafted in 1950, places Turkey under the jurisdiction of the ECtHR. Although Turkey signed the protocols of the convention, it has yet to ratify a number of them. Nevertheless, in 1987 Turkey started allowing individuals to file applications and apply to the ECtHR individually, 3 years later it also recognised the compulsory jurisdiction of the court.
The majority of Turkey’s violations concerned the length of proceedings and the right to a fair trial set out by Article 6 of the ECHR. There are currently 16,000 ongoing cases against Turkey, the second-highest number of cases filed against a country under the ECtHR’s jurisdiction. The Turkish government claims it has made considerable progress in improving the human rights situation in the country. Justice Minister Sedat Ergin stated that a series of reforms had been adopted in recent years and insisted that similar legal amendments will continue to improve Turkey’s human rights record. Last year, after a public referendum a number of constitutional reforms were implemented, many relating to the judiciary. These reforms introduced the right to petition the Constitutional Court for human rights violations and established the Ombudsman Office for grievances regarding the misconduct of government agencies and employees.
Tagged Bratza, constitutional law, David Cameron, ECHR, European Court of Human Rights, European law, human rights, Sedat Ergin, Turkey, Turkish government
RT @JolyonMaugham: With no money behind us, with the site constantly crashing, organically, we have 3.3m signatures in 2 days. Three week… 3 months ago
Follow @tashalaws
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Back to the origins. After a tour full of more than 80 shows, which opened in Granada and covered the entire national territory with outstanding entries in Barcelona, Valencia, A Coruña, Vigo, Bilbao or Murcia, Leiva closes the tour “Monstruos” returning their gratitude to the city that saw him born and grow up with a mini-tour farewell in Madrid halls.
Leiva and his Leiband recover the spirit of the pub, of street rock; sweat, energy and heat of the room; closeness and interaction; in short distance between the artist and his audience. #ElUltimoIncendio will be the last chance to enjoy the “Monstruos” show in an original, authentic and different way.
17 December 20:30 - 23:00
This August we will have 3D Secure concert at Teatro Barceló. The best possible plan for the end of the summer. We are waiting for you to enjoy good music and an unbeatable atmosphere. Do not miss the opportunity to live this experience and buy your tickets now! Information: Date: August 31 Time: 20:00 pm
On September 11th we will have the pleasure of receiving in Teatro Barceló Buffalo Tom, an alternative rock group that after his long career, will present his ninth album titled "Quiet and Peace" at Teatro Barceló. We are sure that with their new successes they will make us enjoy what they have been doing since their first album 30 years ago. If you do not want to lose them, enter and get your ticket already.
Dominican singer-songwriter Vicente García, a three-time Latin Grammy winner, will perform on September 29 at the Barceló Theater. He will present his third album titled "Candela", the final work of a trilogy that began with "Melodrama" and "A la mar". An album that combines merengue styles with African and electronic music. Information: Date: September 29, 2019. Time: 9:00 p.m. Price: € 26 + management fees A great opportunity to enjoy his live music. Buy your tickets!
The sensation of the Grammy-nominated pop, JULIA MICHAELS, will land in our country next fall, will perform at the Barceló Theater in Madrid on October 4 during her world tour 'THE INTERNAL MONOLOGUE TOUR'. Do not miss this great opportunity Buy your tickets! Information: Pop group Date: October 4, 2019. Time: 9:00 p.m. Price: 29€
The fantastic duo of Cala Vento will perform at the Barceló Theater next October. We present his latest studio album called "Balanceo" in which new influences and a more abstract and conceptual lyric are given without forgetting the euphoria and intensity of their beginning. Do not miss it, buy your ticket now! Information: Pop group Date: October 18, 2019. Time: 20: 00h Price: € 11
The Scottish singer and writer Lewis Capaldi visits our country again, on October 28 in the Teatro Barceló in Madrid and on October 29th in the Bikini room in Barcelona. His success began in 2017 with his debut single "Bruises" and continues in 2019 as he has been nominated in the "Critics Choice Awards" category of the BBC. Do not miss it and discover the great songs that will present us at the concert. We will wait for you.
On November 14th at 9:00 pm, Bear's Den will be at Teatro Barceló. It will be a great opportunity to see them playing songs of their new album "So That You Might Hear Me" live. An album that talks about the "attempt to communicate with someone and feel that you can not reach them" as they said. If you do not want to miss it, get your tickets now!
Archive - December 7th
They have been 25 extraordinary years for Archive, covering 12 studio albums that encapsulate the changes of sound, vision and personnel in an unbreakable way, and that have ensured that their music has remained fresh, dynamic and absorbing. To celebrate its anniversary, Archive launched "25", a compilation in a luxury box featuring 43 tracks on six vinyl records (or four CDs), and 8 new compositions, as well as a 160-page book of contemporary interviews with current and previous band members and photos from Archive's private collections. INFORMATION: December 7, 2019 - Madrid - Barceló Theater Early price: € 25 On sale on February 1 at 10am at: Ticketea / Eventbrite / Ticketmaster
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Data-Focused Online Merchant Lender Kabbage Raises $30M From UPS, SV Angel And Others
Leena Rao @LeenaRao / 7 years
Kabbage, which provides working capital to online merchants, has raised $30 million in Series C financing led by Thomvest Ventures, the venture capital arm of Peter Thomson, the founder and managing director of Thomvest Ventures and a director of Thomson Reuters. UPS Strategic Enterprise Fund, Mohr Davidow Ventures, BlueRun Ventures, Warren Stephens, and David Bonderman participated in the round. In addition, SV Angel also recently invested in the company. Kabbage has received a total of $56 million in funding to date.
The Atlanta-based company is essentially a way for online merchants and sellers on marketplaces like eBay, Etsy, and Amazon to get capital they otherwise wouldn’t qualify for at a bank. Many small businesses and online merchants can’t receive financing from traditional banks and don’t want to risk using personal assets like a house to qualify for business loans. Kabbage is disrupting this space by providing a painless way to help these sellers access cash quickly and easily.
Kabbage uses dosens of data sources to determine seller business performance, and provides funding to businesses in fewer than seven minutes. In fact, the startup has been granted several patents for its data-crunching technology.
In terms of data analysis, Kabbage will analyze online merchants’ sales and credit history; customer traffic and reviews; and prices and inventory compared to competitors. And merchants can proactively add information to their Kabbage accounts to immediately increase their access to capital. Most recently, Kabbage started using UPS shipping data from merchants, including volume and transactional information, to decide whether a merchant qualifies for working capital.
Kabbage makes money off of fees charged to merchants for the working capital. Fees depend on how long the online merchant keeps the capital (six months maximum) and the customer’s repayment risk. Rates range from 2 percent to 7 percent of the original advance amount depending on monthly revenue and credit quality. Kabbage currently supports merchants that use eBay, Amazon, Yahoo, Etsy, Shopify, Magento, and PayPal.
Co-founder Marc Gorlin said the company wasn’t looking to raise, but received a tremendous amount of inbound requests from investors. Gorlin says that while Kabbage is focused exclusively on small businesses, the startup supports a wide range of merchants from those who are doing $50,000 in sales in a year to those who are seeing tens of millions in yearly revenue. The maximum in working capital that Kabbage extends is just north of $100,000.
The startup, which is currently only available in the U.S., has grown fairly rapidly since launch two years ago and now fuels more than $800 million in annual sales for its small-business customers. Kabbage customers also take an average of 10 advances per year to help them grow.
As for the funding, Gorlin says that the plans are to use the new capital to go into international markets. Kabbage will launch a lending service in the UK later this year. The company is also finding new ways to get data on both the online and offline merchant.
“We want the Kabbage score to become more important than the credit score,” Gorlin explains. “We need to understand payroll, accounting, QuickBooks data. We’re more of a data and technology platform and less of a financing business.”
Of course, Kabbage has competition in the lending market. Amazon recently entered the market with its version of Kabbage for Amazon merchants selling through the marketplace. On Deck and Capital Access Network also are playing in a similar space. But Gorlin maintains that the competition validates the space.
It’s certainly interesting to see how new forms of data can be analyzed to revolutionize the lending space for merchants and small businesses. And this is just the beginning — we’re going to see more and more startups and companies use data in the financial world.
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Pinterest brings its visual search technology to the web
Pinterest has been ramping up its efforts in visual search to make its search and discovery features more useful, but today it’s opening up the technology a bit more with an integration into the company’s Chrome browser extension. With the updated extension, you’ll be able to hover on any image on the web in order to find related ideas and products – that is, you can now use visual search on other websites, not only on Pinterest itself.
For example, if you’re shopping online and see a product you like but can’t afford, a click on the new search button could pull up photos of similar items – some of which might be more in your price range. (Assuming the suggested products are still available that is!)
To use the new feature, you’ll have to first install Pinterest’s existing browser extension in Google Chrome. The company says other browsers will be supported in time.
Once added, you hover over an image on a website then click the magnifying glass icon to kick off the visual search. The extension will return related images, and present them directly on the screen.
The visual search technology is able to “pinpoint specific objects, products, patterns and colors in an image and get related items and ideas in real-time,” explains Pinterest.
To be clear, this is no challenger to something like Google’s reverse image search, as it’s not scouring the entire web for more precisely matching photos. Instead, the images that are returned are those already cataloged somewhere on Pinterest, and are “related” to the image in some way. And when you click on one of the suggested photos, you’ll be taken back to Pinterest itself.
Really, this is about speeding up the process of looking for new ideas. Instead of having to save the product or other item you’re viewing to Pinterest first, then using the site’s built-in visual search feature, you can just use it directly on the website.
However, the search feature can also search using the whole visual web page, which is a neat trick. To do so, you just right-click on the background of the page and then choose “Search.”
Visual search is available to users worldwide in the Pinterest browser button for Chrome.
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Temple Israel Cemetery
6412 North 42 Street
9 a.m. – 5 p.m. Sunday – Friday
Max Meyer, Emmanuel Simon and Meyer Hellman recognized the need for a sanctified Jewish burial ground. They formed the B’nai Israel Society in March 1871, for the purpose of aiding the sick and burying the dead. In August 1871, they bought five acres for a cemetery at 42nd and Redick. The B’nai Israel Society deeded the cemetery property to the Congregation of Israel which later became Temple Israel.
Today the Temple Israel congregation owns and maintains its own cemetery along with B’nai Jacob and B’nai Shalom Cemeteries. The cemetery is a lovely, park-like setting which provides a contemplative atmosphere for remembering our beloved departed family members and friends.
Cemetery Plots are available for Temple Israel members and non-members. Please contact Executive Director Dennis DePorte, 402-556-6536.
Schrager Memorial Chapel
The Schrager Memorial Chapel at the Temple Israel Cemetery, provides families an option for funerals and memorial services in addition to the main sanctuary and the Chapel at Temple Israel. A memorial service between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur and services for the burial of sacred objects are conducted in the Schrager Memorial Chapel at the cemetery. Temple Israel is grateful to Terri and the late Phil Schrager for generously donating funds from their charitable foundation to build the chapel.
John A Gentleman Funeral Home 402-391-1664
Tom Belford
Jewish Funeral Home 402-556-9392
Heafey Hoffmann Dworak Cutler Mortuaries & Crematory 402-391-3900
Cemetery Locations
B’nai Jacob
B’nai Shalom
84 & L Street
Golden HIll
50 North 42 Street
Fisher Farm
South on 42 Street as far as you can go (Sarpy County)
Mt. Sinai
78 & Crown Point
Have you heard of RestingSpot?
After Temple Israel member Brett Atlas spent 45 minutes driving around a Chicago cemetery in search of his grandfather’s grave, he sent the following text: “There should be an app for this.” According to newspaper reports, within moments after Atlas hit send, Scott Kroeger, Brett’s business partner, responded and upon Atlas’s return to Omaha, the pair co-founded RestingSpot, a service that seeks to identify and guide users to the precise GPS location for memorial sites in cemeteries around the world.
“The subject of death is a difficult part of the human experience,” Atlas said in an interview. “But, ultimately, we believe the memory of a person’s life should be honored and celebrated. Once marked via the mobile app, the grave sites are linked to Resting Spot for users to share memories, pay respects, and post photos of loved ones. In addition, future generations will be able to locate any grave in the cemetery quickly as well as share a profile page for loved ones buried there.”
Thank you to the many volunteers who helped us mark the precise GPS location for memorial sites at our cemetery.
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Canadian Nuclear Laboratories and TRIUMF to Host 11th Targeted-Alpha-Therapy Symposium
January 29, 2018 Asianet Pakistan Asean, General
Canada’s national nuclear laboratory and leading particle accelerator centre partner to host global forum on targeted radiopharmaceutical therapy
CHALK RIVER, Ontario and VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Jan. 29, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Canadian Nuclear Laboratories (CNL), Canada’s premier nuclear science and technology organization, and TRIUMF, one of the world’s leading particle accelerator centres, jointly announced today that they are partnering to co-host the 11th Targeted-Alpha-Therapy Symposium (TAT11) to be held from April 1 – 5, 2019 at the Fairmont Château Laurier in Ottawa.
TAT11 is a global forum for academic and industry leaders to meet and discuss the latest technical, regulatory and clinical developments in targeted radiopharmaceutical therapy. The potential benefits of targeted-alpha-therapy in the battle against cancer and other diseases are significant. While existing radiation treatments target all cells in the vicinity of a tumor, both healthy and cancerous, targeted-alpha-therapy focuses the treatment application to cancerous or unhealthy cells. This limits the overall radiation dose a patient may receive, holds promise of better patient outcomes, and encourages a faster recovery time following treatment.
In addition to a variety of industry and academic speakers and presentations, the TAT11 conference will feature an exhibition for companies to showcase their products and services, and will include a tour of the Chalk River Laboratories.
“Targeted-alpha-therapy is one of the most promising areas of nuclear medicine, and could represent a leap forward in radiation therapy,” commented Kathy McCarthy, Lab Director, CNL. “Given CNL’s history as a world-leader in the development and delivery of medical isotope technology, hosting this important international conference alongside TRIUMF, a leader in subatomic physics, was a natural fit. We look forward to welcoming participants from around the globe to discuss this exciting medical technology.”
As part of Atomic Energy of Canada Limited’s (AECL) Federal Nuclear S&T Work Plan, CNL is conducting research to evaluate alpha therapy delivery methods. This includes the construction of a small alpha radioisotope generator to provide isotopes for CNL and its collaborators. CNL is also taking the necessary steps to grow and expand its resources and capabilities to pursue related research projects, including work alongside TRIUMF.
“Canada has an existing and powerful particle accelerator infrastructure capable of enabling a greater supply of targeted-alpha-therapy isotopes,” explains Paul Schaffer, TRIUMF Associate Lab Director – Life Sciences Division. “It’s very fitting to be hosting the next conference here and I am looking forward to both learning from others and advocating for what Canada can contribute to this exciting field.
“TRIUMF has established the feasibility of producing important targeted-alpha-therapy isotopes such as Ac – 225 using its 500 MeV cyclotron; and is also in the process of upgrading its infrastructure to improve safety and reliability of large-scale, accelerator-based isotope production,” explains Schaffer.
“Both CNL and TRIUMF are committed to improving the health of Canadians through nuclear medicine, and TAT11 is an important medium to foster international partnerships and collaborations that are necessary to advance this therapy,” added Corey McDaniel, Vice-President, Business Development with CNL. “It is our hope that this forum will build awareness around alpha therapy and spur further research to accelerate the development of these isotopes.”
For more information on TAT11, including a detailed conference itinerary and exhibitor information, please visit www.tat11.com.
About CNL
Canadian Nuclear Laboratories is a world leader in nuclear science and technology offering unique capabilities and solutions across a wide range of industries. Actively involved with industry-driven research and development in nuclear, transportation, clean technology, energy, defense, security and life sciences, we provide solutions to keep these sectors competitive internationally.
With ongoing investments in new facilities and a focused mandate, Canadian Nuclear Laboratories is well positioned for the future. A new performance standard reinforced with a strong safety culture underscores every activity.
For more information on the complete range of Canadian Nuclear Laboratories services, please visit www.cnl.ca or contact communications@cnl.ca.
About TRIUMF
Established in 1968 in Vancouver, TRIUMF is Canada’s particle accelerator centre. The lab is a hub for discovery and innovation inspired by a half-century of ingenuity in answering nature’s most challenging questions. Powered by its complement of top talent and accelerator infrastructure – including the world’s largest cyclotron – TRIUMF is driving the leading edges of advanced isotope science, innovation, and technologies to address fundamental and applied problems in particle and nuclear physics, and the materials and life sciences. In collaboration with 20 Canadian universities, TRIUMF’s diverse community of nearly 600 multidisciplinary researchers, engineers, technicians, tradespeople, staff, and students create a unique incubator for Canadian excellence, as well as a portal to premier global collaborations. At TRIUMF, we drive more than scientific discovery — our passion for understanding everything from the nature of the nucleus to the cosmos creates into inspiration, improved health, economic opportunity, and a better world for all.
For more information see http://www.triumf.ca. Connect on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram: TRIUMFlab
Patrick Quinn
CNL, 1-866-886-2325
communications@cnl.ca
Lisa Lambert
Head, Strategic Communications
TRIUMF, 1-604-222-7356
lisa@triumf.ca
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Category Archives: Leyton Orient
September 14, 2014 by stuartnoel - 0 comments
You are only as good as your next game
Four months ago Leyton Orient found themselves 2-0 up going into the dressing rooms at Wembley in the League One Play-Off Final. They O’s were just 45 minutes away from their first visit to the Championship and sticking one over on the Rotherham United manager, Steve Evans. Nobody wants to see that these days do they? Ninety minutes later and the players lay distraught on the pitch, having lost the game 4-3 on penalties. After a forty nine match league campaign, their fate had been settled by one missed spot-kick. Harsh.
A few months later and the O’s were looking up the table rather than down it. Amazingly, after those exploits last season, manager Russell Slade was under pressure. The fickle nature of football, combined with a new owner who had bought the club in the summer from Barry Hearn, means that a manager is only as good as his last match, irrespective of what has gone on before. Slade’s achievements in finishing third last season were impressive, especially with clubs with much bigger resources, and of course, budgets in the division such as Wolverhampton Wanderers, Sheffield United, Preston North End and the anti-club, Milton Keynes Dons.
Whilst The Mighty Rooks would be starting their FA Cup campaign down on the south coast at Bognor Regis Town, I would be in London. Westfield Shopping City, Stratford to be precise. Sometimes even I have to compromise between football and family time, and this was a promised treat for the Littlest Fuller. But then a cunning plan started to emerge. Get to the Shopping mecca early doors, take family to nice restaurant for lunch and then walk across the Olympic Park for some football. Genius. So clever that they agreed to come with me.
I’ve always had a soft spot for Orient, as they always were when I was growing up. My Dad often used to bring me to Brisbane Road when I was young as the Dad of one of my best school friends, Derek Possee, used to play for them and so we didn’t used to pay to get in. I remember seeing a couple of classic games against West Ham here, including the FA Cup 4th Round back in January 1980 when the Hammers edged a thriller 3-2 on their way to Wembley (proper FA Cup Final Wembley, not money-making Semi-Final Wembley), standing on a milk crate at the front of the West Stand. I remember that stand well, with the tea bar at the back and the rust falling from the roof whenever the ball hit it. I stood on it for the last time in December 1996 to see Peter Shilton make his 1,000 appearance against Brighton & Hove Albion.
Since then the ground has been totally transformed. The old West Stand is now a unique-looking stand with steep obstruction free seating and then a huge wall behind it, with various local community facilities inside – a great and innovative use of the space. In each corner there are the privately owned flats with their balconies that openly flaunt their ability to disregard the Taylor Report with spectators able to stand (STAND!) and drink beer (BEER!) in view of the pitch. How many of them do you think cause problems each home game? Exactly!
Leyton Orient 0 Colchester United 2 – The Matchroom Stadium – Saturday 13th September 2014
Sometimes things just don’t go your way, and that will be the sentiment of the majority of Leyton Orient fans as they reflect on the defeat to Colchester United. It was a decent game of football, with the home side peppering the visitors goal (16 shots) but failing to really test Walker in the Colchester goal. There was one incident in the second half where from the view we had in the North Stand, Watt appeared to handle the ball on the line, although most of the crowds view would have been of the keeper diving in front of him. May be just the angle but looked like a penalty from where I was sitting.
There were a few familiar names in the starting line up for both sides. Leyton Orient had Jobi McAnuff on the bench, a player who showed considerable promise at West Ham under Pardew but was shipped out far too early. Colchester lined up with Freddie “The new Tony Cottee” and George “son of John” Moncur. Sears problem was, like Cottee, he was a small, in your face striker. He, like Cottee, scored on his debut for the Hammers and was then seen as the saviour. Unlike Cottee, he never really repeated that high and was released by the Hammers.
Colchester were forced to start the game with 10 men, as the referee wasn’t happy with the black ankle pads that George Moncur had on over his socks. The U’s were wearing a black and yellow kit, with striped socks. Quite what was wrong with that I don’t know. Good to see he was so hot on those laws of the game but let so many very physical fouls by the away team go unpunished in the first half. It’s all about priorities, after all. It did seem that Colchester had been sent out to simply use brute force to stop any Orient attack and it was a surprise that it took twenty minutes for the first name to go into the book, that of Moncur. Like father, like son.
Colchester seemed happy to hoof the ball into the corners for Sears to chase. They weren’t in the game at all, appearing to have come for the draw. Just before half time Magnus Okuounghae rash challenge on David Mooney saw him see red and the most ludicrous “stand off” between two aging, plump fans in the East Stand, gesticulating to each other that frankly made them both look very silly.
However, come the second half and Colchester realised that if they played on the counter-attack, using the pace of Sears and Watt, playing it to feet then they may have some success. Twice they broke, twice they scored. The first, was less than 10 seconds after Leyton Orient had taken a corner, with Sears the creator. Five minutes of injury time were announced but still the O’s couldn’t hit the target. “We’re only playing against ten men” shouted the chap next to me. True, but with Orient always keeping two men on the half-way line to counter the attacking threat, they lost that numerical advantage.
The defeat meant that Slade could be soon looking for another job. Director Mauro Milanese was the man to pass the message on to Slade from ‘President’ Francesco Becchetti after the 2-0 loss to Colchester. “The president has been honest enough via Mauro Milanese to tell me we have got one game to sort it out so hopefully we get a response on Tuesday,” said Slade, “That’s in terms of my future, obviously today’s result is not a great one for the football club, these things can happen but obviously the president will want better than that.”
And that, ladies and gentlemen, is why football will one day eat itself. Senseless decisions made by people who believe they can be the next Manchester City or Chelsea, spending peanuts along the way. As a neutral it was a very enjoyable afternoon, watching a decent game of football. One game can change the course of a season and I hope for all that Slade has done for the O’s it comes on Tuesday night.
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Tag Archive | Jewish Exile
in Commonwealth of Israel, End Times, God's Calendar, Shemitah
The Shemitah and The Yovel: Examining The Relevance of God’s Appointed Times, Part VIII
Walking Through The Open Gate
The Vision of the Dry Bones is the most graphic illustration of God’s promised restoration of the Kingdom of Israel. The establishment of the State of Israel opened the way for Judah (the Jewish portion of Israel) to return to the land, but to the way for Ephraim (Northern Israel) has remained closed until now. (Ezekiel’s Vision, The Coloured Picture Bible for Children, available on Mannkind Perspectives.)
An Enduring Standard
We see from Scripture that the Creator’s processes are lengthy, thorough, and often completely different from what humans desire or expect. This should not be a surprise. YHVH says quite plainly that His ways are not our ways and His thoughts are not our thoughts. Nevertheless, He does tell us what we need to know, and He reveals things at the appointed times to those who bother to seek Him. What we often learn is that the answer has been there all along, but we have never understood it correctly until the right time and until we approach with the right heart. When it comes to the purpose of the Lord’s processes regarding His people Israel, the answer has been staring at us for about 3,000 years. He spoke it through Moses to prepare the people for their first great meeting with Him at Sinai:
In the third month after the sons of Israel had gone out of the land of Egypt, on that very day they came into the wilderness of Sinai. When they set out from Rephidim, they came to the wilderness of Sinai and camped in the wilderness; and there Israel camped in front of the mountain. Moses went up to God, and the Lord called to him from the mountain, saying, “Thus you shall say to the house of Jacob and tell the sons of Israel: You yourselves have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles’ wings, and brought you to Myself. Now then, if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, then you shall be My own possession among all the peoples, for all the earth is Mine; and you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’ These are the words that you shall speak to the sons of Israel.” (Exodus 19:1-6 NASB, emphasis added)
The Shemitah and The Yovel: Examining The Relevance of God’s Appointed Times, Part VII
Managing Expectations: Case Studies in God’s Processes
The Scriptures tell us that three men were designated to be Nazirites from the womb: Samson, Samuel, and John the Baptist. The engraving Samson and Delilah, by Gustave Doré, features Samson’s uncut hair, the sign of a Nazirite. Their hair indicated their special status as set apart to God. In the case of the Bible’s famous Nazirites, the Holy Spirit rested on them for purposes of judging the nation of Israel and proclaiming the Lord’s salvation. In John, the Spirit’s presence manifested in uncompromising preaching; in Samuel it was unquestioned authority to anoint the kings of Israel; and in Samson the Spirit imparted supernatural strength.
Ancient Hair Care
One of the most colorful characters in the Bible is Samson, the Judge of Israel from the tribe of Dan. His story is in Judges 13-16. It begins like this:
Now there was a certain man from Zorah, of the family of the Danites, whose name was Manoah; and his wife was barren and had no children. And the Angel of the Lord appeared to the woman and said to her, “Indeed now, you are barren and have borne no children, but you shall conceive and bear a son. Now therefore, please be careful not to drink wine or similar drink, and not to eat anything unclean. For behold, you shall conceive and bear a son. And no razor shall come upon his head, for the child shall be a Nazirite to God from the womb; and he shall begin to deliver Israel out of the hand of the Philistines.” (Judges 13:2-5 NKJV, emphasis added)
The Shemitah and The Yovel: Examining The Relevance of God’s Appointed Times, Part VI
No Idle God
Since Messiah is the Bridegroom for Israel, His Bride, it is fitting that Yeshua’s first recorded miracle occurred at a wedding. (James Tissot, The Wedding at Cana.)
Fast, Cheap, or Good?
Let us step back a bit and consider why the Creator of the Universe would allow this people He has chosen to languish in exile for a seemingly indeterminate period of time. Better yet, let us consider why the Creator created the people on this earth in the first place. Judging from the numerous references in Scripture about God taking a bride it would seem that He is seeking a co-regent to help Him run the universe. At the very least, the Bride of our King has a destiny to have dominion over the earth. That, after all, was the first instruction YHVH gave to our ancestors in His Garden. Beyond that, there is very little to tell us what He really wants. We know quite a bit about this seven thousand year experiment called human history, both how it has unfolded in the six millennia that have preceded us, and how it is to take shape in the last millennium under Messiah’s direct rule. But then comes eternity, with a new heavens and a new earth. What would God want us to do in eternity? Sit around and play harps, stuffing our mouths with whatever tastes good and with no fear of consequences? Probably not.
The Shemitah and The Yovel: Examining The Relevance of God’s Appointed Times, Part V
Is The Time Now?
It Is Finished, by James Tissot, follows the standard Christian depiction of Messiah’s work on the cross. Yeshua did complete the work of redemption, which is the cause for great rejoicing among the prophets of Israel who foretold it. However, the world continues to wait for the fulfillment of His work of restoring all things.
Expectations of Messiah
Let’s think for a moment why the disciples would ask Yeshua if the time had come for Him to restore the kingdom to Israel. This question does not even enter the consciousness of the average Christian. That is because Christian theology over the last 1,700 years has taught that Jesus Christ completed the work of the promised Messiah by dying for the sins of the world and returning to life on the third day after His crucifixion. This is a standard feature of Christian belief across the entire spectrum of traditions, from Catholic to Orthodox to any of the thousands of Protestant permutations, whether conservative or liberal. At the heart of this interpretation are the words of Yeshua just moments before He died:
After this, Jesus, knowing that all things were now accomplished, that the Scripture might be fulfilled, said, “I thirst!” Now a vessel full of sour wine was sitting there; and they filled a sponge with sour wine, put it on hyssop, and put it to His mouth. So when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, “It is finished!” And bowing His head, He gave up His spirit. (John 19:28-30 NKJV, emphasis added)
A person who had no knowledge of the rest of Scripture might assume from these words that Yeshua meant He had accomplished everything He had been sent to earth to do, and thus would conclude that everything Yeshua did as recorded in the Gospels was all that Messiah was supposed to do. Yet that is clearly not the testimony of the Prophets, nor does it match the expectations of the Apostles. Messiah Yeshua did indeed accomplish the crucial tasks of salvation and redemption, but He did not complete the work of restoration. Even though Christian traditions teach that Messiah will return at the end of the present age to rule the world, for the most part the teaching is scanty on details. The emphasis usually is on the events leading up to Messiah’s return, but skips over the extensive prophecies regarding how Messiah will rule from Jerusalem, and about life under His rule. Moreover, the typical Christian perception is that those prophecies have little relevance to the church, being only for Israel (meaning the Jews), or having already been fulfilled somehow.
The Shemitah and The Yovel: Examining The Relevance of God’s Appointed Times, Part IV
A Habitual Rebellion
Jeroboam Offering Sacrifice for the Idol
Jean-Honoré Fragonard
Restoring What We Never Knew We Lost
The return of Ephraim and reunification of all Israel has taken a key place in Jewish thought since ancient times. In fact, a key identifying feature of Messiah would be that He would end the exile of all the tribes, reunite Judah and Ephraim, and initiate a period of peace and prosperity sitting on the throne of David. Consider, for example, Hosea 11, which begins with a well-known reference from Matthew 2:13-15 cited as one of the proofs of Yeshua’s Messiahship. Yet the remainder of the chapter very rarely gets any notice in Christian circles. Here is the full chapter:
“When Israel was a child, I loved him, and out of Egypt I called My son. As they called them, so they went from them; they sacrificed to the Baals, and burned incense to carved images. I taught Ephraim to walk, taking them by their arms; but they did not know that I healed them. I drew them with gentle cords, with bands of love, and I was to them as those who take the yoke from their neck. I stooped and fed them. He shall not return to the land of Egypt; but the Assyrian shall be his king, because they refused to repent. And the sword shall slash in his cities, devour his districts, and consume them, because of their own counsels. My people are bent on backsliding from Me. Though they call to the Most High, none at all exalt Him. How can I give you up, Ephraim? How can I hand you over, Israel? How can I make you like Admah? How can I set you like Zeboiim? My heart churns within Me; My sympathy is stirred. I will not execute the fierceness of My anger; I will not again destroy Ephraim. For I am God, and not man, the Holy One in your midst; and I will not come with terror. They shall walk after the Lord. He will roar like a lion. When He roars, then His sons shall come trembling from the west; they shall come trembling like a bird from Egypt, like a dove from the land of Assyria. And I will let them dwell in their houses,” says the Lord. “Ephraim has encircled Me with lies, and the house of Israel with deceit; but Judah still walks with God, even with the Holy One who is faithful. (Hosea 11:1-12 NKJV, emphasis added)
The Shemitah and The Yovel: Examining The Relevance of God’s Appointed Times, Part III
Diaspora Does Not Mean Destruction
The Assyrian conquest of Israel (Ephraim) began under Tiglath-Pileser III and ended with the destruction of Samaria under Sargon V. (Engravings by Henri Faucher-Gudin from a sketch of Tiglath-Pileser III by Eugène Flandin and of Sargon V by Austen Henry Layard, in G. Maspero, History of Egypt, Chaldea, Syria, Babylonia, and Assyria, Vol. VII, Part B.)
Ephraim: Still Enduring the Exile
By the time of Nebuchadnezzar’s first conquest of Jerusalem in 605 BC, the Ephraimite (Northern) Kingdom of Israel had been in exile for over a century. As with Judah, the exile of Israel by the Assyrian Empire proceeded in stages, beginning with the invasions of Tiglath-Pileser III (Pul) in 734 BC, and concluding with the siege and conquest of Israel’s capital, Samaria, by Shalmaneser V and Sargon II from 724 to 722 BC. The account of II Kings 17 contains the summary of the conquest, as well as an explanation of why the exile took place:
Now the king of Assyria went throughout all the land, and went up to Samaria and besieged it for three years. In the ninth year of Hoshea, the king of Assyria took Samaria and carried Israel away to Assyria, and placed them in Halah and by the Habor, the River of Gozan, and in the cities of the Medes. For so it was that the children of Israel had sinned against the Lord their God, who had brought them up out of the land of Egypt, from under the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt; and they had feared other gods, and had walked in the statutes of the nations whom the Lord had cast out from before the children of Israel, and of the kings of Israel, which they had made. Also the children of Israel secretly did against the Lord their God things that were not right, and they built for themselves high places in all their cities, from watchtower to fortified city. They set up for themselves sacred pillars and wooden images on every high hill and under every green tree. There they burned incense on all the high places, like the nations whom the Lord had carried away before them; and they did wicked things to provoke the Lord to anger, for they served idols, of which the Lord had said to them, “You shall not do this thing.” Yet the Lord testified against Israel and against Judah, by all of His prophets, every seer, saying, “Turn from your evil ways, and keep My commandments and My statutes, according to all the law which I commanded your fathers, and which I sent to you by My servants the prophets.” Nevertheless they would not hear, but stiffened their necks, like the necks of their fathers, who did not believe in the Lord their God. And they rejected His statutes and His covenant that He had made with their fathers, and His testimonies which He had testified against them; they followed idols, became idolaters, and went after the nations who were all around them, concerning whom the Lord had charged them that they should not do like them. So they left all the commandments of the Lord their God, made for themselves a molded image and two calves, made a wooden image and worshiped all the host of heaven, and served Baal. And they caused their sons and daughters to pass through the fire, practiced witchcraft and soothsaying, and sold themselves to do evil in the sight of the Lord, to provoke Him to anger. Therefore the Lord was very angry with Israel, and removed them from His sight; there was none left but the tribe of Judah alone. Also Judah did not keep the commandments of the Lord their God, but walked in the statutes of Israel which they made. And the Lord rejected all the descendants of Israel, afflicted them, and delivered them into the hand of plunderers, until He had cast them from His sight. For He tore Israel from the house of David, and they made Jeroboam the son of Nebat king. Then Jeroboam drove Israel from following the Lord, and made them commit a great sin. For the children of Israel walked in all the sins of Jeroboam which he did; they did not depart from them, until the Lord removed Israel out of His sight, as He had said by all His servants the prophets. So Israel was carried away from their own land to Assyria, as it is to this day. (II Kings 17:5-23 NKJV)
The Shemitah and The Yovel: Examining The Relevance of God’s Appointed Times, Part II
Consequences of Missed Appointments
The Twelve Tribes of Israel after the conquest of Canaan.
Why Do These Things Matter?
As with everything else that comes from the Torah, there is the question of whether this principles of the Shemitah and the Yovel apply to anyone but the Jewish people. The answer is yes, on several counts. First, the people who received the Law included the Jews (mostly the tribes of Judah, Benjamin, and Levi), but also included the other Ten Tribes of Israel now scattered among the nations, as well as a large collection of foreigners who had attached themselves to Israel at the time of the Exodus. Thus the Torah was and is not exclusively a “Jewish thing”, but something that is instructive to everyone who is part of Israel. And who is Israel? According to the Apostle Paul, Israel includes anyone who has professed faith in Messiah Yeshua and, by virtue of the grace of God, become part of the Commonwealth of Israel and Seed of Abraham (Ephesians 2, Romans 11, Galatians 3:26-29).
Second, when the Lord God gave His final instructions to Moses regarding the Shemitah in Deuteronomy 31, he specified that at the Feast of Tabernacles at the end of each Shemitah every single person in Israel was to assemble at the place He designated (Jerusalem) and hear the entire Law read to them. That included all men, women, and children of both the native-born Israelites and the foreigners. Why? So that, “they may hear and that they may learn to fear the Lord your God and carefully observe all the words of this law, and that their children, who have not known it, may hear and learn to fear the Lord your God as long as you live in the land which you cross the Jordan to possess.” (Deuteronomy 9:13 NKJV)
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My Personal Canon
← Bitter Healing: Poetry and Letters by Karoline von Günderrode
Ernesto: The Unfinished Novella of Umberto Saba →
Unlivable Life: No Place on Earth by Christa Wolf
Christa Wolf stuns us with her literary prowess and creative genius in this novella by imagining two talented, tragic, nineteenth century authors meeting at an afternoon tea. Heinrich von Kleist, who had a military career before embarking on a series of trips throughout Europe, is best known for his dramatic works and novellas. Karoline von Günderrode, who lived in a convent for unmarried, impoverished, aristocratic women, is best known for her poetry and her dramatic works. Both Kleist and Günderrode were unlucky in love, prone to depression and anxiety, and committed suicide at a young age. Through the meeting of these two tragic figures Wolf explores the complications that each gender encounters in relation to social pressures and self-identity.
Kleist is accompanied to this afternoon tea by his doctor, Wedekind, who treated him after the author collapsed from a nervous breakdown while he was living in Paris. Wedekind takes Kleist into his home and attempts to alleviate his severe mental disorder which causes him to have social anxiety, panic attacks, stuttering and excessive sweating. We are given the impression that Kleist’s outing with Wedekind is meant to serve as some type of therapy for Kleist so that he can practice staying calm and suppressing his anxiety in a social situation. Kleist is a veritable bundle of nerves and Wolf, by writing the text from the point-of-view of her character’s inner monologue, creates a man whose anxiety is palpable. Kleist’s thoughts are torturous and never ending:
If there were only some way to turn off the mechanism inside his head, which they had installed there instead of a normal memory, and which, no matter what he does, no matter where he goes or stays, and even during the night, when he starts bolt awake at 4 a.m., is incapable of doing anything but repeating the same train of thought over and over, the same everlasting tormenting monologue which he is forced to conduct on every single one of innumerable days in order to defend himself against invisible accusers.
The other attendees of the tea party attempt to engage Kleist in conversation but the writer struggles to relax and enjoy the party. He doesn’t mingle with the other guests, but stays in the shadows, along with his doctor, trying to seem as invisible as possible. Even when Wedekind encourages Kleist to tell a funny anecdote about the doctor’s dog, the exchange with the other guests ends in an awkward scene when the listeners attempt to ask Kleist additional questions about his story. Kleist does, however, notice an unusual woman also lingering on the edges of the party who seems very different from the other guests, especially the women.
Karoline von Günderrode is invited to the party which is being thrown by a friend of her inner circle. Wolf portrays her attendance at the tea party as a welcome break from the convent but she, too, is subjected to uncomfortable conversations and awkward exchanges with the other guests, especially the men. Friedrich Carl von Savigny, who is present at the party, has just broken off an affair with Günderrode who is still healing from the experience. Savigny is there with his wife, the woman whom he chose to marry over Günderrode, and as a further insult and indignity he keeps referring to his former lover as “Günderrode my pet.” She reminisces in her thoughts about the harsh things he said to her when he ended their relationship. Savigny, in particular, is upset with the poem she had composed for him:
Undisciplined, unpredictable, inordinate, extreme. Oh, Savigny. After all , it was only a poem, even if, admittedly it was too rash, too ungoverned a gesture. “The Kiss in the Dream.” What could that mean to you just two weeks before your wedding? “A kiss breathed into me the breadth of life…” And I was compelled to add that I no longer knew myself: that’s true. This is the kind of thing little Günderrode-my-pet dreams about, and of whom does she dream? Of someone who is very loving and is always loved.
When the members of the party take a walk outdoors, Kleist and Günderrode have already taken notice of one another and begin a conversation about identity and gender roles. They recognize the struggle against societal expectations with which each contends on a daily basis. Kleist can be a poet and writer but have no source of income, which is not considered honorable behavior for a man. Or he can join the military, have a decent salary and deny his creative urges.
Günderrode, as a poor, single woman in 19th century Germany, doesn’t conform to the expectations of her gender any more than Kleist. Her greatest ambition is to be a writer and when her poetry is published under a pseudonym, she is accused of being too masculine, too learned and arrogant. Her romantic entanglements with Clemens Brentano and Savigny have also drawn accusations from other women in society that she is a coquette. According to the expectations of her social circle, she is not acting as a proper female should.
Wolf’s prose is the most poetic and inspiring when she brings the authors together; in a moment of understanding and mutual compassion, they look towards each other and at this point in the text their inner thoughts become the same, they becomes “we”:
They examine each other candidly, without reserve. Naked gazes. Self abandonment, a tentative experiment. Smiles, first hers, then his, ironical. Let’s pretend it’s a game even if it’s deadly earnest. You know it, I know it too. Don’t come too close. Don’t stay too far away. Conceal yourself. Reveal yourself. Forget what you know. Remember it. masks fall away, superincrustations, scabs, varnish. The bare skin. Undisguised features. So that’s my face. That is yours. Different down to the ground, alike from the ground up. Woman. Man. Untenable words. We two, each imprisoned in his sex.
Not long after their encounter Günderrode commits suicide with a dagger that she keeps with her at all times. Wolf foreshadows the author’s sad end by using words from her own poetry in the text: “Ours is a sad fate. I envy the rivers which merge. Death is better than such a life as this.” Kleist also seems to have had the same opinion about his own life because several years later he meets a sickly woman with whom he commits a murder-suicide. If these two lost, and lonely souls did really meet, would they have found comfort in one another’s friendship? Or would seeing and recognizing their own melancholy in one another cause them to run the other way?
Filed under German Literature
Tagged as Christa Wolf, German Literature, Heinrich von Kleist, Karoline von Gunderrode
17 responses to “Unlivable Life: No Place on Earth by Christa Wolf”
Amateur Reader (Tom)
It’s a series! I am impressed. I did not know about any of these books. Very interesting to read about Günderrode in these different contexts.
Thanks so much, Tom! I am also thinking of reading some Clemens Brentano and Kleist to continue my series.
Thanks so much for the recommendations. I am particularly interested in reading his plays.
Kleist plays and stories are very much worth reading. They are mostly terrifying.
banff1972
The stories and fragments are amazing!!!!
They are. Do glad I discovered her.
Well, clearly I need to be reading both Christa Wolf and Karoline von Günderrode. (I’ve been enjoying your reviews of her work too.)
Helen Wallimann
Another interesting review! But Karoline von Günderrode (1780-1806), was a “poor, single (upper class) woman” in 18th rather than 19th century Germany. She was poor because her father died when she was 16, so she was taken into the care of a Protestant foundation for girls of noble birth (the convent you mention). For Karoline, who was influenced by the ideas of the French Revolution, this was like living in a prison. She committed suicide after being informed that the man who’d been her lover for two years, Georg Friedrich von Creuzer, had promised his wife to break off the relationship.
I was thinking 19th century because her poems were published in 1804 and 1805 and she died in 1806. My previous two posts about her cover all of these biographical details in case you haven’t read them. She was heavily influenced by the ideas of German Romanticism which is covered a great deal in the new English translation of her Poetic Fragments.
kaggsysbookishramblings
Such an interesting review. I have a copy of this and now I have plenty of background thanks to your posts!
I hope you enjoy it! Looking forward to your thoughts about it.
Enjoyed this review ! Have you read Fitzgerald’s Blue Flower, about Novalis?
Thanks for the recommendation! I will check it out.
1streading
I clearly need to read the Christa Wolf I do have (A Model Childhood) quickly!
(Kleist has also been on my radar – at least there’s good Penguin Classics volume of his work).
Oh, you should read Wolf! I bought some of Kleist’s plays which I am particularly interested in.
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My day job is teaching Latin and Ancient Greek at an independent day and boarding school in New England. I enjoy books in various genres, but especially literary fiction, literature in translation, historical fiction, history, short stories and travel writing and poetry.
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Imbers et al. Test Human-Caused Global Warming Detection
Posted on 3 June 2013 by dana1981
A new study published in the Journal of Geophysical Research – Atmospheres by Imbers, Lopez, Huntingford, and Allen tests the robustness of the detection of human-caused global warming in previous studies. Specifically their study builds on Lean and Rind (2009), Folland et al. (2013) (which they refer to as Folland 2011, based on an abstract presented at the AGU conference in 2011 of the recently-published 2013 paper), Kaufmann et al. (2011), and Lockwood (2008), as well as considering Loehle and Scafetta (2011).
Imbers et al. investigated whether using different characterizations and models of internal natural variability in the climate system (for example the El Niño Southern Oscillation [ENSO] and Atlantic Multidecadal Oscillation [AMO]), with both short and long memory processes, would impact the detection of the human-caused global warming signal. The results of the previous studies listed above are illustrated in Figure 1.
Figure 1: The top panel shows the observed global mean air surface temperature anomaly from HadCRUT3 (gray line) and the best multivariate fits using the methods of Lean and Rind [2009] (blue line), Lockwood [2008] (red line), Folland et al. [2011] (green line), and Kaufmann et al. [2011] (orange line). The remaining panels show the individual temperature contributions to the top panel fits from ENSO (second panel), volcanoes (third panel), solar irradiance (fourth panel), anthropogenic contribution (fifth panel), and other factors (sixth panel) that include the AMO for Folland et al. [2011] and minor annual, semi-annual, and 17.5 year cycle identified by Kopp and Lean [2011] in the residuals of Lean and Rind’s [2009] model.
The human contribution to global surface warming (the fifth panel in Figure 1) is shown in Figure 2. Click the image for a larger version.
Figure 2: The human (anthropogenic) contribution to global surface warming. From Imbers et al. (2013).
These studies estimate the human contribution to global surface warming over the past 30–60 years at approximately:
0.15°C per decade (Lockwood)
0.12°C per decade (Folland)
0.16°C per decade (Kaufmann)
0.17°C per decade (Lean)
Note that the overall global surface warming trend over this timeframe is approximately 0.16–0.17°C per decade, meaning that these studies put the human contribution in the 70–100% range.
Imbers et al. found that all of the global surface temperature influences they examined (ENSO, AMO, solar, volcanic, and anthropogenic) were detectable in the data from all of these studies, with the possible exception of the solar influence in the Kaufmann study, whose range of possible temperature influences did overlap with zero.
Overall, regardless of their modeled characteristics of internal climate variability, Imbers et al. found a robust detection of the human-caused global surface warming signal.
They also tested what would happen when the temperature contribution of ENSO contribution is separated as a signal and removed from the data (dotted lines in Figure 3) vs. when it's included in the residual internal climate variability (solid lines in Figure 3). A lower value (scaling factor) means a smaller contribution from an influence on global surface temperature. For example, the volcanic influence blue solid line is lower than the blue dotted line, indicating that when ENSO is treated as a part of residual internal climate variability, it suggests a smaller volcanic temperature influence.
Figure 3: Scaling factors and their 95% confidence interval (vertical axis) for the different signals: ENSO, volcanic (VOL), solar (SOL), anthropogenic (ANT), and AMO (as indicated in the horizontal axis); using the data from the four studies: Lean (blue), Lockwood (red), Folland (green), and Kaufmann (orange). Illustrating the sensitivity of the detection statistics to ENSO, when its contribution to the global mean temperature is separated as a signal (dotted lines) or included in the residual internal variability (thick lines).
As you can see, the treatment of ENSO does not make a significant difference in the detection of the human-caused global warming signal. It's the non-anthropogenic signals where the treatment of ENSO makes a difference in their contributions to global surface warming.
Imbers et al. also considered the 20-year and 60-year cycles proposed by Loehle and Scafetta. Once again, they found that including these cycles did not make a significant difference in the detection of the human-caused global warming signal. The biggest difference was in the temperature contribution of AMO. However, Imbers et al. found that overall the cycles proposed by Loehle and Scafetta were insignificant contributors to global surface temperature changes.
"The results of this statistical study suggest that adding these two low-frequency [20- and 60-year] oscillations does not change significantly the detection and attribution of the anthropogenic signal in any of the studies considered ... These results suggest that statistically these cycles are not significant and are not clearly distinguishable from the internal variability as described by our noise models."
Ultimately Imbers et al. conclude,
"the detection of the anthropogenic signal is statistically robust independent of the model utilized to characterize the internal variability."
In other words, consistent with the 97% expert consensus, human-caused global warming is a reality, and humans are responsible for the majority of the global surface warming in recent decades.
StealthAircraftSoftwareModeler at 00:38 AM on 4 June, 2013
Am I reading Fig 2 correctly? It appears that this chart is saying that the human contribution before 1985 was negative, which implies cooling. That doesn't seem to make sense to me. I thought that most of the warming since 1900 was man made?
Kevin C at 00:56 AM on 4 June, 2013
No, the zero point on that graph is meaningless. They've rebaselined everything so the mean on 1980-2000 is zero - presumably for comparison purposes.
Having gone and looked at the paper itself, I do not get the impression that the 0 point is meaningless. In order to extract the components (ENSO, Volcanoes, AGW, Sun, Other) of the temperature change, they must conclude that the AGW component prior to 1985 was negative in order to get all the numbers to "balance." That doesn't seem right to me.
I guess I can understand that they can pull ENSO and Volcanic effects from the global temperature record based upon physics modeling, but how did they separate out Sun and Other effects from ANT? This shows that the Sun is very stable – perhaps it is in total solar intensity, but the Sun does a bunch of other things that may affect the climate – like solar wind, coronal mass ejections (CME), magnetics fields, to name a couple of major ones. These clearly are not very stable and are highly related to sun spots and the solar cycle. If you assume the sun is stable and other factors are stable, then I suppose you can easily conclude the ANT is a major player. But what if the Sun and Other are not as stable as assumed? Then the ANT contribution would be much lower.
dana1981 at 02:25 AM on 4 June, 2013
Stealth @3 - the solar contribution appears 'stable' because the change in solar forcing is so small compared to the change in GHG forcing. And there is no evidence that solar wind, CME, etc. have a non-negligible impact on global temperatures. That's not an assumption, it's what the scientific literature says.
Kevin @2 is also correct about the baselining being the reason some of the values are negative.
Can you respond with some links that point me to some of this scientific literature that asserts that solar wind, CME, etc have a negligible effect on climate? I am having a hard time believing this claim and I would love to see how someone proved this. I like to follow CME and solar weather for auroras, and the last X class CME that hit the earth dump more energy into the upper atmosphere in 24 hours than has been released by all of mankind over all of history. CMEs set up huge electrical currents in the ground and wires and can knock out the power grid, fry satellites, and force astronauts into protective and shielded quarters on the ISS. That, in my book, isn’t trivial or negligible, so I do not see how you can make that claim.
I’ve done a quick Google search and haven’t found any such documentation supporting your claim. Wikipedia states, “The IPCC acknowledges that there is a low level of scientific understanding with respect to solar variation.” (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solar_variation under the “Effect on global warming.”) I doubt the IPCC would say this if there was clear science to the contrary, so I really look forward to your references.
As for the zero point, still just don’t buy that the zero point is a re baseline for comparison as you can Kevin state. That makes no sense based on the other charts. All other factors (ENSO, etc) are relative to zero showing how they added or subtracted from the global temperature. Note how VOL is always negative, which makes sense. A volcano burps out a bunch of aerosols which reflects some sun light and cools the earth some amount. The ENSO can warm or cool the planet and they show that in their chart.
If you look at the five charts, you can see a global cooling trend from 1945 to about 1965. ENSO is near zero over this time span, VOL is also zero, and the SUN and Other are always near zero. In order to have cooling from 1945 to 1965, then ANT has to be negative as the authors have clearly shown on their chart, otherwise things just do not add up. If ANT is related to GHG, and GHG always warm the planet, then the ANT chart should never be negative. Hence the reason this paper seems incorrect to me.
KR at 05:04 AM on 4 June, 2013
Stealth - Regarding zero point: If you are examining correlation/causation, the only thing that matters is the change, the anomaly. Baseline value makes no difference whatsoever for such studies.
Regarding solar winds and coronal mass ejections (CME): solar winds vary time-correlated with total insolation (TSI), any effect from solar wind appears (is folded in) as a larger contribution from the 11-year solar cycle, a larger solar attribution.
The energy in a CME is roughly that of 1/6 second of total solar output, and few of them actually strike the earth - not much of a contribution. And the frequency of solar flares is also tied to the 11-year solar cycle - that would again just fold into causation studies as a larger solar attribution.
Stealth @5 - see here. In some cases it's perhaps more accurate to say there's no evidence or research supporting a link between your proposed solar variable and global temps.
Whether or not you buy it, Kevin and I are correct on the baselining issue. Just look at the top panel of Figure 1. The panels below add up to the model simulations shown in the top panel. The top panel has a negative temp anomaly before ~1970. All of the lower panels are plotted in terms of temp anomalies as well. It's just a baselining choice issue.
MA Rodger at 05:39 AM on 4 June, 2013
StealthAircraftSoftwareModeler @5.
Concerning the position of the zero on the vertical axes of figure 1 of the post. You say "That makes no sense based on the other charts" but the position of the zero is actually what makes those six panels sensible.
The top panel has its zero point set by the global temperature anomaly based on 1980-2000. As the caption explains - "The remaining panels show the individual temperature contributions to the top panel..." As the top panel of global temperature is well below zero at the start of the series (c -0.65ºC), the sum of all the contributions in the other panels must also total to that same value (of c -0.65ºC).
Because the anomaly base is 1980-2000, a period in which ther was quite a lot of cooling due to volcanic activity, you will find that the panel VOL plots a positive contribution to temperatures for the vast majority of the series. This means that for most of the period 1880-2010, volcanic activity resulted in a higher temperature in comparison with the base period 1980-2000.
Likewise the human impact ANT. Because human positive forcings were less before 1980-2000, the impact of those human forcings will be lower temperatures before that period. To describe it as "cooling" as you do requires the analysis to run backwards in time. Forwards in time, the usual way, 'cold' becomes 'hot' which is usually considered to be 'warming.'
And as plotted, the period 1945-65 is consistent with a rising human contribution.
Tom Curtis at 05:45 AM on 4 June, 2013
Stealth @5:
1) Volcanic contribution is not always zero. If you run a line across at the zero level you see that it is mostly positive, only becoming noticably negative near major volcanic erruptions (approx 1905, 1965, 1985, and 1992). The later two mean that the average is near zero over the baseline period as determined by eye.
2) The CME striking Earth in March 2012 was exceptional, but only released 26 billion kWh (93.6 x 10^15 Joules) of energy to Earth's upper atmosphere over three days. That represents an average 0.0007 W/M^2 energy over the three days. Only 5% of that energy actually reached the Earth's surface, the rest being radiated to space. Therefore the CME increased the Earth's energy imbalance for three days by only 10,000th of the minimum current Top Of Atmoshere energy imbalance. I would consider that inconsequential.
Rob Honeycutt at 06:59 AM on 4 June, 2013
Sealth said... "That, in my book, isn’t trivial or negligible, so I do not see how you can make that claim."
Yes, it's not trivial if you are a tiny and highly sensitive piece of electronics several miles above the surface of the earth, or if you're a biological creature floating around in space susceptible to gene damage.
What is being discussed here is the radiative forcing on the climate system. Irradiance from the sun in coming in a ~1340W/m^2, and that varies ~0.25W/m^2 over the course of the 11 year solar cycle. Thus, the radiative change in forcing from solar activity is tiny compared to the net change of 2.8W/m^2 in anthropogenic factors.
Okay, I think I now see the baseline issue. I think a better way to say it is that the zero line on the top temperature anomaly is around 1985. In order to get to the temperature for any given date (future or backward) then add up all the component effects of ENSO, VOL, SUN, ANT, and Other. It does appear that if you add these up then you can compute the temperature for the second date. For example, to get the temperature for 1950 from 1985, we take the temperature anomaly of 0 deg C and add -0.1 deg C for ENSO component at 1950, then 0 for VOL, then about 0 for SUN, then about -0.3 or -0.4 for ANT, and about 0 for Other. Then we arrive at about -0.4 or -0.5 for 1950, which matches the top temperature graph. Is this correct? If so, thanks for taking the time to explain it.
I’ve done a bit of research into AGW just for fun. I’m not a “denier” per se since I’m sure CO2 does absorbs some IR wavelengths; I model some of this in aircraft detection and sensor computation for my job. My main question is “how much has CO2 contributed to global warming?” This set of charts seems to indicate that GHG is all of it over the last 100 years since all the charts (except ANT) wiggle about their respective zero line. I have a hard time believing that that Sun and Other are that stable. If you assume they are stable, then the conclusion has to be that GHG is the problem. I am curious as to how scientists have split out and determined that the Sun and Other are that stable.
Well, if you are proposing a strong solar impact on temperature, then you have the problem that solar output has declined over the past 30 years when the climate has been warming most rapidly. If you want to argue for a stronger solar term, you are also arguing for a stronger anthopogenic contribution.
scaddenp at 08:03 AM on 4 June, 2013
I dont think any model assumes "Sun and Other are that stable". Solar input has been measured since 70s and inferred from proxies before that etc. If you look at the IPCC WG1 report, you can see what the models use for the various forcings and how these have changed over time. The references will take you to the papers that tell you how these are estimated. You might want to look at Benestad and Schmidt 2009 for a statistical look at the climate and solar forcings.
Paul D at 08:44 AM on 4 June, 2013
Out of interest has there been any modelling in which CO2 levels are stable and solar input isn't?
I would think that the resulting changes would be different to that of CO2 changing, eg different types of weather patterns, different impacts on warming in different regions etc.
Stealth... If you're interested in the topic, you should definitely check out this lecture from Dr Richard Alley. It's a nice overview of climate science. And Alley's a pretty entertaining speaker.
http://www.agu.org/meetings/fm09/lectures/lecture_videos/A23A.shtml
michael sweet at 09:28 AM on 4 June, 2013
Stealth,
The human contribution is not only GHG. Aerosols are also included as a human forcing. Keep in mind that aerosols are a negative forcing. That means that the GHG effect is more than 100% of the measured warming. The rest of the forcings add up to peanuts in the long term (probably negative). When coal is scaled back the aerosols will quickly be removed from the equation. That means more warming at first when less coal is used.
It sounds to me like you have just started looking at AGW. Read a lot more before you reach conclusions. There are a lot of open threads here at SkS.
jmorpuss at 09:30 AM on 4 June, 2013
If Atlant http://www.australianrain.com.au/assets/files/PDF/StatisticalModellingRainfall.pdf uses the electron released by the antenna to seed clouds, how much seeding dose high voltage power lines create ?
Paul D - for modelling the difference, see Hansen 2005 "Efficacy of climate forcings"
Glenn Tamblyn at 16:59 PM on 4 June, 2013
Solar output as measured by satellites is around 1366 W/M2 here at the Earths orbit around the sun. Over the 11 year solar cycle it varies by around +/- 0.5 W/M2 so less than 0.04% variation around its average. Over the history of observations this has declined slightly, by perhaps 0.1 W/M2
Comparing solar output strength to radiative forcing requires that we adjust for the fact that the frontal area the Earth presents to the Sun is only 1/4 of the Earth's surface are so this gives us a solar cycle variation at the Earths surface of +/- 0.125 W/M2 and a longer term trend variation of -0.025 W/M2.
In contrast the direct forcing due to CO2 is given by the eqn
F = 5.35 ln(C/C0)
where C0 is taken as being preindustrial levels of 280 ppm. Currently we are at around 400 ppm. This gives a CO2 alone a forcing of 1.9 W/M2 since pre-industrial times.
So the complete solar cycle is only around 7% of the CO2 forcing and the long term trend change is only around 1.3% of the CO2 forcing, and negative.
jmorpuss
My reading of your link is that Atlant doesn't release electrons. It releases ionized particles, or possibly ionized atoms or molecules. And they are generating a Corona Discharge to produce them. It isn't simply the presence of a high voltage.
So on that basis I would expect that high voltage powerlines alone wouldn't generate any. Anything that caused arcing from such power lines might, but that is a fairly rare event. And the quantities of ionised particles needed to influence clouds would be substantial so anything coming from such arcing events would have miniscule impact.
Kevin C at 19:22 PM on 4 June, 2013
Glenn@19: I think you forgot the albedo factor (0.7), so your solar forcing variation should be even smaller - about 0.1W/m2. Similarly for the trend term.
Yeah Kevin, forgot that part.
StealthAircraftSoftwareModeler at 23:25 PM on 4 June, 2013
Okay, there's a lot of information here that I would like to take a closer look, and it will take a little bit to go through it. This post and thread is exactly what I have been wondering about, which is specifically trying to address and measure how much warming is due to AGW. I’ve done a lot of general internet research over the last year or two and have been on this site, Real Climate, Anthony Watts’ site, Roy Spencer, Steve McIntyre among other sites trying to gather information and fuse it together into what I think it a coherent picture. I expect that mentioning some of these names on this site might be offensive, so I apologize in advance.
My general philosophy is that I believe none of what I hear and only half of what I see. My background is dual BS in Physics and Computer Science with 30+ years in software development and modeling, most all of it related to stealth aircraft -- real time software systems operating in real world environments to support pilot decision making process. It requires modeling aircraft, weather, terrain, weapons, sensors, threats and so on. Lots of optimization algorithms to maximize opportunity and minimize risk. It has been a fun and cool job, and very interesting. If I have learned one thing, it is that modeling is always wrong (meaning it is never fully correct under all cases) and that the real world is different than the lab world, which is different than the modeled world, at least for aircraft and radars. I strongly suspect the climate is even more complex than what I have dealt with, which makes me very skeptical that climate scientists have a full grasp on the complexities of the climate. This is not a criticism of climate scientists, it is just hat things are hard and complex. After all, if it was easy, then everyone would agree and there wouldn’t be much debate.
Give me a day or two to wallow in these links and I’ll post some more questions shortly. Thanks for the feedback.
Doc Snow at 03:29 AM on 5 June, 2013
On the question of the Sun, and its impact on Earthly climate, it's worth noting that the question of Solar variability has been revolutionized by satellite observations. Prior to the satellite era, variations in solar output were less than experimental error, and it was commonplace to use the term 'solar constant' to refer to a particular defined measure of solar energy:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solar_constant
Since then, the term has fallen largely out of use.
However, that doesn't mean that measurement of solar output was non-existent prior to satellites. Indeed, the history goes back to the late 18th century at least:
http://doc-snow.hubpages.com/hub/Fire-From-Heaven-Climate-Science-And-The-Element-Of-Life-Part-One-Fire-By-Day
It's worth mentioning Claude Pouillet in this context; he was able to make a pretty decent estimate in the 1830s--better, in fact, than the formidable American astronomer Samuel Langley, some of whose data was so serviceable to Svante Arrhenius in calculating the first model of CO2-induced warming, back in 1896. I've written about Poillet, and Langley and Arrhenius, too--for those who may be interested, those stories are at:
http://doc-snow.hubpages.com/hub/The-Science-of-Global-Warming-in-the-age-of-Napoleon-III
http://doc-snow.hubpages.com/hub/Global-Warming-Science-And-The-Dawn-Of-Flight
Stealth @23... I think you'll find people here to be very supportive of taking a genuinely skeptical approach to this issue. It is a very complex science, but there are some very fundamental elements that drive the scientific understanding of climate.
Primarily, the scientific understanding of climate change is not based on modeling or hockey stick graphs. It's based on the fundamental physics of atmospheric greenhouse gases that has been known for 150 years.
I think you'll find that climate modelers actually would agree with you when you state, "modeling is always wrong (meaning it is never fully correct under all cases)." That's why climate modeling is about establishing boundary conditions rather than attempting to specifically model exactly what the climate is going to do. That is why you'll always see climate scientists referring to "model ensembles" rather than any specific model.
scaddenp@18
I might be missing something, but I can't see a mention of varying insolation in that Hansen paper abstract.
Manwichstick at 06:55 AM on 5 June, 2013
@SASM #23
modeling is always wrong (meaning it is never fully correct under all cases) and that the real world is different than the lab world, which is different than the modeled world, at least for aircraft and radars. I strongly suspect the climate is even more complex than what I have dealt with, which makes me very skeptical that climate scientists have a full grasp on the complexities of the climate.
I would like to chip in with a thought about climate modelling -big picture- which your comment reminded me of. A model by definition is "wrong", but lately I have been trying to use the word "incomplete" instead so that I don't create the impression that a model has no utility. I would agree that our planet's climate system is more complex than smaller scale models pertaining to stealth aircraft design - however that doesn't mean that climate models have less predictive power than the models you have dealt with.
I like to use the example of radioactive elements. The moment when an individual nucleus will blow is fundamentally unknowable. However, from this utter lack of causation knowledge comes a term "half-life" that is startilingly accurate in it predictions. Sometimes an infinite mess of choas when looked at in small chunks is freakishly predictable in the large scale. Like-wise, I think the earth's climate system is surprisingly reducable to a planet-wide, yearly average temperature, despite the appearence of innumerable interactions and parameters depending on how deep you go in the oceans, how high in the atmosphere, and with what 3-D pixel size resolution you care about. And I don't think we've seen a great increase in accuracy in our climate models since in the early eighties. Those simpler models spat out numbers with great "big picture" accuracy.
From a distance, the earth is a tiny speck of wet rock , with a thin coating of gas, circling a heat source. Dead simple to calculate its average temperature over long time scales... well, maybe having to guess a bit about aerosols...
Now models zoom in more, calculate more, they add more coupling between the various "spheres" (litho, cryo, atmos, oceans) but even after decades when you get the same big picture answer for the earth's average temperature, you realize these "complex" models are merely arguing over who/what/where gets the energy that is sloshing around our planet. Does chopping the energy units into smaller and smaller peices and putting GPS-like tracking on them as they move around really make that much difference? When you put a bubble around the earth and measure every thing that is going in and out - this is something much simplier to model than wing dynamics at different altitudes, or whatever cool classified things you were working on.
Stealth, earlier you said, "I’m sure CO2 does absorbs some IR wavelengths; ".
That is so important to focus on -CO2 MUST warm the planet. If you still have any doubts, visit a lab with an infrared microscope and exhale on it. You will get the same absorption pattern you see from satellites looking down at the earth. So, with no way to argue against increasing CO2 causing warming, the interesting questions become: warming where, how fast, will it be dangerous, is there anything that will cool us down, etc.
The questions we want climate models to answer now are much more specific: will the water level in this river go up or down in the next 30 years? What is the climate like on that exo-planet? Would you recommend I build my hut on this hectare of permafrost here?
You mentioned some of the websites you go to for information. I've recently become sad about the futility of the Anthony Watts site. I think of the wasted hours people put in there under the partial guise of growing our scientific knowledge. If the purpose is public opinion and political medling, then it is less wasteful - but I have found it to be a very irrelevant space for scientific knowledge as it pertains to climate change. It feels like I'm watching a movie starring teenagers who get deeper and deeper into trouble because they refuse to take the advice of the police.
Paul D - sorry, the paper has a data page which produces plots for various forcings. You can do say a lat/lon map for 2xCO2 with 100 year response and then compare that to an equivalent Solar forcing.
Stealth - if you are going to wallow in likes of Watts or McIntyre, then I hope you will try to ensure that you opinions are formed on the basis of published science and not misrepresentation of science. When you are presented with conflicted information, what method are you going to use evaluate truth here?
Glenn Tamblyn at 10:33 AM on 5 June, 2013
I come from a combined MechanicalEngineering/IT background. So lots of thermodynamics etc and software - although not modelling.
An important point to consider when thinking in terms of models is the scale (in space, time, magnitude) of the different factors. To take an analogy:
I install a new swimming pool in my backyard. To fill it I throw the garden hose in and turn it on. This may take daya to fill the pool. My family are impatient so they start using the pool before it is full.
If I want to model what will happen to the water level I have different factors to consider-
volume and shape of the pool which might be complex but is static.
Flow rate through the hose
Volume of my families bodies and how much water they displace
How often and when they use the pool
how much they splash around and thus how many and what waves they make
Whether the dog occassionally leaps into the pool chasing a frisbee.
Although there are multiple factors, they are not all equal. The Volume/Flowrate factors are the dominant factors and they are actually fairly simple to model. To a first order approximation that is all I need to model.
When I factor in the displacement of my families bodies there are multiple questions to be resolved - how often and when do they use the pool, fully submerged or only partly, do they all use it at the same time etc. But the magnitude of the total effect they can have is small compared to the total volume of the pool.
Then when I look at the impact of the waves they create it gets even more complex - all the factors previously plus what are they doing in the pool - just quietly floating, swimming laps, fighting, diving, splashing water out of the pool. Are they relaxed adults or hyperactive teenagers. How many high caffiene energy drinks have they had. Again much more complexity but now dealing with smaller scale phenomena; not really the average level of the pool anymore but the spatial distibution of its level in the form of waves.
But our first order approximation is still pretty close to the right result.
Climate modelling is similar. A range of basic processes that aren't as complex as people think, leading to a general result. Then additional details that add complexity and more detail to the result but don't significantly change the broad result.
People often look at the complexity of weather and asume that this is the starting point for Climate modelling when it isn't. Climate modelling actually comes at the problem from the opposity direction - start with the broadest mechanisms then seek to progressively refine the result through more detail and complexity. Interestingly the history of Climate Models has been that the results produced by the very earliest models haven't changed much as they have been refined to the very much larger models of today.
The modellers have been trying to do two things by adding more features and detail.
Try and determine whether any of these additional complexities have changed the broad conclusions of the simpler models. By and large they haven't.
Try and determine in greater detail what the trajectory of the warming will be, what path it will follow to the final conclusion. This has had some success but not as well. Models of Arctic sea ice haven't captured the pace of melting very well, they aren't modelling changes in the Trade winds very well etc.
The problem is that if we want to compare real world changes with the model predictions, in shorter time frames it is harder to discern the broader trends from beneath the 'noise' of the smaller details in the data, and the models don't do as well at modelling the smaller details.
So some people fall into the fallacy of thinking that if the models can't capture the detail as well, that this in someway constitutes evidence that they can't model the basics. If I can't model the waves on my pool very well, then surely I aren't modelling the volume of the pool and the flow rate in the hose very well.
Also it is very easy to look at the complexity of weather and asume that this is the starting point for the level of complexity in modelling climate. However climate is actually the average of the weather and the average of the weather patterns are actually simpler than the details - storm tracks tend to run here, rainfall bands are here, ocean currents follow these tracks etc.
Then the underlying drivers for these patterns can be simpler still. Evaporation is strongest in the tropics so more upwelling of air happens there. Air cools and changes density at known rates with altitude, warming water by x degrees will change it's density by y. At it's simplest adding a certain amount of Greenhouse gas will restrict the flow of energy to space by X Watts/M2 , the Earths surface needs to warm by Y degrees to restore the Earth's energy balance.
Dave123 at 10:49 AM on 5 June, 2013
Hi SASM-
My understanding of the magnetic impulse hypothesis is that the energy dumped into the upper atmosphere by a coronal mass ejection is supposed to radiate/convect to the ground, and this is being ignored in conventional measurement of TSI. That doesn't actually happen.
NASA Coronal Mass Ejection
As this article indicates, the green house gases in the thermosphere reradiate 95% of the energy back into space....sort of an energy shield out of science fiction. (But it being cited by people who mince words as proof that AGW isn't real because in this case CO2 acts as coolant)
The article also note that as big as this energy dump was, comparted to the earth's outbound IR buget the amount is very small, and wouldn't ever be notice by anyone on the surface of the earth. Compare this qaulitatively with the feeling of the sun on your face or a cloudy night being warmier than a clear one.
"footnote: (1) No one on Earth’s surface would have felt this impulse of heat. Mlynczak puts it into perspective: “Heat radiated by the solid body of the Earth is very large compared to the amount of heat being exchanged in the upper atmosphere. The daily average infrared radiation from the entire planet is 240 W/m2—enough to power NYC for 200,000 years.”
Tom Dayton at 11:41 AM on 5 June, 2013
Stealth, to illustrate and augment the advice given you about modeling by other folks in this thread, I encourage you to read a brief history of modeling here at Skeptical Science, and for more the detailed history by Spencer Weart. Note that even in the 1820s, Fourier was using a model. Not a computerized model. Not a model as complex as the ones used today. Each improvement in the science involved an improvement in the models, but only relatively recently did they get "complicated" in modern terms. Even the earliest models were quite successful in predicting global temperature relative to other possible predictions such as "the Earth is frozen solid" and "the Earth is cooling drastically" and "the Earth is maintaining its temperature" and "the Earth will be as hot as the Sun in fifty years." Complication is needed only to fine tune the predictions by the desired amount.
You can try some simple models yourself by getting an introductory textbook such as David Archer's "Global Warming: Understanding the Forecast," or by taking notes while watching his free online lectures from his class at the University of Chicago.
Tamino has illustrated a simple climate model you can run without a computer if you have a lot of time, or with a spreadsheet if you don't mind using a computer. He also has a followup that's only a bit more complicated.
There are a bunch of other climate models that are simple enough for learning and teaching. One list has been compiled by Steve Easterbrook.
You also might be interested in Steve Easterbrook's comments on verification and validation (V&V) of climate models. Steve once did V&V for NASA.
Paul D at 21:50 PM on 5 June, 2013
Thanks, that's interesting.
Not a great deal of difference other than higher solar irradience would seem to make it hotter than the CO2 forcing and the Arctic and land masses would be much more hotter than would be the case if the forcing were just CO2 and/or others.
Manwichstick @27
I agree that “incomplete” is a better word for models. My full saying about models is: “all models are wrong, but some are more useful than others.” My group does the best it can in our models, and there can be life and death decisions riding on them (that’s always humbling). All sorts of design trades have to be made, and real time is a major one – a great answer 5 minutes after you are dead is not better than a good answer in 5 seconds.
scaddenp @29
Your question about “evaluating truth” is a good one. I think “wallow” is a bit of a strong negative word, but I understand what you are saying. I read what “the others guys” have to say and examine the data they have. If it makes sense then I incorporate it into my world view. I guess since I don’t believe anyone, and I become convinced of things based on the data and the most creditable explanation of the data. I think my bullsh*t sensor is pretty good. But I also know I have been wrong many times in my life on many things, and have changed positions based on the results, so I feel that I am very open to the facts and what they say. I truly believe that reality has a persistent voice.
So far, what I really like about this site is that everyone seems open and has provide excellent information, and a lot of it. I have to wait until the weekend to review and digest some of it. My day job isn’t paying me to research the climate. :-)
New question about the charts in this post:
The contributing factors (all the ones in the various colors) seem to add up relative to the 1985 baseline for years between 1955 and 2010. If I add up ENSO, VOL, etc to the temperature on the top chart, they all add up. Before 1955 there is component data but it doesn’t produce any temperature movement. From 1910 to 1945 there was a large warming period of almost 1 deg C, but the component values do not reproduce that. The ANT chart also seems to be saying that all ANT effects have been from 1960 until today – is this censuses view on AGW? I thought the AGW claim is that the industrial age and CO2 increase has caused most of the warming. If ANT hasn’t affected temperature from 1910 to 1945, what caused the large temperature increase from 1910 to 1945?
Stealth - In the early 20th century solar activity was relatively high (positive influence), and even more importantly there was a distinct paucity of volcanic action (less negative influence); notice the flat volcanic graph during that period. There's a SkS thread on this very topic - What caused early 20th Century warming - which is worth looking at.
Stealth: Here's the Potsdam data which was an input to CMIP5 in excruciating detail. link
Start with pages 4-7. Volcanic is on page 45. Solar is on page 46 (note the scales).
Stealth... I may be repeating Kevin and KR, but I think you'll find there to be a general consensus in the research that early 20th century warming was only partly due to anthro-GHG forcing. From ~1940 to 1970 you get a slight cooling due to anthro-aerosols, and then late 20th century is likely all due to anthro-GHG forcing.
I have to say, it sounds like you're taking an appropriately skeptical approach to the issue. It's greatly appreciated. It's hard but we all have to try to check our biases at the door when looking into scientific issues.
In addition to the other comments about 1910 to 1940's warmth, this is interesting from GISS. Warming by latitude vs time (available here):
A significant part of the warming was just in the Arctic. Also the station coverage of the Earth was in flux during that period. Stations were being added to the Arctic at that time which previously had no useful coverage. The Antarctic only started getting decent coverage after the International Geophysical year in 1957. I have some doubts about how much credence we can give the 1910-1940's data if there was a regional warming just as station coverage was changing in that very region.
Also there was a definite bias change in the measurement of Sea Surface Temperatures during the years of WWII due to a change in the mix of nationalities measuring SSTs (and thus measurement methods) during the war. This has been partly corrected through an adjustment to those records just recently but it is unclear how completely that has resolved the issue.
Stealth @35, by a rough pixel count, there is an approximately 0.15 C increase in temperature due to anthropogenic factors shown in the chart from 1880-1950. That is much smaller than post 1950 but not zero. Others have provided an the data needed on natural forcings over that period. It should be noted that part of the 1910-1940 temperature increase is due to a switch from strong La Nina conditions arount 1910 to strong El Nino conditions around 1940.
There remains, however, a small component of that increase which is not yet explained by either known forcings or ENSO variation. This may be due to problems in the temperature record. Global coverage of SST (in particular) fell significantly during WWI and WWII and immediately after due to reduced the effect of the wars on merchant shipping. It may also be due to an underestimate of the forcing from Black Carbon (BC). Finally, it may also be due to the Atlantic Multi-decadal Oscilation.
Post 1950, natural forcings are negative such that anthropogenic factors represent around 90% of all forcings from 1880-2010 (as shown above). The uncertainty about that is sufficiently large, however, that it could be significantly lower than that.
stealth @34: "I think my bullsh*t sensor is pretty good."
One component of an effective bullsh*t sensor that is often missing is an appropriate respect for expertise. An expert has been succinctly defined as a person who knows all the basic mistakes in their field, and how to avoid them. Ergo the most basic feature of the non-expert is that they do not know how to avoid basic mistakes. That can be simply because the relevant information available to them is limited compared to that possessed by the expert; or because of lack of knowledge of the literature in which the basic mistake they are making was first proposed, then refuted.
This is not to suggest that experts are always right. However, if you are genuine about avoiding bullsh*t your first instinct when you come up with a significantly different answer to that of the experts is to ask yourself, "What am I missing?" The arrogance of AGW "skepticism" as practised at WUWT etc is seen in the failure of this form of self skepticism.
Mal Adapted at 07:40 AM on 8 June, 2013
John Nielson-Gammon gave a talk at last year's AGU meeting on Scientific Meta-Literacy. His key point:
But there’s an important lesson here about how we decide which scientific statements to believe and which ones not to believe. Those of us who are trained scientists but who do not have enough personal literacy to independently evaluate a particular statement do not throw up our hands in despair. Instead, we evaluate the source and the context.
We scientists rely upon a hierarchy of reliability. We know that a talking head is less reliable than a press release. We know that a press release is less reliable than a paper. We know that an ordinary peer-reviewed paper is less reliable than a review article. And so on, all the way up to a National Academy report. If we’re equipped with knowledge of this hierarchy of reliability, we can generally do a good job navigating through an unfamiliar field, even if we have very little prior technical knowledge in that field.
Well, the typical member of the public has very little retained technical knowledge about just about everything. I claim that it’s an impossible task to raise the level of climate literacy in the general public to the point where most can tell that the statement about the ice age is wrong, let alone whether the statement about Sandy is wrong. And what about all the other fields in which they need to be literate as well?
The solution to this problem is not scientific literacy, but what I call scientific meta-literacy. Forget that dream about enabling the public to independently evaluate scientific claims on their merits – that’s just not going to happen. Instead, enable the public to distinguish between reliable and unreliable sources of scientific information.
Skepticism is all very well, but it's important to understand that it takes work to become an expert, and if you're not willing to do the work, you have little choice but to trust the ones who have. A genuine skeptic recognizes and respects expertise. Otherwise, he risks falling prey to the Dunning-Kruger effect.
DSL at 13:58 PM on 8 June, 2013
As far as the CO2 part of the equation goes, I would need to see robust evidence for the proposition that atmospheric CO2 did not absorb/emit at various pressure-broadened bands in the thermal infrared range. Or I would need to see robust evidence that atmospheric CO2 is not actually present in observed concentration.
The only other forcing that can match CO2's persistent (non-condensing, well-mixed, long residence time) forcing is solar variation. I would need to see evidence that falsifies every major assessment of solar contribution of the past two decades (add Pasini et al. 2012, Jones et al. 2013, and Mann et al. 2013).
There can be evidence. There's always the possibility that aliens are manipulating instrumentation. Climate science is one of the most scrutinized sciences. All someone has to do to get a Nobel is falsify a major element of the current mainstream theory of climate, and do it in such a way that removes human responsibility. People have been trying for decades.
I think your characterization of climate science is a little off, as well. The current science lays the foundation for the discoveries of tomorrow, unlike the practice of blood-letting and modern medical practice. Your assertion strongly suggests that current climate science is utterly wrong. Where's the evidence for such an assertion? You talk of clouds and sun, and everything you know about them is blood-letting. Were the Wright brothers blood-letters, or were they useful pioneers?
Mal Adapted: That's a great article, thanks for pointing it out. I've suggested to the powers that be that it might be worth a post.
StealthAircraftSoftwareModeler at 10:13 AM on 10 June, 2013
DSL @43. It seems my comment may have been deleted and I am not sure why. I did ask some questions and you seemed to answer one of them, so it was posted for some time. Perhaps the moderator thought my post was an ad hominem or not on topic or inflammatory. If so, I apologize. I’m not looking to start any flame wars and I am honestly looking for a good discussion.
Let me just completely back up and ask some basic questions:
(-snip-). Thanks! Stealth
[DB] Your previous comment was moderated out as it contained multiple off topic statements, as does this one. Please take your individual concerns and questions to the most appropriate threads and place them there. The regulars providing dialogue interaction and guidance here will see them, no matter where you place your questions, and will respond as appropriate on those same threads.
scaddenp at 10:43 AM on 10 June, 2013
Stealth, you can play with the numbers yourself with this wonderful calculator. The mathematical introduction in Ramanathan Coakley 1978. Doubling CO2 from 280 adds 3.7W/m2 from CO2 alone.
And please move further comments to the appropriate thread. Regulars view this site through "comments" link so you comment doesnt get lost. Offtopic comments will be deleted.
Tom Curtis at 22:16 PM on 10 June, 2013
SASM @45, I have responded here.
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Somali Jet Explosion Blamed on Suicide Bomber Say Officials
Abdi Guled, Associated Press
- Feb 07, 2016 1:09 pm
A suicide bomber is suspected to have set off the explosive that blew a hole in a jetliner, sucked the man out of the plane and forced the aircraft to make an emergency landing on Tuesday in Somalia’s capital, Mogadishu, Somali officials said Saturday.
“Experts who were investigating the cause of the blast in the plane concluded that a bomb was the cause,” said Ali Jama Jangali, Somalia’s transport minister at a press conference in Mogadishu.
“The bomb aimed to kill all onboard the plane. Al-Shabab (Somalia’s Islamic extremist rebel group) was behind it,” he said of the explosion on a Daallo Airlines Airbus 321. He said the findings are preliminary and the investigation is continuing.
One passenger, Abdullahi Abdisalam Borle, died, according to Somali officials who did not give any details. A man’s body was found in the town of Balad, 30 kilometers (about 18 miles) north of Mogadishu, according to police who said he might have been blown from the plane.
The man killed in the incident is suspected to have been a suicide bomber, The Associated Press was told by a senior Somali civila aviation official, who insisted on anonymity because he is not authorized to speak to the press.
“The reason the investigation is focusing on him now is because of the suspicion that he might have detonated the bomb, but it’s too early to say if the bomb was planted in a laptop or not,” he said.
Six people have been arrested in connection with the blast after examinations of CCTV images in the airport, a senior Somali intelligence official told the Associated Press.
Al-Shabab have not claimed responsibility for the incident.
All other 74 passengers on the plane were safe after the pilot returned the plane safely to Mogadishu airport.
The explosion happened about 15 minutes after the plane took off and it was still ascending.
Capt. Vlatko Vodopivec, the pilot, said he and others were told the explosion was caused by a bomb.
“It was my first bomb; I hope it will be the last,” Vodopivec told AP by phone from Mogadishu. He said the blast happened when the plane was at around 11,000 feet (3,350 meters) and still climbing to its cruising altitude of 30,000 feet. “It would have been much worse if we were higher,” he added.
Had the blast occurred at a higher altitude, it could have led to explosive decompression on the plane, which might have caused more severe structural damage, and would have forced a more rapid descent because of limited supplies of oxygen to the passengers.
After the explosion, passengers put on oxygen masks and air could be heard rushing thought the hole in the fuselage, according to a video taken by a passenger.
Somalia’s government said it will tighten security at the airport to prevent other threats.
Somalia faces an insurgency from the Islamic extremist group al-Shabab, which has carried out deadly attacks in Somalia and neighboring countries.
Daallo Airlines, which is based in Dubai, has temporarily suspended its operations in Somalia’s capital following the incident but hopes to restart them soon, said Mohammed Ibrahim Yassin, the airline’s chief executive.
He described security at Mogadishu airport as “good” and multilayered, and “much better than it used to be.” Daallo typically operates around 15 flights a week to Mogadishu from Somali and nearby international destinations. Its flight Tuesday was operated by Hermes Airlines, which is based in Athens, Greece, under a lease agreement. Hermes officials have not commented on the incident.
Experts from Somalia and Greece are involved in the investigation into the blast.
This article was written by Abdi Guled from The Associated Press and was legally licensed through the NewsCred publisher network.
Tags: safety, somalia, unrest
Photo Credit: A hole is seen in a plane operated by Daallo Airlines as it sits on the runway of the airport in Mogadishu, Somalia. Associated Press
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Louis Tomlinson's Sister Félicité Tomlinson Dead at 18
posted by Sierra Marquina - Mar 14, 2019
Louis Tomlinson’s sister, Félicité Tomlinson, has reportedly passed away, TMZ reports. She was 18.
According to the site, the former One Direction member’s sister died after suffering a heart attack. TMZ reports that Félicité passed away on Wednesday, March 13, at her apartment in London. She reportedly collapsed and was unable to be revived by paramedics.
Félicité was a model and fashion designer with a 1.3 million following on Instagram. According to reports, she had plans to publish a poetry book.
The tragic news comes after Louis lost his mother to cancer in December 2016. His mom, Johannah Deakin, was just 43. The singer, who is the eldest of 7 siblings, recently released a heartbreaking song dedicated to his mother called "Two of Us.”
Louis has since pulled out of a performance on a BBC charity show called Comic Relief.
Our thoughts and prayers go out to Louis, his family and all those affected.
Updates to come.
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Theiapolis > Cinema > Titles > K... > Ki... > Kid... >
Kidnapped1971
| Forum | Gallery | Quotes || Kidnapped: DVD | Blu-Ray | Collectibles
Starring Michael Caine, Lawrence Douglas, Vivien Heilbron, Trevor Howard, Jack Hawkins and Donald Pleasence, "Kidnapped" (also known as "Ribelle di Scozia, Il", "Entführt", "Entführung des David Balfour, Die") is an Adventure/Drama/History/Romance film directed by Delbert Mann, released in the USA on December 22 of 1971.
Who directed "Kidnapped":
Kidnapped was directed by Delbert Mann, an American director, producer, and actor.
Before directing Kidnapped, Delbert Mann had directed The Pink Jungle, released in 1968, Fitzwilly (1967), Mister Buddwing (1966), A Gathering of Eagles (1963), That Touch of Mink (1962), and Lover Come Back (1961). Since, he directed Night Crossing, released in 1981.
When was "Kidnapped" released:
Kidnapped was first released on Wednesday, December 22, 1971, in the United States. Also released on Wednesday, December 22, 1971 have been Star Spangled Girl (dir. Jerry Paris), The Gang That Couldn't Shoot Straight (dir. James Goldstone), Dirty Harry (dir. Don Siegel), and Minnie and Moskowitz (dir. John Cassavetes). This was forty-seven (47) years ago.
What is the cast of "Kidnapped":
At the casting of Kidnapped we find Michael Caine, previously seen in Get Carter (1971) and The Last Valley (1970); Lawrence Douglas (); Vivien Heilbron () [ more... ]
Gordon Jackson, Eric Woodburn, Russell Waters and Jack Lambert also appeared together in The Bridal Path, released in 1959.
Donald Pleasence and Michael Caine, Jack Hawkins can all be seen in The Two-Headed Spy, released in 1958.
Russell Waters and Jack Hawkins, Donald Pleasence also appeared together in The Man in the Sky, released in 1957.
Russell Waters and Michael Caine, Trevor Howard can also be seen in The Key, released in 1958.
Terry Richards and Michael Caine, Andrew McCulloch can all be seen in The Last Valley, released in 1970.
What is the Storyline of "Kidnapped":
When young David Balfour arrives at his uncle's bleak Scottish house to claim his inheritance his relative first tries to murder him then has him shipped off to be sold as a slave in the colonies. Fortunately for the lad he strikes up a friendship with Alan Breck escaping from Prince Charles Edward Stuart's defeat at Culloden.
When the ship's captain tries to kill Breck for his money the two manage to get to land and set out for Edinburgh dodging the ruthless Redcoats.
no reply yet - Just watching the film and wondered what your doing now ? Great film boys own stuff !...
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( 2010 )Kidnapped
Directed by: M. Ángel Vivas, starring G. Barrientos, D. Biba, F. Cayo, C. Díaz...
( 2000 )Held for Ransom
Directed by: L. Stanley, starring D. Hopper, Z. Ty Bryan, K. Heskin, J. Brower...
Resources: Omnibus Productions, Wikipedia and contributions from movie fans. Anyone can submit additionnal information and corrections, you can post a message into the forum, or you can contact me by e-mail. Information and materials are submitted by users and thus may not always contain up-to-date and correct information, so do not hesite to report mistakes, and submit corrections.Thank you!. Direct editing is no longer available, sorry.
This page includes a "Storyline" from Wikipedia (EN) which is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License; additional terms may apply.
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Rivard Report (https://therivardreport.com/the-first-people-ancient-echoes-from-the-canyon-lands/)
ancient artifacts
Painters in Prehistory: Ancient Echoes from the South Pecos Canyonlands
By Robert Rivard | November 8, 2013
More on ancient artifacts
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Sadly, many of the images at Meyers Springs, a site north of Dryden, have been used for target practice. Bullet holes riddle the body of the horse and rider (photograph courtesy of Shumla Archeological Research and Education Center 2008).
For too many in San Antonio and South Texas, the historical narrative begins in 1836 with the Battle of the Alamo.
Even for those with a more nuanced appreciation of the past, the early 18th century arrival of the Spanish and the establishment of the Missions is the first chapter in our history.
The truth is far more fascinating, found on the layered limestone walls and within the remote rock shelters of the Lower Pecos Canyonlands along the present-day Texas-Mexico border.
Harry Shafer sits next to the White Shaman pictograph just off the banks of the Pecos River near Comstock, Texas. Photo by Al Rendon.
There, along the Balcones Escarpment between the Rio Grande, the Pecos and the Devil’s Rivers, archeologists have found a deeply rich record of rock paintings, petroglyphs, human habitation and survival that dates back 12,000 years.
For 80 years, archeologists and others associated with the Witte Museum have explored, chronicled and protected the evidence of this ancient people and culture, but a renewed effort to celebrate archeological advances and scholarship is introducing the canyon lands people to new generations of San Antonians.
Regional map of major archeological sites yielding information about the ancient Texans in the Lower
Pecos Canyonlands. Of the estimated 3,000 archaeological sites once present in the area near the
mouth of the Pecos River, a very small number have been systematically studied by archeologists.
“Painters in Prehistory: Archeology and Art of the Lower Pecos Canyonlands,” edited by Dr. Harry J. Shafer, the longtime Texas A&M University archeologist, and published by Trinity University Press, lifts the curtain anew on this extraordinary epoch in local prehistory.
Pecos River Style anthropomorphs (human-like figures) at Halo Shelter that demonstrate significant
diversity in size, head shape, body decoration, color, and accoutrements (photograph courtesy of Jean Clottes 2006).
Shafer, the curator of archeology at the Witte Museum, will do a book signing and presentation next Thursday. Nov. 14, 6:30-8:30 p.m. at the Witte. Both are free and open to the public.
Shafer, a King William resident and the founder of the Southtown Men’s Book Club, is a rare species: an accomplished archeologist who happens to be a superb writer and published author.
His new book, commissioned by the Witte and underwritten by the late Kittie West Nelson Ferguson, showcases Shafer’s writing and his deft editing of 14 scholars, three artists and several photographers.
One of those photographers is fellow Southtown resident Al Rendon, well-known for his documentary work of Latino life in San Antonio, whose “Retrato” portraits are well-known to Rivard Report readers.
Rendon can now say his work helps document what we know about the region’s earliest known people.
“What we have right here in our own backyard is the best laboratory in North America, one of the best in the world, to study prehistoric hunter-gatherers,” said Shafer, an expert on Texas, Mexican and American Southwest prehistory. “We have magnificent rock art equal to any found elsewhere in the world, we have stone tools, intact woven basket and other materials, and we have coprolites.”
Coprolites is archeological speak for desiccated human excrement found in ancient occupation sites, and it, too, tells a story.
“Technology advances have led to extraordinary new insights,” Shafer said. “We now know what these people ate, and and what they ate seasonally. There were some surprises: They would eat whole mice — all of the animal. They ate grasshoppers, crickets, snakes.
This painting by George Strickland is his reconstruction of a prehistoric outdoor camp scene. Small shelters constructed of sotol-stalk frames covered with mats, hides, and grass provided temporary shelter for open campsites across the region. Photo courtesy of the Witte Museum.
“It once was thought that the rock art of the canyon lands was 2,000 years old, but advanced carbon dating techniques now allow us to get within plus or minus 30 years of the time the cave paintings were made, and we now know they go back 3,500 to 4,000 years ago.”
Sadly, many of the images at Meyers Springs, a site north of Dryden, have been used for target practice. Bullet holes riddle the body of the horse and rider (photograph courtesy of Shumla Archeological
Research and Education Center 2008).
The canyon dwellers were the first known people to live in what is now South Texas and Northern Mexico, and the mesmerizing evidence that survives them, including fantastic rock paintings of shamans, hunters and animals, and pregnant women. Lithic tools, expertly woven baskets, cactus spine fish hooks, bone awls — offer a compelling connection to those of us who live here today.
The human tapestry in San Antonio and South Texas, it turns out, was woven not over the centuries but over the millennia. There are very few places in North America where the human continuum has been so definitively established and explored.
No one has done more to build and protect that record than the Witte Museum, dating back to digs and expeditions dating back to the 1930s when many of the region’s hundreds of rock shelters and caves were first excavated.
Countless sites have been looted, and others on private ranches remain to be explored. many are still accessible by boat on Amistad Lake, where they are federally protected but left largely unguarded.
Left to right, Nolan Lassister, Guy Skiles, Harding Black, and Edward Richey at Eagle Cave in March 1936 (photograph courtesy of Witte Museum Archives).
The Witte’s efforts in the 1980s led to extensive new research and documentation, and the opening of the Ancient Texans permanent exhibition, and the publication of “Ancient Texans: Rock Art and Lifeways Along the Lower Pecos,” written by Shafer and including the great photographs of Jim Zintgraff.
Marise McDermott, president and CEO of the Witte
“Now there has been a new renaissance of activity in the canyonlands,” said Marise McDermott, president and CEO of the Witte. “No one has been more important to this effort than Harry Shafer. “He’s a master archeologist, a beautiful writer and a generous editor of his fellow scholars.”
Rendon, who has photographed many of the city’s most notable contemporaries, said it was a spiritual experience to hold and document artifacts once held by people in tis region more than 10,000 years ago.
“My favorite was the shaman’s bag,” Rendon said. “It was incredible and the artifacts inside it were even more amazing.”
Shaman’s bag on display at the Witte Museum with its contents – thousands of years old – spread out. Photo by Al Rendon.
Visitors to the Witte can explore the museum’s permanent exhibition and then venture south to experience the Lower Pecos Canyonlands and the rock art.
Seminole Canyon State Park has multiple shelters, and Texas Parks and Wildlife guides conduct guided tours.
The densest concentration of petroglyphs known in the Lower Pecos occurs at Lewis Canyon. At this unique site are glyphs of animal tracks, atlatls, serpentine lines and an array of geometric imagery (photograph courtesy of Shumla Archeological Research and Educational Center 2008).
The Rock Art Foundation, based in San Antonio, has access to multiple sites on the Pecos River and also operates daily afternoon site tours.
The SHUMLA Archeological Research and Education Center is dedicated to research and teaching and its director and one of the contributors to “Painters in Prehistory,” Dr. Carolyn Boyd, is working on an ambitious program to document all of the rock shelters and other significant prehistoric sites.
Her team is using 3D laser scanning to convert faded rock art images into newly visible murals. Click on the link to learn more about Boyd’s work at White Shaman Cave and important sites, including her ground-breaking insights into the visual language of ancient artists.
Laser scanning at Halo Shelter. Photo courtesy SHUMLA Archeological Research and Education Center.
“Exquisite in detail and masterful in execution, The Pecos River-style rock art panels document myths, histories and rituals of people living in the Lower Pecos Canyonlands thousands of years ago,” Boyd writes in the new book. “They represent the oldest religious narratives in North America.”
Both non-profit foundations are seeking funding and more supporters to help them carry on and complete their important work and create a permanent digital record and archive for future generations, which should ensure that the story of the region’s first people is not forgotten again.
This nine foot long Pecos River style feline is one of at least eight painted on the shelter wall at Panther Cave (photograph courtesy of Jean Clottes 2006).
Follow Robert Rivard on Twitter @rivardreport or on Facebook.
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About Robert Rivard
Robert Rivard is editor and publisher of the Rivard Report.
More by Robert
Pecos Canyonlands
2 thoughts on “Painters in Prehistory: Ancient Echoes from the South Pecos Canyonlands”
Beth Edwards via Facebook on November 8, 2013 at 10:15 AM said:
Coooool!
Rick Canfield on November 8, 2013 at 8:37 PM said:
Repost for other readers:
There’s a documentary that was made a couple of years ago called the South Texas Shaman, which attempts to chronicle some of the history from the archeologists. The history of the Coahuiltecans is tied to the history of San Antonio, as they were the ameriindians recruited (or forced) to build the Missions and the Alamo.
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NBA will begin jersey sponsorships in 2017-18
The NBA will begin selling jersey sponsorships in 2017-18, becoming the first major North American sports league to put partners' logos on players' uniforms. The three-year trial was approved April 15 by NBA owners and will take effect when the league's contract with Nike begins. The patches will appear on the front left of the jersey, opposite Nike's logo, and measure about 2 1/2 by 2 1/2 inches.
Commissioner Adam Silver had said this step was inevitable as an additional revenue generator. WNBA teams already have logos, and NBA clubs were wearing them on practice jerseys.
"Jersey sponsorships provide deeper engagement with partners looking to build a unique association with our teams and the additional investment will help grow the game in exciting new ways," Silver said in a statement. "We're always thinking about innovative ways the NBA can remain competitive in a global marketplace, and we are excited to see the results of this three-year trial."
Major League Soccer teams began selling jersey sponsorships in 2007, and they generate more than $6 million annually in revenues. Adidas enters the final year of his contract as the NBA's official outfitter next season. When Nike takes over, its logo will become the first on league's jerseys. The sponsor patch will be adjusted to fit the dimensions of each sponsor's logo. It won't appear in retail versions of the jerseys, but clubs can sell jerseys with sponsor patches in their team stores.
Source: US News & World Report
in Business, Marketing, Sports
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Peter Gordon and Jacinda Ardern at the NZTE event held at Allpress Espresso in Dalston, London recently (Photo: Supplied)
Our prime minister is meeting your prime minister and we’d love you to do lunch
Alice Neville | Food editor
Lunch at Downing Street, pottery retreats with Nigella Lawson and Yotam Ottolenghi… New Zealand’s best-known chef has built quite a life for himself in London, but, now more than ever, he yearns for Aotearoa.
This content was created in partnership with The Collective
He’s been a top chef in London for three decades, with a string of accolades – and highly acclaimed restaurants – to his name, but this year Peter Gordon achieved something that had never been done before: he got hokey pokey ice cream into the UK government headquarters.
“I know that’s the first time it’s ever been in 10 Downing Street,” says Gordon of the act of culinary patriotism. “They put everything through the x-ray machine – tamarillos and hokey pokey ice cream and duck breast…”
The 56-year-old “godfather of fusion cuisine” was cooking lunch for UK prime minister Theresa May and her New Zealand counterpart in January. Jacinda Ardern was on her way to Davos for the World Economic Forum and had stopped in London for a New Zealand food and drink showcase held by NZ Trade and Enterprise, which Gordon was catering.
Months of planning had gone into the NZTE event. Lunch at Downing Street the following day? Not so much. “I was at work on the Thursday going, ‘Oh my god, I’ve got such a busy week – I’ve got this big event and I’m going to New Zealand on Tuesday… there’s a whole heap going on and I can’t squeeze any more in,” he recalls.
“Then an email came in from Downing Street saying ‘Dear Mr Gordon, our prime minister is meeting your prime minister and we’d love you to do lunch.’”
Peter Gordon arrives at No 10 Downing Street (Photo: Supplied)
The NZTE event was on the Sunday night, January 20, with lunch the next day. The day after that, Gordon was due to fly to New Zealand for one of the four or five trips he makes annually to check in with The Sugar Club, his restaurant at the top of the Sky Tower, see his parents in Whanganui and do anything else that needs attending to in his homeland.
It wasn’t his first time through the door at number 10, having catered for a charity event for leukaemia during David Cameron’s tenure, but things were a little different this time. Just a few days before, Theresa May’s Brexit deal was overwhelmingly rejected in parliament. She’d managed to hang on to power, narrowly surviving a vote of no confidence, but the scene wasn’t exactly set for a relaxing lunch.
“I was saying to Jacinda, ‘do you think this could be cancelled?’” he recalls.
Ardern is a friend; they were introduced by Gordon’s partner, Alastair Carruthers, a former chair of Creative New Zealand’s art council. “I first met Jacinda on Jervois Road probably eight years ago,” recalls Gordon. “Al said, ‘This is Jacinda, she’s going to be our prime minister one day.’ And that happened.”
Alastair Carruthers (Peter Gordon’s partner), Jacinda Ardern, Peter Gordon; Theresa May and Matthew Dunn, head chef at The Providores and Tapa Room (Photo: Joel Rouse, MoD Crown Copyright)
Back to the lunch, which wasn’t cancelled, thankfully – and no doubt delicious. “The first course was a miso roast pumpkin, feta, date and pomegranate salad, the main course was a duck dish with grilled leeks, swede puree and ginger cabbage, and pudding was boiled orange polenta cake with hokey pokey ice cream and poached tamarillos,” he says.
Afterwards, he joined the PMs and high commissioner Jerry Mateparae in the “terracotta room”, one of Downing Street’s three state drawing rooms. “It was lovely,” he recalls. “We were just, like, having a chat, and I thought that’s really the first time I can remember seeing Theresa May smiling. There are the smiles she has to give in some of the terrible meetings she has to go to… but it must have been the most relaxing hour that Theresa May has had in the last year.”
Gordon is a self-described “staunch remainer”, and says the spectre of Brexit has cast a pall over the city he calls home.
“I just can’t see a single good thing about it. [David, former UK prime minister] Cameron was such an idiot to have a referendum on such a massive thing. There was such arrogance.
“We’re trying to be optimistic, but I think you’re just battered down on a daily basis.”
Gordon catered for a New Zealand food and drink showcase at Allpress (Photo: Supplied)
Like any New Zealander overseas, he has always had days when he feels like throwing it all in and jumping on the next flight home, says the chef. “That’s been my internal battle for the 30 years I’ve lived in London.”
But this time the feeling is different; it can’t so easily be pushed to the back of his mind.
“This is the first time that I’ve looked at London and gone ‘oh, really?’ I’ve always said to people that London is this really inclusive, multiracial, accepting, tolerant place to live. I’ve seen living in London for 30 years as a huge privilege.”
“And it still is, really,” he muses. “But you look around at the greater nation and all the shit that goes on…”
It’s not just the wave of anti-immigration sentiment that has become so visible since the Brexit vote. Gordon references the views of the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP), the ultra-conservative Northern Irish party May’s government was forced to form a confidence-and-supply agreement with after 2017’s snap election, and on whom she relied to survive the recent no-confidence motion.
“The DUP, if they had their way, homosexuality would be a crime,” says Gordon. “And the DUP is the balance of power… and that’s because Theresa May was so foolish that when she called the snap election she just thought she’d waltz through.”
The effects of Brexit are already being felt in the restaurant business, he says. “The cost of goods has gone up, and the mood in the hospitality industry is a bit sad. Restaurants are going under all the time; other restaurants are struggling to find staff.”
Gordon owns The Providores and its more casual downstairs sibling Tapa Room in Marylebone High Street, and essentially introduced Londoners to brunch when he opened the doors in 2001. He employs many New Zealanders, but also, fittingly for the man behind the fusion food movement, people from all over Europe and the world.
“We’ve had some staff with us for 15 years. The discussion is always, ‘Once Brexit happens, do we have to leave the country?’ There are no clear directives going out to people.”
Peter Gordon with his friend Bronwyn Gray, who started up The LAM Trust that Peter supports (Photo: Supplied)
But of course he’s not seriously considering calling it quits in London; he has his restaurants, his doughnut business Crosstown and his home in Hackney, which he shares with Carruthers. There’s a feijoa tree in the garden. “In seven years, it’s produced four tiny feijoas. Pathetic!”
He’s such a big fan of the Kiwi favourite, little known in Britain, that he often features them on the menu at The Providores. Imported from South America, they’re not quite as pathetic as his homegrown ones, but “nothing like the feijoas we have here – they’re only 75 per cent what they should be”.
Feijoa features in a New Zealand yoghurt Gordon has recently put his name to, a collaboration with The Collective. The feijoa, ginger and vanilla yoghurt is raising funds for The LAM Trust, which raises awareness of a rare lung condition, lymphangioleiomyomatosis, that affects women between the ages of 25 and 45. The trust was set up by Gordon’s good friend Bronwyn Gray, whose daughter suffers from the condition.
In addition to his work and home, London is where his friends are. He’s forged strong bonds over the years, including with British food royalty like Yotam Ottolenghi and Nigella Lawson. The three of them are shortly heading off on a weekend pottery retreat with a few other “mates who hang out together in London” for the second year in a row. “It’s lots of fun.”
Lawson was recently on our shores for the third time in a year, touring her stage show. “She truly loves New Zealand,” says Gordon. “Like a lot of famous people who maybe get a bit harassed in their home countries, Nigella says when she comes to New Zealand she’s able to let her barriers down and just relax. She’s got friends out here, she likes the New Zealand psyche.”
The Spinoff’s food content is brought to you by Freedom Farms. They believe talking about food is nearly as much fun as eating it, and they’re excited to facilitate some good conversations around food provenance in Aotearoa New Zealand.
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I Kings 6 (asv)
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Chapters highlighted in yellow and underlined are annotated for the Fillmore Study Bible.
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6:1And it came to pass in the four hundred and eightieth year after the children of Israel were come out of the land of Egypt, in the fourth year of Solomon's reign over Israel, in the month Ziv, which is the second month, that he began to build the house of Jehovah. 6:2And the house which king Solomon built for Jehovah, the length thereof was threescore cubits, and the breadth thereof twenty cubits, and the height thereof thirty cubits. 6:3And the porch before the temple of the house, twenty cubits was the length thereof, according to the breadth of the house; and ten cubits was the breadth thereof before the house. 6:4And for the house he made windows of fixed lattice-work. 6:5And against the wall of the house he built stories round about, against the walls of the house round about, both of the temple and of the oracle; and he made side-chambers round about. 6:6The nethermost story was five cubits broad, and the middle was six cubits broad, and the third was seven cubits broad; for on the outside he made offsets in the wall of the house round about, that the beams should not have hold in the walls of the house. 6:7And the house, when it was in building, was built of stone made ready at the quarry; and there was neither hammer nor axe nor any tool of iron heard in the house, while it was in building. 6:8The door for the middle side-chambers was in the right side of the house: and they went up by winding stairs into the middle story, and out of the middle into the third. 6:9So he built the house, and finished it; and he covered the house with beams and planks of cedar. 6:10And he built the stories against all the house, each five cubits high: and they rested on the house with timber of cedar.
6:11And the word of Jehovah came to Solomon, saying, 6:12Concerning this house which thou art building, if thou wilt walk in my statutes, and execute mine ordinances, and keep all my commandments to walk in them; then will I establish my word with thee, which I spake unto David thy father. 6:13And I will dwell among the children of Israel, and will not forsake my people Israel.
6:14So Solomon built the house, and finished it. 6:15And he built the walls of the house within with boards of cedar: from the floor of the house unto the walls of the ceiling, he covered them on the inside with wood; and he covered the floor of the house with boards of fir. 6:16And he built twenty cubits on the hinder part of the house with boards of cedar from the floor unto the walls of the ceiling: he built them for it within, for an oracle, even for the most holy place. 6:17And the house, that is, the temple before the oracle, was forty cubits long. 6:18And there was cedar on the house within, carved with knops and open flowers: all was cedar; there was no stone seen. 6:19And he prepared an oracle in the midst of the house within, to set there the ark of the covenant of Jehovah. 6:20And within the oracle was a space of twenty cubits in length, and twenty cubits in breadth, and twenty cubits in the height thereof; and he overlaid it with pure gold: and he covered the altar with cedar. 6:21So Solomon overlaid the house within with pure gold: and he drew chains of gold across before the oracle; and he overlaid it with gold. 6:22And the whole house he overlaid with gold, until all the house was finished: also the whole altar that belonged to the oracle he overlaid with gold.
6:23And in the oracle he made two cherubim of olive-wood, each ten cubits high. 6:24And five cubits was the one wing of the cherub, and five cubits the other wing of the cherub: from the uttermost part of the one wing unto the uttermost part of the other were ten cubits. 6:25And the other cherub was ten cubits: both the cherubim were of one measure and one form. 6:26The height of the one cherub was ten cubits, and so was it of the other cherub. 6:27And he set the cherubim within the inner house; and the wings of the cherubim were stretched forth, so that the wing of the one touched the one wall, and the wing of the other cherub touched the other wall; and their wings touched one another in the midst of the house. 6:28And he overlaid the cherubim with gold.
6:29And he carved all the walls of the house round about with carved figures of cherubim and palm-trees and open flowers, within and without. 6:30And the floor of the house he overlaid with gold, within and without. 6:31And for the entrance of the oracle he made doors of olive-wood: the lintel and door-posts were a fifth part of the wall. 6:32So he made two doors of olive-wood; and he carved upon them carvings of cherubim and palm-trees and open flowers, and overlaid them with gold; and he spread the gold upon the cherubim, and upon the palm-trees. 6:33So also made he for the entrance of the temple door-posts of olive-wood, out of a fourth part of the wall; 6:34and two doors of fir-wood: the two leaves of the one door were folding, and the two leaves of the other door were folding. 6:35And he carved thereon cherubim and palm-trees and open flowers; and he overlaid them with gold fitted upon the graven work. 6:36And he built the inner court with three courses of hewn stone, and a course of cedar beams.
6:37In the fourth year was the foundation of the house of Jehovah laid, in the month Ziv. 6:38And in the eleventh year, in the month Bul, which is the eighth month, was the house finished throughout all the parts thereof, and according to all the fashion of it. So was he seven years in building it.
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Following Entry: I Kings 7
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Metaphysical Bible Gallery of Resources
Unity Bible Lessons 1895-1965
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TV ReviewsTremeSeason 4
Treme: “Sunset On Louisianne”
Phil Dyess-Nugent
TremeSeason 4
"Sunset On Louisianne"
The penultimate episode of Treme’ is a real circle-of-life special, beginning with Davis, at the mike in the studios of WWOZ, confusing some visiting musicians by ruminating on the finality of death and the futility of existence, and ending with Big Chief Albert on his death bed. In the opening scene, Albert zones out while a priest is blessing the house; he spends most of the rest of the episode flat on his back and strung out on morphine, though he does snap to attention long enough to announce, with suitable gravity and authority, that he will not be able to make the walk this year, and to tell his son Rob to assume the crown and lead his people uptown. It’s like FDR declaring that he will not live to see the end of World War II, and asking Harry Truman to please try not to fuck up the country any more than he absolutely has to. Ron handles all this as stoically as he can, even attempting to please his father by telling him that “those modern jazz cats” he has been known to play with when he’s found himself on the wrong side of the Mason-Dixon line “can’t swing for shit.” But when Albert seems to be having what will be one of his last lucid moments, Rob does tell him, of a piece he played for him earlier, that “I wrote it for you.” “I know,” croaks Albert, re-affirming his stature as the Han Solo of hard-to-please father figures.
People acccept Albert as an authority figure—natural royalty—because he knows who he is. Not everyone in the city has that much going for them, and some people who have do have a pretty fair idea of who they are see it as something to be lived down. (Chef Janette, who has good reason for taking pride in who she is, is still contractually prohibited from profiting on her own name.) Davis is about to turn 40, which is why his latest on-air musings about the greatness of Louis Prima and the virtues of the Bosworth Sisters versus those of the Andrews Sisters end with the upbeat reminder, “Of course, they’re all dead now.” He asks Janette, if he drops dead tomorrow, what will he leave behind? “A good-looking corpse,” she says. Brightening, he asks, “You think so?” She shrugs: “From some angles.”
Not satisfied with this, he tries to talk his new asshole buddy Nelson into investing in his dream to start a nightclub in the largely abandoned Rampart Street area. He explains that a proper, rowdy shithole club that can foster new, living music will actually be of benefit to the staid, stuffy jazz “museum” that he thinks the money men are going to build nearby. When Nelson gingerly raises the issue with his boss, the boss shoots it down fast: He and his fellow investors will blow a cannonball through the good will they’ve purchased from the Rampart Street locals, who have been appreciating the relative quiet and will be pissed off if their neighborhood turns into one more stretch of the Quarter where drunks are weaving all over the street from late night until sun-up. It’s a brisk little lesson in the ways in which those who, like Davis, love and romanticize New Orleans and want it to live up to its legacy as the mythic home of Buddy Bolden and Sidney Bechet sometimes find themselves at odds with those residents who are just trying to live there, and would like to get some sleep before they have to go to work in the morning.
Once again, the most sheerly enjoyable scenes belong to Antoine, who has achieved a new level of consciousness about his surroundings since getting involved in the lives of his students, and who has mixed feelings about it. He can’t walk away from the role he’s taken on or the responsibilities (and the steady paycheck) that come with it. But he does treat himself to a lost weekend, throwing himself back into the lifestyle of a “New Orleans musician” with nothing on his mind but finding his next gig, jamming all night with a group that includes Kidd Jordan and Donald Harrison, then stepping out into the new day to go search for a parade to join. (He settles back into his classroom on Monday morning, instructing the children on that most important thing for a working New Orleans musician to know: How to tend a killer hangover.)
The plotline involving Toni, Terry, and their efforts to win a measure of justice for the victims of the NOPD remain the most frustrating part of the show—not because the material isn’t handled well, but because it’s based on actual recent history, and anyone who’s followed the cases knows that there won’t be (or, at least, hasn’t yet been) a triumphant, clear-cut resolution to the Danziger Bridge shootings, just as there hasn’t been an arrest made in the murder of Helen Hill, which figured prominently in the show’s second season. Treme’ links the frustration these stories generate to the other stories swirling in this episode when it has Terry admit that he doesn’t much want to be a cop anymore, and is wondering what else he can do with the rest of his life, but it can’t exorcise the frustration that the viewer shares from the sense that justice won’t be coming.
The history of the New Orleans police is an ongoing horror show, and one that it would be easy to exploit for garish thrills. (In 1995, a New Orleans policewoman named Antoinette Frank robbed the restaurant where her partner was moonlighting as a security guard, murdering him and two of the employees; a month after Frank was convicted of the murders, the remains of her father were found buried under her house, with a bullet hole in the skull. Transposed to Baltimore, the Frank case went on to inspire an episode of Homicide.) Nor has it whipped up a bunch of honest supercops, along the lines of the best and the brightest on The Wire, to fight the corruption. But it has tried to pay witness, as honestly as it can, to the fact that the justice department of a major American city that has been under terrific stress is in the hands of a Keystone Gestapo force, and to pay tribute to the few people who have tried to demand accountability from them. It just may have done too good a job of making you understand how much their heads must hurt.
Recent from Phil Dyess-Nugent
The Bob Newhart Show turned its star’s signature style into an ensemble classic
R.I.P. Mary Ann Mobley, Miss America turned actress
R.I.P. Warren Clarke of Dalziel And Pascoe and A Clockwork Orange
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The 2014 Sony Pictures hack by North Korea was just the beginning
The Cybersecurity & Content Protection Summit took place just prior to the NAB 2019 conference in Las Vegas. The event was devoted to technologies and best practices for protecting media and entertainment content
Clete Johnson asked a provocative question in his keynote: “Is the Media and Entertainment industry ‘Critical Infrastructure?'” under the premise that M&E are at the intersection of politics and security. He is Senior Fellow for the Center for Strategic International Studies and Partner at Wilkinson Barker Knauer.
The famous Sony Pictures hack
He reminded the audience of the 2014 hack of Sony Pictures by North Korea, a reaction to the movie “The Interview,” which mocked North Korea’s leader, which many dismissed as fuel for Hollywood celebrity gossip. Cybersecurity officials had been expecting such an attack to happen, but few thought it would be aimed at a parody movie.
Mr Johnson characterized the attack serious terms: one by a nation-state adversary acting against another nation-state, elevating the attacker to rogue state level. It was a disruptive and destructive attack that punished Sony; a significant distruptive cyberattack to the US and an attack on free expression. It was seen as a cyber-enabled information operation.
Subsequent to this attack, nation-state actors have become more adept at using the strengths of the media and entertainment industry against us. Mr Johnson continued that the only thing lacking in this attack was a disinformation campaign.
Points to ponder
We were left with three points for the audience to consider:
Supressing free expression: The attack on Sony prompted the M&E industry to put some projects on hold.
Bad intentions: Will countries continue to allow the M&E industry to investigate their actions?
Truth versus fact: In an emergency situation, the emergency alerts issued through broadcasters might make the difference between life and death. He reminded us of the January 2018 false missile alert in Hawaii and the panic that ensued.
And then the closing question: Do broadcasters and the Media and Entertainment qualify as critical infrastructure, at the same level as the nation’s electrical grid, road system and telecommunications networks? By now, most attendees had been convinced.
The event was held by CDSA (the Content Delivery & Security Association) in collaboration with MESA (the Media and Entertainment Services Alliance). CDSA also launched a venture with the MPAA, the Trusted Partner Network (TPN). This alphabet soup of organizations, but content security is their common goal.
Panelists from these and other organizations agreed that in 2019, the vendors serving the media and entertainment industry should set aside their competitive natures and collaborate to address the threats that their industry is experiencing as a whole. That approach has worked in the financial services industry.
Previous articleThe evolving pay TV security landscape
Next articlePiracy and the Fifth Age of Video Analytics
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Managing violence, aggression and conflict in social work
Download fulltext (PDF, 28Mb)
Littlechild, Brian
This thesis examines the causes and effects of violence against social workers. In particular, it addresses issues of conflict arising from certain social workers' roles, and the nature, extent and effects of aggression and violence against social workers in both probation and child protection work. The management of these issues is also examined in depth. The thesis contains critical reviews of the literature available at the time of the preparation of the publications, which drew out key issues for theory, policy and practice. It also contains three empirical research reports, which utilized a mixture of qualitative and quantitative approaches. The first piece of research was undertaken within a probation service, and the last two pieces were carried out with child protection social workers and managers in a large social services department. The work highlights the importance of incorporating the experiences and views of social workers and managers concerning the management of aggression and violence from service users within their agencies' policy development. The issues addressed within the research reports include the effectiveness of support available for staff and managers, and how policy and practice relate to the dilemmas and problems raised for workers and managers dealing with threats within what can be ambiguous roles, particularly within child protection work. The work within the thesis addresses how policies and practice relate to the protection of children when parent service users display violence and aggression. It analyses the place of risk assessment both in relation to threats to workers and in the potentially negative effects on the protection of the child(ren) and others involved. The possible effects on the protection of children as a result of such threats, particularly within the Developing Violent Scenarios identified within the thesis, are also explored. The work incorporates possible ways of dealing with those clients who present aggressive and violent behaviour, within a consideration of how issues of power, control and gender affect the nature and effects of threats to workers. On the basis of original research and analysis of the relevant literature, the work offers a model of how issues of under-reporting, effects on victimized staff, and support for staff individually might most effectively be incorporated into the development of agency policies and risk assessment procedures to reduce risk to both children and staff.
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Panel discussion raises awareness on sexual violence in Cyprus
NICOSIA, 11 December 2015 – A panel discussion on the issue of sexual violence against women in Cyprus drew dozens of people to the Home for Cooperation on 10 December, wrapping up the annual 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence campaign and simultaneously commemorating International Human Rights Day. The discussion was hosted by the Home For Cooperation and UNFICYP.
2015 marks the 24th year of the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence campaign, during which millions across the world unite under the banner colour orange, chosen to symbolize the brighter future of a world free from violence against women and girls. The UN Secretary-General’s UNiTE to End Violence against Women Campaign invites governments, UN agencies, civil society organizations and individuals from all countries of the world to mark the 16 days between 25 November and 10 December by coming together to step up efforts to end violence against women and girls.
Susana Elisa Pavlou, director of the Mediterranean Institute of Gender Studies, spoke about the realities of sexual violence against women in Cyprus, while Mine Yucel, director of the Centre for Migration, Identity and Rights Studies provided a statistical approach to the discussion. Maria Hadjipavlou, a renowned expert in the field of conflict resolution and feminism, spoke about gendered aspects of conflict; Gender Equality Committee coordinator Mine Atli talked about gaps in the legal and structural frameworks that allow gender violence to continue. The discussion was moderated by Salpy Eskidjian, executive coordinator of the Office of the Religious Track of the Cyprus Peace Process.
Opening the event, the Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General in Cyprus, Lisa Buttenheim, spoke of the importance of speaking out about the often taboo subject of sexual violence.
“[Eliminating sexual violence] means breaking the silence on sexual violence. And that’s why discussions like today’s are significant – they help to erode the stigma associated with sexual violence, facing it head on, admitting society’s weaknesses and finding ways to move forward,” she said.
“I join the Secretary-General in his call for us all to join forces to end this crime – not just during the 16 Days, but every day,” she added.
Cypriot leaders condemn "shameful incidents" of 16 November 2015
Breakthrough: Turkey grants access to 30 military areas over three-year period
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Archives for the month of: August, 2011
Koch’s Influence Web
From cpiweb :
Editor Sandy Johnson speaks with reporter Jack Farrell about the his story on the Koch Industries’ lobbying.
Link to related iWatch article.
Tags capture, chemical regulation, Koch Industries
Categories Chemicals, Corporate Influence, Interviews, Videos
Gulf Oil Dispersants
From Green (New York Times Blog):
In the wake of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, BP sought and obtained permission to use dispersants, detergent-like compounds, to break up the 200 million gallons of Louisiana sweet crude, into tiny droplets that would mix throughout the water column, trying to lessen the immediate impact of the oil slick on fragile coastal ecosystems.
A review has now been published by Earthjustice, in collaboration with Toxipedia, an online toxicology Wiki, of all the scientific literature concerning the potential health impacts of these 57 chemicals. The report finds that “Of the 57 ingredients: 5 chemicals are associated with cancer; 33 are associated with skin irritation from rashes to burns; 33 are linked to eye irritation; 11 are or are suspected of being potential respiratory toxins or irritants; 10 are suspected kidney toxins; 8 are suspected or known to be toxic to aquatic organisms; and 5 are suspected to have a moderate acute toxicity to fish.”
While words like “associated with” or “linked to” may sound weak and unconvincing, the syntax highlights just how little is actually known about these chemicals. For 13 of the dispersant ingredients, no relevant data could be found.
“BP had a particular set of dispersants on hand and no one at the time seemed to know if they were safe, whether they were safer than other dispersants products that could be used or even whether they were safer for people and the environment than oil alone,” said Marianne Engelman Lado, a lawyer with Earthjustice. “BP chose Corexit because it was the dispersant on hand, not because it was the safest. However, regulation of dispersants is so inadequate that BP didn’t have enough information to figure out how it compared with other dispersants or oil alone.”
Nick Thorp, a project manager at Toxipedia, said:
There is just not a lot known about these chemicals and their linkages to potential health impacts. More research is really necessary to determine what exposure levels are, and aren’t safe. Ideally these questions would have been answered before the dispersants were approved for use. We’re now backtracking trying to answer these questions, after the public and the environment have already been exposed.
Earthjustice is calling for “more research, greater disclosure of the information that is known, comprehensive toxicity testing, establishment of safety criteria for dispersants, and careful selection of the least toxic dispersants for application in oil spill response.”
Download Complete Report: The Chaos Of Clean-Up
Toxipedia
Tags Earthjustice, Environmental Protection Agency, Gulf oil spill, oil dispersants, Toxipedia
Categories Chemicals, Energy, Environmental Protection Agency, Studies
Conference: Promoting Healthy Communities
Upstream contributor, Peggy Shepard is participating in the “Promoting Healthy Communities” Conference. Here is the agenda.
PROMOTING HEALTHY COMMUNITIES: Developing and Exploring Linkages Between Public Health Indicators, Exposure and Hazard Data
Grand Hyatt Washington
Monday, September 26 – Tuesday, September 27, 2011
Print Version (PDF) (4 pp, 36 K)
See conference schedule under the jump. Read the rest of this entry »
Tags conference, Environmental Protection Agency, Peggy Shepard, Promoting Healthy Communities
Categories Conference, Environmental Protection Agency, Peggy Shepard, Upstream Contributors
Why Koch Industries is Fighting Chemical Regulation
From iwatchvideo:
Editor Sandy Johnson interviews reporter Jack Farrell about the latest story by the Center for Public Integrity’s iWatch News’ latest piece on Koch Industries: how the refinery giant has been spending money lobbying against federal regulations for securing chemical plants.
Antibiotics Causing Disease?
From Los Angeles Times:
We’ve all heard that the overuse of antibiotics is making them less effective and fueling the rise of dangerous drug-resistant bacteria. But did you know it may also be fueling the rise of obesity, diabetes, allergies and asthma?
So says Dr. Martin Blaser, microbiologist and infectious disease specialist at New York University Langone Medical Center who studies the myriad bacteria that live on and in our bodies. He explains his theory in a commentary published in Thursday’s edition of the journal Nature.
In recent years, scientists have developed a growing appreciation for the “microbiome,” the collection of mostly useful bacteria that help us digest food, metabolize key nutrients and ward off invading pathogens. Investigators have cataloged thousands of these organisms through the National Institutes of Health’s Human Microbiome Project, begun in 2008.
Blaser is interested in why so many bacteria have colonized the human body for so long – the simple fact that they have strongly suggests that they serve some useful purpose. But these bacteria have come under attack in the last 80 or so years thanks to the development of antibiotics. The drugs certainly deserve some of the credit for extending the U.S. lifespan, Blaser notes – a baby born today can expect to live 78 years, 15 years longer than a baby born in 1940. But in many respects, an antibiotic targets a particular disease the way a nuclear bomb targets a criminal, causing much collateral damage to things you’d rather not destroy.
“Antibiotics kill the bacteria we do want, as well as those we don’t,” Blaser writes. “Sometimes, our friendly flora never fully recover.”
And that can leave us more susceptible to various kinds of diseases, especially considering that the typical American is exposed to 10 to 20 antibiotics during childhood alone. Blaser points out that the rise (let along overuse) of antibiotics coincides with dramatic increases in the prevalence of allergies, asthma, Type 1 diabetes, obesity and inflammatory bowel disease. That isn’t proof that the two are related, but it’s a question worth exploring, he says.
Take the case of Helicobacter pylori. As Blaser explains, this bacterium was “the dominant microbe in the stomachs of almost all people” in the early 1900s. But 100 years later, it is found in less than 6% of American, Swedish and German kids. One likely reason is that a single course of amoxicillin or another antibiotic to treat an ear or respiratory infection can wipe out H. pylori 20% to 50% of the time.
Tags antibiotics, asthma, obesity
Categories Allergies, antibiotics, Asthma, Cancer, Diabetes, Diseases, Microbes, Obesity
Utah Town Fights for its Life
From Deseret News:
These days, Steve Norcross glimpses less and less of the sun setting from his front lawn in Magna, but tonight, he looks up and sees the clouds are turning peach and gray, with a slightly brown haze on the horizon.
“Pretty nice view, huh?” he asks with a smile, and a slight edge to his voice. Over his shoulder to the west, there is a berm, a hill and a giant yellow and black sign painted on the side of a Kennecott Utah Copper building that reads: “It’s your safety — think about it.” The message makes Norcross bristle.
Norcross lives across the street from the southeast corner of Kennecott’s south tailings pond, a massive holding area for the pulverized rock that’s been stripped of all value during the mining process and crushed to a powder-like substance. The site has caused conflict in the community over its instability in the event of an earthquake and several incidents in the late 1980s when thick clouds of tailings covered the town. Now, as Kennecott looks to expand their operations until 2039, the company has applied for a permit to increase their tailings impoundment, including building on a portion of the south pond — the idea of which makes Norcross angry.
“This is about profit,” he says. “That is all this is about. … The residents of Magna are not a concern. … For me, it’s about quality of life. It’s about being able to live in the town you grew up in, and live peacefully and not worry about health and not worry about big man-made mountains blocking the sunset. It’s about my kids and grandkids.”
Norcross has embroiled himself in a battle that wages between the world’s need for natural resources, a company that serves that appetite and an environment that will be indelibly impacted by the decisions made today. Stricter government regulations and programs like Superfund have helped companies like Kennecott assume more environmental responsibility for their operations, but when it comes to Kennecott’s assurances that its plans will be safe for the environment and his family, Norcross is not convinced, and he is not alone.
Tags Magna Utah, mining
Categories Activists, Air, Chemicals, Corporate Influence, Household Risks
Slow Death by Rubber Duck
Slow Death by Rubber Duck argues that our daily lives create a toxic soup inside each of us.
Studies have shown that significant levels of toxic substances can leach out of commonplace items in our homes and workplaces. How do these toxins make their way inside us and what impact do they have on our health? And more importantly, what can we do about them? Rick Smith and Bruce Lourie, two of Canada’s leading environmental activists, tackle these questions head on by experimenting upon themselves. Over a four-day period, our intrepid (and perhaps foolhardy) authors ingest and inhale a host of things that surround us all every day, all of which are suspected of being toxic and posing long term health risks to humans. By revealing the pollution load in their bodies before and after the experiment – and the results in most cases are downright frightening – they tell the inside story of seven common substances.
The pollution inside us is insidious. “We cannot see it; we often have trouble measuring it and it is very difficult assigning specific damage to chemicals that are so widely used. But the alarm bells are starting to sound.” Doctors, nurses, mothers and community activists are questioning why these toxic substances can be put into products without our knowledge and with no evidence that they will not harm us and legislators are just beginning to listen.
Ultimately hopeful, Slow Death By Rubber Duck empowers readers with ideas for protecting themselves and their families and changing things for the better. If you are concerned about the level of toxins in your body and want to understand the hidden threats already in your home, you must read this book.
Categories Books, Videos
Environmental Hazards in Tribal Schools
From iWatch:
Children of the nation’s military personnel aren’t the only students who have reason to worry about decrepit, sometimes hazardous conditions at their schools. Hundreds of Native American children attend schools that haven’t properly disposed of hazardous waste, haven’t contained asbestos in heating systems, and whose water systems exceed the maximum allowable level for arsenic in tap water – conditions barred under federal environmental laws.
As part of a settlement with the Environmental Protection Agency, the Department of the Interior has agreed to pay a $234,844 civil penalty after inspectors found a raft of alleged violations of federal waste, water, air, toxics and community right-to-know laws involving 72 schools and 27 water systems on or near the lands of 60 different tribes around the country. The settlement affects 160 schools in almost every part of the country (the full list is on page 84 of this consent agreement ).
The EPA discovered the violations between 2008 and 2010 while conducting inspections at 100 schools overseen by the Interior Department’s Office of Indian Affairs. Under the settlement, Interior will be required to undergo audits to check for environmental compliance at the schools, and the settlement money must be used in part to correct violations of the Asbestos Hazard Emergency Response Act.
“Children are more vulnerable to environmental exposures than adults, which is why ensuring that schools provide safe, healthy learning environments for our children, particularly in tribal communities, is a top priority,” said Cynthia Giles, assistant administrator for EPA’s Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance. Added Jared Blumenfeld, regional administrator for EPA’s Pacific Southwest office, “The federal government has a trust responsibility to protect human health and the environment in Indian country.”
The EPA has a special program intended to identify environmental risks on reservations. “Pollution of the air, water and land in Indian country and in other tribal areas may pose significant threats to the health and environment of members of the 564 federally-recognized Indian tribes,” the EPA states on the Web site of an enforcement initiative that specifically targets issues on tribal lands. “Pollution may seriously damage ecosystems and tribal members can face increased risk from pollution because of subsistence hunting, fishing, and gathering practices.”
To be sure, schools attended by the children of the U.S. military don’t appear to have problems on the same scale or that would draw such attention from federal environmental regulators – or big penalties. But many military schools are decrepit, fail to meet the Pentagon’s own standards, and have proven worrisome to parents and teachers over air and water quality issues.
As iWatch News has reported , tens of thousands of children — from Georgia to Kansas, Virginia to Washington state — attend schools on military bases that are falling apart from age and neglect, and fail to meet even the military’s own standards.
Some schools have tainted water and fouled air; others are so overcrowded teachers improvise, holding class in hallways, supply closets, and in one instance, working in a boiler room. Many of the schools are old; one school in Germany was built by the Nazis.
Tags environmental law violations, Tribal Schools
Categories Chemicals, Environmental Protection Agency, Regulation
Tar Sands and Songbirds
From NRDCflix:
Big Oil’s tar sands mining is destroying our continent’s greatest songbird nursery.
Tags NRDC, tar sands, video
Categories Activists, Corporate Influence, Energy, Videos
Traveling Microbes
From Environment 360:
Consider the African rain dance. People in tribal costumes stamping the ground to make rain — it’s nonsense, you might say. Except that we now know it could actually work. If you have enough dancers, there may be no better way to make rain, because bugs in the soil and surface vegetation make exceptionally good cloud- and ice-condensation nuclei — and rain dances stir them up.
Microbes, it turns out, are the hidden players in the atmosphere, making clouds, causing rain, spreading diseases between continents, and maybe even changing climates as well. Eos, published by the American Geophysical Union, last month reported that bio-aerosols are “leading the high life.” In the Eos article, David Smith of the University of Washington and colleagues argue that microbes are “the most successful types of life on Earth” and are the unacknowledged players in many planetary processes, particularly in the atmosphere. It’s time we caught up with them.
Back in 1979, Russell Schnell of the University of Colorado was in western Kenya wondering why the tea plantations there held the world record for hailstorms. They occurred 132 days a year. He discovered that tiny particles of dead and decaying leaves in the soil bore a close resemblance to the tiny particles around which hailstones formed. They were, it turned out, far better adapted to the task even than man-made cloud seeding chemicals like silver iodide.
Schnell, who is now deputy director of the Global Monitoring Division of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, concluded that “the feet of hundreds of tea pickers going about their daily jobs” were to blame for the hail. By kicking the bits of leaf into the air, he said, the tea pickers must be providing the abundant ice-nucleators that created the hailstorms. He published in Tellus in 1982, revealing that the critical actors in this Kenyan drama were the bacteria, Pseudomonas syringae, that attached
‘Bioprecipitation’ is a hot topic, more so as we learn how much biological matter is in the atmosphere.
themselves to the leaves as they rotted — the tea pickers sent the leaf bits airborne as they walked the fields picking the tea leaves from the bushes.
Biologists have long known that many species of bacteria trigger frost damage on vegetation, with Pseudomonas syringae the most efficient. The bacteria have evolved a gene that promotes spontaneous ice nucleation at around minus 2 degrees Celsius, much warmer than would happen otherwise. Their ice-making skills allow them to break down the cell walls of the plants they feed on. But it seems they also use the same skill in clouds.
Mineral and salt particles are present in large numbers in clouds and can act as condensation nuclei. But many bacteria, as well as fungal spores and tiny algae, are the cloud condensation nuclei of choice because they can work at higher temperatures. Since the formation of ice is normally the first step in the creation of raindrops in clouds, they are probably critical in the creation of rain. “Numerous studies,” say Smith and his colleagues in Eos, “have shown that many… condensation nuclei responsible for climate and precipitation patterns are in fact airborne micro-organisms, living or dead.”
And that, Smith says, means any human activity that puts more bugs in the air is potentially a rain-making activity, whether it is tramping tea plantations or cooking up a big rain dance. “Exactly how higher concentrations of airborne micro-organisms will interact with other variables that drive weather and precipitation is a major unknown in the climate change equation,” he says.
Schnell’s original observation was largely ignored by the wider science community. But recent papers have made similar observations in other places. For instance, Brent Christner, a microbiologist at Louisiana State University, reported in Science in 2008 that he had found “ubiquitous and abundant” microbes in fresh snowfall sampled from Antarctica to Montana – between 70 and 100 percent of ice nucleators found in the snow were biological.
This, Christner points out, was especially remarkable since he was sampling snow in areas where there was no local vegetation. The microbes had traveled a long way to do their job. “It’s a wake-up call,” he says. “Biological particles do seem to play a very important role in generating snowfall and rain.”
Then in May this year, at a meeting of the American Society of Microbiology, Alexander Michaud of Montana State University in Bozeman reported finding high concentrations of bacteria in hailstones falling on his campus.
“Bioprecipitation” is a hot topic. And the more so as we learn how much biological matter there is in the atmosphere — more than 10,000 individual bacteria per cubic meter of air over the land, according to a 2009 study by Susannah Burrows of the Max Planck Institute for Chemistry in Mainz, Germany. These bacteria spend an average of about a week in the atmosphere; but while some stay close to the ground, others soar into the stratosphere, says Smith. Weather balloons have even found them in the mesosphere, up to 77 kilometers aloft, according to a forgotten study by Soviet scientist A. A. Imshenetsky, published in Applied and Environmental Biology as long ago as 1978 and uncovered by Smith.
Categories Air, Climate Change, Diseases, Microbes, Studies
Lead in the Air
From Melbourne Florida Today:
Nearly 1,600 children age 5 and younger live close enough to an airport in Brevard County to be at risk from leaded gasoline used by small piston planes and helicopters.
With the release of a new study from Duke University and other research identifying 1 kilometer, about 0.6 miles, as a significant threshold for health risks from lead, FLORIDA TODAY examined local data to gauge the potential lead threat to Space Coast residents. The threat is especially dangerous for young children, who suffer most from exposure to lead.
The newspaper analysis of U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Census and Brevard County housing numbers found:
About 13,480 homes and 25 schools, including eight elementary schools and seven day care centers are within the at-risk zone of an airport, heliport or private airstrip. Given Brevard’s average of 2.4 residents per household, an estimated 32,350 people live within that threshold distance.
Brevard’s 20 aviation facilities emitted 1.3 tons of lead in 2008, the most recent data available. Forty percent, or 1,043 pounds, came from Melbourne International, ranking it 52nd highest for lead emissions among the nation’s 20,000 aviation facilities.
3,500 homes, or about 8,400 people, are within that threshold of Melbourne International Airport.”I’m concerned about it,” said Andrea Cattaneo, a mother of two whose home on Bridle Path in Hacienda Estates is less than a half-mile from Melbourne International. “You get that black dust. I’m constantly washing off my back porch.”
To protect her sons, Nicholas, 6, and Jack, 9, she makes sure to change out her air-conditioning filter regularly to capture any air pollutants from planes. But she still worries how lead and other air pollution might affect her family, especially as the airport expands.
“It’s really in those early years that lead can make an impact on children’s intelligence levels,” said Rebecca Anthopolos, a statistical analyst at Duke who co-authored the study on lead exposure from leaded aviation gasoline published in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives. The researchers found lead-blood levels increase significantly in children who live near an airport.
No level of lead exposure is accepted as safe, according to the EPA, and the agency has found serious health effects at much lower levels in blood than previously thought. The agency is considering a phase-out of lead from general aviation gasoline, called avgas, but has set no timeline.
In May, Friends of the Earth, a California-based environmental group, notified the EPA it plans to sue the agency to force a timeline.
But industry officials say there is no viable substitute for lead as an octane booster. Forcing more expensive alternative fuels too soon could batter a $150 billion industry already in a tailspin from the recession, they say, as well as create safety concerns.
“Engines could literally disintegrate on you,” said Glenn Vera, director of Florida Institute of Technology aviation, which has 54 planes at Melbourne International Airport.
Conservation groups counter that industry and the EPA have delayed for decades and must commit to deadlines for a phaseout. They list Melbourne International among 32 airports nationwide — 13 of them in Florida — that are the worst lead offenders because of high general aviation traffic and proximity to homes, schools and low-income areas.
Image by Boltron.
Tags airport, Environmental Protection Agency, Florida, lead
The Risks of Killing Germs
From New York Times:
The maker of Dial Complete hand soap says that it kills more germs than any other brand. But is it safe?
That question has federal regulators, consumer advocates and soap manufacturers locked in a battle over the active ingredient in Dial Complete and many other antibacterial soaps, a chemical known as triclosan.
The Food and Drug Administration is reviewing the safety of the chemical, which was created more than 40 years ago as a surgical scrub for hospitals. Triclosan is now in a range of consumer products, including soaps, kitchen cutting boards and even a best-selling toothpaste, Colgate Total. It is so prevalent that a survey by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found the chemical present in the urine of 75 percent of Americans over the age of 5.
Several studies have shown that triclosan may alter hormone regulation in laboratory animals or cause antibiotic resistance, and some consumer groups and members of Congress want it banned in antiseptic products like hand soap. The F.D.A. has already said that soap with triclosan is no more effective than washing with ordinary soap and water, a finding that manufacturers dispute.
The F.D.A. was to announce the results of its review several months ago, but now says the timing is uncertain and unlikely until next year. The Environmental Protection Agency is also looking into the safety of triclosan.
The outcome of the federal inquiries poses a significant risk to the makers of antimicrobial and antibacterial hand soaps, which represent about half of the $750 million market for liquid hand soaps in the United States, according to the market research firm Kline & Company.
Tags triclosan
Categories antibiotics, Center for Disease Control, Chemicals, Government Action, Household Risks, Regulation, triclosan
Pesticides Linked to Diabetes
From Montreal Gazette:
People with relatively high levels of certain pesticides in their blood may have an increased risk of Type 2 diabetes — particularly if they are overweight, a new study suggests.
The study, reported in the journal Diabetes Care, is not the first to link chemical pollutants to diabetes.
A number of studies have found a connection between diabetes risk and exposure to older pesticides known as organochlorines, PCBs and other chemicals that fall into the category of “persistent organic pollutants.”
Organochlorines are now banned or restricted in the U.S. and other developed countries, after research linked them to cancer and other potential health risks. PCBs, which were once used in everything from appliances to fluorescent lighting to insecticides, were banned in the 1970s.
However, as the name suggests, persistent organic pollutants remain in the environment for years and build up in animal and human body fat.
In the U.S., diet is the main potential source of exposure, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) — with fatty foods, like dairy products and oily fish, topping the list.
Lab research has suggested that some persistent organic pollutants impair the body’s ability to regulate blood sugar, which could help explain the link to Type 2 diabetes.
Some of the compounds also have been shown to promote obesity, which is itself a major risk factor for diabetes, noted Riikka Airaksinen of Finland’s National Institute for Health and Welfare, who led the new study.
For the study, Airaksinen’s team measured blood levels of several persistent organic pollutants in about 2,000 older adults.
Just over 15 per cent had Type 2 diabetes. The risk was higher, the researchers found, among people with the highest levels of organochlorine pesticides.
Those with levels in the top 10 per cent were about twice as likely to have diabetes as their counterparts in the bottom 10 per cent.
But the link appeared to be limited to people who were overweight or obese.
That, the researchers write, suggests that the pollutants and body fat “may have a synergistic effect on the risk of Type 2 diabetes.”
The results alone do not prove that organochlorine pesticides were the reason for the higher diabetes risk, Airaksinen told Reuters Health in an email.
The researchers accounted for participants’ age, sex, waist size and blood pressure levels. But they had no information on things like diet and exercise habits — which might help explain the pesticide-diabetes link.
But the overall body of research, according to Airaksinen, is pointing toward a cause-and-effect relationship.
Tags diabetes, obesity, pesticides, type 2 diabetes
Categories Agriculture, Chemicals, Diabetes, Diseases, Obesity, Pesticides
Professor Erin Lipp on Environmental Health Science
From UGAPublicHealth:
Meet Dr. Erin Lipp, Associate Professor in the University of Georgia’s Department of Environmental Health Science. Her research interests include: Ecology of human pathogens in coastal and other natural waters; Role of environmental exposures in waterborne disease transmission; Coastal water quality and wastewater impacts on coral reefs; Climate change and waterborne disease; Oceans and human health.
Tags Environmental Health Sciences, Erin Lipp
Categories Climate Change, Food, Scholars, Videos
A Bad Environment for the EPA
From Reuters:
Republicans, backed by wealthy conservative lobbyists, are determined to stop the EPA and what they see as an activist agenda that is costing jobs and hurting corporate profits.
“Right now for House Republicans one of their important rally cries is that EPA regulations are excessive and even abusive,” said Robert Stavins, director of the Harvard Environmental Economics Program.
After President Barack Obama’s push for a climate bill in Congress collapsed last year, the EPA was left as the last bastion of hope for his environmental policy.
This led the agency, ironically founded under the Republican administration of Richard Nixon in 1970, to pursue its environmental agenda vigorously. The EPA was considered a toothless tiger under the administration of George W. Bush.
Almost on par with government spending, Republicans galvanized around the issue, using every opportunity, such as congressional hearings, relentlessly to criticize EPA chief Lisa Jackson and stymie her agency’s efforts.
While Republicans face stiff opposition in any legislation to shackle the EPA from the Democrat-controlled Senate and the White House, they do have a number of options, especially in the run-up to the 2012 elections.
And the party has proven adept at outflanking the often disunited Democrats on big issues.
House Republicans could move to cut EPA funding through the appropriations process or through deficit-cutting talks in November as required by the debt-ceiling agreement.
Representative Fred Upton, chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, was picked by Republicans to be part of the 12-member congressional committee that will decide on cuts needed as part of the debt-ceiling agreement.
He could push hard for savings from the EPA’s budget as he has led the battle against its rules.
Senate Majority leader Harry Reid recently said he sees no threat to the EPA from Upton’s presence on the super-committee.
“I would assume they will make a serious effort to cut back and apply pressure to cut back EPA regulatory activity as part of this budgetary process,” Stavins said.
“I don’t know if they’ll succeed. That will depend on what the Democratic response to that is.”
Representative Ed Whitfield, another leading Republican on energy policy issues, said that outside the debt talks his party will hammer away in hearings and through legislation on its themes that the EPA has been killing jobs and growth.
Whitfield said Democrats, especially those from energy-intensive states such as West Virginia and Ohio, should know it will be a major issue on the campaign trail.
“We want to keep passing things on the House side that would reverse things EPA is doing simply because we’d like to see those 23 Democratic senators up for reelection next year vote on some of this,” Whitfield said.
EPA ACTIONS INFLAME REPUBLICANS
Of the most contentious proposals, the EPA wants to cut greenhouse gas emissions from the country’s major utilities. But the process has been delayed, in part, some suspect, by Republican pressure.
These rules could hit the bottom lines of such companies as American Electric Power and Duke Energy. Similar regulations are also planned for oil refineries.
In addition, the EPA has been struggling to complete a much-delayed rule on ozone pollution while also pushing new fuel-efficiency standards and measures to cut emissions from oil and gas drilling.
In protest, states and industry groups have slapped the EPA with multiple lawsuits, which could delay implementation of its rules and slow investment in energy-dependent industries.
CHOKING THE FUNDING
Republicans have tried a number of legislative moves to hamper the EPA. In April, the House passed a bill designed as a blanket ban on the EPA from regulating greenhouse gas emissions and sent it to the Senate, which voted 50-50 on it, falling short of the super-majority needed.
The House Interior-EPA spending bill introduced last month to cut funding to EPA programs is also pending.
Tags corporate influence, Democrats, Environmental Protection Agency, EPA, Lisa Jackson, lobbying, politics, Republicans
Categories Corporate Influence, Environmental Protection Agency, Government Action, Lawsuits, Regulation
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Google Wants Children Watching YouTube Kids App
Posted by shuttle On April 27, 2018
More often than not, Google is seen as a force for good on the internet. However, in one area in particular, their actions and words haven't been in alignment, and it's gotten them in trouble.
Here's Google's official statement about their YouTube Kids service:
"Protecting kids and families has always been a top priority for us. Because YouTube is not for children, we've invested significantly in the creation of the YouTube Kids app to offer an alternative specifically designed for children."
That statement is true as far as it goes, but there's an important catch. The YouTube Kids app is frustratingly difficult to get. You can't install it on your Xbox. Most smart TV's on the market today don't support it, and you can't put it on a PC. Aside from a few models of LG and Sony smart TVs, and smartphones, it's just not an option.
Contrast that with the regular YouTube app, which has been rolled out to just about every platform there is, and it's easy to see where Google's primary focus is.
It's not hard to understand the reasoning behind the difference in availability. One of the key differences between YouTube and YouTube Kids is that the latter doesn't have targeted advertising, while the former does. Google makes a lot of money on YouTube ads. It's simple economics.
Unfortunately, it's also gotten the company into hot water. They've had complaints from more than 20 consumer advocacy groups, who have banded together and taken their case to the FTC.
In part, the complaint reads as follows:
"Google has made substantial profits from the collection and use of personal data from children on YouTube. Its illegal collection has been going on for many years and involves tens of millions of US children."
Ultimately, what the advocacy groups want is for Google to move all kid-centric content over to YouTube kids. However, the company would be extremely reluctant to do that because their kid-friendly app has such limited availability.
This is a thorny issue with no easy answers, and at this point, it's unclear how Google is going to respond to the complaint.
Microsoft Enticing Edge Users With Malware Protection
Apple May Soon Say Goodbye To Intel Chips
New 5GE Coming To Phones Is Still In Development
Ransomware Discovered On Some Google Play Store Apps
Vertical Video Support On YouTube For iOS Finally Here
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North and South Korea Agree to Talks to Reduce Military Tensions
By Christine Kim and Hyonhee Shin / Reuters
(SEOUL) — North and South Korea on Tuesday agreed on negotiations to resolve problems and military talks aimed at averting accidental conflict, after their first official dialogue in more than two years, as Pyongyang’s nuclear weapons programme fuels tension.
In a joint statement after the 11-hour talks, the North pledged to send a large delegation to next month’s Pyeongchang Winter Olympics in the South, but made a ‘strong complaint’ after Seoul proposed talks to denuclearise the Korean peninsula.
South Korea asked its neighbour to halt hostile acts that stoke tension on the peninsula, and in return, the North agreed that peace should be guaranteed in the region, the South’s unification ministry said in a separate statement.
The talks had been closely watched by world leaders keen for any sign of a reduction in tension, as fears grow over the North’s missile launches and development of nuclear weapons, in defiance of United Nations Security Council resolutions.
Earlier on Tuesday, Seoul said it was prepared to lift some sanctions temporarily so North Korean officials could visit the South for the Games. The North said its delegation would comprise athletes, high-ranking officials, a cheering squad, art performers as well as reporters and spectators.
South Korea has unilaterally banned several North Korean officials from entry in response to Pyongyang’s ramped-up missile and nuclear tests, held despite international pressure.
However, some South Korean officials have said they see the Olympics as a possible opportunity for easing tension.
Foreign ministry spokesman Roh Kyu-deok said Seoul would consider whether it needed to take “prior steps”, together with the U.N. Security Council and other relevant countries, to help the North Koreans visit for the Olympics.
Working talks will be held soon to work out the details of bringing the North Koreans to the Olympics, the statement said, with the exact schedule to be decided via documented exchanges.
At Tuesday’s talks, the first since December 2015, Seoul proposed inter-Korean military discussions to reduce tension on the peninsula and a reunion of family members in time for February’s Lunar New Year holiday, but the joint statement made no mention of the reunions.
The North has finished technical work to restore a military hotline with South Korea, Seoul said, with normal communications set to resume on Wednesday. It was not immediately clear what information would be transferred along the hotline.
The North cut communications in February 2016, following the South’s decision to shut down a jointly run industrial park in the North.
North Korea also responded ‘positively’ to the South’s proposal for athletes from both sides to march together at the Games’ opening ceremony and other joint activities during the Winter Olympics, Seoul said.
Athletes of the two sides have not paraded together at international sports events since the 2007 Asian Winter Games in China, after relations chilled under nearly a decade of conservative rule in the South.
The United States, which has 28,500 troops stationed in South Korea as a legacy of the 1950-1953 Korean War, initially responded coolly to the idea of inter-Korean meetings, but U.S. President Donald Trump later called them “a good thing”.
Trump has said he would like to see talks go beyond the Olympics. “At the appropriate time, we’ll get involved,” he said.
On Tuesday, China’s foreign ministry said it was happy to see talks between North and South Korea and welcomed all positive steps. Russia echoed the sentiment, with a Kremlin spokesman saying, “This is exactly the kind of dialogue that we said was necessary.”
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INTEGRATOR INSIDER
Lockheed Lands Postal Win: Lockheed Martin Federal Systems, Oswego, N.Y., was awarded a contract valued at more than $130 million to deploy 11 units of a computer-controlled material handling system for the U.S. Postal Service.
The Tray Management System is able to manage and control the intelligent transfer, transport, staging and retrieval of letter and flat mail trays. This is the second production buy of the system by the Postal Service and Lockheed Martin officials estimate that the product has a sales potential of $1 billion through 2000. The company developed a prototype system for the Postal Service in 1996 and received an original order for four production units.
CDSI Forms New Subsidiary: Computer Data Systems Inc., Rockville, Md., has formed a new subsidiary, CDSI Solutions Inc., Washington. CDSI Solutions will be a wholly owned subsidiary dedicated to providing information services in commercial markets, with an emphasis on commercial infotech outsourcing.
Robert L. Veschi has been appointed president of the subsidiary after recently retiring as president of Lockheed Martin's Integrated Business Solutions Co.
Castelle and NetXchange Team: Castelle Inc., Santa Clara, Calif., a supplier of network fax servers, signed a partnership with NetXchange Communications Inc., San Francisco, which will add Internet fax delivery technology to Castelle's lineup.
Internet fax routing is aimed at reducing the cost of transmission, particularly for international and intra-company faxing. Under the agreement, Castelle will use NetXchange's fax routing technology to add connectivity and automatic least-cost capability to its fax server product lines.
NCI Forms European Subsidiary: Network Computer Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Oracle Corp., Redwood Shores, Calif., announced the formation of a European subsidiary to market its network computer software and technology solutions to customers in Europe, the Middle East and Africa. The new operation, NCI EMEA, will be based in Milan, Italy.
NCI EMEA will market NCI's product line and will support all major national languages. The unit will also collaborate with European-based systems integrators, consumer electronic companies and computer manufacturers to deliver network computers to the region.
- Matt Hines
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HTML 4.0 Strives to Make the Web More Accessible
Like all else on the Internet, proposed standards are in a constant state of flux, in development or under review. Among the more important is the recently released public working draft of HTML 4.0, known as hypertext markup language, the publishing language of the Web, by the World Wide Web Consortium (http://www.w3.org/).
The consortium, jointly run by the MIT Laboratory for Computer Science in the United States, the National Institute for Research in Computer Science and Control in France and Keio University in Japan, develops common protocols for the World Wide Web. It also maintains a Web information repository for developers and users, reference codes for standards and a variety of prototype and sample applications to demonstrate use of new technology. More than 180 organizations are consortium members.
The bottom line on the draft, the product of the W3C HTML Working Group, is to make the Web more accessible, appealing, interactive and international, according to Tim Berners-Lee, W3C director and inventor of the Web.
After public and member review, the consortium expects it will be endorsed as a new W3C recommendation. Members of the working group include Adobe Systems, Hewlett-Packard, IBM, Microsoft, Netscape Communications, Novell, SoftQuad, Spyglass, Sun Microsystems, HotWired, PathFinder and Verso.
What's new in this version? According to Dave Raggett, the lead architect of W3C's HTML activity, developers will have greater control over forms, frames and tables plus all the benefits of scripts, style sheets and objects. Those who followed the development of HTML through version 3.2 (released in January) will see enhanced features in multimedia and hypertext.
For example, developers can now create read-only controls in forms, group form controls together, add labels to their controls and offer keyboard shortcuts on controls. Also, they can create in-line frames, which amounts to putting frames inside HTML documents. Further, developers can exercise more design control over tables by grouping columns and controlling borders. And finally, document authors now have a standard way to embed objects and scripts, support style sheets and include key symbols and glyphs used in mathematics and markup.
In an outreach campaign called the Web Accessibility Initiative, the consortium sought to improve the Web's availability for those with disabilities. Thus, among the new features for forms and tables are support for captions to render table content in Braille or speech. Along with support for groupings, labels, keyboard shortcuts and titles, these features should help to reduce barriers to users worldwide.
On the international front, which recalls the original intent of the World Wide Web, HTML 4.0 offers the markup needed for any language including multilingual documents. The specification does this by supporting the international ISO 10646 character set and lets content providers manage differences in language, text direction and character encoding schemes. One result is that authors can use right-to-left or mixed text.
The complete draft is available in several formats, including HTML, postscript and pdf. Links to the complete specification are available at http://www.w3.org/TR/WD-html40-970708/.
John Makulowich writes, talks and trains on the Internet. You can reach him at john@journalist.com; his home page is http://www.cais.com/makulow/.
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BELTWAY BIZ
Just the Cash, Please
The getting was good in early May, so executives at Network Solutions Inc. in Herndon, Va. got out. According to Securities and Exchange Commission documents, five company officers filed an intent to sell almost 140,000 shares, then worth $6.9 million.
Good timing. If they made that same decision a month later - after the stock lost more than 20 percent of its value - they would have walked away with $5.1 million.
Network Solutions, the registrar of Internet domain names, saw a major climb in its stock price preceding the insider activity last month. In the four previous months, the price shot from $11.75 to as high as $58. Since Battista and his cohorts sold out, the stock has dipped below $40.
Hanging Another Shingle
Steve Walker, founder and former CEO of Trusted Information Systems Inc. of Glenwood, Md., isn't taking his millionaire retirement sitting down. After selling his beloved company to Network Associates for $350 million, he decided it was time to give back. Enter Steve Walker & Associates.
The new firm, which includes five others from TIS, will be a cross between a consulting practice and an investment house. Walker said he will be investing in privately held start-up Internet companies.
He would not say how much money he and his partners will be investing. But right now, he's not seeking outside funding. "I'm not interested in being a venture capitalist right now," he said.
Just Can't Get Enough
When Global TeleSystems Group Inc. of McLean, Va., went public in February with a $148 million offering, the developer of telecommunications networks in emerging European and Asian markets was not even close to finished with its money-raising efforts.
Late last month, GTS filed documents with the SEC announcing a follow-on offering. Now it's looking to raise at least another $300 million by issuing more stock. And shareholders want to cash in another $200 million by selling their stock to the public.
The company will also issue $400 million in convertible bonds. That's more than $1 billion worth of GTS hitting the market in less than two quarters. Good thing the stock price is cooperating, having climbed 90 percent since the initial public offering.
- Bob Starzynski
Heard any inside-the-Beltway news lately? Send tips and tattles to technews@technews.com with "Beltway Biz" in the subject line.
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What is it really like to go to war? Filled with terror, pain and grief, it also brings exhilaration, and a profound sense of purpose. In Going to War, renowned authors Karl Marlantes and Sebastian Junger help us make sense of this paradox and get to the heart of what it’s like to be a soldier at war. Veterans of various conflicts reveal some universal truths of combat with unflinching candor.
Produced by Michael Epstein, GOING TO WAR is a production of Twin Cities PBS in association with Vulcan Productions, Inc. and PBS. Major funding is provided by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. Additional support provided by The Weber Family and Mr. and Mrs. Frederick W. Smith.
amazon_videoBuy on Amazon Video
SpecialsRight
Sebastian Junger and Karl Marlantes reveal the warrior’s journey with unflinching candor. Sebastian Junger and Karl Marlantes reveal the warrior’s journey with unflinching candor. Sebastian Junger and Karl Marlantes reveal the warrior’s journey with unflinching candor.
Sebastian Junger and Karl Marlantes reveal the warrior’s journey with unflinching candor.
Why We Need to Know About War
Why it is important to understand the soldier’s experience.
Veterans talk about how their service changed them.
The Emotions of War
Veterans talk about the feelings of sadness that are a central part of combat.
Going to War Trailer
Preview | 1m 50s
Find out why it is important to understand the soldier’s experience of combat and for veterans to tell their stories.
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En cambio climático ¿cuánto es demasiado? (v. 2) – Referencias
Sumario de la serie
Wiki – Focal point (game theory) – Wikipedia – 27/01/2011 –http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Focal_point_(game_theory)
“In game theory, a focal point (also called Schelling point) is a solution that people will tend to use in the absence of communication, because it seems natural, special or relevant to them. The concept was introduced by the Nobel Prize winning American economist Thomas Schelling in his book The Strategy of Conflict (1960). In this book (at p. 57), Schelling describes “focal point[s] for each person’s expectation of what the other expects him to expect to be expected to do.” This type of focal point later was named after Schelling.”
M. Hajer (1993) – Discourse coalitions and the institutionalization of practice: the case of acid-rain in Britain – En: F. Fischer and J. Forester (Eds.) – The Argumentative Turn in Policy Analysis and Planning – Duke University Press
“Discourse provides the tools with which problems are constructed. Discourse at the same time forms the context in which phenomena are understood and thus predetermines the definition of the problem. Discourse structuration occurs when a discourse starts to dominate the way a society conceptualizes the world.”
Conference of the Parties 15 – Copenhagen Accord – United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change – 18/12/2009 – http://unfccc.int/home/items/5262.php
“To achieve the ultimate objective of the Convention to stabilize greenhouse gas concentration in the atmosphere at a level that would prevent dangerous anthropogenic interference with the climate system, we shall, recognizing the scientific view that the increase in global temperature should be below 2 degrees Celsius, on the basis of equity and in the context of sustainable development, enhance our long-term cooperative action to combat climate change. We recognize the critical impacts of climate change and the potential impacts of response measures on countries particularly vulnerable to its adverse effects and stress the need to establish a comprehensive adaptation programme including international support.”
Badar Alam Iqbal and Farha Naaz Ghauri – Cancun Accord: Will It Be a Reality or Proved To Be a Myth? – Proceedings of the 1st International Technology, Education and Environment Conference, 08/09/2011 – Department of Commerce, Aligarh Muslim University; Department of Commerce, B.A.M University Aurungabad(Maharashtra), India – http://www.hrmars.com/admin/pics/231.pdf
“The main reason for the optimism is the importance of the Accord lies in the fact that for the first time, a United Nations document has acknowledged that global warming must be kept below 2 degree Celsius compared to the pre-industrial temperature.”
Convención Marco de las Naciones Unidas sobre el Cambio Climático – Rio de Janeiro, 1992 – http://unfccc.int/resource/docs/convkp/convsp.pdf
“Artículo 2: … lograr la estabilización de las concentraciones de gases de efecto invernadero en la atmósfera a un nivel que impida interferencias antropogénicas peligrosas en el sistema climático; ese nivel debería lograrse en un plazo suficiente para permitir que los ecosistemas se adapten naturalmente al cambio climático, asegurar que la producción de alimentos no se vea amenazada y permitir que el desarrollo económico prosiga de manera sostenible.”
International Energy Agency – World Energy Outlook 2008 – International Energy Agency – http://www.iea.org/w/bookshop/add.aspx?id=353
“Without a change in policy, the world is on a path for a rise in global temperature of up to 6°C… the OECD countries alone cannot put the world onto the path to 450-ppm trajectory, even if they were to reduce their emissions to zero … It is uncertain whether the scale of the transformation envisaged is even technically achievable, as the scenario assumes broad deployment of technologies that have not yet been proven. The technology shift, if achievable, would certainly be unprecedented in scale and speed of deployment.”
Fiona Harvey and Jim Pickard – Stern takes bleaker view on warming – Financial Times, 16/04/2008 –http://www.ft.com/cms/s/d3e78456-0bde-11dd-9840-0000779fd2ac
“The Stern report on climate change underestimated the risks of global warming, its author said on Wednesday, and should have presented a gloomier view of the future. “We underestimated the risks … we underestimated the damage associated with temperature increases … and we underestimated the probabilities of temperature increases,” Lord Stern, former chief economist at the World Bank, told the Financial Times on Wednesday.”
Paul Baer and Dan Kammen – Climate scientists debate with prime minister – Environmental Research Web, 19/05/2009 –http://environmentalresearchweb.org/cws/article/opinion/39126
“I need your assistance to push this process in the right direction, and in that respect, I need fixed targets and certain figures, and not too many considerations on uncertainty and risk and things like that.”
Declaration of the leaders – The major economies forum on energy and climate 09/07/2009 – Major Economies Forum (2009) – http://www.whitehouse.gov/the_press_office/Declaration-of-the-Leaders-the-Major-Economies-Forum-on-Energy-and-Climate
“We recognize the scientific view that the increase in global average temperature above pre-industrial levels ought not to exceed 2 degrees C. In this regard and in the context of the ultimate objective of the Convention and the Bali Action Plan, we will work between now and Copenhagen, with each other and under the Convention, to identify a global goal for substantially reducing global emissions by 2050. Progress toward the global goal would be regularly reviewed, noting the importance of frequent, comprehensive, and accurate inventories.”
Mark Hertsgaard – A scary new climate study will have you saying ‘Oh, shit!’ – Grist – 13/10/2009 –http://www.grist.org/article/2009-10-13-a-scary-new-climate-study-will-have-you-saying-oh-shit/
“G-8 leaders agreed in July to limit the global temperature rise to 2 ºC (3.6 F) above the pre-industrial level at which human civilization developed. Schellnhuber, addressing the Santa Fe conference, joked that the G-8 leaders agreed to the 2 ºC limit “probably because they don’t know what it means.”
Antonio Cerrillo – Christiana Figueres: “El planeta sólo será seguro si la temperatura no aumenta más de 1,5 grados” – La Vanguardia, 04/06/2011 –http://www.lavanguardia.com/medio-ambiente/20110604/54165103514/christiana-figueres-el-planeta-solo-sera-seguro-si-la-temperatura-no-aumenta-mas-de-1-5-grados.html
“Desde un punto de vista de la justicia y de supervivencia de las poblaciones más vulnerables del planeta, no podemos hacer otra cosa que plantear el objetivo de que la temperatura no supere los 1,5 grados. Es lo que garantiza la supervivencia de los países de las pequeñas islas o los países del subsahara.”
Outcome of the work of the Ad Hoc Working Group on long-term Cooperative Action under the Convention – United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, 10/12/2010 – http://unfccc.int/files/meetings/cop_16/application/pdf/cop16_lca.pdf
“Also recognizes the need to consider, in the context of the first review, as referred to in paragraph 138 below, strengthening the long-term global goal on the basis of the best available scientific knowledge, including in relation to a global average temperature rise of 1.5°C.”
James Hansen et al (2008) – Target Atmospheric CO2: Where Should Humanity Aim? – The Open Atmospheric Science Journal 2:217-231 – NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies and Columbia University Earth Institute –http://www.columbia.edu/~jeh1/2008/TargetCO2_20080407.pdf – 10 autores
“If humanity wishes to preserve a planet similar to that on which civilization developed and to which life on Earth is adapted, paleoclimate evidence and ongoing climate change suggest that CO2 will need to be reduced from its current 385 ppm to at most 350 ppm, but likely less than that.”
William Hare (2003) – Assessment of Knowledge on Impacts of Climate Change – Contribution to the Specification of Art. 2 of the UNFCCC: Impacts on Ecosystems, Food Production, Water and Socio-economic Systems – WBGU – Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research – http://www.wbgu.de/fileadmin/templates/dateien/veroeffentlichungen/sondergutachten/sn2003/wbgu_sn2003_ex01.pdf
“Food Production 2-3ºC – 2ºC: increasing risk, with the risk increasing from the 2050s to the 2080s; 4-5 fold risk increase from the 2050s to the 2080s (for the same temperature); Many developed countries may still be gaining, although warning that this may not be robust for all regions or even in aggregate terms; Agricultural production in developed countries finely balanced between the effects of increased temperature and changes in precipitation. 2.5 ºC warming by the 2080s, the Parry et al. (1999) analysis indicates 45-55 million extra people at risk of hunger, with the number at risk rising very rapidly with temperature. 2-2.5°C above pre-industrial – Significant regional risks to food production, with varying degrees of severity – South Asia, southern Africa and parts of Russia. Above 2-2.5°C above pre-industrial – Risks grow in China, Africa, South Asia and Russia ´- risks in China severe if CO2 fertilization of crops is low but small to modest if CO2 fertilization is high.”
Convención marco de las Naciones Unidas sobre el cambio climático – Organización de las Naciones Unidas – 09/09/1992 – New York
“Artículo 2: El objetivo último de la presente Convención y de todo instrumento jurídico conexo que adopte la Conferencia de las Partes, es lograr, de conformidad con las disposiciones pertinentes de la Convención, la estabilización de las concentraciones de gases de efecto invernadero en la atmósfera a un nivel que impida interferencias antropógenas peligrosas en el sistema climático. Ese nivel debería lograrse en un plazo suficiente para permitir que los ecosistemas se adapten naturalmente al cambio climático, asegurar que la producción de alimentos no se vea amenazada y permitir que el desarrollo económico prosiga de manera sostenible.”
Timothy Luke (1999) – A rough road out of Rio: The right-wing reaction against global environmentalism (In: Nicholas Low, ed. Consuming cities: The urban environment in the global economy after the Rio declaration. New York: Routledge) – En: Nicholas Low et al (Eds) – Consuming cities: The urban environment in the global economy after the Rio declaration – Routledge New York
“These intense nationalist reactions to the Earth Summit in the United States add a distressing quality to post Cold War politics. They also are unlikely to fade any time in the near future… More liberal observers may discount these right wing reactions as the passing signs of a temporary fringe movement of extremists which really poses no serious threat to the emergent transnational regime on the environment. This analysis is wishful hinking. The sources of this right wing reaction have been building for a generation, and the greater geopolitical forces that once kept them at bay now have changed decisively.”
J. Murray Mitchell Jr. (1977) – The Changing Climate – En: Studies in Geophysics: Energy and Climate – National Research Council, 1977 – National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration – http://www.nap.edu/openbook.php?record_id=12024
“Can man establish which, if any, alternative scenarios would lead to ‘unacceptable’ climatic consequences and are therefore to be avoided? … What should the atmospheric carbon dioxide content be over the next century or two to achieve an optimum global climate?”
Spencer R. Weart (2003) – The Discovery of Global Warming – Harvard University Press, 228 págs. – ISBN 0-674-01157-0 – Director of the Center for History of Physics, American Institute of Physics – http://www.aip.org/history/climate/index.htm
P.H. Gleick et al (2010) – Climate Change and the Integrity of Science – Science 328:689-690 doi:10.1126/science.328.5979.689 – U.S. National Academy of Sciences – http://www.pacinst.org/climate/climate_statement.pdf – 255 autoores
“Climate change now falls into this category: there is compelling, comprehensive, and consistent objective evidence that humans are changing the climate in ways that threaten our societies and the ecosystems on which we depend. Many recent assaults on climate science and, more disturbingly, on climate scientists by climate change deniers, are typically driven by special interests or dogma, not by an honest effort to provide an alternative theory that credibly satisfies the evidence.”
Michael Oppenheimer (2005) – Defining Dangerous Anthropogenic Interference: The Role of Science, the Limits of Science – Risk Analysis 25:1399-1407 doi:10.1111/j.1539-6924.2005.00687.x – 15/11/2005 – WoodrowWilson School and Department of Geosciences, Princeton University
“Defining ‘dangerous anthropogenic interference with the climate system’ in the context of Article 2 of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) presents a complex challenge for those developing long-term climate policy. Natural science has a key role to play in quantifying vulnerabilities of elements of the Earth system and estimating the risks from a changing climate. But attempts to interpret Article 2 will inevitably draw on understanding from social science, psychology, law, and ethics.
Convención marco de las Naciones Unidas sobre el cambio climático – http://unfccc.int/resource/docs/convkp/conveng.pdf
“La naturaleza mundial del cambio climático requiere la cooperación más amplia posible de todos los países y su participación en una respuesta internacional efectiva y apropiada, de conformidad con sus responsabilidades comunes pero diferenciadas, sus capacidades respectivas y sus condiciones sociales y económicas”
Suraje Desai et al (2003) – Defining and experiencing dangerous climate change – Climatic Change 64:11–25 doi:10.1023/B:CLIM.0000024781.48904.45 – Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research – http://www.uea.ac.uk/~e120782/papers/dangerous.pdf – 6 autores
“We argue that internal definitions of dangerous climate change – ‘danger as experienced’ – warrants as much attention as external definitions – ‘danger as defined’. Because less attention has been given to internal definitions, we have suggested some methods for considering this. The reflexivity between external and internal definitions in particular suggests participatory integrated assessment as a tool of unique insight for identifying what level of climate change might be regarded as dangerous by different communities and constituencies.”
Daniel Kahneman and AmosTversky (1979) – Prospect Theory: An analysis of decision under risk – Econometrica 47:263-292 – http://www.hss.caltech.edu/~camerer/Ec101/ProspectTheory.pdf
“People generally discard components that are shared by all prospects under consideration. This tendency, called the isolation effect, leads to inconsistent preferences when the same choice is presented in different forms. An alternative theory of choice is developed, in which value is assigned to gains and losses rather than to final assets and in which probabilities are replaced by decision weights. The value function is normally concave for gains, commonly convex for losses, and is generally steeper for losses than for gains. Decision weights are generally lower than the corresponding probabilities, except in the range of low probabilities. Overweighting of low probabilities may contribute to the attractiveness of both insurance and gambling.”
Stephen M. Gardiner (2006) – A Perfect Moral Storm: Climate Change, Intergenerational Ethics and the Problem of Moral Corruption – Environmental Values 15:397-413 – Department of Philosophy and Program on Values in Society, University of Washington – http://hettingern.people.cofc.edu/Environmental_Philosophy_Sp_09/Gardner_Perfect_Moral_Storm.pdf
“I shall call the first ‘the Global Storm’. This corresponds to the dominant understanding of the climate change problem; and it emerges from a predominantly spatial interpretation of the three characteristics … The Global Storm emerges from a spatial reading of these characteristics; but I would argue that another, even more serious problem arises when we see them from a temporal perspective. I shall call this ‘the Intergenerational Storm’ … The final storm I want to mention is constituted by our current theoretical ineptitude. We are extremely ill-equipped to deal with many problems characteristic of the long-term future. Even our best theories face basic and often severe difficulties addressing basic issues such as scientific uncertainty, intergenerational equity, contingent persons, nonhuman animals and nature. But climate change involves all of these matters and more.”
Michael Oppenheimer and Annie Petsonk (2004) – Article 2 of the UNFCCC: Historical Origins, Recent Interpretations – Climatic Change 73:175–226 doi:10.1007/s10584-005-0434-8 – Woodrow Wilson School and Department of Geosciences, Princeton University – http://www.princeton.edu/step/people/faculty/michael-oppenheimer/recent-publications/Article-2-of-the-UN-Framework-Convention-on-Climate-Change.pdf –
“Nota 2: Lack of discussion of Article 2 reflects in part the objections of the Group of 77 developing countries and China to anything that might lead to emissions caps for them (Corfee-Morlot andH¨ohne, 2003); the United States has supported the G-77 position in declaring such discussions “premature” (PewCenter, 2002; Peel, K., personal communication). Neither the 2002 Delhi Declaration (UNFCCC Eighth Conference, 2002), nor the decisions adopted by the Ninth Conference of the Parties to the UNFCCC in Milan in 2003 makes any explicit reference to Article 2 (Corfee-Morlot and Höhne, 2003; UNFCCC COP-9 Decisions, 2003).”
Hans Joachim Schellnhuber (2008) – Global warming: Stop worrying, start panicking? – Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences PNAS 105:14239-14240 doi:10.1073/pnas.0807331105 – 23/09/2008 – Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research
“Also, by construction, the IPCC vessel tends to steer clear of value judgments that might be easily converted into ‘‘policy-prescriptive’’ statements. The downside of this well-meaning attitude is that the 2007 report does not, for instance, make a systematic attempt to characterize what dangerous anthropogenic interference (DAI) with the natural climate system is all about. Again, all of the relevant information is implicitly contained in the IPCC tomes, most notably in chapter 19 of the Working Group II report (3) (see also ref. 4). Yet even that chapter shies away from updating the ‘‘burning embers diagram’’ (5), which provides a direct scientific way to gauge the political target of limiting global mean temperature (GMT) rise to less than 2°C (6) against avoided climate impacts.”
Climate Change and Article 2 of the UNFCCC – What is dangerous climate change? – Initial Results of a Symposium on Key Vulnerable Regions – 14/12/2004 – http://www.european-climate-forum.net/fileadmin/ecf-documents/publications/articles-and-papers/what-is-dangerous-climate-change.pdf
“Crossing such critical levels or thresholds is likely to result in widespread, often irreversible, damage and could therefore be termed ‘dangerous anthropogenic interference with the climate system’. However, even global temperatures rises below 2 °C cannot be considered as ‘safe’, given the large uncertainty in some of the thresholds.”
Wallace S. Broecker (1997) – Thermohaline Circulation, the Achilles Heel of Our Climate System: Will Man-Made CO2 Upset the Current Balance? – Science 278:1582-1588 doi:10.1126/science.278.5343.1582
“The record in ancient sedimentary rocks suggests that similar abrupt changes plagued the Earth at other times. The trigger mechanism for these reorganizations may have been the antiphasing of polar insolation associated with orbital cycles. Were the ongoing increase in atmospheric CO2 levels to trigger another such reorganization, it would be bad news for a world striving to feed 11 to 16 billion people.”
Matthias Hofmann and Stefan Rahmstorf (2009) – On the stability of the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation – Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences PNAS 106:20584-20589 doi:10.1073/pnas.0909146106 – Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research
“We find that a characteristic freshwater hysteresis also exists in the predominantly wind-driven, low-diffusion limit of the AMOC. However, the shape of the hysteresis changes, indicating that a convective instability rather than the advective Stommel feedback plays a dominant role. We show that model errors in the mean climate can make the hysteresis disappear … we discuss evidence that current models systematically overestimate the stability of the AMOC.”
E. Hawkins et al (2011) – Bistability of the Atlantic overturning circulation in a global climate model and links to ocean freshwater transport – Geophysical Research Letters 38, L10605 doi:10.1029/2011GL047208 – 25/05/2011 – NCAS-Climate, University of Reading – http://www.met.rdg.ac.uk/~ed/publications/hawkins_etal_2011_hysteresis.pdf
“Here we demonstrate AMOC bistability in the response to freshwater perturbations in the FAMOUS AOGCM – the most complex AOGCM to exhibit such behaviour to date. The results also support recent suggestions that the direction of the net freshwater transport at the southern boundary of the Atlantic by the AMOC may be a useful physical indicator of the existence of bistability. We also present new estimates for this net freshwater transport by the AMOC from a range of ocean reanalyses which suggest that the Atlantic AMOC is currently in a bistable regime, although with large uncertainties. More accurate observational constraints, and an improved physical understanding of this quantity, could help narrow uncertainty in the future evolution of the AMOC and to assess the risk of a rapid AMOC collapse.”
Marina Hirota et al (2011) – Global Resilience of Tropical Forest and Savanna to Critical Transitions – Science 334:232-235 DOI:10.1126/science.1210657 – Department of Aquatic Ecology and Water Quality Management, Wageningen University – 4 autores
“We analyzed data on the distribution of tree cover in Africa, Australia, and South America to reveal strong evidence for the existence of three distinct attractors: forest, savanna, and a treeless state. Empirical reconstruction of the basins of attraction indicates that the resilience of the states varies in a universal way with precipitation. These results allow the identification of regions where forest or savanna may most easily tip into an alternative state, and they pave the way to a new generation of coupled climate models.”
Salvador Pueyo et al (2010) – Testing for criticality in ecosystem dynamics: the case of Amazonian rainforest and savanna fire – Ecology Letters 13:793–802 doi:10.1111/j.1461-0248.2010.01497.x – Institut Català de Ciències del Clima – 6 autores
“We test for two critical phenomena in Amazonian ecosystems: self-organized criticality (SOC) and critical transitions. SOC is often presented in the complex systems literature as a general explanation for scale invariance in nature. In particular, this mechanism is claimed to underlie the macroscopic structure and dynamics of terrestrial ecosystems. These would be inextricably linked to the action of fire, which is conceived as an endogenous ecological process. We show that Amazonian savanna fires display the scale-invariant features characteristic of SOC but do not display SOC. The same is true in Amazonian rainforests subject to moderate drought. These findings prove that there are other causes of scale invariance in ecosystems. In contrast, we do find evidence of a critical transition to a megafire regime under extreme drought in rainforests; this phenomenon is likely to determine the time scale of a possible loss of Amazonian rainforest caused by climate change.”
Eric A. Davidson et al (2012) – The Amazon basin in transition – Nature 481:321-328 doi:10.1038/nature10717 – The Woods Hole Research Center – 5 autores
“Although the basin-wide impacts of land use and drought may not yet surpass the magnitude of natural variability of hydrologic and biogeochemical cycles, there are some signs of a transition to a disturbance-dominated regime. These signs include changing energy and water cycles in the southern and eastern portions of the Amazon basin.”
Michael Oppenheimer and Richard Alley (2005) – Ice Sheets, Global Warming, and Article 2 of the UNFCCC. An Editorial Essay – Climatic Change 68:257-267 doi:10.1007/s10584-005-5372-y – Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs and Department of Geosciences Princeton University
“Without additional constraints on greenhouse gas emissions, it appears that both WAIS and GIS, particularly the latter, eventually could become vulnerable to complete disintegration due to forcing that may accumulate over this century. Yet the timescales of their potential contribution to sea level rise are unknown and may remain so for decades … But if emissions of the greenhouse gases are not reduced while uncertainties are being resolved, there is a risk of making ice-sheet disintegration nearly inevitable. Then avoidance of global calamity may depend on strategies like pumping carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere (Lackner, 2003). But it may not be possible to deploy such “overshoot” approaches fast enough (O’Neill and Oppenheimer, 2004) if rapid ice sheet process are already a reality.”
David G. Vaughan (2008) – West Antarctic Ice Sheet collapse – the fall and rise of a paradigm – Climatic Change 91:65-79 DOI 10.1007/s10584-008-9448-3 – British Antarctic Survey, Natural Environment Research Council – http://nora.nerc.ac.uk/769/1/The_return_of_a_paradigm_16_-_nora.pdf
“In less than a decade, we have become more certain that there is a dynamic connection between the extent floating ice shelves and the glaciers that feed them, and observational studies have shown us a bewildering pattern of ice-sheet change across much of the Amundsen Sea sector of WAIS. Indeed, all of the elements of the positive-feedback cycle that would, according to Mercer, lead inexorably to collapse, have now been observed on Pine Island Glacier: thinning of the ice shelf, inland migration of the grounding line, acceleration of the main trunk of the glacier, and thinning rates on the interior basins. In short, if thirty years ago Mercer and his colleagues had described the changes they would have expected as diagnostic of emergent collapse, this is the list that they might have written. Furthermore, the changes are occurring in the area of WAIS, which was always considered to be most vulnerable to collapse.”
Neil Ross et al (2012) – Steep reverse bed slope at the grounding line of the Weddell Sea sector in West Antarctica – Nature Geoscience doi:10.1038/ngeo1468 – School of GeoSciences, University of Edinburgh – 10 autores
“The bed of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet is, in places, more than 1.5 km below sea level1, 2. It has been suggested that a positive ice-loss feedback may occur when an ice sheet’s grounding line retreats across a deepening bed1, 2, 3. Applied to the West Antarctic Ice Sheet, this process could potentially raise global sea level4 by more than 3 m. Hitherto, attention has focussed on changes at the Siple Coast5, 6, 7 and Amundsen Sea embayment8, 9, 10 sectors of West Antarctica. Here, we present radio-echo sounding information from the ice sheet’s third sector, the Weddell Sea embayment, that reveals a large subglacial basin immediately upstream of the grounding line. The reverse bed slope is steep, with about 400 m of decline over 40 km. The basin floor is smooth and flat, with little small-scale topography that would delay retreat, indicating that it has been covered with marine sediment5, 11 and was previously deglaciated. Upstream of the basin, well-defined glacially carved fjords with bars at their mouths testify to the position of a former ice margin about 200 km inland from the present margin. Evidence so far suggests that the Weddell Sea sector of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet has been stable, but in the light of our data we propose that the region could be near a physical threshold of substantial change.”
Jeff Ridley et al (2009) – Thresholds for irreversible decline of the Greenland ice sheet – Climate Dynamics doi 10.1007/s00382-009-0646-0 – Met Office Hadley Centre – http://meetingorganizer.copernicus.org/EGU2010/EGU2010-14154.pdf – 4 autores
“Depending on the degree of warming and the sensitivity of the climate and the ice-sheet, this point of no return could be reached within a few hundred years, sooner than CO2 and global climate could revert to a pre-industrial state, and in that case global sea level rise of at least 1.3 m would be irreversible. An even larger irreversible change to sea level rise of 5 m may occur if ice sheet volume drops below half of its current size. The set of steady states depends on the CO2 concentration.”
T. Toniazzo et al (2004) – Climatic Impact of a Greenland Deglaciation and Its Possible Irreversibility – Journal of Climate 17:21-33 doi:10.1175/1520-0442(2004)017<0021:CIOAGD>2.0.CO;2- Hadley Centre for Climate Prediction and Research, Met Office – http://stephenschneider.stanford.edu/Publications/PDF_Papers/ToniazzoEtAl2004.pdf
“On the long-term average, there is no accumulation of snow. The implication of this result is that the removal of the Greenland ice sheet due to a prolonged climatic warming would be irreversible.”
Alexander Robinson et al (2012) – Multistability and critical thresholds of the Greenland ice sheet – Nature Climate Change doi:10.1038/nclimate1449 – Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research – 3 autores
“We estimate that the warming threshold leading to a monostable, essentially ice-free state is in the range of 0.8–3.2 °C, with a best estimate of 1.6 °C. By testing the ice sheet’s ability to regrow after partial mass loss, we find that at least one intermediate equilibrium state is possible, though for sufficiently high initial temperature anomalies, total loss of the ice sheet becomes irreversible. Crossing the threshold alone does not imply rapid melting (for temperatures near the threshold, complete melting takes tens of millennia). However, the timescale of melt depends strongly on the magnitude and duration of the temperature overshoot above this critical threshold.”
Timothy M. Lenton et al (2008) – Tipping elements in the Earth’s climate system – Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences PNAS 105:1786-1793 doi:10.1073/pnas.0705414105 – School of Environmental Sciences, University of East Anglia + Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research – http://www.pnas.org/content/105/6/1786.full.pdf – 7 autores
“Society may be lulled into a false sense of security by smooth projections of global change. Our synthesis of present knowledge suggests that a variety of tipping elements could reach their critical point within this century under anthropogenic climate change. The greatest threats are tipping the Arctic sea-ice and the Greenland ice sheet, and at least five other elements could surprise us by exhibiting a nearby tipping point. This knowledge should influence climate policy, but a full assessment of policy relevance would require that, for each potential tipping element, we answer the following questions: Mitigation: Can we stay clear of crit? Adaptation: Can Fˆ be tolerated?”
Ayami Hayashiet al (2009) – Evaluation of global warming impacts for different levels of stabilization as a step toward determination of the long-term stabilization target – Climatic Change 98:87-112 doi:10.1007/s10584-009-9663-6 – 25/07/2009 – Research Institute of Innovative Technology for the Earth (RITE), Japan – 5 autores
“The world total population living in water-stressed basins (in which annual runoff per capita is less than 1000m3) will increase rapidly to 3.77 billion people in 2050 from 1.171 billion people in 1990 as a result of population growth, even if the annual water resources remain at 1990 levels … 1.4 billion people will experience an increase in the water stress in 2050 in terms of the world total … The global production potential of wheat and rice will increase in 2050, 2100 and 2150 for all emission pathways .. ”
Timothy M. Lenton (2011) – Beyond 2°C: redefining dangerous climate change for physical systems – Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews: Climate Change 2:451–461 doi:10.1002/wcc.107 – 10/03/2011 – School of Environmental Sciences, University of East Anglia
“Some potential thresholds cannot be meaningfully linked to global temperature change, others are sensitive to rates of climate change, and some are most sensitive to spatial gradients of climate change. In some cases, the heterogeneous distributions of reflective (sulfate) aerosols, absorbing (black carbon) aerosols, and land use could be more dangerous than changes in globally well-mixed greenhouse gases.”
Martin Parry et al (2001) – Millions at risk: defining critical climate change threats and targets – Global Environmental Change 11:181–183 PII:S0959-3780(01)00011-5 – School of Environmental Sciences, Jackson Environment Institute, University of East Anglia – 10 autores – http://www.elsevier.com/framework_aboutus/pdfs/Millions_at_risk.pdf
“Now we may argue, for example, that in order to keep damages below an agreed tolerable level (for example, a given number of additional people at risk) global temperature increases would need to be kept below a given amount; and emissions targets could then be developed to achieve that objective. Fourthly, it is clear that mitigation alone will not solve the problem of climate change.”
Gordon McGranahan, Deborah Balk and Bridget Anderson (2007) – The rising tide: assessing the risks of climate change and human settlements in low elevation coastal zones – Environment and Urbanization 19:17-37 doi:10.1177/0956247807076960 – International Institute for the Environment and Development (IIED), London; Institute for Demographic Research at the City University of New York (CUNY) and Associate Professor at Baruch College (CUNY), New York; Centre for International Earth Science Information Network (CIESIN) at Columbia University, New York – 3 autores
“In this paper, we undertake the first global review of the population and urban settlement patterns in the Low Elevation Coastal Zone (LECZ), defi ned here as the contiguous area along the coast that is less than 10 metres above sea level. Overall, this zone covers 2 per cent of the world’s land area but contains 10 per cent of the world’s population and 13 per cent of the world’s urban population. A disproportionate number of the countries with a large share of their population in this zone are small island countries, but most of the countries with large populations in the zone are large countries with heavily populated delta regions. On average, the Least Developed Countries have a higher share of their population living in the zone (14 per cent) than do OECD countries (10 per cent), with even greater disparities in the urban shares (21 per cent compared to 11 per cent). Almost twothirds of urban settlements with populations greater than 5 million fall, at least partly, in the zone.”
William D. Nordhaus and Joseph Boyer (2000) – Warming the World: Economic Models of Global Warming – The MIT Press – Yale University – Department of Economics; National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER)
“This book presents in detail a pair of models of the economics of climate change. The models, called RICE-99 (for the Regional Dynamic Integrated model of Climate and the Economy) and DICE-99 (for the Dynamic Integrated model of Climate and the Economy), build on the authors’ earlier work, particularly their RICE and DICE models of the early 1990’s.”
Carlo C. Jaeger and Julia Jaeger (2010) – Three Views of Two Degrees – European Climate Forum – Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, European Climate Forum and Beijing Normal University; European Climate Forum – http://www.european-climate-forum.net/fileadmin/ecf-documents/publications/ecf-working-papers/jaeger__three-views-of-two-degrees__ecf-working-paper-2-2010.pdf
“If we scholars claim that our quest for reliable knowledge is possible only because we restrict ourselves to “pure” facts, leaving value judgments aside, we implicitly suggest that the quest for reliable knowledge about ethical matters is illusory. And by then declaring that value judgments are a matter for policy, we foster the risk that policy becomes a meaningless power struggle, where debates do not generate insights but reproduce endless battles between various forms of fundamentalism and more or less sophisticated forms of cynicism.”
Philip Shabecoff (1992) – Real Rio – The Environmental Journal 5, septiembre / octubre 1992
“George H.W. Bush: “I am president of the United States, not the president of the world, and I’ll do what is best to defend the U.S. interests” (cited in Shabecoff, 1192:89).”
Robert Winnett – President George Bush: ‘Goodbye from the world’s biggest polluter’ – The Daily Telegraph, 09/07/2008 – http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/2277298/President-George-Bush-Goodbye-from-the-worlds-biggest-polluter.html
“The American leader, who has been condemned throughout his presidency for failing to tackle climate change, ended a private meeting with the words: “Goodbye from the world’s biggest polluter.” He then punched the air while grinning widely, as the rest of those present including Gordon Brown and Nicolas Sarkozy looked on in shock.”
Jean-Marie Robine et al (2007) – Report on excess mortality in Europe during summer 2003 – EU Community Action Programme for Public Health – Inserm, Health and Demography, CRLC, University of Montpellier – http://ec.europa.eu/health/ph_projects/2005/action1/docs/action1_2005_a2_15_en.pdf – 5 autores
“In total, more than 80,000 additional deaths were recorded in 2003 in the twelve countries concerned by excess mortality compared to the 1998‐2002 period. Whereas 70,000 of these additional deaths occurred during the summer, still over 7,000 occurred afterwards. Nearly 45,000 additional deaths were recorded in August alone, as well as more than 11,000 in June, more than 10,000 in July and nearly 5,000 in September. The mortality crisis of early August extended over the two weeks between August 3rd and 16th. 15,000 additional deaths were recorded in the first week and nearly 24,000 in the second. The excess mortality in this second week reached the exceptional value of 96.5% in France and over 40% in Portugal, Italy, Spain and Luxembourg. Excess mortality exceeded 20% in Germany, Switzerland and Belgium and 10% in all the other countries.”
Le jour d’après – Wikipedia – Accedido: 12/05/2008 – http://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Le_Jour_d’apr%C3%A8s_(film,_2004)
“Le Jour d’après est un film catastrophe fondé sur des hypothèses scientifiques mais dont certains points ont été exagérés. En effet, les événements se déroulent dans un délai extrêmement court dans le film (quelques jours) alors qu’en réalité, les scientifiques prévoient des changements climatiques sur plusieurs années, voire plusieurs siècles. Le producteur s’est toutefois démarqué au niveau des effets spéciaux.”
Thomas E. Bowman et al (2009) – Creating a Common Climate Language – Science 324:36-37 doi:10.1126/science.324.5923.36b – Climate Solutions Project Bowman Global Change Signal – 5 autores
“We urge scientists and science journal editors to create a single, readily understood frame of reference for two critical concepts in climate science—atmospheric concentrations of greenhouse gases and rising global temperatures—by using a standard unit of measure and a single temperature baseline. Specifically, because total anthropogenic forcing is the relevant policy measure (2, 3), we strongly recommend referencing atmospheric concentrations of all long-lived greenhouse gases as CO2-equivalent (CO2e), not only CO2. CO2e is the concentration of CO2 that would cause the same level of radiative forcing as a given mixture of CO2 and other greenhouse gases. Moreover, because understanding total anthropogenic warming is important for assessing risk, we recommend referencing a standardized pre-industrial temperature baseline. Adopting these two references as elements of our common language will help reduce confusion that has been inadvertently caused by reporting results that appear to be similar.”
Rachel Warren et al (2011) – Increasing Impacts of Climate Change upon Ecosystems with Increasing Global Mean Temperature Rise – Climatic Change 106:141-177 doi:10.1007/s10584-010-9923-5 – Received: 07/10/2008; accepted: 16/06/2010; published online: 21/08/2010 – Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research, School of Environmental Sciences, University of East Anglia – http://www.sysecol2.ethz.ch/pdfs/Wa152.pdf – 5 autores
“Information on the climate change scenario simulated by each original study was converted to a common pre-industrial reference point for temperature. Studies often refer to baselines of pre-industrial (<1850), 1960–1990 mean, 1990, or “present day” (e.g. 1980–1999). In this study the temperature rise between pre-industrial and the 1960–1990 mean is taken as 0.3◦C and the temperature rise between pre-industrial and 1990 is taken as 0.6◦C (Houghton et al. 2001); whilst that from the mid 1970s to 1990 is taken as 0.2◦C (Houghton et al. 2001). Where studies report impacts as caused by a particular GCM simulation using the HadCM3 model, Table 7 of Arnell et al. (2004) was used to convert the temperatures to a common pre-industrial baseline.”
Goddard Institute for Space Studies – GLOBAL Land-Ocean Temperature Index in 0.01 degrees Celsius base period: 1951-1980 – National Aeronautics and Space Administration – Accedido: 20/05/2012 – http://data.giss.nasa.gov/gistemp/tabledata_v3/GLB.Ts+dSST.txt
“Best estimate for absolute global mean for 1951-1980 is 14.0 deg-C or 57.2 deg-F, so add that to the temperature change if you want to use an absolute scale (this note applies to global annual means only, J-D and D-N !).”
Phil D. Jones et al (2012) – Hemispheric and large-scale land-surface air temperature variations: An extensive revision and an update to 2010 – Journal of Geophysics Research 117 D05127 doi:10.1029/2011JD017139 – Climatic Research Unit, School of Environmental Sciences, University of East Anglia + Department of Meteorology, Center of Excellence for Climate Change Research, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia – 6 autores
“The inclusion of much additional data from the Arctic (particularly the Russian Arctic) has led to estimates for the Northern Hemisphere (NH) being warmer by about 0.1°C for the years since 2001.”
Colin P. Morice et al (2012) – Quantifying uncertainties in global and regional temperature change using an ensemble of observational estimates: The HadCRUT4 data set – Journal of Geophysical Research 117 D08101 doi:10.1029/2011JD017187 – Met Office Hadley Centre – 4 autores
“Fitted linear trends in temperature anomalies are approximately 0.07 C/decade from 1901 to 2010 and 0.17 C/decade from 1979 to 2010 globally. Northern/southern hemispheric trends are 0.08/0.07 ºC/decade over 1901 to 2010 and 0.24/0.10 ºC/decade over 1979 to 2010. Linear trends in other prominent near-surface temperature analyses agree well with the range of trends computed from the HadCRUT4 ensemble members.”
Phil D. Jones et al (1999) – Surface air temperature and its changes over the past 150 years – Review of Geophysics 37:173–199 doi:10.1029/1999RG900002- Climatic Research Unit, University of East Anglia – http://seaice.apl.washington.edu/Papers/JonesEtal99-SAT150.pdf – 5 autores
“The climatology indicates that the annual average surface temperature of the world is 14.0°C (14.6°C in the Northern Hemisphere (NH) and 13.4°C for the Southern Hemisphere). The annual cycle of global mean temperatures follows that of the land-dominated NH, with a maximum in July of 15.9°C and a minimum in January of 12.2°C.”
James Hansen et al (2012) – Global Temperature in 2011, Trends, and Prospects – Columbia University – NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies + Columbia University Earth Institute – http://www.columbia.edu/~jeh1/mailings/2012/20120119_Temperature.pdf – 4 autores
“The 12-month running mean (Figure 3a) provides a useful alternative measure of temperature change on the annual time scale, and 60-month (5-year) and 132-month (11-year) running means (Figure 3b) reduce the variability caused by the Southern Oscillation (El Nino-La Nina cycle) and the solar cycle. The current status of these running means (Figure 3) adds some weak evidence for the frequent assertion that the rate of global warming has been less in the 21st century than in the last two decades of the 20th century.”
Cálculos del autor en base a los datos en bruto proporcionados en http://data.giss.nasa.gov/gistemp/tabledata_v3/GLB.Ts+dSST.txt
Kevin E. Trenberth et al (2007) – Observations: Surface and Atmospheric Climate Change – En: Climate Change 2007: The Physical Science Basis. Contribution of Working Group I to the Fourth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change – National Center for Atmospheric Research – 12 autores líderes – http://www.ipcc.ch/publications_and_data/ar4/wg1/en/ch3.html
“Note that for shorter recent periods, the slope is greater, indicating accelerated warming.”
John D. Sterman (2008) – Risk communication on climate: Mental models and mass balance – Science 322:532-533 doi:10.1126/science.1162574 – MIT Sloan School of Management – http://stonehousestandingcircle.ca/sites/default/files/papers/StermanPolicyForum081024%20(2).pdf
“People often assess system dynamics using a patternmatching heuristic, assuming that the output of a system should “look like”—be positively correlated with—its inputs (12, 13). Although sometimes useful, correlational reasoning fails in systems with important accumulations. Since 1950, the U.S. federal budget deficit and national debt have risen dramatically and are highly correlated (r = 0.84, P < 0.0001) … Training in science does not prevent these errors.”
BerkeleyEarth: R Emulation of Berkeley Earth Surface Temperature – Cran.r project – Published online: 19/02/2012 – http://cran.r-project.org/web/packages/BerkeleyEarth/index.html
“A selection of functioned designed to emulate the Berkeley Earth Surface Temperature Project. Version 1.2 includes only those function to import data.”
Robert Rohde et al (2011) – Berkeley Earth Temperature Averaging Process – Berkeley Earth Surface Temperature – Novim Group, Berkeley Earth Surface Temperature Project – http://www.berkeleyearth.org/Resources/Berkeley_Earth_Averaging_Process
“A new mathematical framework is presented for producing maps and large-scale averages of temperature changes from weather station data for the purposes of climate analysis.
Michael E. Mann and Jeffrey Park (1999) – Oscillatory Spatiotemporal Signal Detection in Climate Studies: A Multiple-Taper Spectral Domain Approach – Advances in Geophysics, Vol 41 – Department of Geosciences, University of Massachusetts; Department of Geology and Geophysics, Yale University – http://www.meteo.psu.edu/~mann/shared/articles/mtmsvd.pdf
“In order to properly assess the potential impact of forcings external to the climate system (e.g., possible anthropogenic enhanced greenhouse forcing), it is essential that we understand the background of natural climate variability on which external influences may be superimposed.”
Berkeley Earth Surface Temperature – Financial Support – Accedido: 20/05/2012 – http://berkeleyearth.org/donors/
“DONORS: The Lee and Juliet Folger Fund ($20,000); William K. Bowes, Jr. Foundation ($100,000); Fund for Innovative Climate and Energy Research (created by Bill Gates) ($100,000); Charles G. Koch Charitable Foundation ($150,000); The Ann & Gordon Getty Foundation ($50,000). We have also received funding from a number of private individuals, totaling $14,500 as of June 2011.”
Novim:Just Science – Accedido: 20/05/2012 – http://www.novim.org/about/executive-board
“Michael Ditmore, George Ittner, Jim Knight, Simon Raab, Doug Troxel … George Ittner served President of the direct marketing company Territory Ahead from 2004-2010.”
Richard Black – Global warming ‘confirmed’ by independent study – BBC News, 21/10/2011 – Environment correspondent – http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-15373071
“The Berkeley Earth Project has used new methods and some new data, but finds the same warming trend seen by groups such as the UK Met Office and Nasa.”
Richard A. Muller (2011) – The Case Against Global-Warming Skepticism – The Wall Street Journal, 21/10/2011 – Professor of physics at the University of California, Berkeley – http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204422404576594872796327348.html
“There were good reasons for doubt, until now … now let me explain why you should not be a skeptic, at least not any longer.”
Ferran P. Vilar – La nueva estrategia del negacionismo climático-económico – Usted no se lo Cree, 25/10/2011 – https://ustednoselocree.com/2011/10/25/nueva-estrategia-negacionismo/
“Según algún punto de vista, la situación creada por la eyección y publicitación de este informe sería una buena noticia. Podría significar que, por fin, una cosa está realmente clara y ya vamos por el buen camino. Pero que alguien diga a estas alturas que el planeta se calienta, y que eso sea un notición, nos debe hacer sospechar que hay gato encerrado. Yo veo dos. El primero es la idea estratégica de solidificar su espacio “al otro lado de debate”, y el segundo la de dárselas de honestos.”
Glenn Tamblyn – Breaking News…The Earth is Warming… Still. A LOT – Skeptical Science, 16/02/2012 – http://www.skepticalscience.com/Breaking_News_The_Earth_is_Warming_Still_A_LOT.html
“This graph from the National Oceanographic Data Centre, looking at Ocean Heat Content in the upper half of the ocean shows the following: … Roughly 5 x 1022 Joules since 2003. Since the IPCC’s graph above up to 2003 shows that most of the energy from global warming is in the oceans, to a first approximation, Ocean Heat Content change since then is going to be close enough to the Total Heat Content change. So, total heat content change from 1961 to 2011 – 50 years – is approximately 21 x 1022joules = 210.000.000.000.000.000.000.000 joules (a joule is 1 watt for 1 second. So a 100 watt light bulb will use 100 joules in 1 second) A BIG number but somewhat unreal. So how much heat is this. What could it do? What is it in the real world, where we don’t routinely look at numbers that big. That is HOW Big…? This is a rate of heating of 133 Terawatts. Or 0.261 Watts/m2. 133 Terrawatts is 2 Hiroshima bombs a second. Continually since 1961.”
Sydney Levitus et al (in press) – World ocean heat content and thermosteric sea level change (0-2000), 1955-2010 – Geophysical Research Letters doi:10.1029/2012GL051106 – National Oceanographic Data Center, NOAA – 11 autores
“We have estimated an increase of 24×10^22 J representing a volume mean warming of 0.09°C of the 0-2000 m layer of the World Ocean. If this heat were instantly transferred to the lower 10 km of the global atmosphere it would result in a volume mean warming of this atmospheric layer by approximately 36°C (65°F).”
Simon F.B. Tett et al (1999) – Causes of twentieth-century temperature change near the Earth’s surface – Nature 399:569-572 doi:doi:10.1038/21164 – Hadley Centre for Climate Prediction and Research – 5 autores
“… the temperature changes over the twentieth century cannot be explained by any combination of natural internal variability and the response to natural forcings alone. Second, the recent warming, 0.25 K, can be explained by the response of the climate to anthropogenic changes in greenhouse-gas concentrations partly offset by cooling due to anthropogenic sulphate aerosols.”
Tim Barnet tet al (2005) – Detecting and Attributing External Influences on the Climate System: A Review of Recent Advances – Journal of Climate 18:1291-1314 doi:10.1175/JCLI3329.1 – International ad hoc Detection and Attribution Group: – http://www.cccma.ec.gc.ca/papers/ngillett/PDFS/idag.pdf – 12 autores
“The evidence indicates that natural drivers such as solar variability and volcanic activity are at most partially responsible for the large-scale temperature changes observed over the past century, and that a large fraction of the warming over the last 50 yr can be attributed to greenhouse gas increases. Thus, the recent research supports and strengthens the IPCC Third Assessment Report conclusion that “most of the global warming over the past 50 years is likely due to the increase in greenhouse gases.”
Cynthia Rosenzweig et al (2008) – Attributing physical and biological impacts to anthropogenic climate change – Nature 453:353-358 doi:10.1038/nature06937 – NASA/Goddard Institute for Space Studies and Columbia Center for Climate Systems Research – http://pubs.giss.nasa.gov/docs/2008/2008_Rosenzweig_etal_1.pdf – 14 autores
“… we conclude that anthropogenic climate change is having a significant impact on physical and biological systems globally and in some continents.”
Markus Huber and Reto Knutti (2012) – Anthropogenic and natural warming inferred from changes in Earth’s energy balance – Nature Climate Change 5:31-36 doi:10.1038/ngeo1327 – Institute for Atmospheric and Climate Science, ETH Zurich – http://www.iac.ethz.ch/people/knuttir/papers/huber11natgeo.pdf
“Based on a massive ensemble of simulations with an intermediate-complexity climate model we demonstrate that known changes in the global energy balance and in radiative forcing tightly constrain the magnitude of anthropogenic warming … Our method is complementary to optimal fingerprinting attribution and produces fully consistent results, thus suggesting an even higher confidence that human-induced causes dominate the observed warming.”
Richard S.J. Tol (2006) – Europe’s long-term climate target: A critical evaluation – Energy Policy 35:424-432 – Research unit Sustainability and Global Change, Hamburg University and Centre for Marine and Atmospheric Science
“The 0.1 ºC/decade target can be traced to the late 1980s, but then the trace vanishes. Apocryphal evidence [ref] holds that the 0.1 ºC/ decade target is appropriate for a plant species on the shores of a lake in North America. This study was never published, but mentioned at dinner during an early climate conference. Someone else repeated the information the next day in plenary, and an urban legend was born.”
Samuel Randalls (2010) – History of the 2 ºC climate target – Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews: Climate Change 1:598-605 DOI:10.1002/wcc.62 – Department of Geography, University College London
“Legend has it that the targets emerged from a dinner conversation about unpublished work on plant species on the shores of a North American Lake, which was subsequently reported in a plenary conference session.”
Carlo C. Jaeger and Julia Jaeger (2011) – Three Views of Two Degrees – Regional Environmental Change 11 (Suppl 1):S15–S26 doi:10.1007/s10113-010-0190-9 – Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, European Climate Forum and Beijing Normal University; European Climate Forum
“According to Tol (2007), the 2º target was first raised in a statement of the German Advisory Council for Global Change (WBGU 1995). Tol … denies this referring to Nordhaus (1991) … Figure 1, however, taken from the original paper of Nordhaus (1977) along with the corresponding quote from Nordhaus (1975, pp. 22–23) clarifies that the 2º target is indeed more than two decades older than Tol assumes.”
William D. Nordhaus (1975) – Can we control carbon dioxide? – International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis – June 1975 – Department of Economics, Yale University – http://www.iiasa.ac.at/Admin/PUB/Documents/WP-75-063.pdf –
“As a first approximation, it seems reasonable to argue that the climatic effects of carbon dioxide should be kept within the normal range of long-term climatic variation. According to most sources the range of variation between distinct climatic regimes is in the order of ±5˚C, and at the present time the global climate is at the high end of this range. If there were global temperatures more than 2˚ or 3˚ above the current average temperature, this would take the climate outside of the range of observations which have been made over the last several hundred thousand years.”
William D. Nordhaus (1975) – Can we control carbon dioxide? – International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis – Department of Economics, Yale University – http://www.iiasa.ac.at/Admin/PUB/Documents/WP-75-063.pdf
“Within a stable climatic regime, the range of variation of ± 1 °C is the normal variation: thus in the last 100 years a range of mean temperature has been 0.7°C. On the other hand, studies of the effects of carbon dioxide on global temperature indicate that a doubling in concentration would probably lead to an increase in surface temperature of between 0.6 and 2.4 oc. (see p.2 above).”
William D. Nordhaus (1976) – Strategies for the control of carbon dioxide – Cowles Foundation for Research in Economics, Yale University – http://cowles.econ.yale.edu/P/cm/m26/m26-08.pdf
“As a first approximation, it seems reasonable to argue that the climatic effects of carbon dioxide should be kept within the normal range of long-term climatic variation. According to most sources the range of variation between distinct climatic regimes is in the order of ±5˚C, and at the present time the global climate is at the high end of this range. If there were global temperatures more than 2˚ or 3˚ above the current average temperature, this would take the climate outside of the range of observations which have been made over the last several hundred thousand years. Within a stable climatic regime, such as the current interglacial, a range of variation of 2 ºC is the normal variation.”
William D. Nordhaus (1977) – Economic growth and climate: The Carbon Dioxide Problem – American Economic Review 67:341-346 – Cowles Foundation and Yale University – http://nordhaus.econ.yale.edu/carbondixoideproblem.pdf
“Figura 1, pág. 342.”
Syukuro Manabe and Richard T. Wetherald (1975) – The effect of doubling CO2 concentration on the climate of a general circulation model – Journal of the Atmospheric Sciences 32:3–15 – Geophysical Fluids Dynamic Laboratory / NOAA, Princeton University – http://journals.ametsoc.org/doi/pdf/10.1175/1520-0469%281975%29032%3C0003%3ATEODTC%3E2.0.CO%3B2
“The most careful study to date (S. Manabe and R.T: Wetherald) predicts that a doubling concentration of carbon dioxide would eventually lead to a global mean temperature increase of 3 ºC.”
“A doubling of the atmospheric concentration of carbon dioxide is a reasonable upper limit to impose at the present stage of knowledge.”
James E. Hansen and Makiko Sato (2012) – Climate Sensitivity Estimated From Earth’s Climate History – Columbia University – NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies and Columbia University Earth Institute – http://www.columbia.edu/~jeh1/mailings/2012/20120508_ClimateSensitivity.pdf –
“Our best estimate for the fast-feedback climate sensitivity from Holocene initial conditions is 3 ± 0.5°C for 4 W/m2 CO2 forcing (68% probability).”
Carlo C. Jaeger and Julia Jaeger (2011) – Three Views of Two Degrees – Regional Environmental Change 11 (Suppl 1):S15–S26 doi:10.1007/s10113-010-0190-9 – Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, European Climate Forum and Beijing Normal University; European Climate Forum “Note 2: In 2010 Nordhaus told the first author of the present paper that in the meantime he had literally forgotten his earlier contribution to the 2 target.”
Shardul Agrawala (1999) – Early science-policy interactions in climate change: lessons from the Advisory Group on Greenhouse Gases – Global Environmental Change 9:157-169 doi:10.1016/S0959-3780(99)00003-5 – Science, Technology and Environmental Policy Program, Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs, Princeton University
“The US position shaped the deliberations at the Tenth WMO Congress in May 1987. A week later the WMO Executive Council Meeting passed a resolution requesting WMO and UNEP to jointly establish ‘an intergovernmental mechanism to carry out internationally coordinated scientific assessments of the magnitude, impact and potential timing of climate change’. In March 1988, WMO Secretary General Obasi formally invited national governments to participate in the ‘Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’ (IPCC). The IPCC held its Þrst session in November 1988.”
F.J. Rijsberman and R.J. Stewart, eds. (1990) – Targets and Indicators of Climate Change. Report of Working Group II of the Advisory Group on Greenhouse Gases – Stockholm Environment Institute
“In the first half of the next century a rise of global mean temperature would occur which is greater than any in man’s history … scientists and policymakers should begin active collaboration to explore the effectiveness of alternative policies and adjustments.”
Alan D. Hecht and Dennis Tirpak (1995) – Framework agreement on climate change: a scientific and policy history – Climatic Change 29:371-402 doi:10.1007/BF01092424 – U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
“The authors participated in this meeting and have a clear record of the discussion. We are asserting that an element of the U.S. support for the IPCC concept, at least by some agencies, was based on the view that the IPCC would slow down the push for a climate convention. The U.S. attitude toward a climate convention was reversed after the 1988 Presidential Election.”
Conference Statement – Statement on Implications for Global Security – World Conference on the Atmosphere: Implications for Global Security, Toronto, 30/06/1988 – http://www.cmos.ca/ChangingAtmosphere1988e.pdf
“Stabilizing the atmospheric concentrations of CO2 is an imperative goal. It is currently estimate to require reductions of more than 50% from the present emission levels … Reduce CO2 emissions by approximately 20% of 1988 leves by the year 2005 as an initial global goal … Establish a World Atmosphere Fund, financed in part by a levy on fossil fuel consumption of industrialized countries … Increase funding to non-governmental organizations … Allocate financial support for environmental education … Emission targets ought to be the subject of an international treaty between the nations that take the first step.”
“It was also around 1988 that the US government began to flex its muscle on the international arena, although efforts in that direction had begun at least two years earlier … The US occupied a fairly unique and influential position in the climate debate during the 1980s. Scientifically, it had the most cumulative expertise in climate research and assessments … Politically, the US had a huge stake in the problem, being the biggest contributor to greenhouse gas emissions. Powerful fossil fuel lobbies with active support from a Republican White House were opposed to any kind of action on climate change”
Heil et al (1990) – Rates and limits of ecosystem change – En: Rijsberman FR Swart RJ eds. Targets and Indicators of Climate Change: Report of Working Group II of the Advisory Group on Greenhouse Gases – Stockholm Environment Institute 60-77
“The traffic light system.”
Pier Vellinga and Rob Swart (1991) – The greenhouse marathon: A proposal for a global strategy – Climatic Change 18:vii-xii doi:10.1007/
“To stay within the ‘green’, the rate of change of the global mean temperature should not exceed 0,1 ºC per decade and that of sea level rise should not surpass 2 cm per decade. Furthermore, in absolute terms the change in global mean temperature should stay below 1 ºC above preindustrial levels and sea level rise below 20 cm above present levels. The light turns red … when the rate of climate change would exceed 0.2 ºC per decade and sea level rise would exceed 5 cm per decade. In absolute terms we are in the ‘red’ zone when the increase in global temperature is 2 ºC or more above preindustrial levels and sea level rise exceeds 50 cm.”
Robert J. Swart and Pier Vellinga (1994) – The ‘ultimate objective’ of the framework convention on climate change requires a new approach in climate change research – An Editorial – Climatic Change 26:343-349 doi:10.1007/BF01094401 –
“This paper addresses the possible contribution of science to translate this rather vague and ambiguous objective into more practicable terms.”
10. Enquete-Kommission – Protecting the Earth: A Status Report with Recommendations for a New Energy Policy/Summary and Recommendations of the Third Report – Deutscher Bundestag, October 1990
1939th European Council meeting – Environment, Luxembourg, 26/06/1996 – European Union – http://europa.eu/rapid/pressReleasesAction.do?reference=PRES/96/188&format=HTML&aged=1&language=ES&guiLanguage=es
“El Consejo reconoce que, según el segundo informe del IPCC, la estabilización de las concentraciones atmosféricas de CO2 en un nivel igual al doble del nivel preindustrial, es decir, 550 ppm, exigirá que en última instancia la totalidad de las emisiones mundiales sea inferior al 50% del nivel actual de las mismas; dicho nivel de concentración ya provocará un aumento de la temperatura media mundial de aproximadamente 2 C por encima del nivel preindustrial. En vista del grave riesgo de dicho incremento y, en particular, del muy elevado ritmo de cambio, el Consejo considera que las temperaturas medias mundiales no deberían sobrepasar en más de 2 C las temperaturas preindustriales, por lo que los esfuerzos de reducción y limitación deberían orientarse hacia niveles de concentración inferiores a 550 ppm de CO2. ”
Angela Merkel (1995) – Conference of the Parties 1 – En: Bert Bolin (2007) – A History of the Science and Politics of Climate Change. The Role of the Intergovernmental Panel of Climate Change – Cambridge University Press
“In accordance with the principles of the Convention, particularly in view of the common but differentiated responsibility, we, the industrialised countries, must be the first to prove that we are bearing our responsibility in protecting the global climate. Only when we demonstrate this by convincingly taking the lead, can we demand actions from other countries regarding climate protection. After all, we are talking about preserving our single world, as we repeatedly stressed in Rio.”
Scenario for the derivation of global CO2 reduction targets and implementation strategies – Wissenschaftlicher Beirat der Bundesregierung Globale Umweltveränderungen (WBGU) – March 1995 – Statement on the occasion of the First Conference of the Parties to the Framework Convention on Climate Change in Berlin – http://www.wbgu.de/fileadmin/templates/dateien/veroeffentlichungen/sondergutachten/sn1995/wbgu_sn1995_engl.pdf
“Economists assume that resultant costs of climate change in the order of 3- 5% of annual GGP over a period of several decades would cause severe disruption of social conditions with far-reaching political consequences. (By way of illustration, one should note that the current annual volume of transfer payments from West to East Germany is about 5% of GNP).”
“Moreover, as we will see below, AGGG (1990) is another important step between Nordhaus (1975) and WBGU (1995). The real importance of the German advisory board—and specifically its later chairman, Hans Joachim Schellnhuber—in this matter lies elsewhere: by convincing Angela Merkel of the 2º target, it did indeed trigger the political process that fifteen years later led to the global visibility conferred to the 2º target by the G8, the Major Economies Forum, and the Conference of the Parties.”
Margaret Thatcher – Speech to the Royal Society – Prime Minister’s Office, 27/09/1988 – http://www.margaretthatcher.org/document/107346
“We are told that a warming effect of 1 ºC per decade would greatly exceed the capacity of our natural habit to cope. Such warming could cause accelerated melting of glacier ice and a consequent increase of the sea level of several feet over the next century . . . It is noteworthy that the five warmest years in a century of records have all been in the 1980s – though we may not have seen much evidence in Britain.”
Margaret Thatcher – Speech to the United Nations on Global Warming, 08/09/1989 – http://www.margaretthatcher.org/document/107817
“Mr President, the evidence is there. The damage is being done. What do we, the International Community, do about it? In some areas, the action required is primarily for individual nations or groups of nations to take … But the problem of global climate change is one that affects us all and action will only be effective if it is taken at the international level. It is no good squabbling over who is responsible or who should pay. Whole areas of our planet could be subject to drought and starvation if the pattern of rains and monsoons were to change as a result of the destruction of forests and the accumulation of greenhouse gases. We have to look forward not backward and we shall only succeed in dealing with the problems through a vast international, co-operative effort. Before we act, we need the best possible scientific assessment: otherwise we risk making matters worse. We must use science to cast a light ahead, so that we can move step by step in the right direction.”
Pieter Van Geel – 2632nd Council Meeting – Environment, Brussels – Council of the European Union, 20/12/2004 – http://europa.eu/rapid/pressReleasesAction.do?reference=PRES/04/357&format=HTML&aged=1&language=EN&guiLanguage=en
“RECONOCE que el cambio climático es uno de los mayores desafíos a los que se enfrenta la humanidad, que pudiera tener considerables repercusiones negativas medioambientales, económicas y sociales a escala mundial, y se cree que afectará negativamente al desarrollo sostenible y a las condiciones de vida de millones de personas en el planeta; REAFIRMA que, para alcanzar el objetivo último de la Convención de impedir las interferencias antropógenas peligrosas en el sistema climático, el incremento de la temperatura media anual mundial en superficie no debería superar los 2°C por encima de los niveles preindustriales; SUBRAYA que el protocolo de Kioto es un primer paso importante en la lucha mundial contra el cambio climático; PONE DE RELIEVE las conclusiones del tercer informe de evaluación del IPCC que confirman la necesidad de adoptar más medidas significativas para reducir las emisiones de gases de efecto invernadero y limitar los efectos adversos del cambio climático … RECONOCE que las investigaciones científicas más recientes y los trabajos del IPCC indican que es improbable que la estabilización de concentraciones de gases de efecto invernadero por encima de 550 ppmv de equivalente en CO2 permita alcanzar el objetivo a largo plazo de 2°C y que para tener una posibilidad razonable de limitar el calentamiento de la Tierra a no más de 2°C, puede ser necesaria una estabilización de concentraciones muy por debajo de 550 ppmv de equivalente en CO2; OBSERVA que para que sea alcanzable a largo plazo este objetivo relativo a la temperatura será menester que las emisiones mundiales de gases de efecto invernadero alcancen el punto máximo en el plazo de dos décadas, seguido por una reducción sustancial del orden de al menos el 15% y quizá tanto como el 50% antes del 2050 en comparación con los niveles de 1990.”
Communication from the Commission to the Council, the European Parliament, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions – Winning the Battle Against Global Climate Change – Commission of The European Communities – 09/02/2005 – http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=COM:2005:0035:FIN:EN:PDF –
“There is increasing scientific evidence that the benefits of limiting the global average temperature increase to 2 °C outweigh the costs of abatement policies (for detailed summaries see Annexes 1 and 2). If temperatures continue to rise beyond 2 °C a more rapid and unexpected response of the climate becomes more likely and irreversible catastrophic events may occur.”
Presidency Conclusions – European Commission, 23/03/2005 – http://www.consilium.europa.eu/ueDocs/cms_Data/docs/pressData/en/ec/84335.pdf
“Climate Change: 43. The European Council acknowledges that climate change is likely to have major negative global environmental, economic and social implications. It confirms that, with a view to achieving the ultimate objective of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, the global annual mean surface temperature increase should not exceed 2ºC above pre-industrial levels.”
Texts adopted – European Parliament, 16/11/2005 – http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc.do?pubRef=-//EP//TEXT+TA+20051116+ITEMS+DOC+XML+V0//EN&language=EN
“Calls on the EU to present, at the COP-11 and COP/MOP1, proposals for a future climate regime, based on the overall objective to limit the average global temperature increase to 2°C above pre-industrialisation levels … Stresses that the EU strategy on climate change mitigation should be based on a seven-pronged approach: – building on key Kyoto elements – binding greenhouse gas emission targets, a global cap-and-trade system, and flexible mechanisms, – undertaking strong emission reductions of 30% by 2020, using a combination of market incentives and regulation to stimulate investments in efficiency and/or carbon-free and low-carbon technologies, – adopting a pro-active approach to engage other main actors, in particular the United States, – developing a strategic partnership with countries such as China, South Africa, Brazil and India to assist them in developing sustainable energy strategies and secure their participation in mitigation efforts, – vigorously promoting research and innovation for sustainable energy technologies and removing “perverse” incentives such as fossil fuel subsidies, as well as internalising external costs, including those of climate change, into the price of energy production, – using European and national legislation to stimulate greater energy efficiency and reduce the price of technology which reduces climate impact, – encouraging much greater direct involvement in mitigation efforts at the level of the European citizen, a necessary prerequisite being the provision of detailed information about the carbon content of products and services and a future option being a system of personal tradable quotas;”
Prime Minister Tony Blair – Chair’s Summary – G8 Summit 2005 Gleneagles, 08/07/2005 – http://www.g8.utoronto.ca/summit/2005gleneagles/summary.html
“We have issued a statement setting out our common purpose in tackling climate change, promoting clean energy and achieving sustainable development. All of us agreed that climate change is happening now, that human activity is contributing to it, and that it could affect every part of the globe. We know that, globally, emissions must slow, peak and then decline, moving us towards a low-carbon economy. This will require leadership from the developed world. We resolved to take urgent action to meet the challenges we face. The Gleneagles Plan of Action which we have agreed demonstrates our commitment. We will take measures to develop markets for clean energy technologies, to increase their availability in developing countries, and to help vulnerable communities adapt to the impact of climate change. We warmly welcomed the involvement of the leaders of the emerging economy countries in our discussions, and their ideas for new approaches to international co-operation on clean energy technologies between the developed and developing world. Our discussions mark the beginning of a new Dialogue between the G8 nations and other countries with significant energy needs, consistent with the aims and principles of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change. This will explore how best to exchange technology, reduce emissions, and meet our energy needs in a sustainable way, as we implement and build on the Plan of Action. We will advance the global effort to tackle climate change at the UN Climate Change Conference in Montreal later this year. Those of us who have ratified the Kyoto Protocol remain committed to it, and will continue to work to make it a success.”
Conference of the Parties 16 – Meeting of the Parties 6 – The Cancun Agreements: Outcome of the work of the Ad Hoc Working Group on Long-term Cooperative Action under the Convention – United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, 10/12/2010 – http://unfccc.int/resource/docs/2010/cop16/eng/07a01.pdf
“Further recognizes that deep cuts in global greenhouse gas emissions are required according to science, and as documented in the Fourth Assessment Report of the Inter-governmental Panel on Climate Change, with a view to reducing global greenhouse gas emissions so as to hold the increase in global average temperature below 2°C above pre-industrial levels, and that Parties should take urgent action to meet this long-term goal, consistent with science and on the basis of equity; Also recognizes the need to consider, in the context of the first review, as referred to in paragraph 138 below, strengthening the long-term global goal on the basis of the best available scientific knowledge, including in relation to a global average temperature rise of 1.5°C … 138. Decides to periodically review the adequacy of the long-term global goal referred to in paragraph 4 above, in the light of the ultimate objective of the Convention, and overall progress towards achieving it, in accordance with the relevant principles and provisions of the Convention.”
P.M. Kelly (1990) – Halting Global Warming – Greenpeace
J.H.V Karas (1991) – Back from the Brink: Greenhouse Gas Targets for a Sustainable World – Friends of the Earth
UNDP and Peace Child International (2008) – Two Degrees of Separation: between hope and despair – http://hdr.undp.org/en/media/Two_Degrees_En.pdf
Christopher Monckton of Brenchley – Margaret Thatcher: the world’s first climate realist – Watts Up With That?, 16/06/2010 – http://wattsupwiththat.com/2010/06/16/margaret-thatcher-the-world%E2%80%99s-first-climate-realist/
“In 1988 it was my successor at No. 10, George Guise, who travelled one bitterly cold October weekend down to Chequers, the prime minister’s country house, and sat in front of a roaring fire writing the speech that would announce a government subsidy to the Royal Society to establish what would become the Hadley Centre for Forecasting. George remembers how he and the prime minister chuckled at the irony of writing a speech about ‘global warming’ on an evening so cold that he could hardly hold his pen.”
Michael Fisher – Monckton Sent “Cease and Desist” Letter by the House of Lords – Desmogblog, 18/07/2011- http://www.desmogblog.com/monckton-sent-cease-and-desist-letter-house-lords
“Monckton is no stranger to controversy. He recently apologized for comparing the Australian Climate Advisor to a Nazi. This has created challenges for Monckton’s lecture tour in Australia, where university students recently petitioned to stop Monckton’s lecture at the University of Notre Dame.”
Pascale Braconnot et al (2012) – Evaluation of climate models using palaeoclimatic data – Nature Climate Change 2:417–424 doi:10.1038/nclimate1456 – Insitut Pierre Simon Laplace/Laboratoire des Sciences du Climat et de l’Environnement, unité mixte de recherches CEA-CNRS-UVSQ – 8 autores
“Evaluation of model simulations against palaeodata shows that models reproduce the direction and large-scale patterns of past changes in climate, but tend to underestimate the magnitude of regional changes.”
Fredrik Boberg and Jens H. Christensen (2012) – Overestimation of Mediterranean summer temperature projections due to model deficiencies – Nature Climate Change 2:433–436 doi:10.1038/nclimate1454 – Danish Meteorological Institute
“Here, we show that owing to a broad tendency for climate models (regional and global) to show systematic biases in warm, dry climates, it is likely that, at present, many climate models overestimate regional amplification of global warming. We study Europe using the central Mediterranean as an example. To correct for individual model deficiencies, we apply a bias correction conditioned on temperature. The results demonstrate that projections of intense mean summer warming partly result from model deficiencies, and when corrected for, the Mediterranean summer temperature projections are reduced by up to one degree, on average by 10–20%. Individual models may be overestimating warming by several degrees.”
James S. Risbey and Terence J. O’Kane (2011) – Sources of knowledge and ignorance in climate research – Climatic Change doi:10.1007/s10584-011-0186-6 – Centre for Australian Weather and Climate Research; CSIRO Marine and Atmospheric Research
“The deficiencies of ocean GCMs can be understood in contrast with the more mature NWP GCMs (Section 3.1). These deficiencies reflect the fact that ocean modelling is a more difficult problem. There are a number of reasons for this, but the relevant one for the purpose of this discussion is that the critical instability scale in the ocean occurs on spatial scales an order of magnitude finer than in the atmosphere and we simply don’t yet have powerful enough computers to resolvethese scales … The confidence level for quantifying such changes is currently best characterized by ‘effective ignorance’.”
Stephen P. Nash – Supercomputer will help researchers map climate change down to the local level – The Washington Post, 28/05/2012 – http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/supercomputer-will-help-researchers-map-climate-change-down-to-the-local-level/2012/05/28/gJQAv7S9wU_story.html
“As climate models become more complex and detailed, limited computing power bottlenecks the research. Broad-brush models use less power, but they often cannot consider details that drive local climate, such as complex coastlines or the mountain ranges and valleys that affect rainfall. Researchers refer to this as a problem of ‘model resolution.’.”
Peter Cox and David Stephenson (2007) – A Changing Climate for Prediction – Science 217:207-208 doi:10.1126/science.1145956 – School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics, University of Exeter
“On lead times of less than 10 years, the signal of anthropogenic climate change is relatively small compared to natural decadal climate variability, and uncertainties in initial conditions dominate the overall uncertainty of the prediction (see the first figure) (1). By contrast, climate predictions on time scales of a century are much less sensitive to initial conditions, because the signal of anthropogenic climate change is typically much larger at longer time scales and because most elements of the climate system have a ‘memory’ of past climate-forcing factors that is shorter than a few decades. The major source of uncertainty here lies in the future anthropogenic emissions of greenhouse gases and aerosols (see the first figure) (2). This uncertainty can be seen as humankind’s free will concerning future climate change.”
S. Şerban Scrieciu et al (2011) – Pushing the boundaries of climate economics: critical issues to consider in climate policy analysis – Ecological Economics doi:10.1016/j.ecolecon.2011.10.016 – Economics for Equity and the Environment (E3) Network, United States & Department of Land Economy, University of Cambridge – 3 autores
“However, economic models for climate policy may not include ITC at all or include it with restrictive assumptions and in a partial form so that it has only weak effects. Furthermore, the models may not include all the policy instruments that affect ITC. In consequence, the results of the models exaggerate, from this perspective, the costs of mitigation and give the impression that stringent mitigation is not possible without economic collapse.”
David Fisk (2011) – Thermodynamics on Main Street: When entropy really counts in economics – Ecological Economics 70:1931–1936 doi:10.1016/j.ecolecon.2011.06.012 – Imperial College London
“The implications of thermodynamics for economic theory have been a source of debate for 40 years. Adopting the framing used in modern engineering rather than physics suggests that the market place has already recognised most of these thermodynamic truths as self-evident rather than challenging basic concepts. The exception is the relatively small market for heat where the idea of thermodynamic grade, conveniently represented by the exergy or available work content of a heat source, exposes inconsistencies especially in monopoly supply and economic instruments. Earlier commentators were not wrong in the thrust of their criticisms of economic theory but may have been overly elaborate in their attack.”
H. E. Goeller and Alvin M. Weinberg (1978) – The Age of Substitutability – The American Economic Review 68:1-11 – 28825 – Oak Ridge National Laboratory; Institute For Energy Analysis, Oak Ridge – http://www.jstor.org/stable/pdfplus/2951003.pdf
“On the basis of their scrutiny of these geological and technological data, Goeller and Weinberg pronounce the principle of infinite substitutability: With the exception of phosphorus and some trace elements for agriculture, mainly cobalt, copper and zinc, and finally the CH_x (coal, oil and gas), society can exist on near-inexhaustible resources for an indefinite period.”
Donald Saari (1995) – Mathematical complexity of simple economics – Notices of the AMS 42:222-230 – Department of Mathematics, Northwestern University – http://cema.cufe.edu.cn/admin/data/uploadfile/200907/20090720082740710.pdf
“It follows immediately from this construction that any assertion trying to relate the aggregate excess demand functions from different subsets of commodities must impose strict restrictions on preferences. Therefore, constraints based only on the structure of the excess demand (as is typical) are doomed for failure. Also, since individual preferences drive the social sciences, this situation, with the accompanying troublesome complexity, undoubtedly extends to most other areas.”
125. Carlo C Jaeger and Bernd Kasemir (2012) – Climatic risks and rational actors – Global Environmental Change 6:23–36 doi:10.1016/0959-3780(95)00073-9, – Darmstadt University and Swiss Federal Institute for Environmental Science and Technology (EAWAG); Bernd Kasemir is with the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH)
“In the present paper, we argue that a way out of this impasse can be found if a misleading assumption is corrected. This is the assumption that a system involving a multitude of rational actors operating on interdependent markets has only one possible equilibrium … The story told by Figure 3 is often used as a paradigmatic metaphor to discuss the incentive structure faced by rational actors operating in a market setting. However, there is a serious problem with this metaphor: it refers to a market considered in isolation although the market in question belongs to a system of interdependent markets … The existence of multiple equilibria means that the logic of rational action on interdependent markets does not lead to a unique best outcome. One may consider this indeterminacy as a weakness of current economic theory.”
Kenneth J. Arrow and Gerard Debreu (1954) – Existence of an equilibrium for a competitive economy – Econometrica 22:265–290 – Stanford University – http://www.stanford.edu/class/msande311/arrow-debreu.pdf “From the viewpoint of welfare economics, it is the principle that the consumption vector chosen should be the one which achieves the given utility at least cost which is primary, and the principle of maximizing utility at a given cost only relevant when the two give identical results.16 For a descriptive theory of behavior under perfect competition, on the other hand, it is, of course, the concept of utility maximization which is primary. To the extent that the duality is valid, the principle of cost minimization leads to much simpler derivations, for example, of Slutzky’s relations. Actually, minimization of oost for a given utility is essentially minimization of a linear function when tho argument is limited to a convex set; mathematically, the problem is identical with that of maximizing profits subject to the transformation conditions, so that the theories of the consumer and the firm become identical.16 However, the failure of the duality to hold in all cases shows that there are delicate questions for which t,he principle of utility maximization cannot be replaced by that of cost minimization.”
J. Doyne Farmer and Duncan Foley (2009) – The economy needs agent-based modelling – Nature 460:685-686 doi:10.1038/460685a – Santa Fe Institute; New School for Social Research
“The best models they have are of two types, both with fatal flaws. Type one is econometric: empirical statistical models that are fitted to past data. These successfully forecast a few quarters ahead as long as things stay more or less the same, but fail in the face of great change. Type two goes by the name of ‘dynamic stochastic general equilibrium’. These models assume a perfect world, and by their very nature rule out crises of the type we are experiencing now. As a result, economic policy-makers are basing their decisions on common sense, and on anecdotal analogies to previous crises such as Japan’s ‘lost decade’ or the Great Depression (see Nature 457, 957; 2009). The leaders of the world are flying the economy by the seat of their pants. This is hard for most non-economists to believe.”
Patricia Cohen – Ivory Tower Unswayed by Crashing Economy – The New York Times, 04/03/2009 – http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/05/books/05deba.html
“The former U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan has admitted that he was shocked to discover a flaw in the free-market model and has even begun talking about temporarily nationalizing some banks … Unquestioning loyalty to a particular idea is what Robert J. Shiller, an economist at Yale University, Connecticut, says is the reason the profession failed to foresee the financial collapse. He blames ‘groupthink,’ the tendency to agree with the consensus.”
Dalibor Roháč (2012) – On economists and garbagemen: Reflections on Št’astný (2010) – The Review of Austrian Economics 25:173–183 doi:10.1007/s11138-011-0160-6 – Legatum Institute, London
“Arguably, the current status of economic science is even worse than it appears given that a large part of econometric tools available to economists are flawed too … “If empirical economics worked well, choosing between alternative hypotheses and theories would be easy. Yet, the economic profession does not progress by discarding rejected theories and improving upon those that have stood the test of time. Various contradictory models and theories co-exist and the discrimination between them is usually less than perfect … As a result, the researcher enjoys a substantial degree of discretion over the final results that they report. The worry is that they might be tempted to report only those models and specifications that yield their preferred results. Moreover, model selection that is based on significance tests can easily lead to deceptive conclusions … Short of minimising some generally agreed-upon criterion function—such as the mean squared error or the median squared error—it allows experts to pick the estimation procedure which will yield a result closest to their preferences, whether they be motivated by ideology, material interest or anything else … at the level of empirical testing, experts have a certain degree of discretion in choosing those techniques of estimation which will be the most likely to confirm the preferred results. Even more disturbingly, empirical testing of hypotheses can be replaced by” the method of calibration which is essentially uninformative with regard to the selection of different models.”
Floris Heukelom (2007) – Kahneman and Tversky and the origin of behavioral economics – Social Science Research Network – Amsterdam School of Economics, Max Planck Institute for Human Development – http://dieoff.org/_Economics/Origin%20of%20Behavioral%20Economics07003.pdf
“To cut the story short, in an extension to the normative-descriptive distinction, Kahneman and his collaborators in RSF behavioral economics argue for a ‘prescriptive’ theory of decision-making [ref]. They promote a re-interpretation of economics in terms of a normative-descriptive-prescriptive distinction. ‘Normative’ is what is objectively correct and how people should and either consciously or unconsciously want to behave. ‘Descriptive’ is how people actually behave in reality. Deviations of real world behavior from the normative theory may occur for a number of reasons and are not likely solved by explaining the theory to the individuals. ‘Prescriptive’, then, is about how policies should be designed in order to make people behave more in accordance with the normative theory.”
Ronald Inglehart and Wayne E. Baker (2000) – Modernization, Cultural Change, and The Persistence of Traditional Values – American Sociological Review 65:19–51 – University of Michigan
“Economic development is associated with shifts away from absolute norms and values toward values that are increasingly rational, tolerant, trusting, and participatory. Cultural change, however, is path dependent. The broad cultural heritage of a society—Protestant, Roman Catholic, Orthodox, Confucian, or Communist—leaves an imprint on values that endures despite modernization. Moreover, the differences between the values held by members of different religions within given societies are much smaller than are cross-national differences. Once established, such cross-cultural differences become part of a national culture transmitted by educational institutions and mass media. We conclude with some proposed revisions of modernization theory.”
Robert H. Nelson (2001) – Economics as Religion: from Samuelson to Chicago and beyond – The Pennsylvania State University – ISBN 0-271-02095-4, 405 págs – http://www.scribd.com/doc/36508451/Economics-as-Religion-Robert-Nelson#download
“Economists think of themselves as scientists, but as I will be arguing in this book, they are more like theologians. The closest predecessors for the current members of the economics profession are not scientists such as Albert Einstein or Isaac Newton; rather, we economists are more truly the heirs of Thomas Aquinas and Martin Luther. Economists think that their role in society is to provide technical knowledge to operate the economic system. The members of the economics profession do make important contributions in this regard. The inflation, unemployment, and other data collected by economists, for example, are critical to monitoring the current state of the economy. However, another basic role of economists is to serve as the priesthood of a modern secular religion of economic progress that serves many of the same functions in contemporary society as earlier Christian and other religions did in their time … In the economic profession, there are disagreements on major issues that are persistent and that, furthermore, do not seem to be mitigated by empirical evidence.”
Gretchen C. Daily et al (2000) – The value of nature and the nature of value – Science 298:395-396 DOI:10.1126/science.289.5478.395 – Beijer Institute, the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences – http://www.ci.uri.edu/ciip/FallClass/Docs_2008/Daily_etal2000.pdf – 19 autores
“Ecosystems are capital assets: When properly managed, they yield a flow of vital goods and services. Relative to other forms of capital, however, ecosystems are poorly understood, scarcely monitored, and–in many important cases–undergoing rapid degradation. The process of economic valuation could greatly improve stewardship. This potential is now being realized with innovative financial instruments and institutional arrangements.”
Herman E. Daly and Kenneth N. Townsend (1993) – Sustainable Growth: An Impossibility Theorem – En ‘Valuing the Earth: Economics Ecology Ethics’ MIT Press – http://dieoff.org/page37.htm
“In its physical dimensions the economy is an open subsystem of the earth ecosystem, which is finite, non-growing, and materially closed. As the economic subsystem grows it incorporates an ever greater proportion of the total ecosystem into itself and must reach a limit at 100 percent, if not before. Therefore its growth is not sustainable. The term “sustainable growth” when applied to the economy is a bad oxymoron—self-contradictory as prose, and unevocative as poetry.”
Geir B Asheim (1994) – Net National Product as an Indicator of Sustainability – Scandinavian Journal of Economics 96:257-265 – Norwegian School of Economics and Business Administration – http://folk.uio.no/gasheim/A-SJE94.pdf
“Hence, it would see impossible to develop the concept of NNP into an indicator of sustainability, even if prices for the valuation of natural and environmental resources were readily available through a perfect intertemporal competitive equilibrium.”
Alex Bowen and Samuel Fankhauser (2011) – The green growth narrative: Paradigm shift or just spin? – Global Environmental Change 21:1157-1159 doi:10.1016/j.gloenvcha.2011.07.007 – Grantham Research Institute and Centre for Climate Change Economics and Policy, London School of Economics
“The ‘green growth’ agenda abandons this narrow focus, throwing the debate wide open and bringing broader, more nuanced and richer strands of economics to bear. In doing so the emerging green growth literature can draw on many long traditions of economic thinking that encompass the work of, among others, John Maynard Keynes, Arthur Cecil Pigou, Joseph Schumpeter, and Henry George. The agenda also opens up important new research questions which policy-makers will need answered.”
Joan Martinez-Alier (1987) – Ecological Economics – Blackwell Publishers – Blackwell Publishers
Silvio O. Funtowicz and Jerome R. Ravetz (1994) – The worth of a songbird: ecological economics as a post-normal science – Ecological Economics 10:197-207 doi:10.1016/0921-8009(94)90108-2 – CEC-Joint Research Centre, Institute for Systems Engineering and Informatics; The Research Methods Consultancy Ltd.
“The arguments based on the virtues of an unregulated market require so many special and artificial assumptions that they belong to the realm of inspirational visions rather than to that of scientific analysis … Economics has traditionally been able to maintain its credibility by relegating uncertainties in knowledge and complexities in ethics firmly to the sidelines.”
Duane Chapman and Neha Khanna (2000) – Crying No Wolf: Why Economists Don’t Worry About Climate Change, and Should. An Editorial Comment – Climatic Change 47:225-232 doi:10.1023/A:1005685115053 – Cornell University; Binghamton University, Department of Economics – http://www2.binghamton.edu/economics/research/working-papers/pdfs/wp00/WP2003.pdf
“The results of economic models are only as credible as the assumptions upon which they are based. We identify a set of assumptions and characteristics that together define the standard for climate-economy models currently in use. The general apathy toward controlling the growth of CO2 emissions, both at the global level and particularly in high income countries, is derived in part from conclusions based on these assumptions. In the following five sections, each of these assumptions are examined critically.”
Anastasios C. Petkou – Reading the Economic Cosmos – The Economist, 28/05/2012 – Associate professor of physics, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki – http://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/29/opinion/reading-the-economic-cosmos.html
“In “Germany’s outlook born in past pain” (News, May 26), Hans-Werner Sinn, president of the Ifo Institute for Economic Research, is quoted as saying of Greek politicians: ‘They speak of the primacy of policy over the laws of economics because they don’t understand economics. But in the end the economic laws prevail.’ Natural laws prevail only if they are unambiguously established, e.g. the laws of gravity. Since there are as many “economic laws” as economists, to the scientifically minded reader Mr. Sinn’s views have the risk of associating his institute’s predictions with the equivalent of astrology readings.”
Myles R. Allen and David J. Frame (2007) – Call Off the Quest – Science 318:582-583 doi:10.1126/science.1149988 – Department of Physics, University of Oxford; Oxford University Centre for the Environment
“The lower bound of 2°C is slightly higher than the 1.6°C proposed in the 1970s (2); progress on the upper bound has been minimal. On page 629 of this issue, Roe and Baker (3) explain why. The fundamental problem is that the properties of the climate system that we can observe now do not distinguish between a climate sensitivity, S, of 4°C and S > 6°C. In a sense, this should be obvious: Once the world has warmed by 4°C, conditions will be so different from anything we can observe today (and still more different from the last ice age) that it is inherently hard to say when the warming will stop. Roe and Baker formalize the problem by showing how a symmetric constraint on the strength of the feedback parameter f (which determines how much energy is radiated to space per degree of surface warming) gives a strongly asymmetric constraint on S. The reason is simple: As f approaches 1, S approaches infinity.”
Salvador Pueyo (2012) – Solution to the paradox of climate sensitivity – Climatic Change doi:10.1007/s10584-011-0328-x – Institut Català de Ciències del Clima (IC3)
“In an analysis of the economics of catastrophic climate change, Weitzman (2009) mentions that scale invariance is a desirable property for prior distributions. Therefore, he uses a power law with exponent β … I show that strict scale invariance corresponds to β=1.”
Karen Akerlof et al (2012) – Communication of climate projections in US media amid politicization of model science – Nature Climate Change doi:10.1038/nclimate1542 – Department of Environmental Science and Policy, George Mason University – 4 autores
“Almost two times the number of media outlets featured negative content (that suggested that climate-model projections were not likely to be valid) (12), than had positive content (suggesting they were likely to be accurate) [ref] … There were not only fewer magazines and programmes that featured positive content, but the amount provided was smaller – a maximum of seven positive sentences over the year (PBS NewsHour), compared with 21 negative ones (The Nation).”
James Delingpole (2011) – Watermelons: the green’s movements true colours – Publius Books – Periodista de News Inc.- ISBN-13: 978-0983347408, 304 págs.
Joseph E. Stiglitz (2001) – Nobel Prize lecture: Information and The Change in the Paradigm in Economics, 08/12/2001 – http://nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/economics/laureates/2001/stiglitz-lecture.pdf
“I hope to show that Information Economics represents a fundamental change in the prevailing paradigm within economics. Problems of information are central to understanding not only market economics but also political economy, and in the last section of this lecture, I explore some of the implications of information imperfections for political processes.”
Cutler J Cleveland and Matthias Ruth (1997) – When, where, and by how much do biophysical limits constrain the economic process?: A survey of Nicholas Georgescu-Roegen’s contribution to ecological economics – Ecological Economics 22:203-223 doi:10.1016/S0921-8009(97)00079-7 – Department of Geography and Center for Energy and Environmental Studies, Boston University – http://www.publicpolicy.umd.edu/files.php/faculty/ruth/biophysical_limits.pdf
“The classical economic model fares no better under the light of physical realities. Perrings (1986) develops a variant of the von Neumann- Leontief-Sraffa neo-Ricardian general equilibrium model in the context of a jointly determined economy- environment system subject to a conservation of mass constraint. The model demonstrates that the conservation of mass contradicts the free disposal, free gifts, and non-innovation assumptions of such models. Accounting for the conservation of mass destroys the determinacy of the closed, time variant system in the classical model. An expanding economy causes continuous disequilibrating change in the environment. Since market prices in an interdependent economy-environment system often do not accurately reflect environmental change, such transformations of the environment often will go unanticipated.”
Milton Friedman (1953) – Essays in Positive Economics Part I – The Methodology of Positive Economics – University of Chicago Press – University of Chicago – http://dieoff.org/_Economics/TheMethodologyOfPositiveEconomics.htm
“Viewed as a body of substantive hypotheses, theory is to be judged by its predictive power for the class of phenomena which it is intended to ‘explain.’ Only factual evidence can show whether it is ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ or, better, tentatively ‘accepted’ as valid or ‘rejected.’ As I shall argue at greater length below, the only relevant test of the validity of a hypothesis is comparison of its predictions with experience.”
Daniel Kahneman et al (1990) – Experimental tests of the endowment effect and the coase theorem – Journal of Political Economy 98:1325-1348 – University of California – http://teaching.ust.hk/~econ325/Lecture/90KahnemanKnestchThalerJPE.pdf – 3 autores
“Contrary to theoretical expectations, measures of willingness to accept greatly exceed measures of willingness to pay. This paper reports several experiments that demonstrate that this “endowment effect” persists even in market settings with opportunities to learn. Consumption objects (e.g., coffee mugs) are randomly given to half the subjects in an experiment. Markets for the mugs are then conducted. The Coase theorem predicts that about half the mugs will trade, but observed volume is always significantly less. When markets for “induced-value” tokens are conducted, the predicted volume is observed, suggesting that transactions costs cannot explain the undertrading for consumption goods.”
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New Va. Army Guard battalion command selections announced
Mr. Cotton Puryear
– March 4, 2015Posted in: 1030th Transportation Battalion, 116th IBCT, 183rd Regiment, Regional Training Institute, 1st Battalion, 116th Infantry, 1st Battalion, 183rd Regiment, Regional Training Institute, 2nd Battalion, 183rd Regiment, Regional Training Institute, 2nd Battalion, 224th Aviation, 329th Regional Support Group, 3rd Battalion, 183rd Regiment, Regional Training Institute, 529th Combat Sustainment Support Battalion, 91st Troop Command (Now 91st Cyber Brigade), Adjutant General, Army Guard, Joint Force HQs
SANDSTON, Va. — Brig. Gen. Timothy P. Williams, the Adjutant General of Virginia, and Brig. Gen. Walter L. Mercer, Assistant Adjutant General – Army, announced March 4, 2015, the following officers have been selected for battalion command in the Virginia Army National Guard:
– Lt. Col. Matthew Lutz will take command of the Virginia Beach-based 529th Combat Sustainment Support Battalion.
– Maj. James S. Williams will take command of the Gate City-based 1030th Transportation Battalion.
– Lt. Col. Christopher Samulski will take command of the Lynchburg-based 1st Battalion, 116th Infantry Regiment.
– Lt. Col. Thomas Hernandez will take command of the Sandston-based 2nd Battalion, 224th Aviation Regiment.
– Maj. Paul Gravely will take command of the Fort Pickett-based 1st Battalion, 183rd Regiment, Regional Training Institute.
– Lt. Col. Travis Mabrey will take command of the Fort Pickett-based 2nd Battalion, 183rd Regiment, Regional Training Institute.
– Lt. Col. Craig Worsham will take command of the Fort Pickett-based 3rd Battalion, 183rd Regiment, Regional Training Institute.
Effective dates for change of command will be announced when they are finalized.
AG, Virginia Guard staff on hand as Governor receives keys to new Freedom Support Center at Fort Mon...
Va. National Guard recruiters celebrate opening of new recruiting station
Unit, family, friends gather to remember fallen VNG Soldiers 14 years later
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LISTEN: Morgan Evans Releases New Song, "I Do"
Lauren Hoffman
© SIPA USA
Morgan Evans recently said the words "I Do" to Kelsea Ballerini and now he's saying it to his fans with the release of a new song. The track follows the debut of the country singer's first U.S. single, "Kiss Somebody."
RELATED: Kelsea Ballerini and Morgan Evans Are Married
"Wrote it about my girlfriend. Recorded it about my fiance’. Releasing it about my wife ... #ido," Evans shared on Twitter. The Australian musician and Ballerini tied the knot on December 2 in Mexico.
Listen to Morgan Evans' "I Do" below.
Morgan Evans will hit the road in 2018 as a supporting act on Chris Young's Losing Sleep World Tour.
A post shared by Morgan Evans (@morganevansmusic) on Dec 4, 2017 at 3:56pm PST
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RESOURCE: Disability Rights Convention Ratification Campaign Handbook
Posted on 29 September 2008. Filed under: Announcements, Cross-Disability, Human Rights, Media & Journalism, Resources | Tags: CRPD, disability rights, disability rights convention, Human Rights, Landmine Survivor Network, Ratification Campaign Handbook, United Nations |
Disability advocates can use the Disability Rights Convention Ratification Campaign Handbook (PDF format, 250 Kb) from the Landmine Survivors Network as one more tool to help them persuade their government to ratify the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD).
The most significant international, legally binding treaty affecting people with disabilities is, of course, the CRPD. The 40 countries that have ratified it so far are now legally obligated to make sure their laws protect a wide range of human rights for people with disabilities, such as the right to life, to privacy, to accessible education and health care services, and many more. In some cases, this may mean creating new legislation; in some cases, this may mean abolishing old laws that discriminate.
But what of the other 160 countries or so that have not yet ratified the CRPD? The good news is that 95 of these have taken the first step toward ratification by signing it. And signing the convention does at least obligate the country to avoid doing anything that would directly violate the treaty. But a few dozen countries still haven’t even signed it. And the countries that have signed it vary widely in the level of progress they are making toward ratification. A country is not obligated to fully obey the CRPD until after they ratify it.
Disability communities around the world–and their families and the service providers who work with them–are working together to persuade their governments to ratify. The global grassroots organization RatifyNow is one example, but there are also many local efforts. Advocates who are new to the process have an increasing number of toolkits they can use to help them figure out how to get started. One of these resources is Disability Rights Convention Ratification Campaign Handbook (PDF format, 250 Kb).
The first part of this handbook explains what a human rights convention is and how the process for creating one works; presents the CRPD and its Optional Protocol in plain (simple) language; and answers some frequently asked questions such as “what rights are included”? and “how will it work?”
The second part explains how a country can ratify the CRPD and shares advice for how people can run an advocacy campaign. Perhaps the most valuable part of this section, at least for advocates who are new to writing letters to politicians or the wider community, are the sample letters they can use to help them figure out how to write letters of their own.
The third part of this handbook explains how advocates can reach out to the media; get media coverage for their campaign; prepare press releases; and prepare press conferences. This section includes a sample press release that advocates can use as a guide for writing their own. A Guide to Portraying People with Disabilities in the Media can be distributed to journalists as a way of encouraging them to write or speak about people with disabilities with repsect and accuracy.
Download the PDF file (250 Kb) at:
http://www.landminesurvivors.org/files/ConvHandbook_4-30.pdf
Advocates who have difficulty understanding legal terminology may be contented with the plain language version of the CRPD presented in this handbook. However, if you’d rather read the original, unaltered CRPD–i.e., the same text that government officials would be reading and deciding whether to ratify–then you can find the full CRPD at http://www.un.org/disabilities/default.asp?navid=12&pid=150. You will need to scroll down the page to choose your preferred language; the CRPD is available in English, French, Spanish, Arabic, Russian, Chinese, Portuguese (Brazilian), Khmer, Croatian, Hungarian (in both the original translation and the easy to read version), Hungarian Sign Language, Persian (Farsi), Maltese, Dutch, Korean, Slovenia, and Turkish. Some translations are in PDF format, some are in Word format.
Want a quick background on the CRPD that you can read in a few minutes? Try the RatifyNow FAQ at http://ratifynow.org/ratifynow-faq/.
Find out if your country has signed or ratified the CRPD at http://www.un.org/disabilities/countries.asp?navid=12&pid=166
Also, a number of other toolkits and resources related to the CRPD have been featured at We Can Do in the past–see a list of links to relevant We Can Do posts at https://wecando.wordpress.com/resources-toolkits-and-funding/#CRPD%20resources. Especially helpful might be the Ratification and Implementation Toolkits from Disabled Peoples International, available in English, Spanish, and French.
Find an even more extensive collection of links to resources on the CRPD and disability rights at the Disability Rights Fund Resource page.
NEWS: Jordan Ratifies CRPD
Posted on 1 April 2008. Filed under: Human Rights, Middle East and North Africa, News | Tags: Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, CRPD, disability rights convention, Disability rights treaty, Human Rights, Jordan, ratification, UN convention |
RatifyNow has now announced that Jordan ratified the international disabilities rights treaty, called the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) yesterday, March 31, 2008.
Regular We Can Do readers will know that the CRPD is the first international legally binding human rights instrument to protect people with disabilities. It protects the rights of people with disabilities to have access to education and health services; to be free from torture and other forms of abuse; to have the right to make their own choices about what medical treatment they will accept or refuse; the right to live in the community; and more.
As of this writing (April 1 … and, no, not April Fool’s), the United Nations Enable web site has not yet announced Jordan’s ratification. But contacts within the ratification movement were able to verify the news with the UN Secretariat.
The CRPD needs to be ratified by a total of 20 countries before it can become legally enforceable, then it will go into effect 30 days later. Jordan is the 18th country to ratify since the treaty was opened for countries to sign and ratify. The other 17 ratifying countries include Bangladesh, Croatia, Cuba, El Salvador, Gabon, Guinea, Hungary, India, Jamaica, Mexico, Namibia, Nicaragua, Panama, Peru, San Marino, South Africa, and Spain.
In addition to 18 ratifications, 126 countries have signed the CRPD. Signing an international treaty does not oblige a country to obey it. In order to be legally bound by a treaty, a country must ratify it. However, signing a treaty does send a signal that the country is interested in ratifying the treaty in the future. It also commits the country to avoiding any action that would violate the spirit of the treaty.
Keep watching this space for the next two ratifications, possibly within a week. Also watch for upcoming announcements on how RatifyNow plans to celebrate and promote the CRPD when it goes into effect 30 days after the 20th ratification.
Consult the RatifyNow FAQ to learn more about the CRPD, how it is meant to help people with disabilities, and how the ratification process works.
This text is taken with slight modifications from the RatifyNow.org web site with permission of author.
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Classical music: The Madison Early Music Festival will present a Grand Tour of musical styles to mark its success after 20 years. The “tour” starts this Saturday, July 6, and runs through Saturday, July 13. Part 1 of 2
A big anniversary deserves a big celebration – and that is exactly what the organizers of this year’s Madison Early Music Festival (below, the All-Festival Concert in 2018) have come up with.
Co-artistic director Cheryl Bensman-Rowe recently wrote about the festival in a Q&A interview for this blog. Here is Part 1 of 2:
This summer marks the 20th anniversary of the Madison Early Music Festival. Can you briefly summarize the progress of the festival over all those years and how you – through audience size, participants, media coverage – measure the success it has achieved?
How successful is this year’s festival compared to the beginning festival and to others in terms of enrollment, budgets and performers? How does this of MEMF’s reach nationally or even internationally compare to previous years?
What can you say about where the festival will go in the coming years?
As the 20th Madison Early Music Festival approaches, we have looked back at how far we have come from 1999 when we were a little festival of 60 participants and faculty. We have grown to our current size of 140 faculty members and participants — fellow lovers of early music.
Last year, we had the largest group of participants when 120 students enrolled. MEMF now attracts students of all ages, from 18 to 91, amateurs and professionals, from all over North America and Europe.
Our success is due to the help and support of many individuals and outside organizations. We could not manage MEMF without the amazing staff at the Division of the Arts at UW-Madison. They help with everything from printed materials, website design and management, social media, grant writing, fundraising, proofreading and on-site assistance at all of our events and more.
Paul and I (below) work with Sarah Marty, the Program Director of MEMF, who keeps things organized and running smoothly throughout the year.
Also, we are grateful to our dedicated MEMF Board, donations from many individuals, grants, and the generosity of William Wartmann, who created an endowment for the festival, and after his death left an additional $400,000 for our endowment. It takes a village!
Not only have we become an important part of the summer music scene in Madison, but we have contributed to the national and international early music community. The 2019 concert series will be featuring artists from California to New York, Indiana to Massachusetts, and from Leipzig, Germany.
We hope to have many old and new audience members join us for this exciting celebration of our 20th year. For future seasons our motto is “To infinity and beyond!” as we continue to build on our past successes.
What is new and what is the same in terms of format, students, faculty members and performers?
This year we have a new program, the Advanced Voice Intensive, which provides an opportunity for auditioned advanced singers who are interested in a capella vocal music from the Renaissance – singing sacred polyphony and madrigals to improve their skills as ensemble singers.
Twenty singers from all over the country will be joining the inaugural program to rehearse and perform music from Italy, England and Germany.
At the end of the week they will sing in a masterclass with the vocal ensemble Calmus (below) on Thursday, July 11, at 11:30 a.m. in Morphy Recital Hall. On Saturday, July 13, they will perform in a FREE concert with the popular Advanced Loud Band ensemble in Morphy Recital Hall.
Here’s the link for all the information about MEMF: https://memf.wisc.edu/
All concerts include a pre-concert lecture at 6:30 p.m. and the concerts in Mils Hall begin at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $90 for an all-event pass; each individual concert is $22, for students $12. Tickets are available for purchase online and by phone at 608-265-ARTS (2787) with a $4 service fee, or in person at the Campus Arts Ticketing Box Office @ Memorial Union.
We also have two Fringe Concerts this year featuring new vocal ensembles from Wisconsin. On Monday, July 8, at 7 p.m. at Pres House, Schola Cantorum of Eau Claire (below), a 12-voice ensemble directed by UW-Madison graduate Jerry Hui, will perform “Mystery and Mirth: A Spanish Christmas.”
And on Wednesday, July 10, at 7 p.m. at Luther Memorial Church, 1021 University Avenue, the Milwaukee-based Aperi Animam (below) perform “Libera Nos,” a program of sacred vocal music.
The Fringe Concerts are FREE with donations accepted at the door.
Why was the theme of “The Grand Tour” chosen for the festival? What is the origin of the conceit, and what major composers and works will be highlighted?
We decided to celebrate the 20th anniversary by choosing a theme that would be broader than previous years and portray what people might experience when they are 20 years old – traveling abroad on a gap year.
We were also inspired by Englishman Thomas Coryat, aka “The First Tourist.” He published his travelogue Crudities in 1611, an amusing and thorough account of his five months of travel throughout Europe. This tradition of the Grand Tour of Europe continued through the 17th and 18th centuries, especially when wealthy young aristocrats finished their formal schooling.
Several of the concert programs this summer feature quotes from different travelogues, including Coryat’s, as an organizational concept. If you search all over Europe, you find an American at Versailles learning courtly manners, and a fictional Englishman, born in 1620, sending postcards from the Grand Tour.
We will also have a stop at Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris with the silent film version of The Hunchback of Notre-Dame, and a musical tour of sacred vocal music and madrigals. This theme allowed us to include music from many different time periods from all over Europe — a rich Grand Tour of musical offerings!
The opening concert on this Saturday, July 6, features Dark Horse Consort returning to Madison with Wanderlust, their newly created program for MEMF’s Grand Tour theme. The program follows the misadventures of an English gentleman as he embarks on a continental Grand Tour adventure in search of love and fulfillment.
Our hero’s travelogue includes springtime consort songs by Alfonso Ferrabosco and William Byrd; Erasmus Widmann’s beguiling German dances dedicated to women; the wooing songs of the Italian gondolier; and sultry Spanish airs.
On Sunday, July 7, Alchymy Viols (below) performs “American at Versailles,” an original ballet masque of French baroque music, dance and drama written and choreographed by Sarah Edgar, featuring Carrie Henneman Shaw, soprano; Sarah Edgar, director and dancer; and guest soprano Paulina Francisco. The American on the Grand Tour encounters the exotic world of French baroque manners, dress, dance and love.
TOMORROW: Part 2 explores the rest of the festival next week, including a rare book exhibit and the All-Festival finale on Saturday night
Tags: #ACappella, #ACappellaMusic, #AlchymyViols, #AlfonsoFerrabosco, #AperiAnimam, #ArtisticDirector, #BandMusic, #BaroqueMusic, #BlogInterview, #BlogPost, #BlogPosting, #BoxOffice, #CarrieHennemanShaw, #ChamberMusic, #CherylBensman-Rowe, #ChristianChurch, #DarkHorseConsort, #EauClaire, #EndowmentFund, #EnglishMusic, #ErasmusWidmann, #FacebookPost, #FacebookPosting, #FacultyMember, #FelixMendelssohn, #FrenchDance, #FrenchMusic, #GapYear, #Germandances, #GermanMusic, #GrantWriting, #ItalianMusic, #JerryHui, #JohannSebastianBach, #LeipzigGermany, #LutherMemorialChurch, #MadisonEarlyMusicFestival, #MeadWitterSchoolofMusic, #MemorialUnion, #MilwaukeeWisconsin, #MusicalStyle, #NorthAmerica, #NotreDamedeParis, #PaulinaFrancisco, #PaulRowe, #PolyphonicMusic, #PresHouse, #ProfessionalMusician, #Proofreading, #RenaissanceMadrigal, #RenaissanceMusic, #RenaissancePolyphony, #SacredMusic, #SarahEdgar, #SarahMarty, #ScolaCantorum, #SilentFilm, #SocialMedia, #TheHunchbackofNotreDame, #ThomasCoryat, #UniversityofWisconsin-Madison, #VocalMusic, #WesternEurope, #WilliamByrd, #WilliamWartmann, a cappella, advanced, airs, Alchymy Viols, Alfonso Ferrabosco, amateur, American, anniversary, Aperi Animam, aristocrats, Artistic director, Arts, assistance, audience, ballet, band, Baroque, Baroque music, beyond, big, blog, Book, box office, budget, California, Campus, Carrie Henemann Shaw, cathedral, celebrate, celebration, Chamber music, Cheryl Bensman Rowe, choral music, choreograph, Christian, Christmas, church, Classical music, community, composer, concept, Concert, continental, country, coverage', dance, dancer, Dark Horse Consort, death, design, donation, door, drama, dress, Early music, Eau Claire, endowment, England, Englishman, enrollment, ensemble, Erasmus Widmann, Europe, event, exhibit, exotic, experience, Facebook, faculty, Felix Mendelssohn, festival, film, finale, forward, free, French, fringe, fulfillment, Fundraising, future, gap year, gentleman, German dances, Germany, gondolier, grand, grant, guest, help, important, inaugural, Indiana, individuals, infinity, intensive, international, interview, Italian, Italy, Jacob Stockinger, Jerry Hui, Johann Sebastian Bach, Leipzig, like, link, little, loud, Love, lover, lovers, Luther Memorial Church, Madison, Madison Early Music Festival, madrigal, management, manners, masque, Massachusetts, masterclass, material, Mead Witter School of Music, media, MEMF, Memorial Union, Milwaukee, mirth, motto, movie, Music, musical, mystery, national, new, North America, Notre Dame, old, online, organization, outside, part, participant, Paul Rowe, Paulina Francisco, People, performer, polyphony, postcard, Pres House, printed, professional, progress, Q&A, rare, reader, Renaissance, sacred, Sarah Edgar, Sarah Marty, scene, school, schooling, Scola Cantorum, share, silent film, sing, singer, Singing, size, skill, social media, song, soprano, Spanish, springtime, Student, style, subscriber, success, summer, support, tag, The Hunchback of Notre Dame, theme, Thomas Coryat, ticket, time, tour, tourist, travel, traveling, travelogue, United States, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, University of Wisconsin–Madison, UW-Madison, UW-Madison Arts Institute, Versailles, village, Viol, Violin, vocal, vocal music, voice, wanderlust, wealthy, Website, William Byrd, William Wartmann, Wisconsin, women, woo, written, wrote, years
Classical music: The UW Choral Union and UW Symphony Orchestra deliver outstanding performances of great music by Mozart and Brahms
Here is a special posting, a review written by frequent guest critic and writer for this blog, John W. Barker. Barker (below) is an emeritus professor of Medieval history at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He also is a well-known classical music critic who writes for Isthmus and the American Record Guide, and who hosts an early music show once a month on Sunday morning on WORT-FM 89.9. For years, he served on the Board of Advisors for the Madison Early Music Festival and frequently gives pre-concert lectures in Madison. Barker also took the performance photos.
The program for the first concert this season by the UW Choral Union (below), mercifully, had nothing whatsoever to do with Christmas, and just offered great music.
There were only two works, one by Brahms and the other by Mozart. Surefire!
Johannes Brahms composed three relatively short works for chorus, without soloists, and orchestra. Of these, I wish conductors would get busy with two of them in particular. The Gesang der Parzen (Song of the Fates) and Nänie are simply superb works by one of the greatest of all choral composers.
The third, the Schicksalslied (Song of Destiny), Op. 54, I would rate just a bit lower for musical content, but that is the one of the three that is more frequently performed, and that was the one we heard.
That said, there is much quite beautiful music in the piece, which sets a poem of Friedrich Hölderlin that moves from anxiety to desperation. Brahms (below) preceded the choral setting with a serene introduction that—to satisfy his aesthetics if not the poet’s—he repeats at the end to restore order.
Conductor Beverley Taylor (below) employed rather broad tempos, but this enabled her to bring out some of the melodic material with great beauty.
And, with a chorus of some 124 singers, she was able to give the music tremendous sonority, if a bit at the price of German diction. With the very good UW Symphony Orchestra in fine fettle, too, this was an excellent performance that should alert listeners to neglected treasures.
The main work was the unfinished “Great” Mass in C minor, K. 427, by Mozart (below). This is music inspired by the composer’s marriage and by the new (for him) artistic climate of Vienna. Even incomplete – it has a fragmentary “Credo” and is missing an “Agnus Dei”) — it still stands, with his also uncompleted Requiem, as a towering masterpiece of his sacred choral output.
Taylor displayed a fine feeling for both the overall and individual qualities of the work, projecting them with vigor and discipline.
There were four student soloists (below), with promising young voices.
But eventually the standout proved to be soprano Sarah Richardson (below). The operatic-style aria, “Et incarnatus est” from the “Credo” was apparently sung by Mozart’s wife in its preliminary performance, and is often heard as a separate solo number today. This was sung by Richardson (below) with skill and eloquence. (You can hear the aria in the YouTube video at the bottom.)
This chorus was really a bit oversized for a work like this, but Taylor made it the real star of the performance, in singing with both power and precision.
A truly rewarding concert!
Tags: aesthetic, Agnus Dei, American Record Guide, anxiety, aria, artistic, Arts, beautiful, Beverly Taylor, Cello, choral music, Christmas, Classical music, climate, composer, content, Credo, critic, desperation, diction, discipline, Early music, eloquence, emeritus, esthetic, feeling, fettle, fine, fragment, German, great, History, Holiday, incomplete, individual, introduction, Isthmus, Jacob Stockinger, Johannes Brahms, John W. Barker, lecture, Madison, Madison Early Music Festival, Marriage, mass, masterpiece, material, Medieval, melodic, melody, Mozart, Music, musical, Nanie, opera, operatic, Orchestra, order, output, photo, photograph, piece, poem, poet, power, precision, preformance, professor, quality, Requiem, restore, review, rewarding, sacred, Season, serene, setting, short, singer, skill, soloists, Song of Destiny, Song of the Fates, star, Student, superb, Tempo, towering, unfinished, United States, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, University of Wisconsin–Madison, UW Choral Union, UW Symphony Orchestra, Vienna, vigor, Viola, Violin, vocal music, voice, wife, Wisconsin, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, work, WORT-FM 89.9, YouTube
Classical music: Piano sensation Daniil Trifonov plays the “Fantaisie-Impromptu” by Chopin and makes it his own
Take a world-class young pianist who is a global sensation and on his way to being a superstar who specializes in Chopin – Russian pianist Daniil Trifonov (below).
Add in one of the best-known, most popular works by Frederic Chopin – his “Fantaisie-Impromptu.”
Blend in a warehouse loft and a ghostly, pop-like video with a dance-like narrative, all designed to promote Trifonov’s new CD – a budget double-disc set called “Chopin Evocations” (below).
The recording also features both piano concertos with some new orchestral touches by Russian pianist and conductor Mikhail Pletnev as well as Chopin-influenced solo pieces by Robert Schumann, Edvard Grieg, Samuel Barber, Peter Tchaikovsky and Federico Mompou.
The result may well be the most original, individual and persuasive versions of the famous piece you have ever heard of the almost clichéd piece.
Here is a link to the performance with the video, along with some fine background material from Tom Huizenga who writes the “Deceptive Cadence” blog for NPR (National Public Radio):
http://www.npr.org/sections/deceptivecadence/2017/10/04/555327012/a-young-lion-tamed-by-chopin-s-fantasy
What do you think of Trifonov’s playing in this and other works?
And what do you think about the video, which The Ear finds a bit over-the-top, both precious and schmaltzy, not at all in keeping with Chopin’s more austere and classical kind of Romanticism.
Tags: Arts, background, ballet, best-known, blog, budget, Chopin, Chopin Evocations, Classical, Classical music, Compact Disc, composer, concerto, conductor, dance, Daniil Trifonov, Deceptive Cadence, Deutsche Grammophon, DG, disc, evocation, famous, Fantaisie-Impromptu, fantasy, ghost, ghost-like, global, globe, Grieg, impromptu, individual, Jacob Stockinger, loft, Madison, material, Mikhail Pletnev, Mompou, Music, narrative, NPR, Orchestra, original, persuasive, Piano, pieces, playing, Pletnev, pop, pop music, popular, precious, promote, Romantic, Romanticism, Russia, Russian, Samuel Barber, schmaltz, Schumann, solo, spirit, superstar, Tchaikovsky, United States, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, University of Wisconsin–Madison, video, warehouse, world, world-class
Classical music: Farley’s underappreciated Salon Piano Series shines again with duo-pianists Robert Plano and Paola Del Negro
Here is a special posting, a review written by frequent guest critic and writer for this blog, John W. Barker. Barker (below) is an emeritus professor of Medieval history at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He also is a well-known classical music critic who writes for Isthmus and the American Record Guide, and who hosts an early music show once a month on Sunday morning on WORT-FM 89.9 FM. For years, he served on the Board of Advisors for the Madison Early Music Festival and frequently gives pre-concert lectures in Madison. He also took the performance photos.
Roberto Plano appeared last season in a four-piano concert in the Salon Piano Series at Farley’s House of Pianos. This year, to open the 2017-18 season in the same series on last Sunday afternoon, the Boston-based pianist brought along his pianist wife, Paola Del Negro, for a duo program of utter fascination. (They are below.)
The first half of the program was devoted to music for piano-four hands, the duo alternating between primo and secondo parts. Robert Schumann’s six “Pictures From the East,” Op. 66, are examples of the composer’s important duo output.
Burgmein was the pen name of the covert composer better known as the influential music promoter and publisher Giulio Ricordi (below). His set of six duet pieces evoking characters from the Italian Renaissance Commedia dell’Arte tradition followed.
Then came two of the Hungarian Dances (No. 2 and 5) by Johannes Brahms in their original piano-duo form. (You can hear them play Hungarian Dances by Brahms in the YouTube video at the bottom.)
Ending the program’s first half was one of its biggest hits. After composing the great orchestral cycle of six patriotic scenes called “My Country,” Bedrich Smetana (below) made four-hand piano arrangements of each. Plano and Del Negro played that for the popular “Moldau.” This arrangement managed to capture a good deal of the orchestral original’s coloristic and dramatic effects, and was played with particular power.
The entire second half was devoted exclusively to a major work by Brahms, his Sonata for Two Pianos, Op. 34b. This work was created first as a string quintet, then later discarded. But the two-piano version (below) was superseded by Brahms’ transformation of its material into a Quintet for Piano and Strings (reckoned as plain Op. 34).
The Quintet — which, by the way will be performed by the UW’s Pro Arte Quartet in the Salon Series next March — is, of course, one of the composer’s masterpieces. But the Two-Piano Sonata survives on its own merits. The parallel material is presented cogently, all of it redistributed in consistently keyboard terms, as against the mixed media of the Quintet.
The duo played it with the necessary Brahmsian burliness and power, and on Farley’s wonderful vintage pianos it sounded simply magnificent.
As an encore, the duo played a two-piano arrangement of an energetic tango piece by Astor Piazzolla, but then followed with another, in this case, an eight-hand piano trifle in which the Plano-Del Negro duo were joined as parents by their two young daughters (below). The audience could hardly resist that!
Plano and Del Negro are great discoveries. And once again, the Salon Piano Series has shown itself as one of the exciting, if too-little-known of Madison’s musical treasures.
For more information about the Salon Piano Series and its upcoming concerts, go to: http://salonpianoseries.org
Tags: American Record Guide, Arts, big, big hit, Brahms, Burgmein, Chamber music, character, Classical music, color, Commedia dell'Arte, composer, covert, critic, cycle, dance, daughters, discovery, drama, duet, duo-pianists, duo-piano, Early music, effect, emeritus, Farley's House of Pianos, four-hand, History, hit, host, Hungarian, Hungarian Dances (Brahms), Hungary, influential, Isthmus, Itaky, Italian, Jacob Stockinger, Johannes Brahms, John W. Barker, Madison, Madison Early Music Festival, major, masterpiece, material, media, Medieval, mixed media, Moldau, Music, My Country, Orchestra, patriotic, patriotism, Paula Del Negro, pen name, photo, Piano, Piano Quintet, Piazzolla, Pictures From the East, power, Pro Arte Quartet, professor, promoter, publisher, Radio, Renaissance, review, Ricordi, Roberto Plano, Salon Piano Series, Schumann, Sonata, string quintet, tango, tradition, transformation, treasure, two-piano, United States, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, University of Wisconsin–Madison, Wisconsin, work, WORT-FM 89.9, YouTube
Classical music: The Ancora String Quartet turns in outstanding performances of Beethoven and Shostakovich, and revives a neglected quartet by Danish composer Niels Gade
Here is a special posting, a review written by frequent guest critic and writer for this blog, John W. Barker. Barker (below) is an emeritus professor of Medieval history at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He also is a well-known classical music critic who writes for Isthmus and the American Record Guide, and who hosts an early music radio show once a month on Sunday morning on WORT FM 89.9 FM. For years, he served on the Board of Advisors for the Madison Early Music Festival and frequently gives pre-concert lectures in Madison. He also took the performance photos for this review.
Whether as a finale to the passing season or as a prelude to the upcoming one, the Ancora String Quartet (below) favored its admirers with a fine summer concert at St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church on Regent Street last Saturday night.
The program offered three contrasting works.
It started off boldly with Dmitri Shostakovich’s Quartet No. 7 in F-sharp minor, Op. 108, a slashing three-movement work of nervous and disturbing energy.
So many of the quartets by Shostakovich (below) are autobiographical, or at least confessional, in character, and this one is a clear expression of both personal anxieties and political apprehensions. The Ancoras tore into it with gusto.
Niels W. Gade (below) is hardly a composer of instant recognizability, but he was at the center of Leipzig’s post-Mendelssohn world and then, when he returned to his native Denmark, he became the dominant figure in its musical life until his death in 1890. This is the bicentennial year of his birth.
Gade has left us some fine orchestral music that deserves frequent hearings. And his true legacy was his advancement — if with reservations — of his prize student, Carl Nielsen.
Gade’s late String Quartet in D, Op. 63, one of his three works in the form, is steeped in the stylistic qualities of Felix Mendelssohn and Robert Schumann, without quite extending them. Still, it is altogether a listenable work, and we can thank the Ancora players for sharing with us.
The big event, however, was the concluding piece, Beethoven’s Quartet in F Major, Op. 18, No. 1, part of his set of six that marked his brilliant debut as a composer in this form.
Meant to show his extension of the work of Haydn and Mozart in this idiom, this quartet was worked on laboriously by Beethoven, to offer a kaleidoscopic array of moods and structures.
The first movement in particular is a proclamation of his lifelong skill in creating bold entities out of the most minimal motivic material, while the third and fourth movements are hectic displays of energy and imagination.
Perhaps most striking, however, is the slow movement, supposedly reflecting Shakespearian influences. Wonderfully vigorous in all movements, the Ancoras were particularly eloquent in that dark and tragic essay that looks to the tomb scene in “Romeo and Juliet.” (You can hear the slow second movement, played by the Takacs Quartet, which will perform next season at the Wisconsin Union Theater, in the YouTube video at the bottom.)
It has become the custom with this group for one member to give a brief spoken introduction to each composition, and that practice worked particularly well for this program, giving the audience a comfortable sense of welcome and valuably pointing up things to listen for. (Below is violist Marika Fischer Hoyt explaining and deconstructing the Beethoven quartet.)
If you missed the concert, the Ancora String Quartet will repeat the program this coming Sunday afternoon at 12:30 p.m. for the “Afternoon Live at the Chazen” program. You can attend the concert in Brittingham Gallery 3 of the Chazen Museum of Art for FREE or live-stream it from the Chazen website.
Here is a link to the website with more information and a portal for streaming:
https://www.chazen.wisc.edu/visit/programs/#section6
Tags: American Record Guide, Ancora String Quartet, anxiety, Arts, autobiographical, autobiography, Beethoven, Carl Nielsen, Cello, Chamber music, Chazen Museum of Art, Classical music, Concert, confession, confessional, critic, Danish, dark, death, Denmark, disturbing, Early music, energy, Episcopal, essay, expression, finale, Haydn, History, Isthmus, Jacob Stockinger, lecture, legacy, Leipzig, livestream, Ludwig van Beethoven, Madison, Madison Early Music Festival, material, Medieval, Mendelssohn, mood, motif, motive, motivic, Mozart, Music, nervous, Niels Gade, photo, photograph, Politics, portal, Prelude, Radio, retire, Retirement, Romeo and Juliet, Schumann, Season, Shakespeare, Shostakovich, skill, St. Andrew's, stream, String quartet, structure, Student, style, summer, Sunday Afternoon Live at the Chazen, symphony, Takacs Quartet, tomb, tragedy, United States, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, University of Wisconsin–Madison, Viola, Violin, Website, Wisconsin, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, WORT-FM 89.9, YouTube
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Rhyley McGrath
Rhyley McGrath is a talented young Bendigo-based musician garnering praise and winning fans across Victoria and beyond.
Rhyley grew up in Horsham, playing guitar from a young age. Moving to Bendigo in 2014 kick-started his career as he immersed himself in the local blues scene. He started performing as a singer-guitarist in mid-2016. Gigs in central Victoria, and then further around the state soon followed.
Songwriters in the Round
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New Membership Page
Please review the Member Types below, decide the type of membership you would like to have and click on the registration button at the bottom of the page. Memberships are for 1 year from the date of your initial registration or renewal. Membership dues are assessed on an annual basis.
Private Sector (admitted 0-10 years)
Members of the New York State bar and attorneys admitted to practice law in any jurisdiction in the United States who maintain an office or reside in New York State are eligible to become full active members. Attorneys that have been admitted to the bar for 10 or less years should select this membership type.
Private Sector (admitted more than 10 years)
Members of the New York State bar and attorneys admitted to practice law anywhere in any jurisdiction in the United States who maintain an office or reside in New York State are eligible to become full members. Attorneys that have been admitted for more than 10 years should select this membership type.
Members of the New York State bar and attorneys admitted to practice law in any jurisdiction in the United States who maintain an office or reside in New York State are eligible to become full active members. Reduced membership fees are available to government lawyers, public interest lawyers, lawyers in the judiciary, and educators
Any attorney in good standing admitted to the Bar of a foreign jurisdiction or any law school graduate not admitted lo practice law who resides in or is employed in the State of New York. Associate Members shall be entitled to all privileges and rights of Active Members, excluding the right to vote at meetings and/or hold office.
Any individual attending an American Bar Association accredited law school and who is employed, resides, attends a law school in the State of New York, or intends to sit for the New York State Bar Examination. Student Members shall be entitled to all privileges and rights of Active Members, excluding the right to vote at any/all meetings and/or hold office, except that of student liaison. A Student Member may continue his/her membership for sixty (60) days after graduation or after sitting for a state bar exam, whichever is longer, but in no event for a period of more than two years after graduation from law school.
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Tropical Storm Colin forms in the Gulf of Mexico
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — Tropical Storm Colin formed in the Gulf of Mexico Sunday and was speeding on a course to hit Florida on Monday with rains that forecasters said could cause serious flooding along much of the state's Gulf coast.
A large portion of Florida's western and Panhandle coast was already under a tropical storm warning when the National Hurricane Center announced that a quickly moving depression had become a named storm. The center said it is the earliest that a third named storm has ever formed in the Atlantic basin.
It is the latest in a series of severe whether events across the country, from record-breaking heat in the West, flooding in Texas and storms that are expected to cause problems in the nation's capital and mid-Atlantic region.
The storm was moving at a speed of about 12 mph (19 kph) and was expected to pick up the pace later Sunday.
"It's going to impact most of the state in some way," Gov. Rick Scott said in a phone interview. "Hopefully we won't have any significant issues here, but we can have some storm surge, some rain, tornados and some flooding."
Scott postponed a political meeting with presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump scheduled Monday in New York so he can remain in the state capital to monitor the weather.
Tropical storms carry wind speeds of between 39 mph (63 kph) and 73 mph (117 kph).
Tropical Storm Colin was likely to bring dangerous rainfall levels, and residents were warned about possible flooding and hazardous driving conditions. Rain began falling in the Tampa Bay area just past noon Sunday.
Scott warned residents not to simply look at the center of the storm, saying the heaviest rain will be to the east and west of it.
The National Weather Service in Mobile issued a flood warning for the Shoal River near Crestview and warned of possible widespread flooding in streams, creeks, and canals. Wind gusts threatened to bring down trees and branches and cause power outages.
The Georgia coast and the north Florida Atlantic coast were placed under a tropical storm watch Sunday evening.
Sand bags were being distributed to residents in St. Petersburg, Tampa and nearby cities.
"We're surrounded on three sides by water," said Pinellas County spokesman Nick Zoller, who said the county distributed 3,300 sand bags on Saturday, a number he expected to go up now that a tropical storm warning is in effect.
Just to the north, Pasco County Emergency Services Director Kevin Guthrie said the message is to be prepared.
"We are going to flood in parts of Pasco County," Guthrie said in an email.
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APD IDs suspect fired on by police Tuesday night
By Matthew Reisen / Journal Staff Writer
Wednesday, May 15th, 2019 at 5:44pm
Christopher Cordova (MDC)
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — The Albuquerque Police Department identified the young man who was shot at by an officer at a West Side shopping center Tuesday night.
APD spokesman Gilbert Gallegos said 21-year-old Christopher Cordova was uninjured and a gun was found nearby. Police are investigating whether the suspect shot at or pointed a gun at officers during the confrontation.
Gallegos said police pulled over Cordova when he fled, first in a vehicle and then on foot until an “altercation ensued” near a shopping center at Ouray and 57th NW, a block west of Coors.
“One officer discharged his firearm and the offender was taken into custody,” he said. “The male offender was transported to a local hospital for unrelated health concerns and was released to be booked.”
Cordova had a warrant out for his arrest stemming from a case in 2017 when police say he was caught in a stolen BMW with a stolen gun after leading officers on a short chase.
In February Cordova was charged with aggravated battery with a deadly weapon and aggravated assault with a deadly weapon after deputies say he pistol-whipped and beat another young man along with several others.
Cordova’s mother, Kelly Sanchez, said she is glad her son was not injured in the shooting, and she believes the officer who fired at him was doing his or her job.
“If he was armed, whether the gun was loaded or not, the police department has an obligation to protect themselves,” she said. “They have to protect their well-being as well.”
Sanchez said her son has been on the run “for some time” and although she saw him on Mother’s Day, he hasn’t lived with her since January and he never tells her where he’s staying.
“Unfortunately my son has lived this type of life since he was 14,” she said. “I want to make it very clear that he was not raised this way. These choices he made are of his own doing. He makes bad decisions and has for some time.”
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Testing AI: Teach and Test to raise responsible AI
As AI-based decisions have increasing impact on human lives, a new imperative becomes clear: businesses now need to “raise” their AI systems so they act responsibility.
This requires addressing many of the same challenges faced in human education and growth.
Watch or read the interview with Kishore Durg where he explains how businesses need to embrace a new testing regime with a Teach and Test framework, tailor-made for AI systems.
ROGER MAGOULAS: We understand that there is an AI imperative Accenture has been working on. Can you tell me a little about it.
KISHORE DURG: A lot of the AI systems that are being built for businesses are taking decisions, and it's impacting human lives. So, the clear imperative is that these systems need to be transparent, responsive, align with societal values, and essentially ethically they are taking the right decisions. The imperative for us is to ensure that the systems, as they are built, are in the right track. It's just like when you look at a kid which has to be taught between right and wrong from a societal perspective, and you want to ensure that they do grow up to be strong adults who contribute to the society. We look at the systems similarly. The imperative for us is – how do we ensure these systems are responsive, and they imbibe the societal values.
RM: So, you're making a compelling case for that, but it's also why should businesses care about this?
KD: Business executives today want to win customers' trust as growth comes from customers trusting the business. And, aligned to that customers have to trust you. You need to ensure that your systems are supporting that trust imperative. And that's exactly why businesses need to care. We've seen a lot of things that have gone bad. Conversational agents aren't learning things they should be learning. There have been cases of autonomous vehicles going off-track. There have been cases where you have machine learning algorithms picking up the wrong behavior. If businesses are going to implement these AI systems, we believe that they need to care, because customers trust businesses which have verifiable, explainable, trustworthy systems.
RM: So how does the Accenture Teach and Test framework raise responsible AI systems. Raise is a good term given in the analogy with kids.
KD: When you raise AI systems and just like kids, you need to teach it the right way. One of the things that we need to be worried about – lot of the AI systems right now have gender and ethnic biases. The corpus of data that is used to train them are managed by humans. When you actually use the same data to train these AI systems, you are going to perpetuate the biases that you have, into a system. Now this could be different in different parts of the world. In the Teach phase we try to neutralize these biases.. Just likekids make mistakes as they learn new things. And when kids make mistakes, we teach them how to do it. We also have the Test phase wherewe monitor for behaviors that are not ethically right, and we address it. So, it's a very simple concept of Teach and Test. It's just like bringing up your kids.
RM: I was curious in any reference to reinforcement learning, hearing the describing, it sounds a little like it.
KD: It is very aligned with that, and we are trying to simplify it, so that people can understand what it exactly means. It is a very complicated algorithm in terms of how we debias these AI systems andhow we address these biases. We use metamorphic testing for some of the algorithm issues that are out there. So, in a simplified way, we're looking at how you raise kids, you need to ensure that the systems behave similarly.
RM: That's great. You know, a use case will probably help explain this.
KD: Sure. If you look at autonomous vehicles, you know how you need to ensure that these systems know there is a stop or not. It's not that you can train everything. It would take few years to actually train the systems to get every possible condition that is out there. And there are cases where you are actually putting them out for humans to test.. They may not end up with the most likely alternative of what you would like it to be, because there are unknown parameters that you would have never taken care as you validate the systems. One of the constants we have there, is around knowledge representation and qualitative reasoning/ Bringing that together with machine learning is a way to go to address these systems on autonomous sites. And essentially, that will help us understand the knowledge gaps and reasoning on why it took a decision the way it did, and builds in transparency, in the decision making. And that is something that we have been working on. Similarly on the data part of the equation we have been working with banks to develop virtual agents which are neutralized from gender and racial bias, so that the corpus of data that's used to train these agents are neutral in nature and unbiased, and as they pick up and learn, we do look at monitoring of the activities that are out there. So even a virtual agent can go rouge. That's a very simple way of looking at, you know, these systems that are out there. You need parenting. You need to raise them properly, and it needs some governance. And that's the construct of responsible AI.
Kishore Durg
Senior Managing Director – Accenture Technology Growth and Strategy Lead
Kishore is the Growth and Strategy Lead for Accenture Technology Services where he helps in Ventures and Acquisitions, Technology strategy and Strategic Growth Initiatives.
Explainable citizen AI
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At the young of age 20, Miller has achieved impressive milestones, including worldwide streams in excess of over one billion. Paper Magazine included her in their "Predictions: 100 People Taking Over 2019," and also named her one of "100 Women Revolutionizing Pop." In addition to her own previous releases including aurora (2018), her best-selling 2015 debut, Not An Apology, and three EPs (2017), she was featured on NOTD's (2018) dance hit, "I WANNA KNOW," which amassed over 100 million global streams on Spotify, and nearly 15 million video views. Watch the video here. Unapologetically outspoken, her infectious track S.L.U.T. resonated with young women everywhere; watch the video here . The beginning of 2019 saw the acclaimed vocalist and songwriter, along with the Grammy-nominated artist 6lack, released their infectious new single, "it's not u it's me," (stream in here) the first in a series of bold new songs Bea will be releasing in 2019 in addition to several tracks with notable collaborators.
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Acme Whistles Since 1870 >
The London Police were keen to find a better way for the “Bobby on the Beat” to communicate with nearby colleagues when in need of help. Joseph Hudson’s first Police whistle provided the answer. Easily heard over a mile’s distance, 100% reliable, distinctive identifiable sound, attention grabbing and authoritative.
Sound of Sucess
One year after inventing his first police whistle Joseph Hudson had taken orders for over 250,000 whistles and was employing 50 people in his Buckingham Street factory.
The First Police Whistle
The British Bobby had long communicated with his colleagues on the street by swinging his rattle. A standard part of Police equipment of the day it was loud, but it was bulky and cumbersome to use especially in a chase. Its inadequacies were well known but it was all they had.
Scotland Yard advertised, nationally, for suggestions, improvements or new ideas. As so often in history it’s not just the man but the moment. Joseph Hudson was already making and thinking about whistles. The advertisement he saw gave him the opportunity.
Thinking about the kind of sound the Police should have that was attention grabbing but also so different to any other sound of the street that it would be uniquely identified with the Police, Joseph Hudson did what he liked to do when thinking, he played his violin. Having finished his playing, he placed his violin on his table but didn’t quite put it down as he intended. It fell to the floor and it broke. As it broke it made a dying, discordant note. Anyone who has ever dropped or broken a bottle, a glass or a plate will have experienced the nerve jangling effect that such a happening creates. Joseph Hudson noticed the effect the sound of his breaking violin had on him and knew immediately that he had discovered a unique and jarring signal that demanded attention.
Impatient as ever he went immediately to his workshop which was a converted washroom, at the side of his house, that he rented for 3 shillings and 6 pence a week. There he set about reproducing the sound he had heard but in a whistle. He made many different versions settling on a two-tone, two-chambered discordant note prototype. He made it easy to blow, an important feature, he knew it would have to be used by a “Bobby” giving chase. It also had to be loud so he took each of his prototypes into St Marks, the street where he lived and startled neighbours and passers-by as he blew them and arranged for members of his family to walk further and further away, indicating as they did that they could hear his blasts until he knew he had a mile of sound.
Hoping to persuade Scotland Yard that he had the answer to their problem he submitted his whistle which was tested in London and found to be the best and most effective replacement for the rattle. His police whistle was approved and 21,000 were ordered in several batches. Being situated in Birmingham’s famous jewellery quarter he was surrounded by tradesmen who’s aid he could enlist. Birmingham was known as the workshop of the World which is certainly what it became in the World of whistles. It would be nice to think, given that he was something of a visionary, that he at least glimpsed the future he was making and that the company he had started would go on to produce over 450 million whistles and still be whistling all over the World nearly 150 years later.
State of the art advertising - 1884
This poster originally printed in 1884, advertised the world's first police whistle, "The Metropolitan Whistle", still used today by the British Bobby. When first tested on Hampstead Heath in London, it was heard over two miles away (3.2km)
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The place for 'daily hellos' and everything else you want to talk about...
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daisyjean
by daisyjean » 24.11.2018, 2:31
Johannes Chrystostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart (1756–1791) was arguably the most gifted musician in the history of classical music. His inspiration is often described as 'divine', but he worked assiduously, not only to become the great composer he was, but also a conductor, virtuoso pianist, organist and violinist. Mozart's music embraces opera, symphony, concerto, chamber, choral, instrumental and vocal music, revealing an astonishing number of imperishable masterpieces.
Re: Well Known People
Sosa666
by Sosa666 » 24.11.2018, 2:41
Thank you. My favorite one is:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GRxofEmo3HA
Albert Einstein was a German-born theoretical physicist who developed the theory of relativity, one of the two pillars of modern physics. His work is also known for its influence on the philosophy of science. He is best known to the general public for his mass–energy equivalence formula E = mc2, which has been dubbed "the world's most famous equation".
PosisVurbis
by PosisVurbis » 24.11.2018, 3:28
Mr Gumby sports a toothbrush moustache, handkerchief knotted at each corner on his head, wire-rimmed spectacles, braces, Fair Isle knitted tank top, 1950s shirt rolled up to the elbows (without the detachable collar), trousers rolled up above their knees, and gumboots. Gumby is a professor of Flower Arranging and Brain Surgery and during a short interlude as Chancellor of the Exchequor, attempted to impose a tax on all those who stand ankle-deep in water.
by daisyjean » 24.11.2018, 18:29
Christopher Columbus Was Not His Real Name.
Although Columbus remains a prominent historical figure around the world and has been researched and written about for centuries, there are many details of his life that are still a mystery. Many scholars agree that he was born in Genoa, which is now part of Italy, although there are theories that he may have originated in Spain or even in Poland or Greece. In Italian he is known as Cristoforo Colombo, which was long thought to be his birth name, and in Spanish as Cristóbal Colón. But he has also been referred to, by himself and others, as Christoual, Christovam, Christofferus de Colombo, and even Xpoual de Colón. There is even a theory that he adopted the name from a pirate named Colombo.
Christopher Columbus was an Italian explorer, navigator, and colonist who completed four voyages across the Atlantic Ocean under the auspices of the Catholic Monarchs of Spain. Wikipedia
Born: 1451, Genoa, Italy
Died: May 20, 1506, Valladolid, Spain
Buried: Seville Cathedral, Seville, Spain
Spouse: Filipa Moniz Perestrelo (m. 1479)
Children: Diego Columbus, Ferdinand Columbus.
In fourteen hundred ninety-two
Columbus sailed the ocean blue.
He had three ships and left from Spain;
He sailed through sunshine, wind and rain.
He sailed by night; he sailed by day;
He used the stars to find his way.
A compass also helped him know
How to find the way to go.
Ninety sailors were on board;
Some men worked while others snored.
Then the workers went to sleep;
And others watched the ocean deep.
Day after day they looked for land;
They dreamed of trees and rocks and sand.
October 12 their dream came true,
You never saw a happier crew!
"Indians! Indians!" Columbus cried;
His heart was filled with joyful pride.
But "India" the land was not;
It was the Bahamas, and it was hot.
The Arakawa natives were very nice;
They gave the sailors food and spice.
Columbus sailed on to find some gold
To bring back home, as he'd been told.
He made the trip again and again,
Trading gold to bring to Spain.
The first American? No, not quite.
But Columbus was brave, and he was bright.
http://www.teachingheart.net/columbus.htm
Alexander Mackenzie
Born: 1764, Stornoway, United Kingdom
Died: March 12, 1820, Dunkeld, United Kingdom
Cause of death: Bright's disease
Spouse: Geddes Mackenzie (m. 1812–1820)
Sir Alexander Mackenzie was a Scottish explorer known for accomplishing the first east to west crossing of North America north of Mexico, which preceded the more famous Lewis and Clark Expedition by 12 years. His overland crossing of what is now Canada reached the Pacific Ocean in 1793.
Sir Alexander Mackenzie (or MacKenzie, Scottish Gaelic: Alasdair MacCoinnich; 1764 – 12 March 1820) was a Scottish explorer known for accomplishing the first east to west crossing of North America north of Mexico, which preceded the more famous Lewis and Clark Expedition by 12 years. His overland crossing of what is now Canada reached the Pacific Ocean in 1793. The Mackenzie River, the longest river system in Canada and the second longest in North America, is named after him.
1789 Mackenzie River expedition to the Arctic Ocean
On behalf of the North West Company, Mackenzie traveled to Lake Athabasca where, in 1788, he was one of the founders of Fort Chipewyan. He had been sent to replace Peter Pond, a partner in the North West Company. From Pond, he learned that the First Nations people understood that the local rivers flowed to the northwest. Acting on this information, he set out by canoe on the river known to the local Dene First Nations people as the Dehcho, (Mackenzie River) on 10 July 1789, following it to its mouth in the hope of finding the Northwest Passage to the Pacific Ocean. As he ended up reaching the Arctic Ocean on 14 July, it is conjectured that he named the river "Disappointment River" as it did not lead to Cook Inlet in Alaska as he had expected. The river was later renamed the Mackenzie River in his honor.
1792–93 Peace River expedition to the Pacific Ocean
Map of the North Part of America on which is laid down Mackenzies Track from Montreal to the North Sea
Inscription on a stone at the end of Alexander Mackenzie's 1792–1793 Canada crossing from the Peace River to the Pacific Ocean coast; located at 52°22′43″N 127°28′14″W
In 1791, Mackenzie returned to Great Britain to study the new advance in the measurement of longitude. Upon his return to Canada in 1792, he set out once again to find a route to the Pacific. Accompanied by two native guides (one named Cancre), his cousin, Alexander MacKay, six Canadian voyageurs (Joseph Landry, Charles Ducette, Francois Beaulieux, Baptiste Bisson, Francois Courtois, Jacques Beauchamp,) and a dog simply referred to as "our dog", Mackenzie left Fort Chipewyan on 10 October 1792, and traveled via the Pine River to the Peace River. From there he traveled to a fork on the Peace River arriving 1 November where he and his cohorts built a fortification that they resided in over the winter. This later became known as Fort Fork.
Mackenzie left Fort Fork on 9 May 1793, following the route of the Peace River. He crossed the Great Divide and found the upper reaches of the Fraser River, but was warned by the local natives that the Fraser Canyon to the south was unnavigable and populated by belligerent tribes. He was instead directed to follow a grease trail by ascending the West Road River, crossing over the Coast Mountains and descending the Bella Coola River to the sea. He followed this advice and reached the Pacific coast on 20 July 1793, at Bella Coola, British Columbia, on North Bentinck Arm, an inlet of the Pacific Ocean.
Having done this, he had completed the first recorded transcontinental crossing of North America north of Mexico, 12 years before Lewis and Clark. He had unknowingly missed meeting George Vancouver at Bella Coola by 48 days.
He had wanted to continue westward out of a desire to reach the open ocean, but was stopped by the hostility of the Heiltsuk people. Hemmed in by Heiltsuk war canoes, he wrote a message on a rock near the water's edge of Dean Channel, using a reddish paint made of vermilion and bear grease, and turned back east. The inscription read: "Alex MacKenzie / from Canada / by land / 22d July 1793" (at the time the name Canada was an informal term for the former French territory in what is now southern Quebec and Ontario) The words were later inscribed permanently by surveyors. The site is now Sir Alexander Mackenzie Provincial Park and is designated a First Crossing of North America National Historic Site. In 2016, Mackenzie was named a National Historic Person.
Alexander Graham Bell was a Scottish-born scientist, inventor, engineer, and innovator who is credited with inventing and patenting the first practical telephone. He also founded the American Telephone and Telegraph Company in 1885. (AT&T) in 1885
Born: March 3, 1847, Edinburgh, United Kingdom
Died: August 2, 1922, Beinn Bhreagh
Bell's father, grandfather, and brother had all been associated with work on elocution and speech and both his mother and wife were deaf, profoundly influencing Bell's life's work. His research on hearing and speech further led him to experiment with hearing devices which eventually culminated in Bell being awarded the first U.S. patent for the telephone in 1876. Bell considered his invention an intrusion on his real work as a scientist and refused to have a telephone in his study.
Many other inventions marked Bell's later life, including groundbreaking work in optical telecommunications, hydrofoils, and aeronautics. Although Bell was not one of the 33 founders of the National Geographic Society, he had a strong influence on the magazine while serving as the second president from January 7, 1898, until 1903.
Born as just "Alexander Bell", at age 10, he made a plea to his father to have a middle name like his two brothers. For his 11th birthday, his father acquiesced and allowed him to adopt the name "Graham", chosen out of respect for Alexander Graham, a Canadian being treated by his father who had become a family friend. To close relatives and friends he remained "Aleck".
First invention
As a child, young Bell displayed a natural curiosity about his world, resulting in gathering botanical specimens as well as experimenting even at an early age. His best friend was Ben Herdman, a neighbour whose family operated a flour mill, the scene of many forays. Young Bell asked what needed to be done at the mill. He was told wheat had to be dehusked through a laborious process and at the age of 12, Bell built a homemade device that combined rotating paddles with sets of nail brushes, creating a simple dehusking machine that was put into operation and used steadily for a number of years. In return, Ben's father John Herdman gave both boys the run of a small workshop in which to "invent".
From his early years, Bell showed a sensitive nature and a talent for art, poetry, and music that was encouraged by his mother. With no formal training, he mastered the piano and became the family's pianist. Despite being normally quiet and introspective, he revelled in mimicry and "voice tricks" akin to ventriloquism that continually entertained family guests during their occasional visits. Bell was also deeply affected by his mother's gradual deafness (she began to lose her hearing when he was 12), and learned a manual finger language so he could sit at her side and tap out silently the conversations swirling around the family parlour. He also developed a technique of speaking in clear, modulated tones directly into his mother's forehead wherein she would hear him with reasonable clarity. Bell's preoccupation with his mother's deafness led him to study acoustics.
His family was long associated with the teaching of elocution: his grandfather, Alexander Bell, in London, his uncle in Dublin, and his father, in Edinburgh, were all elocutionists. His father published a variety of works on the subject, several of which are still well known, especially his The Standard Elocutionist (1860), which appeared in Edinburgh in 1868. The Standard Elocutionist appeared in 168 British editions and sold over a quarter of a million copies in the United States alone. In this treatise, his father explains his methods of how to instruct deaf-mutes (as they were then known) to articulate words and read other people's lip movements to decipher meaning. Bell's father taught him and his brothers not only to write Visible Speech but to identify any symbol and its accompanying sound. Bell became so proficient that he became a part of his father's public demonstrations and astounded audiences with his abilities. He could decipher Visible Speech representing virtually every language, including Latin, Scottish Gaelic, and even Sanskrit, accurately reciting written tracts without any prior knowledge of their pronunciation.
As a young child, Bell, like his brothers, received his early schooling at home from his father. At an early age, he was enrolled at the Royal High School, Edinburgh, Scotland, which he left at the age of 15, having completed only the first four forms. His school record was undistinguished, marked by absenteeism and lacklustre grades. His main interest remained in the sciences, especially biology while he treated other school subjects with indifference, to the dismay of his demanding father. Upon leaving school, Bell travelled to London to live with his grandfather, Alexander Bell. During the year he spent with his grandfather, a love of learning was born, with long hours spent in serious discussion and study. The elder Bell took great efforts to have his young pupil learn to speak clearly and with conviction, the attributes that his pupil would need to become a teacher himself. At the age of 16, Bell secured a position as a "pupil-teacher" of elocution and music, in Weston House Academy at Elgin, Moray, Scotland. Although he was enrolled as a student in Latin and Greek, he instructed classes himself in return for board and £10 per session. The following year, he attended the University of Edinburgh; joining his older brother Melville who had enrolled there the previous year. In 1868, not long before he departed for Canada with his family, Bell completed his matriculation exams and was accepted for admission to University College London.
First experiments with sound
His father encouraged Bell's interest in speech and, in 1863, took his sons to see a unique automaton developed by Sir Charles Wheatstone based on the earlier work of Baron Wolfgang von Kempelen. The rudimentary "mechanical man" simulated a human voice. Bell was fascinated by the machine and after he obtained a copy of von Kempelen's book, published in German, and had laboriously translated it, he and his older brother Melville built their own automaton head. Their father, highly interested in their project, offered to pay for any supplies and spurred the boys on with the enticement of a "big prize" if they were successful. While his brother constructed the throat and larynx, Bell tackled the more difficult task of recreating a realistic skull. His efforts resulted in a remarkably lifelike head that could "speak", albeit only a few words. The boys would carefully adjust the "lips" and when a bellows forced air through the windpipe, a very recognizable "Mama" ensued, to the delight of neighbours who came to see the Bell invention.
Intrigued by the results of the automaton, Bell continued to experiment with a live subject, the family's Skye Terrier, "Trouve". After he taught it to growl continuously, Bell would reach into its mouth and manipulate the dog's lips and vocal cords to produce a crude-sounding "Ow ah oo ga ma ma". With little convincing, visitors believed his dog could articulate "How are you, grandma?" Indicative of his playful nature, his experiments convinced onlookers that they saw a "talking dog". These initial forays into experimentation with sound led Bell to undertake his first serious work on the transmission of sound, using tuning forks to explore resonance.
At age 19, Bell wrote a report on his work and sent it to philologist Alexander Ellis, a colleague of his father (who would later be portrayed as Professor Henry Higgins in Pygmalion). Ellis immediately wrote back indicating that the experiments were similar to existing work in Germany, and also lent Bell a copy of Hermann von Helmholtz's work, The Sensations of Tone as a Physiological Basis for the Theory of Music.
Dismayed to find that groundbreaking work had already been undertaken by Helmholtz who had conveyed vowel sounds by means of a similar tuning fork "contraption", Bell pored over the German scientist's book. Working from his own erroneous mistranslation of a French edition, Bell fortuitously then made a deduction that would be the underpinning of all his future work on transmitting sound, reporting: "Without knowing much about the subject, it seemed to me that if vowel sounds could be produced by electrical means, so could consonants, so could articulate speech." He also later remarked: "I thought that Helmholtz had done it ... and that my failure was due only to my ignorance of electricity. It was a valuable blunder ... If I had been able to read German in those days, I might never have commenced my experiments!"
In 1870, aged 23, Bell, together with Bell's brother's widow, Caroline Margaret Ottaway, and his parents travelled on the SS Nestorian to Canada. After landing at Quebec City, the Bells transferred to another steamer to Montreal and then boarded a train to Paris, Ontario, to stay with the Reverend Thomas Henderson, a family friend. After a brief stay with the Hendersons, the Bell family purchased a farm of 10.5 acres (42,000 m2) at Tutelo Heights (now called Tutela Heights), near Brantford, Ontario. The property consisted of an orchard, large farmhouse, stable, pigsty, hen-house, and a carriage house, which bordered the Grand River.
At the homestead, Bell set up his own workshop in the converted carriage house near to what he called his "dreaming place", a large hollow nestled in trees at the back of the property above the river. Despite his frail condition upon arriving in Canada, Bell found the climate and environs to his liking, and rapidly improved. He continued his interest in the study of the human voice and when he discovered the Six Nations Reserve across the river at Onondaga, he learned the Mohawk language and translated its unwritten vocabulary into Visible Speech symbols. For his work, Bell was awarded the title of Honorary Chief and participated in a ceremony where he donned a Mohawk headdress and danced traditional dances.
After setting up his workshop, Bell continued experiments based on Helmholtz's work with electricity and sound. He also modified a melodeon (a type of pump organ) so that it could transmit its music electrically over a distance. Once the family was settled in, both Bell and his father made plans to establish a teaching practice and in 1871, he accompanied his father to Montreal, where Melville was offered a position to teach his System of Visible Speech.
Work with the deaf
Bell's father was invited by Sarah Fuller, principal of the Boston School for Deaf Mutes (which continues today as the public Horace Mann School for the Deaf), in Boston, Massachusetts, United States, to introduce the Visible Speech System by providing training for Fuller's instructors, but he declined the post in favour of his son. Travelling to Boston in April 1871, Bell proved successful in training the school's instructors. He was subsequently asked to repeat the programme at the American Asylum for Deaf-mutes in Hartford, Connecticut, and the Clarke School for the Deaf in Northampton, Massachusetts.
Returning home to Brantford after six months abroad, Bell continued his experiments with his "harmonic telegraph". The basic concept behind his device was that messages could be sent through a single wire if each message was transmitted at a different pitch, but work on both the transmitter and receiver was needed.
Unsure of his future, he first contemplated returning to London to complete his studies, but decided to return to Boston as a teacher. His father helped him set up his private practice by contacting Gardiner Greene Hubbard, the president of the Clarke School for the Deaf for a recommendation. Teaching his father's system, in October 1872, Alexander Bell opened his "School of Vocal Physiology and Mechanics of Speech" in Boston, which attracted a large number of deaf pupils, with his first class numbering 30 students. While he was working as a private tutor, one of his pupils was Helen Keller, who came to him as a young child unable to see, hear, or speak. She was later to say that Bell dedicated his life to the penetration of that "inhuman silence which separates and estranges". In 1893, Keller performed the sod-breaking ceremony for the construction of Bell's new Volta Bureau, dedicated to "the increase and diffusion of knowledge relating to the deaf".
Several influential people of the time, including Bell, viewed deafness as something that should be eradicated, and also believed that with resources and effort, they could teach the deaf to speak and avoid the use of sign language, thus enabling their integration within the wider society from which many were often being excluded. Owing to his efforts to suppress the teaching of sign language, Bell is often viewed negatively by those embracing Deaf culture.
Continuing experimentation
In the following year, Bell became professor of Vocal Physiology and Elocution at the Boston University School of Oratory. During this period, he alternated between Boston and Brantford, spending summers in his Canadian home. At Boston University, Bell was "swept up" by the excitement engendered by the many scientists and inventors residing in the city. He continued his research in sound and endeavored to find a way to transmit musical notes and articulate speech, but although absorbed by his experiments, he found it difficult to devote enough time to experimentation. While days and evenings were occupied by his teaching and private classes, Bell began to stay awake late into the night, running experiment after experiment in rented facilities at his boarding house. Keeping "night owl" hours, he worried that his work would be discovered and took great pains to lock up his notebooks and laboratory equipment. Bell had a specially made table where he could place his notes and equipment inside a locking cover. Worse still, his health deteriorated as he suffered severe headaches. Returning to Boston in fall 1873, Bell made a fateful decision to concentrate on his experiments in sound.
Deciding to give up his lucrative private Boston practice, Bell retained only two students, six-year-old "Georgie" Sanders, deaf from birth, and 15-year-old Mabel Hubbard. Each pupil would play an important role in the next developments. George's father, Thomas Sanders, a wealthy businessman, offered Bell a place to stay in nearby Salem with Georgie's grandmother, complete with a room to "experiment". Although the offer was made by George's mother and followed the year-long arrangement in 1872 where her son and his nurse had moved to quarters next to Bell's boarding house, it was clear that Mr. Sanders was backing the proposal. The arrangement was for teacher and student to continue their work together, with free room and board thrown in. Mabel was a bright, attractive girl who was ten years Bell's junior but became the object of his affection. Having lost her hearing after a near-fatal bout of scarlet fever close to her fifth birthday, she had learned to read lips but her father, Gardiner Greene Hubbard, Bell's benefactor and personal friend, wanted her to work directly with her teacher.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexander_Graham_Bell
https://www.pc.gc.ca/en/lhn-nhs/ns/grahambell
https://www.bellmuseum.umn.edu/
I can honestly say this, "He made one mistake, that inventing Telephone"
I have a hard time talking on the phone, even if the hearing aide has a telecoil, I still have trouble, lol so that why I hate phones Even tried listening to someone from this site, could hear the voice but couldn't understand what that person was saying.
Beethoven ~ Ludwig van Beethoven
Born Bonn, Electorate of Cologne
Died 26 March 1827 (aged 56) Vienna
Signature written in ink in a flowing script
Ludwig van Beethoven (/ˈlʊdvɪɡ væn ˈbeɪt(h)oʊvən/ (About this soundlisten); German: [ˈluːtvɪç fan ˈbeːthoːfn̩] (About this soundlisten); baptised 17 December 1770[1] – 26 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. A crucial figure in the transition between the Classical and Romantic eras in Classical music, he remains one of the most recognised and influential of all composers. His best-known compositions include 9 symphonies; 5 piano concertos; 1 violin concerto; 32 piano sonatas; 16 string quartets; a mass, the Missa solemnis; and an opera, Fidelio.
Beethoven was born in Bonn, then the capital of the Electorate of Cologne and part of the Holy Roman Empire. He displayed his musical talents at an early age and was taught by his father Johann van Beethoven and composer and conductor Christian Gottlob Neefe. At the age of 21 Beethoven moved to Vienna, where he began studying composition with Joseph Haydn and gained a reputation as a virtuoso pianist. He lived in Vienna until his death. By his late 20s his hearing began to deteriorate and by the last decade of his life he was almost completely deaf. In 1811 he gave up conducting and performing in public but continued to compose; many of his most admired works come from these last 15 years of his life.
Biography ~ Background and early life
Beethoven was the grandson of Ludwig van Beethoven (1712–1773), a musician from the town of Mechelen in the Duchy of Brabant in the Flemish region of what is now Belgium, who at the age of 21 moved to Bonn. Ludwig (he adopted the German cognate of the Dutch Lodewijk) was employed as a bass singer at the court of the Elector of Cologne, eventually rising to become, in 1761, Kapellmeister (music director) and thereafter the pre-eminent musician in Bonn. The portrait he commissioned of himself towards the end of his life remained displayed in his grandson's rooms as a talisman of his musical heritage. Ludwig had one son, Johann (1740–1792), who worked as a tenor in the same musical establishment and gave keyboard and violin lessons to supplement his income. Johann married Maria Magdalena Keverich in 1767; she was the daughter of Johann Heinrich Keverich (1701–1751), who had been the head chef at the court of the Archbishopric of Trier.
Beethoven was born of this marriage in Bonn. There is no authentic record of the date of his birth; however, the registry of his baptism, in a Catholic service at the Parish of St. Regius on 17 December 1770, survives. As children of that era were traditionally baptised the day after birth in the Catholic Rhine country, and it is known that Beethoven's family and his teacher Johann Albrechtsberger celebrated his birthday on 16 December, most scholars accept 16 December 1770 as his date of birth.[ Of the seven children born to Johann van Beethoven, only Ludwig, the second-born, and two younger brothers survived infancy. Kaspar Anton Karl was born on 8 April 1774, and Nikolaus Johann, the youngest, was born on 2 October 1776.
Beethoven's first music teacher was his father. He later had other local teachers: the court organist Gilles van den Eeden (d. 1782), Tobias Friedrich Pfeiffer (a family friend, who provided keyboard tuition), and Franz Rovantini (a relative, who instructed him in playing the violin and viola). From the outset his tuition regime, which began in his fifth year, was harsh and intensive, often reducing him to tears; with the involvement of the insomniac Pfeiffer there were irregular late-night sessions with the young Beethoven being dragged from his bed to the keyboard. His musical talent was obvious at a young age. Johann, aware of Leopold Mozart's successes in this area (with his son Wolfgang and daughter Nannerl), attempted to promote his son as a child prodigy, claiming that Beethoven was six (he was seven) on the posters for his first public performance in March 1778.
Some time after 1779, Beethoven began his studies with his most important teacher in Bonn, Christian Gottlob Neefe, who was appointed the Court's Organist in that year. Neefe taught him composition, and by March 1783 had helped him write his first published composition: a set of keyboard variations (WoO 63). Beethoven soon began working with Neefe as assistant organist, at first unpaid (1781), and then as a paid employee (1784) of the court chapel conducted by the Kapellmeister Andrea Luchesi. His first three piano sonatas, named "Kurfürst" ("Elector") for their dedication to the Elector Maximilian Friedrich (1708–1784), were published in 1783. Maximilian Frederick noticed his talent early, and subsidised and encouraged the young man's musical studies.Maximilian Frederick's successor as the Elector of Bonn was Maximilian Francis, the youngest son of Empress Maria Theresa of Austria, and he brought notable changes to Bonn. Echoing changes made in Vienna by his brother Joseph, he introduced reforms based on Enlightenment philosophy, with increased support for education and the arts. The teenage Beethoven was almost certainly influenced by these changes. He may also have been influenced at this time by ideas prominent in freemasonry, as Neefe and others around Beethoven were members of the local chapter of the Order of the Illuminati.
In December 1786 Beethoven travelled to Vienna, at his employer's expense, for the first time, apparently in the hope of studying with Mozart. The details of their relationship are uncertain, including whether they actually met. Having learned that his mother was ill, Beethoven returned quickly to Bonn in May 1787. His mother died shortly thereafter, and his father lapsed deeper into alcoholism. As a result, he became responsible for the care of his two younger brothers, and spent the next five years in Bonn.
He was introduced in these years to several people who became important in his life. Franz Wegeler, a young medical student, introduced him to the von Breuning family (one of whose daughters Wegeler eventually married). He often visited the von Breuning household, where he taught piano to some of the children. Here he encountered German and classical literature. The von Breuning family environment was less stressful than his own, which was increasingly dominated by his father's decline. He also came to the attention of Count Ferdinand von Waldstein, who became a lifelong friend and financial supporter.
In 1789 Beethoven obtained a legal order by which half of his father's salary was paid directly to him for support of the family. He also contributed further to the family's income by playing viola in the court orchestra. This familiarised him with a variety of operas, including three by Mozart that were performed at court in this period. He also befriended Anton Reicha, a flautist and violinist of about his own age who was a nephew of the court orchestra's conductor, Josef Reicha.
From 1790 to 1792, he composed a significant number of works (none were published at the time, and most are now listed as "WoO", works without opus number) that demonstrated his growing range and maturity. Musicologists have identified a theme similar to those of his Third Symphony in a set of variations written in 1791. It was probably on Neefe's recommendation that Beethoven received his first commissions; the municipal leaders in Bonn had commissioned cantatas to mark the occasion of the death in 1790 of Franz Joseph II and the subsequent accession of Leopold II as Holy Roman Emperor. The two Emperor Cantatas (WoO 87, WoO 88) he scored were never performed at the time and they remained lost until the 1880s. But they were, according to Brahms, distinctively "Beethoven through and through" and as such prophetic of the tragic style which would mark his music as distinct from the classical tradition.
He was probably first introduced to Joseph Haydn in late 1790, when the latter was travelling to London and stopped in Bonn around Christmas time. A year and a half later, they met in Bonn on Haydn's return trip from London to Vienna in July 1792, and it is likely that arrangements were made at that time for Beethoven to study with the old master.
Establishing his career in Vienna
With the Elector's help, he left Bonn for Vienna in November 1792, amid rumours of war spilling out of France; he learned shortly after his arrival that his father had died. Mozart had also recently died. Count Waldstein, in his farewell note to Beethoven, wrote: "Through uninterrupted diligence you will receive Mozart's spirit through Haydn's hands." Over the next few years, Beethoven responded to the widespread feeling that he was a successor to the recently deceased Mozart by studying that master's work and writing works with a distinctly Mozartean flavour.
Portrait of Beethoven as a young man by Carl Traugott Riedel (1769–1832)
Beethoven did not immediately set out to establish himself as a composer, but rather devoted himself to study and performance. Working under Haydn's direction, he sought to master counterpoint. He also studied violin under Ignaz Schuppanzigh. Early in this period, he also began receiving occasional instruction from Antonio Salieri, primarily in Italian vocal composition style; this relationship persisted until at least 1802, and possibly as late as 1809. With Haydn's departure for England in 1794, Beethoven was expected by the Elector to return home to Bonn. He chose instead to remain in Vienna, continuing his instruction in counterpoint with Johann Albrechtsberger and other teachers. Although his stipend from the Elector expired, a number of Viennese noblemen had already recognised his ability and offered him financial support, among them Prince Joseph Franz Lobkowitz, Prince Karl Lichnowsky, and Baron Gottfried van Swieten.
By 1793, he had established a reputation as an improviser in the salons of the nobility, often playing the preludes and fugues of J. S. Bach's Well-Tempered Clavier. His friend Nikolaus Simrock had begun publishing his compositions; the first are believed to be a set of variations (WoO 66). By 1793, he had established a reputation in Vienna as a piano virtuoso, but he apparently withheld works from publication so that their publication in 1795 would have greater impact. His first public performance in Vienna was in March 1795, a concert in which he first performed one of his piano concertos. It is uncertain whether this was the First or Second. Documentary evidence is unclear, and both concertos were in a similar state of near-completion (neither was completed or published for several years). Shortly after this performance, he arranged for the publication of the first of his compositions to which he assigned an opus number, the three piano trios, Opus 1. These works were dedicated to his patron Prince Lichnowsky, and were a financial success; Beethoven's profits were nearly sufficient to cover his living expenses for a year.
Musical maturity
For the premiere of his First Symphony, he hired the Burgtheater on 2 April 1800, and staged an extensive programme of music, including works by Haydn and Mozart, as well as his Septet, the First Symphony, and one of his piano concertos (the latter three works all then unpublished). The concert, which the Allgemeine musikalische Zeitung described as "the most interesting concert in a long time," was not without difficulties; among the criticisms was that "the players did not bother to pay any attention to the soloist."
Mozart and Haydn were undeniable influences. For example, Beethoven's quintet for piano and winds is said to bear a strong resemblance to Mozart's work for the same configuration, albeit with his own distinctive touches. But his melodies, musical development, use of modulation and texture, and characterisation of emotion all set him apart from his influences, and heightened the impact some of his early works made when they were first published. By the end of 1800, Beethoven and his music were already much in demand from patrons and publishers.
In May 1799, Beethoven taught piano to the daughters of Hungarian Countess Anna Brunsvik. During this time, he fell in love with the younger daughter Josephine who has therefore been identified as one of the more likely candidates for the addressee of his letter to the "Immortal Beloved" (in 1812). Shortly after these lessons, Josephine was married to Count Josef Deym. Beethoven was a regular visitor at their house, continuing to teach Josephine, and playing at parties and concerts. Her marriage was by all accounts happy (despite initial financial problems), and the couple had four children. Her relationship with Beethoven intensified after Deym died suddenly in 1804.
He also had a few other students. From 1801 to 1805, he tutored Ferdinand Ries, who went on to become a composer and later wrote Beethoven remembered, a book about their encounters. The young Carl Czerny studied with Beethoven from 1801 to 1803. Czerny went on to become a renowned music teacher himself, instructing Franz Liszt, and on 11 February 1812 gave the Vienna premiere of Beethoven's fifth piano concerto (the "Emperor").
His compositions between 1800 and 1802 were dominated by two large-scale orchestral works, although he continued to produce other important works such as the piano sonata Sonata quasi una fantasia known as the "Moonlight Sonata". In the spring of 1801 he completed The Creatures of Prometheus, a ballet. The work received numerous performances in 1801 and 1802, and he rushed to publish a piano arrangement to capitalise on its early popularity. In the spring of 1802 he completed the Second Symphony, intended for performance at a concert that was cancelled. The symphony received its premiere instead at a subscription concert in April 1803 at the Theater an der Wien, where he had been appointed composer in residence. In addition to the Second Symphony, the concert also featured the First Symphony, the Third Piano Concerto, and the oratorio Christ on the Mount of Olives. Reviews were mixed, but the concert was a financial success; he was able to charge three times the cost of a typical concert ticket.
His business dealings with publishers also began to improve in 1802 when his brother Kaspar, who had previously assisted him casually, began to assume a larger role in the management of his affairs. In addition to negotiating higher prices for recently composed works, Kaspar also began selling some of his earlier unpublished compositions, and encouraged him (against Beethoven's preference) to also make arrangements and transcriptions of his more popular works for other instrument combinations. Beethoven acceded to these requests, as he could not prevent publishers from hiring others to do similar arrangements of his works.
Loss of hearing
Beethoven is reported to have dated his hearing loss from a fit he suffered in 1798 induced by a rage at the interruption of his work—having fallen over, he got up to find himself deaf. His hearing only ever partially recovered and, during its gradual decline, was impeded by a severe form of tinnitus. As early as 1801, he wrote to friends describing his symptoms and the difficulties they caused in both professional and social settings (although it is likely some of his close friends were already aware of the problems).
The cause of his deafness is unknown, but has variously been attributed to typhus, auto-immune disorders (such as systemic lupus erythematosus), and even his habit of immersing his head in cold water to stay awake. The explanation from his autopsy was that he had a "distended inner ear", which developed lesions over time.[citation needed] Paget's disease is another possible cause of his deafness.
Beethoven in 1815 portrait by Joseph Willibrord Mähler
On the advice of his doctor, Beethoven lived in the small Austrian town of Heiligenstadt, just outside Vienna, from April to October 1802 in an attempt to come to terms with his condition. There he wrote his Heiligenstadt Testament, a letter to his brothers which records his thoughts of suicide due to his growing deafness and records his resolution to continue living for and through his art. Over time, his hearing loss became profound: at the end of the premiere of his Ninth Symphony in 1824, he had to be turned around to see the tumultuous applause of the audience because he could hear neither it nor the orchestra. His hearing loss did not prevent him from composing music, but it made playing at concerts—a lucrative source of income—increasingly difficult. After a failed attempt in 1811 to perform his own Piano Concerto No. 5 (the "Emperor"), which was premiered by his student Carl Czerny, he never performed in public again until he directed the premiere performance of the Ninth Symphony in 1824, which involved him giving cues to conductor Michael Umlauf.
A large collection of his hearing aids, such as a special ear horn, can be viewed at the Beethoven House Museum in Bonn, Germany. Despite his obvious distress, Czerny remarked that Beethoven could still hear speech and music normally until 1812. Around 1814 however, by the age of 44, he was almost totally deaf, and when a group of visitors saw him play a loud arpeggio of thundering bass notes at his piano remarking, "Ist es nicht schön?" (Is it not beautiful?), they felt deep sympathy considering his courage and sense of humour (he lost the ability to hear higher frequencies first).
As a result of Beethoven's hearing loss, his conversation books are an unusually rich written resource. Used primarily in the last ten or so years of his life, his friends wrote in these books so that he could know what they were saying, and he then responded either orally or in the book. The books contain discussions about music and other matters, and give insights into his thinking; they are a source for investigations into how he intended his music should be performed, and also his perception of his relationship to art. Out of a total of 400 conversation books, it has been suggested[by whom?] that 264 were destroyed (and others were altered) after his death by his secretary Anton Schindler, who wished only an idealised biography of the composer to survive. However, Theodore Albrecht contests the verity of Schindler's destruction of a large number of conversation books.
While Beethoven earned income from publication of his works and from public performances, he also depended on the generosity of patrons for income, for whom he gave private performances and copies of works they commissioned for an exclusive period prior to their publication. Some of his early patrons, including Prince Lobkowitz and Prince Lichnowsky, gave him annual stipends in addition to commissioning works and purchasing published works.
Perhaps his most important aristocratic patron was Archduke Rudolph, the youngest son of Emperor Leopold II, who in 1803 or 1804 began to study piano and composition with him. The cleric (Cardinal-Priest) and the composer became friends, and their meetings continued until 1824. Beethoven dedicated 14 compositions to Rudolph, including the Archduke Trio (1811) and Missa solemnis (1823). Rudolph, in turn, dedicated one of his own compositions to Beethoven. The letters Beethoven wrote to Rudolph are today kept at the Gesellschaft der Musikfreunde in Vienna.[63] Another patron was Count (later Prince) Andreas Razumovsky, for whom the String Quartets Nos. 7–9, Op. 59, Rasumovsky were named.
In the autumn of 1808, after having been rejected for a position at the royal theatre, he received an offer from Napoleon's brother Jérôme Bonaparte, then king of Westphalia, for a well-paid position as Kapellmeister at the court in Cassel. To persuade him to stay in Vienna, the Archduke Rudolph, Prince Kinsky and Prince Lobkowitz, after receiving representations from the composer's friends, pledged to pay him a pension of 4000 florins a year. Only Archduke Rudolph paid his share of the pension on the agreed date. Kinsky, immediately called to military duty, did not contribute and soon died after falling from his horse. Lobkowitz stopped paying in September 1811. No successors came forward to continue the patronage, and Beethoven relied mostly on selling composition rights and a small pension after 1815. The effects of these financial arrangements were undermined to some extent by war with France, which caused significant inflation when the government printed money to fund its war efforts.
More about him in link below
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ludwig_van_Beethoven
"The Doctor Wagner made the autopsy of Beethoven on March 27th 1827. ... According to Doctor Marage, who has studied Beethoven's letters, buzzing noises and other sounds started at around 1796. Deafness broke out in 1798 and Beethoven had lost 60% of his hearing by 1801. In 1816 he was completely deaf."
http://www.lvbeethoven.com/Bio/BiographyDeafness.html
by PosisVurbis » 26.11.2018, 12:32
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Feynman
George S. Patton (George Smith Patton Jr. (November 11, 1885 – December 21, 1945)
George Smith Patton Jr. was a General of the United States Army who commanded the U.S. Seventh Army in the Mediterranean theater of World War II, and the U.S. Third Army in France and Germany following the Allied invasion of Normandy in June 1944.
He saved the Lippizzan horse from extinction.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_S._Patton
https://www.wideopenpets.com/how-the-u-s-army-helped-save-the-lipizzaner-horses-during-wwii/[/url]
Virginia Hall
Virginia Hall Goillot MBE (6 April 1906 – 8 July 1982) was an American spy with the British Special Operations Executive during World War II and later with the American Office of Strategic Services and the Special Activities Division of the Central Intelligence Agency. She was known by many aliases, including "Marie Monin", "Germaine", "Diane", "Marie of Lyon", "Camille", and "Nicolas". The Germans gave her the nickname Artemis. The Gestapo reportedly considered her "the most dangerous of all Allied spies".
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virginia_Hall
Colonel Alois Podhajsky
Alois Podhajsky (February 24, 1898 - May 23, 1973) was the director of the Spanish Riding School in Vienna, Austria as well as an Olympic medal-winner in dressage, riding instructor, and writer.
Podhajsky was born in Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and was an officer in the Austrian Army, rising to the rank of Colonel. In 1939, Podhajsky became chief of the Academy of Classical Horsemanship, better known as the Spanish Riding School of Vienna, Austria. Founded in 1572, the school's main focus was the training of Lipizzan horses in the art of Classical dressage. Podhajsky was director of the school throughout World War II and continued in the position until his retirement in 1965. Following his retirement, he continued to teach classical horsemanship, and wrote a number of books on the topic. Podhajsky died following a stroke in 1973, in Vienna, Austria.
Relocation during World War II
During World War II, worried for the safety of the school and the horses due to bombing raids on Vienna, Podhajsky evacuated most of the stallions out of the city to Sankt Martin im Innkreis in Upper Austria. A number of mares from the Piber Federal Stud, the breeding farm that supplied horses for the school, were also evacuated.
Though the horses were in relative safety, there were still harsh challenges; there was little food for human or animals, and starving refugees sometimes attempted to steal the horses, viewing them as a source of meat. As American General George Patton was leading his troops through Austria, he was alerted to the presence of the Lipizzans in Sankt Martin im Mühlkreis Patton and Podhajsky had each competed in equestrian events at the Olympic Games. The two men renewed their acquaintance, and after Podhajsky orchestrated an impressive performance by the remaining horses and riders of the school in front of Patton (a lifelong horseman) and Undersecretary of War Robert P. Patterson, the Americans agreed to place the stallions under the protection of the United States for the duration of the war. Podhajsky later wrote about these events, an account which was made into a motion picture Miracle of the White Stallions by Walt Disney studios, with actor Robert Taylor playing Colonel Podhajsky.
Podhajsky alerted Patton to the location of additional Lipizzan bloodstock. Many Lipizzan mares and some stallions had been appropriated by the Germans from the Austrian breeding farm at Piber and sent to Hostau, to a Nazi-run stud farm in Czechoslovakia (now the Czech Republic). When Hostau fell behind Soviet lines, captured German officers, under interrogation by U.S. Army Captain Ferdinand Sperl, provided details on the Lipizzans' location and asked the Americans to rescue the horses before they fell into Soviet hands, because it was feared they would be slaughtered for horsemeat. Patton issued orders, and on April 28, 1945, Colonel Charles H. Reed, with members of Troops A, C and F of the 2nd Cavalry Regiment, conducted a raid behind Soviet lines, accepted the surrender of the Germans at Hostau, and evacuated the horses. The Lipizzans were relocated to Wels, then to Wimsbach, Upper Austria.
After the war, the Lipizzan stallions finally returned to Vienna in the autumn of 1955.
Podhajsky is remembered most for saving the Lipizzans, preserving their history following the war, as well as for his dedication to the advancement of Classical dressage, and his contributions to the Spanish Riding School.
“ We must live for the school. Offer our lives to it. Then, perhaps, little by little, the light will grow from the tiny candle we keep lit here, and the great art—of the haute école—will not be snuffed out. -Alois Podhajsky[2] ”
Classical dressage
Spanish Riding School
Lipizzan
Equestrian at the Summer Olympics
Born February 19, 1866
Greene County, Alabama
Died June 27, 1953 (aged 87)
Monteagle, Tennessee
Occupation Inventor
Known for (1903) the windshield wiper
Mary Anderson (February 19, 1866 – June 27, 1953) was an American real estate developer, rancher, viticulturist and inventor of the windshield wiper blade. In November 1903 Anderson was granted her first patent for an automatic car window cleaning device controlled from inside the car, called the windshield wiper.
Credit goes to dbguy for mention it in chat tonight.
Robert I, popularly known as Robert the Bruce, was King of Scots from 1306 until his death in 1329. Robert was one of the most famous warriors of his generation, and eventually led Scotland during the First War of Scottish Independence against England.
There are two statues of this, one in Calgary, AB the other one in Edinburgh, Scotland.
Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni or more commonly known by his first name Michelangelo was an Italian sculptor, painter, architect and poet of the High Renaissance born in the Republic of Florence, who exerted an unparalleled influence on the development of Western art.
Born: March 6, 1475, Caprese Michelangelo, Italy
Died: February 18, 1564, Rome, Italy
Periods: High Renaissance, Italian Renaissance, Renaissance, Mannerism
Known for: Sculpture, painting, architecture, and poetry
Buried: Santa Croce, Florence, Italy
Return to The Lounge - Open Forum
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A Giant Accomplishment
Since major-league baseball pitcher Scott Eyre announced his ADHD diagnosis in 2001, he’s turned around his life and inspired countless young athletes.
By Suz Redfearn
cavalier92
Lots of major league pitchers fidget on the mound, spending a few seconds playing with the lip of their hat, fluffing the rosin bag, and smacking the ball into their glove. But San Francisco Giants left-hander Scott Eyre took it to extremes when he was with the Toronto Blue Jays, scratching, spitting, kicking the dirt, rubbing his forehead, pulling at his uniform, and yanking at his hat between pitches.
Team therapist Tim Hewes took notice. Eyre couldn’t sit still in the dugout, he’d drift off on the mound and listen to the crowd or watch soaring airplanes instead of bearing down on the batter. Hewes asked Eyre if he had heard of ADHD. He explained that attention deficit hyperactivity disorder was a common and treatable neurobehavioral disorder marked by inattentiveness, hyperactivity, and impulsiveness.
Still, it wasn’t quite a eureka moment for Eyre – not yet. That came the following season, in 2001, during a game against the New York Yankees. “I was on the mound and the catcher came out to talk to me, and when he walked away, I got distracted by the crowd and couldn’t remember a word he said,” Eyre said. “Suddenly I felt totally confused – I had no idea what I was doing.” Shaken, Eyre consulted a psychiatrist who confirmed Hewes’s suspicions.
Last year, 31-year-old Eyre worked out of the bullpen during the Giants’ National League Division Series against the Florida Marlins – but he wasn’t fidgeting. He is one of the first professional athletes, or public figures of any sort, to step into the limelight with a diagnosis of ADHD. Others who have done so include Christopher Knight, who played “Peter” on The Brady Bunch, and David Neeleman, founder and chief executive officer of JetBlue Airways.
A Model for Others
Research has shown us that ADHD persists into adulthood for up to 70% of those who have it as kids. According to the latest figures from the American Psychiatric Association, 3 to 7% of school-aged children and 4% of adults – men and women – have the disorder.
Those who live with ADHD know that stimulant drugs such as Ritalin, Concerta, and Adderall help control symptoms. Small behavior changes, like using an electronic organizer, making to-do-lists, and writing reminders on sticky notes, can counteract tendencies to be disorganized and bring some order and measure of control to life. Plus, ADHD coaches call clients regularly to remind them to complete tasks.
But for many, the first step toward help is diagnosing the problem.
“A lot of people have been driven to seek treatment because of the people they see on TV who say, ‘I’m successful now, but I have this vulnerability. Let me tell you what I went through,'” says David W. Goodman, M.D., assistant professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore. “Eyre stands to make a very big difference for people.”
Now, more than two years after that panicky moment on the mound against the Yankees, Eyre has turned his career around. He takes Concerta daily and works hard to stay organized. Eyre says he can focus, multitask, and listen when others are speaking, retaining what they have said – all new skills for him. A wall has come down and now he’s able to be the player he feels he was meant to be.
“I can think about a pitch and also cover first base now,” Eyre says. “I can stand on the mound and not hear the 40,000 people screaming.”
In the summer of 2002, Eyre was claimed off waivers from the Toronto Blue Jays. With the Giants, he has become a valued left-handed setup reliever, pitching in 10 of the team’s 17 playoff games last year, including three in the World Series, all the while giving up no earned runs.
Formerly a guy who talked nonstop and made coaches and teammates irritated and nervous, a guy who was described by a former teammate Dan Plesac, now a Philadelphia Phillie, as being “a 33 record playing on 45 speed,” he’s now calm, collected. His manager, Felipe Alou, puts him into a game to right things when they are at their most chaotic and tense – and when the outcome is on the line.
Since Eyre has gone public, a few other major league baseball players have come forth to say they have battled ADHD, too. Among them are Blue Jays relief pitcher Justin Miller and Giants reliever Matt Herges. Herges, formerly of the Pittsburgh Pirates, went for a diagnosis after speaking with another player who had it.
“He told me all his symptoms and I said, ‘Holy cow, that’s me,'” Herges says. Since beginning drug therapy with Adderall early in the season last year, Herges is no longer out on the mound thinking about matters like the conversation taking place between fans sitting near the dugout or whether his wife’s stadium seat is exposing her to the rain. Now he can think about the task at hand. His ERA last year was 2.62, down from 4.06 the season before. “Now, I’m a loaded gun,” Herges says.
Strategies for Baseball – and Life
Eyre bought a Palm Pilot, leaves himself sticky notes, and takes his medicine every day before his games. It’s become one of his superstitions, along with wearing the same socks with his uniform and not leaving the locker room for the bullpen until the first inning is under way. Not only has his pitching improved, but he no longer forgets to leave promised complimentary tickets at the ticket window for friends and acquaintances, something he did frequently before his diagnosis and treatment.
“It’s one of the most embarrassing things there is,” Eyre admits.
Eyre says he’s grateful to Blue Jays therapist Hewes and the psychiatrist who diagnosed the disorder. “They basically changed my baseball career,” he said.
Dr. Goodman at Johns Hopkins reminds us that it’s usually a parent, spouse, coworker, or boss who is first to pick up on a person’s attention issues. They may notice a pattern of disorganization, procrastination, or failure to complete tasks. Or it may be quirky habits, trouble waiting in line, showing up on time, or not letting others finish a sentence.
Before he was diagnosed, Eyre’s wife, Laura, sensed something was amiss. “It was hard for him to carry on a conversation without getting distracted,” she says. “He’d think of something else and just not hear the rest of what you were saying. Then he’d cut in and tell his story. If the kids interrupted him, he’d be unable to remember what he had been talking about.” Now, he listens well, she says, and is much easier to talk to. He’s also much more patient with his children, Caleb, 5, and Jacob, 3.
Parents approach Eyre after games nowadays and send letters thanking him for speaking of his struggle with his own chemistry. Because of Eyre, they tell him, their kids aren’t afraid to admit they have ADHD, and are no longer loath to take their medicine.
“If I had one wish, I’d wish I could go back to high school and take my medication every day,” Eyre says. “I could have accomplished so much more. But the more I learn now, the more I can get out to parents.”
Updated on April 4, 2017
Tags: ADHD role models, late diagnosis
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Amazing reactions to new accessibility tour at Indiana State Museum
“I don’t know of any museum that has something like this. It’s incredible.”
“Museums are usually a flat experience for blind people. This changes that.
Words directly from users of Antenna’s latest accessibility app—an innovative multisensory museum tour that enables people who are blind or have low vision to explore the Indiana State Museum independently.
So how did Antenna make this tour that’s being described as a game changer for the industry?
Iterative design and community collaboration
Throughout the project, Antenna and the Indiana State Museum partnered with a local school for the blind and with Bosma, a nonprofit organization that helps people who are blind or visually impaired to be self-sufficient and independent during a visit to the museum.
Throughout various stages of development, we carried out in-depth user testing and made changes to continually improve the tour.
This community feedback allowed us to ensure the tour worked for people regardless of how they navigated—whether accompanied by a companion or using a cane, a guide dog, or braille. And it meant we could create engaging content for all ages and levels of technical ability.
For instance, in one stage of testing we noticed tech-savvy visitors using the app in the same way they would use a mobile device, rather than how they would use a museum audio tour. So we adapted the layout of the tour and created an experience that better matched users’ expectations and needs.
Immersive elements
The Indiana State Museum is full of exhibits that engage the senses. Visitors to the Natural Regions gallery can stroke bear fur, hear frog calls, and walk through a marsh. In the Contested Territory gallery, they can hear a stirring speech from an 18th-century leader of the Miami people spoken in both English and Miami languages. In the First Nations and 19th State galleries, visitors can discover cannisters that hold interesting smells, step on the different types of road materials settlers used, and get hands-on experience chopping wood or churning butter.
The new tour not only describes exhibits and spaces in detail, it also incorporates touch and sound in a way that enhances the overall experience.
The availability of smartphones has changed the way that many people who are blind and have low vision communicate.
To make the most of this development, the tour is an app which can be downloaded to a smartphone and provides the same accessibility features that people who are visually impaired often use in their day-to-day life. iPods are also available to visitors if they prefer not to use their personal mobile devices.
Leslie Lorance, new media manager at the Indiana State Museum, commented:
It’s rare for visitors who are blind or have low vision to be able to experience an institution like ours independently, but we see embracing and facilitating access tours as a key part of our mission. During one of our testing stages, a participant told me that if we didn’t continue building the tour she would cry because the ability of visiting a museum in this way really excited her. That’s the reaction we wanted because it shows we’re making a positive difference in the community—and in people’s lives.”
Miranda Smith, Antenna content designer, led the project and believes a tour with this level of collaboration with people who are blind has created a unique experience:
Over and again, we collected in-depth feedback to identify how we could make each and every stop on the tour perfect. We’ve created an experience that really takes into account the needs and wants of people who are blind and have low vision. In my mind, it’s the best way to create an accessibility tour that works seamlessly.”
To find out more about how we are innovating in accessibility and how we can help your institution, click the button below.
Contact us to find out more about this or any of our projects
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Home > China > China enforcement actions > Monthly China Anti-Bribery Update Report—July 2013
Monthly China Anti-Bribery Update Report—July 2013
By David Saltzman on August 2, 2013 Posted in China, China enforcement actions, Communist Party, Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, Rail
The most recent FCPA and anticorruption enforcement developments involving the People’s Republic of China (PRC) are summarized below. Thanks, as always, to Squire Sanders’ Shanghai Office for monitoring these enforcement actions.
1. New law or regulation
State level:
(1) It was reported on July 6, 2013 that the Supreme People’s Procuratorate (“SPP”) of China issued a Code of Conduct for the Law Enforcement of People’s Procuratorate Prosecutors in Civil and Administrative Cases (“Code of Conduct”). Further implementing the Civil Procedure Law, which was amended in August, 2012, this Code of Conduct stresses that meetings with the parties to civil and administrative cases and their agents must be conducted jointly by two or more prosecutors. Also, the prosecutors are prohibited from seeking illegal benefits for themselves and/or their relatives.
Local level (Beijing & Shanghai): No developments.
Communist Party Rules:
(1) It was reported on July 18, 2013 that Xi Jinping, the Chairman of the Central Military Commission and the President of China, issued Provisions for Implementation of the Accountability System for the Party’s Integrity in the Military (“Provisions”). The Provisions emphasize the necessity of establishing an accountability system in the military to end problems of “formalism, bureaucracy, hedonism, extravagance and corruption.”
2. Upcoming law or regulation
No developments.
3. Government Action
(1) On July 2, 2013, Gao Yujun (“Gao”), the former Deputy General Manager of Shandong Branch of Huadian Power International Co., Ltd. and Chairman of Shandong Century Electric Power Development Co., Ltd., was reportedly sentenced by the Intermediate People’s Court of Yantai City, Shandong Province to death with two years’ reprieve for corruption, embezzlement, and accepting bribes.
While in office from 2004 to 2010, Gao allegedly accepted bribes totaling over RMB 22.9 million (USD 3.73 million) on 70 occasions, taking advantage of his position to assist various individuals with business contracts, purchase orders and payment settlements, including RMB 21.68 million (USD 3.53 million), USD 80,000, GBP 28,000 (USD 42,565), and EUR 5,000 (USD 6,623) for such items as shopping cards and watches. The Court ordered confiscation of all the personal assets of Gao.
(2) On July 8, 2013, Liu Zhijun (“Liu”), the former Railways Minister, was sentenced by the Second Intermediate People’s Court of Beijing Municipality to death with two years’ reprieve, plus confiscation of all personal assets for taking bribes and abusing power.
As an official serving in China’s railway system for most of his life, Liu allegedly took bribes amounting to RMB 64.6 million (USD 10.53 million) between 1986 and 2011. In exchange, Liu abused his position by providing illegal benefits to the bribers in the form of promotions and the award of construction and cargo transportation contracts. Liu is the highest ranking official convicted since China’s new President, Xi Jinpin, came to power.
(3) On July 18, 2013, Wu Zhiqiang (“Wu”), the former Deputy Secretary of Foshan City and Secretary of Political and Legislative Affairs Committee of Foshan City, Guangdong Province, was sentenced by the Intermediate Court of Chaozhou City, Guangdong Province, to 11 years in prison plus confiscation of personal assets valued at RMB 700,000 (USD 114,184).
Wu was reportedly accused of taking bribes from Luo Zuohong (“Luo”), the general manager of Foshan Shunde Shenghu Investment Co., Ltd. on ten occasions, aggregating RMB 5.4 million (USD 880,853) between July 2007 and August 2011. In return, Wu abused his position to help Luo receive project approval and to be elected as a member of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference of Foshan. Wu confessed his crimes to the prosecutors on January 16, 2012, and all the bribes have been returned by his relatives.
(4) On July 23, 2013, Luo Yinguo (“Luo”), the former Party Secretary of Maoming City, Guangdong Province, was reportedly sentenced by the Intermediate Court of Zhongshan City, Guangdong Province to death with two years’ reprieve for accepting bribes and holding significant property from unidentified sources.
Luo was charged with accepting bribes totaling over RMB 20 million (USD 3.26 million) between 1998 and 2011 and owning property in the amount of RMB 50 million (USD 8.15 million) with no identified source. In exchange for favors, Luo is reported to have assisted the bribers with job promotions and the award of construction projects. It was reported that a total of 61 officials were under investigation in connection with Luo’s corruption. Luo’s wife, Zou Jifang, was sentenced to six years in prison for taking bribes.
(1) It was reported on July 23, 2013 that in the first six months of the year 2013, Chinese prosecutors have investigated 13,842 individuals in 9747 cases on suspicion of bribery and embezzlement harming the public interest, involving a total of RMB 1.77 billion (USD 288.7 million).
5. China-related FCPA Action
(1) The Ministry of Public Security ( “MPS”) officially reported that certain senior executives of GlaxoSmithKline (China) Investment Co., Ltd. (“GSK China”), including two vice presidents, one legal affairs director, and one business development manager, were detained for allegedly directly and indirectly (through travel agencies) offering bribes amounting to RMB 3 billion (USD 489 million) for government officials, medical associations, foundations, hospitals, and physicians to promote sales and raised retail prices. Certain executives of GSK China have reportedly received kickbacks and other benefits through travel agencies by fraudulently using special VAT invoices and/or false invoices issued by the same travel agencies in violation of PRC tax laws. MPS describes the case as “involving numerous people, continuing for a long time, involving huge amounts and constituting serious violations”. Detained executives of GSK China have confessed their crimes.
GSK China is a subsidiary of GlaxoSmithKline Plc (“GSK”), a leading pharmaceutical company listed in London and New York Stock Exchange. In a later statement GSK confirmed that certain senior executives of GSK China appeared to have acted outside GSK’s approved procedures and in violation of PRC laws.
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Photo by: Orlando García
Orlando García
In 2005, Orlando García received his university degree at the Higher Institute of Industrial Design, with the intention of pursuing work as an engineer. Influenced by his twin brother—photographer Eduardo Garcia—he began as a self-taught street photographer and launched his professional career in 2011.
García has participated in several exhibitions, including four solo shows, and with his brother, in more than 25 collective shows in Cuba, Germany, the United States, Mexico, Italy, Cambodia, Peru, Bolivia, Argentina and Canada. Garcia’s photographs are also in private collections worldwide.
Cuba Is
Revealing complexities both on and off the island, Cuba Is explores aspects of Cuba not easily accessed by foreigners, and sometimes not even by Cubans themselves.
Leysis Quesada Vera
Born in Cienfuegos, Cuba, Leysis Quesada Vera’s work centers on her own family, friends, and the daily lives of those closest to her in her native Cuba.
In 1964, Elliott Erwitt was first invited to Cuba by Fidel Castro and returned in 2015 to photograph contemporary Cuban life.
Tria Giovan
During her 25-year career, Tria Giovan’s work—in places ranging from Cuba to the Philippines to the eastern end of Long Island—is defined by her diverse, in-depth, timely and thoughtful exploration of her subjects.
Raúl Cañibano
Born in Havana in 1961, Raúl Cañibano’s photographic work ranges from documentary to surrealism.
Michael Dweck
Michael Dweck is a contemporary photographer and the first living American artist to have a solo museum exhibition in Cuba.
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Historic Theaters of New York's Capital District
By John A. Miller
For generations, residents of New York's Capital District have flocked to the region's numerous theaters. The history behind the venues is often more compelling than the shows presented in them. John Wilkes Booth brushed with death on stage while he and Abraham Lincoln were visiting Albany. The first exhibition of broadcast television was shown at Proctor's Theater in Schenectady, although the invention ironically contributed to the downfall of theaters across the nation. A fired manager of the Green Street Theatre seized control of the theater with a group of armed men, but Albany police stormed the building and the former manager regained control. Author John A. Miller charts the entertaining history.
John A. Miller is a graduate of SUNY Oswego and SUNY Albany, where he received his MA in history. When he is not gravely misjudging the scope of his research, he enjoys writing fiction, reading, watching bizarre films and making weird noises at his dog. This is his first book.
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