pred_label
stringclasses 2
values | pred_label_prob
float64 0.5
1
| wiki_prob
float64 0.25
1
| text
stringlengths 112
978k
| source
stringlengths 37
43
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
__label__cc
| 0.580634
| 0.419366
|
Thursday, Mar 22 2007
Governor Talks Health Care Reform With Rush Limbaugh
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger (R) called in to talk show host Rush Limbaugh's radio program on Wednesday to explain his proposal to rework California's health care system and other recent political moves, the Sacramento Bee reports (Yamamura, Sacramento Bee , 3/22).
Under the governor's plan, Medi-Cal and Healthy Families would be expanded to help provide coverage to low- and moderate-income state residents. Individuals who declined to carry insurance could face a reduction in state income tax refunds or have wages withheld.
Medi-Cal is California's Medicaid program, and Healthy Families is its version of the State Children's Health Insurance Program for children from low- and moderate-income households.
The $12 billion plan would require contributions from employers, individuals, insurers and medical providers. HHS Secretary Mike Leavitt has agreed to support an increase in Medicaid funds to help pay for the proposal ( California Healthline , 3/15).
Schwarzenegger told Limbaugh that his proposal would reduce health care costs for California residents in part by bringing down fees paid to help offset the cost of treating the uninsured in hospital emergency departments ( Sacramento Bee , 3/22).
Limbaugh and Schwarzenegger debated a provision in the governor's plan that would extend health insurance coverage to children regardless of immigration status and talked about the plan's funding mechanism (AP/Los Angeles Daily News , 3/21).
Limbaugh's Web site features complete audio and a transcript of the discussion with Gov. Schwarzenegger.
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line10941
|
__label__wiki
| 0.802653
| 0.802653
|
CBS 2's Irika Sargent Hosts Women In The Forefront LuncheonGail Boudreaux from Anthem, Mary Dillon from Ulta Beauty and Christine Leahy from CDW addressed the attendees.
Cuba Gooding Jr.'s Request To Toss Groping Case Is DeniedGooding, 51, is accused of placing his hand on a 29-year-old woman's breast and squeezing it without her consent at Magic Hour Rooftop Bar & Lounge near Times Square on June 9. The woman told police she believed Gooding was intoxicated.
Pride Parade Preparations Continue Through Sunday"You sit back and say 'oh my gosh it’s grown and it’s helped to save lives.' The legacy is that it reaches everybody to live full lives, to save lives, to live full lives as human beings."
Beth Chapman, Wife Of Bounty Hunter Reality TV Star, DiesShe was diagnosed with throat cancer in 2017. A tumor was removed and she was cancer-free. But she was later diagnosed with lung cancer.
Tributes To Michael Jackson Flow On 10th Death AnniversaryThe death of Jackson was a massive cultural phenomenon, bringing an outpouring of public affection and revival of his songs and largely erasing the taint that remained after his criminal trial, despite his acquittal.
Naperville 'Jeopardy!' Champ Playing In World Series Of Poker EventsThe Naperville-native became a celebrity during a 32-game "Jeopardy!" win streak, earning more than $2.4 million before losing in early June.
Cuba Gooding Jr. Pleads Not Guilty To Groping Woman At BarA 29-year-old woman told police that Gooding place his hand on her breast and squeezed it without her consent Sunday night at Magic Hour Rooftop Bar & Lounge. The woman said she believed Gooding was intoxicated.
Illinois State Museum Names Director After Nationwide SearchShe has served in leadership posts at the Abbe Museum in Maine and the General Lew Wallace Study and Museum in Indiana, which won awards during her tenure.
1st Black Priest In US, Ex-Slave, Positioned For SainthoodHe endured three years of racism in Quincy before "Good Father Gus" moved to Chicago. He is buried in Quincy.
Q&A: Coffee With Bill Murray And Jim JarmuschIn "The Dead Don't Die," Jarmusch's wry but impassioned zombie tale, Murray plays the veteran sheriff of a small town called Centerville populated by Jarmusch regulars, among them Tilda Swinton, Adam Driver, Chloe Sevigny, Tom Waits and Steve Buscemi.
'I Love What That Job Has Brought Me': Chris Redd On 'Saturday Night Live', The Second City, 'Deep Murder'Redd discusses his experience on "Saturday Night Live" and his new movie "Deep Murder."
AP Exclusive: 25 Years After Murders, OJ Says 'Life Is Fine'For a man who once lived for the spotlight , Simpson has generally kept a low profile since his release from prison in October 2017 after serving nine years for a robbery and kidnapping conviction in Las Vegas. He insisted his conviction and sentence for trying to steal back his own memorabilia were unfair but said: "I believe in the legal system and I honored it. I served my time."
Tony Highlights: A Historic Win And A Strong Night For Women"I wish I wasn't the only woman directing a musical on Broadway this season," she said. "There are so many women who are ready to go. There are so many artists of color who are ready to go. ... This is not a pipeline issue. It is a failure of imagination by a field whose job is to imagine the way the world could be."
The Annual Chicago Blues Festival Kicks Off This Friday"You don't need to be a blues fan to enjoy good music. The Chicago Blues Festival will be featuring some great music for all people who love good music. Fast, slow, upbeat, and ballads, there will be something good for everyone to enjoy and feel."
'Dr. John,' Funky New Orleans 'Night-Tripper' Musician, Dies
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line10942
|
__label__wiki
| 0.974445
| 0.974445
|
Consumer Tech »
MCIT
Andhra Pradesh to be developed as electronics manufacturing hub: Ravi Shankar Prasad
Ravi Shankar Prasad today said Andhra Pradesh would be developed as a major electronics hub, and announced several initiatives planned in this direction.PTI | February 18, 2016, 17:25 IST
VISAKHAPATNAM: Union Minister for Communication and Information Technology Ravi Shankar Prasad today said Andhra Pradesh would be developed as a major electronics hub, and announced several initiatives planned in this direction.
"Andhra Pradesh would become a major electronics manufacturing hub, as four electronics clusters have already been sanctioned for the state, and the fifth one is in process," Prasad said.
The Minister was speaking after laying the foundation stone for the (Society for Applied Microwave Electronics Engineering and Research (SAMEER) Centre for Electromagnetic Environmental Effects (E3) here.
"The SAMEER, a Centre for Electromagnetic Environmental Effects, is an autonomous R&D institution under the Department of Electronics and Information and Technology (DEITY), Ministry of Communication and Information Technology (MCIT). It is one of the most advanced institutions of the Government of India," he said.
The organization, headquartered at Mumbai, operates through four other centres in Chennai, Kolkata, Guwahati and Visakhapatnam, he said.
The permanent building of the institution would be constructed in an area of 15 acres in Gambhiram village in Anandapuram mandal of the district, he said.
Prasad said Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu's request to set up Information Technology and Investment Region (ITIR) in the state would be considered after the Union government formulates the ITIR policy.
He rued that the Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) was a profit-making entity till 2004, but it became a loss-making body in the 10-year rule of the Congress-led Union government.
"In the last 17 months, the BSNL has again started making profit. It has earned operating profit of Rs 672 crore," he said.
The minister announced various projects for the state.
National Informatics Centre (NIC) would be established in the state, besides a separate BSNL telephone exchange for the under-construction state capital Amaravati in Guntur district, Prasad said.
Stating that e-commerce was on the rise in the country, for which post offices were being digitalised, the minister announced to set up an e-commerce centre in Guntur district, apart from creation of e-commerce parcel hubs at Visakhapatnam, Vijaywada and Tirupati.
He said mobile phone manufacturing units have already come up at Sri City in the state, and added that many more electronic items manufacturing units would follow suit.
Two lakh panchayats in the country would be connected to optic fiber cable network, he said.
The minister, while asserting that India would develop as Knowledge Economy in the time to come, gave the formula - IT + IT = IT. Elaborating on the formula, he said, IT (Indian Talent) + IT (Information Technology) = IT (India Tomorrow).
Union Urban Development Minister M Venkaiah Naidu said he would try to bring more projects in the state, to make up for the problems it faced after its bifurcation.
Asserting that Prime Minister Narendra Modi is keen to develop the country, the minister said several institutions like World Bank, Asian Development Bank, International Monetary Fund have spoken of India's suitability to attract investments in the present scenario.
Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu hailed the state for "securing a place on the international map" after it hosted the Andhra Pradesh Investment Meet and International Fleet Review (IFR) recently, which saw a good response from many foreign countries.
The Chief Minister urged the Central government to sanction more of its projects to Andhra Pradesh, and assured that the state government would provide necessary infrastructure like land, water, electricity, etc for the same.
Tags : Consumer Tech, Sameer, Ravi Shankar Prasad, MCIT, Manufacturing, Kolkata, electronics, deity, Andhra Pradesh
Most Read in Consumer Tech
Apple takes a step back, temporarily halts plans to develop AR glasses & VR headsets
Will take action on those listening to your conversations: Google
Almost 100% surge in India's request to Apple for customers' data
Microsoft losing on Android my 'greatest mistake': Bill Gates
Apple recalling MacBook Pro laptops for fire risks
Indian GPS on mobile phones? Isro in talks with 2 big chipmakers
Google gets nod to license Android for Huawei
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line10949
|
__label__wiki
| 0.92748
| 0.92748
|
Rabbi Berman Begins Tenure as YU’s Fifth President
Faculty, Homepage, Most Recent News, Press Release, YU Spotlight June 5, 2017June 5, 2017 skier
On His First Day as President, Rabbi Dr. Ari Berman Meets With Students, Faculty and Staff Across Campuses
Rabbi Dr. Ari Berman begins his tenure as Yeshiva University’s fifth president today, meeting with students, faculty and staff across the University.
“Yeshiva is filled with so many wonderful people engaged in exciting work. As I craft a new institutional mission and vision for Yeshiva University, I know our future will be brightest when we work together with a sense of common purpose. We will build upon our past and prepare responsibly for tomorrow,” said Rabbi Berman, a four-time YU alumnus. “I am humbled by the many inspiring partners I had the opportunity to connect with so far, and eagerly anticipate getting to know many more.”
The University will celebrate Rabbi Berman’s official investiture on September 10, 2017.
Before assuming his role at YU, Rabbi Berman was the head of Hechal Shlomo – Center of Jewish Heritage in Jerusalem, where he led a transformation of the historic organization into an international center for Jewish life, learning and leadership. He also served as a lecturer of rabbinic literature in Herzog College’s Jewish Studies Department and was a member of its Executive Leadership Council, the governing body that establishes policies and sets direction for all major issues regarding the operation of the college.
Rabbi Berman grew up in Queens, New York, and graduated from four YU schools with distinction, earning honors for his academic work in both secular and Jewish studies. He was recognized by the YU-affiliated Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary (RIETS) for his written scholarship and was chosen to speak on behalf of the graduating student body at his Chag HaSemikhah [rabbinic ordination ceremony]. He was also selected as a Fellow in the Kollel Elyon, the three-year post-ordination study program for RIETS’s most promising students and future rabbinic leaders. He graduated from Marsha Stern Talmudical Academy/Yeshiva University High School for Boys, received a bachelor’s degree from Yeshiva College, and earned a master’s degree in medieval Jewish philosophy from the Bernard Revel Graduate School of Jewish Studies.
In 2000, he became rabbi of The Jewish Center in New York City, after having served there as rabbinic intern, assistant rabbi and associate rabbi. Under his leadership, the congregation experienced significant success by key metrics including congregational satisfaction, membership, programming, services, outreach, public activities and financial strength. Simultaneous with his pulpit at The Jewish Center, Rabbi Berman served as an instructor of Talmud in the Irving I. Stone Beit Midrash Program at Yeshiva College. In 2008, Rabbi Berman made aliyah [immigration] to Israel. He obtained a PhD from Hebrew University in Jewish law and thought during the High Middle Ages.
Rabbi Berman succeeds Richard M. Joel, who served as president of YU for 14 years.
Ari Berman, first day, President, Press Release
Celebrating New Graduates
YU Marches for Israel
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line10950
|
__label__wiki
| 0.594886
| 0.594886
|
Theoretical foundations
Sentinels of inequity: examining policy requirements for equity-oriented primary healthcare
Josée G. Lavoie1Email authorView ORCID ID profile,
Colleen Varcoe2,
C. Nadine Wathen3,
Marilyn Ford-Gilboe4,
Annette J. Browne2 and
On behalf of the EQUIP Research Team
Non-government, not-for-profit community health centres (CHCs) play a crucial role within healthcare systems in fostering equity, acting both as direct providers of services and as sentinels of health and social inequity. In a study of an intervention to promote equity-oriented health care, we enlisted four diverse primary healthcare clinics with mandates to serve highly marginalized populations. All of these CHCs operate as not-for-profit, non-government organizations (NGOs), and have a marginal relationship financially and socially to other parts of the system. The purpose of this paper is to provide an analysis of the factors that shape how CHCs are able to carry out an equity mandate and, from this, to identify what is required at the level of policy to enhance capacity to provide equity-oriented health care.
We systematically examined the clinics’ policy and funding contexts, and identified influences on the clinics’ capacities to promote equity-oriented health care.
We identified three key mechanisms of influence, each playing out against the backdrop of a contested and marginal position of CHCs within the health care system: a) accountability and performance frameworks; b) patterns of funding and allocation of resources, and c) pathways for emergent priorities. We examine these mechanisms, considering how each influenced the pursuit of equity, and propose policy directions to optimize the primary health care sectors’ capacity to support equity-oriented health care.
Although this analysis is based on a study within a high-income country, we argue that because the dynamics between community health centres and broader healthcare systems are similar across national boundaries, the implications have applicability to low and middle-income countries.
Marginalized populations
Underserved populations
Healthcare systems are composed of multiple organizations (Health Departments, Regional Health Authorities, hospitals, independent for-profit services providers, corporations and non-government not-for-profit organizations), each with its own governance structure, priorities, accountabilities, mandates and budgetary constraints. Legislation, policies and contractual obligations link these organizations together to create a system where discontinuities of care can become visible and hopefully remedied. Where these links are lacking, relationships that depend on the will of individuals can act as short-lived patches across gaps in the system.
In both higher, and lower and middle income countries (referred to as HIC and LMIC respectively), two problems persist: i) inverse care (that is, those who are most Marginalized1 and have the greatest health problems have the least access to care), and ii) fragmentation and under-resourcing of care for marginalized populations [2]. In most healthcare systems, non-government not-for-profit organizations (NGOs) such as community health centres (CHCs) fill service gaps left by other providers. The Canadian Association of Community Health Centers (2016) defines CHCs as “multi-sector health and healthcare organizations that deliver integrated, people-centred services and programs that reflect the needs and priorities of the diverse communities they serve. A Community Health Centre is any not-for-profit corporation, co-operative, or government agency which adheres to all five of the following domains:
Provides interprofessional primary care.
Integrates services/programs in primary care, health promotion, and community wellbeing.
Is community-centred.
Actively addresses the social determinants of health.
Demonstrates commitment to health equity and social justice.
While we agree that CHCs could possibly be government agencies, the CHCs with which we worked emerged as a result of government services’ failure to meet the needs of vulnerable populations [3–5]. A key component of the success of CHCs in meeting needs has been attributed to their community-grounded governance structure, which ensures pathways for community feedback on the performance of the CHCs and their programs to meet community needs [6–8]. Other studies have shown that CHCs that become government agencies eventually lose some of their connection to community needs [9–11].
In LMIC, CHCs are remarkably diverse: they span the for-profit to non-profit continuum, can be religious or secular, may offer a narrow or broad scope of services, may be larger or quite small, may employ professionals or depend on volunteer, may exist to fulfil short or long term objectives, and may be single or multisector focused [12]. Funding for their existence may be from international secular or faith-based organizations, from philanthropic foundations, from membership, and/or a combinations of these. In their scoping review of non-governmental organization’s contribution to global health, Anbazhagan and Surekha highlighted the following strengths: great variety of programs to meet local needs; flexible and agile to ensure a quick response to emerging needs; generally have low operating costs; depend on staff and/or volunteers with a high level of commitment; community-embedded; often less tainted by association with the local or national government; and less likely to fall to corruption [12]. Their distancing from local and national government also means that their accountability to the national health authorities vary [13–15]: this can be a strength or a concern, depending on context.
In HIC, CHCs emerge out of two separate processes. In some cases, national and/or regional healthcare authorities promote the creation of CHCs to take on predefined tasks: services for a selected population such as Indigenous populations in Canada, Australia and New Zealand [16, 17] or selected services such as HIV counselling [18]. The push for smaller government and interest in harnessing competition among providers to stimulate innovation can act as an added incentive for governments to transfer healthcare responsibilities onto the NGO sector [19]. In other cases, however, CHCs surface primarily in urban areas where surplus capacity (underemployed community-engaged professionals) exists and where unmet needs persist [5], to complement services provided by for-profit providers (providers in private practice) and governmental not-for-profit providers. Although histories vary, in either case, these CHCs generally emerge as a result of social activism, to meet the unique, and unmet or poorly met, healthcare needs of marginalized populations.
We argue that CHCs in HIC and LMIC implicitly or explicitly operate with an equity mandate, leading them to prioritize the development of services and programs that can best improve the health and social care needs of the population(s) they serve. However, as we discuss in this paper, the capacity to provide health care that is equity-oriented can be undermined by policy and funding contexts. In resource-stretched healthcare systems, these factors are important to understand and address.
The CHCs we engaged with for this study were funded primarily through public money and occupy a potentially ambiguous place in the healthcare systems, as they operate semi-autonomously. We have observed the same situation in other CHCs across Canada, Colombia, Australia and New Zealand [5, 20–24]. Whereas government employees can be directly controlled through firing and other mechanisms in government-owned and operated services, governmentfunders hold CHCs accountable for their use of public finances through accountability frameworks focused on contractually defined outputs and outcomes [8, 25]. However these may lead to tension between the CHCs and their funders: CHCs’ accountability to their service communities often leads them to advocate for those communities to government agencies, which may themselves be the CHCs’ funders [5, 8] or the policy-makers who create or prune the space CHCs can occupy. Funders who can also be service providers, have a dual role in this dynamic: they can be both the source of unmet needs (since the services they provide are failing to meet these needs) and the solution (through their funding of CHCs, albeit at modest levels compared to government delivered services). Little is known about how to create a policy-entrenched environment that would support CHCs in creating and operationalizing effective and equity-informed health services, when the policy-makers are also those who may be falling short of meeting needs. A detailed understanding of the factors enabling and constraining the capacity of CHCs to enact an equity mandate would optimize the effectiveness of their advocacy roles and aid funders and policy makers in designing better approaches.
This paper discusses policy implications stemming from a program of research examining an innovative primary healthcare (PHC) intervention – EQUIP Primary Healthcare – designed to enhance capacity for equity-oriented health care (EOHC) at PHC clinics serving marginalized populations [1, 26–29]. One aspect of this research focuses on the policy environment required to support EOHC, defined as care that aims to mitigate the negative health effects of structural inequities and structural violence [1]. Our work has contributed to international conversations focused on the provision of trauma- and violence- informed, culturally safe and equitable PHC services to populations affected by health inequities and marginalizing social conditions [30]. In this paper, we identify the policy level requirements to expand the capacity for equity within healthcare systems, including enhancing the role of CHCs as “sentinels of inequity”. We highlight key mechanisms that facilitate or impede the ability of CHCs to realise their equity mandate, and illustrate how these mechanisms operate in the context of four Canadian CHCs that provide PHC for populations living in marginalizing conditions, who are generally underserved by other sectors of the healthcare system. These findings have implications for improving equity across Canada’s healthcare systems and have relevance more widely.
The CHCs discussed in this study are not-for-profit NGOs. A large body of literature, primarily from the field of economics, focuses on the role the NGO sector plays in the provision of public goods. Of relevance, the theoretical literature offers explanations as to why NGOs emerge to provide public goods in parallel to public institutions, and how these organizations are positioned in relation to public institutions. Salamon and Anheier [31] noted six broad theories that aim to explain this phenomenon, briefly described as follows. Weisbrod’s government failure or heterogeneity theory [10, 11] suggests that government provision of public goods becomes homogenous over time in response to the needs of the majority. The NGO sector emerges to meet unmet needs: it is a response to demand for both enhanced quantity and range of public goods. Thus, this theory implies that NGOs are created to provide goods for populations whose needs and preferences are not met by government and other providers (e.g. through family physicians in private practice). Heterogeneity of needs and preferences is thus key. Somewhat interrelated is Hansmann’s trust theory [32] that posits that information asymmetries between providers and consumers create distrust about the quality of the product being procured. NGOs, being by definition not-for-profit, may be (or at least may be assumed to be) more trustworthy. Thus, distrust in government providers or markets is key to the emergence of NGOs.
James’ supply-side theory [33] suggests demand alone is not sufficient, and that social entrepreneurs must exist in order for NGOs to emerge. James argues that this is particularly true in areas where religious competition exists, resulting in religious-based NGOs organizing for the delivery of public goods as a mechanism to attract adherents. The surplus delivery capacity that exists in many urban centres can also explain the proliferation of NGOs providing social goods to underserved populations. In their discussion of welfare state theory, Salamon and Anheier [34] suggest that the literature treats the NGO sector as a residue from imperfectly developed welfare states. Thus, it is assumed that greater involvement of the state in social welfare services leads to a smaller NGO sector. Finally, Valentinov [35] developed a rurality theory, arguing that NGOs emerge in rural settings to bridge inequities in services experienced in those areas.
The theories discussed above tend to position the state as in conflict with the NGO sector. In contrast, the interdependence theory suggests that conflict coexists with interdependence and partnership [34]. For example, the NGO sector can be mobilized more readily than government, and can secure political support to ensure that government engagement occurs in areas of public interest. Salamon and Anheier further argue that, along with government and market failure, “NGO failure” also exists in that NGOs depend, to a greater or lesser degree, on government funding for their existence. Finally, they articulate a social origins theory that recognizes that NGOs do not “float freely in social space” ([34], p. 18.) but are rather products of, and embedded in, social and economic structures.
These theoretical perspectives suggest that NGOs have a unique and valuable role to play in the pursuit of transforming health systems towards increased equity. Although helpful lens, they focus on the mergence of NGOs but fail to adequately position NGOs within the healthcare system in which they operate. It is our observation that government-funders have an ambiguous relationship with NGOs, including CHCs. Government-funders promote CHCs as a viable extension of healthcare systems, recognizing their unique role in the provision of needed services. At the same time, CHCs are not simply extensions of government-funded services, since they often fall outside traditional accountability relationships. This autonomy can be framed as being at odds with the push to increase accountability across healthcare systems. New systems of accountability have shifted from being based on trust, to those that emphasize oversight and control [16, 36], which can undermine the sustainability and equity contributions of the NGO sector [6, 8], for example by setting onerous reporting requirements, setting targets for specific screening tests or requiring measurement against certain indicators in ways that shape practice toward such activities rather than the most pressing patient needs.
Our program of research is informed by an equity lens, based on an understanding that all policy is value laden and all policy work, since it involves decisions that affect populations who have little involvement in policy decision-making [37], is ethical work. In developing this lens, we drew upon intersectional theory to guide our examination of how different forms of structural oppression are constructed, affecting individuals, organizations, and broader social systems in complex and interdependent ways. Because intersectional scholarship, driven by the pursuit of social justice [38], is oriented beyond descriptive analyses toward eradicating inequities, it provides an ideal foundation for work aimed at moving policy towards equity. An equity lens directs attention to the role of policy in shaping the relationship between social conditions and health inequities, and related health system responsibilities, in four key areas: 1) the contexts and conditions that shape access to healthcare and health outcomes; 2) structural determinants of health; 3) a wide range of evidence related to social, historical and cultural roots of disadvantage; and 4) distribution of power in both the production of inequities and policy processes (Pauly B, Varcoe C, McPherson G, Laliberté S, Reimer J, Ponic P, Hancock T, Kenny N: Conceptualizing an equity lens for public health: The contribution of health policy ethics, in review). In this paper, we apply an equity lens to examine the policy and funding contexts of four diverse CHCs. We draw on interdependence theory to frame the role of the CHCs as being that of sentinels of inequity,2 leading the development of responses to current and emerging unmet needs, advocating to other service providers and health departments, and educating the healthcare system.
There are significant gaps in knowledge concerning how to: make services as responsive as possible for marginalized populations; address the health effects of structural inequities and structural violence; make PHC service delivery reforms more socially relevant; and create policy and funding environments to support these aims [39]. Our analysis considers the latter: how might policy decisions better promote EOHC throughout healthcare systems through supporting CHCs? We sought to understand how contemporary and emerging political climates shape equity agendas and to identify opportunities to enhance equity both locally and across sites.
This analysis was conducted as part of a larger study, entitled EQUIP Primary Healthcare, aimed at developing new knowledge regarding how PHC services can serve as a key pathway to health equity at a population level. The study received ethical approval from the Behavioral Research Ethics Boards of the University of British Columbia (H12–02994) and The University of Western Ontario (103357). All participants completed an informed consent process.
Using a mixed methods, multiple case study design within a participatory framework, we developed and implemented an equity-oriented intervention in four PHC clinics and examined changes in key outcomes for patients, staff and the organizations. Drawing on multiple sources of data, case study method is suited to studying the structures and processes of bounded systems in context. In multiple case study, the emphasis is placed on generating both a detailed understanding of each case and a broader understanding of commonalities that exist across cases [1]. In our study, the PHC clinics served as the cases. We interpreted the impacts of the intervention within a broad understanding of the process of implementation at each site, including how the policy context shaped their ability to implement and/or improve their equity-oriented models of care.
For the analysis presented in this paper, three types of data were used. First, we developed a socio-historical narrative regarding each clinic, detailing its history, the history of the communities each clinic served, and its contemporary profile, including its position within the wider healthcare system. To construct these profiles, we drew on the clinic’s own historical and current records, and historical accounts of the communities. These narratives were used in multiple ways, including as a tool to build consensus among different stakeholders (e.g., between staff and community organizations, staff and board members) as to the history of, and challenges facing, the clinics. Second, following a method developed by Lavoie [3], we reviewed and analyzed the minutes of Board meetings along with funding contracts for each clinic for a 5-year period (2011–2016) to construct a profile of each clinic’s contractual environment. Minutes were reviewed to identify internal pressures (e.g. lack of resources, relationship with staff, tensions) and external pressures (e.g. new policies, relationship with funders and the community, emerging unmet needs). Contracts were analyzed to assess funding stability over time, budgetary line flexibility, alignment between contractual obligations and the clinics’ day-to-day operation, as well as reporting burden. Third, we conducted in-depth interviews with leaders (administrative and clinical leads, Board members) at each of the clinics (n = 7) specifically focused on the policy/funding context and its impact on the clinic. These interviews were audio recorded and transcribed verbatim.
To analyze this data, the team assigned one research lead per CHC to collate the information available and conduct a preliminary analysis of Board minutes and financial records and contracts. Missing documents and gaps in knowledge were systematically identified, and shared with the team (the four leads) in regular meetings. Once major gaps were filled, focused interviews were conducted to address any remaining gaps in knowledge. A cross-case analysis was then undertaken to identify commonalties and differences.
The CHCs we studied emerged in areas with unmet PHC needs. Importantly, these needs were unmet because the people being underserved faced complex challenges in terms of both their health status, socioeconomic conditions, and their ability to access quality and responsive healthcare. The particular unmet needs to which they responded initially set the course for each clinic’s development. Each of the four CHCs in our study arose through their own unique sets of circumstances, needs and opportunities, and as shown in Table 1, have been described in more detail in a prior publication [40]. The patient populations served by these clinics ranged in size from 1300 to 3700 individuals.
Descriptions of Each Clinic
Organizational Features
Clinic Wa
• Founded in 2011.
• Located in a city which is a regional hub for many rural communities.
• Serves people who face barriers to health and social care and those ‘in transition,’ with a primary focus on women and families living in marginalizing conditions, including recent immigrants, many of whom have experienced violence and trauma.
• Primary health care services include identification, ongoing assessment and management of acute and chronic health problems, counseling, education and health promotion, and support in navigating complex systems.
Clinic X
• Located in a rural region serving rural farming communities and First Nations communities.
• Provides primary care at multiple sites to populations across the lifespan, from seniors to families with young children, through direct primary care and a wide range of responsive health promotion programs.
Clinic Y
• Located in a northern regional city where high proportions of Indigenous people reside.
• Serves Indigenous and non-Indigenous people experiencing major socioeconomic challenges including people living on very low incomes, in unstable or temporary housing, and those who are unable to work due to disability. 75% of the patient population self-identifies as Indigenous.
• Provides a wide range of primary health care services including medical and nursing care, counselling, social work, physiotherapy, and outreach services.
Clinic Z
• Founded 1970.
• Located in an inner-city metropolis and serves low income populations, including many experiencing inadequate housing or homelessness, major mental health and substance use issues, and significant barriers to accessing basic health services.
• Provides a wide range of primary health care services, including a pharmacy, dental clinic, and physical and mental health services.
aTo protect anonymity, the clinics are designated “W, X, Y, Z”, and the interviewees are designated as being from Clinic A, B, C, D without correspondence between the two designations (thus obscuring which clinic each interviewee was from).
Our findings show that CHCs which have a close relationship with their funder, and whose mandate in the overall healthcare system is clearer (for example, Clinic Y), benefit from a more flexible funding environment and adapted accountability frameworks. Where distance and ambiguity exist, CHCs’ contributions to equity is undermined.
[W]hen there’s a request to do something that all the other primary care organizations do, the request isn’t always filtered through an understanding of ‘would this need to be different for the [CHC]?’ Until we come back and go ‘wait a minute guys this doesn’t make any sense’… so just, you know, as an example, we all report on the same indicators every year. (Clinic B-C03)
In my opinion [the funders] still do not have an understanding of the value of the CHCs on the system. They know we do some things, they know we work with [the] vulnerable, but it’s not, it’s not on the same respect or level of the other [fee-for-service] bigger model which is maybe to be expected because you’ve got ten thousand [fee-for-service] doctors and you’ve got two hundred [CHC-based] doctors. (Clinic D-C01)
We identified three key mechanisms shaping the provision of equity-oriented care that can potentially undermine CHCs’ equity mandate: the use of accountability metrics/indicators that are not matched to an equity mandate, patterns of funding and allocation of resources that are poorly tailored to needs, and the lack of support for continuous change management. These mechanisms persist because of a lack of clarity regarding the role that CHCs ought, and can, play, in an equity-oriented healthcare system.
Accountability and performance frameworks are not matched to an equity mandate
In an equity-oriented healthcare system, where different populations are served by a variety of service providers (e.g. fee-for-service family physicians, salaried nurse practitioners, CHCs), indicators of performance monitoring must reflect the populations served, and be benchmarked appropriately to reflect patient complexities. The CHCs we studied, however, reported that the performance indicators they report on fail to appropriately or completely reflect their population’s needs and services provided.
[S]o we’ve been operating this, this service for X amount of years and then all of a sudden the contract this year stipulates these different [performance indicators], you know, in terms of measurements… it’s just all of a sudden they’re going to start measuring these indicators so I mean we’ll see how that goes. (Clinic C-C01)
Even in cases where there were efforts to index funding to complexity, the alignment was not ideal.
Yeah so [some CHCs] have a complexity score that’s used to adjust their panel size [number of patients the clinic is expected to serve], you know, they would say it isn’t perfect, in fact it has a lot of weaknesses in it but it’s better than not having anything. So there also has been some discussion about using that type of a scoring mechanism with [our clinic] to adjust our… panel size or an expectation based on complexity which for [our clinic] would be a helpful thing because we’re a bit of an odd duck. (Clinic B-C03)
Importantly, when used, these efforts were typically only used to estimate numbers of patients to be served, not what targets are set or indicators used. For example, a clinic serving primarily women with children who have experienced high levels of violence, poverty and homelessness, and a clinic primarily serving a high-income area both must achieve 70% Pap smear targets.
CHCs’ ability to meet their benchmarks is contingent on funding, staffing and infrastructure adequately aligned to the needs of the population served. Short-term funding contracts, and an inability to offer competitive salary and benefits, can result in staff attrition and undermine the CHCs’ ability to meet their contractual obligations.
So they don’t ever take that into consideration that, you know, the physicians - we need to be fully staffed and if you don’t have the right recruitment or salaries, that hard. And if you don’t have that then you can’t reach panel size. If you don’t have infrastructure … like you’re supposed to have three examining rooms for each provider, we have one. You’re supposed to have so many nurses for a thing, we only have one right, you know, so you don’t have the supports or the infrastructure [and] that will reduce your ability to meet panel size, right? (Clinic D-C01)
Unique features of equity-oriented CHCs, such as culturally-safe care, and trauma- and violence-informed care, are not captured by conventional indicators.
[The] reporting, you know, this has been an area of tension particularly in the health center is the things that we think are important in terms of health metrics are very different than the things that our contract agencies think are [important] in terms of metrics. I mean obviously we think access, you know, they’re very focused on how again the number, how many people are receiving these types of things… I mean some of the health outcomes which are very easy to identify in terms of Hep C or HIV, viral suppression in clients and things like that but some of the other things that we think are important aren’t really that important to them. So there is that tension there in terms of we’re trying to deliver a certain set of values and services and the funders … sometimes [their priorities are] different. (Clinic C-C01)
Throughout the study, the clinics sought to identify, integrate and monitor indicators that were reflective of their equity mandate, including those for acceptability, accessibility and safety for people marginalized by poverty and multiple forms of discrimination, how well they were able to facilitate access to health services and social determinants, and overall fit of care to needs. These are however not the indicators embedded in the accountability frameworks used by funders. Thus, the essential work performed by the clinics remain largely invisible, and undervalued.
The patterns of funding and allocation of resources are not optimally tailored to needs
CHCs perform best when able to tailor services to those they serve. In an equity-oriented healthcare system, they require resources to support their ability to respond to ever-changing needs.
The CHCs we studied access funding through streamlined and sustainable sources (Clinic Y), or fragmented and siloed but generally renewable funding (Clinic Z, Clinic X), or a constellation of yearly contracts with specific performance expectations (Clinic W). With the exception of Clinic Y, all reported considerable misalignment between their funding, the size and needs of the population they serve, and serious gaps in funding in key areas, limiting their ability to respond to existing and emerging needs.
[T]he original funding formula for [our CHC] has not changed in twenty years, it’s been a little bit modified with the new [Ministry mandate], a few different positions. But the original core, particularly the primary care nurse practitioner and physician formula that you get from the ministry, you know, I have the same number of doctors here as [when] I started twenty-one years ago. (Clinic D-C01)
[I]t looks to me like that’s the budget we’ve always had, that’s the same budget we’ve had by the way from the time we were established, there’s been no increases… [T]he salaries we have to pay to the staff are set by the Ministry, we have a little bit of a range and we’ve tried to set criteria to be fair to people who’ve got more experience or less. We couldn’t deal with that so what we’ve chosen to do in a policy way is to give some people more vacation time or something to at least reward them. It’s not a nice system but the system itself we had to work within what the Board had the availability to do. (Clinic B-C02)
Flexibility has been eroded where it once existed. In some clinics, flexibility is based on long term, trust-based relationships between funders and clinic administrators. These relationships can however be eroded as a result of attrition (either with the clinic, the funder or both).
And I think we’ve always had a really good working relationship with the person assigned to manage our contract. And actually a week ago, the first time, the earliest ever we had a meeting with our funding person and so it was, they really wanted to get out in front of the budget process of [our main funder] to make sure that if anything happened within these strained times that there might be something they can float our way in terms of assisting our growth. (Clinic A-C01)
[W]e had to get rezoning for two of the clinics from the city. So we ended up, we had a conversation with our Ministry person at the time who said don’t worry about it just go ahead and do it. And, of course, that person changed… you see where I’m going with this? So it’s been an ongoing discussion with the Ministry about how do we settle up and finally last year … after three plus years [we] finally got sorted out how much money was actually due back to the Ministry… And so last year finally that big cheque was the money that had been sitting in our bank account that we knew had to be returned, some of it, we didn’t know the amount, finally got sorted out. (Clinic B-C03)
Opportunities to innovate to ensure continued responsiveness to the community’s needs are at times thwarted by siloed thinking on the part of funders, and the lack of value attached to CHCs. For example, one CHC was approached by a family physician who wanted to retire and who wanted the CHC to take over his caseload, a significant number of whom had complex health issues and challenges accessing health care. Initial meetings with the CHC’s primary government funder, who also, through the provincial health insurance plan, funds family physicians being paid on a fee-for-service basis, seemed promising. However, after over a year of discussions, including the CHC developing a business plan, the funder decided to transfer the funding to another fee-for-service based provider group:
So why is the [CHC] not an option, why are we just thrown away again and the [family health team] will get the money because that’s what they always do? (Clinic B-C01)
But we, we become I don’t know jaded or whatever you want to call it over the years when, you know, the community money that’s to come to the [primary funder] goes to the [hospitals] each year, right? Like they get about five million and its always a priority, [the hospital] is always in deficit but … are there’s probably ten, twenty of us [CHCs] that will be in deficit this year, the older centers. (Clinic B-C01)
All the CHCs we studied received the vast majority of their funding from government agencies (over 90%). While unallocated funding under primary contracts must generally be returned to the funder at year-end, CHCs are responsible for any deficits. Opportunities exist to seek alternative funding sources such as competing for project dollars or fundraising, but all recognized this as problematic.
[W]e had made some decisions several years ago that we weren’t going to be forced to be in competition with our, with our colleagues and with our sister organizations. (Clinic A-C01)
CHCs might collaborate with other NGOs to decide which agency is best positioned to apply for funding and eliminate opportunities for funders to use competition. While competition is not necessarily problematic, it does pit NGOs against NGOs and can undermine relationships among those who also must collaborate to ensure that community members can access a broad range of services that fit their needs. A competition-based process also leads NGOs, and in this case CHCs, to spend considerable time on writing proposals that may not be funded. Finally, many calls for proposals relevant to NGOs and CHCs are for relatively small pots of funding.
[W]e’re very deliberately not looking for a lot of proposals or one time funding due to our [in]ability to manage that. So every little additional funding comes with reporting, we’ve kind of reached our maximum on our ability to do all those reports. Nor do we like hiring people for a year and then terminating their employment… (Clinic B-C01).
I mean a lot of the other [CHCs] fundraise, a lot of the other [CHCs] have foundations, we’ve looked down that avenue a bit but we find, you know, in a little town you’re competing with the other people that need the money so that really defeats some of the community good will right? [W]e looked into the foundation this past year but we didn’t decide to go in that direction … [Also] we don’t have proposal writers or people looking at opportunities for money, if you will. So I mean… something [we] might have to focus on is trying to find some sustainable [funding], but [this] is not that easy to find, right? So I try to go more for base funding so I’ve written four or five business cases to [our funder] … just lately for an integrated chronic disease team to help with a little bit more money there. I’ve written, you know, for salaries, I’ve written for the roof, I wrote for a memory team, I can see the trend of dementia increasing and no resources for that. (Clinic B-C01)
A key need expressed by the CHCs was to access capital funding to secure and maintain facilities. Contracts that frame the funded services as essential may support the retrofitting of facilities, and provide upkeep funding. This was the case when the funders clearly saw the CHC as an extension of the local healthcare system. In contexts where this was not the case (three out of four sites in our study), fundraising was key to survival. Where fundraising is not possible (given the community served), sustainability can be compromised.
We have two people dedicated to fundraising and communications because they’re so inter-related. Right now a big focus of our fundraising efforts, though, is on our capital campaign for building housing and that’s where my time gets spent. (Clinic C-C01)
Yeah no capital reserves. I had to create four exam rooms on my own budget; like I’ve got no money for that, right? So I created more exam rooms to try to be more efficient; you just try and it’s not the best way to operate without any kind of reserve for, for maintenance... (Clinic B-C01)
Funding mechanisms are not structured to be responsive to emergent priorities
Although each clinic was founded in response to a given set of unmet needs, the breadth and complexity of those needs has continued to expand and shift. For example, one clinic began to explicitly serve Indigenous people, but insisted on an inclusive mandate, serving all people living in poverty in the community. CHC mandates inherently mean that people who are not well served by the broader system are increasingly funneled to them.
When we actually tracked the health and social issues that these people were presenting with, on average there were between three and sixteen… [S]o one problem at a time is not going to do it for this population and you cannot separate social issues from health issues because they intertwine... And what we did actually that really caught the politicians, is we reduced ER visits by 50 % in the initial project… I mean it was, it was so easy because they had nowhere else to go. And they had no physicians who would take them on, you know, because they’re too complicated… And in addition to that they, they went to walk-in clinics and, of course, they have complex issues so there’s no continuity of care. And they go to ERs and they’d get almost thrown out. (Clinic B- C02, emphasis added)
The CHCs understand that operationalizing their mandate and equity orientation requires them to identify existing and emergent health and social conditions that create inequities in order to advocate and provide care tailored to the needs of local populations. Consequently, the populations they serve also expand and shift. In addition, they become the clinic serving more complex and challenging populations. This is not necessarily problematic, if matched with appropriate resourcing. One leader explained how funding flexibility allowed them to adapt to needs.
[W]e welcome persons with disabilities and we, our funding model does allow for that collaboration of team members to, to work on case conferencing and work on the best for the client. So I think we’re lucky that way… (Clinic D-C01)
Paradoxically, trust in CHCs’ ability to meet the complex needs of marginalized populations allows other service providers (fee-for-service physicians, publicly funded PHC access clinics) to redirect complex patients to CHCs, and divest themselves of the responsibility to provide care to these people. This redirection may be financially advantageous to service providers, and problematic for the CHC, unless associated with adequate resourcing. Redirection is at times also actively and explicitly pursued by government-funders, requiring CHCs to redesign programs and processes to adapt to new locales or populations (Clinic Z-001). Rarely is the redirecting bi-directional, in part because there is no incentive for family physicians and other providers to take on complex patients, and in part because the role of the CHCs in sharing how the models of care they develop can be adopted by other providers is not recognized, funded nor systematized. For example, one of our partners discussed how the introduction of a new service in an urban area near the original, rurally-based, CHC was initially intended to be a sharing of approaches that would be implemented by other providers, and how this focus shifted over time, leaving then inappropriately funded to operate multiple communities:
So we’re very small staff as you know... But it was a whole new community, it was an urban community, you know, we were from the country… so it meant a whole new relationship building with a whole bunch of new partners [and], you know, we hadn’t been part of that group before. And it came with no additional administrative support so that was another… so that was okay because we didn’t think we were going to be there to run it, we were just getting it going. But then when it ended up that it was put under our umbrella that was significant so we had to relook at how we operated everything, right? And the next year then [another community] came so it was back-to-back years of capital and new communities so that was significant. (Clinic D-C01, emphasis added)
In some cases, CHCs are able to refer patients to other CHCs set up to support specific populations. A key condition for this to occur is the co-existence of multiple CHCs, each serving distinct populations.
[N]ow there is a youth clinic here in the city that we encourage youth to [attend]… we certainly see, you know, a few youth here but we certainly encourage the youth to go to the youth clinic. (Clinic C-C01)
However, this is unlikely to occur in rural and even northern urban centres where surplus provider capacity is scarce.
These kinds of redirecting – to CHCs and between CHCs – or funnelling, is dynamic within constantly shifting systems and contexts, and changes as new issues become championed within the broader healthcare system (for example frail elders, dementia, diabetes, refugees) while others remain hidden or less attractive as a basis for social policy initiatives (for example, HIV transmission among people who use IV drugs, the opioid crisis).
CHCs are somewhat more agile than their counterparts that are directly embedded and financed within the healthcare system, and thus CHCs are better able to recognize emerging needs and respond. This was the case in the late 1980s in the context of the HIV crisis, and is now apparent as Canada opens its doors to a significant number of refugees. Through their community relationships, the CHCs we studied significantly expanded the healthcare system’s capacity to effectively respond to emerging needs, and were able to alert funders and governments to emergent issues. As such they play an essential, sentinel, role in any equity-oriented healthcare system.
This function can, however, be undermined by funding models that dis-incentivize taking on complex clients, or are coopted by funders who may be tempted to depend on CHCs for stopgap measures, while overlooking that CHCs can serve a key role in providing models for and educating other providers to increase the overall equity capacity of the healthcare system. Thus pathways between funding and emerging priorities tend to be reactive to crises, rather than proactive.
The ambiguous and underdeveloped role of CHCs within healthcare systems
Our findings show that CHCs have an essential role to play in increasing equity in the broader healthcare system, pointing to four key roles: first, CHCs are sentinels of inequity. Their commitment to meeting the needs of the community makes them more likely to become aware of inequities, or emerging vulnerable populations, and of healthcare crises. Second, CHCs are better equipped to develop care responses that fit with the evolving needs and contexts of local populations. This is partly due to their agility (i.e., ability to respond quickly) but also to their connection with the community, which can result in community-driven or at least community-informed innovations. Once new needs have been identified, CHCs are (or at least should be) able to advocate to the larger healthcare system to ensure that emerging needs are recognized and met. Finally, CHCs are well equipped to educate the healthcare system in the development of a system-wide response to new needs. Our data also show that this last role is rarely enacted, because of lack of recognition, resources and time. Other roles remain under-operationalized.
The CHCs we studied saw their populations shift and expand, at times through choices made by the clinics (such as a recognition of the need to include people with disabilities) but often out of necessity (such as in response to an influx of newcomers, and in the absence of other health care sector responses). While they were able to develop some responses to meet emerging needs, they did so with limited resources, which strained their ability to deliver current services, and protect staff and leaders from burnout. Our analysis shows that the CHCs were not in a position to educate the broader system regarding the system-level responses to the needs of vulnerable and underserved populations. If this happened, the CHCs could play an essential transformative role in the healthcare system. This role was unrealized largely because CHCs are positioned in the healthcare system as “lesser than” formal care structures. As a result, opportunities to exchange ideas simply did not exist.
The CHCs we studied fit well within a number of theories discussed earlier in this paper, namely,
heterogeneity theory: all 4 CHCs emerged to provide services that complemented those that existed but served specific populations poorly;
trust theory: all 4 CHCs developed relationships with the communities they served and legitimately claimed a closer, trust-based relationship with their clients;
supply-side theory: the urban-based CHCs were able to draw on a skilled workforce to meet their human resource needs; and
welfare state and rural theories: all were filling important service gaps left by government-sponsored services.
While a good explanatory fit, these theoretical framings provide little direction on how to operationalize and promote CHCs’ equity role in healthcare systems. Salamon’s interdependency theory [41] offers some promise. Three decades ago, Salamon framed the relationship between the US welfare state and the NGO sector as a partnership, where governments are best positioned to provide a steady stream of resources, set priorities, articulate high-level values for which systems must strive, and institute quality control standards. In contrast, NGOs are better able to personalize services, operate on a smaller scale, and adjust care to needs rather to the structure of government agencies ([41], p. 42). These roles are inherently incomplete in themselves, hence complementary.
More recently, Svidroňová and colleagues’ study of 60 NGOs in Slovakia concluded that interdependency theory best explains the role the NGO sector plays in the delivery of social goods [42], including the enhancement of equity. An empirical study by Lecy and van Slyke [43] which tested Weisbrod’s government failure or heterogeneity theory against Salamon’s interdependency theory found that the NGO sector is stronger when NGOs have a robust interdependent relationship with government-funders. State-NGO interdependence requires a facilitating relationship. An important body of literature has emerged reporting on the nature of this relationship (see for examples, [44–46]), but this literature remains largely descriptive and has not yet addressed the following question: given interdependence, how should the relationship be structured to ensure that the NGO sector can achieve its equity mandate? Brinkerhoff [47] has argued that State-NGO relationships require a high degree of mutuality, manifested by coordination, joint decision-making and mutual accountability, and the maintenance of organizational identity. This in our view requires a policy enabling environment.
It is our position that, in order for healthcare systems to fully realize CHCs’ equity potential, five policy conditions must be met:
System-wide recognition of the unique equity-enhancing role that CHCs play, including understanding how they complement other state-sponsored services;
Availability and use of performance indicators that map onto the needs and issues most salient to local populations to ensure accountability for the use of public funds;
Resourcing to support innovation and responsiveness to community needs, to capitalize on CHCs’ agility;
Feedback pathways to ensure a system-wide understanding of emerging needs; and
System uptake of appropriate models of care for specific populations.
We recognize some obvious limitations to our study. We studied 4 CHCs operating it the Canadian context. Although we are aware of the generalizability of our findings to other settings (elsewhere in Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Colombia, and to a lesser extent, Niger), we cannot claim generalizability across the full diversity of CHCs. We recognize that a key feature discussed in this paper is the role of the government-funder which shapes accountabilities of the CHCs. Arguably, CHCs funded through philanthropic means, by their membership, faith-based organizations or other means will face different power relations with their funders, and different forms of accountabilities. Still, we believe that CHCs operating in LMIC, which are less likely to be government-funded and therefore closely regulated, are likely be undermine by a lack of system-wide recognition, are vulnerable if unable to track their performance in the delivery of social goods, require adequate funding to deliver on their mandate, can play an invaluable role in providing up to date information to government on emerging issues, and are fertile ground for the development of innovations that might benefit other providers. We however recognize that these propositions are at this point speculative, and require testing in LMIC.
The NGO sector, including the CHCs that we studied, has been shown effective at addressing inequities through innovation [48]. CHCs are an integral part of health systems design, and require a policy enabling environment to achieve their equity potential. To date, in the Canadian context, the federal and provincial governments have promoted the CHC model as key to addressing the healthcare and social care needs of vulnerable populations, and of those poorly served by other service providers, but have not provided adequate mechanisms to support CHCs in achieving this mandate.
The situation is not unique to Canada. We and others have document have similar issues in other contexts (Australia, New Zealand, Colombia). We believe that although there may be some nuances, this is also the case in many other HICs and LMIC. We believe that CHCs have an invaluable goal in the pursuit of equity, and in the pursuit of some if not all Millennium Development Goals [49].3 Their role must however be supported by policy. A supportive policy environment has yet to emerge. The recommendations we offer are a starting point governments and funders can use to develop a more supportive policy environment for CHCs, in the pursuit of health equity.
More research is however needed to develop better typologies of CHCs across HICs and LMICs. Further, additional work is required to refine our recommendations to ensure a good fit with this complex context.
The terms ‘marginalization’ or ‘marginalized’ refer to the marginalizing conditions (social, political and economic) that create and sustain structural, social and health inequities, versus a characteristic that can be attributable to any particular population or group [1].
In Canada (and likely elsewhere), it was the CHCs and other NGOs who first reported the HIV epidemics in the 1980s, and who were positioned or created to respond to those affected. The same has been said of the opioid crisis.
which include (1) the eradication of extreme poverty and hunger; (2) the achievement universal primary education; (3) the promotion of gender equality and empower women; (4) the reduction of child mortality; (5) the improvement of maternal health; (6) combatting HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases; (7) ensuring environmental sustainability; and (8) developing a global partnership for development.
CHC:
Community health center
EOCH:
Equity-oriented health care
HIC:
Higher income countries
LMIC:
Lower and middle income countries
NGO:
Not-for-profit organization
PHC:
Our research team thanks the four clinics for sharing their perspectives and for enabling us to conduct this research. We would like to thank all the members of the EQUIP Primary Health Care team, with special thanks to Joanne Parker, Janina S. Krabbe, and Phoebe Long for their outstanding contributions as research managers on the EQUIP research program.
The EQUIP Research Program is funded through a Canadian Institutes of Health Research Operating Grant: Programmatic Grants to Tackle Health and Health Equity [#ROH-115210] (www.cihr.irsc.gc.ca). CIHR did not contribute to the design of the study, data collection, analysis, interpretation of data nor in writing the manuscript.
The datasets used/or analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on.
reasonable request.
AJB is the nominated PI for the EQUIP research program, MFG, CNW, CV are co-PIs, and JL is a co-I. JL led the development and writing of this manuscript. CV, AJB, MFG, and CNW contributed to the ongoing development of the final manuscript. The additional EQUIP Research Team members provided input into the overall conceptualization and operationalization of this research program. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.
Ethical approval was received from the Behavioral Research Ethics Boards of UBC (H12–02994) and UWO (103357).
All participants completed an informed consent process.
Department of Community Health Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Manitoba, Ongomiizwin Research, 715 John Buhler Research Centre, 727 McDermot Ave, Winnipeg, MB, R3E 3P5, Canada
School of Nursing, The University of British Columbia, T201-2211 Wesbrook Mall, Vancouver, BC, V6T 2B5, Canada
Centre for Research and Education on Violence against Women and Children, Faculty of Information & Media Studies, Western University, FIMS & Nursing Building, Room 2050, London, ON, N6A 5B9, Canada
Arthur Labatt Family School of Nursing, Western University, FIMS & Nursing Building, Room 3306, London, ON, N6A 5B9, Canada
Browne AJ, Varcoe C, Ford-Gilboe M, Wathen N, On behalf of the EQUIP research team. EQUIP healthcare: an overview of a multi-component intervention to enhance equity-oriented care in primary health care settings. Int J Equity Health. 2015;14:1–11.View ArticleGoogle Scholar
World Health Organisation. Primary health care: now more than ever. Geneva: World Health Organisation; 2008.Google Scholar
Lavoie JG. Patches of Equity: Policy and Financing of Indigenous Primary Health Care Providers in Canada, Australia and New Zealand. Health Care Financing. PhD Thesis, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, 2005.Google Scholar
Lavoie JG, Boulton AF, Dwyer J. Analysing contractual environments: lessons from indigenous health in Canada, Australia and New Zealand. Public Adm. 2010;88:665–79.View ArticlePubMedGoogle Scholar
Lavoie JG, Browne AJ, Varcoe C, Wong S, Fridkin A, Littlejohn D, Tu D. Missing pathways to self-governance: aboriginal health policy in British Columbia. Int Indigenous Policy J. 2015;5:article 2.Google Scholar
Aiken M, Bode I. Killing the golden goose? Third sector organizations and back-to-work programmes in Germany and the UK. Soc Policy Adm. 2009;43:209–25.View ArticleGoogle Scholar
Smith SR, Smyth J. The governance of contracting relationships: “killing the golden goose” - a third sector perspective. In: Osborne S, editor. The new public governance?: emerging perspectives on the theory and practice of public governance. London: Routledge; 2010. p. 270–300.Google Scholar
Tenbensel T, Dwyer J, Lavoie JG. How not to kill the golden goose: Reconceptualising accountability relationships in community-based third sector organisations. Public Adm Rev. 2013;16:925–44.Google Scholar
Renaud M. Les réformes québécoises de la santé ou les aventures d’un Etat “narcissique”. In: Bozzini L, editor. Médecine et Société, les Années 80. Montréal: Ed. Coop Albert St-Martin; 1980. p. 513–49.Google Scholar
Weisbrod BA. Toward a theory of the voluntary nonprofit sector in a three-sector economy. In: Phelps E, editor. Altruism, morality and economic theory. New York: Russell Sage; 1975. p. 171–95.Google Scholar
Weisbrod BA. The nonprofit economy. Cambridge: Harvard University Press; 1988.Google Scholar
Boily-Larouche G, Du Plessis E, López L, Rueda Z, Rojas C, Mignone J. Determinants of maternal health services utilization in the Wayúu communities of Maicao, La Guajira, Colombia. A collaborative report between Anas Wayúu and International Infectious Diseases and Global Health Training Program. Winnipeg/Maicao: IID&GHTP; 2013.Google Scholar
Laaser U, Brand H. Global health in the 21st century. Glob Health Action. 2014;7:23694.View ArticlePubMedGoogle Scholar
Mignone J, Bartlett J, O'Neil J, Orchard T. Best practices in intercultural health: five case studies in Latin America. J Ethnobiol Ethnomed. 2007;3:31.View ArticlePubMedPubMed CentralGoogle Scholar
Mignone J, Nállim J, Gómez Vargas H. Indigenous control over health care in the midst of neoliberal reforms in Colombia: an uneasy balance. Stud Polit Econ. 2011;87:15.Google Scholar
Dwyer J, Boulton A, Lavoie JG, Tenbensel T, Cumming J. Indigenous peoples’ health care: new approaches to contracting and accountability at the public administration frontier. Public Manage Rev. 2014;16:1091–112.View ArticleGoogle Scholar
Lavoie JG. Governed by contracts: the development of indigenous primary health services in Canada, Australia and New Zealand. J Aborig Health. 2004;1:6–24.Google Scholar
Weeks J, Aggleton P, Mckevitt C, Parkinson K, Taylor-Laybourn A, Weeks J. Community and contracts: tensions and dilemmas in the voluntary sector response to HIV and AIDS. J Policy Stud. 1996;17:107–23.View ArticleGoogle Scholar
Lane J-E. From-long term to short-term contracting. Public Adm. 2001;79:29–47.View ArticleGoogle Scholar
Browne AJ, Lavoie J, Smye V, Varcoe C, Wong S, et. al: Improving Access to Primary Health Care: Lessons from Two Urban Aboriginal Health Centres. Research funded by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research 2009.Google Scholar
Dwyer J, Boulton A, Lavoie JG, Tenbensel T, Cumming J. Indigneous peoples’ health care: new approaches to contracting and accountability. Public Manag Rev. 2014;16:1091–112.View ArticleGoogle Scholar
Dwyer J, O'Donnell K, Lavoie J, Marlina U, Sullivan P. The overburden project: Funding and Regulation of Primary Health Care for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. Adelaide: Lowitja Institute; 2009. pp. 1–78.Google Scholar
Lavoie JG. Policy and practice options for equitable access to primary healthcare for indigenous peoples in British Columbia and Norway. Int Indigenous Policy J. 2014;5:1–17.View ArticleGoogle Scholar
Mignone J, Gómez Vargas JH. Health care organizations in Colombia: an indigenous success story within a system in crisis. AlterNative. 2015;11:9.View ArticleGoogle Scholar
Overman S, Van Genugten M, Van Thiel S. Accountability after structural disaggregation: comparing agency accountability arrangements. Public Adm. 2015;93:1102–20.View ArticleGoogle Scholar
Browne AJ, Varcoe C, Lavoie JG, Smye VL, Wong ST, Krause M, Tu D, Godwin O, Khan KB, Fridkin A. Enhancing health care equity with indigenous populations: evidence-based strategies from an ethnographic study. BMC Health Serv Res. 2016;16:1–17.View ArticleGoogle Scholar
Browne AJ, Varcoe C, Wong ST, Smye VL, Lavoie JG, Littlejohn D, Tu D, Godwin O, Krause M, Khan KB, et al. Closing the health equity gap: evidence-based strategies for primary health care organizations. Int J Equity Health. 2012;11:1–15.View ArticleGoogle Scholar
Wong ST, Browne AJ, Varcoe C, Lavoie J, Smye VL, Fridkin A, Godwin O, Tu D. Development of health equity indicators in primary health care organizations using a modified Delphi. PLoS One. 2014;9:1–15.Google Scholar
Wong ST, Browne AJ, Varcoe C, Lavoie JG, Smye VL, Godwin O, Littlejohn D, Tu D. Enhancing measurement of primary health care indicators using an equity lens: an ethnographic study. Int J Equity Health. 2011;10:38.View ArticlePubMedPubMed CentralGoogle Scholar
Ponic P, Varcoe C, Smutylo T. Trauma- (and violence-) informed approaches to supporting victims of violence: Policy and practice considerations. In: Victims of Crime Research Digest No 9. Ottawa: Department of Justice, Government of Canada; 2016.Google Scholar
Salamon LM, Anheier HK. Social origins of civil society: Explaining the nonprofit sector cross-nationally. Baltimore: The johns Hospkins Comparative Nonprofit Sector Project; 1996.Google Scholar
Hansmann HB. The ownership of enterprise. Cambridge: The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press; 1996.Google Scholar
James E. The nonprofit sector in international perspective: studies in comparative culture and policy. New York: Oxford University Press; 1989.Google Scholar
Salamon LM, Anheier HK. Defining the nonprofit sector: a cross-national analysis. Manchester: Manchester University Press; 1996.Google Scholar
Valentinov V. Third sector organizations in rural development: a transaction cost perspective. Agric Food Sci. 2009;18:3–15.View ArticleGoogle Scholar
Phillips S, Levasseur K. The snakes and ladders of accountability: contradictions between contracting and collaboration for Canada’s voluntary sector. Can Public Adm. 2004;47:451–74.View ArticleGoogle Scholar
Kenny NP, Giacomini M. Wanted: a new ethics field for health policy analysis. Health Care Anal. 2005;13:247–60.View ArticlePubMedGoogle Scholar
Weber L. Reconstructing the landscape of health disparities research: Promoting dialogue and collaboration between feminist intersectional and biomedical paradigms. In: Schulz AJ, Mullings L, editors. Gender, Race, Class and Health: Intersectional Approaches. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass; 2006. p. 21–59.Google Scholar
Public Health Agency of Canada. Core competencies for public health in Canada: Release 1.0. Ottawa: Public Health Agency of Canada; 2007.Google Scholar
Browne AJ, Varcoe C, Ford-Gilboe M, Wathen N, Smye V, Lavoie JG, Wallace B, Pauly B, Herbert C, Wong S, Blanchet Garneau A: Disruption as opportunity: Impacts of an organizational-level health equity intervention in primary care clinics. International Journal for Equity in Health, in press.Google Scholar
Salamon LM. Of market failure, voluntary failure, and third-party government: toward a theory of government-nonprofit relations in the modern welfare state. Nonprofit Volunt Sect Q. 1987;16:29–49.Google Scholar
Svidronova MM, Vacekova G, Valentinov V. The theories of non-profits: a reality check from Slovakia. Lex Localis-Journal of Local Self-Government. 2016;14:399–418.View ArticleGoogle Scholar
Lecy JD, Van Slyke DM. Nonprofit sector growth and density: testing theories of government support. J Public Adm Res Theory. 2013;23:189–214.View ArticleGoogle Scholar
Batley R, Rose P. Analysing collaboration between non-governmental service providers and governments. Public Adm Dev. 2011;31:230–9.View ArticleGoogle Scholar
Mcloughlin C. Factors affecting state-non-governmental organisation relations in service provision: key themes from the literature. Public Adm Dev. 2011;31:240–51.View ArticleGoogle Scholar
Batley R. Structures and strategies in relationships between non-government service providers and governments. Public Adm Dev. 2011;31:306–19.View ArticleGoogle Scholar
Brinkerhoff JM. Donor-funded government–NGO partnership for public service improvement: cases from India and Pakistan. Volunt Int J Volunt Nonprofit Org. 2003;14:105–22.View ArticleGoogle Scholar
Lavoie JG, Kornelsen D, Wylie L, Mignone J, Dwyer J, Boyer Y, Boulton A, O’Donnell K. Responding to health inequities: indigenous health system innovations. Global Health, Epidemiology and Genomics. 2016;1:e14.View ArticlePubMedPubMed CentralGoogle Scholar
United Nations. The Millennium Development Goals Report 2015. New York: United Nations; 2015.Google Scholar
Health policy, reform, governance and law
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line10951
|
__label__wiki
| 0.512202
| 0.512202
|
TransCanada to buy Pennsylvania natural gas power plant from Talen Energy
October 8, 2015 9:58 AM The Associated Press0 Comments
CALGARY – TransCanada Corp. (TSX:TRP) has reached a deal to buy a gas-burning power plant in Pennsylvania for US$654 million from Talen Energy Corp., which is divesting some of its holdings to comply with regulatory requirements.
Calgary-based TransCanada says the 778-megawatt Ironwood power plant in Lebanon, Penn., is a natural extension of its power business in the U.S. Northeast region, where the company now has over 4,500 megawatts of generating capacity.
The plant is near the Marcellus shale formation, a source of competitively priced natural gas.
In a separate transaction, Talen Energy is selling two of its hydroelectric plants in Pennsylvania to Brookfield Renewable Energy Partners, which will pay US$860 million.
Brookfield Renewable (TSX:BEP.UN) will gain additional generating capacity totalling 292 megawatts. The 252-MW Holtwood station, on the Susquehanna River, is 13 kilometres downstream from Brookfield’s 417-MW Safe Harbor facility.
All of Brookfield’s output from the Pennsylvania plants is sold to the PJM regional power grid that serves 61 million customers across 13 states and the District of Columbia.
Talen is selling the power plants as part of a larger divestment required after the company was spun off in June from PPL Corp., an energy and utility company with holdings in the United Kingdom and several regions of the United States.
TransCanada — better known for its pipeline business — says the Ironwood acquisition will immediately add to earnings and cash flow and generate about US$90 to $110 million in earnings a year before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization.
It will fund the acquisition with a combination of cash on hand and available credit. That deal is expected to close in the first quarter of 2016.
Brookfield Renewable, part of one of Canada’s largest asset management groups, said it would fund a portion of the transation from an investment-grade debt offering that will close with the transaction.
The transactions are subject to various approvals and are expected to close in the first quarter of 2016.
Marcellus TransCanada
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line10952
|
__label__wiki
| 0.543364
| 0.543364
|
An Environmental Scientist at Xi’an Jiaotong-Liverpool University warns that Fracking is “Inconsistent” with Climate Change Mitigation Policies
December 10, 2015 1:45 AM CNW
LONDON, Dec. 10, 2015 /CNW/ — As ministers from around the world gather at COP21 in Paris in a bid to come to an agreement on a new global climate compact, an environmental scientist from Xi’an Jiaotong-Liverpool University has warned that the controversial method of fracking, which is being investigated by many countries as an alternative fuel source, is inconsistent with climate change mitigation policies.
Dr Philip Staddon, from the Department of Environmental Science at XJTLU, warns that fracking contributes both directly and indirectly to greenhouse gas emissions and, despite being “dubiously” portrayed as environmentally friendly, delays the transition to a low carbon future.
Hydraulic fracturing for shale gas, or fracking, is the process of drilling down into the earth before a high-pressure water mixture is directed at the rock to release the gas inside. The desire for short-term (next 30 years) energy security has re-invigorated investment in fossil fuel technologies and led to a North American boom in fracking, as well as protests by environmental campiagners against the technique.
In an academic opinion piece for Environmental Science & Technology, co-authored with Professor Michael Depledge from the European Centre for Environment and Human Health, Dr Staddon states that addressing climate change and meeting the world’s energy needs are two of the greatest challenges that societies face, and that the search for inexpensive and plentiful energy supplies appears to be at odds with climate change mitigation commitments.
Evidence suggests that recent climate change arises primarily from human activities that release greenhouse gas emissions, including carbon dioxide, and methane, into the atmosphere.
“Lowering greenhouse emissions requires reduced dependence on fossil fuels, rendering…the search for new sources of oil and gas particularly perverse,” writes Dr Staddon in the piece.
“Expanding fossil fuel extraction capabilities sends the message that rapid climate change mitigation is neither urgent nor essential.”
The opinion piece highlights that the carbon footprint of shale gas carbon is very similar to that of coal when compared over 100 years and that evidence contradicts the view that shale gas is a “clean” or “environmentally friendly” energy source.
“The dangers posed by “greenwashing” shale gas as a route to climate change mitigation, are well documented. It is unimaginable that oil and coal reserves will be left in the ground, therefore shale gas represents an additional source of greenhouse gas emissions,” writes Dr Staddon.
Dr Staddon, whose research looks at the response of ecosystems to environmental change, especially climate change, added: “Government ministers are meeting at COP21 to discuss worldwide limits to greenhouse emissions, yet fracking for shale gas will extend the fossil fuel age, increase the costs of mitigation and drive up the cost of adaptation required to support human societies in a less hospitable climate. The negative financial impacts on economies and to human health will be externalised and borne by those often poorer societies most affected by climate change.”
SOURCE Xi’an Jiaotong-Liverpool University
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line10953
|
__label__wiki
| 0.640498
| 0.640498
|
The Pain Will Return
A French postcard from 1917 entitled ‘Chemin des Dames’
EVER SINCE THE Somme, the contest on the Western Front had felt inconclusive. Bloody and costly, always, but inconclusive. Both sides knew it.
In recent weeks and months, it had even felt that the Germans might, finally, be getting ground down. But no longer: on 10th July, they mounted an intense bombardment and did serious damage to two British battalions in the Nieuport region, capturing over 1,000 prisoners. Survivors stated that between 70 and 80 per cent of their strength had become casualties under the German artillery fire.
The British were on to them at once, driving the enemy back from their advanced positions, and repelling further attacks the following day. A couple of days’ hefty fighting followed which reverted to the typical to-and-fro of recent times, and German efforts to gain ground at Mont Haut at Moronvilliers came to nothing. A sort of mirror-image drama was meanwhile unfolding east of Reims, in which the French captured a German trench system on 14th July but then found themselves having to fight off powerful German sorties on the Chemin des Dames.
All in all, it was an unnerving time for Britain and France. German artillery was clearly massing which, at the very least, suggested that Allied plans for a forthcoming offensive had not gone unnoticed. Any lingering doubts on that subject were dispelled by 15th July – the day Allied guns heralded the start of what was known, in official speak, as the Third Battle of Ypres. To later generations, it bore the emotive name of Passchendaele.
Haig – a photograph taken from this time
The reluctance of politicians to commit explicitly to the battle was the stuff of farce. Haig wanted the go-ahead – that much was clear – and he wanted the French to give all the support of which they were capable. The governments of both nations, for their part, most assuredly wanted the glory which would accrue in the event of triumph. On the other hand, British ministers lived in quivering fear of any repetition of the Somme, while only short weeks distanced French leaders from the mutiny which had followed the failure of the Nivelle Offensive.
Even now, the Cabinet did not officially sanction the offensive and Haig was also awaiting corroboration of French intentions. On 10th July, Robertson told him that:
Painlevé assures me… that the French Army will be able to assist us by attacking on its own front, and that the French Government intends that it should do so.
President Poincaré visited G.H.Q. that same day and, so Robertson claimed, had been “profuse in his good wishes for the success of our future offensive”.
Such effusions were about as useful, militarily and diplomatically, as a sack of potato peelings. So was the fact that, on 14th July, Haig had been awarded the Order of the Thistle by the King. In terms of honour and dignity, this ranked only just below the Garter, but it offered no obvious protection against enemy fire.
Meanwhile, thousands of soldiers were receiving more orthodox preparation. On 15th July, Private Reg Lawrence, with the South African Brigade in Rouen, described life at Etaples – home of the notorious “bullring”, the brutal training ground for recruits used by the British army:
We are put through our paces at the Bull Ring — a huge sandy arena about two miles square where Napoleon trained his Army of Occupation before his last attempt to invade England. The instructors gave us a lively time of it with bayonet fighting — ‘Gnash-your-teeth-show-the-whites-of-your-eyes-and-look-as-if-you-mean-it’! We spent a charming day killing straw Germans (with real Kaiser Bill moustaches) suspended by chains.
A somewhat sanitised view of bayonet practice in the Bull Ring
Those already seasoned fighters, especially officers, often faced more worry, but less privation. Recalling his own journey for battle-readiness Captain G.D. Horridge, of the Lancashire Fusiliers, touched on different sensibilities:
We soon learned that we were marked down for battle, and officers were given three days’ leave to Paris. Addresses were handed by those that had been to those that were going and my bit of seeing life cost me £71 for three days. £24 a day seems a lot of money, but we hadn’t any immediate use for money. We knew we were going to Ypres and we knew the odds would probably be against us coming out… I went with another officer and we went to an address near the Eiffel Tower.
There was a girl, of course – in his own words, “a most beautiful girl”.
Cécilie was eighteen and came from Le Havre. The three days went by in visiting Versailles, the Opéra once or twice, going to the best restaurants, buying Cécilie a hat and generally living it up…
But military realities obtruded, eventually. And so, too, commercial ones:
We had to return to the battalion by the midnight train on the third evening. We went to the Opéra and when the time came to go to the station, Cécilie said she would like to come to see me off, but if she did, business would cease for the night and she would make no money. I suppose one couldn’t blame her…
The pathos is almost unbearable. Given what was happening back at the front, his little bursts of extravagance seem only too understandable. Captain A.F.P. Christison, MC, of the 6th Battalion, Queen’s Own Cameron Highlanders, recorded in his diary on Friday 13th July that:
I was going round my forward trench when the Germans started shelling steadily, but with small stuff, and we could not understand why the shells all seemed to be duds. One shell landed in my trench almost beside me and did not burst — just a sort of plop. I felt a burning sensation just above my right knee and heard the man next to me cough and retch. I realised this was something odd and shouted ‘Gas’ and quickly put on my respirator. The gas alarm immediately sounded and, as we were good at our gas drill, only five or six of my Company were gassed.
So far, not perhaps so terrible. But then:
Captain Rowan heard the gas alarm and his men put on respirators. After wearing them for some time in the heat of the morning and no attack developing they thought the original alarm was false as no gas had been smelt. What they did not know was that this was mustard gas, had no smell, and had delayed action. The C Company trenches were saturated with the stuff and the whole Company was struck down. By nightfall every officer and man was either dead or in hospital.
In those days running up to the offensive, aerial warfare also assumed a new intensity. RFC Communiqué №96 of 15th July recorded that more fighting had taken place in the air on 12th July than on any day since the beginning of the war, with activity greatest over the British Fifth Army Front – the area under the command of Manfred von Richthofen. There was a name calculated to send fear coursing through the veins of any Allied airmen with the ambition to live a full span of life.
In fact, on the day in question, his pilots had logged eight kills, but their commander had not been with them to enjoy the sport. Two days earlier, he had been shot down, shortly after his 57th kill. As he wrote later:
Suddenly there was a blow to my head! I was hit! For a moment I was completely paralyzed… My hands dropped to the side, my legs dangled inside the fuselage. The worst part was that the blow on the head had affected my optic nerve and I was completely blinded. The machine dived down.
He was an exceptional pilot – courageous, as well as superbly skilled. He recovered his mobility and sight sufficiently to land his plane, and was rushed to hospital in Courtrai.
I had quite a respectable hole in my head, a wound of about ten centimetres across which could be drawn together later; but in one place clear white bone… remained exposed. My thick Richthofen head had once again proved itself. The skull had not been penetrated…
The wounded Manfred von Richtofen with his father
To the intense relief of their allies, Russian forces had also started in recent days to resume something resembling a credible war effort. Under the spirited generalship of Brusilov, they captured Halicz in Galicia on 10th July and pursued the Germans over the river Lomnica, taking 2,000 prisoners. On 12th July, General Kornilov crossed the Lomnica, and a further 1,400 Germans were added to the haul.
General Kornilov
This spurt of effort owed much to Kerensky, but it was unlikely, even then, to last. By the end of the week, the offensive had stumbled, leading to a withdrawal in Galicia. The operatically-named Women’s Battalion of Death proved conspicuous chiefly for its refusal to advance into battle, despite being ordered to do so. Eventually, 75 officers and 300 men asked to join the women and they charged together over the top when the signal was given. Once battle began, in fact, they all seemed to do rather well: portions of the Novospasskii Forest were taken and many of the earlier mutineers seemed to uncover in themselves a new martial ardour.
But then it all went wrong, in rather a depressing and predictable way. In the third line of enemy trenches, a stash of alcohol was discovered and the temptation for some of the occupying forces proved too great. Six German counter-attacks followed and the Russians lost all the ground they had gained. Fifty women were killed or wounded. The latter included the Death’s battalion’s leader, Maria Botchkareva, who was knocked unconscious when a shell exploded near her, and taken to a field hospital suffering from shell shock.
The captured Germans seem to have been taken by surprise by mixed-gender warfare: “Good God! Women! What a disgrace!”
The unorthodoxies of the Eastern Front were no more than a tame symptom of the far bigger problems faced by Russia at home, where the Provisional Government was failing hopelessly. Kerensky, for all his efforts to inspire his fellow countrymen to defeat the Germans, had long been overtaken by events.
The British Ambassador in Russia, Sir George Buchanan, continued to send home from Petrograd despatches which testified fully to the extent to which Russian “government” now lay at the mercy of disloyal troops, and myriad political factions.
10th July While we were at dinner, the Cossacks charged the Kronstadt sailors, who had gathered in the square by the Embassy, and sent them flying for their lives. The Cossacks then marched up the quay, but a little later got caught in a cross-fire and suffered heavy losses. We saw several riderless horses returning at full gallop, and a little later two Cossacks who were bringing back a prisoner were attacked under our windows and nearly murdered.
12th July The political atmosphere is such that he [Kerensky] does not venture to appeal to the troops to fight for victory, but for the speedy conclusion of peace. For peace is the universal desideratum.
Cossacks in 1917
The imperial prisoners, still held at the great palace at Tsarskoe Selo, must have seemed like visitors from a bygone age. They heard about only as much news as their captors chose to tell them, but their response to it seems to have been characterised by an uncomplicated patriotism which was already utterly out of tune with the times. Nicholas II wrote in his diary:
10 July I forgot to write that… our troops made another breakthrough and captured: 31 officers, 7,000 lower ranks and 48 cannons, including 12 heavy ones.
11 July Yesterday we took Gallich, together with 3,000 prisoners and about 30 cannons. Thank God!
Another diarist at the palace was Elizaveta Naryshkina, Mistress of the Robes. Her analysis of events was certainly partial, but much more sophisticated than that of her royal employer. On 11th July, she wrote:
Our troops continue to press forward. Kerensky is with them, trying to keep their martial spirits high. He greets the troops both on foot and mounted; sometimes he uses an automobile, at other times an airplane. His energy is amazing. He is the only man in the ranks of this awful government who has a head on his shoulders and a backbone. Nevertheless, the Socialist-Bolsheviks are the real rulers.
By contrast, Pierre Gilliard, Swiss tutor to the Tsar’s children, seems to have thought little beyond what was in front of his eyes. Still, on 15th July, that elicited a pleasing tableau:
Nothing new in our captivity. The only distraction is going outside. It is very hot, and for some days Alexei Nikolaevitch has been bathing in the pond around the children’s island. It is a great joy to him.
The Tsarevich Alexei swimming at Tsarskoe Selo, 1917
Good. There were precious few good moments available, and even fewer lay ahead.
Although unnoticed by those at Tsarskoe Selo, the Bolsheviks in Russia were also now showing their hand rather more. Kerensky noted on 15th July:
Upon arriving in Petrograd on urgent business for a few days, I realized that the most serious and decisive events of our time are moving ever closer. In the two months of my ceaseless travels around the front, the political atmosphere in Petrograd has changed dramatically.
The next day, he only just made it out of the city:
When I was leaving the capital, trucks began flashing by on Petrograd streets, full of unknown armed people. Some were driving around the barracks, calling soldiers to join the armed revolt that was expected at any moment… As soon as my train left the station, a truck drove up under a red flag that said, ‘First bullet for Kerensky’.
Also witness to these stirring events was the composer Sergei Prokofiev, who had just returned to Petrograd. He recalled that he had:
…dined at the Contan, where it is elegant and lively, and, despite the food crisis, you can eat well. True, the prices are insane, but the value of money gets cheaper every day, so why save it? As we walked through the streets in the evening we witnessed unexpected events: the streets were noisy, armed soldiers marched, crowds carried posters with ‘Down with the capitalist ministers’, private cars were stopped before our eyes, owners were asked to get out, and machine-guns were installed instead…
This was the start of the so-called July Days, often described as a failed Bolshevik coup. In reality, it was both more and less than that. The Bolsheviks were still pretenders to many in Russia, especially to those who believed themselves democrats, and even more to socialists.
Alexandra Kollontai
Alexandra Kollontai, one of their representatives at the Zimmerwald Conference currently underway in Stockholm, noted that socialists from some of the Allied countries refused to attend due to the presence of enemy delegates. For her, as a Bolshevik, such a nationalist perspective was hopeless. The proletariat was pan-national and indivisible. But any attempt to persuade other attendees of the errors of their ways seemed to her so much wasted breath. On 11th July, she noted:
…the overwhelming majority of the delegates view ‘Bolshevism’ with mistrust and bewilderment; the sanctity of the February Revolution and Kerensky’s popularity still hold great sway over the minds of our foreign comrades. Bolshevism scares them… To many it seems utopian; and more ‘sober’ and ‘experienced’ politicians perceive the Bolsheviks as childish. ‘Moreover’, they add, ‘you’re no more than a handful in number. The army, the peasants and the wider working masses will never follow you. They will not understand you.’
Truth was, a political crisis might have erupted almost anywhere just now. Indeed, it did so. On 14th July, the German Chancellor Bethmann-Hollweg resigned.
The Englishwomen, Princess Blucher, referred to the event in her diary:
The Chancellor’s position has been growing more and more critical. And his day has come. No one was satisfied with him… He is, in fact, the scapegoat for covering the faults of his lord and master. I have heard on pretty certain authority that the Kaiser gave his royal assent to Austria’s ultimatum to Serbia in 1914, without even mentioning this small matter to his Chancellor until it was an accomplished fact. Here the impulsiveness of his nature became a crime, and Bethmann, conscious of the fact that it was this consent which set the machinery of war in motion, has never been able to make the error good again, and has now made a final atonement, as he could not betray his royal master to the world…
Kaiser Wilhelm II in the latter stages of the war
There was not much to argue with there – nor with what came next:
The Kaiser is growing more and more the shadow of a king, and people talk openly of his abdication as a possibility very much desired. He gives in to all the demands of the Socialists, but at the same time makes so many palpable blunders and mistakes that a man in high office said only the other day, it looked almost as if the Emperor’s advisors were in the pay of England…
Political rumblings in England, for now, were confined to fallout which followed the report on the mismanagement of the Mesopotamian campaign. Following the criticisms levelled at him, the Secretary of State for India, Austen Chamberlain, resigned on 12th July. His principled stand, which proved an asset rather than a hindrance to his later career, was insufficient however to prevent an extremely lively debate in the Commons over the next two days.
Less newsworthy at the time, but of immense significance for the future, was the by-election in East Clare several days earlier, on 10th July. Greatly to the government’s chagrin, the Sinn Fein candidate had succeeded in defeating the Nationalist Party opponent and, thus, found himself elected a Member of Parliament. He had no intention, of course, of actually taking up his seat: the aim all along had been to discredit the legitimacy of British government in Ireland. The new MP’s name was Eamon de Valera.
Political hassles seem tame by the side of private grief – a commodity in which war abounds. Cynthia Asquith, daughter-in-law of the former Prime Minister, was still in the early throes of despair following the news that her admirer, Lord Basil Blackwood, had been missing in action since 3rd July. Her diary entries this week list emotions which conform entirely to the pathology of bereavement.
15th July The post has become a bitter pang. I cannot believe that I shall never have another of Basil’s letters. He has been a very great deal of the wind in my sails for the last five years. It is a hard thing to lose one’s tonic these days.
16th July Another lovely day. I am curiously intermittent — incapable of sustained emotions of any kind — and all day I felt a curious numbness and cessation of sorrowing — so much so that I was shocked by myself, but of course it is only a lucid interval. The pain will return.
Term: Chemin des Dames
Term: Ypres
Term: Alexander Kerensky
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line10962
|
__label__wiki
| 0.541494
| 0.541494
|
How do you deal with a corporate head office that doesn’t seem to understand the Canadian market?
Recent Channel Strategy Stories
The Reddit Recap – Microsoft partners rejoice, Azure Lighthouse, outgoing vendor challenges
Microsoft partners rejoice, and maintaining confidence in your solution even when an outgoing MSP gives you a hard time.
Microsoft responds to Internal Use Rights removal: we can’t afford it
UPDATE: Microsoft has retracted the decision to discontinue its Internal Use Right (IUR) program for its partners.
IBM and Red Hat partners can sleep soundly, executives say after mega deal closes
As IBM closed its $34 billion acquisition of Red Hat Tuesday, questions continued to swirl around the impact the move will have on partners and clients, which even IBM’s Arvind Krishna acknowledged was the “real challenge” ever since the deal was announced last October.
Channel Strategy Videos
Top Solution Provider of 2018: Softchoice – Interview with John Husband
All Hands on Tech – Fitbit Charge 3 review
Recap of Intel’s CPU announcements at CES 2019 – 10nm Cascade Lake, Ice Lake, and Nervana AI chip
Belkin’s new WeMo smart switches and Phyn Plus Smart Water Assistant – All Hands on Tech at CES 2019
Jabra’s new Elite 85h headphones & Evolve 65t wireless earbuds – All Hands on Tech at CES 2019
Take a tour inside Accenture’s new Canada Innovation Hub
All Hands on Tech – Anki Vector Robot full review
All Hands on Tech – Apple Homepod (full review)
Channel Strategy News
HP Officejet 6500A Plus e-All-in-One
The 6500A was an average performer in both print speed and quality
What partners can likely expect in the UC space
Plus, new Pavilion desktops from HP and Windows 7 market adoption
AMD’s Fusion processors to go into $200 laptops
AMD’s Fusion chips combine a CPU and graphics processor on a single piece of siliconrnrn
CES: Fast Chips, Android Tablets and More 3D
Intel’s Sandy Bridge chips, Android-based tablets and 3D cameras and TVs should take center stage at CES
Stream TV launches tablets with Google’s Android 3.0
The Elocity A10 models will be available for preorder on Jan. 17rnrn
Intel tracks 500 design wins for Sandy Bridge chips
Intel will display at least 28 Sandy Bridge chips at CES, and many desktop and laptop products containing the chipsrnrn
Five business tech trends to watch this year
Plus, Apple and the cloud and next-generation enterprise applications
Software industry New Year’s resolutions
Vendors, integrators, developers and end-users could all use a little change
Meet CDN’s Top Newsmakers of 2010
Meet the first 12 of CDN’s Top 25 Newsmakers of 2010
Trend Micro Titanium Internet Security 2011
More advanced users may want to look elsewhere for a suite that offers more fine-tuned controls
Intel’s upcoming Core chips to secure streaming movies
Intel is also adding specialized hardware accelerators to quickly encode and decode video, a feature called Quick Sync
Five 2010 stories that nobody predicted
Who’d have predicted it? Google gets hacked, Russian hackers get busted, Stuxnet scares everyone
Lenovo to show first tablets at CES
Lenovo will show two tablets at CES as it tries to make its mark on the growing market
Hosting company seeks partners for SaaS platform for ISVs
Partnership allows ISVs to save time and money with SaaS migration and delivery
Tablets, 4G and auto-tech to lead CES
The world’s biggest tech show kicks off later this week in Las Vegas
23456789101112131415161718192021222324252627282930313233343536373839404142434445464748495051525354555657585960616263646566676869707172737475767778798081828384858687888990919293949596979899100101102103104105106107108109110111112113114115116117118119120121122123124125126127128129130131132133134135136137138139140141142143144145146147148149150151152153154155156157158159160161162163164165166167168169170171172173174175176177178179180181182183184185186187188189190191192193194195196197198199200201202203204205206207208209210211212213214215216217218219220221222223224225226227228229230231232233234235236237238239240241242243244245246247248249250251252253254255256257258259260261262263264265266267268269270271272273274275276277278279280281282283284285286287288289290291292293294295296297298299300301302303304305306307308309310311312313314315316317318319320321322323324325326327328329330331332333334335336337338339340341342343344345346347348349350351
357358359360361362363364365366367368369370371372373374375376377378379380381382383384385386387388389390391392393394395396397398399400401402403404405406407408409410411412413414415416417418419420421422423424425426427428429430431432433434435436437438439440441442443444445446447448449450451452453454455456457458459460461462463464465466467468469470471472473474475476477478479480481482483484485486487488489490491492493494495496497498499500501502503504505506507508509510511512513514515516517518519520521522523524525526527528529530531532533534535536537538539540541542543544545546547548549550551552553554555556557558559560561562563564565566567568569570571572573574575576577578579580581582583584585586587588589590591592593594595596597598599600601602603604605606607608609610611612613614615616617618619620621622623624625626627628629630631632633634635636637638639640641642643644645646647648649650651652653654655656657658659660661662663664665666667668669670671672673674675676677678679680681682683684685686687688689690691692693694695696697698699700701702703704705706707708709710711712713714715716717718719720721722723724725726727728729730731732733734735736737738739740741742743744745746747748749750751752753754755756757758759760761762763764765766767768769770771772773774775776777778779780781782783784785786787788789790791792793794795796797798799800801802803804805806807808809810811812813814815816817818819820821822823824825826827828829830831832833834835836837838839840841842843844845846847848849850851852853854855856857858859860861862863864865866867868869870871872873874875876877878879880881882883884885886887888889890891892893894895896897898899900901902903904905906907908909910911912913914915916917918919920921922923924925926927928929930931932933934935936937938939940941942943944945
https://digital.itwc.ca/1171077
Latest stories from our digital
publication. Check it out now.
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line10963
|
__label__cc
| 0.500161
| 0.499839
|
Tag Archives: military
Collateral Murder Part Two
This is the second in a pair of posts analysing this video, a version of the ‘Collateral Murder’ video released in 2010 by Wikileaks. The last time covered the first five minutes of content, analysing the strange tactics used by the US military in Iraq at the time, but that isn’t why the video was released. The reason this caused such a stir is thanks to the next ten minutes, as an Apache helicopter opens fire on a group of seemingly inoffensive people, including a pair of journalists.
Watching this portion of the video is more tragic than anything, because so much of it could be considered standard military procedure. As mentioned in my last post, with so few men on the ground trying to cover such a large area (the problem that, ultimately, caused all the issues the video explores) the US army had to rely on its superior air force to provide cover for the foot soldiers it did have. The helicopter’s pilot identifies the group as ‘six or seven men with AK-47s’, and despite the point that the video makes that the journalist’s camera was mistaken for a weapon, there were armed insurgents in the group (hence why said journalists were filming with them). As, presumably, the result of a breakdown in communications, the proximity of Ethan McCord’s little group of soldiers is not relayed to the chopper and they are given permission to open fire on the group.
If opening up a 30mm cannon on an unaware group of disorganised insurgents seems an excessive use of force it’s because it, frankly, is, and reflects how desperate the army had become just to kill every insurgent they could find (slightly losing sight of the point of a counter-insurgency operation and probably prolonging the war; but that isn’t the soldiers’ job to know). Not only that, but it is a reflection of the rules of engagement at the time, that McCord describes later, which allowed you to open fire on anyone who you ‘felt threatened’ by. Quite how a group of trained soldiers in the most heavily armed helicopter used by any army in the world are feeling threatened by a group of unprotected, unaware men armed with assault rifles 3 miles away rather escapes me, and reflects the complete idiocy of that system. Because ‘feeling threatened’ is not a quantitative, provable description, it is not possible for any claim that these rules were being violated to be upheld; even if the victim is unarmed, they could still be shot if it is claimed the soldier thought they could have been wired to explosives. Though, to be honest, such claims would likely have scarcely ever been made even in the worst instances; the high-ups care too much about their previously stated goals to ‘kill every mother f***er’ available.
Regarding the deaths themselves however… this is war, and bad guys get killed: arguing over the niceties of that opens a whole new can of worms. The carnage McCord describes is part and parcel of modern warfare, horrible though it may be, and the role of an army in this situation is to ensure that the damage it inflicts is less than the damage that would be caused were the situation allowed to get out of hand. The very title of the video, ‘Collateral Murder’, offers a sense of bitter irony at the Pentagon euphemism of ‘collateral damage’ used whenever innocent people are killed in an operation, but in this situation this is not a result of the US Army actively deciding that these lives are expendable. This is not deciding to bomb a town despite knowing there are innocents present, but about opening fire on a group of suspected terrorists and misidentifying innocent journalists. It is an accident; a deadly one to be sure, but an honest accident nonetheless.
No, the really shocking thing about this section of the video is what comes afterwards: the way that the crew of the Apache seem so blasé about the fact that they’ve just gunned down eight people. I can well appreciate that these men are soldiers; killing people is, ultimately, their job, and they wouldn’t be good at it were they to burst into tears every time somebody dies. But the fact remains that they have just slaughtered eight people and seem positively elated at the prospect, as if killing in this way is their idea of fun. This could be argued to be the result of their elevated position; they don’t have to get down & dirty, to see what they have wrought. At the risk of sounding preachy, killing for enjoyment is among the single worst traits any human could have, and such people are patently unsuited for being left unrestricted on any front line.
Worse is to follow. The gunship then proceeds to open fire on a people carrier containing young children; hardly a technical or APC. Although the children could almost certainly not have been identified from the gunship’s position, the act of opening fire on clearly unarmed men in an unprotected, unarmed vehicle is so against every rule of warfare and rule of engagement that it is positively ridiculous. It doesn’t matter that by clearing up bodies and weapons they are ‘on the other side’: they are not acting as a threat and they are not to be engaged. That’s what these bloody rules are for. Hell, the chopper’s crew even know that there’s a group of infantry on their way in vehicles, and it surely wouldn’t have been too much to simply wait for them to deal with the whole mess properly. Here, the term ‘collateral murder’ seems a little more appropriate. Again, we see more evidence (especially when they continue shooting the ‘disabled’ van, and are able to laugh about it afterwards) that these men in the Apache are shooting because they find it fun. And, indeed, that there are far too many people giving orders who are quite happy to let them do so.
Most of the rest of the video deals with McCord & his platoon’s reaction to the horrific scene left by the Apache; the scale of death and destruction, his desperate efforts to help in any way he could, the death of a child in his arms, and crucially the (entirely justifiable) immense shock and emotional kickback he felt in response to the incident. Even for a soldier, this is ugly stuff, and McCord is clearly a man in need of sympathy and help. It has taken a long time for the world to realise the importance of mental health to soldiers, but after studying the domestic abuse figures for soldiers post-Vietnam, its importance becomes clear.
Except that sympathy is precisely the opposite of what he receives. Perhaps his platoon commander’s response of ‘you need to stop worrying about those f***ing kids and pull security’ is understandable; they are, after all, still unprotected in dangerous territory and they still have a job to do. On patrol, emotions have to be put to one side purely for everyone’s safety and wellbeing. One could also argue that his platoon members’ reaction of having ‘pretty much ignored what just happened’ is also justifiable, for these men are soldiers and are used to death and pain surrounding them; hell, McCord even says that the army told them, quite rightly, never to let their emotions take over whilst on a mission. That the whole debacle has affected Ethan McCord differently to them is just a product of the experience and his mind, so his decision to see a mental health counsellor, someone trained in this most strange of fields, is an eminently sensible one.
What makes absolutely no sense is the idea that, as McCord says, ‘needing to talk to someone could constitute a crime in the army’; even in the field of operations, just ‘sucking it up’ is most often not a sensible long-term strategy. Soldiers go on tours of duty for very long periods, up to a year on occasion, and that is a long time to try and ‘suck up’ a serious mental health issue. If a soldier’s mental stability is compromised that makes them a potential liability in the field, and it makes absolutely no sense that counselling, one of the best tools we currently have to combat these issues, is in any way restricted to soldiers. Sometimes, even the toughest need a hand, and to prevent them from getting it is just plain old stupid. One only needs to listen to the rest of McCord’s speech to see how profoundly this has affected him.
It’s not easy to summarise this video. It’s a story covering so many different aspects; of the need for manpower when combating an insurgency and the consequences thereof, of how confusion and lack of information can lead to catastrophic consequences, how different people suffer different things in different ways to different extents and of the importance of properly enforced, sensible rules of engagement. But the primary theme governing the actual mistakes made by the US military in this situation concern man management; of managing the deployment of soldiers incorrectly for the situation (albeit whilst somewhat caught between a rock and a hard place), of giving the wrong people access to unrestricted, no strings attached lethal force, and of failing to take care of people when they need it. Those mistakes cost the lives of several innocent people, two of them children, cost the US army a soldier, and cost Ethan McCord his mind and his happiness. The lessons they offer should be heeded.
Standard | | Tagged Apache helicopter, blase, collateral damage, Collateral Murder, counselling, Ethan McCord, euphemism, helicopter, Iraq war, killing for fun, man management, mental health, military, rules of engagement, US Army, USA, warfare, Wikileaks | 0 comments
War in Three Dimensions
Warfare has changed a lot in the last century. Horses have become redundant, guns become reliable, machine guns become light enough to carry and bombs have become powerful enough to totally annihilate a small country if the guy with the button so chooses. But perhaps more significant than just the way hardware has changed is the way that warfare has changed itself; tactics and military structure have changed beyond all recognition compared to the pre-war era, and we must now fight wars whilst surrounded by a political landscape, at least in the west, that does not approve of open conflict. However, next year marks the 100th anniversary of a military innovation that not only represented massive hardware upgrade at the time, but that has changed almost beyond recognition in the century since then and has fundamentally changed the way we fight wars; the use of aeroplanes in warfare.
The skies have always been a platform to be exploited by the cunning military strategist; balloons were frequently used for messaging long before they were able to carry humans and be used for reconnaissance during the early 20th century, and for many years the only way of reliably sending a complicated message over any significant distance was via homing pigeon. It was, therefore, only natural that the Wright brothers had barely touched down after their first flight in ‘Flyer I’ when the first suggestions of a military application to such a technology were being made. However, early attempts at powered flight could not sustain it for very long, and even subsequent improvements failed to produce anything capable of carrying a machine gun. By the First World War, aircraft had become advanced enough to make controlled, sustained, two-person flight at an appreciable height a reality, and both the Army and Navy were quick to incorporate air divisions into their structures (these divisions in the British Armed Forces were the Royal Flying Corps and the Royal Naval Air Service respectively). However, these air forces were initially only used for reconnaissance purposes and ‘spotting’ for artillery to help them get their eye in; the atmosphere was quite peaceful so far above the battlefield, and pilots and observers of opposing aircraft would frequently wave to one another during the early years of the war. As time passed and the conflict grew ever-bloodier, these exchanges became less friendly; before long observers would carry supplies of bricks into the air with them and attempt to throw them at enemy aircraft, and the Germans even went so far as to develop steel darts that could reportedly split a man in two; whilst almost impossible to aim in a dogfight, these darts were incredibly dangerous for those on the ground. By 1916 aircraft had grown advanced enough to carry bombs, enabling a (slightly) more precise method of destroying enemy targets than artillery, and before long both sides could equip these bombers with turret-mounted machine guns that the observers could fire on other aircraft with; given that the aircraft of the day were basically wire and wood cages covered in fabric, these guns could cause vast amounts of damage and the men within the planes had practically zero protection (and no parachutes either, since the British top brass believed this might encourage cowardice). To further protect their bombers, both sides began to develop fighter aircraft as well; smaller, usually single-man, planes with fixed machine guns operated by the pilot (and which used a clever bit of circuitry to fire through the propeller; earlier attempts at doing this without blowing the propeller to pieces had simply consisted of putting armour plating on the back of the propeller, which not infrequently caused bullets to bounce back and hit the pilot). It wasn’t long before these fighters were given more varied orders, ranging from trench strafing to offensive patrols (where they would actively go and look for other aircraft to attack). Perhaps the most dangerous of these objectives was balloon strafing; observation balloons were valuable pieces of reconnaissance equipment, and bringing them down generally required a pilot to navigate the large escort of fighters that accompanied them. Towards the end of the war, the forces began to realise just how central to their tactics air warfare had become, and in 1918 the RFC and RNAS were combined to form the Royal Air Force, the first independent air force in the world. The RAF celebrated its inception three weeks later when German air ace Manfred von Richthofen (aka The Red Baron), who had 80 confirmed victories despite frequently flying against superior numbers or hardware, was shot down (although von Richthofen was flying close to the ground at the time in pursuit of an aircraft, and an analysis of the shot that killed him suggests that he was killed by a ground-based AA gunner rather than the Canadian fighter pilot credited with downing him. Exactly who fired the fatal shot remains a mystery.)
By the time the Second World War rolled around things had changed somewhat; in place of wire-and-fabric biplanes, sleeker metal monoplanes were in use, with more powerful and efficient engines making air combat faster affair. Air raids themselves could be conducted over far greater distances since more fuel could be carried, and this proved well suited to the style of warfare that the war generated; rather than the largely unmoving battle lines of the First World War, the early years of WW2 consisted of countrywide occupation in Europe, whilst the battlegrounds of North Africa and Soviet Russia were dominated by tank warfare and moved far too fluidly for frontline air bases to be safe. Indeed, air power featured prominently in neither of these land campaigns; but on the continent, air warfare reigned supreme. As the German forces dominated mainland Europe, they launched wave after wave of long distance bombing campaigns at Britain in an effort to gain air superiority and cripple the Allies’ ability to fight back when they attempted to cross the channel and invade. However, the British had, unbeknownst to the Germans, perfected their radar technology, and were thus able to use their relatively meagre force of fighters to greatest effect to combat the German bombing assault. This, combined with some very good planes and flying on behalf of the British and an inability to choose the right targets to bomb on behalf of the Germans, allowed the Battle of Britain to swing in favour of the Allies and turned the tide of the war in Europe. In the later years of the war, the Allies turned the tables on a German military crippled by the Russian campaign after the loss at Stalingrad and began their own orchestrated bombing campaign. With the increase in anti-aircraft technology since the First World War, bombers were forced to fly higher than ever before, making it far harder to hit their targets; thus, both sides developed the tactic of ‘carpet bombing’, whereby they would simply load up as big a plane as they could with as many bombs as it could carry and drop them all over an area in the hope of at least one of the bombs hitting the intended target. This imprecise tactic was only moderately successful when it came to destruction of key military targets, and was responsible for the vast scale of the damage to cities both sides caused in their bombing campaigns. In the war in the Pacific, where space on aircraft carriers was at a premium and Lancaster Bombers would have been impractical, they kept with the tactic of using dive bombers, but such attacks were very risky and there was still no guarantee of a successful hit. By the end of the war, air power was rising to prominence as possibly the most crucial theatre of combat, but we were reaching the limits of what our hardware was capable of; our propellor-driven, straight wing fighter aircraft seemed incapable of breaking the sound barrier, and our bombing attacks couldn’t safely hit any target less than a mile wide. Something was clearly going to have to change; and next time, I’ll investigate what did.
Standard | | Tagged aeroplanes, air ace, air power, air raids, air warfare, anti-aircraft, artillery, biplanes, bombers, bombs, carpet bombing, change, conflict, dogfight, fighters, First World War, flight, innovation, Lancaster bombers, machine guns, Manfred von Richthofen, military, military structure, monoplanes, politics, powered flight, radar, RAF, Royal Air Force, Royal Flying Corps, Royal Naval Air Service, Second World War, spotters, strafing, tactics, war, warfare, Wright brothers, WW1, WW2 | 0 comments
The Offensive Warfare Problem
If life has shown itself to be particularly proficient at anything, it is fighting. There is hardly a creature alive today that does not employ physical violence in some form to get what it wants (or defend what it has) and, despite a vast array of moral arguments to the contrary of that being a good idea (I must do a post on the prisoner’s dilemma some time…), humankind is, of course, no exception. Unfortunately, our innate inventiveness and imagination as a race means that we have been able to let our brains take our fighting to the next level, with consequences that have got ever-more destructive as time has gone by. With the construction of the first atomic bombs, humankind had finally got to where it had threatened to for so long- the ability to literally wipe out planet earth.
This insane level of offensive firepower is not just restricted to large-scale big-guns (the kind that have been used fir political genital comparison since Napoleon revolutionised the use of artillery in warfare)- perhaps the most interesting and terrifying advancement in modern warfare and conflict has been the increased prevalence and distribution of powerful small arms, giving ‘the common man’ of the battlefield a level of destructive power that would be considered hideously overwrought in any other situation (or, indeed, the battlefield of 100 years ago). The epitomy of this effect is, of course, the Kalashnikov AK-47, whose cheapness and insane durability has rendered it invaluable to rebel groups or other hastily thrown together armies, giving them an ability to kill stuff that makes them very, very dangerous to the population of wherever they’re fighting.
And this distribution of such awesomely dangerous firepower has began to change warfare, and to explain how I need to go on a rather dramatic detour. The goal of warfare has always, basically, centred around the control of land and/or population, and as James Herbert makes so eminently clear in Dune, whoever has the power to destroy something controls it, at least in a military context. In his book Ender’s Shadow (I feel I should apologise for all these sci-fi references), Orson Scott Card makes the entirely separate point that defensive warfare in the context of space warfare makes no practical sense. For a ship & its weapons to work in space warfare, he rather convincingly argues, the level of destruction it must be able to deliver would have to be so large that, were it to ever get within striking distance of earth it would be able to wipe out literally billions- and, given the distance over which any space war must be conducted, mutually assured destruction simply wouldn’t work as a defensive strategy as it would take far too long for any counterstrike attempt to happen. Therefore, any attempt to base one’s warfare effort around defence, in a space warfare context, is simply too risky, since one ship (or even a couple of stray missiles) slipping through in any of the infinite possible approach directions to a planet would be able to cause uncountable levels of damage, leaving the enemy with a demonstrable ability to destroy one’s home planet and, thus, control over it and the tactical initiative. Thus, it doesn’t make sense to focus on a strategy of defensive warfare and any long-distance space war becomes a question of getting there first (plus a bit of luck).
This is all rather theoretical and, since we’re talking about a bunch of spaceships firing missiles at one another, not especially relevant when considering the realities of modern warfare- but it does illustrate a point, namely that as offensive capabilities increase the stakes rise of the prospect of defensive systems failing. This was spectacularly, and horrifyingly, demonstrated during 9/11, during which a handful of fanatics armed with AK’s were able to kill 5,000 people, destroy the world trade centre and irrevocably change the face of the world economy and world in general. And that came from only one mode of attack, and despite all the advances in airport security that have been made since then there is still ample opportunity for an attack of similar magnitude to happen- a terrorist organisation, we must remember, only needs to get lucky once. This means that ‘normal’ defensive methods, especially since they would have to be enforced into all of our everyday lives (given the format that terrorist attacks typically take), cannot be applied to this problem, and we must rely almost solely on intelligence efforts to try and defend ourselves.
This business of defence and offence being in imbalance in some form or another is not a phenomenon solely confined to the modern age. Once, wars were fought solely with clubs and shields, creating a somewhat balanced case of attack and defence; attack with the club, defend with the shield. If you were good enough at defending, you could survive; simple as that. However, some bright spark then came up with the idea of the bow, and suddenly the world was in imbalance- even if an arrow couldn’t pierce an animal skin stretched over some sticks (which, most of the time, it could), it was fast enough to appear from nowhere before you had a chance to defend yourself. Thus, our defensive capabilities could not match our offensive ones. Fast forward a millennia or two, and we come to a similar situation; now we defended ourselves against arrows and such by hiding in castles behind giant stone walls and other fortifications that were near-impossible to break down, until some smart alec realised the use of this weird black powder invented in China. The cannons that were subsequently invented could bring down castle walls in a matter of hours or less, and once again they could not be matched from the defensive standpoint- our only option now lay in hiding somewhere the artillery couldn’t get us, or running out of the way of these lumbering beasts. As artillery technology advanced throughout the ensuing centuries, this latter option became less and less feasible as the sheer numbers of high-explosive weaponry trained on opposition armies made them next-to impossible to fight in the field; but they were still difficult to aim accurately at well dug-in soldiers, and from these starting conditions we ended up with the First World War.
However, this is not a direct parallel of the situation we face now; today we deal with the simple and very real truth that a western power attempting to defend its borders (the situation is somewhat different when they are occupying somewhere like Afghanistan, but that can wait until another time) cannot rely on simple defensive methods alone- even if every citizen was an army trained veteran armed with a full complement of sub-machine guns (which they quite obviously aren’t), it wouldn’t be beyond the wit of a terrorist group to sneak a bomb in somewhere destructive. Right now, these methods may only be capable of killing or maiming hundreds or thousands at a time; tragic, but perhaps not capable of restructuring a society- but as our weapon systems get ever more advanced, and our more effective systems get ever cheaper and easier for fanatics to get hold of, the destructive power of lone murderers may increase dramatically, and with deadly consequences.
I’m not sure that counts as a coherent conclusion, or even if this counts as a coherent post, but it’s what y’got.
Standard | | Tagged 9/11, airport security, AK-47, alive, animal skin, artillery, atom bomb, atomic bomb, attack, big guns, black powder, bow, bow and arrow, cannons, castles, cheapness, clubs, consequences, control, counterstrike, creature, dangerous, dead, deadly, defence, defend, defending, defensive warfare, destroy, destructive, destructive power, detour, dug in, Dune, durability, Earth, Ender's Shadow, fast, fighting, firepower, First World War, fortifications, get lucky, goal of war, gunpowder, high-explosive weaponry, humankind, imbalance, intelligence, James Herbert, Kalashnikov, land, life, lone murderers, military, missiles, mode of attack, modern age, modern warfare, moral, moral argument, morality, mutually assured destruction, Napoleon, nuclear bomb, occupation, offence, Orson Scott Card, people, physical violence, planet, population, rebels, risky, running away, sci-fi, science fiction, shields, small arms, space weapons, spaceships, survive, tactical initiative, theoretical, trenches, walls, war, warfare, weapons, wipe out, world trade centre | 0 comments
Four days ago (this post was intended for Monday, when it would have been yesterday, but I was out then- sorry) was Remembrance Sunday; I’m sure you were all aware of that. Yesterday we acknowledged the dead, recognised the sacrifice they made in service of their country, and reflected upon the tragic horrors that war inflicted upon them and our nations. We gave our thanks that “for your tomorrow, we gave our today”.
However, as the greatest wars ever to rack our planet have disappeared towards the realm of being outside living memory, a few dissenting voices have risen about the place of the 11th of November as a day of national mourning and remembrance. They are not loud complaints, as anything that may be seen as an attempt to sully the memories of those who ‘laid so costly a sacrifice on the altar of freedom’ (to quote Saving Private Ryan) is unsurprisingly lambasted and vilified by the majority, but it would be wrong not to recognise that there are some who question the very idea of Remembrance Sunday in its modern incarnation.
‘Remembrance Sunday,’ so goes the argument, ‘is very much centred around the memories of those who died: recognising their act of sacrifice and championing the idea that ‘they died for us’.” This may partly explain why the Church has such strong links with the ceremony; quite apart from religion being approximately 68% about death, the whole concept of sacrificing oneself for the good of others is a direct parallel to the story of Jesus Christ. ‘However,’ continues the argument, ‘the wars that we of the old Allied Powers chiefly celebrate and remember are ones in which we won, and if we had lost them then to argue that they had given their lives in defence of their realm would make it seem like their sacrifice was wasted- thus, this style of remembrance is not exactly fair. Furthermore, by putting the date of our symbolic day of remembrance on the anniversary of the end of the First World War, we invariably make that conflict (and WWII) our main focus of interest. But, it is widely acknowledged that WWI was a horrific, stupid war, in which millions died for next to no material gain and which is generally regarded as a terrible waste of life. We weren’t fighting for freedom against some oppressive power, but because all the European top brass were squaring up to one another in a giant political pissing contest, making the death of 20 million people the result of little more than a game of satisfying egos. This was not a war in which ‘they died for us’ is exactly an appropriate sentiment’.
Such an argument is a remarkably good one, and does call into question the very act of remembrance itself. It’s perhaps more appropriate to make such an argument with more recent wars- the Second World War was a necessary conflict if ever there was one, and it cannot be said that those soldiers currently fighting in Afghanistan are not trying to make a deeply unstable and rather undemocratic part of the world a better place to live in (I said trying). However, this doesn’t change the plain and simple truth that war is a horrible, unpleasant activity that we ought to be trying to get rid of wherever humanly possible, and remembering soldiers from years gone by as if their going to die in a muddy trench was absolutely the most good and right thing to do does not seem like the best way of going about this- it reminds me of, in the words of Wilfred Owen: “that old lie:/Dulce Et Decorum Est/Pro Patria Mori”.
However, that is not to say that we should not remember the deaths and sacrifices of those dead soldiers, far from it. Not only would it be hideously insensitive to both their memories and families (my family was fortunate enough to not experience any war casualties in the 20th century), but it would also suggest to soldiers currently fighting that their fight is meaningless- something they are definitely not going to take well, which would be rather inadvisable since they have all the guns and explosives. War might be a terrible thing, but that is not to say that it doesn’t take guts and bravery to face the guns and fight for what you believe in (or, alternatively, what your country makes you believe in). As deaths go, it is at least honourable, if not exactly Dulce Et Decorum.
And then, of course, there is the whole point of remembrance, and indeed history itself, to remember. The old adage about ‘study history or else find yourself repeating it’ still holds true, and by learning lessons from the past we stand very little chance of improving on our previous mistakes. Without the great social levelling and anti-imperialist effects of the First World War, then women may never have got the vote, jingoistic ideas about empires, and the glory of dying in battle may still abound, America may (for good or ill) have not made enough money out of the war to become the economic superpower it is today and wars may, for many years more, have continued to waste lives through persistent use of outdated tactics on a modern battlefield with modern weaponry, to name but the first examples to come into my head- so to ignore the act of remembrance is not just disrespectful, but downright rude.
Perhaps then, the message to learn is not to ignore the sacrifice that those soldiers have made over the years, but rather to remember what they died to teach us. We can argue for all of eternity as to whether the wars that lead to their deaths were ever justified, but we can all agree that the concept of war itself is a wrong one, and that the death and pain it causes are the best reasons to pursue peace wherever we can. This then, should perhaps be the true message of Remembrance Sunday; that over the years, millions upon millions of soldiers have dyed the earth red with their blood, so that we might one day learn the lessons that enable us to enjoy a world in which they no longer have to.
Standard | | Tagged "it is sweet and right to die for your country", 'that old lie', 11th of November, acknowledged, Afghanistan, Allied Powers, Allies, America, argument, Battlefield, bravery, Christianity, Church, complaints, country, Dulce Et Decorum Est, Dulce Et Decorum Est Pro Patria Mori, economic superpower, empires, explosives, fair, families, First World War, freedom, glory, guns, guts, history, honourable, horrors, incarnation, insensitive, Jesus, Jesus Christ, jingoistic, learning lessons, memories, memory, military, oppressive power, past, patriotism, peace, pissing contest, politics, previous mistakes, remembrance, Remembrance Day, Remembrance Sunday, sacrifice, Saving Private Ryan, Second World War, sentiment, service, social levelling, the died for us, tragic, undemocratic, victory, voting, war, wars, waste of life, weaponry, western world, Wilfred Owen, won, WWI, WWII | 0 comments
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line10965
|
__label__wiki
| 0.852678
| 0.852678
|
Pac-12 Associate Commissioner of Sport Management Chris Dawson will retire at the end of the 2018-19 academic year after dedicating more than 40 years to Pac-12 collegiate athletics. Dawson is widely regarded as a pioneer for women’s collegiate athletics and championing the student-athlete experience. She spent over 18 years overseeing the administration of various Pac-12 Olympic and women’s sports, including women’s basketball, softball, men’s soccer and beach volleyball. Before joining the Pac-12, she spent 23 years at the University of California, Berkeley as the associate athletic director for sport programs and senior woman administrator from 1992 to 2001. She was named assistant athletic director for the Cal women’s athletic department in 1989 after previously serving as sports information director for from 1979-89. Chris has been one of the most inspirational and dedicated leaders at the Pac-12. She is a humble role model who has committed her life’s work to the advancement of women’s sports and the student-athlete experience,” said Pac-12 Commissioner Larry Scott. – Read More
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line10967
|
__label__wiki
| 0.776454
| 0.776454
|
The Rise of Ragin’ Cajun Athletics
April 17th, 2014 | by CollegeAD
The Ragin’ Cajun athletic department has seen incredible success over the last few years, and with that success has come an overwhelming amount of support from the University and the Lafayette Community. The Cajuns are embarking on a series of renovations totaling $115 million which will place the University of Louisiana right in the heat of the “facilities arms race”. Moreover, these renovations will not come at the expense of athletic department funds.
Director of Athletics Scott Farmer stated “The athletic budget has seen record increases over the last few years because of the generosity of our fans and supporters. It is important that we raise the money for the Athletics Facilities Master Plan without stunting the annual growth of the operating budget.”
Success you say?
Seemingly every team at the University of Louisiana is finding a way to succeed despite a modest budget nowhere near that of schools competing in the five power conferences.
At the beginning of the 2011 many national polls ranked the Ragin’ Cajun football team the worst team in the country. First year head coach, Mark Hudspeth and the Cajuns went on to complete the best season in school history, compiling a 9-4 record and thrilling New Orleans bowl win over a favored San Diego State University.
In fact, the football team has compiled a 9-4 record three years in a row, winning three straight New Orleans Bowls, capturing the Sun Belt Conference title this past season. For the record the Ragin’ Cajuns went 3-9, the season prior to Mark Hudspeth’s arrival.
The Ragin’ Cajuns softball team is currently ranked #18 in the nation, with a season record of 31-7-1 and a 11-1 record in Sun Belt Conference games.
UL softball is a perennial power under head coach Michael Lotief, including back-to-back trips to the NCAA Super Regionals in 2012 and 2013, 12-straight NCAA Regionals, and at least 40 wins in each of those seasons, the Cajuns have been a national presence for over a decade.
The men’s basketball team saw its most successful run in recent history, ending this past season with a 23-12 record, taking the Sun Belt Conference title and making it to the big dance for the first time in nine years.
The Ragin’ Cajun baseball team is ranked #2 in the nation, compiling a 34-4 record so far this season, with major victories over LSU, and a near weekend sweep of the Alabama Crimson Tide.
The 34-4 mark is the best start through 33 games in school history. Louisiana moved up one spot to No. 2 in the Baseball America, Perfect Game and NCBWA rankings and the USA Today Coaches Poll. The Ragin’ Cajuns also had a first place vote in the coaches poll. The rankings mark a record high in each of the four polls.
How the $115 Million Will Be Spent
Nine projects that total $115 million will serve as a blue print for the success and growth of the Ragin’ Cajuns athletics program. The list of projects has been broken into three tiers, or levels of priority:
The top tier of facility priorities include improvements to the soccer and track facility, seating and amenity expansion in the south end of Cajun Field, and the new Athletics Practice Facility which will be built adjacent to the Leon Moncla Indoor Practice Facility and the football practice fields.
The second tier of facility priorities include the remaining proposed improvements to Cajun Field and the renovation and expansion of M.L. “Tigue” Moore Field.
The final tier of improvements include a new sports plaza behind the south end of Cajun Field, renovation of the Academic Center, proposed improvements at Earl K. Long Gym and the Culotta Tennis Center and a new basketball practice facility. The conceptual budget can be seen below. Click the image to enlarge the chart.
Renovation of Cajun Field
• 5 construction phases that could ultimately raise capacity to over 65,000.
• First phase: add 5,900 seats to south end zone
This allows for the remaining expansion to be done without losing use of
Cajun Field or playing a season with a diminished capacity.
• Main phase: addition of a structure on the west side that will include 23,500 square feet of office space for the athletic administration, 1,200 club seats, 128 loge seats and 37 box suites.
• The current press box will be replaced and include either changes or
replacement of the current upper deck seating.
• Also included in the main phase is an upper level of seating on the east sideline, adding 9,546 seats that will bring capacity to 50,000.
Athletics Practice Facility
Located adjacent to the Leon Moncla Indoor Practice Facility and on some of the space currently being used for the football practice fields, the 71,000 square foot facility will create new space for athletic training, equipment and strength and conditioning and house the offices for the football program.
Football Amenities In The APF
• Includes office space for head coach, assistant coaches and administrative and support staff.
• 4,800 square feet of meeting space, including a main auditorium that seats 130-150 people that can be broken down into multiple meeting rooms.
• Video editing suite and storage facilities that include video distribution and viewing areas for pro scouts.
• Locker room facilities for the football team, coaching staff and visitors.
Athletic Training In The APF
• Includes office space for athletic training staff, doctor’s office and exam room, a hydro-therapy room along with 3,500 square feet dedicated to treatment and rehabilitation.
Equipment Room In The APF
Almost 6,000 square feet of space located off the loading dock and receiving area that includes work space, offices for the full-time staff, expanded laundry facility, issue bins and equipment storage.
Strength and Conditioning In The APF
• Multiple weight room facilities that will allow more student-athletes to work out at the same time along with a common nutrition station.
• Primary facility covers 12,000 square feet which will handle student-athletes simultaneously, including space for agility, plyometrics and warm-ups.
• Current basketball court attached to indoor facility will be re-purposed into a 5,000 square foot secondary weight room.
• Cardio mezzanine connects the two facilities, sharing space with athletic training for use rehabbing and evaluation of injuries.
Tick Tick
With all of the Cajuns recent success on the field in spite of dated facilities, and a modest but growing athletic department budget, imagine what $115 million in renovations will do for recruiting, fan engagement, student-athlete development, and the general growth of the Ragin’ Cajun athletic brand.
Head football coach Mark Hudspeth may have said it best when he took the job in 2010, “This place is like a ticking time bomb ready to go-off and we’re ready to light that fuse.”
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line10968
|
__label__wiki
| 0.947812
| 0.947812
|
Tag Archives: David Arquette
JAKE AND THE NEVER LAND PIRATES: JAKE SAVES BUCKY Primetime Special Premieres Wednesday, September 19 on Disney Channel
Disney Junior will debut the primetime special Jake and the Never Land Pirates: Jake Saves Bucky on International Talk Like A Pirate Day, WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 19 (7:00-8:00 p.m., ET/PT) on Disney Channel. In the family night special event episode, Peter Pan returns to Never Land once again to help Jake and his crew win back their ship after losing Bucky in a race against Captain Hook and the Jolly Roger. The series’ first primetime special, Jake and the Never Land Pirates: Peter Pan Returns, debuted in February 2012 and was the most-watched cable telecast in nearly 10 years in Kids 2-5.
The short-form series Playing With Skully, which invites viewers at home to help Jake’s popular pirate lookout parrot Skully solve an array of pirate problems, will debut the same day during the Disney Junior programming block on Disney Channel (9:55 a.m., 10:25 a.m., 10:55 a.m., 11:55 a.m., 12:25 p.m. and 12:55 p.m. ET/PT) and will also air on Disney Junior. David Arquette voices the role of Skully.
Beginning Friday, August 31, DisneyJunior.com/JakeSavesBucky will launch Jake’s Heroic Race, a collection of four mini-games themed to the primetime special, as well as a pirate name generator where kids will be presented with various scenarios and then assigned a pirate name based on their unique responses. New printable coloring pages will depict Jake demonstrating his heroic characteristics including bravery, confidence, kindness, loyalty and helpfulness.
A full-length preview of Jake and the Never Land Pirates: Jake Saves Bucky will become available via Disney Channel on Demand on September 12. WATCH Disney Channel will simulcast the special in conjunction with the television premiere on September 19 on Disney Channel. The special will also be available the following day on WATCH Disney Junior and DisneyJunior.com.
Jake and the Never Land Pirates: Jake Saves Bucky stars the voices of Colin Ford as Jake; Madison Pettis as Izzy; Jonathan Morgan Heit as Cubby; David Arquette as Skully; Corey Burton as Captain Hook; Jeff Bennett as Mr. Smee and Bones; Loren Hoskins as Sharky; Adam Wylie as Peter Pan; Dee Bradley Baker as Brightly and the Dragon; and Russi Taylor as Gilly. Rob LaDuca is executive producer, Mark Seidenberg is producer/story editor and Howy Parkins is the director. The special is a production of Disney Television Animation.
Jake and the Never Land Pirates is a music-filled interactive treasure hunt that revolves around a crew of kid pirates – leader Jake and pals Izzy and Cubby – and follows their Never Land adventures as they work to outwit two infamous characters, the one and only Captain Hook and Mr. Smee, from Disney’s classic Peter Pan. The series, which emphasizes teamwork, features original pirate rock music performed by Sharky and Bones of The Never Land Pirate Band.
Disney Junior reflects the emotional connection generations of consumers have to Disney storytelling and Disney characters, both classic and contemporary. It invites mom and dad to join their child in the Disney experience of magical, musical and heartfelt stories and characters, while incorporating specific learning and development themes designed for kids age 2-7. Disney Junior’s series blend Disney’s unparalleled storytelling and characters kids love deeply with learning, including early math, language skills, healthy eating and lifestyles, and social skills. Disney Junior launched in February 2011 with a daily programming block on Disney Channel. In its first year, Disney Junior posted the network’s biggest yearly audience in the daypart in Total Viewers, Kids 2-5, Boys 2-5 and Women 18-49, increasing by double-digit margins among preschooler demographics over year-ago levels. On March 23, 2012 Disney Junior added a cable and satellite channel in the U.S. bringing the total number of channels to 30 worldwide.
via Disney Press Release
Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged Adam Wylie, Colin Ford, Corey Burton, David Arquette, Dee Bradley Baker, Disney Channel, Disney Junior, Disney Television Animation, Howy Parkins, International Talk Like A Pirate Day, Jake and the Never Land Pirates: Jake Saves Bucky, Jake and the Never Land Pirates: Peter Pan Returns, Jake's Heroic Race, Jeff Bennett, Jonathan Morgan Heit, Loren Hoskins, Madison Pettis, Mark Seidenberg, Peter Pan, Playing With Skully, Rob LaDuca, Russi Taylor, Sharky and Bones of The Never Land Pirate Band | Leave a reply
Peter Pan Returns to Never Land in First-Ever Primetime Special of Disney Junior’s #1 Series, JAKE AND THE NEVERLAND PIRATES, Premiering Monday, February 13 on Disney Channel
The classic character Peter Pan makes his first-ever appearance in the hit series for kids age 2-7, “Jake and the Never Land Pirates,” in a primetime special presentation, Jake and the Never Land Pirates: Peter Pan Returns, premiering MONDAY, FEBRUARY 13 (7:00-8:00 p.m., ET/PT) on Disney Channel. Featuring six original songs, the special finds Peter Pan returning to Pirate Island to enlist Jake, Izzy, Cubby and Skully in finding his lost shadow. Adam Wylie (“Picket Fences”) voices the role of Peter Pan.
Generating excitement and demand among the youngest viewer category (kids age 2-5) and their parents, Jake and the Never Land Pirates ranks as 2011’s #1 series launch in the demographic (kids age 2-5) and cable TV’s #1 series among Boys 2-5. Overall, Jake and the Never Land Pirates is pacing as Disney Channel’s #1 preschool series of all time among Total Viewers (2.2 million), Kids 2-5 (1.03 million/6.1 rating), Boys 2-5 (648,000/7.5 rating) and Women 18-49 (424,000/0.6 rating).
Season two will debut MONDAY, FEBRUARY 20 with new episodes airing daily at 8:30 a.m., ET/PT throughout the week. Sharon Osbourne, Josh Duhamel, Jane Kaczmarek and Tiffani Thiessen star in recurring roles, joining the series notable voice cast including David Arquette, Tori Spelling, Lisa Loeb, Adam West and Ariel Winter.
Beginning Monday, February 6, DisneyJunior.com/PeterPan will feature “Jake’s Countdown to Peter Pan” and the debut of a new two-part game, “Shadow Shenanigans,” where players can take on the role of Peter Pan’s shadow to try to wake the sleeping Jolly Roger crew and then play a shadow matching game.
A full-length preview of Jake and the Never Land Pirates: Peter Pan Returns will become available via Disney Channel on Demand on February 6. Mobile providers Sprint TV and MobiTV will simulcast the special in conjunction with the television premiere on February 13 on Disney Channel. The special will be available the following day on mobile VOD for AT&T, Sprint and Verizon customers.
Based on Sir James Barrie’s classic children’s book, Disney’s Peter Pan was first seen on the big screen in the 1953 film Peter Pan and later in 2002’s Return to Never Land. A fan favorite of multiple generations, Peter Pan, the little boy who never grows up and has the magical ability to fly, has also been featured in a variety of Disney television specials and direct-to-video releases, as well as the popular video game series “Kingdom Hearts.”
Jake and the Never Land Pirates introduces a crew of kid pirates – leader Jake and pals Izzy and Cubby – and follows their Never Land adventures as they work to outwit two infamous characters, the one and only Captain Hook and Smee, from Disney’s classic “Peter Pan.” The series, which emphasizes teamwork, features original pirate rock music performed by Sharky and Bones of The Never Land Pirate Band.
Jake and the Never Land Pirates airs daily during Disney Channel’s Disney Junior programming block for kids age 2-7. The series stars Colin Ford as Jake; Madison Pettis as Izzy; Jonathan Morgan Heit as Cubby; David Arquette as Skully; Corey Burton as Captain Hook; Jeff Bennett as Mr. Smee and Bones and Loren Hoskins as Sharky. Rob LaDuca (“Mickey Mouse Clubhouse”) is executive producer. The series is produced by Disney Television Animation.
The Disney Junior programming block on Disney Channel reflects the emotional connection generations of consumers have to Disney storytelling and Disney characters, both classic and contemporary. It invites mom and dad to join their child in the Disney experience of magical, musical and heartfelt stories and characters, while incorporating specific learning and development themes designed for kids age 2-7. Disney Junior’s animated and live action series blend Disney’s unparalleled storytelling and characters kids love deeply with learning, including early math, language skills, healthy eating and lifestyles, and social skills. Disney Junior is available on basic cable in more than 99 million U.S. homes (via a daily block on Disney Channel) and to millions of other viewers on 28 Disney Junior channels (fka Playhouse Disney channels) and free-to-air broadcast partners around the world. It is also seen via subscription video-on-demand and a broadband website, DisneyJunior.com. In 2012, Disney Junior will add a basic cable and satellite channel in the U.S.
via Disney Channel Press Release
Posted in Disney, TV | Tagged Adam West, Adam Wylie, Ariel Winte, Ariel Winter, David Arquette, Disney Junior, Jake and the Never Land Pirates: Peter Pan Returns, Jane Kaczmarek, Josh Duhamel, Lisa Loeb, Sharon Osbourne, Tiffani Thiessen, Tori Spelling | Leave a reply
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line10971
|
__label__wiki
| 0.603132
| 0.603132
|
Glassman is Right
by editor | Jul 13, 2008 | Analysis, Counterterrorism, Diplomacy, Image, Strategic Comm. |
by Steven R. Corman
Though I’m not too sure what he has been doing in terms of actual public diplomacy lately, it’s apparent that Undersecretary of State for Public Diplomacy Jim Glassman has been working overtime on public affairs. Since his recent confirmation he has produced a a slew of speeches, TV appearances, op-eds and other communication intended for domestic consumption.
Though earlier I joined John Brown in expressing some reservations about Glassman’s approach, I have also found things to like about his recent statements, particularly a speech he gave at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy.
Yesterday Melinda Brower published a critique of his strategy for the “War of Ideas” (WoI), as expressed in the speech where he said:
In the war of ideas, our core task is not how to fix foreigners’ perceptions of the United States. Those perceptions are important — and I would be happy to address the issue of America’s image in the question-and-answer period. But America’s image — indeed, the United States itself — is not at the center of the war of ideas.
To this Brower replied:
Huh??! Does “Death to America†ring a bell? How could negative views of the United States NOT play a role in violent extremism? Osama bin Laden wants death to America. 9/11 happened to Americans. Al Qaeda members are coming to Iraq to fight America. Disdain for America sticks to violent extremism like white on rice.
The problem with this view, she says, is that it
de-links the US, the image of itself that it projects, and more importantly its policies, from the behavior of violent extremists—when these are the very factors that the US can directly manipulate in order to persuade extremists to change their behavior.
There are three mistakes in this line of reasoning. First, it conflates the image that the United States projects through intentional acts of public diplomacy with policy. Though policy definitely has an important effect on the perception of the United States, it is not public diplomacy. It’s…well, policy. In the present administration others’ perceptions just do not seem to be a very important factor in policy formulation (a mistake that my colleagues and I have written about). So although it’s something we could theoretically control, it’s not something we will control, at least during Glassman’s tenure. We’re stuck with the policy we’ve got, and its effects.
Given that, Brower’s second mistake is to assume that we can manipulate the U.S. image in a way that would have an effect in the WoI. We have been trying that for the past six years: Charlotte Beers using an advertising approach, Karen Hughes using a political campaign approach, even Disney using the Disney approach. And where has it gotten us? Nowhere. As the last couple of Pew Global Attitudes surveys show, people don’t hate America or Americans, they hate our policies. No matter how hard you rub, you ain’t gonna get that apple to shine.
Brower’s third mistake is to think of the WoI as a simple struggle between us and the Bad Guys, and that our best hope is to get them to quit hating us. They’re not going to quit hating us any more than we are going to quit hating them, and nothing either side says or does is likely to change that. The crucial play is for unallied third parties–the “good guys” (from the extremists’ perspective) in the Muslim community who could provide emotional and/or material and/or political support, and who might even be converted into sympathizers and supporters.
There are two ways to approach this group. We could try to make them love us, so they reject those who are against us. But this won’t work for reasons explained in the previous two points. Glassman, I think, realizes this, and therefore favors the other option: Doing what we can to help drive them away from the extremists.
The extremists are very helpful in this regard, as they do all kinds of heinous things to their fellow Muslims. We can assist in making such acts well known without depending on a good image that we don’t have. In doing this we degrade the extremists’ image and public support. Recent WoI successes, like the “Awakening Councils” in Iraq, have come about because ordinary people turned against the extremists, not because they came to love the United States.
Now I will grant that what Glassman is talking about here doesn’t fit the definition of public diplomacy very well. It better fits the overarching category of strategic communication, and we could legitimately ask whether that broader subject is really Glassman’s charge.
But what the public diplomacy chief is essentially telling is that (at least in the short run between now and January 2009) there is not a lot public diplomacy is going to do to change things with respect to the WoI. He is right.
Melinda Brower responds.
Matt over at Mountain Runner disagreed with the second to last paragraph of my post. Well, OK…what he’s talking about does not fit most definitions of PD, which emphasize dealing with the image/perception of the country doing the PD. But it doesn’t matter anyway because I was definitely wrong in the second statement of the paragraph. Besides being PD honcho, Glassman officially “heads the U.S. Government-wide War of Ideas effort countering violent extremism.”
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line10974
|
__label__wiki
| 0.895195
| 0.895195
|
Legislative reforms needed to protect heritage
May 20, 2013 · by David P. Ball · in Windspeaker newspaper. ·
Published in Windspeaker newspaper | May 2013 | Circulation: 145,000
When Margaretta James stepped into the room that today houses the Yuquot Whalers’ Shrine–a centuries-old sacred collection of carved figures, human skulls and whale sculptures–she was overwhelmed by a sense of its striking spiritual power.
“For me, it was one of those hair-raising back-of-your-neck experiences,” recalled James, director of the Land of Maquinna Cultural Society. “You could just feel the power of it.
“… you experience one of those moments you can barely describe; you erupt with feelings and emotions.”
But James was also overwhelmed by a sense of loss. Today, she and others continue the decades-long fight to bring the shrine back home to Mowachaht/Muchalaht First Nation on Vancouver Island. The community is closer to victory than ever.
This year marks 100 years since representatives of the American Museum of Natural History bought the shrine from two Mowachaht who falsely claimed to be its owners for $500 (worth roughly $13,000 today). But with only the Chief Whaler allowed access to the shrine, the collectors were forced to wait until the village emptied out for whaling season to secretly ship the collection to New York. The deception was devastating.
“Some people say it was stolen,” James said. “It was taken away in such a way that it was removed from site in the dead of night, when certain community members were away.
“A lot of the things were bought and sold–even by our own people–for different reasons… they were talked into selling them. Just like with any other Aboriginal group, a lot of that stuff got bought, sold or stolen… The shrine is ours; it belongs at Yuquot.”
A century later, and after numerous requests to repatriate the collection, James is confident the Mowachaht/Muchalaht bands can properly conserve the shrine upon its return in a community centre, which has already been planned, and with a new generation of young experts, curators and interpreters recently trained in anticipation of its return. Mowachaht/Muchalaht are not the only ones struggling with issues around the protection of ancient artifacts, however.
Increasingly, tribes are demanding more federal and provincial legislation to protect sacred items from being sold in auction houses and held in museums without First Nations’ permission. But Canada, it turns out, has much less legislative protection for Aboriginal heritage than in the U.S., where the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA) offers wide grounds for the repatriation of sacred items.
Heritage activists want the federal government to “step up to the plate,” James said, to ensure no more culture is lost.
Tags: Arts & Culture, Heritage, History, Indigenous, United States
← What If Political Parties Stood behind Their Bozos?
Photo: Heavy Files Sit on Premier Clark’s Desk →
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line10985
|
__label__cc
| 0.603594
| 0.396406
|
David N. Watson
President & Chief Executive Officer, Comcast Cable & Senior Executive Vice President, Comcast Corporation
David N. Watson serves as President and Chief Executive Officer, Comcast Cable and Senior Executive Vice President, Comcast Corporation. In this role, he is responsible for all business aspects of the Company’s cable operations.
Previously, Dave served as Chief Operating Officer where he drove the operating strategy and execution that have led to the phenomenal growth of Comcast Cable into the nation’s largest ISP and one of the largest video providers. His leadership also has been critical to Comcast’s efforts to improve customer service and transform the customer experience. As COO, Dave led all of the cable company’s operations and business functions, including sales and marketing, the product teams for Xfinity Internet, Xfinity X1, Xfinity Voice and Xfinity Home, the Comcast Business division, as well as oversight of the Company’s three operating divisions and Comcast Spotlight, the Company’s advertising sales unit.
Previously, Dave held a number of leadership roles at Comcast since joining the Company in 1991 and led multiple divisions and operating units. He has also led some of the industry’s most important transitions from analog to IPTV, from the early rollout of high-speed data to the delivery of gigabit speeds and the expansion of residential products and commercial business services.
Dave has worked for three decades in the cable and cellular industries and held leadership roles for the nation’s top communications services providers. Before joining Comcast Cable in 1991, he served for seven years with Comcast Cellular Communications, Inc., first as Senior Vice President of sales and marketing, and later as President. As President of Comcast Cellular, Dave led the unit’s operations prior to its sale to SBC Communications. Previously, he headed sales and marketing efforts at Bell Atlantic Mobile and Metrophone.
Dave is the Chairman of C-SPAN’s Executive Committee, and serves on the Board of Directors of CableLabs and the National Cable & Telecommunications Association.
A graduate of the University of Richmond, he holds a BA in political science. Dave resides with his family in Rosemont, PA.
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line10990
|
__label__cc
| 0.677277
| 0.322723
|
Death and the Judgment to Come
: Pascal’s Beginning
2015-09-09 0Comments by Justin Bass
The Death-Persuader
Subscribe to Theology Unplugged in iTunes
Hegesias of Cyrene was a Greek philosopher who lived in the third century B.C. He will forever be remembered as the “death-persuader” (peisithanatos). He received this nickname because he didn’t think happiness was achievable in this life. Instead, he argued, our primary goal as humans should be to avoid pain and suffering. He wrote a book (that has fortunately not survived) called A Man Who Starves Himself. It’s a story about a man, lying on the ground, starving himself to death. His friends try to encourage him to want to live. But the starving man turns the tables on his friends. He lays out all the miseries of life and convinces them to commit suicide too!
Cicero, the Roman statesman and philosopher, tells us that Hegesias’ lectures were banned at Alexandria because of the many resulting suicides. This is probably why Hegesias’ book didn’t survive! Hegesias may seem extreme or even nihilistic. However, Blaise Pascal as well as other Christians and even atheists have argued similarly. After all, if there is no God; and everything ends in death, life is absurd. Ecclesiastes 1:2 says it well, “Utterly meaningless! Everything is meaningless.”[1]
[Tweet “If there is no God; and everything ends in death, life is absurd.”]
This is why Pascal planned to begin his Apology for the Christian Religion with probably the greatest fear of all mankind: death. Peter Kreeft summarizes his approach this way:
Pascal classified most of his Pensées about death under the heading ‘Beginning’. Death is an excellent beginning for his apologetic, for three reasons: it is a great attention-grabber; it is a solid, sound, secure and indisputable fact; and it slaps us in the face with our own wretchedness, our utter helplessness before the loss of everything. It is our obvious problem, and Christ claims to be the answer.[2]
Pascal wanted to jolt his skeptical, French audience back to reality. He forced them to confront what Sirach said long ago, “The decree from of old is, ‘You must die!’” (Sirach 14:17). This is the first step of Pascal’s negative side of apologetics, “make good men wish Christianity was true.”
The Firm Foundation of Unyielding Despair
Many thoughtful atheists have readily agreed with Pascal and written about the absurdity of life without God. For example, the great atheist philosopher of the 20th century, Bertrand Russell, believes this was the situation for every atheist:
That Man is the product of causes which had no prevision of the end they were achieving; that his origin, his growth, his hopes and fears, his love and beliefs, are but the outcomes of accidental collocations of atoms; that no fire, no heroism, no intensity of thought and feeling, can preserve individual life beyond the grave; that all our labors of the ages, all the devotion, all the inspiration, all the noonday brightness of human genius, are destined to extinction in the vast death of the solar system, and that the whole temple of Man’s achievement must inevitably be buried beneath the debris of a universe in ruins—all these things, if not quite beyond dispute, are yet so nearly certain, that no philosophy which rejects them can hope to stand. Only within the scaffolding of these truths, only on the firm foundation of unyielding despair, can the soul’s habitation henceforth be safely built.[3]
According to Russell, every atheist must begin his life on “the firm foundation of unyielding despair.” This quote makes me want to write a book entitled Why I Am Not an Atheist!
[Tweet “This quote makes me want to write a book entitled “Why I Am Not an Atheist!””]
And closer to our own day, Richard Dawkins has made a similar case:
In a universe of electrons and selfish genes, blind physical forces and genetic replication, some people are going to get hurt, other people are going to get lucky, and you won’t find any rhyme or reason in it, nor any justice. The universe that we observe has precisely the properties we should expect if there is, at bottom, no design, no purpose, no evil, no good, nothing but pitiless indifference…DNA neither cares nor knows. DNA just is. And we dance to its music.[4]
Russell and Dawkins are right. Without God there is no purpose to our lives, no meaning, no evil, no good, nothing but blind, pitiless indifference built on the firm foundation of unyielding despair. We’re not free. We all dance to DNA’s music. Pascal would be simultaneously pleased and horrified to read such things—pleased because they understand well the point Pascal wants to make about the absurdity of life, but horrified that they choose to remain in such despair. GK Chesterton said in two sentences why the atheist worldview contradicts common sense, “Atheism is abnormality. It goes against what every normal person believes, namely, that there is a meaning and direction in the world.”[5]
It is that common sense understanding of the world Pascal is appealing too.
The Last Act Is Tragic
But Pascal was not dealing with unbelievers like Russell and Dawkins. Much like today, he was engaging skeptics who created an illusion of meaning for their lives. They avoided thinking about their imminent appointment with death and instead engaged in all kinds of pursuits in life to distract themselves from these realities.
Therefore, reminding the French skeptics of his day of their looming death was how Pascal would have begun his great apologetic work. Here are just a few golden nuggets from him on death.
“The last act is tragic, however happy all the rest of the play is. They throw earth over your head and it is finished forever.” (Pensées 210)
[Tweet “The last act is tragic. They throw earth over your head and it is finished forever.”]
“We run carelessly into the abyss after putting something before us to prevent us seeing it.” (Pensées 183)
[Tweet “We run carelessly into the abyss after putting something before us to prevent us seeing it.”]
“Let us imagine a number of men in chains and all condemned to death, where some are killed each day in the sight of the others, and those who remain see their own fate in that of their fellows and wait their turn, looking at each other sorrowfully and without hope. It is an image of the condition of men.” (Pensées 199)
This last image is especially haunting. This is our daily experience—seeing others, the young and the old, dying all around us and knowing we are next.
Tolstoy’s Confession
I think Leo Tolstoy grasped in his own personal experience well what Pascal wanted his skeptical friends to understand. In A Confession, Tolstoy writes:
My question—that which at the age fifty brought me to the verge of suicide—was the simplest of questions, lying in the soul of every man from the foolish child to the wisest elder. It was a question without an answer to which one cannot live. It was: ‘What will come of what I am doing today or tomorrow? What will come of my whole life? Why should I live, why wish for anything, or do anything?’ It can also be expressed thus: ‘Is there any meaning in my life that the inevitable death awaiting me does not destroy?’
Is there any meaning in your life that the inevitable death awaiting you does not destroy? This is an excellent question to put before unbelievers of any age, Pascal’s and ours.
Many unbelievers create the illusion of purpose in their lives by saying something like, ‘This is the only life we have. That makes it even more special and meaningful than those who believe in an afterlife.’ That argument might be attractive to a middle or upper class educated atheist in the West. But what about those who suffer on a daily basis with some kind of disease, paralysis, poverty, or the thousands of other types of gross suffering in the world? Is this one life sweet and special for them? It is important to point out that the atheistic, humanist worldview is utterly bankrupt in what it has to offer those who experience horrific suffering in this life.
[Tweet “What about those who suffer daily? Is this life sweet and special for them?”]
Yet, even if an unbeliever manages to have a successful, almost pain free and pleasure filled life, Pascal would remind them that someone will soon throw earth over their head, and all that meaning in their life will be rendered null and void. The memory of them will be completely wiped off the face of the earth within a few generations. Just curious: can you name your great-great grandfather?
At this point, the unbeliever hopefully will cry out, “Wretched man that I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death?” (Romans 7:24). And Pascal will eventually respond, “Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord!” (Romans 7:25). But not just yet.
Pascal isn’t done with the negative side of making the skeptic wish Christianity was true. He will next move on to the vanity, distractions, and boredom of this life apart from God and keep pounding the unbeliever until he or she cries “Mercy!”
A Closing Addendum: The Judgment to Come
“Just as man is destined to die once and after that face judgment” (Hebrews 9:27)
Even though Pascal doesn’t seem to have planned to warn his skeptical friends of God’s judgment after death (probably because very few of them believed in a judgment to come), this does seem to be a vital component of the apostles’ apologetic with unbelievers.
In both cases, for example, where Paul is directly addressing unbelievers (pagans), he warns them of the judgment to come.
Felix and Drusilla
While Paul is in prison, Felix and Drusilla invite him to come and speak to them about faith in Christ Jesus:
But some days later Felix arrived with Drusilla, his wife who was a Jewess, and sent for Paul and heard him speak about faith in Christ Jesus. But as he was discussing righteousness, self-control and the judgment to come, Felix became frightened and said, ‘Go away for the present, and when I find time I will summon you.’ (Acts 24:24-25)
Paul seems to have had a three point sermon ready for Felix and Drusilla:
The Judgment to Come
After Paul spends some time discussing the judgment to come that the text says, “Felix became frightened.” Paul almost literally scared the hell out of him!
[Tweet “Paul, almost literally, scared the hell out of Felix!”]
Paul uses this same tactic with the Epicurean and Stoic philosophers of Athens. Interestingly, neither of these philosophical worldviews believed in a judgment to come. Paul contradicts their worldview directly when he teaches them:
Therefore having overlooked the times of ignorance, God is now declaring to men that all people everywhere should repent, because He has fixed a day in which He will judge the world in righteousness through a Man whom He has appointed, having furnished proof to all men by raising Him from the dead. (Acts 17:30-31)
We find a parallel to what Paul said to Felix here with both the words “judgment” and “righteousness.”
Paul never brings up the judgment to come when he preached in the synagogues in Acts. Why? Because the Jews already believed in the judgment to come. It was the pagans who needed to be warned about the coming judgment.
The Apostle Peter seems to follow this tactic as well. We have many sermons in Acts from Peter, but it is only when he is preaching to the Gentile household of Cornelius that he mentions the judgment to come, “And He ordered us to preach to the people, and solemnly to testify that this is the One who has been appointed by God as Judge of the living and the dead” (Acts 10:42).
Peter and Paul may be giving us some insight they had into the psychology of the unbeliever. Unbelievers are also made in the image of God, and God may have wired it into their consciousness that they will one day stand before God at the judgment. This is not to say that they walk around thinking about God or the judgment to come. However, when someone like Paul (or you) warns them of the judgment to come, something is awakened within them that, like Felix, convicts them of their guilt before a holy God and brings terror to their soul.
Renowned atheist philosopher, Thomas Nagel, reminds me of Felix in this regard. He is much more honest about his inner thoughts than most. In one place, he admits his deep seated “fear” of God:
I am talking about something much deeper—namely, the fear of religion itself. I speak from experience, being strongly subject to this fear myself: I want atheism to be true and am made uneasy by the fact that some of the most intelligent and well-informed people I know are religious believers. It isn’t just that I don’t believe in God and, naturally, hope that I’m right in my belief. It’s that I hope there is no God! I don’t want there to be a God; I don’t want the universe to be like that.[6]
[Tweet “It isn’t just that I don’t believe in God…It’s that I hope there is no God! —Thomas Nagel”]
This may reflect the inner thoughts of many unbelievers, whether, like Nagel, they admit it or not.
Death and the Judgment to Come
In sum, apologists, evangelists, and really all followers of Jesus Christ should utilize this powerhouse, double punch from Pascal and the apostles. In every way you can, put before unbelievers their impending death and the judgment to come. This will strike at the very heart and soul of the natural man. Scare the hell out of them! But remember to always do so with “gentleness and respect” (1 Peter 3:15).
Cicero Tusc 1.34.83. ↩
Peter Kreeft, Christianity for Modern Pagans: Pascal’s Pensées Edited, Outlined & Explained. Ignatius Press, San Francisco, CA, 1993, p. 141 ↩
Bertrand Russell, Why I Am Not a Christian. Simon & Schuster, Inc. New York, NY, 1957, p. 107. ↩
Richard Dawkins, River Out of Eden: A Darwinian View of Life. London: Weidenfield & Nicolson, 1995, pp. 132-33. ↩
Dale Ahlquist, Common Sense 101: Lessons from G.K. Chesterton. Ignatius Press, San Francisco, 2006, p. 183. ↩
Thomas Nagel, The Last Word. Oxford University Press, 1997, p. 130. ↩
Justin Bass
Justin W. Bass has a Ph.D. from Dallas Theological Seminary in New Testament Studies. His recent book is entitled The Battle for the Keys: Revelation 1:18 and Christ’s Descent into the Underworld. He has received a Masters of Theology from DTS and a Business degree in Entrepreneurship from Southern Methodist University. Dr. Bass is currently the Lead Pastor of 1042 Church in Frisco and a Professor at Dallas Christian College and Dallas Theological Seminary. When he is not working, he is reading, watching movies (usually Lord of the Rings), and spending time with his high school sweetheart Allison Bass and their two kids Arianna (5) and Christian (2).
Blaise Pascal and His Apologetic that Never Was Who Is This Son of Man? A Review of My Debate with Dr. Bart Ehrman (Part 1) Who is this Son of Man? A Review of My Debate with Dr. Bart Ehrman (Part 2)
Acts 17:30-31 Acts 24:24-25 Bertrand Russell Blaise Pascal Cicero Death Drusilla Ecclesiastes 1:2 Felix GK Chesterton Hebrews 9:27 Hegesias Leo Tolstoy Paul Pensees Peter Peter Kreeft Richard Dawkins Romans 7:24 Romans 7:25 Thomas Nagel
Justin W. Bass has a Ph.D. from Dallas Theological Seminary in New Testament Studies. His recent book is entitled The Battle for the Keys: Revelation 1:18 and Christ's Descent into the Underworld. He has received a Masters of Theology from DTS and a Business degree in Entrepreneurship from Southern Methodist University. Dr. Bass is currently the Lead Pastor of 1042 Church in Frisco and a Professor at Dallas Christian College and Dallas Theological Seminary. When he is not working, he is reading, watching movies (usually Lord of the Rings), and spending time with his high school sweetheart Allison Bass and their two kids Arianna (5) and Christian (2).
Blaise Pascal and His Apologetic that Never Was
What Happened to the Twelve Apostles? How Do Their Deaths Prove Easter?
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line10993
|
__label__wiki
| 0.587502
| 0.587502
|
Another Pope Francis bishop is named in India
In Global Church, Interviews
CRUX_CONTRIBUTOR
Father Allwyn D'Silva, apponted by Pope Francis as auxiliary bishop of Mumbai, India. (Credit: St. John the Baptist school.)
“Care for Creation” will be my Episcopal motto,” Father Allwyn D’Silva told Crux and added that “My appointment is a recognition of the Church for justice and environment issues.” D'Silva is preparing for his new job as auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Bombay.
MUMBAI, India – On January 28, the Archdiocese of Bombay (now called Mumbai) on the west coast of India will welcome two new auxiliary bishops, and at least one of them fits the dictionary definition of a “Pope Francis bishop.”
The Vatican announced on Dec. 20 that Fathers Barthol Barretto and Father Allwyn D’Silva have been tapped by the pope to be auxiliary bishops of Mumbai, which is led by Cardinal Oswald Gracias, a member of the pope’s “C9” council of cardinal advisers.
D’Silva, who’s dedicated his life to working with the poor and advocating for the environment, has clearly been cut from Francis’s cloth.
For decades he has been deeply involved in human rights issues, social concerns and most recently environmental matters at the local, regional and national level.
From Jan. 1, 2015 to Dec. 31, 2017, D’Silva will serve as the Secretary of the Federation of Asian Bishops’ Conferences (FABC) Climate Change Desk. Since assuming this role, he has attended various programs and has been a speaker and resource person for environmental matters.
“’Care for Creation’ will be my episcopal motto,” D’Silva told Crux and added that “My appointment is a recognition of the Church that works for justice and environment issues.”
The FABC also recently appointed him as secretary of the office of Human Development.
D’Silva was ordained in 1975. He was in charge of the Justice and Peace Commission for the Archdiocese of Bombay for several years and was also the coordinator of the Prison Ministry in the Archdiocese.
He has also spoken many times on the issue of climate change and more specifically about Laudato Si, Pope Francis’ 2014 encyclical on this topic.
In other words, D’Silva has dedicated his life to working in the peripheries that Francis holds so dear.
D’Silva seems to understand the gravity of being a bishop in a challenging world and the particularity of having been appointed by this pope.
“My appointment is very challenging especially during the tenure of Pope Francis, because the Holy Father has set high standards for us bishops,” he said. “He has mentioned that the pastor should have the smell of the sheep. That is a big challenge for us bishops as well as for the Church.”
He sees his appointment as a “recognition of the work for justice, the work for the marginalized” he’s done through his life, as well as of the fact that he has been “taking care of the apostolate on environment and creation on the Asian level.”
He is looking to help make the “church in Mumbai and Asia more environment friendly, more conscious of global warming” as well as keeping the justice issues front and center.
“My apostolate will be more towards the peripheries, the marginalized,” D’Silva said.
Pope Francis couldn’t have said it better.
Church in India marks day of prayer for creation
Church in India marks Francis at 5 years
India Cardinal celebrates Easter with retired priests
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line10994
|
__label__wiki
| 0.612646
| 0.612646
|
Archive for Dore Schary
Night of the Roberts
Posted in FILM, literature, Politics with tags Crossfire, Dore Schary, Edward Dmytryk, George Cooper, Gloria Grahame, Jacqueline White, Jacques Tourneur, John Paxton, Nicholas Musuraca, Paul Kelly, Richard Brooks, Robert Mitchum, Robert Ryan, Robert Young, Sam Levene, Val Lewton on July 27, 2018 by dcairns
Watching lots of RKO films for a project which may or may not happen, but the research is fun anyway.
If you’re ever caught up in an argument about which is the true auteur, Val Lewton or Jacques Tourneur, you can always bamboozle both sides by plumping for Nicholas Musuraca, who shot not only CAT PEOPLE but several other Lewton horrors, as well as OUT OF THE PAST, THE SPIRAL STAIRCASE, DEADLINE AT DAWN, THE LOCKET and STRANGER ON THE THIRD FLOOR (the first film noir?) giving them all the same beautiful, shadowy look.
CROSSFIRE is an interesting one. It’s a sort of knock-down fight between studio boss Dore Schary’s social conscience cinema, Dmytryk and Musuraca’s noir dramatism, and Richard Brooks’ source novel. The novel’s victim was killed because he was gay — a startling story element for the time, which would have surprised readers. The movie’s victim, Sam Levene, is killed because he’s Jewish, and the moment Robert Ryan is heard to say “jewboy,” all pretense of mystery disappears and it becomes incredible that Robert Young doesn’t put two and two together.
Robert Mitchum is the third Robert, and has all the best lines, making me wonder if he wrote them, as he occasionally did at this time (HIS KIND OF WOMAN, THE LUSTY MEN).
But a surprising number of Brooks’ homosexual hints remain, flapping loose ends attached to nothing at either end. Ryan takes special note of Levene talking to his “sensitive artist” friend George Cooper, and it’s made to look like a pick-up, viewed in covert POV across the bar top. The whole set-up, with Levene randomly inviting strangers back to his pad, is slightly odd.
The film benefits from a wild, shape-shifting structure that leaps between viewpoints, so that Mitchum, Young, Cooper, his wife Jacqueline White, and even Ryan take turns as our principal, point-of-view character. The film seems to take its form from the drunken binge that initiates the action, veering about through time and space, doubling back on itself picking up false trails and introducing characters who go nowhere.
Best of these is Paul Kelly, with his face of a cork golem and his body shaped like a sandwich in a suit, staring dead-eyed at Cooper as he wantonly freaks him out with lies and non-sequiturs. Who is he and why is he here? We never quite learn, though “pimp” is the most obvious explanation for his presence in Gloria Grahame’s bijou apartment (the kitchen is a wall behind a curtain). He’s just very strange. If he was Dan Duryea, we’d say “pimp” and shrug it off. But Kelly seems to lack the confidence for that. Even he doesn’t seem to know who he is.
The film’s good-hearted ambitions mean Young has to provide protracted expositions on the evils of antisemitism (but with no mention of the recent Holocaust, strangely enough), which are quite well written (adaptation by John Paxton) but the purpose is better served by Ryan’s pathological hate speech. He’s clearly enough positioned as the heavy so that explaining why is redundant. But the most evocative stuff is the unexplained and unexplainable, the lacunae of Brooks’ deleted story and the walking lacuna that is Paul Kelly.
Posted in FILM with tags Alfred Lewis Levitt, Ben Barzman, Dore Schary, Fritz Lang, Fury, Joseph Losey, M, Manny Farber, Pete-Roleum and His Cousins, Richard MacDonald, The Big Night, The Boy with Green Hair, The Lawless, The Prowler, These are the Damned, To Kill a Mockingbird on May 15, 2008 by dcairns
Bizarre worm’s eye view of riot.
I watched a fuzzy off-air recording of THE LAWLESS the other day, which is possibly the weakest of Losey’s American features. But they’re an interesting batch. U.S. Losey is hard to see and often underestimated, but there’s plenty to admire:
First off, Losey made a number of short films, several of them corporate promos. Despite his communist sympathies, he was apparently happy to whore himself out to big business. Well, the man had to eat. And drink. Especially drink. I haven’t seen any of these shorts and Christ knows if I’ll ever get to. PETE-ROLEUM AND HIS COUSINS sure sounds enticing. Would make a good support film for ROCCO AND HIS BROTHERS, I bet. Programmers, take note!
THE BOY WITH GREEN HAIR, commissioned by liberal producer Dore Schary, is a middlebrow liberal anti-war tract made cherishable by the fact that it’s completely insane from beginning to end. Howard Hughes, who bought R.K.O. midway through the film’s production, did his best to strangle the pacifist message, but Losey, Schary, screenwriters Alfred Lewis Levitt and Ben Barzman (soon to join Losey on the blacklist), and child star Dean Stockwell all resisted Hughes’ interference in their own ways, and what made it to the screen is fairly uncompromising, and completely bananas. A boy’s hair turns green overnight after he learns that he’s a war orphan. The ghosts of the slain instruct him to keep his verdant locks as a warning against the horrors of armed conflict. Wow.
Heavy irony.
THE LAWLESS. Another liberal message film, this one about lynch mob violence, it’s but devoid of GREEN HAIR’s agreeable barminess. The best idea is naming the Mexican ghetto Sleepy Hollow, and restaging the Headless Horseman bridge chase with an ice cream van and a pursuing police car. Otherwise, comparison with Fritz Lang’s FURY is instructive. The studio prevented Lang from having a black protagonist, but at least Lang’s story places the victim front-and-centre in the narrative, and challenges our easy perceptions by turning him from persecuted into the persecutor partway through.
Losey is allowed to use actual minorities, Mexicans, in his story, but the hero is a white newspaperman with less at stake in the story. It’s like a version of TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD with the child’s-eye view removed, and with no real tragic injustice to get angry about.
THE PROWLER is knockout. A lucid and lurid skewering of “wrong values” in capitalist society, in the form of a tight noir potboiler. Losey was pleased with his integration of production design and camera movement / composition: his collaboration with designer Richard MacDonald would be a defining feature of his films in exile. Manny Farber, who sometimes reacted against Losey’s editiorialising, admired this one. “Socially sharp on stray and hitherto untouched items like motels, athletic nostalgia, the impact of nouveau riche furnishings on an ambitious ne’er-do-well, the potentially explosive boredom of the childless, uneducated, well-to-do housewife with too much time on her hands.”
M. Losey’s remake of the Lang classic has terrific scenes, and uses some of its borrowings well — others get in the way. Some of the script is fairly dumb, but Losey’s use of L.A. locations, including the iconic Bradbury Building, makes it fly. I blogged it HERE.
THE BIG NIGHT is possibly best of all. I blogged about it HERE, and in the weeks since then it’s stayed in my mind and grown clearer and sharper. It’s the least strident of Losey’s early message films, and it disguises any tendency to preach with a grotesque and surreal surface. Peak noir.
Losey was clearly on a roll. Despite M being shot in only 20 days, and THE PROWLER in 17, both are vigorous, dynamic and intelligently shot genre pieces. Losey could find interesting things to say within the constraints of the thriller, and put his points over in an economical and entertaining manner.
Forced to work abroad by the blacklist, Losey would find himself working within entirely different genres and constraints. The British film scene is a very odd world…
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line10995
|
__label__wiki
| 0.899624
| 0.899624
|
Anton Yelchin’s Death Cut Short His Voice Work On ‘Trollhunters’ Series
Chris Chapman for Deadline
When Anton Yelchin died suddenly Saturday night in a car-related accident, he was still recording the voice for the lead character in the upcoming Netflix animated family event series Trollhunters from creator and executive producer Guillermo del Toro and DreamWorks Animation. While the project was officially unveiled by del Toro last week at the Annecy Animation Festival in Annecy, France, the series already had been in production and I hear Yelchin had completed a great majority of the episodes.
Because Yelchin’s passing was so unexpected, Netflix and DreamWorks Animation are yet to make plans how to address it, possibly casting a new actor for the remaining episodes. “Our hearts are heavy with this tragic news and Anton’s family and friends are in our thoughts,” the two companies said in a joint statement Sunday.
In heartfelt tweets, del Toro shed light on how long Yelchin had been working on the series. “The sweetest, most humble, delightful, talented guy you’d ever meet. Worked together for about a year. Shocked,” del Toro wrote Sunday, adding “Anton was a sweetheart. Absolutely a great creative partner and artist.”
Yelchin co-starred alongside Kelsey Grammer and Ron Perlman in Trollhunters, set to premiere in December 2016. The series features a tale of two fantastical worlds set to collide in an epic saga. Set in the fictional suburb of Arcadia, our unlikely hero, Jim (Yelchin), and his two best friends make a startling discovery that beneath their hometown lies a hidden battle between good trolls and bad, the outcome of which will impact their lives forever.
Yelchin’s Jim is an ordinary teenage boy whose discovery of a mystical amulet sets his life on a course filled with high-stakes adventure.
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line10996
|
__label__wiki
| 0.687388
| 0.687388
|
I was a Chinese internet addict
May 16, 2016 June 16, 2016 35 minute readby McKenzie Funk
In Longreads
I had read online about the Chinese Internet-addiction clinic, but I didn’t know if it would accept me until I was actually there. The clinic was run by Chinese doctors and soldiers in a two-story block of concrete on the heavily congested grounds of the Beijing Military Region Central Hospital. Its entrance was a sloped hallway lined with inspirational posters: images of winding highways, palm-fringed swimming pools, empty beaches lapped by tropical waves. Flora, a film student who’d agreed to be my translator, read the captions as we walked in. “Overprotection will make your children disabled,” she whispered. “Courage has unbelievable power.”
A squat woman with blackened front teeth and a lab coat was standing expectantly in the waiting room. She wore white running shoes with Velcro fasteners, and her hair was cut into a tight bob that faded into a mullet. She smiled warmly and introduced herself as Dr. Yao. I thanked her for seeing me.
“How long do you go on the Internet each day?” she asked. I stared into space. “That would be, average, uh, eight to twelve hours,” I said. “Sometimes less.”
“What do you do on the Internet?”
“I read the news a lot. The New York Times online—every story. All of Google News, at least everything that’s interesting. The Washington Post. Sometimes I send messages to friends and other people. Sometimes, when I have to buy an airline ticket…”
“Do you play Internet games?”
“No. I just talk to friends and read. But I’ve watched cartoons on cartoon sites, and I look at things I could buy online.”
“Do you have anxiety when you can’t get on the Internet?”
“I do wonder if I’m missing messages from friends—emails I really should be reading—and I wonder about the news. Maybe there’s a story, American politics or something, and every hour I want to know what’s changed. When I have the opportunity, I check those things, and it feels better.”
“Twenty-nine.”
I explained that my girlfriend, Jenny, was half Chinese, and let Dr. Yao assume that this had something to do with my being here. I said that Flora was a friend of Jenny’s cousin and was helping me on behalf of the worried family. This was a lie.
A nurse in a pink cap walked by, then a soldier in camouflage fatigues. A girl of twelve or thirteen passed next, waving an exuberant good-bye to Dr. Yao while her father toted her suitcase. On the wall of the waiting room, I noticed, was an illustrated poster explaining the inner workings of computers: the Windows operating system, a Web browser set to Google, the interface of the popular Chinese chat program QQ.
“Do you have the ability to take yourself away from the Internet?” Dr. Yao asked. If I had to go to dinner with someone, I could go, I said. But I was often late.
She asked if I had other compulsive behaviors. I admitted that I sometimes read magazines all the way through from the front page to the back page, and that I felt compelled to watch movies, even bad movies, to the very end. She asked if “small things” got stuck in my head, if I often stayed up all night, and if I thought about the Internet while doing other activities. “It’s not the Internet itself that I think about but the things inside it,” I said.
I was led to a small room furnished with a pullout futon and a gray computer. The hallways were empty; the director and most of the patients, Dr. Yao explained, were at the set of Tell It Like It Is!, one of the oldest and most famous of China’s talk shows. She seated Flora and me in front of the computer. Its desktop image was a field of blooming flowers with characters that read, “I really want my psychological health.”
On the computer was a diagnostic test. Dr. Yao said there were ninety statements, and I was to rate their truth on a scale from A (not at all true) to E (very true). She helped me fill in my biographical details—level of education, date of birth, profession (I said I had none)—then left Flora and me in private.
“You have headaches,” the computer offered. I chose “B.” “You get agitated.” I chose “C.” “When you have headaches, your head is filled with unnecessary thoughts and words.” I pondered the necessity of my thoughts. “C” again. “You feel dizzy or faint,” the computer continued. “You have less desire for the opposite sex. You have no desire for food. You check things again and again. You hear things others cannot. You feel that others control your mind. You can’t control your temper. You blame your troubles on others. You blame yourself. You are forgetful. You feel lonely. You feel scared. You feel bored. You feel sick. You feel irritable. You cry easily. You worry about your appearance. You worry too much. You can’t fall asleep. You have a hard time breathing. You feel your brain is empty. Your heart beats too quickly. You have chest pain. You are afraid of open spaces. You want to smash things. You think about death. You want to end your life. There is something blocking your throat.”
I lied outright only a few times: claims of lethargy, lack of appetite, indifference to sex, and isolation from others. I managed a sort of exaggerated honesty, sticking at least to the contours of the truth. If a statement merited a “B,” I might give it a “C.” But an “A” was always an “A,” an “E” always an “E.” None of the ninety questions mentioned the Internet, and after an hour the test was done.
A new doctor, younger and much taller than Yao, with fine features on a narrow face, came in with a printout of the instantaneous results. I received decent marks for anxiety, depression, interpersonal communication, and hostility-nothing over what the doctor said was the threshold, 1.50. But my level of paranoia was worrisome: 2.00. Worse was my obsessive-compulsive rating, 2.20. “This is bad,” the doctor said. Toward the bottom of the page was a number that seemed out of place: 60. I asked what it signified. She didn’t hesitate: “That means you’re an Internet addict.”
That afternoon, I sat in Dr. Yao’s office, looking at translations of Alfred Adler, Carl Jung, and Sigmund Freud as she asked about my successful father and mother and my history of small colleges and good grades. Two doctors, both men, strolled by carrying a pirated DVD of One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, which they started watching in the room where I’d taken the ninety-question test. I signed a release authorizing the treatment and paid Dr. Yao 2,100 yuan, enough for the first four of the twenty days I was asked to stay.
I retreated into my new room, #27, and listened to the clatter of feet in the hall: my fellow patients, back from their television appearance. At 9:00 P.M. there was a rap on the door. A nurse came in, handed me seven pills, and waited. One was a red gelcap, another a chalky white half-capsule. Four were small white tablets, and a fifth tablet was red. I put the pills in my mouth, hid them in my cheek, and pretended to cough. She kept staring, so I filled a paper cup with hot water from a thermos and drank. When I realized I’d accidentally grabbed two cups that were stuck together, I used my tongue to make a space between them and spit out the rapidly dissolving pills. I crumpled the cups and tossed them into the trash. The nurse didn’t seem to notice. She flashed a proud smile and returned to the hall. I was left with the sinking feeling that I’d swallowed the chalky half-capsule and spent the rest of the evening trying to figure out if I felt dizzy, if something was wrong in my head.
It was a dark season for the Internet users of China. Just weeks before I checked in, during the holiday marking the fifty-sixth birthday of the People’s Republic, one of their own was killed. Her screen name was “Snowly,” and she’d been playing the online game World of Warcraft nonstop for days on end, preparing to join her guild of fighters against the black dragon Nefarian. She collapsed from exhaustion and died in real life before the virtual mission could succeed. Two dozen warriors held her virtual funeral a week later. They kneeled in the digital grass and bowed their heads as words of remembrance floated off toward a range of jagged virtual peaks.
In Shanghai, a court sentenced forty-one-year-old online gamer Qiu Chengwei to life in prison for the murder of a fellow player. It was a complicated case: Qiu had lent his cyber-weapon, a “dragon saber” that he’d won in Legend of Mir II, to a younger player named Zhu Caoyuan, who in turn had sold it for $870 and kept the money. Enraged, Qiu went to the police, but they couldn’t help him; China had no laws protecting virtual property. So Qiu broke into Zhu’s one-room apartment while he and his girlfriend slept, and Zhu barely had time to put his pants on before Qiu stabbed him in the heart with a real knife.
The number of Chinese Netizens (the preferred translation of the term wangmin, literally “network citizens”) recently surpassed 130 million: the world’s second-largest online population, after America’s, and growing at 30 percent a year. Broadband is cheap, fast, everywhere; Internet cafes number in the tens of thousands; all-night passes cost as little as 5 yuan, or about 60 cents. At any given moment, more than 2 million Chinese are battling one another in virtual worlds, and at one record-breaking moment 22 million users logged on to the chat and social-networking portal QQ. Last year China’s online gaming industry posted revenues of $670 million—up 45 percent from 2005, when Netizens spent more than $12 billion on Web access.
Chen Tianqiao, the thirty-two-year-old CEO of Shanda, distributor of Legend of Mir II and other multiplayer games, had recently become a billionaire–one of only ten in the country. Another billionaire was William Ding Lei, who founded NetEase.com. Yahoo! injected a billion dollars in cash into the e-commerce site Alibaba.com, and China Mobile announced that it had spent more than a billion dollars in two years to bring Internet and phone service to 25,862 rural villages.
Cracks appeared everywhere. Bloggers such as Sister Hibiscus, Rascal Swallow, and Stainless Steel Mouse were vaulted to awkward, inappropriate levels of celebrity. A server crashed after 50,000 people simultaneously tried to download twenty-five minutes of lovemaking sounds from online sex diarist Muzi Mei. A new kind of sweatshop appeared in cities up and down the coast: warehouses packed with young Chinese who played Mir II or World of Warcraft in twelve-hour shifts, winning virtual gold and weapons that rich foreign gamers would buy with real money. A song called “Mice Love Rice,” which had been posted online by an unknown lounge singer and music teacher named Yang Chengang, became a national mantra: “I love you, loving you/As the mice love the rice.”
Fueled by QQ, a culture of one-night stands infested urban centers. Girls logging on after midnight were barraged by instant messages. “ONS?” they asked. “ONS?” Meanwhile, role-playing Netizens began registering for wanghun (cyber-weddings) and raising digital children together. Hundreds of thousands of strangers engaged in the fantasy at sites such as Virtual Family, and real-life courts granted divorces to real-life spouses as the online bigamists were exposed. Some 30 percent of marital troubles in Guangzhou were said to be caused by virtual affairs and marriages.
In November 2005, a 22,500-person, thirty-city study by the China Youth Association for Network Development confirmed what everybody in China already knew: one out of every eight Chinese young people was an Internet addict. This was followed by the even darker news from the Chinese Academy of Sciences that 80 percent of college and university dropouts had failed due to Internet addiction. A respected Beijing judge, Shan Xiuyun, reported that 90 percent of the city’s juvenile crime was Internet-related. In Hunan Province, Internet-related crimes were said to be increasing by 10 percent every year.
In Jiangxi Province, a computer-science major rendered penniless by his addiction killed a homeowner in a burglary gone awry. In Chongqing, a train crushed two middle-school students who’d fallen asleep on the tracks after forty-eight hours online. In Lanzhou, the story was told of a fourteen-year-old who killed his great-grandmother with a brick to the head, took 390 yuan from her body, and went to spend it at an Internet cafe.
Also in Shanghai, it was reported that a young man who’d played online games for six years would be stuck forever in a sitting position. His back was fused at a 90-degree angle; doctors said there was nothing they could do. In Tianjin, a thirteen-year-old played World of Warcraft for thirty-six hours in a row, then rode the elevator to the top of his twenty-four-story building and jumped. He left behind an 80,000-character diary about the virtual world and a suicide note saying he was off to meet the game’s characters. His parents sued World of Warcraft’s distributor for 100,000 yuan.
Perhaps more remarkable than China’s crisis was the response: mass shutdowns of illegal Net cafes, regulations that now kept them 200 meters from any primary or high school, national addiction help lines and “safe surfing” programs, and a thirty-eight-episode anti-Internet addiction sitcom, The Story of Shan Dian Mao. The clinic was part of an all-out counterattack by a people who were certain they saw a danger that the West, in its more incremental steps to modernity, largely hadn’t. It is normal for humans to become lost, to drop out of society, and perhaps just as normal for them to lose themselves but tell themselves they’re fine. It is rarer, I thought, when we dare name the culprit.
The next morning, I awoke in the fetal position in my hospital bed, shivering underneath a Winnie-the-Pooh comforter. It was 6:40 A.M. My room was cold and dark, and I could barely make out the Pooh poetry on my matching beanbag pillow: “When the/twinkly stars/fill the pretty/night sky,/they all wave/good-bye/with a smile/and a sigh.” Another patient, a mustachioed fifteen-year-old, was standing over me. “Time get up,” he said. “Hurry, hurry.” I stepped into the hallway, where eight bleary-eyed teenagers were lined up against the wall, standing rigid, as a young man in military camouflage examined them. I was the last in the lineup; they’d already been waiting ten minutes.
The soldier was known as Xiaohei, or “Little Black,” a nickname that distinguished him from our other minder, the older but shorter “Big Black.” His skin was dark, his uniform perfectly starched. Little Black was over six feet tall, lean and muscular, with spiky hair and a face oddly reminiscent of the action hero The Rock. He was the perfect role model.
Little Black led us through a wing where adult alcoholics were packed three to a room, wearing wifebeaters and tattoos while chain-smoking in bed with the television blaring. Once outside, we began to jog. We ran counterclockwise around an enormous new outpatient building, passing hedges trimmed in the shape of a small intestine and a crowd of old people practicing tai chi in a courtyard. One patriotic red banner after another stretched across the road: “We have no weekends so we can create a harmonious society,” the first said. After the last banner—”Concentrate on work, speak the truth, try real things…and you’ll achieve”—we raced each other for 200 yards to our workout zone, a basketball court. I came in fifth.
Our first exercise was a stretch that started with fists together and ended with one arm raised in a triumphant, Travolta-like pose. We repeated it eight times, first with the left arm up, then the right, counting in English for my benefit. We then approximated a circa-1996 raver’s invisible-ball dance, in order to loosen our wrists. We did twenty pushups in unison. We spread our arms like wings, seemingly for balance, and did twenty squats. Off to the side, a minuscule seventeen-year-old patient worked on his own program. His name was Qin Xiangzong, and he was here in part because he had tried to stab a fellow cadet at his officers’ academy. The boy soldier put his hands on his waist and kept his feet planted in one spot, then gyrated wildly as if swinging an imaginary hula hoop. He stared intently at the ground, unable to make eye contact with anyone, his face fixed in a demented grin.
Basketball, when it got going, was not a team sport. No one passed; everyone charged toward the goal alone. There were two air balls and six shots off the rim before any went in. My teammate Hu Yimao, a fifteen-year-old with spiky Rod Stewart hair, double-dribbled every time he got the ball. If he pulled down a defensive rebound, he threw up a shot immediately, never mind whose basket he was under. But the game was more unpracticed than unathletic, and the boys took it seriously. My team, aided by a slightly older patient named Su Xu—who dressed in black pants, a black shirt, and black, Japanimation-style cut-off gloves-and a tall, thin boy from Xian, He Cong, won 26 to 7. Our opponents dropped to the ground and did another twenty pushups.
I ate breakfast—bread and a watery rice sludge—alone in my room, and at 9:00 A.M. a beaming Dr. Yao came in to give me my medicine. I used the same double-cup trick. Ten minutes later, the door opened and a man wheeled in a cart. Atop the cart was a device the size and shape of an old dot-matrix printer but with wires connecting it to three jumper cable-like calipers and six small, color-coded suction cups. He had me lie down on the bed, lift up my shirt, and stretch my arms above my head. He swabbed an area abutting my right nipple with alcohol and affixed the red suction cup. The other five cups—purple, yellow, green, blue, and brown—were placed around my heart after further swabbing. He clamped the calipers around both wrists and my left ankle, and after that I wasn’t allowed to move. He leaned over the machine. I had no idea what he was doing. I gritted my teeth and genuinely expected a jolt of electricity—I had heard that the doctors would send 30-volt shocks to pressure points on the most recalcitrant patients—but I never felt a thing.
Barely eight months old, the clinic was already famous—the subject of glowing coverage by CCTV, the China Daily, and the state-run Xinhua News Agency. Since it opened in March 2005 on the grounds of the military hospital, its all-army staff had helped hundreds of patients. It claimed a cure rate of 80 percent, a phenomenal degree of success that was attributed to the expertise of the clinic’s founder, Tao Ran, who’d been treating various addictions for twenty years. The clinic was often full, and plans were under way to expand it from 20 beds to 150.
It was not cheap. At 410 yuan a day, about $50, a typical twenty-day stay was equivalent to the average city dweller’s annual salary. Food was an extra 30 to 50 yuan a day if you ordered Chinese takeout rather than suffer hospital fare—which we all did—and gym access was 15 yuan a day. Every patient left a 200-yuan deposit in case he decided to break something. But the steep price bought a comprehensive program: a cocktail of abstinence, forced basketball, weight lifting, daily sessions with a therapist, oral and intravenous drugs, and, for extreme cases, the aforementioned 30-volt electric charges.
The condition being treated at the clinic did not, according to Western medicine, officially exist. But it was not without advocates back home. The first paper on Internet addiction was presented in 1996—soon after the birth of the Web itself—at the American Psychological Association’s 104th annual meeting, in Toronto. Its author, Dr. Kimberly S. Young, proposed that the disorder be diagnosed using modified criteria for pathological gambling. Addicts were those who answered “yes” to five of eight questions:
1. Do you feel preoccupied with the Internet?
2. Do you feel the need to use the Internet with increasing amounts of time in order to achieve satisfaction?
3. Have you repeatedly made unsuccessful efforts to control, cut back, or stop Internet use?
4. Do you feel restless, moody, depressed, or irritable when attempting to cut down or stop Internet use?
5. Do you stay online longer than originally intended?
6. Have you jeopardized or risked the loss of a significant relationship, job, educational or career opportunity because of the Internet?
7. Have you lied to family members, therapists, or others to conceal the extent of involvement with the Internet?
8. Do you use the Internet as a way of escaping from problems or of relieving a dysphoric mood?
Young, who runs the website www.netaddiction.com and a practice in Pennsylvania, was bolstered in her controversial work by Connecticut psychologist David Greenfield and Harvard’s Maressa Hecht Orzack, who run www.virtual-addiction.com and www.computeraddiction.com, respectively. In his 1999 book, Virtual Addiction, Greenfield underscored the hidden danger of the Internet’s “endless boundaries and unending opportunity.” He described the satisfying sensation of a process without close, “the principle of incomplete Gestalts.” The Internet was an echo chamber, Young believed. Like drugs or alcohol, it could magnify existing problems—”as the alcoholic’s marriage gets worse, drinking increases to escape the nagging spouse, and as the spouse’s nagging increases more, the alcoholic drinks more.”
One of the most rigorous investigations into Net abuse was led by Dr. Nathan Shapira of the University of Florida and published in 2000 in the Journal of Affective Disorders. He tentatively classified it as an impulse-control disorder, like kleptomania or trichotillomania (the irresistible urge to pull out one’s own hair): an increasing feeling of tension or arousal before logging on, nearly impossible to fight, followed by a pleasurable release.
But whether it was called Internet Addiction Disorder (IAD), Pathological Internet Use (PIU), Impulsive-Compulsive Internet Usage Disorder (ICIUD), Maladaptive Internet Use, Excessive Internet Use, or Netomania, the condition was denied an entry in DSM-IV, the West’s gold-standard manual of mental illnesses. The case for a new classification was muddy. By treating the vast Internet as a monolith-something to be addicted to rather than through—researchers ran into definitional hurdles. Was someone with an online-porn problem an Internet addict or just a pornography addict who indulged via the Web?
Skeptics argued that people lost themselves in socially acceptable diversions (books, television, jogging) all the time: The major difference, they claimed, was bias against the Web. And Shapira’s research, consisting of face-to-face psychometric evaluations of twenty subjects, found that so-called addicts had a raft of other mental problems: More than half of the people in his study were determined to be manic-depressive; 60 percent had anxiety disorders. Fifteen of twenty had been treated with psychotropic medications; nineteen had a history of mental illness in the family. On average, each subject had five major psychiatric issues.
Before arriving in Beijing, I’d had my own theory about China’s addicts. I hadn’t been to Beijing in nine years. I’d pictured a peasant nation susceptible to the dazzle of technology, suddenly come from the fields and into the Internet cafes, and figured that the addicted Netizens were attracted to the Internet’s novelty—taken in by newness itself. As a Westerner steeped in modernity, I was largely immune. By this logic, China’s crisis was a Gods Must Be Crazy parable, with the Netizens playing the role of the Bushmen, the Internet the role of the Coke bottle. But the longer I spent in the clinic, the less this explanation made sense to me.
DECA IS SUPPORTED BY OUR READERS. JOIN US.
My companions were Netizens, but more precisely, I found, most were jiaozhu (kung fu masters)—people who played Internet games all night and slept all day. The best gamers among them were zhanshen: giant heroes in war. For them, the first hurdle here was simply to adjust to the 10:00 P.M. lights-out, when a doctor’s hand would reach through their door and flick off the switch. New arrivals were often sedated with a clear IV fluid and left for twenty-four hours until their sleep cycles normalized.
The business of “calming the brain and correcting hormonal imbalances,” as Dr. Yao put it, was done by a different IV fluid, a maple syrup-colored sedative of unknown provenance. I was the only patient who didn’t receive the sedative daily, because upon check-in I’d pleaded with Dr. Yao to keep the needles out of me. I had an honest phobia. “Once I had a knee problem,” I’d told her, “so they took a blood test and they stuck a needle in me and I watched all the blood drain into a bag.”
The boys told me that the sacks of sedative took half an hour to drain—longer if one was better hydrated—and left them feeling lethargic, dizzy, and extremely thirsty. One showed me the eight needle holes clustered near the wrist on the top of his hand. My new friend Zhang Dong—the mustachioed boy who’d woken me up and spoke the most English of any of them—had eleven holes. It was like counting rings in a tree: he’d been at the clinic eleven days.
Dong told me I was lucky because I’d been assigned to his psychologist, Dr. Xu, the best the clinic had. “He has a Ph.D.,” Dong said. “He will ask you lots of questions about private, very, very personal things.” I replied that I was ready—but this was only partly true. I’d never seen a therapist before, and I’ve never been one for much introspection.
I soon learned that I was the only patient who used email, who didn’t play online games, and who didn’t have a chat account. But this was unremarkable: While I was in China, Guo Liang of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences published a study showing that only two thirds of Net users had email accounts, and only a third of them checked their email on a daily basis. Forty-two percent of Netizens did not use a search engine. Seventy-five percent had never made an online purchase.
Instead of replacing encyclopedias, newspapers, storefronts, travel agencies, and the U.S. Postal Service, Chinese people—both addicts and non-addicts—seemed to be replacing the television with a more interactive way to entertain themselves. This was not the business-oriented Web of the West. Guo’s study explained that Chinese people overwhelmingly used the Internet to chat, play games, download music, and read about celebrities. The Web lives of the Netizens—whose QQ profiles featured not photos, as on MySpace, but personalized avatars wearing clothing and jewelry bought in a digital store—had very little in common with their real lives; they went online to escape.
The question of how Netizens became kung fu masters had lately taken a surprising turn: instead of looking at what they were escaping to, researchers dared ask what they were escaping from. The man asking the toughest questions was Professor Tao Hongkai, an historian who’d returned to China from the United States in 2002 in order to retire. In May 2004, he’d decided to invite high schooler Qu Qian, a top student turned addict whom he’d read about in his local newspaper, to his house for ad-hoc therapy. He’d cured her in a miraculous nine hours. Word got out. He began receiving phone calls day and night. Mothers sent letters, some written in their own blood, begging for help. Soon he was treating other teenagers, hundreds of them, for free; he packed thousand-seat lecture halls in seventy cities in twenty provinces in sixteen months. His method: actually talk with—not to—the child, and actually listen.
The professor’s explanation of Chinese Internet addiction amounted to an indictment of Chinese society. He railed against the one-child policy and the xiao huangdi (little emperors) it had created: children whose every material need was met even as spiritual needs were ignored. Instead of having hopes of their own, spoiled teenagers carried those of six other people–their parents and two sets of grandparents. They were overprotected but underdeveloped, without discipline or a sense of meaning. “They have nothing to hold on to,” he said. “They are empty inside.”
He believed an even bigger problem lay with China’s intensely test-based academics: a child’s entire scholastic path—in some ways his or her life—could depend on one exam, the gaokao, the sole criterion for college entrance. The pressure was crushing; peers became competitors; teachers became slave drivers. Students had time only for rote memorization—not for singing or volleyball or after-school fun, otherwise defined.
Professor Tao noticed that Mir II and World of Warcraft were games not of gore but of wits and teambuilding and winnable battles. He ventured that they gave teenagers something society, and especially schools, did not: freedom. “If they want to fight, they can fight. If they want to curse, they can curse. If they want to marry, they can marry.” Back in real life, he said, “every child is like a little donkey. The teacher grabs his two long ears and pulls and pulis. The parents get behind him and push and push.” I thought about my life in America. A little push didn’t sound so bad.
I had my psychotherapy sessions in the afternoons. Dr. Xu was soft-spoken but direct, and he had a habit of pausing dramatically before every question. When I gave an answer, he’d raise his eyebrows and say, “Hmmm,” then scribble notes on his clipboard. I tried to be honest. Dr. Xu asked about my parents—did I love them, did I respect them, did I live up to their hopes?—and about problems with Jenny, which I said had contributed to my addiction. “Is there such a thing as true love?” he wondered. “Do you think true love must have two sides? Can you truly love someone who doesn’t love you back?” I said it was possible. You could fall in love with someone’s potential.
Dr. Xu discovered I’d been a philosophy major in college, and he asked me abruptly what the meaning of life was. I didn’t know. It was something more important than being happy, I said. “If you had just seven days left to live, what would you do?” he asked. I threw out an awkward answer about going home to my parents in Oregon and writing letters of farewell—not because I was trying to keep in character but because I didn’t want to think honestly about death and had no idea what I’d do. “Why don’t you and your father talk about feelings?” he asked.
He had me draw a picture of a house, a picture of myself, and a picture of a tree. My house had a chimney and a window and a mailbox; my tree had pinecones like the evergreens in my parents’ back yard. But it was ungrounded, I later noticed—no base and no roots, just a trunk floating in space. Dr. Xu didn’t believe me when I said I rarely remembered dreams after waking up, but it was true; I rarely do.
The boys always filled my room once he left. The grungy, ten- by twenty-foot space, with its three mismatched chairs, TCL brand television, ceiling hook for an IV drip, and yellow fake flowers, was becoming the clinic’s social nexus. Dong, who one winter had protested being cut off from the Internet by hanging himself upside down from his parents’ balcony, shivering violently with spittle dripping from his mouth, was my most frequent visitor. He told me he’d once stayed online for seven days in a row. A lanky, easygoing boy I called Sam (he reminded me of a friend’s brother), whose online record was four days, often joined him.
The first time the pair came over, Dong immediately stared at the television as if something was amiss, then leaned over and turned it on for me. “Okay?” he asked. A boy with a blue-striped sweater and slicked-down hair that made him look like a drowned cat, Song Zhixuan, also appeared. He leaned against the doorjamb because he was too shy to enter, and a few others came all the way in. They took over the bed and chairs and began discussing the relative merits of. Beijing and Shanghai. “Beijing is bigger,” Dong said. “Shanghai is,” said Sam. “Beijing.” “Shanghai.” “Beijing.” “Shanghai.” “Beijing!” “Shanghai!” “Beijing!” “Shanghai!” I was the first foreigner any of the boys had met.
Another time, when we were alone, Dong told Flora and me about the Tell It Like It Is! television appearance with Director Tao. It had not gone well. With the boys at his side, Tao had been arguing against Shanda CEO Chen Tianqiao about Internet addiction. At one point, Tao invoked one school of Confucian philosophy: that human nature is essentially good. Something odd happened. The boy soldier, the would-be stabber, ran to the middle of the stage and began to argue against Tao, point by point.
“There’s nothing unhealthy about playing Internet games!” he squeaked, standing as tall as he could in his cadet uniform. Due to his small size, he said, classmates in the real world had done violence to him for the last seven years—they’d tortured him, laughed at him. He spoke for ten minutes, telling the crowd that the only true philosophy was that of Xunzi, a Confucius disciple who came to believe that man was essentially evil: “One is born with feelings of envy and hate, and, by indulging these, one is led into banditry and theft.” After the boy soldier was done, the Tell It Like It Is! host said he had an urge to hug him. He did so. Director Tao didn’t get to finish, and the crowd had seemed to side with the Shanda CEO, who’d employed an argument some have made to keep Internet misuse out of DSM-IV: today’s “addicted” Netizens were like the people transfixed by television in its early days—this was nothing more than a honeymoon period—and their obsessions would subside.
Dong tapped his feet and crossed and recrossed his legs as he told us about the boy soldier’s outburst. He rubbed his hands together and rolled his head back and forth, blinking constantly. “He is very extreme, very extreme,” he said. “When he attacked his classmate with a knife, it took six soldiers to restrain him.” I asked if he believed what the boy soldier said about human nature. “I agree with Director Tao,” Dong said, “but sometimes people do evil things for no reason—like in 1999, when America bombed our embassy in Belgrade for no reason.”
He told us he had prepared a speech of his own for Tell It Like It Is! but never had a chance to share it. During the Qing dynasty, he said, there was a famous official named Lin Zexu who had stood up to British opium importers. Lin confiscated 20,000 chests of opium and destroyed them; he barred British ships from trading in the ports of Canton. He also sent a letter to Queen Victoria:
We find that your country is sixty or seventy thousand li from China. Yet there are barbarian ships that strive to come here for trade for the purpose of making a great profit. The wealth of China is used to profit the barbarians…By what right do they then in return use the poisonous drug to injure the Chinese people? Even though the barbarians may not necessarily intend to do us harm, yet in coveting profit to an extreme, they have no regard for injuring others. Let us ask, where is your conscience?
Lin’s patriotic acts precipitated the disastrous first Opium War, in 1839, but earned him an honorable place in history. Now Chen Tianqiao and his company, who had profited greatly by importing Legend of Mir II from South Korea and were soon to bring an online Dungeons & Dragons from America, were the barbarians. “They are criminals,” Dong had planned to say, “and Director Tao and his comrades are like Lin Zexu—the heroes of the nation.”
As the days passed, I came to understand the essence of the doctors’ fight. It was to make our actual lives more real than our virtual lives—to show that it was most fulfilling to be engaged in a world, however imperfect, that had a physical existence. It was a constant struggle. One afternoon, Little Black and Big Black took us to the nearby Power-House Gym, five stories up an office tower of blue glass and polished marble, where Dong and I galloped side by side on walking machines at 13 kilometers an hour. The other boys played Ping-Pong. The soldiers themselves ignored us; they were immediately engrossed in the computers at the gym’s four-PC Net cafe. After an hour, Little Black stood up and began rubbing his eyes and slapping himself in the face. We got ready to leave, but Big Black stayed glued to his computer. We walked back without him.
But we were learning the lesson even if they were forgetting it. We learned to face the challenge of standing like real soldiers, keeping our knees perfectly straight and our heads perfectly straight and our shoulders back and our hands flat at our sides. We felt the real pain of sets of thirty, then forty push-ups. We practiced folding our Pooh blankets in the military’s “bean curd” style—the ideal was a perfect, tofu-shaped block—until each of us mastered the art. We hung out in the hall sometimes, the wonderful Dr. Yao watching over us like a mother hen, laughing, asking us questions. We got used to conversation, used to caring about what others had to say, used to having others care about what we had to say.
We learned about consequences. The Rod Stewart wannabe and his thin friend from Xian sneaked off to a store during one morning’s run and filled their pockets with 10-yuan packs of Beijing Cigarette Factory filter lights. Little Black patted them down, found the contraband, and made them do a hundred push-ups–then forced them to stand perfectly still for five minutes in the middle of the basketball court. The same day, Dong wandered into my room with a plastic soda bottle, shook it vigorously, and idly opened it. It exploded. He learned to mop.
“Everyone has psychological barriers,” Dong declared after one of his injections. “For the people here, the barriers are just bigger.” He sat in the blue chair that had become his usual perch. The shy boy in the blue-striped sweater, who’d finally gotten up the courage to come inside and discuss Internet games, sat on the bed. He smiled awkwardly and draped an arm over Sam in a show of camaraderie. Dong admitted that he’d sneaked through the clinic at night and tested every computer—none of them had Web access. Do you know “Mice Love Rice”? he asked me. “Mice love cheese,” I said. He and Sam played a version of “paddy cake”: “One, two, three, four, we’ll play Internet games no more.”
The boys were half my age, but I began to feel like one of them. One morning, Dong got a text message from a friend at the prestigious Gansu Province high school he’d dropped out of. The friend was in the midst of an English test; I was a native speaker. We rushed out an essay for him—the topic was “rules of the library”—and texted it back, experiencing the thrill of sticking it to the bigger world. We laughed like idiots. “My classmates study fifteen hours a day,” Dong said. “School is corrupted,” said Sam.
I wanted to go home, so after four days at the clinic, I set an alarm on my cell phone, and when it began ringing, I pretended to answer a call. I told Dr. Yao that it had been Jenny—that she’d found a treatment center for me in Pennsylvania and booked me a flight departing the next morning. I could be closer to her but still receive help. Dr. Yao seemed sad for a moment, but she understood. “We will support whatever is good for you,” she said. I began to feel guilty. Dr. Yao was a kind woman, and I’d stopped believing that her cure was so far out of proportion to China’s crisis. When she tried to return the money I’d overpaid—a few hundred yuan—I donated it to the clinic.
The boys were shocked at my departure. We posed for photos: me with Dong, me with the boy soldier, me with black-clad Xu, me with the shy boy in the blue sweater, me with Rod Stewart, me with Sam and bunny ears, me with Sam and no bunny ears. I went into the hall and took more photos with Little Black and Dr. Yao and the nurses. I met Director Tao for the first time, and he sat with me as his staff’s cameras flashed. “You studied philosophy,” he said. “Chairman Mao was our greatest philosopher, so I’ll give you this.” It was a gold Mao pin in a red box.
I was allowed a final meeting with Dr. Xu. “Did you have any dreams last night?” he asked. I actually remembered one: I’d dreamt that I’d lied to Dong and the others about my real age, and that I’d been caught; they’d realized that I wasn’t one of them just as I’d begun to think that I was. Dr. Xu brought up Heidegger and Sartre, and I had to reveal how embarrassingly little I remembered from my college studies. He flipped through his notes, which had become so thick that they fell off the clipboard. He looked me in the eye. “You are looking for some advice, I think.” I was. “Read Men Are from Mars, Women Are from Venus.” I still haven’t. He asked me to do a story stem: he’d start the story, and I’d finish it. “Imagine that you’re a small tiger walking alone in a tall forest,” he said. For a moment, however fleeting, I truly did.
First published in Harper’s Magazine.
National Magazine Award finalist McKenzie Funk is a founding member of Deca and the author of Windfall, named a book of the year by The New Yorker, Mother Jones, Salon, and Amazon and the winner of a 2015 PEN Literary Award. Mac's writing appears in Harper's, National Geographic, Rolling Stone, Outside, and The New York Times Magazine. An Open Society Fellow, he speaks five languages and is a native of the Pacific Northwest, where he lives with his wife and sons.
Tags: addiction, China, healthcare, internet / Category: Longreads
Inside China’s Vast New Experiment in Social Ranking
December 14, 2017 June 28, 2019 30 minute readby Mara Hvistendahl
Hackers: the China Syndrome
June 1, 2016 June 9, 2016 14 minute readby Mara Hvistendahl
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11001
|
__label__cc
| 0.643029
| 0.356971
|
Finance Questions To Ask Before Marriage
Features, Relationship Hacks
Marriage And Family Therapy Masters Programs Online
Tarkwa Bay Island in 2018 - Shocking Story Of An Amazing Community
Dee Documentary, DeeDee's TV
TV | Songs & Stories With Tayo Knights
You Want to Divorce In Nigeria? Get in Here
Filing for a divorce in Nigeria can be a stressful and terrifying experience. Although it is not a generally accepted remedial solution in our rather religious Nigerian society, its adoption in some cases is however necessary.
Divorce is the termination of a marital union, the canceling and/or reorganizing of the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage.
It can also be seen as dissolving the bonds of matrimony between a married couple under the relevant law and laws of a particular country and/or state. In Nigeria, the extant law in force is the Matrimonial Causes Act 1990.
Simply put, divorce is the putting to an end of a lawful marriage by a mutual agreement of both parties to put in motion a decree of dissolution.
Divorce often becomes an option in cases where emotions run dry. If every possible means for reconciliation has been exhausted, divorce becomes imminent.
Divorce in Nigeria is determined by the type of marriage. Let’s get a better understanding of this concept. Essentially, there are two types of marriage recognized by the law.
The Statutory
Customary Marriage.
A Statutory marriage which is also known as court marriage is simply the marriage conducted in a registry or someplace else with the authority to carry out marriage ceremonies.
A Customary marriage, on the other hand, is the type of marriage conducted either in an unlicensed church or in a traditional manner. Essentially, it is one conducted according to the customs and tradition of a particular sect of people. For example, Islamic marriage is recognized under the law to be a customary marriage.
Life as we know it does not always go as planned, especially when the notion of divorce becomes an option for a married couple undergoing serious marital issues. This article is written with the purpose of walking you through the main concepts and procedures.
1 Grounds For Divorce In Nigeria
2 Stages of Divorce In Nigeria
2.1 Stage 1 of divorce in Nigeria
3 Jurisdiction
4 Compulsory Conference
5 Rate Of Divorce In Nigeria
6 Factors to be considered when taking a divorce in Nigeria
6.1 The Two-year rule
7 Child Custody – Divorce In Nigeria
7.1 Watch this video by BattaBox on Child Custody in Nigeria
7.2 What is child custody?
8 Divorce In Nigeria – Property Sharing.
9 Consequences Of Divorce In Nigeria
10 Sample Of Divorce Petition – Divorce In Nigeria
11 How Long Does It Take to Complete A Divorce Process In Nigeria
12 Serving of Divorce Papers – Divorce In Nigeria
13 Online divorce service and Divorce lawyers In Nigeria
13.1 Meanwhile, you can also reach out to Deedee via this email – admin@deedeesblog.com if you need professional help on mediation and online divorce services
14 Conclusion – Divorce In Nigeria
14.1 If you need professional help on mediation and online divorce services, please reach out to Deedee via admin@deedeesblog.com.
Grounds For Divorce In Nigeria
On what grounds can you file for a divorce? The statutory law that regulates the concept of divorce lays out several reasons why marriage ties may be severed or broken. (Full details contained under the Matrimonial Causes Act CAP 220 LFN 1990).
Let’s shed more light on some of the instances stated under section 15 (2) :
1) That one spouse has willingly and persistently refused to consummate the marriage. This simply means that either the woman or man in the marriage has simply refused to engage in sexual intercourse with his/her partner.
2) That since the marriage the respondent has committed adultery and the petitioner finds it intolerable to live with the respondent. This entails breaking of marriage ties in the case of a cheating wife or husband.
3) That since the marriage the respondent has behaved in such a way that the petitioner cannot reasonably be expected to live with the respondent.
4) That the respondent has deserted the petitioner for a continuous period of at least one year immediately preceding the presentation of the petition.
5) That the parties to the marriage have lived apart for a continuous period of at least 2 years immediately preceding the presentation of the petition and does not object to the decree of dissolution is granted.
6) That the parties to the marriage have lived apart for a continuous period of at least three years immediately preceding the presentation of the petition.
7) That the other party to the marriage has for a period of not less than one year failed to comply with a decree of restitution of conjugal rights made under the Matrimonial Causes Act.
8) That the other party to the marriage has been absent from the petitioner for such time and in such circumstances has to provide reasonable grounds for presuming that he/ she is dead.
Stages of Divorce In Nigeria
Stage 1 of divorce in Nigeria
Commencing a divorce in Nigeria officially begins when your lawyer files what is known as a petition for divorce in the High Court. At this point, I would like to emphasize the importance of getting a qualified and licensed lawyer. A well-experienced lawyer will help you prepare and file all necessary documents.
Majority of the documents to filed by your lawyer contain basic but essential details like:
The name of your spouse
The location of your marriage
Period of time you have been married to your spouse
Your reason for filing for a divorce
What you want from the divorce
Available evidence to back up your demand for a divorce
With the help of a lawyer, you don’t have to worry about all the necessary court processes and legal drafting or paperwork. Except your presence is required. Another detail you should acknowledge is, the person who files the petition is usually referred to as the petitioner, and your spouse is the respondent.
When your lawyer successfully proffers your documents to the court, it is assigned a file number in the court system in the Family court division. At this point, the content of your petition is then served to your spouse and his lawyer.
Depending on the court order, your spouse is then given a period of time to answer to the petition. At the response of your spouse, you will be able to ascertain if he/she agrees to the terms stated by the petition.
At the response of your spouse, the court will then hear the case in open court. An appearance of available witnesses may be necessary. Your lawyer will also be presenting all available evidence that relates to the case.
After the court hearing has been completed and the judge has agreed to dissolve the marriage, he will grant what is known as a ‘decree nisi’. However, the decree nisi does ultimately mean that the marriage has been dissolved. You will need to wait for another 3 months, after which the “decree nisi” will become a “decree absolute”.
The last stage, however, involves the judge granting custody of children(if any) and sharing of property. The judge can also state how much should be paid for spousal support or child support.
Different divorce cases, present different experiences, and facts. Thus the above stages is a general overview of the steps involved in getting a divorce. Some other cases may take longer due to contention in the sharing of property and custody of children.
So, what is the rate of divorce in Nigeria? Apart from statistics, we know it has a rather low rate and then we wonder why, well, why not? We’ll be finding out subsequently. To this end, I will try to be specific in the next section.
In a situation where the high court cannot oversee the proceedings, the magistrate Court being a court of summary jurisdiction can enforce such order of maintenance, although it is subject to its jurisdictional limit. There is a single jurisdiction for the High Court as any High Court of any state of the federation can exercise jurisdiction irrespective of where the parties to the proceedings are domiciled.
Section 9(2) of the Matrimonial Causes Act sums up the essence of this factor. It states that in order for the transfer of any matrimonial proceedings in a court to be possible, it should be commenced in another Court reason being that the first Court is not convenient for the parties.
Compulsory Conference
In a situation where there are strong contentions between spouses, the judge may call for both parties to appear in court for a conference. This arrangement is usually made in cases where both parties have to make a decision on child custody and the sharing of property.
When the judge initiates a compulsory conference the facts of the case notwithstanding, both parties are compelled by the law to make an appearance at the scheduled date.
In such an arrangement, the scope or extent of such disagreement, as directed by the judge is subject to the discretion of the court.
Rate Of Divorce In Nigeria
According to resources available to me as at the time of writing this article, the rate of divorced couples here in Nigeria is rather very low. An estimate of 0.2% men to 0.3% women are recorded to have legally filed and finalized a divorce procedure. Low right? And yet another record by the National Bureau of Statistics states that less than 1% actually admit to being divorced.
Funny right? It is rather devastating to see and hear about broken marriages everywhere. The rate of domestic violence, infidelity habitual drunkenness of one spouse and other related mishaps remain on the high. Yet, it isn’t uncommon to witness situations where partners sit tight through the turmoil hoping for better days ahead.
To file a divorce, your reasons should be able to stand under these grounds officially recognized by the law. There are several reasons why the need for divorce arises, common reasons include the following :
Adultery: infidelity on the part of either party can lead to a serious breach of trust. At this stage, being with someone you don’t trust becomes unreasonable and divorce becomes the most valid alternative
Domestic violence: this is one of the worst experience any party in a marriage can suffer. Yes, any party. Although women may suffer more, there are some rare cases of men who get beaten by their wives. Situations like this put a strain on the marriage.
Lack of intimacy: sexual intimacy plays a vital role in keeping the marriage alive. In its absence, misunderstanding often rises.
Insanity: the insanity of a partner may result in the spouse wanting to get a divorce. Especially in cases where the mentally – ill party has an irreversible condition.
Lack of understanding and communication: communication and understanding go hand in hand. When there is healthy communication, understanding is reached. In the absence of understanding due to lack of communication, many misconceptions arise leading to unwarranted problems.
Factors to be considered when taking a divorce in Nigeria
The Two-year rule
According to the provision of Section 30(1) of the Matrimonial Causes Act, proceedings for the dissolution of marriage should not be made or granted audience within two years after the date of the marriage. This act can only be countered by the leave of a court.
The Court can only grant leave in situations where a rejection to the application may cause futile misunderstanding between the applicant and the spouse – section 30(3) Matrimonial Causes Act.
A provision for leave will not be granted on the following grounds.
a) Adultery since the marriage by the respondent and the petitioner is finding it intolerable to live with the respondent – Section 15(2) (b).
b) Where the institution of proceedings for a decree of dissolution is by way of cross-petition.
c) Commission of rape, sodomy, or bestiality – Section 16(1) (a).
d) Wilful and persistent refusal to consummate the marriage – Section 15(2) (a).
Getting a divorce in some cases gets rather ineffective and really stressful. How? Both parties end up spending a lot of time, effort, and money trying to prove that the other party is at fault.
Then there’s the question of who gets custody over the children in the event of a divorce? Having an adequate understanding of who gets to have custody of children( if any) is of utmost importance.
Child Custody – Divorce In Nigeria
Watch this video by BattaBox on Child Custody in Nigeria
What is child custody?
It is the legal right or duty to care for a child in the event of the separation or death of a parent or parents.
The customary law clearly states that the father has the sole right and custody of his children, whether legitimate or illegitimate. In the case where the father is dead, the mother is given the right to the daily care of the child. But a male head of the man’s family is given custody of the child.
Under common law, the father has absolute custody of children when mature. However, the common law has been countered by the TALFORD ACT 1839 and THE CUSTODY OF INFANT ACT 1872. This law gives mother custody of her child if under the age of 16.
In the case of ABIAKAM AND OTHERS V. ABIAKAM, a decision was reached that the father ‘s absolute right to child custody will be revoked because the child is of tender age and still requires the care and guidance of the mother.
If a child is born out of wedlock, under customary Law, the father is given rights of custody over the child. Although the father has absolute custody, it is important that the child’s interest is taken into account. Section 71(1) of the Matrimonial Causes Act, gives room for taking into consideration the interest of the child before a final decision is made.
In the case of AFONJA V. AFONJA, the child preferred to stay with the mother. Why was this? The father preferred to leave the child with his Sister when school was in session. But spends time with the child only during holidays. For a child going through the emotional consequences of separated parents, this only made things worse. A decision was reached in favor of the child’s interest to stay with his mother to receive better care.
In the process of a divorce, knowing the provisions made for the custody of your child is very essential. The above section aided with additional research should arm you with the knowledge you need.
In my opinion, no matter who gets custody of the child, a mutual agreement should be made on visitation periods. This helps in giving the child a certain kind or form of relationship with both parents.
What about property sharing? How would the property be shared between parties? Let’s address all necessary details in the next section.
Divorce In Nigeria – Property Sharing.
Except the couples agree to uncontested terms of a divorce, there are policies put in place that guide the sharing of assets and property.
You may ask yourself, what is an Uncontested divorce? Well, An uncontested divorce is a situation where there is no opposition on the part of either party based on terms stated in the divorce petition.
Both parties agree to the divorce and the terms that concern the sharing of property or child custody. However, in a case of complete agreement, especially in the area property sharing, a deal reached.
Section 72 (1) of the Matrimonial Causes Act provides that :
The court may in divorce proceedings under the Act by order require the parties to the marriage, or either of them, to make, for the benefit of all or any of the parties to, and the children of the marriage, such a settlement of property to which the parties are or either of them is, entitled as the court considers just and equitable on the circumstances of each case.
It is necessary to note that non-financial contributions made by the wife (e.g carrying out domestic chores) cannot be considered as an equal contribution to the accumulation of their “joint wealth”. In cases where wealth is the be divided, such a spouse (wife or husband) isn’t lawfully entitled to any asset bought by the “bread winning” spouse.
However, in a situation where equal efforts have been put into the accumulation of wealth by the husband and wife, if either party doesn’t contend with the other, wealth is to be shared 50/50.
In light of the above discoveries, let’s understand the concept of a 50/50 share of property better using our normal everyday lives as a case study.
In the case between Kafi v. Kafi, the respondent (the wife) claimed that the property at 15, Adeola Adeleye Street, Ilupeju, Lagos was jointly purchased and developed by the appellant (her husband) and herself. Her husband however contended with her claim of ownership of the property. But there was evidence of her contribution to the building of the property. In an affidavis sworn by the respondent, the following claims were made.
That I managed the medicine shop at IA Ereja Street, Ilesha when the petitioner moved to Lagos in June 1987 to open the medicine shop at Obun Eko, Lagos.
That I was responsible for the care and feeding of all the company’s customers who came from then Eastern Nigerian and Cameroon to purchase medicine from petitioner.
That apart from contributing morally and financially to the petitioner’s wealth and towards the construction of the building built in the name of the petitioner, I was responsible for:
Buying of building materials needed by the workmen on the building sites
Supervising the workmen at sites most especially when the petitioner was away on business trips, holidays or indisposed
Preparing food for workers building the house and sometimes fetching and providing workers with water for use from Surulere to Ilupeju with the scarcity of water at Ilupeju
Drafting of all business letters of Ebenezer Chemist Ltd. to foreign manufacturers.
The court held her contributions to the development of the business and property as a valid reason for the success of the business. From the evidence provided in the case briefing, it is easily understood that she was very much involved in the daily activities of the business. She was given the property, and the appellant was awarded other properties.
Consequences Of Divorce In Nigeria
Divorce has an awful effect on all parties involved. The false standard that has been created in our modern day society has led to many failed marriages.
Standards like not getting married before a certain age often cause young ladies to rush into marriage. Many couples turn out to be unprepared for the emotional requirements of marriage.
For the children, growing up in a broken home exposes them to an “emotional roller-coaster” that eventually takes a toll on their mental health and overall well being.
The communication link between parents and children may also suffer a strain. Why? Children may hold their parents as the cause for the divorce. Low self-esteem and lack of trust, depression are also some negative traits that children tend to grow with.
The absence of a mother’s of father’s love may cause them to seek out ways to fill the gap with unhealthy relationships and habits. In all, divorce exposes children to a torrent of information that does not aid healthy development.
My take on this is that in a situation where children are involved, parents should try to come to an agreement with their children for real reasons and not just for their personal interests.
Surely, divorce must have an effect on women too. Women that go through this phase often never envisioned themselves in such a situation. The feeling of isolation and depression often seeps in. Facing the world alone may even seem scary. Women in this category often have lasting trust issues, which may cause them to have more failed relationships.
In some societies, these women may even be treated as ‘cast aways’ and failures. But why should it be so? Having a divorce may not be the best decision, but it’s a far better choice compared to enduring a toxic relationship. Toxic relationships often lead to several episodes of agony and irreparable damage.
But yet again, this depends on your definition of what a “toxic relationship” is. Choosing to abandon a relationship, particularly a marriage relationship at the first instance due to trivial misunderstanding is strongly advised against. Very importantly, one should know when to draw the line between fighting for a relationship and enduring torture.
This might be particularly harder for women who don’t have friends or family to confide in or be there for them.
When evaluating the effect of divorce in Nigeria, the consequences don’t just stop at the people involved. The consequences spread to other parts of the individual’s life which may, in turn, affect overall productivity. The experience and the strong negative emotions attached to it form a core part of the individual’s attitude and approach to situations.
Sample Of Divorce Petition – Divorce In Nigeria
As stated by Section 54(1) Matrimonial Causes Act, a divorce proceeding is to be commenced by making available a petition.
What does a divorce petition contain? How is it structured? Can you prepare the petition yourself? Let’s find out. Below are the details that make up a divorce petition.
Petition number.
Status of parties.
Full names, occupation, and address of each of the party to the proceeding. Name of the wife immediately before marriage.
Particulars of the marriage.
Particulars of birth of the parties to the marriage.
Particulars relating to domicile or residents of the marriage in Nigeria.
Particulars of cohabitation of the parties to the marriage and its ceasing.
Particulars of children of the parties to the marriage and the children of either party to the marriage.
Particulars of previous proceedings between the parties to the marriage, if applicable
Facts relied upon but not evidence by which the facts are to be proved. Facts to support ground(s) for divorce.
Condonation, connivance, and collusion.
Proposed arrangement for children.
Custody.
Maintenance and settlement of property.
Reliefs being sought
Address for service on Respondent.
How Long Does It Take to Complete A Divorce Process In Nigeria
One of the major questions divorce lawyers get is how long does a divorce process take? In Nigeria, the divorce of a statutory marriage in a High Court may never be less than 6 months.
Whether there is contention or not, the time frame in most cases is the same. Although, a divorce procedure may take up to two(2) years if there is a lot of contention from both parties.
Where as carrying out a divorce of a customary marriage may be as quick as 3 months In a customary court. Generally, a divorce is faster where there are no contentions.
Desiring to have a quick divorce within a to two months could make you fall into the trap of consulting a fake lawyer.
Serving of Divorce Papers – Divorce In Nigeria
The Petitioner authorizing his or lawyer to institute a divorce petition usually commences the divorce process. Such a petition will be served on the husband or wife to be divorced and such spouse has up to 28 days to respond to it.
The Court may then proceed to give judgment and dissolve the marriage where the party served the divorce petition and hearing notices failed to respond by filing an answer to the petition.
A party who has been served with a petition for divorce, but believes that all facts contained in the petition that was served on him or her are wrong and such party wants the court to dissolve the marriage for reasons other than the ones given by his/her spouse may also contact a lawyer to file what is known as a cross-petition against his or her spouse, praying the court to still go ahead to dissolve the marriage, but on different reasons from the ones initially alleged by his or her spouse.
Online divorce service and Divorce lawyers In Nigeria
Although this is yet to be available in Nigeria, it definitely makes divorce proceedings faster and more efficient. Leaving the court time to cater for other pressing and ever piling issues.
This service if incorporated will enable users (petitioners) to complete all required steps for divorce online with adequate guidance. From payment of required fees to uploading of supporting evidence every single step is well catered for.
According to research, 1,000 petitions have been issued through the new system during the recent pilot phase. Additionally, statistics have shown that nine out of every 10 users of the system turned out to be satisfied with the service. This system, if made available for divorce proceedings in Nigeria, will make the process a whole lot faster and less tedious.
With this service, court staff will be able to give more time to dealing with complex divorce forms. It is no surprise that this simpler and less technical online service has already contributed to a 95 percent drop in the number of applications being returned because of mistakes.
That said, which divorce services do we have available in Nigeria? Well, there a lot of qualified lawyers that handle divorce cases perfectly. Listed below are some qualified lawyers and law firms available in different locations.
Osuya & Osuya Law Firm: Situated in Abuja, Nigeria. This is a reputable law firm.
Dewpoint Legal Practitioners: this legal service provider is located in Lagos, Nigeria. Fully equipped with capable lawyers to cater for all your legal needs.
Metropolitan Partners: This firm has offices in Rivers State and the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, Nigeria. Dial +234 84 302741 to contact a lawyer of this firm and be assured of quality.
Kentuadei Adefe Legal Practitioners, Mediators & Arbitrators: established in 2003, this legal service provider is operational in Bayelsa and Yenagoa.
Naija Legal Talk: this legal service provider is located at Ikeja, Lagos state, Nigeria.
Meanwhile, you can also reach out to Deedee via this email – admin@deedeesblog.com if you need professional help on mediation and online divorce services
Conclusion – Divorce In Nigeria
In essence, for a divorce proceeding to start up smoothly and be approved , the facts of the petition must be in line with the Matrimonial Causes Act. The amount of time spent on a case is a major determinant of how much the overall cost of the divorce will amount to. Why? This is because lawyers charge their clients according to the amount of work done.
We hope you have found this information on divorce in Nigeria useful. Following the guidelines and instructions, we have provided here is sure to give you a stress free solution. We will love to entertain your questions and hear about your experience(s). Don’t hesitate to leave a comment and share this post.
If you need professional help on mediation and online divorce services, please reach out to Deedee via admin@deedeesblog.com.
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11003
|
__label__wiki
| 0.64915
| 0.64915
|
806-317-8639 seh@digging-history.com
Digging History Magazine
Mothers of Invention: Patsy O’Connell Sherman
by Sharon Hall | Sep 29, 2014 | Mothers of Invention | 0 comments
Today’s “mother of invention” article features another “parent-friendly” product (last week it was disposable diapers). As you will see, she could also be characterized as a “feisty female”.
Patsy O’Connell Sherman was born on September 15, 1930 in Minneapolis, Minnesota to parents James and Edna O’Connell. During her high school years, Patsy took an aptitude test which showed her best career choice would that of housewife. In that day, how many young women do you think received that same recommendation? Patsy, however, refused to accept that result and demanded to take the boy’s aptitude test.
According to the Minnesota Science and Technology Hall of Fame, she wanted to attend college but certainly didn’t want to spend all that time and money educating herself only to become a housewife. The aptitude test for boys revealed a much different career path – she would be well-suited to be either a dentist or a scientist.
In 1952 Patsy graduated from Gustavus Adolphus College with a Bachelor of Science degree in chemistry and mathematics – and the first female attending the school to do so. As an example of how things have drastically changed, after graduating Patsy took a “temp job” at Minnesota-based 3M Corporation. She was contracted to assist in developing a new type of fuel line for jet aircraft through the use of fluorochemicals. The reason her job was considered temporary? At that time women hired to work in laboratories were considered temporary employees, assuming they would leave to get married and have a family.
In 1953 while working on the fuel line project, a lab assistant spilled some of the chemicals she had been experimenting with on her white canvas shoes. Attempts to clean off the spilled drops were unsuccessful, but she noticed that later the area where the chemicals had spilled were clean while other parts of her shoes where dirty.
She and fellow scientist Samuel Smith worked together and on April 13, 1971 received approval for United States Patent 3574791 for “invention of block and graft copolymers containing water-solvatable polar groups and fluoroaliphatic groups.” The fluorochemical polymer that Patsy and Samuel developed was marketed by 3M under the trademark name of Scotchgard™. Development of their invention presented another challenge for Patsy, however – at that time women weren’t allowed to be inside the textile mill where performance tests were conducted.
3M continued to develop the Scotchgard™ line of products and Patsy received sixteen other patents, sharing thirteen of them with Samuel Smith. Patsy was the first person to develop an “optical brightener” – something that gave detergent manufacturers the right to boast that clothes washed in their product would be “whiter than white.”
Patsy O’Connell married Hubert Sherman and had children, but she defied the “norm” and remained at 3M her entire career. By the time she retired in 1992, she had advanced through the ranks and was manager of technical development. She received several prestigious honors throughout her career and beyond, including induction into 3M’s Carlton Society (1974) which honors the company’s best scientists, the Minnesota Inventors Hall of Fame (1989) and the National Inventors Hall of Fame (2001).
Her husband died in 1996 and Patsy died on February 11, 2008. She apparently passed on her love of science to her two daughters – one is a chemist at 3M and the other a biologist. Patsy Sherman, the “accidental inventor” once remarked:
You can encourage and teach young people to observe, to ask questions when unexpected things happen. You can teach yourself not to ignore the unanticipated. Just think of all the great inventions that have come through serendipity, such as Alexander Fleming’s discovery of penicillin, and just noticing something no one conceived of before.
Did you enjoy this article? Yes? Check out Digging History Magazine. Since January 2018 new articles are published in a digital magazine (PDF) available by individual issue purchase or subscription (with three options). Most issues run between 70-85 pages, filled with articles of interest to history-lovers and genealogists — it’s all history, right? 🙂 No ads — just carefully-researched, well-written stories, complete with footnotes and sources.
Want to know more or try out a free issue? You can download either (or both) of the January-February 2019 and March-April 2019 issues here: https://digging-history.com/free-samples/
Subscribe to the blog:
Website Designed by Lubbock Website Design
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11005
|
__label__cc
| 0.689141
| 0.310859
|
The Newmarket Open Weekend has been renamed the ‘Henry Cecil Open Weekend’ to celebrate the life of the iconic and much-loved trainer. The three-year partnership, which will begin this year, is supported by a group of previous owners of Sir Henry and will help raise money for local charities.
The Henry Cecil Open Weekend will remain committed to continue the event’s support for the welfare and development of young racing staff in Newmarket, primarily through the work of its main beneficiary; Racing Welfare.
Since the return of the Open Weekend to Newmarket in 2012, over a quarter of a million pounds has been raised for local and racing charities, including £115,000 for the Racing Welfare Newmarket Housing Project. As part of this project renovation of MacDonald Buchanan House will begin this August which, once completed, will provide 18 units of high-quality accommodation for the young racing staff in the town.
This year’s Henry Cecil Open Weekend will take place on Saturday 21st and Sunday 22nd September and is set to be an action packed two days. During the Open Weekend visitors will get the chance to see some of the world’s best racehorses on Warren Hill Gallops, tour a number of Newmarket’s finest equine sites, go racing at the Rowley Mile racecourse, and visit the yards of leading Newmarket trainers.
Charlie Fellowes, Chairman of the Henry Cecil Open Weekend, said;
“We are thrilled to have the support and to be associated with such an iconic figure in racing. The Henry Cecil Open Weekend is about celebrating his life, raising money for some very worthwhile local causes, and offering racing fans the opportunity to see behind the scenes. We are very much looking forward to welcoming visitors here in September.”
Dawn Goodfellow, Chief Executive of Racing Welfare, said;
“The Henry Cecil Open Weekend is a standout occasion in the calendar each year and is one that we are very grateful to benefit from. The renovation of MacDonald Buchanan House is a key project in the town and funds raised by the event will help us in our aim to ensure that young people working in racing have the best possible start to their careers by the provision of high-quality, safe accommodation. We hope that the Henry Cecil Open Weekend is a huge success this year and thank the committee for their ongoing support of Racing Welfare.”
For further information on the Henry Cecil Open Weekend please visit our website at www.thehenrycecilopenweekend.co.uk. Tickets will be available to purchase online next week, with prices starting at £15 per person for a Sunday only ticket. Children aged 12 and under go free all weekend.
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11010
|
__label__cc
| 0.637788
| 0.362212
|
Tag Archives: Legal
By Vamien McKalin - January 28, 2014
Microsoft renames SkyDrive to OneDrive
Microsoft has renamed its cloud storage service, SkyDrive, to OneDrive. You may be wondering, why would the software giant do such a thing. Well, the company got in a conflict with British Sky Broadcasting Group (BSkyB) over the ...
By Jeff Belanger - January 28, 2014
Bitcoin exchange executive busted for supplying bitcoins to the Silk Road
Charlie Shrem, the CEO of BitInstant, a bitcoin exchange, has been charged with supplying bitcoins to the Silk Road. Shrem was apparently using his bitcoin exchange business as a front for a money laundering scheme, one that was ...
FBI is using seized TorMail database for investigations, according to report
The Freedom Hosting bust made by the FBI led to the capture of the TorMail email database, and it seems that they are now using it for other unrelated cases. The bust was part of an investigation into a child porn ring, one heade...
Tim Cook unhappy US government won’t let Apple tell everyone about NSA activites
Apparently Apple’s CEO would like to disclose just what data Apple has shared with the American government, but can’t due to the gag order. Apple and other companies have received a lot of criticism over sharing data ...
Video game company trademarks the word “candy” in Europe
King, the video game company that created the massively successful Candy Crush Saga, has trademarked the word “candy” in Europe. In an effort to deter games which copy Candy Crush’s style, King managed to obtain...
Microsoft wants new international rules for data privacy and human rights
Microsoft has asked that there be new rules put in place on an international level to safeguard people’s individual privacy and rights. Brad Smith, who is Microsoft’s vice president of legal and corporate affairs, as ...
China introduces new regulations to take away anonymity for internet users
China has decided to crack down on online anonymity by requiring anyone who posts a video in China to include their real name. China’s State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television (SARFT) sent out ...
By Enrique Manalang - January 20, 2014
Japan to start taxing foreign downloads in 2015, according to report
It’s quite common for foreign physical goods being taxed when imported, but not so much with digital goods. According to a report out of Nikkei, however, that might be set to change in Japan by 2015. The report says that co...
Apple and Google removed children’s mobile game about cosmetic surgery… for the wrong reason
Recently, Apple and Google removed a mobile game from their apps stores about cosmetic surgery targeted towards children. The app is called Plastic Surgery for Barbie, and was labelled suitable for children at the ages of 9 and u...
FCC Open Internet Order struck down by D.C. court
A D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals has taken down the FCC’s Open Internet Order. The FCC’s aim for Internet neutrality has been harmed by this action. The order was put in place by Julius Genachowski in 2010, who, at the ...
US government accuses Apple of “character assasination” over anti-trust monitor
The US Department of Justice has responded to Apple’s request that Michael Bromwich be removed from his monitoring role — with a letter accusing Apple of “character assassination.” “Apple has chosen a camp...
Coinye responds to Kanye West’s cease and desist letter
The developers behind Coinye have responded to the cease and desist letter sent by Kanye West’s lawyers by changing the image of their coin to a half-man, half-fish. The new cryptocurrency started as a joke between the frie...
Facebook hit with lawsuit over fake “Like” ads
Anthony Ditirro has filed a lawsuit against Facebook because he claims it “Liked” USA Today for him. Ditirro, who lives in Colorado, is seeking $750,000 dollars from Facebook. He filed the class action complaint in Sa...
By Jeff Belanger - January 7, 2014
China lifts ban on foreign game consoles
China has just lifted a ban on video games consoles, ones that come from foreign companies, that has been in place for 14 years. Initially the ban had been put in place by the Chinese government because they were apparently worri...
Kanye West tells Coinye coders to cease and desist
It seems that Kanye West may not have that much of a sense of humor, and apparently he was not amused when he learned about the new cryptocurrency, Coinye,which features Kanye’s likeness and is play on his name. He has had ...
« Previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 … 19 Next »
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11011
|
__label__cc
| 0.509805
| 0.490195
|
Manga Kaleidoscope
Manga Moveable Feast: Sailor Moon
When the Sailor Moon Manga Moveable Feast was announced, I knew I absolutely had to contribute something. After all, it is because of Sailor Moon that I became interested in anime and manga in the first place. I’ve been a fan for almost half of my life, and I still proudly call myself a Moonie. (I even write SM fanfiction!) Though I’ve seen better anime and manga since those early days, Sailor Moon will always hold a special place in my heart.
But what to write about? The obvious choice was a review, but I only review completed series on this blog. That would mean I would have to review the Mixxzine/Tokyopop version of the manga, and, well…there’s nothing really nice I can say about it, other than that I’m glad it came out at all, even with the shoddy binding — my copies are pretty much falling apart — and loose translation. Hey, it was better than nothing, but eternal love to Kodansha for the awesome rerelease. (However, I did write a review about Codename: Sailor V, which you can find here.)
Then I thought about writing an essay, but I’ve been involved in the fandom for so long, there’s very little I haven’t already discussed about the series in some fashion before, whether on message boards, Livejournal posts, or among friends. I couldn’t even decide on a topic. Comparison between the manga and anime? Mythological influences? Feminism and the Sailor Senshi? My favorite Senshi, and why I love her? (Pluto, by the way, because she’s awesome and tragic.) Why Chibi-Usa/Helios is my all-time favorite OTP? Who is Sailor Cosmos, really, or how the heck does time travel really work in the SM universe? (I actually did write that essay a few years back. If you’re interested, you can read it here at my website, but it may give you a headache, as anything related to time travel tends to do.) Clearly, it was impossible to pick just one, and I don’t have the time to write on all those topics, as much as I would like to.
So, I’m going to stick to something fun, fast, and simple: My Top Ten Favorite Sailor Moon Manga Moments. And if you have a favorite moment not on this list, feel free to mention it in the comments!
(It should be obvious that the following will filled with unmarked spoilers, so if you haven’t finished the series and want to remain surprised, I suggest you back-button now. Also, I’m using the Tokyopop version to put this list together, so volume and act numbers may be different from the Kodansha version.)
10. Volume 2, Act 9: The revelation of the real Moon Princess – When Tuxedo Kamen takes the brunt of Kunzite’s attack intended for her and is seriously hurt, Sailor Moon begins to cry, causing her tiara to crack and reveal the crescent moon sigil underneath. She turns out to be the Princess Serenity they had been searching for, not Sailor Venus, who had been posing as a decoy princess. Tuxedo Kamen, Sailor Moon, and the rest of the senshi unlock the memories of their past lives, and the seal on the Silver Crystal is broken as one of her tears transforms into a crystal. I just thought this was a beautiful moment.
9. Volume 4, Act 10: The first appearance of Chibi-Usa – And, boy, did she make one heck of an entrance! Shortly after the Dark Kingdom is defeated, Usagi meets up with Mamoru for a date after school. She gives him back his pocketwatch, which she had repaired, and he kisses her. However, at that moment, a little girl suddenly drops out of the sky and lands directly on Usagi’s head! The girl, claiming her name is also Usagi, holds Usagi at gunpoint and demands that she hand over the Silver Crystal.
8. Volume 14, Act 39: Life with the Outers’ family – Pluto may be my favorite, but I love the rest of the Outer Senshi as well, so I really liked the beginning part of this chapter. At the end of the Infinity arc, Setsuna (Pluto), Haruka (Uranus), and Michiru (Neptune) decided to “adopt” the reborn Hotaru (Saturn), and together, the four of them created a close-knit, if unconventional, family. However, though Hotaru is growing at a rapid pace and each of them can sense that a new threat has arrived, they can no longer transform into Sailor Senshi. I just loved the slice-of-life vibe of these domestic scenes contrasted with the sense of foreboding each of them feels concerning the enemy. It’s also really sweet how Haruka, Michiru, and Setsuna all wear a ring to symbolize their commitment to raising Hotaru.
7. Volume 11, Princess Kaguya’s Lover: Luna becomes human – The entire story — which was the basis for the Sailor Moon S movie — is wonderful, but the best part is undoubtedly the scene in which Sailor Moon uses her powers to grant Luna’s wish for one night: to become human for so she can confess her feelings to Dr. Kakeru Ohzora, a sickly astronomer she has fallen in love with. Pretending to be the Princess Kaguya he had always dreamed of meeting, she takes him into outer space to watch the sunrise, but knowing that his true love is his friend Himeko, she encourages him to get better so that someday he and Himeko may someday return to space together.
6. Volume 18, Act 52: The wedding – I’m not a huge fan of the Stars arc — the anime did it better — but it’s hard to deny that seeing Usagi and Mamoru get married is a fantastic way to end the series, and of course, Usagi’s wedding gown is gorgeous. Usa/Mamo fans couldn’t ask for more.
5. Volume 15, Act 42: The coronation ceremony – It’s not a real coronation ceremony, as Usagi isn’t fated to take the throne for a few more years, but it is a lovely way to end the Dream Arc, with everybody transforming into their royal forms and the revelation that the Amazoness Quartet –formerly their enemies — is actually Chibi-Usa’s future guard. Actually, had the series ended right there, I would have been perfectly happy. (Like I mentioned before, not a huge fan of the Stars arc in the manga.) It would have made a great finale.
4. Volume 10, Act 33: The battle against Pharoah 90 and awakening of Sailor Saturn – In order to defeat Pharoah 90, Sailor Moon decides to release the power of her crystal and the Holy Grail directly into him, sacrificing herself to save the world. At that moment, the Talismans begin to resonate, awakening Hotaru as Sailor Saturn. Sailor Saturn drops her Silence Glaive, ending the world, but Sailor Moon, who managed to survive, uses the crystal to revive the world, including resurrecting Hotaru as a baby. One of the things I disliked about the ending of the S season of the anime is that we don’t really get to see the final battle, so the manga ending for this arc is a marked improvement and features one of Sailor Moon’s most awe-inspiring feats: resurrecting the entire world.
3. Volume 11, Casablanca Memories – Yes, it may be cheating to call it a “moment”, but I’m talking about the entire short story. After Setsuna (Pluto) and Chibi-Usa (Chibi-Moon), Rei (Mars) is probably my next favorite senshi in the manga, so I love that this story focuses on her, fleshing out her family history — her mother died when Rei was young, and she doesn’t get along well with her politician father, so she lives with her grandfather — and explaining why she has such a distrust of men after her heart was broken by her first love. If I absolutely had to choose a single “moment” I liked the best, it would probably be the kiss shared between Rei and Kaidou, the aforementioned first love who broke her heart when he became engaged to another woman. It’s such a sad moment, to see Rei so desperate for him to love her even though he most likely only ever thought of her as a kid sister.
2. Volume 15, Act 42: Chibi-Moon awakens Helios with her kiss – I mentioned above that Helios/Chibi-Usa is my One True Pairing, and this is, without a doubt, my favorite moment between them. (In fact, it was difficult to choose between this moment and the next for the number one spot on this list.) After Nehelenia’s defeat, the curse on Helios’ body, which turned him into a Pegasus, is broken, transforming him back into his true human form. However, having used up his power to help them during the final battle, his body is lifeless. (It’s never made quite clear if he’s dead, or simply in a coma.) Chibi-Moon begs him to open his eyes, then kisses him, the power of her crystal bringing him back to life. As Helios awakens and sees her crying, he realizes that she is the Princess Lady Serenity he saw in his vision. *melts*
1. Volume 7, Act 23: The death of Sailor Pluto – My absolute favorite scene in the entire manga, and a large part of the reason why Pluto is my favorite senshi. Just as Prince Diamond is about to touch the Silver Crystals of the present and future together — which would destroy the world — Pluto uses her forbidden power to stop time. However, the price of breaking the greatest taboo is Pluto’s death. As she lays dying, Pluto implores Usagi to save Chibi-Usa (who is currently in her adult Black Lady form) and tells King Endymion that she was proud of her duty. Her final words are an apology for not being able to protect Chibi-Usa. Hearing that, Black Lady remembers her friendship with Pluto and begins to cry. One of her teardrops transforms into her own Silver Crystal, allowing Chibi-Usa to awaken as a Sailor Senshi for the first time, but it’s a bittersweet moment as she realizes her closest friend is dead. *sniffles* Even knowing that Setsuna/Pluto will return in the next arc, that part almost never fails to make me teary-eyed.
2 comments December 30, 2011
A Case Suitable for Treatment
A Feminist Otaku
A Radical Interpretation of the Text
Kuriosity
Manga Before Flowers
Manga Life
Manga Maniac Cafe
Manga Report
Manga Views
Manga Worth Reading
Slightly Biased Manga
Soliloquy in Blue
The Manga Bookshelf
The Manga Critic
The Manga Curmudgeon
Create a free website or blog at WordPress.com. TalkXHTML.
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11013
|
__label__cc
| 0.747356
| 0.252644
|
What is a Population Bottleneck?
Posted on July 9, 2015 by Roberta Estes
Genetic genealogists often hear the term population bottleneck referenced in various academic papers – but just what is that? And why do we care?
A population bottleneck occurs when there is a dramatic reduction in the population of a particular group of people. Think about the eruption of a volcano – Mt. Toba for example.
Human history is full of population reducing examples, some we know about, like the plague, but most we don’t. And obviously, if the bottleneck was so severe that no one survived – then there are no descendants of those people today – and that’s an extinction event, not a bottleneck. The only way we would ever know those people existed is if we found their remains and sequenced them today – like the Neanderthal and Denisovan skeletons.
As a point of clarity – the Neanderthal and Denisovan did survive – not as pure Neanderthals or Denisovans – but admixed into the homo sapiens population – and they are indeed, us. If you have either European or Asian ancestry, then you have Neanderthal and Denisovan ancestry too.
How could that be – all of Europe and Asia descended from these Archaic people? Probably the after-effects of a population bottleneck where a small group of people went on to become a large group of people.
The best example I can think of is the migration of the Asian people into the Americas. These first people would populate all of North and South America and would become the indigenous people of these continents – by whatever name is applied today. First People, Native Americans, American Indians – they are all of the same stock and the result of at least one population bottleneck.
That first bottleneck occurred when some people crossed over the land bridge, Beringia, between Asia and what is now Alaska.
Erika Tamm et al – Tamm E, Kivisild T, Reidla M, Metspalu M, Smith DG, et al. (2007) Beringian Standstill and Spread of Native American Founders. PLoS ONE 2(9): e829. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0000829. Also available from PubMed Central.
The bottleneck event that occurred there was that there weren’t very many people. It was probably a small group. Possibly very small. What do we know about them?
There were obviously males and females.
Assuming for purposes of discussion that all of the people who founded the Native American population came at once, or in what is referred to as one wave, we know that there were at least two men and 5 women.
How do we know that? Because today we have Y haplogroups Q and C in the Native population and mitochondrial haplogroups A, B, C, D and X in that population as well. Since the Y chromosome is passed from father to son unadmixed with any DNA from the mother, the haplogroups we see today are directly descended from those original founders. Mitochondrial DNA is passed from the mother to all of her children, but only the females pass it on, so we get a direct pipeline view back to the founding mothers.
There may have been more individuals and haplogroups that arrived. Some may have died out in Beringia or afterwards in subsequent bottleneck events.
Let’s say the group stayed together for a while. Then, it got too big to support itself comfortably on the resources available. In other words, the population began depleting the available resources. So, the group separated by a few miles so that they could draw off of a different landscape where food was more abundant.
One group went 20 miles east and one group went 20 miles south. It wasn’t meant to be permanent, but eventually, the split became permanent as that scenario repeated itself over time.
Eventually, one of the groups moved further south and small groups broke off from time to time and moved east across what would be the US and Canada. Part of the group continued south along the Pacific and would populate Mexico, Central and South America.
Let’s say that one of those small bands of people that headed east wound up living in Montana, 12,500 years ago. A child died, and they buried that child.
The group they separated from continued south and their descendants are found throughout Mexico, Central and South American today.
That child’s name is Anzick. His skeleton was found in 1968 and his full genome was sequenced before he was reburied in 2013. When his DNA was sequenced, we discovered, much to our amazement, that Anzick indeed matched people, primarily people from south of the US, at a level that could be interpreted to be contemporary. How could that possibly be?
Think about a bottleneck in this fashion.
There are 4 people, 2 couples. Each person’s DNA is represented by a color. The two males are blue and green and the 2 females are pink and yellow, like on the left side of the pedigree chart shown below.
In the first generation, they pass their DNA to their children and the children are blue/yellow and green/pink. In the second generation, the children intermarry with the other couple’s children – because there are no choices. All of the grandchildren of the original couple have DNA that is blue, yellow, green and pink. The children and grandchildren don’t all carry the same segments of blue, yellow, green and pink – but all of them carry some part of the original 4 founders. There is no orange or turquoise or red DNA to be found, so forever, until new people enter the landscape, they will pass the same segments of blue, green, yellow and pink DNA to their descendants. In an isolated environment, they might not meet new humans for thousands of years – lets’ say 10,000 years.
So, if the Anzick child had blue, yellow, green and pink DNA and the contemporary Native people living in South America have blue, yellow, green and pink Native DNA from those same four founding ancestors, it stands to reason that they are going to match – because it’s the exact same DNA that has been passed around and around for thousands of years.
This matching is the effect of a population bottleneck.
We can think of other bottleneck events too. For example, the Acadians were a bottleneck event. A few shiploads of French Catholic people on an Island in the early 1600s – they didn’t have a lot of choice in terms of spouses. The genealogy saying is that if you’re related to one Acadian, you’re related to all Acadians, and it’s pretty much true. Same with the Pilgrims and the individuals who came over on the Mayflower.
Some bottlenecks are religiously induced – Amish, Mennonite and Jewish, for example. These people marry only within their religion. Today, that’s called endogamy – but it’s a form of a bottleneck event.
We see the results of bottleneck events today in three ways in our DNA. In both Y and mitochondrial DNA, we often see specific haplogroups or subgroups associated with specific populations – like Q and C in Native American Y DNA and subsets of A, B, C, D, X and possibly M in Native American mitochondrial DNA.
We also see the effects of bottleneck events in autosomal DNA. We talk about segments that are IBD, identical by descent, and IBS, identical by state. Identical by descent typically means we can attribute the DNA segment to a specific ancestor via triangulation. Often, everything we can’t identify gets tossed into the IBS box, but it really shouldn’t.
When you hear people talk about IBS, or autosomal DNA segments that are identical by state, there are really two possibilities. One is that the DNA is identical by chance.
The other option is that the DNA is identical by population. This means that the DNA does indeed match because it came from a common ancestor – but that ancestor is beyond the genealogical timeframe. That doesn’t mean the information isn’t useful. Indeed, I think it’s very useful. I want to know if a segment of my DNA is Native, even if I share that segment with lots of other Native people. In fact, that’s exactly HOW we determine a specific autosomal segment is affiliated with Native or any other population group of people. Certain segments are found in a higher percentage across the entire population group. So, to throw these out in personal genetic genealogy by phasing which removes population based matches is a case of throwing the baby out with the bathwater. I have several matches on my spreadsheet where I have the notation “Mennonite” or “Acadian” for example, because while I can’t sort out which specific ancestor the DNA came from, it assuredly came from the Acadian population based on the matches – and that’s very useful information.
Population bottlenecks may seem like a scientific term referencing something that happened long ago, but the effects of bottlenecks can be found in every one of us, beginning with Neanderthal and Denisovan DNA and probably including ancestors who survived, or willingly embraced beliefs which in essence created historical bottlenecks.
This entry was posted in Autosomal, Denisova, Endogamy, Mitochondrial DNA, Native American, Neanderthal, Y DNA and tagged Basic Education by Roberta Estes. Bookmark the permalink.
15 thoughts on “What is a Population Bottleneck?”
Barbara Le Blanc on July 9, 2015 at 6:23 pm said:
I am an Acadian who lives in Nova Scotia, Canada. I am also grand-child (many generations later) of Jasmine. I find your information intriguing. I see that you have used the Acadians a s en example of a “bottleneck” example. I read your Jasmine Journey (which is how I decided to follow your entries).
robertajestes on July 9, 2015 at 9:44 pm said:
I have been trying to decide whether to try a trip to Acadia this August or wait a year. I really want to go back but I don’t feel prepared enough yet with the genealogy. I’m thinking next year. I can hardly wait though. It will be something to look forward to.
Barbara Le Blanc on July 10, 2015 at 11:56 am said:
I have just sent you an e-mail message, which I hope gets to you safely and soundly. I look forward to speaking with you more about your interest in the Acadians.
RickRo on July 9, 2015 at 6:30 pm said:
I do a demonstration similar to the diagram for my biology students. I place the same number of 6 different colors of small marbles into a long-stemmed wine bottle. This represents the different varieties of a particular gene in the pre-bottleneck population (the gene pool). Students then tilt the bottle and collect 6 marbles one at a time. Only rarely would they get equal mix of all of the colors.
Deb Greant on July 9, 2015 at 7:33 pm said:
Very interesting post! I’ve been watching the “First Peoples” series on PBS and finding them fascinating, in light of what we learn here and what science has revealed in the last few years.
I’ve come on an interesting situation I’ve not experienced before and would like your feedback, even if it’s just on what to make of a short segment which is heavily packed with SNPS.
Five people who match me on FTDNA, each have 1) a short segment on chr 6 only 1.2 – 2.0 cm, each of which contain from 6000-7500 SNPs, and on chr 8 a short 2 cm segment that is perfectly aligned. They form a straight line. (On the chr browser it looks like a wee piece of coloured string). I tried duplicating this with numerous other matches and couldn’t and wonder tentatively if it might be a deep marker for our Native heritage? Both the original match I am working with and I share the same tribal background. His is current, he is over 50% genetically NA and knows his tribe. I haven’t contacted the others yet.
Start contacting people. Otherwise, you’re guessing:) The answers will be VERY interesting. Don’t forget that at GedMatch you can see your matches compared with another individual and painted with the ethnicity of specific segments. I’d try that.
June on July 10, 2015 at 3:22 pm said:
I’ve been using Gedmatch for a while now but I don’t recall seeing anything about painting segments with ethnicity. Can you provide a pointer to that facility?
robertajestes on July 10, 2015 at 4:00 pm said:
Click on the admixture utilities and there are several painting options.
Thanks, Roberta but there are an awful lot of options to choose from and I have no idea which to use. Can you make any recommendations for someone who is 90% Jewish Diaspora?
You’ll need to do some experimentation. I use this when I’m trying to determine if someone matches me on a Native segment, which is a small part of my genome. How you use the tool depends on your goals and what you are trying to achieve.
Chris Tyler on July 9, 2015 at 8:27 pm said:
Whew ! That takes a load off. It explains somewhat why in the 14 matches I have in Family finder FTDNA that I am double matched with 11 or 12 on both Y and Mt. There for a while I was getting worried that we were all products of generational habitual inbreeding of some cultish level ! just kidding, but I found it odd. The last ice age made strange bedfellows, or at least they kept warm across Eurasia.
Kalani on July 9, 2015 at 9:55 pm said:
I realized recently how loosely that term is used, and is used in conjunction with Founder’s population/effect.
While working on the Pitcairn family genealogies the past several weeks, I saw how they went through a bottleneck. Staring with the year 1790 through 1856 –> 1859 –> 1936 –> 1996 –> 2014 the population went from 27 –> 193 –> 16 –> 250 –> 43 –> 56. So it grew, reduced drastically, grew, reduced & slowly recovered but that they predict will end soon.
On the island of Molokai where I come from, they estimated less than 2,000 in 1778, and in the 1950s they said it was around 10,000 and I remember several years ago it was 6,700 and now they say it’s almost at 8,000. In Hawaii from 1778 –> 1872 –> 1900 –> 2000 the population for Native Hawaiians was 300,000 – 800,000 (estimated) –> 51,431 –> 37,635 –> 460,000.
In those two examples we know what happens. I get matches with Maori people of New Zealand or Samoans, Tongans, all of whom we shared common ancestors from at least 800 years ago. Or getting a match with a man from Norfolk island whose ancestors left Pitcairn island in 1856 & married other outsiders coming to that island, or with a man whose mother is from Rotuma island (Fiji) a place where 3,5000 years ago our common ancestors settled that area. This man’s ancestors stayed in that area whereas mine eventually ended up in Hawaii thousands of years after.
It may have started from a long time ago, but with recent bottle necking, it seems to really affect all of us and we can see it with autosomal results.
Amy on July 10, 2015 at 12:36 am said:
Thank you for providing such a clear explanation. I am part of the AJ endogamous population and totally frustrated by having so many matches and yet no clue how we are related, even going back four generations. This post helped me understand why.
Ron.V on July 11, 2015 at 7:51 pm said:
Roberta, some of your folks are from the deep south. Makes me wonder if there was a society-wide bottleneck here after the American Civil War?
Pingback: DNAeXplain Archives – Basic Education Articles | DNAeXplained – Genetic Genealogy
Leave a Reply to Barbara Le Blanc Cancel reply
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11018
|
__label__wiki
| 0.938338
| 0.938338
|
Loughborough University Institutional Repository > Social Sciences > Geography and Environment > Published Articles (Geography and Environment) >
Title: Divergent geographies of policy and practice? Voluntarism and devolution in England, Scotland and Wales
Authors: Woolvin, Mike
Mills, Sarah
Hardill, Irene
Rutherford, Alasdair
Keywords: Voluntarism
Rural Scotland
Publisher: Wiley / © Royal Geographical Society (with the Institute of British Geographers)
Citation: WOOLVIN, M. ... et al, 2015. Divergent geographies of policy and practice? Voluntarism and devolution in England, Scotland and Wales. Geographical Journal, 181(1), pp. 38-46.
Abstract: Across Great Britain, engagement with civil society is an increasingly central component of public policy and governance rhetoric. However, attention has tended to focus on policy developments emanating from Westminster that relate to England, rather than the policy and governance 'spaces' emerging in the devolved administrations, such as Scotland and Wales. It has also tended to focus on the organisations through which voluntary participation takes place, rather than on voluntary participation itself. In this paper we examine the extent to which there are divergent governance spaces with regards to voluntarism apparent at the national levels of England, Wales and Scotland, set against a backdrop of wider debates on devolution, civil society, community, and the Big Society. Given the common driver of public service reform which emerges from our review, we then examine the emergence of sub-national 'spaces' through the example of rural Scotland, in which the delivery of public services can be particularly challenging. Overall, we contend that public policy towards volunteering and the voluntary and community sector (VCS) in Scotland, Wales and England has been shaped by similar drivers, but the rhetoric surrounding their deployment and the distinct governance landscapes in Wales and Scotland have the capacity to influence the deployment of these goals in distinct ways. We also argue that greater attention may need to be paid to emergent 'sub-national' governances spaces of voluntarism. © 2014 Royal Geographical Society (with the Institute of British Geographers).
Description: This article was published in the serial the Geographical Journal [Wiley / © Royal Geographical Society (with the Institute of British Geographers)]. The definitive version is available at: http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/geoj.12069
Sponsor: The authors gratefully acknowledge the support of SRUC’s Rural Policy Centre which funded the empirical work presented in the latter part of this paper (www.sruc.ac.uk/ruralpolicycentre).
DOI: 10.1111/geoj.12069
Publisher Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/geoj.12069
Appears in Collections: Published Articles (Geography and Environment)
GJOAaccepted.pdf Accepted version 145.51 kB Adobe PDF View/Open
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11019
|
__label__cc
| 0.55135
| 0.44865
|
Star Anise — Scientifically proven health and wellness benefits
Home/Elevate, spices, Uncategorized/Star Anise — Scientifically proven health and wellness benefits
Spices come in all shapes and sizes, and star anise is great example of that. A common Asian cuisine ingredient, star anise’s popularity is steadily growing in the West. It’s dark colour, star shape appearance and liquorice-like taste separates star anise from the rest of cooking herbs and spices. Along with it’s unique flavours star anise has long been used as medicinal remedies for the common flu, bacterial infections, as a mosquito repellent along with improving digestion and sleep quality. In this article, we’ll discuss the background and the benefits of this exotic star shaped spice.
History of Star Anise
The star shaped fruit dates back 3000 years thriving in the climate and soil conditions of southern China and Southeast Asia.[1] Star anise has been widely used in Chinese cooking making up the common “five-spice” powder mix. Besides enhancing sweet and savoury dishes, this fruit has a long history in traditional Oriental medicine. Many of the star anise based tonics are intended to improve digestion and protect against infection.
In 1578, British sailor Thomas Cavendish brought star shaped fruits from Philippines to Europe, unaware that they originated from southern China. Its liquorice flavour was used to enhance puddings, syrups and fruit preserves. Also, Europeans used star anise fragrant properties to produce a variety of liquors including Greek Ouzo, Italian Galliano, French Pernod and Pastis and Swiss Absinthe.
With time, the popularity of star anise spread across different regions. India and Thailand were some of the countries where this spice made permanent roots within their cuisines. Today, China produces between 80%-90% of world’s star anise. Other producers of this spice include Vietnam, India, Mexico, Turkey and Egypt. [1]
What is Star Anise?
Star anise is the star shaped fruit that grows on a tree scientifically called Illicium verum. As the name suggests, the star shape contains anywhere from five to ten pointers, each one holding the seeds. The star anise tree is fairly small but grows year round bearing fruit usually in the autumn.
Star anise is often confused with aniseed (a relative of the fennel plant) as both possess sweet, black licorice-like scent, and essential oils for both seeds contain an active compound anethole. Star anise is utilized widely in Asian cuisine, while aniseeds are predominantly used by Western countries. Due to its sweet scent, star anise essential oils are also used in aromatherapy, perfumes, toothpaste and cosmetics. [2]
Numerous active compounds within star anise contribute to an extensive list of health benefits and have been used by Asian traditional medicines for centuries. One of the major compounds within star anise is shikimic acid which is the primary ingredient used for the past 15 plus years to synthesize antiviral drug oseltamivir, known by the common name as Tamilflu. [2,3] Besides shikimic acid, star anise contains number of other potent ingredients that have been linked to numerous healing properties including:
Anti-inflammatory (reducing pain and swelling of muscles and joints—rheumatoid arthritis);
Decreases body stress (reducing depression and anxiety symptoms);
Improves sleep;
Enhances digestion;
Strong Anti-viral, antibacterial and anti-fungal;
Promotes healthy skin (good anti-microbial agent);
Regulates blood pressure and improves circulation;
Improves bone health;
Cancer fighting properties.
Number of powerful phytonutrients (flavonoids, lignans, terpenes and phenylpropanoids) such as anethole, limonene, linalool, quercetin, alpha-pipene, beta-pipene and nerolidol have been identified in star anise. Research shown many of these compounds to be potent anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, anti-microbial and mighty free radical scavengers. [2-4]
Star Anise Benefits
Star anise aromatic and sweet flavour made it popular amongst Asian and South Asian cuisines. The active compounds that carry sweet smell and taste profiles also possess many medicinal attributes. From the ancient Chinese and Ayurvedic remedies to modern science, star anise research and applications continue to grow, identifying more benefits. Let’s take a closer look into the powers of this exotically, common spice.
As star anise is more prominent spice in the east, majority of research based evidence is driven from Asia. Be aware, that star anise is often referred to as “anise” where in the West it is it’s own seed and spice term. [55]. Both star anise and anise are different spices, but they do possess some of the same phytonutrients such as anethole and linalool.
Antioxidant Benefits
The body is a complex machine which creates, transforms, stores and breaks down various compounds and cellular components through vast network of biochemical pathways. It converts energy from food and oxygen to versions which all cells can use (ATP) while storing other forms of energy as triglycerides and glycogen. The myriad of internal metabolic reactions produce many compounds and molecules, some of which have unstable oxygen particles called reactive oxygen species (ROS)—free radicals.
Free radicals are not necessarily a bad thing, and as the saying goes “everything in moderation”. Our immune system uses free radicals as a protecting strategy against foreign invaders. But, when ROS levels rise, they react and steal electrons from compounds within cells, damaging and destabilizing structural integrity. Damaged cells and tissues trigger greater immune response through inflammation to stop and repair the free radical damage. This imbalance of free radicals is often referred to as oxidative stress. [5]
Many antioxidants occur naturally in plants, and star anise shown to have 13 to 25 highly active compounds with strong scavenging abilities, that seek out free radicals and protect cells and DNA. [6-9]
The same compounds that give a sweet, licorice like flavours produce numerous health benefits. Such antioxidants include:
Anethole, specifically trans-anethole (which is a slight geometrical configuration of that molecule). This basic lignan classified as a terpene which is 13 times sweeter than sugar and makes up around 90% of star anise’s essential oil. [10,11] Terpenes are the major building blocks of many vital compounds (like steroids), and possess extensive healing properties. Anethole is shown as a strong antimicrobial, antifungal, and insecticidal agent. Its chemical structure is similar to catecholamines (hormones and neurotransmitters like adrenaline, noradrenaline and dopamine) affecting circulatory and nervous systems. [10] Anethole can also effect women’s health by mimicking estrogen—important female sex and metabolic hormone, and prolactin—responsible for milk production in breastfeeding females. [12,13]
Caryophyllene is another major compound of star anise essential oil. This famous terpene is strong antioxidant and anti-inflammatory compound which is found in many plants.[14] The famous part is that caryophyllene, especially its Beta-caryophyllene (geometrical version) is the major component of cannabis essential oil (marijuana). Beta-caryophyllene shown to effect parts of the brain creating a calming effect and treating variety of stress related symptoms for anxiety and depression. [15]
Linalool is another ingredient within the essential oil list. This terpene is another natural antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and anti-mutagenic agent that improves the mood and a calms the body. Linalool increases production of vitamin-E, another powerful antioxidant.
Estragole, a terpene and an isomer of anethole. Estragole naturally occurs in many essential oil plants and is a strong anti-inflammatory compound that inhibits numerous cytokines. [16]
Limonene, a monoterpene and a strong ROS scavenger. Limonene is a big part of citrus fruit essential oils, but also found in star anise. It has powerful anti-inflammatory and antibacterial properties that boosts immunity, kills pathogens, decreases anxiety and stress while helping with weight loss. Limonene is also an established anti-cancer agent.[17,18]
Star anise also contains an extensive list of vitamins such as Vitamin-A, vitamin-E, vitamin-C as well as many B-complex (thiamin, pyridoxine, riboflavin and niacin). Some of these vitamins come in high concentrations and are strong antioxidants (like vitamins E and C).
Star anise is a good source of minerals including copper, iron, calcium, potassium, manganese, selenium, zinc, and magnesium. Manganese is an important element for healthy and strong bones and other body functions including maintaining antioxidant enzyme levels like superoxide dismutase (SOD). [6,10]
The ingredients within its essential oils possess properties making them effective all-natural repellants against several insect species.
Insects do not like anethole which is a major compound of star anise essential oil. Studies shown that anethole was 80% effective fumigant against German cockroaches. [19] Anethole and other essential oil ingredients (like alpha-terpinene, alpha-pinene, beta-pinene, limonene and, estragole linalool) together with versions of shikimic acid create a long lasting control of different cockroach, mite and other insect populations. [20-22]. Such oils have also been used as all-natural pesticides protecting grains and other crops. [23,24]
Fights Viruses and Flu
While many fruits and vegetables offer generous amounts of antioxidants that boost immunity and reduce the risk of infection, none do it quite like star anise. It’s main compound is shikimic acid that has been used for over 30 years to produce an antiviral vaccine Oseltamivir (also known as Tamilflu, a drug that used to treat bird flu). Star anise has the highest concentration of shikimic acid from all the plants in the world. [2]
Studies show that combining shikimic acid with quercetin (strong antioxidant found in many spices) have significantly increased immune cells compared to standard antiviral treatment.[25] So, next time you’re feeling the chills, muscle aches, headache, fatigue or other cold like symptoms, consider brewing a cup of star anise, or grab Dupi’s Chai Elevate Blend — simply steep and enjoy.
Digestive Aid and Protection
Ayurveda and traditional Chinese medicines have extensively used star anise to treat different digestive ailments such as stomach pain, infections, constipation and indigestion.[26] As with many spices, star anise contains significant amount of fiber (over 1 gram per table spoon). Fiber bulks up with water stimulating the digestive track and reducing constipation. Fiber further binds to bile salts (produced from cholesterol) decreasing their re-absorption in the colon and lowering LDL (aka “bad”) cholesterol levels.
The phytonutrients within star anise stimulate the digestive track. As the spice is just gaining popularity in the West, the research is still young. However, star anise shares many of the active compounds with other well researched spices such as fennel, cinnamon, cloves and anise seed. All essential oils of those spices consist of similar compounds including estragole, eugenol, anethole, pipene, d-terpineol, linalool and limonene.[26]
Anethole has been extensively studied showing decreased abdominal pain in patients with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS).[27] Also, being a potent antioxidant anethole can reduce alcohol causing stomach ulcers. Alcohol behaves as a reactive oxygen species (ROS) and can cause cellular damage, including the thinning of the stomach lining. Science points to anethole as the major antioxidant that seeks outs and directly reacts with alcohol, decreasing stomach ulcers in small animals.[28,29]
Other micronutrients within star anise include iron, magnesium, zinc, potassium and manganese. These elements enhance digestion, improving enzymatic function and decreasing bloating issues. [26,30]
Stops Growth of Bacteria and Fungi
Star anise’s potent antimicrobial properties have been used as tea tonics to stop the growth of dangerous fungi and bacteria. Today’s science confirms antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antibacterial and antiseptic abilities of this unique spice. [31]
Star anise extract can stop the growth of gram negative bacteria such as Escherichia coli (E. coli) which causes various respiratory and digestive issues.[32] It shown to be effective in stopping three different kinds of bacteria species, totalling 67 antibiotic-resistant strains.[33] Research points to shikimic acid, anethole and linalool, all found in star anise to have strong antibacterial properties.[4, 33-35]
Star anise also contains mighty anti-fungal benefits. This includes fighting harmful mold and yeast strains such as Candida albicans (C. albicans). C. albicans is the most common strain living in the skin, mucus membrane and GI tract. When colonies grow out of control, they cause numerous discomforts including vaginal yeast infections in women. Anethole is again shown to inhibit growth of fungal strains like C. albicans.[8,26,36]
May Reduce Respiratory Congestion
Traditionally star anise seeds were also used to produce oils. These licorice, sweet aroma oils contained powerful ingredients such as trans-anethole, limonene, caryophyllene, estragole and linalool.[26] Such polyphenols possess antibacterial and anti-inflammatory properties, making such oils popular in aromatherapy and relieving respiratory infections. [6]
Improves Lactation
Sometimes new mothers have difficult time producing milk after childbirth. This happens more frequently during women’s delivery of the first child or via caesarean (C) section. Traditional remedy for new mothers and wet nurses has long been licorice-type spices, including star anise. [37] We were unable to find research directly investigating this biochemical process, however some studies suspect anathole and its ability to mimic body’s chemicals, messengers and hormones. The found research used spices of similar chemical profiles such as anise and fennel which are more popular in the Western countries—all contain similar active compounds with star anise, including anethole.
Anethole has a similar chemical structure to neurotransmitter dopamine and thus can compete for its receptors. Dopamine blocks another hormone prolactin, which stimulates breast milk production. Anethole who can attach itself to dopamine receptors, blocks dopamine from attaching but without the hormonal effect. This results in greater prolactin levels. [38]
Eases Menopause Symptoms
Women’s body changes during the onset of menopause, with lower production of estrogen and ending of ovulation and menses. Low estrogen levels trigger broad menopause symptoms such as mood changes, hot flashes, fatigue, anxiety, joint and muscle aches. Some of these symptoms may lead to health conditions including osteoporosis and heart disease. Number of pharmaceutical treatments including hormone replacement therapy are available as valid options.
However, more and more women are concerned with negative side effects of pharmaceutical drugs and hormones and focus their search for natural / herbal remedies. Star anise among other spices has been used for centuries as a popular choice. Anethole mimics estrogen and can produce some effect of this powerful sex hormone.[3] Spices containing anethole (such as star anise, fennel and anise seed) shown to decrease menopause symptoms.[12] Human trials found that anethole based spices (anise seed) reduced 75% of reported hot flashes in 72 women compared to placebo. [39]
Decreased bone loss, or osteoporosis is another hallmark symptom of menopause. Spices containing anethole can also help reduce bone loss and protect against osteoporosis. [3,40]
Anti-Diabetic – Lowers Blood Sugar
Diabetes results from chronic high blood-sugar levels, where the body is unable to fully utilize carbohydrate metabolism. It effects millions of people across the globe, costing billions in terms in research, treatments and prevention. As diabetes numbers rapidly continue to climb, governing bodies are searching for solution. This includes the World Health Organization (WHO) who published its recommendations for the development of herbal medicines, including anti-diabetic agents.[41]
Adding star anise to the diet has been a long traditional remedy to normalize blood sugar levels. This spice is low on the glycemic index with an impressive amount of powerful antioxidants which effect blood sugar levels. Anethole is the ingredient found to reduce high blood sugar levels in diabetic animals. A 45-day anethole treatment increased insulin production and improved overall hyperglycaemia (high blood-sugar levels), cholesterol and glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c).[42] HbA1c is formed when glucose attaches to hemoglobin of the red blood cell (RBC). The higher the blood glucose levels, the greater HbA1c levels, which is an important marker for glycemic conditions like diabetes and cardiovascular disease (CVD).
Promotes Bone Health
Star anise’s mighty antioxidant and anti-inflammation properties shown to improve organ and tissue function, including bone. Low bone mass affects tens of millions of people in North America and can lead to injury or bone related diseases like osteoporosis.
Star anise is a good source of elements such as calcium (Ca2+), magnesium (Mg2+), manganese (Mn2+), phosphorus (common ion form: H2PO3- or P3-) and vitamin K, which all partake in bone strengthening process. Essential oil of star anise is packed with anethole, the compound which is able to mimic estrogen and produce some of its effects. Osteoporosis is a hallmark symptom of menopausal women occurring as the result of declining estrogen levels. [43] Research shown that anethole rich supplements and oils were able to protect against osteoporosis and prevent bone loss in animal studies. [44]
Heart Health – Regulates Blood Pressure and Circulation
Traditional Chinese and Ayurvedic practices utilized star anise to improve blood circulation while lowering overall pressure. Often steeped as tea, star anise’s phytonutrients with potent anti-inflammatory and antispasmodic properties were consumed through a warm drink, elevating heart health and circulation throughout the body. Among the nutrient profiles are calcium (2+) and potassium (K+). Potassium is a natural vasodilator that relaxes blood vessel walls, therefore reducing blood pressure and overall strain on the cardiovascular system.
Studies shown that star anise can produce positive changes in hypertensive animals fed high fat diet.The spice extract reduced weight, blood pressure and cholesterol levels (LDL type). A 12-week trial using star anise significantly reduced many inflammatory causing proteins (cytokines) and plaque buildup within animal blood vessels. [45]
Protects Liver – Detoxifies the Body
Air quality, food and other environmental factors increase stress on our body resulting in greater oxidative stress. Liver is the main detoxification organ that uses many enzymes to process, filter and remove body’s byproducts and toxins. The body responds to the influx of free radicals by increasing inflammation through raising various cytokine levels. In the liver, chronic overflow of these cytokines damages good, functioning tissues leading to several diseases.
Star anise’s antioxidant, analgesic and anti-inflammation phytonutrients reduce oxidative stress and protect various body tissues including liver.[3,46,47] Numerous animal trials show that extended star anise treatments protect hepatocytes and decrease many inflammatory markers (cytokines).[45] Also, adding star anise to the diet significantly increased the antioxidant enzyme levels of super-oxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), glutathione-S-tranferase (GST), as well as the body’s own potent antioxidant glutathione (GSH).[46,48] Human trials shown similar results to the animal models, stabilizing hormone levels while reducing overall triglycerides and, kidney and liver tissue damage.[52]
Relieves Pain and Inflammation
Inflammation is a response by immune system to protect the body from infection, injuries and any other factors which may cause harm. Since the ancient times, star anise tonics, often steeped as tea were used to relieve injury swelling, muscle and joint pain, including rheumatism arthritis.[3,6]
Star anise list of phytonutrients includes vitamins, minerals, proteins and carbohydrates making it a mighty anti-inflammatory agent. The antioxidants within star anise:
protect cellular integrity (preventing lipid peroxidation); [3]
improve antioxidant enzymes (CAT, SOD, GST) and body’s own antioxidant GSH; [48]
raise high-density lipoproteins (HDL) type cholesterol. [45]
Trans-anethole is the main active compound shown to reduce number of inflammatory causing cytokines such as tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha, interleukin 1 beta (IL-1b) and interleukin 6 (IL-6) and nuclear factor kappa of B cells (NF-kB). [45] NF-kB is a protein complex inside cell nucleus that controls the decoding (transcription) of DNA genes for cytokines.[49]
Other essential oil compounds include: linoleic acid, palmitic acid, anisaldehyde, estragole, limonene, pipene, and alpha-terpineol;[3,6]
these compounds can decrease inflammation of muscles, joints and skin by inhibiting cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) enzyme.[45] COX-2 is one of the main regulating enzymes of the inflammatory response which activates production of inflammation lipids prostaglandins and proteins (cytokines).
Studies shown that star anise is able to significantly reduce numerous inflammation markers within animals.[45,48] The antioxidants seek out free radicals and engage messaging pathways resulting in decreased swelling, pain and oxidative stress. [3,6,42,45-49]
Anti-Cancer Agent
The powerful antioxidants within star anise that eliminate free radicals also possess cancer fighting abilities. The reduction of oxidative damage within tissue and cells decreases overall risk of abnormal cell mutation and growth. Numerous studies revealed that star anise phytonutrients have significantly decreased oxidative stress and inhibited cancer progression in diseased animals.[48]
Being a powerful anti-inflammatory compound, anethole can also effect various types of cancers. Anethole engages and decreases tumors in breast and prostate cancers. It attacks cancer in two ways:
by initiating a self-destruction mechanism (apoptosis) and,
elevating self destructing proteins (TIMP1, caspase-3, caspase-9, p21 and p27) while reducing inflammatory proteins (NF-kB, MMP2, MMP9, p38, p53). [50,51]
Brain Health and Combat Neurological Disorders
The ancient cultures of China, Persia and India used star anise like spices to treat variety of diseases. Science identified inflammation symptoms within neural tissues and their development and progression into neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, Multiple Sclerosis (MS), depression, stroke, anxiety and brain cancer; designating a specific term – neuroinflammation. Spices possess numerous phytonutrients which directly reduce oxidative stress and the risk of neurological disorders. Today, spices such as star anise hold immense potential and are advocated by governing bodies (World Health Organization) as natural and sustainable therapies against wide range of diseases.
Star anise is loaded with potent compounds which fight inflammation, protecting brain tissue and function while creating a sedative and anticonvulsant effect.[3,6] Studies shown that active compounds like trans-anethole reduced the frequency, length and intensity of epileptic seizures in an animal model. Other compounds within the star anise oil: estragole, linalool, alpha-terpineol also contributed to positive outcome. The mechanisms involved are extremely complex, but scientists suspect that star anise’s phytochemicals interact with sodium-potassium (Na+ – K+) pumps and GABA (both A and B) receptors creating neural excitation reducing overall seizures.[53] GABA (gamma-Aminobutyric acid) is the main inhibitory neurotransmitter within the central nervous system (CNS). This amino acid is an important controller of many systems, regulating activity of muscles, hormones and nervous tissues. [54]
Stress, anxiety and depression are common neurological conditions which affect the body’s biochemistry, thoughts, feelings and behaviour. Depression often accompanies other diseases and considered to be the main reason for disability around the world.[56] Though the exact mechanism is not known, scientists propose a series of messaging mechanisms involving dopamine, serotonin, epinephrine and norepinephrine.[56] These compounds are also referred to as monoamine neurotransmitters which are used in neural networks as messengers to regulate emotion, arousal and parts of memory.[57]
Star anise is an effective sedative agent producing a calming effect, relieving stress and anxiety.[55] The main essential oil ingredient anethole has similar chemical size to dopamine and able to replicate some of its effect.[3,10,15] Anethole studies show improved anxiety symptoms in stressed animals.[58] Depression shown to have lower levels of monoamine neurotransmitters (norepinephrine, serotonin and dopamine) in the brain and often accompanies other physical or mental conditions.[59] Since many of these conditions share common physiological and biochemical symptoms, spices like star anise can also treat depression. Anethole shown to be a powerful antidepressant by interacting with these very same neural pathways, increasing norepinephrine and serotonin levels.[59] Human trials confirm similar findings as regular consumption of anise seed decreased overall depression symptoms.[60,61]
Stress not only translates into oxidative stress or anxiety, it can also cause restlessness or insomnia. The mind’s high state of engagement increases epinephrine levels stimulating senses and inhibiting sleep. As previously mentioned star anise has sedative properties and is able to modulate levels of some of the involved neurotransmitters and hormones. The ability to increase levels of certain chemicals in one condition while lowering them in another, is a unique property of numerous natural herbs and spices, including star anise.
Star anise essential oil has a soothing licorice like smell producing an aromatherapeutic effect. Both animal and human studies showed that active ingredients including anethole, estragole, linalool, limonene and 4-terpineol assist in reducing neural excitation while improving serotonin levels.[3,6,57-61]
The UV radiation from sun exposure damages skin cells and is one of the environmental factors of oxidative stress within the body, raising the risk for skin related conditions and cancers. Research identified star anise as a potent anti-microbial, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, antiseptic, and an anti-bacterial agent capable of reducing free radical damage including skin cells and early signs of aging.[3,6,42,45,48]
Collagen is an important structural protein in the skin responsible for elasticity and integrity of the cells. Star anise is rich in vitamin C and vitamin A—strong antioxidants that reduce oxidative damage in cells. Vitamin C is an important part of collagen production leading to healthier looking skin. Vitamin A replenishes damaged skin cells, minimizing appearance of scarring or stretch marks.
Anethole protects against ROS damage and reduces oxidative stress by enhancing glutathione (GSH) and nuclear factor-like2 (Nrf2) levels.[62] Nrf2 is a transcription factor protein in humans that regulates antioxidant proteins. GSH is body’s own natural antioxidant considered one of the most important ROS scavengers. Trans-anethole in other spices shown to lighten the skin and reduce blemishes by decreasing melanogenesis (production of melanin from sun exposure).[63]
For thousands of years, Asia has been using star anise to heal and improve wide range of conditions. This spice is loaded with potent phytonutrients that boost digestion, internal organ health while keeping metabolic-type diseases at bay. Just one tablespoon (7 grams) contains:[64]
about 22 Calories
1.26 grams of Protein
3.52 grams of Carbohydrates, about 2 grams of which is Fiber
1.12 grams of Fats, big chunk of which are essential monounsaturated (also found in nuts, avocados and seeds) and polyunsaturated fats (omega-3 and omega-6)
Here’s additional list of micronutrients:
vitamin B1 (thiamin)
vitamin C (L-ascorbic acid)
calcium (Ca)
potassium (K)
phosphorus (P)
manganese (Mn)
magnesium (Mg)
iron (Fe)
Nutrients within star anise shown to fight oxidative stress, protect tissues, fight inflammation and pathogen causing conditions. [3,6,45,48]
Cautions and Drawbacks
Star anise has been part of traditional medicines for centuries and deemed safe to consume. However, as with anything, a word of caution is warranted when using this spice extensively and/or excessively.
Ensure that you are using Chinese star anise and not Japanese variety. The Japanese type is inedible and poisonous when consumed. Some star anise products may be packaged and contaminated with trace amounts of Japanese star anise. This may be tolerable for an adult, but may produce adverse symptoms in infants. One review notes two cases with infants under 6 months displaying hypertonia, excess crying and vomiting after possible Japanese star anise contaminant.[65] Now this is attributed to the toxic variety (Japanese) of the star anise, and no official studies have been done, or cases reported with standard Chinese type. Pure Chinese star anise is commonly given to infants and has been deemed safe.[66]
As star anise popularity steadily grows in the West, there are still general cautions regarding using this spice for women who are pregnant or breastfeeding. Active ingredients within star anise that produce health benefits in some, may have adverse affects in others. For example, the main component anethole mimics estrogen, which may produce some hormonal imbalances within the body. Anethole competes with dopamine for its receptors and can increase prolactin and breast milk production. This may not be a appealing to women who already have high prolactin levels.
Finally, star anise is a fragrant spice, and some people may be allergic or develop allergies to ingredients responsible for the licorice type aroma and/or taste.
Star anise is an aromatic and flavourful fruit from the evergreen tree Illicium verm native to China. It has a 3000 plus year old history as a valuable culinary spice and healing tonic building its popularity throughout Asian continent. The trade mark star shaped fruit capsules carry a licorice-like taste, making up main ingredients of spice powders, masalas and curry mixes in many Asian dishes.
Compounds within star anise that give its unique flavour are also responsible for wide array of health benefits. The main ingredient shikimic acid is a start up ingredient for antiviral medication Tamilflu. The spice is vitamin and mineral rich and the essential oils are packed with powerful polyphenols like anethole, linalool, estragole, pipene and limonene. Together these phytonutrients boost immune system, balance hormones/neurotransmitters, improve organ and bone health, fight bacteria/viruses and fungi, decrease oxidative stress as well as variety of health conditions and diseases.
You can experience the sweet taste, fragrant smell and the multitude of star anise wellness listed above in our Dupi’s Chai Elevate Blend.
https://www.world-foodhistory.com/2012/06/history-of-star-anise-illicium-verum.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Illicium_verum
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1658077X14000368
http://www.phytojournal.com/vol2Issue5/Issue_jan_2014/35.pdf
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anethole
http://www.orientjchem.org/vol30no3/extraction-and-antioxidative-activity-of-essential-oil-from-star-anise-illiciumverum
https://pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/compound/beta-caryophyllene#section=Top
https://www.civilized.life/articles/terpene-profile-caryophyllene
https://universityhealthnews.com/daily/heart-health/d-limonene-effective-for-lowering-cholesterol-naturally-and-much-more
https://www.hindawi.com/journals/psyche/2016/4595823/#B58
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/301770804_Repellency_of_anethole-_and_estragole-type_fennel_essential_oils_against_stored_grain_pests_The_different_twins
http://foodstruct.com/food/star-anise
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/286032659_Antifungal_effects_of_the_extracts_and_essential_oils_from_Foeniculum_vulgare_and_Illicium_verum_against_Candida_albicans
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK501776
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/26442834_Evaluation_of_the_Prophylactic_Effect_of_Fennel_Essential_Oil_on_Experimental_Osteoporosis_Model_in_Rats
Schmincke KH (2003). Medicinal Plants for forest conservation and healthcare. Non-Wood Forest Products 11, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Link: http://www.fao.org/3/a-w7261e.pdf
https://academic.oup.com/japr/article/26/4/459/4158453
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/318504997_MEDICINAL_BENEFITS_OF_ANISE_SEEDS_PIMPINELLA_ANISUM_AND_THYMUS_VULGARIS_IN_A_SAMPLE_OF_HEALTHY_VOLUNTEERS
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gamma-Aminobutyric_acid
https://www.organicfacts.net/health-benefits/essential-oils/health-benefits-of-anise-essential-oil.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monoamine_neurotransmitter
https://www.myfitnesspal.com/food/calories/generic-star-anise-spice-powder-usda-complete-324483138
https://www.webmd.com/vitamins/ai/ingredientmono-364/star-anise
If you enjoyed this post, feel free to share with others. Keep the conversation going by leaving us a comment!
Drop by our Shop page and treat your body and soul with our chai blends.
Have a fantastic day!
By dyablonsky|2019-07-03T14:01:26-07:00February 4th, 2019|Elevate, spices, Uncategorized|0 Comments
Top 10 Anti-inflammatory Spices and Herbs
The most comprehensive guide to turmeric and fighting disease
Nutmeg — Scientifically proven health and wellness benefits
Coriander Seeds — Scientifically Proven Health and Wellness Benefits
Fennel Seeds — Scientifically Proven Health and Wellness Benefits
10% off purchase & Monthly Giveaways entry
Get Social with DUPIsCHAI!
Buy Performance Focused Tea Online.
417 Industrial Avenue
* Statements made on this website have not been evaluated by Health Canada. These products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. Information provided by this website or this company is not a substitute for individual medical advice. | Copyright 2018-2019 DUPIsCHAI | All Rights Reserved
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11021
|
__label__cc
| 0.69851
| 0.30149
|
San Juan de Ulua tour by tram
Discover the biggest star in Veracruz with this fun visit to the historic fortress of San Juan de Ulua. The star-shaped fort has dominated the city’s waterfront since Spanish colonial times and it offers a fascinating insight into Mexico’s past. Board a quaint tramcar and enjoy a 30-minute journey through the city before reaching the castle where a local guide will greet you and show you about this unmissable landmark.
Throughout its five centuries of existence, San Juan de Ulua has enjoyed incarnations as a fortress, prison, armoury, presidential residence and even a temple to worship the gods. Despite the ravages of time, and with the scars of war and revolution etched on its walls, the fort defiantly remains in place on an islet in Veracruz harbour.
The Spanish colonial authorities began building the fortress in 1535 with the intention of protecting the city from raids by pirates and buccaneers, and within a century Veracruz had become the most important trading outpost in Mexico, from where ships laden with treasure and commodities sailed to and from Europe.
Your guide will fill you in on all the important events and milestones, explaining what function each section served and regaling you with anecdotes about prisoners such as the witch known as ‘the Mulata of Cordoba’ and lothario bandit Chucho el Roto. San Juan de Ulua Prison had a reputation of being such a hellhole that once a prisoner entered, he never left. After the tour, you have free time to explore the fortress and take as many photos as you wish of this impressive attraction. Discover the biggest star in Veracruz with this fun visit to the historic fortress of San Juan de Ulua. The star-shaped fort has dominated the city’s waterfront since Spanish colonial times and it offers a fascinating insight into Mexico’s past. Board a quaint tramcar and enjoy a 30-minute journey through the city before reaching the castle where a local guide will greet you and show you about this unmissable landmark. Meeting/pick-up point: Ticket office at the tourist tram plaza outside Veracruz Aquarium.
Duration: Two-and-a-half hours.
Start/opening time: 10am on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
Languages: Spanish.
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11027
|
__label__cc
| 0.647426
| 0.352574
|
You are here: Home / Professionalism / The Adrenaline Rush Is a Bonus
The Adrenaline Rush Is a Bonus
April 4, 2014 by emspatientperspective Leave a Comment
Last week I got a email from an author who is writing a book about career options. She asked if she could speak to me about career or volunteer opportunities in EMS. I wrote back and we chatted for about 20 minutes later that day. One of her questions was what kind of qualities it takes to work as an EMT or paramedic. I told her that the people need to enjoy taking care of people, and that vast majority of which are in no danger of dying while in your care. I’ve read that less than 5% of incidents require a critical intervention. That has been my experience, though I don’t have a reference for that number. The people who get in EMS for the action and expect shifts filled with shootings, cardiac arrests, and plane crashes are quickly disappointed with 95% of their work day. Some of them get disillusioned and bitter. Those who stay in the field do so at the detriment of their coworkers and patients.
I have found that the most passionate people in EMS make the most of the 95% of calls they go on. They enjoy making a rapport with difficult patients. They freely dispense Fentanyl and Zofran, and take pride in helping people feel better. But they also still get a rush on the cardiac arrests, unstable dysrhythmias, respiratory failure, seizures, and shootings. Of course we don’t want any of those things to happen to anyone, but they are the ones you want to show up when they do. They are a challenge to manage and come induce an addictive endorphin rush. There’s nothing wrong with that, but it is fleeting. It’s a perk that comes occasionally, and should never be the only reason to work in EMS. Our best people embrace the different type of satisfaction that comes from taking care of the less acute patients well in between. Adrenaline will not keep anyone’s emotional gas tank filled for a career, or even a shift.
I was also asked about what opportunities for career advancement exist within EMS. Had she asked me that five years ago, I would have told her nursing or PA school. Today we’re starting to take baby steps toward specializing with community paramedics. I explained how so many people use EMS and emergency departments for primary care. Some frequent flyers have minor complaints, mental health, or substance abuse issues, and others do not mange chronic conditions that become a crisis. A growing number of services have attacked both ends of this spectrum, by directing the one group to more appropriate and less expensive resources, and intervene before an emergency with the other.
About a year ago I wrote about who the community paramedics might be. Most services use experienced paramedics who have demonstrated high clinical performance. I’d like those paramedics to still go on some emergencies too, which is why I like Wake County’s model. There Advanced Practice Paramedics respond to calls on the opposite ends of the bell curve – the 5% most and least critical patients. The sickest patients benefit from the clinically strongest paramedics, and the community paramedics still get the occasional adrenaline rush in addition to their nontraditional roles.
Filed Under: Professionalism, System
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11033
|
__label__cc
| 0.602417
| 0.397583
|
UFC 242 is heading to Abu Dhabi
Could Khabib Nurmagomedov's title defence headline the show?
It’s official. The premier MMA organisation is coming back to the Middle East with UFC 242 on September 9. Specifically, the fisticuffs and grappling will take place in Abu Dhabi – five years since the last time it was here.
Details on the actual location where the Octagon will land are scarce, but we’ll hazard a guess and say it will be at Du Arena. You can sign up for updates on the venue and card by clicking here.
Don’t call it a comeback
All the recent rumours suggest that UFC 242 will see the return of current lightweight champion, Khabib Nurmagomedov. The man tweeted as much. And a scrap with interim lightweight champion, Dustin Poirier could be the headline act.
In fact, if you look carefully at the announcement video above, you’ll notice that when UFC president says “headlined by some of the biggest stars in the sport” Khabib and Poirier are pictured. Cue massive excitement.
There is, however, talk of a rematch with Conor McGregor. The pair fought a bitter battle last time out, and with the UFC still keen to keep the bankable Irishman at the top of any bill, he just might leapfrog Poirier.
The announcement also marks a new five-year partnership between the UFC and Abu Dhabi. Furthermore, the link-up also guarantees title fights in the capital, too, which means the top fighters will be duke it out from now until 2024. We can’t wait.
LINK: UFC
Vietnamese Foodies opens in Downtown Dubai
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11036
|
__label__wiki
| 0.951136
| 0.951136
|
Will Twitter come to the Council Chamber?
Several Lib Dem councillors use Twitter - contact us for account names to follow
When the Chairmen of some of the Council's Committees complained about the use of Twitter during meetings, the outcome wasn't quite what they expected!
Twitter is a form of social media. It's free and available to anyone with a mobile phone, computer or other such gadget to access the internet. The Twitter website enables people to "tweet" a message of up to 140 characters and then share it with their "followers". Subscribers to Twitter can also "follow" others. Sending out tweets during a council meeting enables members of the public to follow the proceedings. The attraction of Twitter is that it is very simple and very limited.
Opposition councillors do sometimes use Twitter during meetings. It's a way of engaging with members of the public, particularly when meetings are debating controversial topics. In September this year, when the Epsom Station development was being discussed, a local newspaper reporter who was present at the meeting sent messages via Twitter every few minutes. MPs use Twitter from the House of Commons.
Discussions concerning the complaint centred about the possibility of webcasts from the Council Chamber - this is where a meeting is transmitted live and can be viewed over the internet (Surrey CC now do this and so does Mole Valley DC) but most importantly, the possibility of a council officer tweeting proceedings. The set up costs of webcasts are huge and could not be considered at the present time, but sending messages via Twitter could potentially cost nothing. If a council employee was involved in tweeting from meetings, any messages, of course, would have to be entirely factual and non-political. Chief Executive Frances Rutter agreed to give the matter some further thought and consideration.
Tweeting from the council chamber will therefore continue provided it is not considered disruptive, but with some elderly members of the ruling Residents' Party unlikely to know what Twitter is, this story may well continue ....
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11040
|
__label__wiki
| 0.842467
| 0.842467
|
New! Download Unionpedia on your Android™ device!
Faster access than browser!
Orkney (Orkneyjar), also known as the Orkney Islands, is an archipelago in the Northern Isles of Scotland, situated off the north coast of Great Britain. [1]
391 relations: Aberdeen Airport, Accent (sociolinguistics), Agravain, Alistair Carmichael, Alkali, Ancient Rome, Annexation, Arable land, Archaeology, Archbishop of York, Archbishopric of Bremen, Archipelago, Armeria maritima, Armistice, Atlantic puffin, Atlantic roundhouse, Aurora, Auskerry, Bagpipes, Balfour Castle, Basalt, Battle of Culloden, Battle of Florvåg, Battle of Stamford Bridge, BBC, BBC Radio Orkney, BBC Radio Scotland, Bede, Beef, Beer, Bishop of Orkney, Black guillemot, Brill Publishers, British Summer Time, Broad Bottom ministry, Broch, Broch of Gurness, Bronze Age, Brough of Birsay, Buckquoy spindle-whorl, Burgh, Burray, Burroughston Broch, Burwick, Orkney, Caithness, Calf of Eday, Calf of Flotta, Calluna, Camulodunum, Cava, Orkney, ..., Celtic Christianity, Celtic languages, Chalk, Chambered cairn, Cheese, Christian I of Denmark, Christopher Columbus, Churchill Barriers, Clan, Clan Sinclair, Claudius, Clay, Coat of arms of Orkney, Comhairle nan Eilean Siar election, 2007, Commercial broadcasting, Common vole, Community radio, Constitutional status of Orkney, Shetland and the Western Isles, Copinsay, Corn Holm, Crab, Croft (land), D. E. R. Watt, Damsay, Dál Riata, Deputy First Minister of Scotland, Devonian, Dike (geology), Dowry, Dublin, Duncansby Head, Dunnet Head, Earl, Earl of Angus, Earl of Caithness, Earldom of Orkney, Ecclesiastical History of the English People, Eday, Eday Airport, Edinburgh, Edinburgh Airport, Edwin Muir, Egilsay, Eifelian, Endemism, Eric Bloodaxe, Eric Linklater, Erica cinerea, Eurasian otter, European Marine Energy Centre, Eynhallow, Eynhallow Sound, Fara, Orkney, Faray, Ferry, Fish, Flag of Orkney, Flint, Flotta, Forestry Commission, Fortriu, Fossilization (linguistics), Gaels, Gaheris, Gairsay, Gareth, Gawain, Genocide, Geomorphology, George Buchanan, George Mackay Brown, Glacial erratic, Glacial striation, Glasgow Airport, Glims Holm, Gnaeus Julius Agricola, Gneiss, Goidelic languages, Graemsay, Granite, Great skua, Grey seal, Guilder, Gulf Stream, Haakon IV of Norway, Haakon Paulsson, Happy Valley (garden), Harald Fairhair, Harbor seal, Hazelnut, Heart of Neolithic Orkney, Helliar Holm, Henry I Sinclair, Earl of Orkney, Henry of Lund, Herring, High Seas Fleet, Highlands and Islands (Scottish Parliament electoral region), Highlands and Islands Airports, Historia Norwegiæ, Historic Scotland, Holm (island), Holm of Faray, Holm of Huip, Holm of Papa, Holm of Scockness, Homarus gammarus, House of Commons of the United Kingdom, Hoy, Hudson's Bay Company, Hunda, Independent politician, Indogermanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, Insular Scots, Inverness, Inverness Airport, Iron Age, Italian Chapel, Jacobite risings, James III of Scotland, Jim Wallace, Baron Wallace of Tankerness, Jon Haraldsson, Julius Pokorny, Katherine Forsyth, Kelp, Kili Holm, King Lot, Kingdom of Scotland, Kirkwall, Kirkwall Airport, Kittiwake, Knap of Howar, Lamb Holm, Lamprophyre, Latitude, Lerwick, Liam McArthur, Liberal Democrats (UK), Liberal Party (UK), Lieutenancy areas of Scotland, Limestone, Limonium, List of islands of Scotland, List of islands of the British Isles, List of places in Orkney, Local extinction, Loch, Loch of Harray, Loch of Stenness, Loganair, Maeshowe, Magnus Barefoot, Magnus Erlendsson, Earl of Orkney, Magnus II, Earl of Orkney, Mainland, Orkney, Malcolm II of Scotland, Margaret of Denmark, Queen of Scotland, Margaret, Maid of Norway, Margot Livesey, Marseille, Martello tower, Martyr, Matter of Britain, Member of parliament, Member of the Scottish Parliament, Mesolithic, Met Office, Metamorphic rock, Midden, Midgarth, Midsummer, Missionary, Moine Supergroup, Molecular Ecology, Moorland, Moraine, Moray, Moray Firth Radio, Muckle Green Holm, Neolithic, Norn language, Norsemen, North Isles, North Ronaldsay, North Ronaldsay Airport, North Ronaldsay sheep, Northern Isles, NorthLink Ferries, Ogham, Olaf Tryggvason, Old Irish, Old Man of Hoy, Old Norse, Old Red Sandstone, Orcadian Basin, Orcadian dialect, Orcadians, Ordnance Survey, Orkney (Scottish Parliament constituency), Orkney and Shetland (UK Parliament constituency), Orkney and Shetland Movement, Orkney Club, Orkney College, Orkney Ferries, Orkney International Science Festival, Orkney Islands Council, Orkney vole, Orkneyinga saga, Papa Stronsay, Papa Westray, Papa Westray Airport, Parliament of Scotland, Passage grave, Paul and Erlend Thorfinnsson, Pentland Ferries, Pentland Firth, Pentland Skerries, Permian, Picts, Pinniped, Piracy, Pledge (law), Pliny the Elder, Ploughing match, Plurality voting, Pomponius Mela, Prehistoric Scotland, Prepositional case, Primula scotica, Proto-Celtic language, Pytheas, Quarry, Raven, Rögnvald Kali Kolsson, Renewable energy in Scotland, Riksråd, Ring of Brodgar, Robert Llewellyn, Rognvald Eysteinsson, Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Nidaros, Roslin Castle, Rousay, Royal Navy, Runes, Rusk Holm, Rysa Little, Salmon, Salvelinus inframundus, Sanday Airport, Sanday, Orkney, Scapa Flow, Scilla verna, Scotland, Scottish Gaelic, Scottish Green Party, Scottish Highlands, Scottish independence referendum, 2014, Scottish National Dictionary, Scottish national identity, Scottish National Party, Scottish Parliament, Scottish Parliament constituencies and regions, Scottish people, Scrabster, Seafood, Seaweed, Shapinsay, Shetland, Shires of Scotland, Sigurd Eysteinsson, Sigurd the Stout, Skara Brae, Slavery, Society of Antiquaries of Scotland, Sodium carbonate, Solar eclipse of 1 May 1185, Souterrain, South Ronaldsay, South Walls, SSE plc, St Magnus Cathedral, St Magnus Festival, St Margaret's Hope, Stack (geology), Standing Stones of Stenness, Stoat, Stromness, Stronsay, Stronsay Airport, Subdivisions of Scotland, Suffix, Sule Skerry, Sule Stack, Sumburgh Airport, Sutherland, Sweyn Holm, Switha, Swona, Syncline, Tacitus, Tartan, The Orcadian, The Superstation Orkney, Thomas Malory, Thorfinn the Mighty, Thorfinn Torf-Einarsson, Thurso, Tide, Timeline of prehistoric Scotland, Tomb of the Eagles, Toponymy, Torf-Einarr, Tripolium pannonicum, Troll, Trondheim, Trow (folklore), U-boat, Udal law, UNESCO, United Kingdom census, 2011, United Kingdom constituencies, United Kingdom general election, 1987, University of Strathclyde, Value-added tax, Vikings, Volcanic rock, Walrus, Ward Hill, Hoy, Wars of Scottish Independence, Welsh language, Westray, Westray Airport, Westray to Papa Westray flight, Wheelhouse (archaeology), Whisky, Whitefish (fisheries term), Wild boar, Winter solstice, World Heritage site, World War II, Wyre, Orkney, 100% renewable energy. Expand index (341 more) » « Shrink index
Aberdeen Airport
Aberdeen International Airport (Port-adhair Eadar-nàiseanta Obar Dheathain) is an international airport, located at Dyce, a suburb of Aberdeen, Scotland, approximately northwest of Aberdeen city centre.
New!!: Orkney and Aberdeen Airport · See more »
Accent (sociolinguistics)
In sociolinguistics, an accent is a manner of pronunciation peculiar to a particular individual, location, or nation.
New!!: Orkney and Accent (sociolinguistics) · See more »
Agravain
Sir Agravain (sometimes spelled Agravaine) is a Knight of the Round Table in Arthurian legend.
New!!: Orkney and Agravain · See more »
Alistair Carmichael
Alexander Morrison "Alistair" CarmichaelFull name is given as "CARMICHAEL, Alexander Morrison, commonly known as Alistair Carmichael" in the returning officer's (born 15 July 1965) is a Liberal Democrat politician and has served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Orkney and Shetland since the 2001 general election.
New!!: Orkney and Alistair Carmichael · See more »
In chemistry, an alkali (from Arabic: al-qaly “ashes of the saltwort”) is a basic, ionic salt of an alkali metal or alkaline earth metal chemical element.
New!!: Orkney and Alkali · See more »
In historiography, ancient Rome is Roman civilization from the founding of the city of Rome in the 8th century BC to the collapse of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century AD, encompassing the Roman Kingdom, Roman Republic and Roman Empire until the fall of the western empire.
New!!: Orkney and Ancient Rome · See more »
Annexation (Latin ad, to, and nexus, joining) is the administrative action and concept in international law relating to the forcible transition of one state's territory by another state.
New!!: Orkney and Annexation · See more »
Arable land
Arable land (from Latin arabilis, "able to be plowed") is, according to one definition, land capable of being ploughed and used to grow crops.
New!!: Orkney and Arable land · See more »
Archaeology, or archeology, is the study of humanactivity through the recovery and analysis of material culture.
New!!: Orkney and Archaeology · See more »
The Archbishop of York is a senior bishop in the Church of England, second only to the Archbishop of Canterbury.
New!!: Orkney and Archbishop of York · See more »
Archbishopric of Bremen
The Archdiocese of Bremen (also Archdiocese of Hamburg-Bremen, Erzbistum Bremen, not to be confused with the modern Archdiocese of Hamburg, founded in 1994) is a historical Roman Catholic diocese (787–1566/1648) and formed from 1180 to 1648 an ecclesiastical state (continued under other names until 1823), named Prince-Archbishopric of Bremen (Erzstift Bremen) within the Holy Roman Empire.
New!!: Orkney and Archbishopric of Bremen · See more »
An archipelago, sometimes called an island group or island chain, is a chain, cluster or collection of islands, or sometimes a sea containing a small number of scattered islands.
New!!: Orkney and Archipelago · See more »
Armeria maritima
Armeria maritima, commonly known as thrift, sea thrift or sea pink, is a species of flowering plant in the family Plumbaginaceae.
New!!: Orkney and Armeria maritima · See more »
An armistice is a formal agreement of warring parties to stop fighting.
New!!: Orkney and Armistice · See more »
The Atlantic puffin (Fratercula arctica), also known as the common puffin, is a species of seabird in the auk family.
New!!: Orkney and Atlantic puffin · See more »
Atlantic roundhouse
In archaeology, an Atlantic roundhouse is an Iron Age stone building found in the northern and western parts of mainland Scotland, the Northern Isles and the Hebrides.
New!!: Orkney and Atlantic roundhouse · See more »
An aurora (plural: auroras or aurorae), sometimes referred to as polar lights, northern lights (aurora borealis) or southern lights (aurora australis), is a natural light display in the Earth's sky, predominantly seen in the high-latitude regions (around the Arctic and Antarctic).
New!!: Orkney and Aurora · See more »
Auskerry
Auskerry (Austrsker, east skerry) is a small island in eastern Orkney, Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Auskerry · See more »
Bagpipes are a woodwind instrument using enclosed reeds fed from a constant reservoir of air in the form of a bag.
New!!: Orkney and Bagpipes · See more »
Balfour Castle
Balfour Castle is a historic building on the southwest of Shapinsay, Orkney Islands.
New!!: Orkney and Balfour Castle · See more »
Basalt is a common extrusive igneous (volcanic) rock formed from the rapid cooling of basaltic lava exposed at or very near the surface of a planet or moon.
New!!: Orkney and Basalt · See more »
Battle of Culloden
The Battle of Culloden (Blàr Chùil Lodair) was the final confrontation of the Jacobite rising of 1745.
New!!: Orkney and Battle of Culloden · See more »
Battle of Florvåg
The Battle of Florvåg (Slaget ved Florvåg) was a naval battle that was fought on 3 April 1194 between King Sverre Sigurdsson, leader of the Birkebeiner party, and Sigurd Magnusson, the Øyskjegg party pretender.
New!!: Orkney and Battle of Florvåg · See more »
Battle of Stamford Bridge
The Battle of Stamford Bridge took place at the village of Stamford Bridge, East Riding of Yorkshire, in England on 25 September 1066, between an English army under King Harold Godwinson and an invading Norwegian force led by King Harald Hardrada and the English king's brother Tostig Godwinson.
New!!: Orkney and Battle of Stamford Bridge · See more »
The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster.
New!!: Orkney and BBC · See more »
BBC Radio Orkney
BBC Radio Orkney is a local opt-out of BBC Radio Scotland for the Orkney Islands, which is based in Castle Street, Kirkwall, Orkney, in Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and BBC Radio Orkney · See more »
BBC Radio Scotland
BBC Radio Scotland is BBC Scotland's national English-language radio network.
New!!: Orkney and BBC Radio Scotland · See more »
Bede (italic; 672/3 – 26 May 735), also known as Saint Bede, Venerable Bede, and Bede the Venerable (Bēda Venerābilis), was an English Benedictine monk at the monastery of St.
New!!: Orkney and Bede · See more »
Beef is the culinary name for meat from cattle, particularly skeletal muscle.
New!!: Orkney and Beef · See more »
Beer is one of the oldest and most widely consumed alcoholic drinks in the world, and the third most popular drink overall after water and tea.
New!!: Orkney and Beer · See more »
Bishop of Orkney
The Bishop of Orkney was the ecclesiastical head of the Diocese of Orkney, one of thirteen medieval bishoprics of Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Bishop of Orkney · See more »
Black guillemot
The black guillemot or tystie (Cepphus grylle) is a medium-sized alcid.
New!!: Orkney and Black guillemot · See more »
Brill Publishers
Brill (known as E. J. Brill, Koninklijke Brill, Brill Academic Publishers) is a Dutch international academic publisher founded in 1683 in Leiden, Netherlands.
New!!: Orkney and Brill Publishers · See more »
British Summer Time
During British Summer Time (BST), civil time in the United Kingdom is advanced one hour forward of Greenwich Mean Time (GMT) (in effect, changing the time zone from UTC+0 to UTC+1), so that evenings have more daylight and mornings have less.
New!!: Orkney and British Summer Time · See more »
Broad Bottom ministry
The Broad Bottom ministry consisted of two coalition administrations from 1744–46 and 1746–54 in the Parliament of Great Britain.
New!!: Orkney and Broad Bottom ministry · See more »
A broch is an Iron Age drystone hollow-walled structure of a type found only in Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Broch · See more »
Broch of Gurness
The Broch of Gurness is an Iron Age broch village on the northeast coast of Mainland Orkney in Scotland overlooking Eynhallow Sound, about 15 miles north-west of Kirkwall.
New!!: Orkney and Broch of Gurness · See more »
The Bronze Age is a historical period characterized by the use of bronze, and in some areas proto-writing, and other early features of urban civilization.
New!!: Orkney and Bronze Age · See more »
Brough of Birsay
The Brough of Birsay is an uninhabited tidal island off the north-west coast of The Mainland of Orkney, Scotland, in the parish of Birsay.
New!!: Orkney and Brough of Birsay · See more »
Buckquoy spindle-whorl
The Buckquoy spindle-whorl is an Ogham-inscribed spindle-whorl dating from the Early Middle Ages, probably the 8th century, which was found in 1970 in Buckquoy, Birsay, Orkney, Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Buckquoy spindle-whorl · See more »
Burgh
A burgh was an autonomous municipal corporation in Scotland and Northern England, usually a town, or toun in Scots.
New!!: Orkney and Burgh · See more »
Burray
Burray is one of the Orkney Islands in Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Burray · See more »
Burroughston Broch
Burroughston Broch is an Iron Age broch located on the island of Shapinsay in the Orkney Islands, in Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Burroughston Broch · See more »
Burwick, Orkney
Burwick is a small village and harbour on the island of South Ronaldsay in the Orkney Islands, Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Burwick, Orkney · See more »
Caithness (Gallaibh, Caitnes; Katanes) is a historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area of Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Caithness · See more »
Calf of Eday
The Calf of Eday (Kalfr) is an uninhabited island in Orkney, Scotland, lying north east of Eday.
New!!: Orkney and Calf of Eday · See more »
Calf of Flotta
The Calf of Flotta is a small island in Scapa Flow, Orkney.
New!!: Orkney and Calf of Flotta · See more »
Calluna vulgaris (known as common heather, ling, or simply heather) is the sole species in the genus Calluna in the flowering plant family Ericaceae.
New!!: Orkney and Calluna · See more »
Camulodunum
Camulodunum (camvlodvnvm), the Ancient Roman name for what is now Colchester in Essex, was an important town in Roman Britain, and the first capital of the province.
New!!: Orkney and Camulodunum · See more »
Cava, Orkney
Cava is an uninhabited island in the Orkney archipelago in Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Cava, Orkney · See more »
Celtic Christianity
Celtic Christianity or Insular Christianity refers broadly to certain features of Christianity that were common, or held to be common, across the Celtic-speaking world during the Early Middle Ages.
New!!: Orkney and Celtic Christianity · See more »
The Celtic languages are a group of related languages descended from Proto-Celtic, or "Common Celtic"; a branch of the greater Indo-European language family.
New!!: Orkney and Celtic languages · See more »
Chalk is a soft, white, porous, sedimentary carbonate rock, a form of limestone composed of the mineral calcite.
New!!: Orkney and Chalk · See more »
Chambered cairn
A chambered cairn is a burial monument, usually constructed during the Neolithic, consisting of a sizeable (usually stone) chamber around and over which a cairn of stones was constructed.
New!!: Orkney and Chambered cairn · See more »
Cheese is a dairy product derived from milk that is produced in a wide range of flavors, textures, and forms by coagulation of the milk protein casein.
New!!: Orkney and Cheese · See more »
Christian I of Denmark
Christian I (February 1426 – 21 May 1481) was a Scandinavian monarch under the Kalmar Union.
New!!: Orkney and Christian I of Denmark · See more »
Christopher Columbus (before 31 October 145120 May 1506) was an Italian explorer, navigator, and colonizer.
New!!: Orkney and Christopher Columbus · See more »
Churchill Barriers
The Churchill Barriers are a series of four causeways in Orkney, Scotland, with a total length of 1.5 miles (2.4 km).
New!!: Orkney and Churchill Barriers · See more »
A clan is a group of people united by actual or perceived kinship and descent.
New!!: Orkney and Clan · See more »
Clan Sinclair
Clan Sinclair (Clann na Ceàrda) is a Highland Scottish clan who held lands in the north of Scotland, the Orkney Islands, and the Lothians.
New!!: Orkney and Clan Sinclair · See more »
Claudius (Tiberius Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus; 1 August 10 BC – 13 October 54 AD) was Roman emperor from 41 to 54.
New!!: Orkney and Claudius · See more »
Clay is a finely-grained natural rock or soil material that combines one or more clay minerals with possible traces of quartz (SiO2), metal oxides (Al2O3, MgO etc.) and organic matter.
New!!: Orkney and Clay · See more »
Coat of arms of Orkney
The coat of arms of Orkney was adopted on 3 March 1975 and is among the oldest of those of the Scottish Council Areas, as the Orkney Islands Council was unaffected by the 1996 local government reform.
New!!: Orkney and Coat of arms of Orkney · See more »
Comhairle nan Eilean Siar election, 2007
Elections to Comhairle nan Eilean Siar (Western Isles council) were held on 3 May 2007, the same day as the other Scottish local government elections and the Scottish Parliament general election.
New!!: Orkney and Comhairle nan Eilean Siar election, 2007 · See more »
Commercial broadcasting
Commercial broadcasting (also called private broadcasting) is the broadcasting of television programs and radio programming by privately owned corporate media, as opposed to state sponsorship.
New!!: Orkney and Commercial broadcasting · See more »
Common vole
The common vole (Microtus arvalis) is a European mammal.
New!!: Orkney and Common vole · See more »
Community radio is a radio service offering a third model of radio broadcasting in addition to commercial and public broadcasting.
New!!: Orkney and Community radio · See more »
Constitutional status of Orkney, Shetland and the Western Isles
The constitutional status of Orkney, Shetland and the Western Isles has periodically been discussed, for example during the Scottish independence referendum campaign.
New!!: Orkney and Constitutional status of Orkney, Shetland and the Western Isles · See more »
Copinsay
Copinsay (Kolbeinsey) is one of the Orkney Islands in Scotland, lying off the east coast of the Orkney Mainland.
New!!: Orkney and Copinsay · See more »
Corn Holm
Corn Holm is a small tidal island in Orkney, near Copinsay to the west.
New!!: Orkney and Corn Holm · See more »
Crabs are decapod crustaceans of the infraorder Brachyura, which typically have a very short projecting "tail" (abdomen) (translit.
New!!: Orkney and Crab · See more »
Croft (land)
A croft is a fenced or enclosed area of land, usually small and arable, usually, but not always, with a crofter's dwelling thereon.
New!!: Orkney and Croft (land) · See more »
D. E. R. Watt
Donald Elmslie Robertson Watt FRSE (15 August 1926–18 April 2004) was a Scottish historian and Professor Emeritus at St Andrews University.
New!!: Orkney and D. E. R. Watt · See more »
Damsay
Damsay is an islet in the Orkney archipelago in Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Damsay · See more »
Dál Riata
Dál Riata or Dál Riada (also Dalriada) was a Gaelic overkingdom that included parts of western Scotland and northeastern Ireland, on each side of the North Channel.
New!!: Orkney and Dál Riata · See more »
The Deputy First Minister of Scotland (Leas-Phrìomh Mhinistear na h-Alba; Heid Meinister Depute o Scotland) is the deputy to the First Minister of Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Deputy First Minister of Scotland · See more »
The Devonian is a geologic period and system of the Paleozoic, spanning 60 million years from the end of the Silurian, million years ago (Mya), to the beginning of the Carboniferous, Mya.
New!!: Orkney and Devonian · See more »
Dike (geology)
A dike or dyke, in geological usage, is a sheet of rock that is formed in a fracture in a pre-existing rock body.
New!!: Orkney and Dike (geology) · See more »
Dowry
A dowry is a transfer of parental property, gifts or money at the marriage of a daughter.
New!!: Orkney and Dowry · See more »
Dublin is the capital of and largest city in Ireland.
New!!: Orkney and Dublin · See more »
Duncansby Head
Duncansby Head (Ceann Dhunngain or Dùn Gasbaith) is the most northeasterly part of the British mainland, including even the famous John o' Groats.
New!!: Orkney and Duncansby Head · See more »
Dunnet Head (Ceann Dùnaid) is a peninsula in Caithness, on the north coast of Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Dunnet Head · See more »
An earl is a member of the nobility.
New!!: Orkney and Earl · See more »
Earl of Angus
The Mormaer or Earl of Angus was the ruler of the medieval Scottish province of Angus.
New!!: Orkney and Earl of Angus · See more »
Earl of Caithness
Earl of Caithness is a title that has been created several times in the Peerage of Scotland, and it has a very complex history.
New!!: Orkney and Earl of Caithness · See more »
Earldom of Orkney
The Earldom of Orkney was a Norse feudal dignity in Scotland which had its origins from the Viking period.
New!!: Orkney and Earldom of Orkney · See more »
Ecclesiastical History of the English People
The Ecclesiastical History of the English People (Historia ecclesiastica gentis Anglorum), written by the Venerable Bede in about AD 731, is a history of the Christian Churches in England, and of England generally; its main focus is on the conflict between the pre-Schism Roman Rite and Celtic Christianity.
New!!: Orkney and Ecclesiastical History of the English People · See more »
Eday is one of the islands of Orkney, which are located to the north of the Scottish mainland.
New!!: Orkney and Eday · See more »
Eday Airport
Eday Airport is located on Eday in Orkney, Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Eday Airport · See more »
Edinburgh (Dùn Èideann; Edinburgh) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 council areas.
New!!: Orkney and Edinburgh · See more »
Edinburgh Airport (Edinburgh Airport, Port-adhair Dhùn Èideann) is an airport located in the Ingliston area of the City of Edinburgh, Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Edinburgh Airport · See more »
Edwin Muir
Edwin Muir (15 May 1887 – 3 January 1959) was a Scottish poet, novelist and translator.
New!!: Orkney and Edwin Muir · See more »
Egilsay
Egilsay is one of the Orkney Islands in Scotland, the Island of Egilsay is lying east of Rousay.
New!!: Orkney and Egilsay · See more »
Eifelian
The Eifelian is one of two faunal stages in the Middle Devonian epoch.
New!!: Orkney and Eifelian · See more »
Endemism
Endemism is the ecological state of a species being unique to a defined geographic location, such as an island, nation, country or other defined zone, or habitat type; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsewhere.
New!!: Orkney and Endemism · See more »
Eric Bloodaxe
Eric Haraldsson (Old Norse: Eiríkr Haraldsson, Eirik Haraldsson; c. 885 – 954), nicknamed Eric Bloodaxe (Old Norse: Eiríkr blóðøx, Eirik Blodøks), was a 10th-century Norwegian ruler.
New!!: Orkney and Eric Bloodaxe · See more »
Eric Linklater
Eric Robert Russell Linklater (8 March 1899 – 7 November 1974) was a Welsh-born Scottish writer of novels and short stories, military history, and travel books.
New!!: Orkney and Eric Linklater · See more »
Erica cinerea (bell heather, or heather-bell) is a species of flowering plant in the heath family Ericaceae, native to western and central Europe.
New!!: Orkney and Erica cinerea · See more »
Eurasian otter
The Eurasian otter (Lutra lutra), also known as the European otter, Eurasian river otter, common otter, and Old World otter, is a semiaquatic mammal native to Eurasia.
New!!: Orkney and Eurasian otter · See more »
European Marine Energy Centre
The European Marine Energy Centre (EMEC) Ltd is a UKAS accredited test and research centre focusing on wave and tidal power development based in the Orkney Islands, UK.
New!!: Orkney and European Marine Energy Centre · See more »
Eynhallow
Eynhallow (Old Norse: Eyinhelga) is a small, presently uninhabited island, part of Orkney, off the north coast of mainland Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Eynhallow · See more »
Eynhallow Sound
Eynhallow Sound is a seaway lying between Mainland Orkney and the island of Rousay in the Orkney Islands, Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Eynhallow Sound · See more »
Fara, Orkney
Fara (Old Norse: Færey) is a small island in Orkney, Scotland, lying in Scapa Flow between the islands of Flotta and Hoy.
New!!: Orkney and Fara, Orkney · See more »
Faray
Faray (Old Norse: Færey) is a small island in Orkney, Scotland, lying between Eday and Westray.
New!!: Orkney and Faray · See more »
A ferry is a merchant vessel used to carry passengers, and sometimes vehicles and cargo as well, across a body of water.
New!!: Orkney and Ferry · See more »
Fish are gill-bearing aquatic craniate animals that lack limbs with digits.
New!!: Orkney and Fish · See more »
Flag of Orkney
The Flag of Orkney was the winner of a public flag consultation in February and March 2007.
New!!: Orkney and Flag of Orkney · See more »
Flint is a hard, sedimentary cryptocrystalline form of the mineral quartz, categorized as a variety of chert.
New!!: Orkney and Flint · See more »
Flotta
Flotta is a small island in Orkney, Scotland, lying in Scapa Flow.
New!!: Orkney and Flotta · See more »
The Forestry Commission is a non-ministerial government department responsible for forestry in England and Scotland (on 1 April 2013 Forestry Commission Wales merged with other agencies to become Natural Resources Wales).
New!!: Orkney and Forestry Commission · See more »
Fortriu
Fortriu or the Kingdom of Fortriu is the name given by historians for a Pictish kingdom recorded between the 4th and 10th centuries, and often used synonymously with Pictland in general.
New!!: Orkney and Fortriu · See more »
Fossilization (linguistics)
In linguistic morphology, fossilization refers to two close notions.
New!!: Orkney and Fossilization (linguistics) · See more »
Gaels
The Gaels (Na Gaeil, Na Gàidheil, Ny Gaeil) are an ethnolinguistic group native to northwestern Europe.
New!!: Orkney and Gaels · See more »
Gaheris (Old French: Gaheriet or Gaheriez) is a character in the Arthurian legend, a nephew of King Arthur and a knight of the Round Table, the third son of Arthur's sister or half-sister Morgause and her husband Lot, King of Orkney and Lothian.
New!!: Orkney and Gaheris · See more »
Gairsay
Gairsay (Old Norse: Gáreksey) is a small island in Orkney, Scotland, located in the parish of Rendall, off the coast, astride one of the approaches to the bays of Firth and Kirkwall.
New!!: Orkney and Gairsay · See more »
Sir Gareth (Old French: Guerrehet) is a Knight of the Round Table in Arthurian legend, nicknamed "Beaumains" in Sir Thomas Malory's Le Morte d'Arthur.
New!!: Orkney and Gareth · See more »
Gawain (also called Gwalchmei, Gualguanus, Gauvain, Walwein, etc.) is King Arthur's nephew and a Knight of the Round Table in the Arthurian legend.
New!!: Orkney and Gawain · See more »
Genocide is intentional action to destroy a people (usually defined as an ethnic, national, racial, or religious group) in whole or in part.
New!!: Orkney and Genocide · See more »
Geomorphology (from Ancient Greek: γῆ, gê, "earth"; μορφή, morphḗ, "form"; and λόγος, lógos, "study") is the scientific study of the origin and evolution of topographic and bathymetric features created by physical, chemical or biological processes operating at or near the Earth's surface.
New!!: Orkney and Geomorphology · See more »
George Buchanan
George Buchanan (Seòras Bochanan; February 1506 – 28 September 1582) was a Scottish historian and humanist scholar.
New!!: Orkney and George Buchanan · See more »
George Mackay Brown
George Mackay Brown (17 October 1921 – 13 April 1996) was a Scottish poet, author and dramatist, whose work has a distinctly Orcadian character.
New!!: Orkney and George Mackay Brown · See more »
Glacial erratic
Indian Rock in the Village of Montebello, New York A glacial erratic is a piece of rock that differs from the size and type of rock native to the area in which it rests.
New!!: Orkney and Glacial erratic · See more »
Glacial striation
Glacial striations are scratches or gouges cut into bedrock by glacial abrasion.
New!!: Orkney and Glacial striation · See more »
Glasgow Airport, also unofficially Glasgow International Airport, formerly Abbotsinch Airport, is an international airport in Scotland, located west of Glasgow city centre.
New!!: Orkney and Glasgow Airport · See more »
Glims Holm
Glims Holm (OS: Glimps Holm; Glums Holm) is a small uninhabited islet in Orkney, Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Glims Holm · See more »
Gnaeus Julius Agricola
Gnaeus Julius Agricola (13 June 40 – 23 August 93) was a Gallo-Roman general responsible for much of the Roman conquest of Britain.
New!!: Orkney and Gnaeus Julius Agricola · See more »
Gneiss
Gneiss is a common distributed type of rock formed by high-grade regional metamorphic processes from pre-existing formations that were originally either igneous or sedimentary rocks.
New!!: Orkney and Gneiss · See more »
Goidelic languages
The Goidelic or Gaelic languages (teangacha Gaelacha; cànanan Goidhealach; çhengaghyn Gaelgagh) form one of the two groups of Insular Celtic languages, the other being the Brittonic languages.
New!!: Orkney and Goidelic languages · See more »
Graemsay
Graemsay is an island in the western approaches to Scapa Flow, in the Orkney Islands of Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Graemsay · See more »
Granite is a common type of felsic intrusive igneous rock that is granular and phaneritic in texture.
New!!: Orkney and Granite · See more »
Great skua
The great skua (Stercorarius skua) is a large seabird in the skua family Stercorariidae.
New!!: Orkney and Great skua · See more »
The grey seal (Halichoerus grypus, meaning "hooked-nosed sea pig") is found on both shores of the North Atlantic Ocean.
New!!: Orkney and Grey seal · See more »
Guilder is the English translation of the Dutch and German gulden, originally shortened from Middle High German guldin pfenninc "gold penny".
New!!: Orkney and Guilder · See more »
The Gulf Stream, together with its northern extension the North Atlantic Drift, is a warm and swift Atlantic ocean current that originates in the Gulf of Mexico and stretches to the tip of Florida, and follows the eastern coastlines of the United States and Newfoundland before crossing the Atlantic Ocean.
New!!: Orkney and Gulf Stream · See more »
Haakon IV of Norway
Haakon Haakonsson (c. March/April 1204 – 16 December 1263) (Old Norse: Hákon Hákonarson; Norwegian: Håkon Håkonsson), sometimes called Haakon the Old in contrast to his son with the same name, and known in modern regnal lists as Haakon IV, was the King of Norway from 1217 to 1263.
New!!: Orkney and Haakon IV of Norway · See more »
Haakon Paulsson
Haakon Paulsson (Old Norse: Hákon Pálsson) was a Norwegian Jarl (1105–1123) and jointly ruled the Earldom of Orkney with his cousin Magnus Erlendsson.
New!!: Orkney and Haakon Paulsson · See more »
Happy Valley (garden)
Happy Valley is a garden created by Edwin Harrold in Stenness, Orkney, Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Happy Valley (garden) · See more »
Harald Fairhair
Harald Fairhair (Old Norse: Haraldr Hárfagri, Norwegian: Harald Hårfagre, (literally "Harald Hair-pleasant"); 850 – 932) is remembered by medieval historians as the first King of Norway.
New!!: Orkney and Harald Fairhair · See more »
The harbor (or harbour) seal (Phoca vitulina), also known as the common seal, is a true seal found along temperate and Arctic marine coastlines of the Northern Hemisphere.
New!!: Orkney and Harbor seal · See more »
The hazelnut is the nut of the hazel and therefore includes any of the nuts deriving from species of the genus Corylus, especially the nuts of the species Corylus avellana.
New!!: Orkney and Hazelnut · See more »
Heart of Neolithic Orkney
Heart of Neolithic Orkney refers to a group of Neolithic monuments found on the Mainland, one of the islands of Orkney, Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Heart of Neolithic Orkney · See more »
Helliar Holm
Helliar Holm is an uninhabited island off the coast of Shapinsay in the Orkney Islands, Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Helliar Holm · See more »
Henry I Sinclair, Earl of Orkney
Henry I Sinclair, Jarl of Orkney, Baron of Roslin (13451400) was a Scottish and a Norwegian nobleman.
New!!: Orkney and Henry I Sinclair, Earl of Orkney · See more »
Henry of Lund
Henry was an 11th-century bishop and Christian missionary.
New!!: Orkney and Henry of Lund · See more »
Herring are forage fish, mostly belonging to the family Clupeidae.
New!!: Orkney and Herring · See more »
High Seas Fleet
The High Seas Fleet (Hochseeflotte) was the battle fleet of the German Imperial Navy and saw action during the First World War.
New!!: Orkney and High Seas Fleet · See more »
Highlands and Islands (Scottish Parliament electoral region)
The Highlands and Islands is one of the eight electoral regions of the Scottish Parliament which were created in 1999.
New!!: Orkney and Highlands and Islands (Scottish Parliament electoral region) · See more »
Highlands and Islands Airports
Highlands and Islands Airports Limited (HIAL) is the company that owns and operates 11 airports in the Scottish Highlands, the Northern Isles and the Western Isles.
New!!: Orkney and Highlands and Islands Airports · See more »
Historia Norwegiæ
Historia Norwegiæ is a short history of Norway written in Latin by an anonymous monk.
New!!: Orkney and Historia Norwegiæ · See more »
Historic Scotland (Alba Aosmhor) was an executive agency of the Scottish Government from 1991 to 2015, responsible for safeguarding Scotland's built heritage, and promoting its understanding and enjoyment.
New!!: Orkney and Historic Scotland · See more »
Holm (island)
This page is a set index; for other uses of the term, see Holm (disambiguation) There are numerous islands containing the word Holm, especially in Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Holm (island) · See more »
Holm of Faray
The Holm of Faray is a small island in Orkney, Scotland, near Faray and Westray, which it lies between.
New!!: Orkney and Holm of Faray · See more »
Holm of Huip
The Holm of Huip is a small island in the Orkney Islands, in Spurness Sound to the north west of Stronsay.
New!!: Orkney and Holm of Huip · See more »
Holm of Papa
The Holm of Papa (or Holm of Papay, Holm of Papa Westray and known locally as the Papay Holm, Orkneyjar. Retrieved 1 April 2014.) is a very small uninhabited island in the Orkney islands.
New!!: Orkney and Holm of Papa · See more »
Holm of Scockness
The Holm of Scockness is a small island in the Orkney Islands, between Rousay and Egilsay.
New!!: Orkney and Holm of Scockness · See more »
Homarus gammarus
Homarus gammarus, known as the European lobster or common lobster, is a species of clawed lobster from the eastern Atlantic Ocean, Mediterranean Sea and parts of the Black Sea.
New!!: Orkney and Homarus gammarus · See more »
House of Commons of the United Kingdom
The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom.
New!!: Orkney and House of Commons of the United Kingdom · See more »
Hoy (from Norse Háey meaning high island) is an island in Orkney, Scotland measuring — ranked largest in the archipelago after the Mainland.
New!!: Orkney and Hoy · See more »
The Hudson's Bay Company (HBC; Compagnie de la Baie d'Hudson) is a Canadian retail business group.
New!!: Orkney and Hudson's Bay Company · See more »
Hunda
Hunda is an uninhabited island in the Orkney archipelago in Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Hunda · See more »
Independent politician
An independent or nonpartisan politician is an individual politician not affiliated with any political party.
New!!: Orkney and Independent politician · See more »
Indogermanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch
The Indogermanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch (IEW; "Indo-European Etymological Dictionary") was published in 1959 by the Austrian-German comparative linguist and Celtic languages expert Julius Pokorny.
New!!: Orkney and Indogermanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch · See more »
Insular Scots
Insular Scots comprises varieties of Lowland Scots generally subdivided into.
New!!: Orkney and Insular Scots · See more »
Inverness (from the Inbhir Nis, meaning "Mouth of the River Ness", Inerness) is a city in the Scottish Highlands.
New!!: Orkney and Inverness · See more »
Inverness Airport
Inverness Airport (Port-adhair Inbhir Nis) is an international airport situated at Dalcross, north-east of the city of Inverness, Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Inverness Airport · See more »
The Iron Age is the final epoch of the three-age system, preceded by the Stone Age (Neolithic) and the Bronze Age.
New!!: Orkney and Iron Age · See more »
Italian Chapel
The Italian Chapel is a highly ornate Catholic chapel on Lamb Holm in the Orkney Islands.
New!!: Orkney and Italian Chapel · See more »
Jacobite risings
The Jacobite risings, also known as the Jacobite rebellions or the War of the British Succession, were a series of uprisings, rebellions, and wars in Great Britain and Ireland occurring between 1688 and 1746.
New!!: Orkney and Jacobite risings · See more »
James III of Scotland
James III (10 July 1451/May 1452 – 11 June 1488) was King of Scots from 1460 to 1488.
New!!: Orkney and James III of Scotland · See more »
Jim Wallace, Baron Wallace of Tankerness
James Robert Wallace, Baron Wallace of Tankerness,, FRSE (born 25 August 1954) is a British politician and former leader of the Liberal Democrats in the House of Lords.
New!!: Orkney and Jim Wallace, Baron Wallace of Tankerness · See more »
Jon Haraldsson
Jon Haraldsson was Jarl of Orkney between 1206 and 1231.
New!!: Orkney and Jon Haraldsson · See more »
Julius Pokorny
Julius Pokorny (12 June 1887 – 8 April 1970) was an Austrian-Czech linguist and scholar of the Celtic languages, particularly Irish, and a supporter of Irish nationalism.
New!!: Orkney and Julius Pokorny · See more »
Katherine Forsyth
Katherine S. Forsyth is a Scottish historian who specializes in the history and culture of Celtic peoples during the 1st millennium AD, in particular the Picts.
New!!: Orkney and Katherine Forsyth · See more »
Kelps are large brown algae seaweeds that make up the order Laminariales.
New!!: Orkney and Kelp · See more »
Kili Holm
Kili Holm is a tidal island in the Orkney Islands, linked to Egilsay.
New!!: Orkney and Kili Holm · See more »
King Lot
Lot or Loth is the king of Lothian in the Arthurian legend.
New!!: Orkney and King Lot · See more »
Kingdom of Scotland
The Kingdom of Scotland (Rìoghachd na h-Alba; Kinrick o Scotland) was a sovereign state in northwest Europe traditionally said to have been founded in 843.
New!!: Orkney and Kingdom of Scotland · See more »
Kirkwall (Scottish Gaelic: Bàgh na h-Eaglaise) is the main settlement of the Northern Isles and capital of Orkney, an archipelago in the north of Scotland, as well as the largest island settlement in Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Kirkwall · See more »
Kirkwall Airport
Kirkwall Airport is the main airport serving Orkney in Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Kirkwall Airport · See more »
The kittiwakes (genus Rissa) are two closely related seabird species in the gull family Laridae, the black-legged kittiwake (R. tridactyla) and the red-legged kittiwake (R. brevirostris).
New!!: Orkney and Kittiwake · See more »
Knap of Howar
The Knap of Howar on the island of Papa Westray in Orkney, Scotland is a Neolithic farmstead which may be the oldest preserved stone house in northern Europe.
New!!: Orkney and Knap of Howar · See more »
Lamb Holm
Lamb Holm is a small uninhabited island in Orkney, Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Lamb Holm · See more »
Lamprophyre
Lamprophyres (Greek λαµπρός (lamprós).
New!!: Orkney and Lamprophyre · See more »
In geography, latitude is a geographic coordinate that specifies the north–south position of a point on the Earth's surface.
New!!: Orkney and Latitude · See more »
Lerwick (Scottish Gaelic: Liùrabhaig, Norwegian: Leirvik) is the main port of Shetland Islands, Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Lerwick · See more »
Liam McArthur
Liam Scott McArthur (born 8 August 1967) is a Scottish Liberal Democrat politician and Member of the Scottish Parliament for Orkney since 2007.
New!!: Orkney and Liam McArthur · See more »
Liberal Democrats (UK)
The Liberal Democrats (often referred to as Lib Dems) are a liberal British political party, formed in 1988 as a merger of the Liberal Party and the Social Democratic Party (SDP), a splinter group from the Labour Party, which had formed the SDP–Liberal Alliance from 1981.
New!!: Orkney and Liberal Democrats (UK) · See more »
Liberal Party (UK)
The Liberal Party was one of the two major parties in the United Kingdom – with the opposing Conservative Party – in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.
New!!: Orkney and Liberal Party (UK) · See more »
Lieutenancy areas of Scotland
The lieutenancy areas of Scotland (Lieutenancy auries o Scotland) are the areas used for the ceremonial lord-lieutenants, the monarch's representatives, in Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Lieutenancy areas of Scotland · See more »
Limestone is a sedimentary rock, composed mainly of skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral, forams and molluscs.
New!!: Orkney and Limestone · See more »
Limonium is a genus of 120 flowering plant species.
New!!: Orkney and Limonium · See more »
List of islands of Scotland
This is a list of islands of Scotland, the mainland of which is part of the island of Great Britain.
New!!: Orkney and List of islands of Scotland · See more »
List of islands of the British Isles
This page is a list of the larger islands that form the British Isles, listing area and population data.
New!!: Orkney and List of islands of the British Isles · See more »
List of places in Orkney
The List of places in Orkney is a link list for any town, village, hamlet or island in the Orkney Islands council area of Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and List of places in Orkney · See more »
Local extinction
Local extinction or extirpation is the condition of a species (or other taxon) that ceases to exist in the chosen geographic area of study, though it still exists elsewhere.
New!!: Orkney and Local extinction · See more »
Loch is the Irish, Scottish Gaelic and Scots word for a lake or for a sea inlet.
New!!: Orkney and Loch · See more »
Loch of Harray
The Loch of Harray is the largest loch of Mainland Orkney, Scotland and is named for the nearby parish of Harray.
New!!: Orkney and Loch of Harray · See more »
Loch of Stenness
The Loch of Stenness is a large brackish loch on Mainland, OrkneyWilson, Rev.
New!!: Orkney and Loch of Stenness · See more »
Loganair Limited is a Scottish regional airline founded in 1962, with its registered office on the grounds of Glasgow Airport in Paisley, Renfrewshire.
New!!: Orkney and Loganair · See more »
Maeshowe
Maeshowe (or Maes Howe; Norse: Orkhaugr) is a Neolithic chambered cairn and passage grave situated on Mainland Orkney, Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Maeshowe · See more »
Magnus Barefoot
Magnus Olafsson (Old Norse: Magnús Óláfsson, Norwegian: Magnus Olavsson; 1073 – 24 August 1103), better known as Magnus Barefoot (Old Norse: Magnús berfœttr, Norwegian: Magnus Berrføtt), was King of Norway (as Magnus III) from 1093 until his death in 1103.
New!!: Orkney and Magnus Barefoot · See more »
Magnus Erlendsson, Earl of Orkney
Saint Magnus Erlendsson, Earl of Orkney, sometimes known as Magnus the Martyr, was Earl of Orkney from 1106 to about 1115.
New!!: Orkney and Magnus Erlendsson, Earl of Orkney · See more »
Magnus II, Earl of Orkney
Magnus II (born c. 1185/1190 - d 1239) was Earl (Jarl) of Orkney.
New!!: Orkney and Magnus II, Earl of Orkney · See more »
Mainland, Orkney
The Mainland is the main island of Orkney, Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Mainland, Orkney · See more »
Malcolm II of Scotland
Malcolm II (Gaelic: Máel Coluim; c. 954 - 25 November 1034) was King of the Scots from 1005 until his death.
New!!: Orkney and Malcolm II of Scotland · See more »
Margaret of Denmark, Queen of Scotland
Margaret of Denmark (23 June 1456 – 14 July 1486), also referred to as Margaret of Norway, was Queen of Scotland from 1469 to 1486 by marriage to King James III.
New!!: Orkney and Margaret of Denmark, Queen of Scotland · See more »
Margaret, Maid of Norway
Margaret, Maid of Norway (9 April 1283 – 26 September 1290) was a Norwegian princess who was recognised as Queen of Scots following the death of her grandfather, King Alexander III, in March 1286.
New!!: Orkney and Margaret, Maid of Norway · See more »
Margot Livesey
Margot Livesey (born 1953) is a Scottish born writer.
New!!: Orkney and Margot Livesey · See more »
Marseille (Provençal: Marselha), is the second-largest city of France and the largest city of the Provence historical region.
New!!: Orkney and Marseille · See more »
Martello towers, sometimes known simply as Martellos, are small defensive forts that were built across the British Empire during the 19th century, from the time of the French Revolutionary Wars onwards.
New!!: Orkney and Martello tower · See more »
A martyr (Greek: μάρτυς, mártys, "witness"; stem μάρτυρ-, mártyr-) is someone who suffers persecution and death for advocating, renouncing, refusing to renounce, or refusing to advocate a belief or cause as demanded by an external party.
New!!: Orkney and Martyr · See more »
Matter of Britain
The Matter of Britain is the body of Medieval literature and legendary material associated with Great Britain, and sometimes Brittany, and the legendary kings and heroes associated with it, particularly King Arthur.
New!!: Orkney and Matter of Britain · See more »
A member of parliament (MP) is the representative of the voters to a parliament.
New!!: Orkney and Member of parliament · See more »
Member of the Scottish Parliament
Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) (Ball Pàrlamaid na h-Alba (BPA) in Gaelic, Memmer o the Scots Pairliament (MSP) in Scots) is the title given to any one of the 129 individuals elected to serve in the Scottish Parliament.
New!!: Orkney and Member of the Scottish Parliament · See more »
Mesolithic
In Old World archaeology, Mesolithic (Greek: μέσος, mesos "middle"; λίθος, lithos "stone") is the period between the Upper Paleolithic and the Neolithic.
New!!: Orkney and Mesolithic · See more »
The Met Office (officially the Meteorological Office) is the United Kingdom's national weather service.
New!!: Orkney and Met Office · See more »
Metamorphic rock
Metamorphic rocks arise from the transformation of existing rock types, in a process called metamorphism, which means "change in form".
New!!: Orkney and Metamorphic rock · See more »
A midden (also kitchen midden or shell heap) is an old dump for domestic waste which may consist of animal bone, human excrement, botanical material, mollusc shells, sherds, lithics (especially debitage), and other artifacts and ecofacts associated with past human occupation.
New!!: Orkney and Midden · See more »
Midgarth
Midgarth, also known as the Holm of Midgarth and Linga Holm is an uninhabited Scottish island extending to approximately situated west of Stronsay island in the Orkney archipelago.
New!!: Orkney and Midgarth · See more »
Midsummer is the period of time centered upon the summer solstice, and more specifically the northern European celebrations that accompany the actual solstice or take place on a day between June 19 and June 25 and the preceding evening.
New!!: Orkney and Midsummer · See more »
A missionary is a member of a religious group sent into an area to proselytize and/or perform ministries of service, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.
New!!: Orkney and Missionary · See more »
Moine Supergroup
The Moine Supergroup is a sequence of Neoproterozoic metamorphic rocks that form the dominant outcrop of the Scottish Highlands between the Moine Thrust Belt to the northwest and the Great Glen Fault to the southeast.
New!!: Orkney and Moine Supergroup · See more »
Molecular Ecology
Molecular Ecology is a twice monthly scientific journal covering investigations that use molecular genetic techniques to address questions in ecology, evolution, behavior, and conservation.
New!!: Orkney and Molecular Ecology · See more »
Moorland or moor is a type of habitat found in upland areas in temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands and montane grasslands and shrublands biomes, characterised by low-growing vegetation on acidic soils.
New!!: Orkney and Moorland · See more »
A moraine is any glacially formed accumulation of unconsolidated glacial debris (regolith and rock) that occurs in both currently and formerly glaciated regions on Earth (i.e. a past glacial maximum), through geomorphological processes.
New!!: Orkney and Moraine · See more »
Moray (Moireibh or Moireabh, Moravia, Mýræfi) is one of the 32 Local Government council areas of Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Moray · See more »
Moray Firth Radio
MFR or Moray Firth Radio is a group of Independent Local Radio stations, serving the Scottish Highlands, Moray, the Orkney islands and parts of north west Aberdeenshire.
New!!: Orkney and Moray Firth Radio · See more »
Muckle Green Holm
Muckle Green Holm is an uninhabited island in the North Isles of the Orkney archipelago in Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Muckle Green Holm · See more »
The Neolithic was a period in the development of human technology, beginning about 10,200 BC, according to the ASPRO chronology, in some parts of Western Asia, and later in other parts of the world and ending between 4500 and 2000 BC.
New!!: Orkney and Neolithic · See more »
Norn language
Norn is an extinct North Germanic language that was spoken in the Northern Isles (Orkney and Shetland) off the north coast of mainland Scotland and in Caithness in the far north of the Scottish mainland.
New!!: Orkney and Norn language · See more »
Norsemen are a group of Germanic people who inhabited Scandinavia and spoke what is now called the Old Norse language between 800 AD and c. 1300 AD.
New!!: Orkney and Norsemen · See more »
North Isles
The North Isles are the northern islands of the Shetland Islands, Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and North Isles · See more »
North Ronaldsay
North Ronaldsay is the northernmost island in the Orkney archipelago of Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and North Ronaldsay · See more »
North Ronaldsay Airport
North Ronaldsay Airport is located on North Ronaldsay island, northeast by north of Kirkwall, Orkney Islands, Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and North Ronaldsay Airport · See more »
North Ronaldsay sheep
The North Ronaldsay or Orkney is a breed of sheep from North Ronaldsay, the northernmost island of Orkney, off the north coast of Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and North Ronaldsay sheep · See more »
Northern Isles
The Northern Isles (Northren Isles; Na h-Eileanan a Tuath; Norðreyjar) are a pair of archipelagos off the north coast of mainland Scotland, comprising Orkney and Shetland.
New!!: Orkney and Northern Isles · See more »
NorthLink Ferries
NorthLink Ferries (also referred to as Serco NorthLink Ferries) is an operator of passenger and vehicle ferries, as well as ferry services, between mainland Scotland and the Northern Isles of Orkney and Shetland.
New!!: Orkney and NorthLink Ferries · See more »
Ogham (Modern Irish or; ogam) is an Early Medieval alphabet used to write the early Irish language (in the "orthodox" inscriptions, 1st to 6th centuries AD), and later the Old Irish language (scholastic ogham, 6th to 9th centuries).
New!!: Orkney and Ogham · See more »
Olaf Tryggvason (960s – 9 September 1000) was King of Norway from 995 to 1000.
New!!: Orkney and Olaf Tryggvason · See more »
Old Irish
Old Irish (Goídelc; Sean-Ghaeilge; Seann Ghàidhlig; Shenn Yernish; sometimes called Old Gaelic) is the name given to the oldest form of the Goidelic languages for which extensive written texts are extant.
New!!: Orkney and Old Irish · See more »
Old Man of Hoy
The Old Man of Hoy is a 449-foot (137m) sea stack on the island of Hoy, part of the Orkney archipelago off the north coast of Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Old Man of Hoy · See more »
Old Norse was a North Germanic language that was spoken by inhabitants of Scandinavia and inhabitants of their overseas settlements from about the 9th to the 13th century.
New!!: Orkney and Old Norse · See more »
Old Red Sandstone
The Old Red Sandstone is an assemblage of rocks in the North Atlantic region largely of Devonian age.
New!!: Orkney and Old Red Sandstone · See more »
Orcadian Basin
The Orcadian Basin is a sedimentary basin of Devonian age that formed mainly as a result of extensional tectonics in northeastern Scotland after the end of the Caledonian orogeny.
New!!: Orkney and Orcadian Basin · See more »
Orcadian dialect
Orcadian dialect is a dialect of Insular Scots, itself a dialect of the Scots language.
New!!: Orkney and Orcadian dialect · See more »
Orcadians
Orcadians are the people who live in or come from the Orkney islands of Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Orcadians · See more »
Ordnance Survey (OS) is a national mapping agency in the United Kingdom which covers the island of Great Britain.
New!!: Orkney and Ordnance Survey · See more »
Orkney (Scottish Parliament constituency)
Orkney is a constituency of the Scottish Parliament (Holyrood).
New!!: Orkney and Orkney (Scottish Parliament constituency) · See more »
Orkney and Shetland (UK Parliament constituency)
Orkney and Shetland is a constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom.
New!!: Orkney and Orkney and Shetland (UK Parliament constituency) · See more »
Orkney and Shetland Movement
The Orkney and Shetland Movement was an electoral coalition formed for the 1987 general election.
New!!: Orkney and Orkney and Shetland Movement · See more »
Orkney Club
The Orkney Club is situated in Kirkwall, Orkney.
New!!: Orkney and Orkney Club · See more »
Orkney College
Orkney College is a further and higher education college in Orkney, an archipelago in northern Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Orkney College · See more »
Orkney Ferries
Orkney Ferries is a Scottish company operating inter-island ferry services in the Orkney Islands.
New!!: Orkney and Orkney Ferries · See more »
Orkney International Science Festival
The Orkney International Science Festival is a science festival which takes place every September in Kirkwall, Orkney Islands, Scotland and has been running since 1991.
New!!: Orkney and Orkney International Science Festival · See more »
The Orkney Islands Council is the local authority for Orkney, Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Orkney Islands Council · See more »
Orkney vole
The Orkney vole (Microtus arvalis orcadensis) is a population of the common vole (Microtus arvalis) found in the Orkney Islands, off the northern coast of Scotland, United Kingdom.
New!!: Orkney and Orkney vole · See more »
Orkneyinga saga
The Orkneyinga saga (also called the History of the Earls of Orkney and Jarls' Saga) is an historical narrative of the history of the Orkney and Shetland islands and their relationship with other local polities, particularly Norway and Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Orkneyinga saga · See more »
Papa Stronsay
Papa Stronsay (Papey Minni) is a small island in Orkney, Scotland, lying north east of Stronsay.
New!!: Orkney and Papa Stronsay · See more »
Papa Westray, also known as Papay, is one of the Orkney Islands in Scotland, United Kingdom.
New!!: Orkney and Papa Westray · See more »
Papa Westray Airport
Papa Westray Airport is located north of Kirkwall Airport on Papa Westray, Orkney Islands, Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Papa Westray Airport · See more »
Parliament of Scotland
The Parliament of Scotland was the legislature of the Kingdom of Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Parliament of Scotland · See more »
Passage grave
A simple passage tomb in Carrowmore near Sligo in Ireland A passage grave (sometimes hyphenated) or passage tomb consists of a narrow passage made of large stones and one or multiple burial chambers covered in earth or stone.
New!!: Orkney and Passage grave · See more »
Paul and Erlend Thorfinnsson
Paul Thorfinnsson (died 1098) and Erlend Thorfinnsson (died 1098) were brothers who ruled together as Earls of Orkney.
New!!: Orkney and Paul and Erlend Thorfinnsson · See more »
Pentland Ferries
Pentland Ferries is a privately owned, family company which has operated a ferry service between Gills Bay in Caithness, Scotland and St Margaret's Hope on South Ronaldsay in Orkney since May 2001.
New!!: Orkney and Pentland Ferries · See more »
Pentland Firth
The Pentland Firth (An Caol Arcach, meaning the Orcadian Strait) is a strait which separates the Orkney Islands from Caithness in the north of Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Pentland Firth · See more »
Pentland Skerries
The Pentland Skerries (Old Norse: PettlandsskerPedersen, Roy (January 1992) Orkneyjar ok Katanes (map, Inverness, Nevis Print)) are a group of four uninhabited islands lying in the Pentland Firth, northeast of Duncansby Head and south of South Ronaldsay in Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Pentland Skerries · See more »
The Permian is a geologic period and system which spans 47 million years from the end of the Carboniferous Period million years ago (Mya), to the beginning of the Triassic period 251.902 Mya.
New!!: Orkney and Permian · See more »
The Picts were a tribal confederation of peoples who lived in what is today eastern and northern Scotland during the Late Iron Age and Early Medieval periods.
New!!: Orkney and Picts · See more »
Pinnipeds, commonly known as seals, are a widely distributed and diverse clade of carnivorous, fin-footed, semiaquatic marine mammals.
New!!: Orkney and Pinniped · See more »
Piracy is an act of robbery or criminal violence by ship or boat-borne attackers upon another ship or a coastal area, typically with the goal of stealing cargo and other valuable items or properties.
New!!: Orkney and Piracy · See more »
Pledge (law)
A pledge is a bailment that conveys possessory title to property owned by a debtor (the pledgor) to a creditor (the pledgee) to secure repayment for some debt or obligation and to the mutual benefit of both parties.
New!!: Orkney and Pledge (law) · See more »
Pliny the Elder
Pliny the Elder (born Gaius Plinius Secundus, AD 23–79) was a Roman author, naturalist and natural philosopher, a naval and army commander of the early Roman Empire, and friend of emperor Vespasian.
New!!: Orkney and Pliny the Elder · See more »
Ploughing match
A ploughing match is a contest between people who each plough part of a field.
New!!: Orkney and Ploughing match · See more »
Plurality voting
Plurality voting is an electoral system in which each voter is allowed to vote for only one candidate, and the candidate who polls the most among their counterparts (a plurality) is elected.
New!!: Orkney and Plurality voting · See more »
Pomponius Mela
Pomponius Mela, who wrote around AD 43, was the earliest Roman geographer.
New!!: Orkney and Pomponius Mela · See more »
Prehistoric Scotland
Archaeology and geology continue to reveal the secrets of prehistoric Scotland, uncovering a complex past before the Romans brought Scotland into the scope of recorded history.
New!!: Orkney and Prehistoric Scotland · See more »
Prepositional case
Prepositional case (abbreviated) and postpositional case (abbreviated) are grammatical cases that respectively mark the object of a preposition and a postposition.
New!!: Orkney and Prepositional case · See more »
Primula scotica, commonly known as Scottish primrose, is a species of flowering plant in the primrose family, Primulaceae.
New!!: Orkney and Primula scotica · See more »
Proto-Celtic language
The Proto-Celtic language, also called Common Celtic, is the reconstructed ancestor language of all the known Celtic languages.
New!!: Orkney and Proto-Celtic language · See more »
Pytheas of Massalia (Ancient Greek: Πυθέας ὁ Μασσαλιώτης Pythéas ho Massaliōtēs; Latin: Pytheas Massiliensis; fl. 4th century BC), was a Greek geographer and explorer from the Greek colony of Massalia (modern-day Marseille).
New!!: Orkney and Pytheas · See more »
A quarry is a place from which dimension stone, rock, construction aggregate, riprap, sand, gravel, or slate has been excavated from the ground.
New!!: Orkney and Quarry · See more »
A raven is one of several larger-bodied species of the genus Corvus.
New!!: Orkney and Raven · See more »
Rögnvald Kali Kolsson
Rognvald Kale Kolsson (also known as St. Ronald or St. Ronald of Orkney) (c. 1103 – 1158) was an Earl of Orkney and a Norwegian saint.
New!!: Orkney and Rögnvald Kali Kolsson · See more »
Renewable energy in Scotland
The production of renewable energy in Scotland is an issue that has come to the fore in technical, economic, and political terms during the opening years of the 21st century.
New!!: Orkney and Renewable energy in Scotland · See more »
Riksråd
Riksrådet (in Norwegian and Swedish), Rigsrådet (in Danish) or (English: The Council of the Realm and The Council of the State – sometimes translated as "Privy Council") is the name of the councils of the Scandinavian countries that ruled the countries together with the kings from late Middle Ages to the 17th century.
New!!: Orkney and Riksråd · See more »
Ring of Brodgar
The Ring of Brodgar (or Brogar, or Ring o' Brodgar) is a Neolithic henge and stone circle about 6 miles north-east of Stromness on the Mainland, the largest island in Orkney, Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Ring of Brodgar · See more »
Robert Llewellyn
Robert Llewellyn (born 10 March 1956 in Northampton, Northamptonshire) is a British actor, comedian and writer best known as the mechanoid Kryten in the hit TV sci-fi sitcom Red Dwarf and as a presenter of the TV engineering gameshow Scrapheap Challenge.
New!!: Orkney and Robert Llewellyn · See more »
Rognvald Eysteinsson
Rognvald Eysteinsson (fl. 865) was the founding Jarl (or Earl) of Møre in Norway, and a close relative and ally of Harald Fairhair, the earliest known King of Norway.
New!!: Orkney and Rognvald Eysteinsson · See more »
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Nidaros
The Archdiocese of Nidaros (or Niðaróss) was the metropolitan see covering Norway in the later Middle Ages.
New!!: Orkney and Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Nidaros · See more »
Roslin Castle
Roslin Castle (sometimes spelt Rosslyn) is a partially ruined castle near the village of Roslin in Midlothian, Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Roslin Castle · See more »
Rousay
Rousay (Hrólfsey meaning Rolf's Island) is a small, hilly island about north of Mainland, the largest island in the Orkney Islands of Scotland, and has been nicknamed "the Egypt of the north", due to its archaeological diversity and importance.
New!!: Orkney and Rousay · See more »
The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force.
New!!: Orkney and Royal Navy · See more »
Runes are the letters in a set of related alphabets known as runic alphabets, which were used to write various Germanic languages before the adoption of the Latin alphabet and for specialised purposes thereafter.
New!!: Orkney and Runes · See more »
Rusk Holm
Rusk Holm is a small island in the Orkney Islands, near Faray to the west.
New!!: Orkney and Rusk Holm · See more »
Rysa Little
Rysa Little is an uninhabited island in the Orkney archipelago in Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Rysa Little · See more »
Salmon is the common name for several species of ray-finned fish in the family Salmonidae.
New!!: Orkney and Salmon · See more »
Salvelinus inframundus
Salvelinus inframundus, also known as Orkney charr is a cold-water fish in the family Salmonidae.
New!!: Orkney and Salvelinus inframundus · See more »
Sanday Airport
Sanday Airport is located north northeast of Kirkwall Airport on Sanday, Orkney Islands, Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Sanday Airport · See more »
Sanday, Orkney
Sanday is one of the inhabited islands of Orkney that lies off the north coast of mainland Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Sanday, Orkney · See more »
Scapa Flow viewed from its eastern end in June 2009 Scapa Flow is a body of water in the Orkney Islands, Scotland, sheltered by the islands of Mainland, Graemsay, Burray,S.
New!!: Orkney and Scapa Flow · See more »
Scilla verna, commonly known as spring squill, is a flowering plant native to Western Europe.
New!!: Orkney and Scilla verna · See more »
Scotland (Alba) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and covers the northern third of the island of Great Britain.
New!!: Orkney and Scotland · See more »
Scottish Gaelic or Scots Gaelic, sometimes also referred to simply as Gaelic (Gàidhlig) or the Gaelic, is a Celtic language native to the Gaels of Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Scottish Gaelic · See more »
The Scottish Green Party (Pàrtaidh Uaine na h-Alba; Scots Green Pairty) is a green political party in Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Scottish Green Party · See more »
The Highlands (the Hielands; A’ Ghàidhealtachd, "the place of the Gaels") are a historic region of Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Scottish Highlands · See more »
Scottish independence referendum, 2014
A referendum on Scottish independence from the United Kingdom took place on Thursday 18 September 2014.
New!!: Orkney and Scottish independence referendum, 2014 · See more »
Scottish National Dictionary
The Scottish National Dictionary was published by the Scottish National Dictionary Association (SNDA) from 1931 to 1976 and documents the Modern (Lowland) Scots language.
New!!: Orkney and Scottish National Dictionary · See more »
Scottish national identity
Scottish national identity is a term referring to the sense of national identity, as embodied in the shared and characteristic culture, languages and traditions, of the Scottish people.
New!!: Orkney and Scottish national identity · See more »
The Scottish National Party (SNP; Pàrtaidh Nàiseanta na h-Alba, Scots Naitional Pairtie) is a Scottish nationalist and social-democratic political party in Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Scottish National Party · See more »
The Scottish Parliament (Pàrlamaid na h-Alba; Scots: The Scots Pairlament) is the devolved national, unicameral legislature of Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Scottish Parliament · See more »
Scottish Parliament constituencies and regions
Scottish Parliament constituencies and regions were first used in 1999, in the first general election of the Scottish Parliament (Holyrood), created by the Scotland Act 1998.
New!!: Orkney and Scottish Parliament constituencies and regions · See more »
Scottish people
The Scottish people (Scots: Scots Fowk, Scottish Gaelic: Albannaich), or Scots, are a nation and ethnic group native to Scotland. Historically, they emerged from an amalgamation of two Celtic-speaking peoples, the Picts and Gaels, who founded the Kingdom of Scotland (or Alba) in the 9th century. Later, the neighbouring Celtic-speaking Cumbrians, as well as Germanic-speaking Anglo-Saxons and Norse, were incorporated into the Scottish nation. In modern usage, "Scottish people" or "Scots" is used to refer to anyone whose linguistic, cultural, family ancestral or genetic origins are from Scotland. The Latin word Scoti originally referred to the Gaels, but came to describe all inhabitants of Scotland. Considered archaic or pejorative, the term Scotch has also been used for Scottish people, primarily outside Scotland. John Kenneth Galbraith in his book The Scotch (Toronto: MacMillan, 1964) documents the descendants of 19th-century Scottish pioneers who settled in Southwestern Ontario and affectionately referred to themselves as 'Scotch'. He states the book was meant to give a true picture of life in the community in the early decades of the 20th century. People of Scottish descent live in many countries other than Scotland. Emigration, influenced by factors such as the Highland and Lowland Clearances, Scottish participation in the British Empire, and latterly industrial decline and unemployment, have resulted in Scottish people being found throughout the world. Scottish emigrants took with them their Scottish languages and culture. Large populations of Scottish people settled the new-world lands of North and South America, Australia and New Zealand. Canada has the highest level of Scottish descendants per capita in the world and the second-largest population of Scottish descendants, after the United States. Scotland has seen migration and settlement of many peoples at different periods in its history. The Gaels, the Picts and the Britons have their respective origin myths, like most medieval European peoples. Germanic peoples, such as the Anglo-Saxons, arrived beginning in the 7th century, while the Norse settled parts of Scotland from the 8th century onwards. In the High Middle Ages, from the reign of David I of Scotland, there was some emigration from France, England and the Low Countries to Scotland. Some famous Scottish family names, including those bearing the names which became Bruce, Balliol, Murray and Stewart came to Scotland at this time. Today Scotland is one of the countries of the United Kingdom, and the majority of people living there are British citizens.
New!!: Orkney and Scottish people · See more »
Scrabster
Scrabster (Scraibster, Sgrabastair/Sgrabstal) is a small settlement on Thurso Bay in Caithness on the north coast of Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Scrabster · See more »
Seafood is any form of sea life regarded as food by humans.
New!!: Orkney and Seafood · See more »
Seaweed or macroalgae refers to several species of macroscopic, multicellular, marine algae.
New!!: Orkney and Seaweed · See more »
Shapinsay
Shapinsay is one of the Orkney Islands off the north coast of mainland Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Shapinsay · See more »
Shetland (Old Norse: Hjaltland), also called the Shetland Islands, is a subarctic archipelago of Scotland that lies northeast of Great Britain.
New!!: Orkney and Shetland · See more »
Shires of Scotland
The counties or shires of Scotland (Siorrachdan na h-Alba) are geographic subdivisions of Scotland established in the Middle Ages.
New!!: Orkney and Shires of Scotland · See more »
Sigurd Eysteinsson
Sigurd Eysteinsson or Sigurd the Mighty (reigned c. 875–892Ashley, pp. 440–441) was the second Earl of Orkney – a title bequeathed to Sigurd by his brother Rognvald Eysteinsson.
New!!: Orkney and Sigurd Eysteinsson · See more »
Sigurd the Stout
Sigurd Hlodvirsson (circa 960 – 23 April 1014), popularly known as Sigurd the Stout from the Old Norse Sigurðr digri,Thomson (2008) p. 59 was an Earl of Orkney.
New!!: Orkney and Sigurd the Stout · See more »
Skara Brae is a stone-built Neolithic settlement, located on the Bay of Skaill on the west coast of Mainland, the largest island in the Orkney archipelago of Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Skara Brae · See more »
Slavery is any system in which principles of property law are applied to people, allowing individuals to own, buy and sell other individuals, as a de jure form of property.
New!!: Orkney and Slavery · See more »
Society of Antiquaries of Scotland
The Society of Antiquaries of Scotland is the senior antiquarian body of Scotland, with its headquarters in the National Museum of Scotland, Chambers Street, Edinburgh.
New!!: Orkney and Society of Antiquaries of Scotland · See more »
Sodium carbonate
Sodium carbonate, Na2CO3, (also known as washing soda, soda ash and soda crystals, and in the monohydrate form as crystal carbonate) is the water-soluble sodium salt of carbonic acid.
New!!: Orkney and Sodium carbonate · See more »
Solar eclipse of 1 May 1185
The solar eclipse of 1 May 1185 was a total solar eclipse visible in Central America, Northern Europe, Eastern Europe, and Kazakhstan.
New!!: Orkney and Solar eclipse of 1 May 1185 · See more »
Souterrain (from French sous terrain, meaning "under ground") is a name given by archaeologists to a type of underground structure associated mainly with the European Atlantic Iron Age.
New!!: Orkney and Souterrain · See more »
South Ronaldsay
South Ronaldsay is one of the Orkney Islands off the north coast of Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and South Ronaldsay · See more »
South Walls
South Walls is an inhabited island adjacent to Hoy in Orkney, Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and South Walls · See more »
SSE plc
SSE plc (formerly Scottish and Southern Energy plc) is a Scottish energy company headquartered in Perth, Scotland, United Kingdom.
New!!: Orkney and SSE plc · See more »
St Magnus Cathedral
New!!: Orkney and St Magnus Cathedral · See more »
St Magnus Festival
The St Magnus International Festival is an annual, week-long arts festival which takes place at midsummer on the islands of Orkney, off the north coast of mainland Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and St Magnus Festival · See more »
St Margaret's Hope, known locally as The Hope, is a village in the Orkney Islands, off the north-east coast of Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and St Margaret's Hope · See more »
Stack (geology)
A stack or sea stack is a geological landform consisting of a steep and often vertical column or columns of rock in the sea near a coast, formed by wave erosion.
New!!: Orkney and Stack (geology) · See more »
Standing Stones of Stenness
The Standing Stones of Stenness is a Neolithic monument five miles northeast of Stromness on the mainland of Orkney, Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Standing Stones of Stenness · See more »
The stoat (Mustela erminea), also known as the short-tailed weasel or simply the weasel in Ireland where the least weasel does not occur, is a mammal of the genus Mustela of the family Mustelidae native to Eurasia and North America, distinguished from the least weasel by its larger size and longer tail with a prominent black tip.
New!!: Orkney and Stoat · See more »
Stromness is the second-most populous town in Orkney, Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Stromness · See more »
Stronsay is an island in Orkney, Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Stronsay · See more »
Stronsay Airport
Stronsay Airport is located northeast by north of Kirkwall Airport on Stronsay, Orkney Islands, Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Stronsay Airport · See more »
Subdivisions of Scotland
For local government purposes, Scotland is divided into 32 areas designated as "council areas", which are all governed by single-tier authorities designated as "councils".
New!!: Orkney and Subdivisions of Scotland · See more »
In linguistics, a suffix (sometimes termed postfix) is an affix which is placed after the stem of a word.
New!!: Orkney and Suffix · See more »
Sule Skerry
Sule Skerry is a remote skerry in the North Atlantic off the north coast of Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Sule Skerry · See more »
Sule Stack
Sule Stack or Stack Skerry is an extremely remote island or stack in the North Atlantic off the north coast of Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Sule Stack · See more »
Sumburgh Airport
Sumburgh Airport is the main airport serving Shetland in Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Sumburgh Airport · See more »
Sutherland is a historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area in the Highlands of Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Sutherland · See more »
Sweyn Holm
Note: There is also a "Sweyn Holm" off St Ninian's Isle, Shetland Sweyn Holm is a small island in the Orkney Islands, next to Gairsay.
New!!: Orkney and Sweyn Holm · See more »
Switha
Switha is a small uninhabited island towards the south of Orkney, Scotland, approximately 41 hectares in area.
New!!: Orkney and Switha · See more »
Swona
Swona is an uninhabited island in the Pentland Firth off the north coast of Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Swona · See more »
Syncline
In structural geology, a syncline is a fold with younger layers closer to the center of the structure.
New!!: Orkney and Syncline · See more »
Publius (or Gaius) Cornelius Tacitus (–) was a senator and a historian of the Roman Empire.
New!!: Orkney and Tacitus · See more »
Tartan (breacan) is a pattern consisting of criss-crossed horizontal and vertical bands in multiple colours.
New!!: Orkney and Tartan · See more »
The Orcadian
The Orcadian is the oldest newspaper in Orkney, Scotland, first published in 1854.
New!!: Orkney and The Orcadian · See more »
The Superstation Orkney
The Superstation Orkney, also known as just The Superstation, was a community radio station, broadcasting to Orkney and Caithness.
New!!: Orkney and The Superstation Orkney · See more »
Thomas Malory
Sir Thomas Malory (c. 1415 – 14 March 1471) was an English writer, the author or compiler of Le Morte d'Arthur (originally titled, The Whole Book of King Arthur and His Noble Knights of the Round table).
New!!: Orkney and Thomas Malory · See more »
Thorfinn the Mighty
Thorfinn Sigurdsson (1009?– 1065), also known as Thorfinn the Mighty, (Old Norse: Þorfinnr inn riki) was an 11th-century Earl of Orkney.
New!!: Orkney and Thorfinn the Mighty · See more »
Thorfinn Torf-Einarsson
Thorfinn Torf-EinarssonCrawford (1987) p. 63 also known as Thorfinn Skull-splitterThomson (2008) p. 57 (from the Old Norse Þorfinnr hausakljúfr) was a 10th-century Earl of Orkney.
New!!: Orkney and Thorfinn Torf-Einarsson · See more »
Thurso (pronounced, Thursa, Inbhir Theòrsa) is a town and former burgh on the north coast of the Highland council area of Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Thurso · See more »
Tides are the rise and fall of sea levels caused by the combined effects of the gravitational forces exerted by the Moon and the Sun and the rotation of Earth.
New!!: Orkney and Tide · See more »
Timeline of prehistoric Scotland
This timeline of prehistoric Scotland is a chronologically ordered list of important archaeological sites in Scotland and of major events affecting Scotland's human inhabitants and culture during the prehistoric period.
New!!: Orkney and Timeline of prehistoric Scotland · See more »
Tomb of the Eagles
The Tomb of the Eagles, or Isbister Chambered Cairn, is a Neolithic chambered tomb located on a cliff edge at Isbister on South Ronaldsay in Orkney, Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Tomb of the Eagles · See more »
Toponymy is the study of place names (toponyms), their origins, meanings, use, and typology.
New!!: Orkney and Toponymy · See more »
Torf-Einarr
Einarr Rognvaldarson often referred to by his byname Torf-Einarr (sometimes anglicised as Turf-Einarr), (fl. early 890s–c. 910) was one of the Norse Earls of Orkney.
New!!: Orkney and Torf-Einarr · See more »
Tripolium pannonicum
Tripolium pannonicum, called sea aster or seashore aster and often known by the synonyms Aster tripolium or Aster pannonicus, is a flowering plant, native to Eurasia and northern Africa, that is confined in its distribution to salt marshes, estuaries and occasionally to inland salt works.
New!!: Orkney and Tripolium pannonicum · See more »
A troll is a class of being in Norse mythology and Scandinavian folklore.
New!!: Orkney and Troll · See more »
Trondheim (historically Kaupangen, Nidaros and Trondhjem) is a city and municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway.
New!!: Orkney and Trondheim · See more »
Trow (folklore)
A trow (also trowe or drow or dtrow) is a malignant or mischievous fairy or spirit in the folkloric traditions of the Orkney and Shetland islands.
New!!: Orkney and Trow (folklore) · See more »
U-boat is an anglicised version of the German word U-Boot, a shortening of Unterseeboot, literally "undersea boat".
New!!: Orkney and U-boat · See more »
Udal law
Udal law is a Norse derived legal system, which is found in Shetland and Orkney, Scotland and in Manx law in the Isle of Man.
New!!: Orkney and Udal law · See more »
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO; Organisation des Nations unies pour l'éducation, la science et la culture) is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) based in Paris.
New!!: Orkney and UNESCO · See more »
United Kingdom census, 2011
A census of the population of the United Kingdom is taken every ten years.
New!!: Orkney and United Kingdom census, 2011 · See more »
United Kingdom constituencies
In the United Kingdom (UK), each of the electoral areas or divisions called constituencies elect one member to a parliament or assembly, with the exception of European Parliament and Northern Ireland Assembly constituencies which are multi member constituencies.
New!!: Orkney and United Kingdom constituencies · See more »
United Kingdom general election, 1987
The 1987 United Kingdom general election was held on Thursday 11 June 1987, to elect 650 members to the House of Commons of the United Kingdom.
New!!: Orkney and United Kingdom general election, 1987 · See more »
The University of Strathclyde is a public research university located in Glasgow, Scotland, United Kingdom.
New!!: Orkney and University of Strathclyde · See more »
Value-added tax
A value-added tax (VAT), known in some countries as a goods and services tax (GST), is a type of tax that is assessed incrementally, based on the increase in value of a product or service at each stage of production or distribution.
New!!: Orkney and Value-added tax · See more »
Vikings (Old English: wicing—"pirate", Danish and vikinger; Swedish and vikingar; víkingar, from Old Norse) were Norse seafarers, mainly speaking the Old Norse language, who raided and traded from their Northern European homelands across wide areas of northern, central, eastern and western Europe, during the late 8th to late 11th centuries.
New!!: Orkney and Vikings · See more »
Volcanic rock (often shortened to volcanics in scientific contexts) is a rock formed from magma erupted from a volcano.
New!!: Orkney and Volcanic rock · See more »
The walrus (Odobenus rosmarus) is a large flippered marine mammal with a discontinuous distribution about the North Pole in the Arctic Ocean and subarctic seas of the Northern Hemisphere.
New!!: Orkney and Walrus · See more »
Ward Hill, Hoy
Ward Hill, on the island of Hoy, is the highest hill in Orkney, Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Ward Hill, Hoy · See more »
Wars of Scottish Independence
The Wars of Scottish Independence were a series of military campaigns fought between the Kingdom of Scotland and the Kingdom of England in the late 13th and early 14th centuries.
New!!: Orkney and Wars of Scottish Independence · See more »
Welsh language
Welsh (Cymraeg or y Gymraeg) is a member of the Brittonic branch of the Celtic languages.
New!!: Orkney and Welsh language · See more »
Westray
Westray is one of the Orkney Islands in Scotland, with a usual resident population of just under 600 people.
New!!: Orkney and Westray · See more »
Westray Airport
Westray Airport is an airport located at Aikerness, on Westray in the Orkney Islands, Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Westray Airport · See more »
Westray to Papa Westray flight
The Loganair Westray to Papa Westray route is the shortest scheduled passenger flight in the world.
New!!: Orkney and Westray to Papa Westray flight · See more »
Wheelhouse (archaeology)
In archaeology, a wheelhouse is a prehistoric structure from the Iron Age found in Scotland.
New!!: Orkney and Wheelhouse (archaeology) · See more »
Whisky or whiskey is a type of distilled alcoholic beverage made from fermented grain mash.
New!!: Orkney and Whisky · See more »
Whitefish (fisheries term)
Whitefish or white fish is a fisheries term for several species of demersal fish with fins, particularly Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua), Caspian kutum (Rutilus kutum), whiting (Merluccius bilinearis), and haddock (Melanogrammus aeglefinus), but also hake (Urophycis), pollock (Pollachius), or others.
New!!: Orkney and Whitefish (fisheries term) · See more »
The wild boar (Sus scrofa), also known as the wild swine,Heptner, V. G.; Nasimovich, A. A.; Bannikov, A. G.; Hoffman, R. S. (1988), Volume I, Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Libraries and National Science Foundation, pp.
New!!: Orkney and Wild boar · See more »
The winter solstice (or hibernal solstice), also known as midwinter, is an astronomical phenomenon marking the day with the shortest period of daylight and the longest night of the year.
New!!: Orkney and Winter solstice · See more »
World Heritage site
A World Heritage site is a landmark or area which is selected by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) as having cultural, historical, scientific or other form of significance, and is legally protected by international treaties.
New!!: Orkney and World Heritage site · See more »
World War II (often abbreviated to WWII or WW2), also known as the Second World War, was a global war that lasted from 1939 to 1945, although conflicts reflecting the ideological clash between what would become the Allied and Axis blocs began earlier.
New!!: Orkney and World War II · See more »
Wyre, Orkney
Wyre is one of the Orkney Islands, lying south-east of Rousay.
New!!: Orkney and Wyre, Orkney · See more »
100% renewable energy
The endeavor to use 100% renewable energy for electricity, heating and cooling, and transport is motivated by global warming, pollution and other environmental issues, as well as economic and energy security concerns.
New!!: Orkney and 100% renewable energy · See more »
Redirects here:
Arcaibh, County of Orkney, Orcades (islands), Orcadia, Orkney (council area), Orkney (islands council area of Scotland), Orkney Island, Orkney Islands, Orkney Islands (council area), Orkney Islands council area, Orkney Islands, Scotland, Orkney Isles, Orkney Isles council area, Orkney beef, Orkney island, Orkney islands, Orkney lamb, Orkneyar, Orkneyjar, Orkneys, Swedish earldom of Orkney, The Orkneys.
[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orkney
Unionpedia is a concept map or semantic network organized like an encyclopedia – dictionary. It gives a brief definition of each concept and its relationships.
This is a giant online mental map that serves as a basis for concept diagrams. It's free to use and each article or document can be downloaded. It's a tool, resource or reference for study, research, education, learning or teaching, that can be used by teachers, educators, pupils or students; for the academic world: for school, primary, secondary, high school, middle, technical degree, college, university, undergraduate, master's or doctoral degrees; for papers, reports, projects, ideas, documentation, surveys, summaries, or thesis. Here is the definition, explanation, description, or the meaning of each significant on which you need information, and a list of their associated concepts as a glossary. Available in English, Spanish, Portuguese, Japanese, Chinese, French, German, Italian, Polish, Dutch, Russian, Arabic, Hindi, Swedish, Ukrainian, Hungarian, Catalan, Czech, Hebrew, Danish, Finnish, Indonesian, Norwegian, Romanian, Turkish, Vietnamese, Korean, Thai, Greek, Bulgarian, Croatian, Slovak, Lithuanian, Filipino, Latvian, Estonian and Slovenian. More languages soon.
All the information was extracted from Wikipedia, and it's available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.
Google Play, Android and the Google Play logo are trademarks of Google Inc.
OutgoingIncoming
Hey! We are on Facebook now! »
Saved concepts
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11046
|
__label__wiki
| 0.752483
| 0.752483
|
Dutch Gold Coast
"Dutch Guinea" redirects here. It is not to be confused with Surinam (Dutch colony).
Dutch possessions on the Coast of Guinea
Nederlandse Bezittingen ter Kuste van Guinea ‹See Tfd›(in Dutch)
The Dutch Gold Coast around 1675.
Dutch colony
Fort Nassau (1598–1637)
Fort Elmina (1637–1872)
Common languages
Dutch Reformed
Adriaan Jacobs
Jan Valckenburgh
Jan Pieter Theodoor Huydecoper
Herman Willem Daendels
Cornelis Nagtglas
• Established
• Disestablished
Gold Coast (British colony)
Today part of
Ashantis (Ashanti Empire)
Dagombas (Kingdom of Dagbon)
Danes (Danish Gold Coast)
Dutch (Dutch Gold Coast)
English-British (British Gold Coast)
Ewes (British Togoland)
Germans (Brandenburger Gold Coast, Prussian Gold Coast)
Portuguese (Portuguese Gold Coast)
Swedes (Swedish Gold Coast)
Gold Coastians—Ghanaians (Ghana)
The Dutch Gold Coast or Dutch Guinea, officially Dutch possessions on the Coast of Guinea (Dutch: Nederlandse Bezittingen ter Kuste van Guinea) was a portion of contemporary Ghana that was gradually colonized by the Dutch, beginning in 1598. The colony became the most important Dutch colony in West Africa after Fort Elmina was captured from the Portuguese in 1637, but fell into disarray after the abolition of the slave trade in the early 19th century. On 6 April 1872, the Dutch Gold Coast was, in accordance with the Anglo-Dutch Treaties of 1870–71, ceremonially ceded to the United Kingdom.[1]
1.1 The Dutch settle on the Gold Coast
1.2 Competition with other European powers
1.3 Relationship with local peoples
1.4 Disestablishment of the DWIC and the abolition of slave trade
1.5 Recruitment of soldiers for the Dutch East Indies Army
1.6 Trade of forts with Britain and subsequent cession
1.7 Destruction of Elmina
2.1 Dutch West India Company
2.1.1 Composition of the Council
2.2 Direct Dutch rule
3.1 The Gold Coast economy in the 19th century
4.1 Two extraordinary Africans
6 Settlements
6.1 Main forts
6.2 Trade of forts with Britain
6.3 Temporarily held forts
10.1 In Dutch
The Dutch settle on the Gold Coast[edit]
See also: Battle of Elmina (1625) and Battle of Elmina (1637)
Painting by Johannes Vingboons of both Fort São Jorge at Elmina and Fort Nassau at Moree.
The Portuguese were the first Europeans to arrive in contemporary Ghana. By 1471, they had reached the area that was to become known as the Gold Coast because it was an important source of gold. The Portuguese trading interests in gold, ivory and pepper so increased that in 1482 the Portuguese built their first permanent trading post on the western coast of present-day Ghana. This fortress, a trade castle called São Jorge da Mina, was constructed to protect Portuguese trade from European competitors.[2]
The Portuguese position on the Gold Coast, known as Portuguese Gold Coast, remained secure for over a century. During that time, Lisbon sought to monopolize all trade in the region in royal hands, though appointed officials at São Jorge, and used force to prevent English, French and Dutch efforts to trade on the coast. After Barent Eriksz successfully sailed to the Gold Coast in 1591, Dutch merchants began trading in the area. Pieter de Marees's publications greatly increased the interest of merchants in the region.[3]
Elmina Castle in the Blaeu-Van der Hem Atlas.
The Twelve Years' Truce between Portugal-Spain and the Dutch Republic, which lasted from 1609 to 1621, disrupted Dutch trade on the Gold Coast, as the Portuguese now had sufficient resources to protect their trade monopoly. Dutch traders then petitioned the States-General of the Dutch Republic to build a fort on the coast. The States-General were receptive of their demands, and sent Jacob Clantius, who was to become the first General on the Coast, to the Gold Coast in 1611. In 1612, after gaining permission of the local rulers through the Treaty of Asebu, he built Fort Nassau near Moree, on the site of an original Dutch trading post that had been burned down by the Portuguese.
After the Twelve Years's Truce ended in 1621, the Dutch West India Company was established, which tried to seize the Portuguese colonies in Africa and America as part of the Groot Desseyn plan. After failing in 1625, the company managed to capture Elmina Castle from the Portuguese in 1637. Fort San Sebastian at Shama and Fort Santo Antonio at Axim followed in 1640 and 1642 respectively.
Competition with other European powers[edit]
Map of the Gold Coast ordered by Admiral Michiel de Ruyter in 1666, during the Second Anglo-Dutch War.
The Dutch West India Company was given the monopoly on trade in the West Indies, including the Gold Coast, in 1621. Mismanagement meant that several disillusioned employees of the Dutch West India Company left the company to work for another European power. Hendrik Carloff, for example, was a former high-ranking officer in the company, who joined the Swedish Africa Company, founded in 1649 by the Walloon-Dutch industrialist Louis De Geer. In the end, Carloff also left the Swedish company, this time for the Danish Africa Company, which he founded himself with Isaac Coymans and Nicolaes Pancras, also former Dutch West India Company employees.
Whereas Swedish presence on the Gold Coast turned out to be only temporary, British and Danish settlement in the area proved to be permanent. From 1694 until 1700, the Dutch West India Company fought the Komenda Wars with the British over trade rights with the Eguafo Kingdom. In addition, Brandenburgers also had forts in the area from 1682 onwards, until they were bought out by the Dutch in 1717. The Portuguese had completely left the area, but still the Gold Coast had the highest concentration of European military architecture outside of Europe.
Relationship with local peoples[edit]
The first page of the Treaty of Butre, signed on 17 August 1656.
The European powers were sometimes drawn into conflicts with local inhabitants as Europeans developed commercial alliances with local political authorities. These alliances, often complicated, involved both Europeans attempting to enlist or persuade their closest allies to attack rival European ports and their African allies, or conversely, various African powers seeking to recruit Europeans as mercenaries in their inter-state wars, or as diplomats to resolve conflicts. Another way conflicts with the local inhabitants was avoided was through marriage. European men often created alliances with the local African people through a practice known as cassare or calisare derived from the Portuguese casar meaning "to marry." Dutch men and other Europeans would marry African woman whose families had ties to the Atlantic slave trade. In this way, both Africans and Europeans benefited from each other and allowed for peaceful trading partnerships. African wives could receive money and schooling for the children they bore by European men. Wives could also inherit slaves and property from their husbands when they returned to Europe or died.[4]
Many coastal ethnic groups in Africa, such as the Ga and Fante, used this system to gain political and economic advantages. These African ethnic groups had been using this practice before the arrival of the Europeans with strangers of a different ethnicity, and extended the same privilege to European men by the late 1400s. Cassare enabled Africans to trust strangers, like the Europeans, when dealing within their trade networks. It made the transition between stranger and trade partner a lot smoother.[5]
At Elmina, the Dutch had inherited from the Portuguese a system in which tribute was paid to the Denkyira, who were the dominant power in the region. After the Battle of Feyiase (1701), the Ashanti Empire replaced the Denkyira as the dominant power, and the Dutch began paying tribute to the Ashanti instead. Although the existence of the so-called "Elmina Note" is often questioned, the Dutch generally paid two ounces of gold per month to the Ashanti as tribute.[6] This bond between the Dutch and the Ashanti, who through the port of Elmina had access to trade with the Dutch and the rest of the world, deeply affected the relations between the Dutch, the other local peoples and the British. The latter were increasingly tight with the Fante, to which the Denkyira and thus also Elmina were culturally and linguistically close. Several Ashanti-Fante wars followed and the rivalry between the two peoples were key in the events surrounding the transfer of the Dutch Gold Coast to Britain in 1872.
After the Dutch managed to dislodge the Swedes from Butre and began building Fort Batenstein at that site, the leaders of the Dutch West India Company thought it beneficial to negotiate a treaty with the local political leadership in order to establish a peaceful long-term relationship in the area. The local Ahanta leaders found it equally beneficial to enter into such an agreement, and thus on 27 August 1656, the Treaty of Butre was signed. This treaty established a Dutch protectorate in the area, and established diplomatic ties between the Dutch Republic and the Ahanta. The treaty's arrangements proved very stable and regulated Dutch-Ahanta diplomatic affairs for more than 213 years. Only after the Gold Coast was sold to Britain in 1872 were the provisions of the treaty abrogated.
On 18 February 1782, as part of the Fourth Anglo-Dutch War, the British attacked Elmina. Although this attack failed, Britain seized Fort Nassau, Fort Amsterdam, Fort Lijdzaamheid, Fort Goede Hoop and Fort Crêvecoeur from the Dutch. The Dutch Republic only managed to seize Fort Sekondi from the British. In the Treaty of Paris of 1784, all forts returned to their pre-war owners.
Disestablishment of the DWIC and the abolition of slave trade[edit]
Governor-General Herman Willem Daendels (1815–1818)
In 1791, the Dutch West India Company was disestablished, and on 1 January 1792, all territories held by the company reverted to the rule of the States-General of the Dutch Republic. During the French occupation of the Netherlands between 1810 and 1814, the Dutch possessions on the Gold Coast held the rather unusual position—together with the island of Deshima in Japan—of being the only Dutch territories not occupied by either France or Great Britain.[7]
The British Slave Trade Act of 1807 effectively ended all slave trade from the Gold Coast. William I of the Netherlands took over this abolition when he issued a royal decree to that effect in June 1814 and signed the Anglo-Dutch Slave Trade Treaty in May 1818. The abolition of slave trade was coupled with the arrival of Herman Willem Daendels as Governor-General. Daendels was a Patriot who played a major role in the Batavian Revolution, and subsequently became Governor-General of the Dutch East Indies for the Batavian Republic in 1807. This republican and revolutionist background made him controversial in the Kingdom of the Netherlands established in 1815, which effectively banned him from the country by assigning to him the rather obscure governorship of the Gold Coast in 1815.
Daendels tried to redevelop the rather dilapidated Dutch possessions as an African plantation colony driven by legitimate trade. Drawing on his experience in building the Great Post Road on the island of Java in the Dutch East Indies, he came up with some very ambitious infrastructural projects, including a comprehensive road system, with a main road connecting Elmina and Kumasi in Ashanti. The Dutch government gave him a free hand and a substantial budget to implement his plans. At the same time, however, Daendels regarded his governorship as an opportunity to establish a private business monopoly in the Dutch Gold Coast.
Eventually none of the plans came to fruition, as Daendels died of malaria in the castle of St. George d'Elmina, the Dutch seat of government, on 8 May 1818. His body was interred in the central tomb at the Dutch cemetery in Elmina town. He had been in the country less than two years.
Recruitment of soldiers for the Dutch East Indies Army[edit]
The Ashanti princes Kwasi Boachi and Kwame Poku, who were sent to the Netherlands to receive education.
In the remainder of the 19th century, the Dutch Gold Coast slowly fell into disarray. The only substantial development during this period was the recruitment of soldiers for the Dutch East Indies Army. This recruitment of the so-called Belanda Hitam (Indonesian for "Black Dutchmen") started in 1831 as an emergency measure as the Dutch army lost thousands of European soldiers and a much larger number of "native" soldiers in the Java War (1825–1830), and at the same time saw its own population base diminished by the independence of Belgium (1830). As the Dutch wanted the number of natives in the Dutch East Indies Army to be limited to roughly half the total strength to maintain the loyalty of native forces, the addition of forces from the Gold Coast seemed an ideal opportunity to keep the army at strength and loyal at the same time. It was also hoped that the African soldiers would be more resistant to the tropical climate and tropical diseases of the Dutch East Indies than European soldiers.
In 1836, the Dutch government had decided to recruit soldiers via the King of Ashanti. Major General Jan Verveer arrived for this purpose in Elmina on 1 November 1836, and went to the Ashanti capital of Kumasi with a delegation of about 900 people. After long negotiations, an agreement with King Kwaku Dua I was reached. A recruitment depot was established in Kumasi, and furthermore the king sent the young Ashanti princes Kwasi Boachi and Kwame Poku with General Verveer to take with him to the Netherlands, so that they could receive a good education. Kwasi Boachi later received education at the forerunner of Delft University and became the first black Dutch mining engineer in the Dutch East Indies. Dutch author Arthur Japin wrote a novel about the life of the two princes with The Two Hearts of Kwasi Boachi (1997).
Trade of forts with Britain and subsequent cession[edit]
The Dutch Gold Coast after the trade of forts with the British.
Whereas the Dutch forts were a colonial backwater in the 19th century, the British forts were slowly developed into a full colony, especially after Britain took over the Danish Gold Coast in 1850. The presence of Dutch forts in an area that became increasingly influenced by the United Kingdom was deemed undesirable, and in the late 1850s British began pressing for either a buyout of the Dutch forts, or a trade of forts so as to produce more coherent areas of influence.
In the Dutch political landscape of the time, a buyout was not a possibility, so a trade of forts was negotiated. In 1867, the Convention between Great Britain and the Netherlands for an Interchange of Territory on the Gold Coast of Africa was signed, in which all Dutch forts to the east of Elmina were handed over to Britain, while the British forts west of Elmina were handed over to the Netherlands.[8]
The trade proved a disaster for the Dutch, as their long-standing alliance with the mighty inland Ashanti Empire did not fare well with the coastal Fante population around the new forts assigned to them, who were allied with the British. To subject the local people around Fort Komenda, the Dutch had to send an expeditionary force to the local capital of Kwassie-Krom. Meanwhile, a Fante Confederacy was founded to drive the Dutch and their Ashanti allies out of Elmina.[9] The confederacy founded an army, which marched to Elmina in March 1868. Although the army was deemed strong enough in April to begin the siege of the town, struggle between the various tribes united in the confederacy meant that the siege was lifted in May. In June, a peace treaty between the confederacy and Elmina was signed, in which Elmina pledged to be neutral if war was to break out between the Ashanti and Fante.
Rare photograph of Elmina from around 1865, showing parts of the old town later destroyed during the British bombardment.
The blockade of the town by the confederacy was not lifted, however, and trade between Elmina and the Ashanti dropped to an absolute minimum. Attempts were made to persuade Elmina to join the confederacy, to no avail. Elmina and the Dutch sent a request for help to the king of Ashanti, whose army, under the leadership of Atjempon, arrived in Elmina on 27 December 1869. Unsurprisingly, the Ashanti army had an uncompromising attitude to their Fante rivals, making the prospect of a compromise between the Ashanti-backed Elminese and the new Fante-dominated forts transferred to the Dutch ever more difficult.
Meanwhile, in the Netherlands, the ongoing conflicts made the call for the transfer of the entire colony to Britain to become ever louder. The Dutch governor of Elmina, Cornelis Nagtglas, tried to persuade the Elminese to relinquish their city to the British. This was of course complicated by the presence of an Ashanti army in the town, which even arrested Nagtglas for a short while in April 1871. In February of that year, a treaty had been signed with the United Kingdom, under which terms the whole colony was to be ceded for a sum of 46,939.62 Dutch guilders.[10] On 6 April 1872, after ratification of the treaty by parliament, Elmina was formally handed over to Britain.
Destruction of Elmina[edit]
The bombardment of Elmina.
As was to be expected, the Ashanti were less pleased by the handover of Elmina to the Fante-allied British. Ashanti king Kofi Karikari posited that the "Elmina Note", which governed the tribute paid by the Dutch to the Ashanti, asserted Ashanti sovereignty over the town. In June 1873, the situation escalated when an Ashanti army marched to Elmina to "win back" the town from Britain. The Third Anglo-Ashanti War had started, and Britain began bombing Elmina on 13 June 1873. The old town of Elmina was completely destroyed and leveled to make room for a parade ground.
Administration[edit]
Dutch West India Company[edit]
During the reign of the Dutch West India Company, the government of the colony was headed by a Director-General. The Director-General was assisted by a Council composed of senior colonial officers. Aside from being the supreme ruler of the colony, the Director-General was also the supreme commander of the land and sea forces, and highest judicial officer.[11] The Director-General had a double mandate, being installed by both the States-General of the Dutch Republic and the Dutch West India Company.[12] The colonial government was based at Fort Nassau in Moree between 1621 and 1637, and at Fort George in Elmina from 1637 onward.[11]
When the Dutch conquered Luanda and São Tomé from the Portuguese in 1642, the Dutch West India Company's possessions on the coast of Africa were divided into two separate commandments. The government at Elmina was charged with the rule over "Guinea and its dependencies from Cabo Tres Puntas to Cabo Lopes Gonsalves," and the government at Luanda with the possessions south of the latter cape, including São Tomé. The title of the Director-General at Elmina was changed to "Director-General of the North Coast of Africa." When the Dutch lost Luanda to the Portuguese in 1648, Sao Tomé was shortly ruled from Elmina, until it was recaptured by the Portuguese as well in the same year.[13]
With the establishment of the Second Dutch West India Company in 1675, the government structure was revised. The area under the authority of the Director-General was redefined as "the Coast of Africa, from Sierra Leone all exclusively to 30 degrees South of the equator, together with all the islands in between," thereby nominally reinstating the claim on the territories lost in this area to the Portuguese.[13] The title of the Director-General was concurrently changed to "Director-General of the North and South Coast of Africa." This larger claim was not primarily meant to reclaim Luanda and Sao Tomé from the Portuguese, however, but merely to establish authority over Dutch trade in the area. This was especially relevant for Loango, from which the Dutch began buying slaves in large amounts from the 1670s onward. Until the liquidation of the Dutch West India Company in 1791, the title of the Director-General and the limits of jurisdiction remained the same.[14]
Composition of the Council[edit]
According to the 1722 government instruction, the Council comprised the Director-General, who functioned as the Council's president, the fiscal (Dutch: fiscaal), the senior merchant (Dutch: opperkoopman), and the senior commissioners (Dutch: oppercommies). These senior commissioners consisted of the head of Fort Saint Anthony at Axim, the head of Fort Nassau at Moree, the head of Fort Crèvecoeur at Accra, and the head of the factory at Ouidah, on the Dutch Slave Coast. Between 1746 and 1768, the Council consisted of the Director-General, the fiscal, and the seven highest ranking "first officials", which included the senior commissioners, the master of works (Dutch: equipagemeester), the bookkeeper-general (Dutch: boekhouder-generaal), and the ensign (Dutch: vaandrig). In 1768, the Council was again reduced to the fiscal, the three senior commissioners (the trading post at Ouidah has since been abandoned), and the commissioner-and councillor. The composition of the Council was changed for a final time in 1784, in the wake of the Fourth Anglo-Dutch War, now extending the membership to include the bookkeeper-general-and-commissioner.[15]
Direct Dutch rule[edit]
After the liquidation of the Dutch West India Company in 1791, the Council of Colonies for the West Indies took over the government of the Dutch Gold Coast. Little changed in the first years, and the old administration of the Dutch West India Company was left largely intact.
This changed when the Batavian Republic replaced the Dutch Republic in 1795. The administration of the Dutch Gold Coast was reformed by a secret resolution of 12 May 1801. The office of Director-General was renamed Governor-General, and the Council was split in a Great Council and a Small Council. The Small Council was responsible for the everyday government of the colony, and comprised the Governor-General, the administrator-and-Director-General (Dutch: administrateur en directeur-generaal),Note 1 the master of stores, the master of works, and the bookkeeper of the general office (Dutch: boekhouder ten comptoir-generaal). The Great Council consisted of the Small Council, with the addition of the residents of Fort Crèvecoeur at Accra, Fort Saint Anthony at Axim, Fort Saint Sebastian at Shama, and Fort Amsterdam at Kormatin, and met every three months.[16]
The administration of the Dutch Gold Coast was again reformed when the Kingdom of Holland replaced the Batavian Republic in 1806. By royal decree of Louis Napoleon, King of Holland, the office of Governor-General was demoted to Commandant-General in 1807, and the administration was overhauled in 1809. An even bigger change came with the establishment of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in 1815. Leaving behind the uncertain years of French occupation, and with slave trade abolished, the newly established kingdom put up a plan to transform the colony into a profitable plantation colony. For this purpose, the new governor Herman Willem Daendels was given an open mandate and a large budget. The project was cut short with Daendels early death in 1818, however.[17]
Left without a visionary governor, budgets were cut for the colony. The new regulations of 1 November 1819 reduced the budget to the minimum necessary to keep the colony running, fired all unnecessary colonial officers, and pensioned of most of the slaves of the state. Most notably, the offices of bookkeeper, fiscal, secretary, cashier, and bailiff were combined into one office, the summation of functions actually being the office-holder's title (Dutch: boekhouder, fiscaal, secretaris, kassier en deurwaarder).[18] Also, the office of Governor-General was demoted to Commander. When the Dutch decided to recruit soldiers for the Dutch East Indies Army in 1836, the government was strengthened again, something which was reinforced in the wake of the destastrous Ahanta War of 1838. By virtue of a royal decree dated 23 March 1838, the office of Commander was raised to Governor and extra officers were installed to make government more effective.[19] The government itself was reformed in 1847, which among its most notable inventions included the establishment of a Court of Justice, legally separate from the Council, although memberships often overlapped.[20] The office of fiscal, responsible for public prosecution, was renamed Officer of Justice.[21]
In the late 1850s, the administrative divisions into forts was changed into a division into districts (Dutch: afdelingen), asserting Dutch sovereignty (or suzerainty) over not only the forts, but also the territory surrounding the forts.[22] District officers were instructed to make surveys of physical, economic, and socio-political situation of the districts.[22] As a consequence of the tariff system set up in the Anglo-Dutch Gold Coast Treaty, a tax and customs office was established in Elmina in 1867. At the same time, a postal office was established as well.[23]
Maps of the districts (1859)
Map of the District of Boutry.
Map of the District of Chama, drawn by J.W. Scheffelaar.
Map of the District of Axim, drawn by Julius Vitringa Coulon.
Economy[edit]
Estimates of the Atlantic slave trade. The blue bar represents the number of slaves that boarded ships in Africa, the red bar the number that disembarked in America, the remainder having died during the voyage.
Although the colony is nowadays primarily associated with Atlantic slave trade, this was not the reason for the first Dutch traders to trade with the Gold Coast. Barent Eriksz made a profit trading gold, ivory, and West African pepper,[3] and these products remained the primary trading goods in the early 17th century. According to Joannes de Laet, the Dutch West India had transported West-African goods worth 14 million Dutch guilders to the Dutch Republic by 1637, of which the most important was the trade in gold.[24]
This changed with the gradual capture of Brazil from the Portuguese, from 1630 onward. Suddenly, the trade of slaves, for which there was no significant market earlier, became a necessity for the economic survival of Dutch Brazil.[24] Nicolas van Yperen, Governor of the Dutch possessions on the Gold Coast, was instructed by his superiors of the Dutch West India Company to supply Dutch Brazil with slaves. In 1636, he managed to ship around a thousand slaves to Brazil from Fort Nassau, but to secure a continuous flow of slave labour, the company decided it was necessary to attempt once more to capture Elmina from the Portuguese. After Elmina was finally captured in August 1637, the focus of trade for the Dutch West India Company shifted to slave trade.[24] The directors of the Dutch West India Company were not happy with the increasing slave trade on the Gold Coast itself, however, as it interfered with the profitable gold trade, and actively tried to move the slave trade to the Slave Coast, where they had trading posts from 1640 onward.[25][26]
The loss of Brazil did not collapse Dutch slave trade, as in 1662, Dutch signed their first asiento with the Spanish Empire, pledging to provide slaves to Spanish America, primarily through their trading post in Willemstad, Curaçao.[27] Furthermore, in 1664, the Dutch conquered Suriname, complementing Berbice and Essequibo as Caribbean plantation colonies depending on slave labour.[28]
Meanwhile, the Dutch had tried in 1654 to directly control the mining of gold by building Fort Ruychaver far inland on the Ankobra River, but had left gold production to the locals since that fort was attacked and burned to the ground in 1660. The supply of gold declined dramatically at the turn of the eighteenth century, due to tribal warfare among the people of the Gold Coast. While the Ashanti succeeded in the Battle of Feyiase of 1701 to establish their hegemony on the Gold Coast, it took them a few years to fully "pacify" their newly conquered territory.[29] 1701 proved to be the historic low for the gold trade, with only 530 mark of gold exported, worth 178.080 guilders.[29]
Whereas the supply of gold was declining, the supply of slaves boomed as never before. This was to a large part due to the Ashanti wars; Governor-General Willem de la Palma wrote to his superiors at the Dutch West India Company that the war had unleashed slave raids among the local peoples in the Gold Coast. Whereas between 1693 and 1701 1,522 slaves were transported from Elmina to the Americas, an average of 169 slaves per year, 1,213 slaves were transported between 1702 and 1704, an average of 404 per year.[30]
Apart from increased supply of slaves, the demand also increased due to the asiento trading with the Spanish. Between 1660 and 1690, the Dutch trading posts in Africa, which included the Slave Coast, Arguin, and Senegambia, shipped a third of the total number of slaves across the Atlantic.[27] On the Gold Coast, Governor De la Palma actively tried to systemize the slave trade and improve the numbers of slave shipped to the Americas. To this purpuse, he sent Jacob van den Broucke as "opperkommies" (head merchant) to the Dutch trading post at Ouidah, on the Slave Coast.[30]
De la Palma was a difficult personality and often at odds with his merchants and local African leaders. He resigned from his position in September 1705, but died before he could return to the Dutch Republic.[30] He was replaced by his deputy, Pieter Nuyts, who tried to revive the gold trade at the coast.[31]
But by the beginning of the eighteenth century, even slave trade dwindled, with the Dutch becoming a rather small player in the trans-Atlantic trade. Since globally this trade peaked in the 18th century, this meant that the Dutch contribution to the Atlantic slave trade only amounts to 5% of the grand total, equalling around 500,000 slaves shipped from Africa to the Americas.[27]
In 1730, the monopoly of the Dutch West India Company on the Atlantic slave trade was lifted. This contributed to the rise of the Middelburgsche Commercie Compagnie (MCC), which dominated the Dutch slave trade for much of the eighteenth century.
The Gold Coast economy in the 19th century[edit]
With the Anglo-Dutch Treaty of 1814, the Dutch vowed to stop trading slaves. This meant a severe blow to the economy of the Gold Coast, which had increasingly relied on slave trade from the 18th century onwards. Attempts were made to establish a plantation colony and to open gold mines on the coast, but virtually all attempts proved failures.[32]
One of the first attempts at establishing a plantation was made by the sons of Governor-General Herman Willem Daendels in 1816. They established a plantation named Oranje Dageraad in Simbo. The Governor-General himself tried to buy 300 slaves from Kumasi, which were to regain their freedom by cultivating farmland. Both projects failed.[33][34]
Between 1845 and 1850, the colonial government once again, after the failure of Fort Ruychaver, tried to establish a gold mine on the coast. The Dutch government bought an open-air gold mine from the chief of Butre, and sent in 1845 an expedition of a director, three engineers, and nine workers to the village of Dabokrom to establish a mine.[35][36] Two engineers and all nine workers fell victim to tropical diseases and died, leaving the rest of the expedition to return to Europe.[35] The second expedition of 1847 was not less successful, now with 11 out of 13 people dying. By 1850, the Dutch government ended the mining attempt.[37][36]
Another attempt to develop the colony involved the establishment of a cotton plantation just outside Elmina. In light of this project, a Brazilian man by the name of La Rocha Vièra was brought to the Gold Coast. Due to the rude treatment of workers, La Rocha Vièra was unable to attract new labourers, and the plantation died an early death.[38] In 1848, a tobacco plantation was attempted in the government's garden in Elmina, but failed due to bad soil conditions.[39] A more successful tobacco plantation was established in Simbo, but fell victim to a lack of labourers wanting to work on the plantation.[40] From February to October 1859, Dutch colonial government official J.S.G. Gramberg tried to develop the soil on the Bossumprah River, but also had difficulty attracting workers.[41]
The only two plantations that were successful comprised a coffee plantation in Akropong, established by missionaries from Basel, and another coffee plantation in Mayra near Accra, owned by mulatto entrepreneur Lutterodt, worked by slaves.[42]
Society[edit]
Map of Elmina around 1665 by Johannes Vingboons.
Map of Elmina around 1799 by J.C. Bergeman.
Until the destruction of Elmina in 1873, the town was the largest settlement on the Gold Coast, eclipsing Accra and Kumasi. In the 18th century, its population numbered 12,000 to 16,000 inhabitants, and in the 19th century, this figure rose to between 18,000 and 20,000.[43][44] Most of these inhabitants were not European, however; their number peaked at 377 Dutch West India Company employees for the entire Dutch Gold Coast in the 18th century, before sinking back to a mere 20 officers in the 19th century.[45]
Much more important were the African inhabitants of Elmina, who came from every region of the Gold Coast to Elmina to try their luck.[46] Slaves formed a considerable portion of the population of Elmina as well, and were often in the possession of the Akan people inhabitants themselves. The third group in Elmina was of mixed race, and the result of interracial relations between Dutch West India Company employees and African women in Elmina. The illegitimate children of the employees were called "Tapoeijers" by the Dutch, for, according to them, the colour of their skin resembled those of native Americans. A decree from 1700 by the Governor-General at Elmina stipulated that employees of the Dutch West India Company who were to return to the Netherlands either had to take their (illegitimate) children with them, or had to pay a sum of money to provide for their "Christian upbringing".[47][48] For the latter purpose, a school was established in Elmina.[49]
Many people of mixed descent, also referred to as Euro-Africans, became wealthy merchants. The most prominent of these was Jan Niezer, who visited Europe on several occasions, and who traded directly with European and American companies.
The fourth group in Elmina was also of mixed descent, but had a different status as "Vrijburghers" (free citizens). They had the same rights as Europeans, and were organized in a separate in so-called Asafo company known as "Akrampafo". Their burgemeester had the power to conclude treaties with the Dutch, and all Vrijburghers had the right to wear a sword.[49] Well known Vrijburghers include Carel Hendrik Bartels, Jacob Huidecoper and Jacob Simon. Many Vrijburghers worked in the lower ranks of the Dutch administration of Elmina, and in the 19th century, various Vrijburgher families sent their children (girls included) to Europe for education. In the 19th century, the Vrijburghers settled north of the Benya lagune, near Fort Coenraadsburg. This part of Elmina, also known as "the Garden" was spared from British bombardment in 1873.
Two extraordinary Africans[edit]
Portrait of Jacobus Capitein.
The presence of European powers on the Gold Coast opened up the area to the outside world, and some Africans from the Gold Coast achieved a modicum of accomplishment in European society. Two Africans from the Gold Coast are especially notable in this regard, although one of them is notorious for defending slavery as compatible with Christianity.
Anton Wilhelm Amo was born near Axim in 1703 and sent to Amsterdam by the Dutch West India Company around 1707. He was given as a present to Anthony Ulrich, Duke of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel. Amo was baptised, went to school at the Wolfenbüttel Ritter-Akademie (1717–1721) the University of Helmstedt (1721–1727), and the University of Halle (1727–1729), and subsequently gained a doctorate in philosophy at the University of Wittenberg in 1734 with the thesis On the Absence of Sensation in the Human Mind and its Presence in our Organic and Living Body, in which he argued against Cartesian dualism and in favour of a broadly materialist account of the person. In 1740, Amo took up a post in philosophy at the University of Jena, but in 1747 he returned to the Gold Coast where he died in 1759. Amo was the first black person to attend a European university. He lies interred in the graveyard of Fort San Sebastian.
Around 1717 Jacobus Capitein was born in the Gold Coast. He was forcibly taken to the Netherlands in 1725, where he was given to Jacobus van Goch. Capitein excelled at school and announced during his baptism in 1735 that he wanted to return to the Gold Coast as a missionary. To that effect he studied at Leiden University between 1737 and 1742, graduating on a dissertation defending slavery. He was subsequently installed by the Dutch East India Company as a Christian minister at Elmina, where he married Antonia Ginderdros. Ashanti king Opoku Ware I demanded that Capitein teach his children, which he did. Capitein died in Elmina in 1747.
After the Dutch East Indies gained independence as Indonesia in 1949, most Belanda Hitam migrated to the Netherlands, since they had been soldiers of the Royal Netherlands East Indies Army. Other than that, the Dutch colonial history on the Gold Coast was more or less forgotten. This changed slightly after Arthur Japin published the earlier mentioned The Two Hearts of Kwasi Boachi in 1997. This attention also revealed that the head of Ahanta king Badu Bonsu II, taken to the Netherlands after his execution in 1838, was still in the possession of the Leiden University Medical Centre. The head of the king was handed over to the Ghanaian ambassador in a ceremony held on 23 July 2009 in The Hague.[50]
In 2002, the 300 year anniversary of diplomatic ties between Ghana and the Netherlands was celebrated, with Dutch Crown Prince Willem-Alexander and his wife Máxima visiting Ghana between 14 and 17 April, and with Ashanti king Otumfuo Nana Osei Tutu II visiting the Netherlands in June.[51][52] The anniversary referred to is the sending by the Dutch West India Company of David van Neyendael as envoy to the Ashanti Empire in 1701, after the Ashanti had become the dominant power on the Gold Coast by defeating the Denkyira at the Battle of Feyiase.[26]
Remnants of Dutch presence in the Gold Coast, other than the forts along the coastline, are Dutch surnames which were taken on by the descendents of the children the Dutch slave traders had with their black mistresses. Bossman is a common surname in Ghana, and ultimately derives from the Dutch slave trader Willem Bosman.[53] Other Ghanaian surnames derived from Dutch names include Bartels, Van Dyck, and De Veer.[54] In an episode of Who Do You Think You Are?, British-Ghanaian actor Hugh Quarshie traced his ancestry to Pieter Martinus Johannes Kamerling, a Dutch official on the Gold Coast.
Settlements[edit]
Main forts[edit]
Map of the main forts of the Dutch Gold Coast
S. Sebastian
St. Antonio
Crêvecoeur
Batenstein
Witsen
Vreden- burgh
Lijdzaamheid
Place in Ghana
Fort name[55]
Founded/
Ceded
Moree Fort Nassau 1598 (1612) 1868 The first Dutch trading post on the Gold Coast opened around 1598. In 1612, it was expanded to a fort. Capital of the Dutch Gold Coast between 1598 and 1637. Occupied between 1781 and 1785 by the British. Traded with the British in 1868.
Butri Fort Batenstein 1598 (1656) 1872 Second Dutch trading post on the Gold Coast. Expanded to Fort Batenstein in 1656. Site of the signing of the Treaty of Butre.
Elmina Fort Elmina 1637 1872 Captured from the Portuguese in the Battle of Elmina (1637). Capital of the Dutch Gold Coast between 1637 and 1872.
Elmina Fort Coenraadsburg 1637 (1665) 1872 Captured from the Portuguese together with Fort Elmina. Originally a reinforced chapel on Saint Jago Hill from which Fort Elmina could easily be attacked. For this reason reinforced by the Dutch after the capture of Elmina. Extended to a full fort in 1665.
Shama Fort San Sebastian 1640 1872 Captured from the Portuguese in 1640.
Axim Fort Santo Antonio 1642 1872 Captured from the Portuguese. Occupied between 1664 and 1665 by the British. Site of the signing of the Treaty of Axim.
Accra Fort Crêvecoeur 1642 1868 Situated near Fort Christiansborg (Danish), and Fort James (British). Occupied between 1781 and 1786 by the British. Traded with the British in 1868.
Sekondi Fort Orange 1642 (1690) 1872 Trading post established by the Dutch in 1642. Enlarged into a fort in 1690, and destroyed by the Ahanta in 1694. Restored afterwards.
Takoradi Fort Witsen 1665 1872 Originally built by the Swedes.
Cormantin Fort Amsterdam 1665 1868 First British fort (1631) on the Gold Coast, captured in 1665 by Engel de Ruyter. Occupied between 1781 and 1785 by the British. Traded with the British in 1868.
Senya Beraku Fort Goede Hoop 1667 1868 Occupied between 1781 and 1785 by the British, and occupied by the local Akim between 1811 and 1816. Traded with the British in 1868.
Akwidaa Fort Dorothea 1687 1872 Formerly part of the Brandenburger Gold Coast. First occupied by the Dutch in 1687 and finally bought in 1721.
Komenda Fort Vredenburgh 1682 1872 A trading post was established by the Dutch near this site around 1600, but abandoned soon afterwards. The fort was built in 1682. In 1687, the English Fort Komenda was built nearby. Occupied between 1781 and 1785 by the British.
Apam Fort Lijdzaamheid 1697 1868 Occupied between 1781 and 1785 by the British. Traded with the British in 1868.
Princess Town Fort Hollandia 1724 1872 Formerly part of the Brandenburger Gold Coast, bought in 1721 by the Dutch. Up until 1724 occupied by the local Jan Conny.
Trade of forts with Britain[edit]
In 1868, the United Kingdom and the Netherlands traded some forts in order to create more geographically contiguous areas of influence.[8] The Netherlands ceded Fort Nassau, Fort Crêvecoeur, Fort Amsterdam, Fort Goede Hoop, and Fort Lijdzaamheid, and in return received Apollonia (renamed Fort Willem III), Fort Dixcove (renamed Fort Metalen Kruis), Fort Komenda (not to be confused with the already Dutch Fort Vredenburgh, also in Komenda), and Fort Sekondi (not to be confused with the already Dutch Fort Orange, also in Sekondi). This arrangement proved short-lived, as the colony was completely ceded to the United Kingdom in 1872.
Fort name
Beyin Fort Willem III 1868 1872 Previously British Fort Apollonia.
Dixcove Fort Metalen Kruis 1868 1872 Previously British Fort Dixcove.
Komenda Fort Komenda 1868 1872 Previously British Fort Komenda.
Sekondi Fort Sekondi 1868 1872 Previously British Fort Sekondi.
Temporarily held forts[edit]
Apart from the main forts held for more than a century, other forts in the region have been temporarily occupied by the Dutch:
Cape Coast Cape Coast Castle 1637 1652
Anomabu Fort William 1640 1652
Egya Fort Egya 1647 1664 English trading post built in 1647, but conquered in the same year by the Dutch. Demolished in 1665 by the British after they had recaptured it in the year before.
Ankobra Fort Ruychaver 1654 1659 Built together with Fort Elise Carthago on the Ankobra River. Attacked by the local population and abandoned.
Ankobra Fort Elize Carthago 1702 1706 (?) Dutch trading post between 1650 and 1702.
Keta Fort Singelenburgh 1734 1737 Destroyed by the Dutch in 1737 after it was attacked by the local population. The Danish built Fort Prinsensten near the abandoned fort in 1784.
Sekondi Fort Sekondi 1782 1785 Captured from the British in the Fourth Anglo-Dutch War. Given back, but regained in 1868 as part of a forts trade with the United Kingdom (see above).
Colonial Heads of Dutch Gold Coast
History of Ghana
Dutch Loango-Angola
Ministry of the Colonies (Netherlands)
^Note 1 Note that this office is quite different from the office of Director-General in the administration of the Dutch West India Company, the company's equivalent to this office being the bookkeeper-general.
^ Adhin 1961, p. 6
^ McLaughlin & Owusu-Ansah (1994), "Early European Contact and the Slave Trade".
^ a b Delepeleire 2004, section 1.a.1.
^ Ipsen, Pernille. Daughters of the Trade: Atlantic Slavers and Interracial Marriage on the Gold Coast. ISBN 978-0-8122-4673-5.
^ Ray, Carina E. Crossing the Color Line: Race, Sex, and the Contested Politics of Colonialism in Ghana. Ohio University Press.
^ see Yarak 1986 and Feinberg 1976
^ Nagtglas 1863, p. 4
^ a b Foreign & Commonwealth Office - Convention between Great Britain and the Netherlands for an Interchange of Territory on the Gold Coast of Africa
^ Gramberg 1868, pp. 391–396
^ Adhin 1961, p. 10
^ a b Doortmont & Smit 2007, pp. 258-263.
^ Doortmont & Smit 2007, p. 263-264, 303.
^ a b Doortmont & Smit 2007, p. 262.
^ Doortmont & Smit 2007, pp. 262-263.
^ Doortmont & Smit 2007, p. 264.
^ Doortmont & Smit 2007, p. 273, 306.
^ Doortmont & Smit 2007, p. 258, 262, 266, 274.
^ Doortman & Smit 2007, p. 273.
^ a b c Delepeleire 2004, section 2.c.
^ Postma 1990, pp. 59, 95-96.
^ a b Van Kessel 2001.
^ a b c Bart Stol (2001-12-06). "De zwarte rand van de gouden eeuw". Retrieved 9 April 2012.
^ Postma 1990
^ a b Delepeleire 2004, section 3.c.1.
^ a b c Delepeleire 2004, section 3.c.2.
^ Delepeleire 2004, section 3.c.3.
^ Nagtglas 1863, pp. 6-11.
^ Nagtglas 1863, pp. 6-7.
^ Van der Meer 1990, chapter 2.8: Gouverneur Daendels: kolonisatie-plannen
^ a b Nagtglas 1863, p. 7.
^ Nagtglas 1863, p. 8.
^ Nagtglas 1863, pp. 10-11.
^ Nagtglas 1863, p. 11.
^ Yarak 2003.
^ Feinberg 1989, pp. 85, 95.
^ DeCorse 2001, p. 35f.
^ Feinberg 1989, pp. 81–85.
^ Van Dantzig 1999, p. 60.
^ Feinberg 1989, p. 123.
^ a b DeCorse 2001, p. 37.
^ Dutch return head of Ghana king, BBC News
^ "Officieel bezoek Prins van Oranje en Prinses Máxima aan Ghana". Het Koninklijk Huis. 2002-04-14. Archived from the original on 22 May 2013. Retrieved 19 April 2012.
^ Mark Duursma (2002-04-18). "Kroonprinselijk paar sluit succesvol bezoek aan Ghana af". NRC Handelsblad. Archived from the original on 24 April 2013. Retrieved 21 April 2012.
^ Marcel Goedhart (2011-07-13). "Nazaat van een Nederlandse slavenhandelaar". NTR. Retrieved 13 April 2012.
^ Dutch Ministry of General Affairs - Speech Balkenende at a government lunch on occasion of state visit President Kufuor of Ghana
^ Doortmont & Smit 2007, p. 325
DeCorse, Christopher R. (2001). An archeology of Elmina: Africans and Europeans on the Gold Coast, 1400–1900. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press.
Doortmont, Michel R.; Smit, Jinna (2007). Sources for the mutual history of Ghana and the Netherlands. An annotated guide to the Dutch archives relating to Ghana and West Africa in the Nationaal Archief, 1593-1960s. Leiden: Brill. ISBN 978-90-04-15850-4.
Feinberg, H.M. (1976). "There Was an Elmina Note, But...". The International Journal of African Historical Studies. 9 (4): 618–630. JSTOR 217016.
Feinberg, H.M. (1989). Africans and Europeans in West Africa: Elminans and Dutchmen on the Gold Coast During the Eighteenth Century. Philadelphia: American Philosophical Society.
Postma, Johannes M. (1990). The Dutch in the Atlantic Slave Trade, 1600-1815. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-36585-6.
Van Dantzig, Albert (1999). Forts and Castles of Ghana. Accra: Sedco Publishing. ISBN 9964-72-010-6.
Yarak, Larry W. (1986). "The "Elmina Note:" Myth and Reality in Asante-Dutch Relations". History in Africa. 13 (1): 363–382. JSTOR 3171552.
Yarak, Larry W. (2003). "A West African Cosmopolis: Elmina (Ghana) in the Nineteenth Century". Seascapes, Littoral Cultures, and Trans-Oceanic Exchanges. Archived from the original on 29 March 2010. Retrieved 23 April 2012.
In Dutch[edit]
Adhin, J. H. (1961). "De immigratie van Hindostanen en de afstand van de Goudkust". Nieuwe West-Indische Gids. 41 (1): 4–13. doi:10.1163/22134360-90002334.
Delepeleire, Y. (2004). Nederlands Elmina: een socio-economische analyse van de Tweede Westindische Compagnie in West-Afrika in 1715. Gent: Universiteit Gent.
Gramberg, J.S.G. (1868). "De Goudkust". De Gids. 32: 383–407.
Nagtglas, Cornelis Johannes Marius (1863). Een woord aangaande de vraag: "Wat moet Nederland doen met zijne bezittingen ter kuste van Guinea?". The Hague: H.C. Susan, C.Hz.
Van der Meer, Dirk (1990). De goudkust na de slavenhandel: Plannen om de Nederlandse Bezittingen ter kuste van Guinea rendabel te maken. Utrecht: Universiteit Utrecht.
Van Kessel, Ineke (2001). "Driehonderd jaar Nederlands-Ghanese handelsbetrekkingen". Historisch Nieuwsblad. 2001 (4).
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Dutch Gold Coast.
WorldStatesmen - Ghana - Dutch Gold Coast
Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Ghana
Forts of the former European colonial powers on the Gold Coast
Brandenburg-Prussian forts
Groß Friedrichsburg
British forts
Metal Cross
Komenda
William (lighthouse)
Tantumquery
Winneba
Danish forts
Frederiksborg
Augustaborg
Kongensten
Prinsensten
Carlsborg
Dutch forts
Elize Carthago
Ruychaver
Coenraadsburg
Egya
Crèvecoeur
Singelenburgh
Portuguese forts
Santo António de Axim
São Sebastião de Shema
São Francisco Xavier
Swedish forts
Dutch Empire
Colonies and trading posts of the Dutch East India Company (1602–1798)
Governorate General
Governorates
Banda Islands
Cape Colony
Northeast coast of Java
Suratte
West coast of Sumatra
Cheribon
Preanger
Opperhoofd settlements
Dejima
Colonies and trading posts of the Dutch West India Company (1621–1792)
Colonies in the Americas
Berbice 1
Curaçao and Dependencies
Essequibo
New Netherland
Pomeroon
Sint Eustatius and Dependencies
Surinam 2
Trading posts in Africa
Arguin
Loango-Angola
Senegambia
Slave Coast
1 Governed by the Society of Berbice
2 Governed by the Society of Suriname
Settlements of the Noordsche Compagnie (1614–1642)
Smeerenburg
Colonies of the Kingdom of the Netherlands (1815–1962)
Dutch East Indies
Curaçao and Dependencies 3
3 Became constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Netherlands; Suriname gained full independence in 1975, Curaçao and Dependencies was renamed to the Netherlands Antilles, which was eventually dissolved in 2010.
Kingdom of the Netherlands (1954–present)
Constituent countries
Special municipalities of the Netherlands
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Dutch_Gold_Coast&oldid=881719206"
Former colonies in Africa
Former Dutch colonies
Former settlements and colonies of the Dutch West India Company
Dutch colonisation in Africa
Dutch West India Company
17th century in Ghana
History of West Africa
States and territories established in 1598
1872 disestablishments in Africa
1598 establishments in the Dutch Empire
1872 disestablishments in the Dutch Empire
Ghana–Netherlands relations
Articles with Dutch-language external links
Ghana articles missing geocoordinate data
All articles needing coordinates
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11047
|
__label__cc
| 0.552978
| 0.447022
|
Engineering > News > How WashU’s Office Of Technology Management Is Rebooting The Tech Transfer Office
How WashU’s Office Of Technology Management is rebooting the tech transfer office
Dec 29, 2016• by Tanya Yatzeck, eqstl.com
Like most startup organizations at some point in their lifecycle, Washington University’s Office of Technology Management (OTM) is in the midst of a pivot. Technology transfer as it’s known in the academic world is the process of licensing intellectual property (IP) from the university to the marketplace, and has been going on since at least the beginning of higher education. Located on the first floor of the 4240 Duncan Avenue Cortex Innovation Community (CIC) building, WashU’s OTM is a natural contributor to the innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystem in St. Louis and is in the process of changing its mission, its work and its customer base.
Nichole Mercier, Managing Director of the OTM, joined the university in 2015 and has been facilitating changes since she arrived that were originally inspired by Chancellor Mark Wrighton’s groundbreaking 2011 address dedicating resources to innovation and entrepreneurship. When Mercier arrived, the office functioned like a traditional technology transfer office–focused on business development, licensing and revenue sharing. Mercier sees her office as expanding on those functions by providing exceptional customer service, providing greater transparency regarding OTM-sponsored products in the marketplace and telling the office’s stories in a new way.
“My vision is to define how we can pair cutting edge university research with expertise and exceptional customer service from my office in order to create a pipeline of opportunities that can be beneficial to society.”
Who is the OTM and what does it do?
OTM staff consists of scientists from industry or academia. In addition, the OTM has a team dedicated to the School of Engineering & Applied Science, and people dedicated to the School of Arts & Sciences. The office is also working to engage the other schools with which they have traditionally not worked, such as the Sam Fox School of Design & Visual Arts.
Mercier said, “My role is to energize the team and to set the strategy to allow them to excel at what they do best, which is eliciting ideas from our inventor population.” The inventor population includes faculty, undergraduates, graduate students and post docs. Mercier’s staff then facilitates discussions of the inventor population’s ideas on the industry side, forming partnerships of university and industry contributors.
The OTM works in concert with the university’s Skandalaris Center for Entrepreneurship. The Center provides training to less-experienced entrepreneurs. This year they are co-hosting the WashU Patent Challenge for teams of students to compete for cash prizes using existing patents that haven’t yet made it to the marketplace. Mercier said, “University technology can linger on the vine and die there, and it shouldn’t. It’s best if we can put everything into play. The patent challenge gives us the ability to re-look at some of those things that are on the vine.”
A flagship product of the OTM is a quick start license. Mercier said, “We’re really excited because it takes the unnecessary discussion about many of the little pieces that may or may not come to fruition with a startup company. It allows us to launch them more quickly and to focus on the important pieces, which are ‘How are you going to get funding?’ and ‘What’s your plan to develop this product?'”
The Quick Start License dispenses with time consuming negotiations about reimbursement for patent costs, specific milestones, insurance and indemnification. Instead, this approach relies on the input of the venture community. Mercier said, “If it’s good enough for them, we’re going to go on the premise that these terms are good and you will get funded, which has always been the concern of the startup company. We’ll focus on the things that are important. It gives us the opportunity to have really deep discussions: How are they going to develop it, what does their development timeline look like and do they understand how much money they’re going to need to be able to get to where they say in the timeframe they are proposing. The conversations are much more meaningful, and we have a tool to make it really easy.”
This approach saves a significant amount of time. Mercier said, “We have done the quick-start license in as little as 30 days, and on average we have seen a 25% reduction in the time it takes to close a start-up license overall. We are working on processes now to make more strides toward shortening the time a deal takes to close.”
Startups do themselves a favor with the quick start license, which includes a flat 2% royalty, and only if the technology is patented.
Greater visibility to impact on society
Due to licensing concerns, it’s often difficult to know the impact the products coming out of the OTM are having. Mercier said, “People don’t know that WashU had a huge hand in finding the test for a heart attack as we see it today. We don’t talk about the technology we have placed in the market and so we’re doing some things to be able to talk about those more openly.”
The OTM is embarking on an effort to get the permission necessary to publish a catalog of products on the market that it has facilitated. Mercier said, “The outcome will be a visual pictorial of what we have in play in the marketplace. Some we can’t talk about, but some we can. It’s important to be able to catalog what those shots on goal are. ” Mercier hopes to complete the catalog by summer of 2017.
Telling stories in a different way
Possibly the most significant change to the way the OTM is operating is the effort it is making to tell its stories. Mercier said, “I can tell you that we have this incredible technology that we’ve placed with Company X and we made $5 million off of it last year. Or I can tell you about Acera Surgical, started by Matt MacEwan, a former MD/PhD student. The company invented a fiber mesh that allowed a woman who had an inoperable brain tumor to have surgery. The tumor had been inoperable because they couldn’t close up the membrane that was under the cranium and our product made that possible. Since the tumor was on her optic nerve, the surgery also saved her eyesight. It’s that kind of story that has an impact.”
For more information, explore the OTM website.
Back to News Directory
Office of Technology Management
Info for WashU Inventors
Educational Opportunties
Entrepreneurship at WashU Engineering
Marshall, Stormo to receive 2019 faculty achievement awards
HIVE team seeks to help with patient compliance with home treatment
Washington University, Saint Louis University partner to grow region’s economy
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11049
|
__label__cc
| 0.733061
| 0.266939
|
extrabaggs
By Andrew Baggarly
As baseball season gives way to the Christmas rush, get your signed copy of “Giant Splash” delivered to your doorstep
November 5, 2015 December 18, 2015 / andrewbaggarly / Leave a comment
PLEASE NOTE: At this point, I am no longer able to process orders until after the holidays. If you are still interested in signed copies, by all means please place your order but be advised that books won’t ship until January. Of course, if you were planning to give the book as a holiday gift, you can always purchase it (or the e-book) from Amazon or your local bookseller. I’ll be happy to sign copies if you can catch me at the ballpark. Thanks so much for your interest and support! -AB
The Giants couldn’t beat the odds in 2015, as injuries prevented them from defending their World Series championship. But there’s no understating how many tremendous baseball moments we’ve seen — many of them in October — in 15 seasons at AT&T Park.
They are all collected in “Giant Splash,” which goes behind the scenes while recreating the drama from Matt Cain’s perfect game, Barry Bonds’ 756th home run, Travis Ishikawa’s pennant-clinching shot, the greatest save of J.T. Snow’s career, Tim Lincecum’s electricity and everything in between.
It’s a compendium of memories that any Giants fan would enjoy revisiting, and a perfect primer for anyone who jumped on the bandwagon within the last year or five. And now it’s easier than ever to get your own signed copy, or buy them as gifts for your favorite Giants fans.
Just visit andrewbaggarly.com and click the mail icon in the lower left corner to send me a message along with your mailing address and instructions on an inscription. I’ll reply with a Paypal invoice. Books are $32, which covers postage and mailing supplies.
“Giant Splash” book events coming up May 30 in Mountain View and May 31 San Francisco
May 22, 2015 / andrewbaggarly / Leave a comment
The “Giant Splash” book tour marches on and the next stop will be convenient for Dinesh and Gilfoyle, should they have time to stop by.
I’ll be at Red Rock Coffee Co. in Mountain View (easily accessible from the Caltrain stop on Castro St.) on Saturday, May 30 from 12-2 p.m. signing copies of “Giant Splash.” I will have copies on hand for sale ($25, cash only) and also will have a limited number of copies of “A Band of MiSFits” in recently released paperback form ($13).
If you already have one or both books, by all means bring them along and I’ll be happy to sign those as well.
On Sunday, May 31, I’ll be on the front steps of MoMo’s at 2nd and King, directly across from the Orlando Cepeda statue at AT&T Park. The game against the Atlanta Braves begins at 1:05 p.m. so come early to stock up on both words and pictures of the Giants’ incredible run to the World Series title. I’ll have a supply of books and I’m pleased to tell you that I’ll be joined by KNBR morning host Brian Murphy and award-winning photographer Brad Mangin. They’ll be meeting fans and signing copies of “Championship Blood,” which is somehow even bigger, better and more vivid than their first two outstanding coffee-table collaborations following the 2010 and 2012 World Series-winning seasons.
If you aren’t familiar with “Giant Splash,” it’s a greatest hits book of the most memorable games in 15 seasons at AT&T Park. Would you believe Giants fans have seen four World Series staged there, three pennants clinched (two in walk-off fashion), two no-hitters, a perfect game, the establishment of baseball’s single-season and career home run records, an All-Star Game and more unbelievably thrilling moments than a franchise has any right to expect in a full century, let alone a decade and a half?
And that it all happened in an idyllic setting that is the envy of every other major league team?
The book is in wide release now and I’ll have more signings to announce in the near future, but fair warning, these will be the last opportunities before Father’s Day — and Dad has enough ties, don’t you think?
Sacramento friends! Come out Friday May 8 for a “Giant Splash” signing at the Limelight bar and cafe
May 3, 2015 / andrewbaggarly / Leave a comment
Sacramento is Giants territory, and not just because their Triple-A franchise relocated there. It’s astounding how many baseball fans are clad in orange and black from Placerville to Dixon and everywhere in between (and beyond, too).
I wasn’t able to have a book signing in Sacramento in 2011, when “A Band of MiSFits” came out. But I’m happy to announce that I’ll be at the newly renovated Limelight Bar and Cafe on Friday, May 8 from 5-7 p.m. signing copies of “Giant Splash.” I will have copies on hand for sale ($25, cash only) and also will have a limited number of copies of “ABOM” in recently released paperback form ($13).
After 7 p.m., I’ll head on over to the River Cats game to watch Adam Duvall, Jarrett Parker, Hunter Strickland and all the other Giants prospects.
The book is in wide release now and I’ll have more signings to announce in the near future.
One on the horizon: a co-event with Brian Murphy and Brad Mangin, collaborators on the gorgeous “Championship Blood”, for a signing on the front steps of MoMo’s at 2nd and King across the street from AT&T Park on Sunday, May 31 in the hours before the Giants play a Sunday afternoon game.
I’m lining up a few corporate events as well, and always welcome the opportunity to meet with your employees or clients to talk about the Giants’ run of greatness and the importance of teamwork.
Finally, I’m looking for a few more bar/restaurant/baseball hangouts in the East Bay and San Jose areas to hold signing events. Please contact me if you’re interested.
Sliding on over…
February 21, 2015 / andrewbaggarly / 5 Comments
In case you hadn’t heard, I’m beyond pleased to share that I’m back at the San Jose Mercury News/Bay Area News Group as the San Francisco Giants beat reporter.
Once I get my bearings here in Arizona, I’ll figure out a way I can cross-post everything from the new-old Extra Baggs/Giants Extra blog so everything appears in this space as well. Until then, you can find our coverage here and here.
If you’re interested in the upcoming book, Giant Splash, I’ll make sure to provide updates here. More book news: MiSFits is being reprinted in paperback form, and should be available very soon! The new cover looks great.
Thanks so much for all the words of support in the comments here. It’s the best kind of fuel I could hope to stick in my tank as another baseball season gets underway. It’s my privilege and pleasure to cover it for you.
December 5, 2014 December 7, 2014 / andrewbaggarly / 29 Comments
The baseball offseason is a time for roster shuffling and reevaluation. So with the winter meetings about to start up, I’d like to pass along a little personnel update of my own.
This past season was my last as the Giants Insider at Comcast SportsNet Bay Area.
I’m excited to tell you that I’m busy writing a new book about the Giants’ amazing run these past few years while considering new directions and looking forward to other opportunities that might come my way. I’m particularly enthused about dusting off the old “Extra Baggs” blog, now hosted here, and return to the kind of news coverage and freeform analysis Giants fans grew to expect from me long before I stepped in front of the cameras. Trust me, I still have a lot of opinions – and plenty of one-liners – and I’ll keep sharing them with you in one form or another.
I’ll also continue to update my Twitter account (soon to be seamlessly transitioned to a different handle) with Giants news. And you’ll probably hear me on KNBR from time to time. But mostly I will be writing, writing, writing in an aim to have a new Giants book on store shelves by opening day.
I leave my friends at CSN on good terms and grateful for the experience these past three years. CSN provided me with a valuable opportunity to expand my skills as a multi-platform reporter, partner with talented and driven professionals, and introduce myself to a whole new segment of the Giants fan base. After peeking behind the curtain, I have a far deeper appreciation for how much hard work and dedication it takes from so many people to put together such polished broadcasts, shows and specials. Most important, despite their financial relationship with the Giants, nobody at CSN ever censored me or told me what I could or couldn’t write. And when I needed my bosses to stand behind a controversial story, they did. Every single time.
But with a tip of the cap, it was time to move on, and I wish them well.
Yes, even Ratto.
Please allow me to express my gratitude to every passionate, enthusiastic baseball fan who stopped to say hello, offered a word of encouragement or came to a book signing the past few years. Even if I’ve often been out of breath to get to the next TV hit or file the next news story, please know that every one of these interactions has been meaningful and invigorating to me.
Certainly, I look forward to many more.
Jeffrey on Sliding on over…
Jim Matzas on Sliding on over…
Scott Andrews on Roster moves
Pablo on Roster moves
Belinda Griffin on Sliding on over…
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11051
|
__label__cc
| 0.73412
| 0.26588
|
Posts Tagged ‘business’
By Michelle C. Danko | June 7, 2018 | 0
Willow Creek recently announced their Global Leadership Summit for October 18-19, 2018. Individuals can either attend at Willow Creek, or at numerous hosting sites globally (600+ locations) for a telecast conference. Each year, 445,000 people attend this two-day leadership training conference, and leave energized with incredible ideas to implement into their businesses. Attendees will receive…
5 Relationship Skills That Help Enlightened Business Leaders Thrive
By Anonymous Individual | August 16, 2017 | 0
Written by Sallie J. Sherman. Reprinted with permission. We may be well into an age of enlightenment in the world of business leadership, with leaders focusing on relationships and team building rather than issuing edicts from the corner office. “Enlightened business leaders are emerging as a force for growth in an increasingly competitive business world,”…
“Mully” Depicts An Inspirational True Life Rags To Riches Story
“Mully” is a movie that is set to release October 3-5, 2017 in a special three day event. “Mully” depicts the life of Charles M. Mully, and has been deemed a true “rags to riches” tale. Charles Mully overcame the odds. Despite being abandoned at the age of sin in Kenya, he arose from poverty…
Increase Your Customer Retention By Providing Positive Experiences
By Lameck Otim | June 16, 2017 | 0
There are a number of highly rated leadership skills that contribute to the success of a business, some important aspects include planning, strategy, recruitment etc. I know that all of these are important and need to be given the requisite attention by any leader to see success in his business. However in this article, I…
7 Insights Into Servant Leadership In Business Or In The Home
By Rudy Swigart | April 29, 2017 | 0
As leaders, in a business environment or at home with your children, it’s important that your leadership toolbox is full and robust so that you can access the tools that you need in any given situation. If you’re familiar with the concept of Situational Leadership, then you’ll understand the practical application of the “when and…
Success Is In The Journey, But We Will Surely Make Mistakes Along The Way
By Lameck Otim | March 23, 2017 | 0
I was recently facilitating a sales training workshop and talking about the importance of adapting the right opening technique to develop a relationship with a prospect. As we debated the challenges a sales person is prone to meet and how the appropriate opening technique sets an experienced sales person ahead of the pack; one of the…
Accountability Vacuum: Who’s Responsibility Is It, Really?
I have seen that one of the causes of frustration in the workplace is the hopelessness of co-workers trying hold each other accountable. A Workplace Accountability Study reported in talentculture.com revealed that 82% of respondents have no ability to hold others accountable, but 91% of people rank accountability as one of the top development needs…
Why King Solomon Was Wise to Ask God For Wisdom
And Why You Should As Well! Have you ever wondered why God rewarded King Solomon for requesting wisdom and why he prospered? Furthermore, do we fully understand the function of God’s wisdom in our lives, and the importance of seeking it? Wisdom boils down to one simple thought: If you knew that someone had all…
Elevare Jewlery Promotes Bold Message of Hope and Faith
By Vernita Simmons | October 10, 2016 | 0
Angela Zatopek is a TV personality and reporter contributing to several networks, previously featured on Fox Sports, NBC, Miss Texas USA and currently as an International Reporter for programming with the Christian Broadcasting Network. In 2013, she was the winning contestant on the NBC show executive produced by Eva Longoria and hosted by Giuliana and…
Discover Your Leadership Style And Your Strengths
By Lisa Carter | September 20, 2016 | 0
By L. Carter Managers stand out in our minds for various reasons. Some are task-oriented and just want to see the work get done. Other managers are more people-oriented and not as good at keeping those same people on task. Some managers are a good mix of both, while others are a bit too much…
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11052
|
__label__wiki
| 0.960471
| 0.960471
|
Disney, Marvel Studios and Lucasfilm Recap from D23 EXPO 2017
Yesterday, I shared with you all the exciting announcements and information that came from Pixar and Walt Disney Studios regarding upcoming animated films. Today, I have a recap for you with the latest information regarding the live-action movie releases from Disney, Marvel Studios, and Lucasfilm. Walt Disney Studios Chairman Alan Horn hosted the event that showcased surprise live and video appearances from stars and filmmakers.
ANAHEIM, CA – JULY 15: The Walt Disney Studios Chairman Alan Horn took part today in the Walt Disney Studios live action presentation at Disney’s D23 EXPO 2017 in Anaheim, Calif. (Photo by Jesse Grant/Getty Images for Disney) *** Local Caption *** Alan Horn
“At The Walt Disney Studios, we could not do what we do without the support of the many Disney, Marvel, and Star Wars fans around the world,” said Alan Horn, Chairman, The Walt Disney Studios. “We feel like our fans are a part of the family, and the D23 Expo is our chance to give a little something extra back to them.”
After welcoming the crowd to D23 Expo 2017, Horn introduced Sean Bailey, President of Walt Disney Studios Motion Picture Production, to present overviews of the Disney live-action slate. Later Horn returned to the stage to introduce writer/director Rian Johnson for a look at Lucasfilm’s upcoming film and ended by introducing Kevin Feige, President of Marvel Studios, for a rousing presentation to close the event.
A WRINKLE IN TIME (#WrinkleInTime)
Sean Bailey welcomed A WRINKLE IN TIME cast members Oprah Winfrey, Reese Witherspoon, Mindy Kaling and Chris Pine along with newcomer Storm Reid and visionary director Ava DuVernay to the D23 stage, where they thrilled fans with a first look at the film’s teaser trailer and teaser poster. The film, which is an epic adventure based on Madeleine L’Engle’s timeless classic, takes audiences across dimensions of time and space, examining the nature of darkness versus light and ultimately, the triumph of love.
Here is the new teaser trailer for A WRINKLE IN TIME:
Directed by Ava DuVernay from a screenplay by Jennifer Lee based upon the beloved novel by Madeleine L’Engle, A WRINKLE IN TIME is produced by Jim Whitaker and Catherine Hand with Doug Merrifield serving as executive producer. The film also stars: Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Michael Peña, Levi Miller, Deric McCabe, André Holland and Rowan Blanchard, with Zach Galifianakis.
Meg Murry (Storm Reid) is a typical middle school student struggling with issues of self-worth who is desperate to fit in. As the daughter of two world-renowned physicists, she is intelligent and uniquely gifted, as is Meg’s younger brother Charles Wallace (Deric McCabe), but she has yet to realize it for herself. Making matters even worse is the baffling disappearance of Mr. Murry (Chris Pine), which torments Meg and has left her mother (Gugu Mbatha-Raw) heartbroken. Charles Wallace introduces Meg and her fellow classmate Calvin (Levi Miller) to three celestial guides—Mrs. Which (Oprah Winfrey), Mrs. Whatsit (Reese Witherspoon) and Mrs. Who (Mindy Kaling)—who have journeyed to Earth to help search for their father, and together they set off on their formidable quest. Traveling via a wrinkling of time and space known as tessering, they are soon transported to worlds beyond their imagination where they must confront a powerful evil. To make it back home to Earth, Meg must look deep within herself and embrace her flaws to harness the strength necessary to defeat the darkness closing in on them.
A WRINKLE IN TIME opens in theatres everywhere on March 9th, 2018!
Sean Bailey shared with D23 Expo 2017 fans Disney’s all-new take on a classic story in THE NUTCRACKER AND THE FOUR REALMS. Starring Keira Knightley as the Sugar Plum Fairy, newcomer Mackenzie Foy as Clara, Helen Mirren as Mother Ginger, Morgan Freeman as godfather Drosselmeyer, and featuring a special performance by Misty Copeland, the movie is inspired by E.T.A. Hoffmann’s classic tale. THE NUTCRACKER AND THE FOUR REALMS is directed by Lasse Hallström and produced by Mark Gordon and Larry Franco
The film largely takes place in a strange and mysterious parallel world—home to Land of Snowflakes, Land of Flowers and Land of Sweets. But it’s the ominous Fourth Realm where Clara must take on a tyrant called Mother Ginger as well as a gang of mice who’ve stolen a coveted key from Clara.
Said Bailey, “The Mouse King is made up of thousands of mice—a cutting-edge CG creation. But we wanted him to move in a way that would be wonderfully surprising and incredibly cool, so we called on Lil Buck to provide the style of dance that defines the character. He is so talented and the way he makes this character move is unbelievable.”
Los Angeles-based dancer Lil Buck hit the stage at D23 Expo 2017 to demonstrate the kind of street dancing—called jookin—that informed the way his character moves in the film. The performance earned a standing ovation.
THE NUTCRACKER AND THE FOUR REALMS open in theatres everywhere on November 2nd, 2018!
MARY POPPINS RETURNS (#MaryPoppinsReturns)
To the delight of D23 fans, Emily Blunt, the star of Disney’s sequel MARY POPPINS RETURNS, took to the stage with director/producer Rob Marshall to talk about the eagerly-anticipated return of the practically-perfect nanny. In this original musical sequel to the 1964 “Mary Poppins,” Mary and her friend Jack, an optimistic street lamplighter played by Lin-Manuel Miranda, embark on entirely new adventures with the next generation of the Banks family to help them find the joy and wonder missing in their lives.
Blunt and Marshall answered questions from Sean Bailey, with Blunt offering insight on how she made the character her own. “I needed to try to pay homage to Julie Andrews, but carve out a new space for myself,” said Blunt. “And we were very loyal to the books.” Rob Marshall shared, “I was incredibly honored to be approached by Disney about directing a sequel. This is a brand-new original film musical from top to bottom, which is very rare, and it is a wonderful opportunity to create something specifically for the screen.” D23 attendees were then treated to an exclusive first look at the film, which was accompanied by a live orchestra performing original new music from the film conducted by composer Marc Shaiman, eliciting thunderous applause.
P.L. Travers first introduced the world to the no-nonsense nanny in her 1934 children’s book “Mary Poppins.” However, the subsequent adventures of Mary Poppins remained only on the pages of the seven other P.L. Travers’ books…until now. MARY POPPINS RETURNS is drawn from the wealth of material in these additional books. The film also stars Ben Whishawas Michael Banks, Emily Mortimer as Jane Banks, Julie Walters as the Banks’ housekeeper Ellen, with Colin Firth as Fidelity Fiduciary’s William Weatherall Wilkins and Meryl Streepas Mary’s eccentric cousin Topsy. Angela Lansbury appears as the Balloon Lady and Dick Van Dyke as Mr. Dawes Jr., the retired chairman of the bank now run by Firth’s character.MARY POPPINS RETURNS is directed by Rob Marshall. The screenplay is by David Magee and the screen story is by Magee & Marshall & John DeLuca based on The Mary Poppins Stories by P.L. Travers. The producers are Marshall, DeLuca and Marc Platt with Callum McDougall serving as executive producer, and the music is by Marc Shaiman with songs by Shaiman and Scott Wittman.
Mary Poppins (Emily Blunt) returns to the Banks home after many years and uses her magical skills to help the now grown up Michael and Jane rediscover the joy and wonder missing in their lives in MARY POPPINS RETURNS, directed by Rob Marshall.
MARY POPPINS RETURNS opens in theaters everywhere on December 25th, 2018!
DUMBO (#Dumbo)
D23 Expo 2017 fans were greeted from across the pond by visionary filmmaker Tim Burton, who is busy directing his next project—a live-action reimagining of Disney’s 1941 animated classic DUMBO. “’Dumbo’ was always one of my favorite Disney films,” said Burton. “We’re trying to give it the same heart, feeling and emotion that we all loved about the original.”
The film stars Colin Farrell as Holt Farrier, a former circus star and war-veteran charged with the care of a newborn elephant whose oversized ears make him a laughingstock of an already struggling circus. Nico Parker and Finley Hobbins were cast as Holt’s children, who discover that Dumbo can fly. Danny DeVito portrays circus owner Max Medici who tries to capitalize on the novelty. And Michael Keaton is persuasive entrepreneur V.A. Vandevere who swoops in with aerial artist Colette Marchant, portrayed by Eva Green, to make Dumbo a star. Katterli Frauenfelder, Derek Frey, Ehren Kruger and Justin Springer are producing from a screenplay by Kruger. Filmed entirely in England, DUMBO is utilizing state-of-the-art visual effects to portray the big-eared elephant and many of his animal counterparts.
DUMBO flies into theaters everywhere on March 29th, 2019!
THE LION KING (#TheLionKing)
Alan Horn joined Sean Bailey to surprise the D23 Expo crowd with a special look at director Jon Favreau’s new live-action take on Disney’s 1994 classic animated film THE LION KING. The technology team behind the movie are introducing all-new filmmaking techniques that promise striking visuals never before seen on the big screen—bringing celebrated characters to life in a whole new way.
Favreau, who was behind 2016’s blockbuster live-action remake of THE JUNGLE BOOK, joined Bailey on stage. “This is a story that belongs to everyone who grew up with the original film,” said Favreau. “I wanted to demonstrate that we could be respectful of the source material while bringing it to life using new techniques and technologies. We wanted to do something special for the D23 Expo audience and give them a first look at what we’re up to.”
THE LION KING is one of the biggest animated films of all time with a lifetime global box office gross of $968.8 million. It won Academy Awards® for the original song “Can You Feel the Love Tonight” (Elton John, Tim Rice) and original score (Hans Zimmer). In 1997, the stage production inspired by the film made its Broadway debut, subsequently winning six Tony® Awards; 19 years later, it remains one of Broadway’s biggest hits.
Starring Donald Glover as Simba, and James Earl Jones as—naturally—Mufasa, Favreau’s live-action version of THE LION KING is produced by Favreau, Jeffrey Silver and Karen Gilchrist.
THE LION KING roars into theaters everywhere on July 19th, 2019!
STAR WARS: THE LAST JEDI (#StarWars, #TheLastJedi)
Alan Horn welcomed Rian Johnson, the writer and director of the latest chapter in the Skywalker saga, STAR WARS: THE LAST JEDI. Johnson thrilled the audience by introducing talent from the film, including Mark Hamill, Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Gwendoline Christie, Kelly Marie Tran, Laura Dern and Benicio Del Toro.
The audience was then treated to a special sneak peek of behind-the-scenes footage from the highly anticipated movie:
In Lucasfilm’s STAR WARS: THE LAST JEDI, the Skywalker saga continues as the heroes of THE FORCE AWAKENS join the galactic legends in an epic adventure that unlocks age-old mysteries of the Force and shocking revelations of the past.
The movie stars Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, Adam Driver, Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, Lupita Nyong’o, Andy Serkis, Domhnall Gleeson, Anthony Daniels, Gwendoline Christie, Kelly Marie Tran, Laura Dern and Benicio Del Toro.
STAR WARS: THE LAST JEDI is written and directed by Rian Johnson. Kathleen Kennedy and Ram Bergman are producing, with J.J. Abrams, Tom Karnowski and Jason McGatlin serving as executive producers.
STAR WARS: THE LAST JEDI opens in theaters everywhere on December 15th!
AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR (#Avengers, #InfinityWar)
For the finale, Horn brought Kevin Feige to the stage for Marvel Studios’ AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR. To start the ball rolling, Feige unveiled the Marvel Studios’ official 10thanniversary logo to the excited audience. Marvel Studios’ 10th anniversary begins with the release of AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR and covers an impressive decade of Marvel Studios’ blockbusters released from 2008 through the AVENGERS untitled film in 2019. In celebration of the anniversary, fans can expect exclusive consumer products and collectibles, along with in-theater events and much more in the coming months.
Then, in a surprise for all that brought the house down, talent from the film made a grand entrance, including Robert Downey Jr., Chris Hemsworth, Mark Ruffalo, Anthony Mackie, Elizabeth Olsen, Paul Bettany, Benedict Cumberbatch, Tom Holland, Chadwick Boseman, Josh Brolin, Don Cheadle, Sebastian Stan, Dave Bautista, Karen Gillan and Pom Klementieff. To top it all off, the thrilled fans got an exclusive early look at footage from the movie, introduced by Joe Russo, one of the directors.
An unprecedented cinematic journey ten years in the making and spanning the entire Marvel Cinematic Universe, Marvel Studios’ AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR brings to the screen the ultimate, deadliest showdown of all time. The Avengers and their Super Hero allies must be willing to sacrifice all in an attempt to defeat the powerful Thanos before his blitz of devastation and ruin puts an end to the universe.
Anthony and Joe Russo direct the film, which is produced by Kevin Feige. Louis D’Esposito, Victoria Alonso, Michael Grillo and Stan Lee are the executive producers. Christopher Markus & Stephen McFeely wrote the screenplay.
AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR opens in theaters everywhere on May 4th, 2018!
Sean Bailey confirmed and revealed new films underway at the studio:
MULAN (#Mulan)
A live-action take on Disney’s 1998 feature, which will be helmed by Niki Caro (“McFarland, USA,” “Whale Rider”).
JUNGLE CRUISE (#JungleCruise)
A live-action nod to the popular theme park ride. The studio is working with Dwayne Johnson, recently heard as Maui in MOANA, on the project.
ALADDIN (#Aladdin)
Directed by Guy Ritchie, with Mena Massoud as Aladdin, Naomi Scott as Jasmine and Will Smith as the Genie.
Make sure you stay tuned for more information regarding these great live action films. I will keep you updated as soon as I learn more and can’t wait to share it with you.
Filed Under: Disney, Entertainment, Movies Tagged With: d23, D23 Expo, Disney, entertainment, lucasfilms, marvel studios, movies
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11053
|
__label__wiki
| 0.648407
| 0.648407
|
HOLOCAUST DEATH CAMP BLUEPRINTS GIVEN TO ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER NETANYAHU
In Germany today, Israeli PM Netanyahu was given actual, original blueprints for the building of the Holocaust death camps.
"These plans remind us of a crime that with the passing of time seems ever more incomprehensible....plans of hell."
Excerpts from a Reuters story: “Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on a visit to Germany on Thursday that one lesson Israel drew from the Holocaust was that threats to its existence could not go unchallenged….German journalists handed the Israeli leader, in Berlin for talks with Chancellor Angela Merkel, a portfolio of 29 plans from the Auschwitz death camp discovered last year. With his wife Sara at his side, Netanyahu said her father’s family had been nearly wiped out by Nazis in World War Two. ‘We cannot allow evil to prepare the mass death of innocents. The most important thing to do is to nip it in the bud,’ said Netanyahu, alluding to past threats by Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to wipe Israel off the map….
“Before returning to Israel later on Thursday, Netanyahu is to visit the site of the 1942 Wannsee conference in Berlin, where Nazi leaders drew up plans for their so-called ‘Final Solution‘ to exterminate Jews. Kai Diekmann, editor of Bild, Germany’s top-selling newspaper, said as he handed Netanyahu the plans that there could never be a real normalization of German-Israeli relations after the Holocaust. ‘These plans remind us of a crime that with the passing of time seems ever more incomprehensible,’ Diekmann said, adding they were the ‘original blueprints for the most inhumane project in mankind … the plans of hell.’ Bild newspaper has said the documents, which include architects’ drawings of rooms including one marked ‘Gaskammer,’ or gas chamber, are believed to have been discovered when a Berlin flat was cleaned out. Accompanying Netanyahu on his trip to Germany is a government minister who lost his father and other family members at Auschwitz-Birkenau, the biggest concentration camp where at least 1.1 million Jews were killed.”
« INSIDE THE REVOLUTION: THE POWERFUL STORY OF A PALESTINIAN REVIVALIST
FORMER ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER INDICTED: Plus, Sept 1 last day to register for Israel tour »
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11056
|
__label__wiki
| 0.816779
| 0.816779
|
Settlement Report: April 26, 2019
To subscribe to this report, please click here.
Israeli Court Reaffirms: Settlers Must Vacate Palestinian Home in Hebron
Israel Confiscates Privately Palestinian Land for New Settler Bypass Road
Annexation in Play in Negotiations over Israel’s Next Coalition Government
OCHA: Palestinians in Downtown Hebron Suffer at Hands of Settlers & IDF; Israel Politicians: Time to Triple Number of Hebron Settlers
On April 22nd, the Jerusalem Magistrate’s Court rejected an appeal by settlers to stop their eviction from a Palestinian-owned home in Hebron, where they have been squatting for the past 18 years. In addition, the court ordered the settlers to pay the true homeowners – the Palestinian Bakri family – $160,000 (NIS 80,000) in damages. Unsurprisingly, the settlers’ attorney immediately announced that they will file another appeal with the Jerusalem District Court — delaying the implementation of the eviction order once again.
The Bakri family has spent the past 18 years petitioning Israeli police and Israeli courts to remove the settlers — cases the Bakri family has repeatedly won. Yet, the settlers have managed to repeatedly delay their eviction by exploiting every possible legal argument, no matter how absurd or contradictory: at different points over the past 18 years, settlers have argued in court that they had a rental agreement; that they purchased the home; that the plot of land was owned by a Jewish trust prior to 1948 and so they have a right to “reclaim” the property; and that regardless of ownership before they took possession, because they have now invested so much money in improving the property it now, under Ottoman Law, legally belongs to them. Underscoring the mockery settlers have made out of the Israeli justice system, when at one point some years ago the courts ruled that the settlers had to vacate, the settlers who at the time were occupying the Bakri home did, indeed, leave, only to be immediately replaced by other settlers — at which point the Israeli Attorney General told the Bakri family that if they wanted THESE settlers, out, they had to start eviction proceedings anew.
For a detailed timeline of the Bakri family’s 18-year saga — which to this day remains unresolved and justice remains denied — see this report from Peace Now.
On April 3rd, the Israeli Civil Administration signed a military order to confiscate privately owned Palestinian land in the West Bank in order to build a new bypass road, to be called the “Al-Arroub/Lev Yehuda bypass road,” approved by the Israeli government in 2012. The Palestinian villages Beit Ummar and Halul, whose land was taken for the road, are expected to file objections to the confiscation..
Map by Peace Now
While settlers claim the road is needed both for transportation and security reasons, construction of the road advances a far more important strategic objective for settlers: the establishment of a more direct route between Hebron-area settlements – particularly Kiryat Arba – and sovereign Israeli territory, without going through any Palestinian towns.
This is the second bypass road advanced by Israeli in the month of April; on April 9th, FMEP reported on the advancement of the Huwwara bypass road. Both of these new bypass roads are part of a 5-road package that Prime Minister Netanyahu, under immense pressure from the settler lobby, known as the Yesha Council, promised to build.
Peace Now explained:
“This expropriation is part of the government’s continued capitulation to the settlers to build bypass roads throughout the West Bank. The settlers know very well that without good roads the settlements will not be able to develop, but cynically demand they be built ‘for security reasons.’ In fact, the goal behind these roads is to expand the settlements and advance plans to annex the West Bank into Israel in order to prevent the chances of reaching a two-state solution.”
Settlers and the government say that the roads will be open to both Palestinian and Israeli traffic, but as Peace Now explains, “even if in some cases the Palestinians can benefit from these roads, they are not paved according to a planning conception of the Palestinian needs.” Indeed, bypass roads are not just oblivious to Palestinian needs; they are strategically located to constrict the growth of Palestinian villages, as explained at length by Americans for Peace Now. Moreover, history shows most bypass roads ultimately end up being settler-only routes, as B’Tselem extensively documented in its authoritative 2004 report, “Forbidden Roads: The Discriminatory West Bank Road Regime.”
The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) published a new report based on a survey of 280 Palestinian families living in the downtown part of Hebron know as “H-2”, under the direct control of the Israeli military and cheek-to-jowl with settlers. Accounting for 20% of land in Hebron, the downtown H-2 area is home to some 33,000 Palestinians and a few hundred of the most radical and violent Israeli settlers, whom the IDF protects through a policy of segregation, including keeping areas “sterile,” defined to me free of and off limits to Palestinians.
Palestinian H-2 resident and human rights defender Issa Amro wrote a powerful depiction of the apartheid reality in which he and other Palestinians live. Key findings of the new OCHA report, that give even more detail to that reality, include:
When asked to list the three major concerns related to their current residence in H-2,
75% of the households surveyed cited harassment by Israeli forces;
67% cited social isolation [access to the area is generally limited to the residents, cutting them off from family and friends];
64% cited limited livelihood opportunities [Palestinian commercial life in the area has for the most part died]
While only 2% of the households cited settler violence and harassment as a top concern, OCHA notes that the “general perception among Palestinians that most incidents of harassment involve, in one way or another, both settlers and soldiers, rendering the differentiation [between settlers and Israeli forces] meaningless.”
When asked specifically about violence and harassment by settlers, almost 70% of the respondents reported that at least one member of their household has experienced an incident of settler violence or harassment since October 2015:
20% reported experiencing settler violence on a weekly basis;
80% of affected households reported psychological distress,
25% reported property damage;
18% reported physical injury.
Based on these findings, OCHA deemds H-2 a “coercive environment,” writing:
“In addition to settler violence and access restrictions, the lives of Palestinians in H2 have been severely affected by constant raids and incursions into their homes by Israeli forces, which often include the temporary takeover of parts of the homes. These policies and practices have generated a coercive environment, which has undermined the living conditions of Palestinians, including their security, sources of livelihoods, access to services, and family and social life. Thousands have been forced to leave the affected area.”
Against the backdrop of the extraordinary difficulties already facing Palestinians living in the center of Hebron, Israeli politicians are now looking to significantly boost the number of Israeli settlers living there. Speaking at the Tomb of the Patriarchs/Ibrahimi Mosque in Hebron, Bezalel Smotrich – who is jockeying to be the next Justice Minister – called to immediately triple the number of settlers living in the heart of Hebron, and keep increasing the settler population from there, promising:
“That would just be the start. Hebron is a large city. There is a lot of space here for many Jews to redeem this city, which will allow us to draw strength from the strong connection to the city of our forefathers.”
Also at that same event, Deputy Defense Minister Eli Ben Dahan (who famously referred to Palestinians as “animals”) said:
“We are praying that we will create a new government, a government that will declare sovereignty on Judea and Samaria. A government that with God’s help will show the world that there is no difference between Hebron and Beersheba. Hebron is what connects Jerusalem to Beersheba. Here in Hebron the nation of Israel connects to its roots. With God’s help we will declare that Judea and Samaria is an inseparable part of Israel.”
As negotiations to form the next ruling coalition get underway, the head of the Union of Right Wing Parties (URWP), Bezalel Smotrich, issued a list of demands for Netanyahu’s Likud Party amounting to a checklist for the next phase of Israel’s de facto annexation of the West Bank. None of the URWP’s annexation-related demands are new ideas or efforts — a reminder that Israel has been discussing and promoting annexation policies since long before Netanyahu publicly announced it to the international community. The fact that they are not new and, indeed, have in the past generated significant support — coupled with Netanyahu’s newfound public enthusiasm for annexation and the Trump Administration’s Golan annexation trial balloon — suggests that Smotrich’s/URWP’s annexation-related demands are more than mere political gamesmanship. Rather, they should be examined carefully and treated as serious.
Before jumping into the list of demands, it’s worth recalling that the URWP is made up of three main parties: the national religious Jewish Home, the National Union/Tekuma party, and the Otzma Yehudit/Jewish Power party. It is also worth recalling that the latter party is the latest incarnation of the Kach/Kahane Chai party, which was banned in Israel for racism (and is a U.S.-designated Foreign Terrorist Organization). Netanyahu personally brokered a deal to include Otzma Yehudit in the URWP coalition – a move so appalling that it garnered criticism, albeit veiled, from some of Netanyahu’s most ardent supporters in the United States.
Here are the demands:
Demand #1: Giving a simple majority in the Knesset the power to overrule the High Court of Justice. Smotrich demands that the government promote the “High Court override bill.” If this becomes law, it will allow the Knesset to re-enact legislation that had been struck down by Israel’s highest court by a simple majority vote, in effect turning rule of law into rule by the dictatorship of the majority. This bill is the extreme version of a longtime legislative priority of right-wing Israeli parties, who view the High Court as overly sympathetic to Palestinians, overly deferential to international law, and biased against Israeli settlers (they view the mere fact that Israel’s legal system distinguishes between sovereign Israel proper and the West Bank (which even according to Israel remains, legally speaking, land held under belligerent occupation) constitutes discrimination against settlers. Netanyahu has supported this initiative in the past, making it an all but guaranteed agenda item for the next government. The consequences of the bill will be profound. Since 1967, the High Court of Justice has been the court of first jurisdiction for cases related to Palestinians living in the West Bank, reflecting the extraordinariness of Israeli judges issuing, in effect, extra-territorial legal rulings. By empowering the Knesset (to which West Bank Palestinians are not entitled to elect representatives) to overrule the High Court with a bare majority vote, the rule of law in Israel will be wholly politicized – no doubt against Palestini.
Demand #2: Give URWP power to retroactively legalize illegal settler construction and to open the settlement floodgates. Smotrich demands the formation of a ministerial committee headed by a URWP member that would take over the implementation of plans to retroactive legalize all unauthorized settlement construction and outposts, entrenching even the most far-flung and isolated outposts and allowing for their expansion. Smotrich also wants this committee to take control of the Settlement Division of the World Zionist Organization and its efforts to settle Jews in all areas of the West Bank. Smotrich has previously championed a bill that would hand over a vast tracts of land in Area C of the West Bank to the Settlement Division. By taking control over the Settlement Division, the URWP-headed committee can accelerate this land transfer, opening up more West Bank land for more settlement construction.
Demand #3: Disband the Civil Administration. The Civil Administration is the body within the Israeli Defense Ministry that acts as the sovereign governing power over the West Bank. By shuttering the Civil Administration – the legal structure supporting and maintaining occupation created by Israel as a means to administer the West Bank as distinct entity from sovereign Israeli territory – any legal distinction between the two land areas will vanish, resulting in the annexation of the West Bank. Smotrich has been pushing this move for over a year. Under his plan, Israeli settlers in the West Bank would come under the full sovereignty of domestic Israeli institutions, while Palestinians would be ruled by “Regional Liaison administrations.”
Demand #4: Reverse the 2005 Disengagement Law. Smotrich demands that Israelis be allowed to return both to four northern West Bank settlements and to Gaza, from which settlers were removed in 20005 following the passage of Ariel Sharon’s Disengagement law. A Knesset bill to this effect has been circulating since June 2017, and various Knesset members including Smotrich have joined settlers protests in the West Bank demanding the right to return to the evacuated settlements there.
Demand #5: Diminish the power of the Israeli Attorney General. Smotrich demands that the new government limit the power and independence of the Israeli Attorney General, by forbidding him (or maybe someday, her) from arguing against the Israeli government in a court of law. The catalyst for this demand is the action by the current Attorney General, Avichai Mandelblit, who argued against the government regarding the “Regulation Law,” which Mandelblit said is unconstitutional and which is strongly supported by Smotrich and the Israeli right.
Demand #6: Get the State Comptroller under control. Smotrich demands new restrictions on the State Comptroller’s authority, seemingly an effort to stop the publication of embarrassing or politically awkward government-issued reports that reveal how taxpayer money is funneled to illegal settlement activities. The Times of Israel notes that Israeli Ombudsman Aharon Shapira has published reports over the past several years that have been heavily critical of several ministries funneling of funds toward illegal West Bank outposts.
In addition to the annexation-related demands, the URWP – which won only 5 seats in the Knesset but appears to be playing the role of kingmaker for the Netanyahu’s next coalition – is demanding that two of is members be named to powerful ministerial posts: Smotrich (leader of the National Union party and head of the URWP coalition) wants to be the next Justice Minister and, Rafi Peretz wants to be the next Education Minister. These two high-profile posts are being vacated by Ayelet Shaked and Naftali Bennett, whose newly formed party failed to win any seats in the next Knesset. During her tenure as Justice Minister, Shaked undertook what she deemed a “legal revolution” aimed at completely erasing any distinction between the settlements/outposts and Israel proper, and, significantly, making it more difficult for Palestinians to access the only means of justice available to them under occupation by stripping the Israeli High Court of Justice of primary jurisdiction over land disputes.
As made clear by his personal history and political record – which led to Haaretz to dub him “the youthful face of unrepentant Jewish extremism” – Smotrich is an even more radical ideologue than Shaked. His unapologetic push for annexation and his eagerness to enshrine an apartheid system to permanently rule over the Palestinians leaves no question about how Smotrich will approach the role of Justice Minister, if he succeeds in securing that appointment.
“For Palestinian Families: ‘No Light at the End of the Tunnel’” (New York Times)
“Palestinians Have No Leverage Against Israeli Annexation” (Al-Monitor)
“Israel Opens New Qalandiya Checkpoint, Phasing Out Inadequate Crossing” (Times of Israel)
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11057
|
__label__wiki
| 0.566045
| 0.566045
|
Labour Body Abandons Attack on Free Trade
Commentary, Frontier Centre, Globalization, Worth A Look September 27, 2004
OTTAWA — The Canadian Labour Congress is officially abandoning its attack on free trade with the United States today, acknowledging that it has not been the “economic disaster” the labour group had predicted at the time.
In a speech to be delivered this morning, CLC president Ken Georgetti acknowledges the deal has been a boost to manufacturing, but adds his voice to the chorus of critics challenging the low levels of productivity in the Canadian economy.
The two-day gathering here will feature union and private sector economists, as well as representatives from the four major political parties, to hash out proposals to position the Canadian economy for the future.
Although the Canadian economy has performed well under free trade, the labour union argues that most of the new manufacturing jobs have been created in smaller, non-unionized plants.
Georgetti kicks off the congress warning of the effects on Canadian labour of the large workforce in China and points out that Canadian companies are not as productive as their U.S. counterparts.
Output per hour of the average Canadian worker has only grown by 17.9 per cent between 1992 and 2002, compared to 51.9 per cent in the U.S., according to the CLC’s own figures. But Georgetti isn’t pointing the finger at his members for the productivity gap. Instead, companies are to blame for not putting tax savings back into the business through investments in technology, he argues. Canadian Manufacturers and Exporters chief economist Jayson Myers will also address the conference today, which he hopes will refocus Ottawa’s attention on the importance of economic growth to pay for the recent flurry of new spending.
The economist said he welcomes Georgetti’s new position on free trade and said the low Canadian dollar is the primary reason for weaker productivity in comparison to the U.S.
— CanWest News Service
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11061
|
__label__wiki
| 0.857794
| 0.857794
|
Historic Environment Scotland Visit
Learn more about us and the buildings we have restored. About Us
On Friday 15th June 2018, Fife Historic Buildings Trust welcomed Historic Environment Scotland into Cupar Burgh Chambers for an exciting announcement.
The morning started off with a private tour around Cupar for Historic Environment Scotland and Fiona Hyslop, Cabinet Secretary for Culture, Tourism & External Affairs and HES Chief Executive Alex Paterson looking at the successful CARS projects completed. It was then back to Cupar Burgh Chambers where it was announced Historic Environment Scotland will be investing £10 million into Scottish Communities, as part of their 8th round of Conservation Area Regeneration Scheme (CARS). In 2018, HES celebrates 10 years since the first CARS projects were established. CARS has a proven track record of delivering results and seven rounds of the programme have made significant impacts to Scottish towns and villages.
Cupar has benefitted from this investment, with the five-year Cupar CARS/THI scheme, managed by Fife Council, in partnership with Fife Historic Buildings Trust, investing over £7million in the historic properties and streets of Cupar. Historic Environment Scotland and the Heritage Lottery Fund have made awards totalling £1.5million to establish the Cupar CARS/THI programme, which runs from April 2014 to March 2019. Cupar has a superb architectural heritage, reflected in its many listed buildings and large Conservation Area. These historic buildings need regular care and attention and the Building Repair Grant Scheme is designed to help property owners and tenants with full repairing leases to repair and conserve the historic fabric and traditional appearance of their buildings.
Cupar Burgh Chambers was a formally disused building placed on the buildings at risk register. With the restoration now complete it will serve as a holiday apartment bringing people from across the world to Cupar. Fife Historic Buildings Trust already own and manage two successful holiday lets, Kinghorn Town Hall and John McDouall Stuart View in Dysart. The team have worked very hard to restore the property and keep as many Georgian features as possible. The Holiday apartment consists of two bedrooms each with ensuite on the second floor. On the first floor there is a spectacular Living/Dining room with kitchenette. There is a large bay window with superb views across Crossgate. Guests will have all the amenities that they would require making it a home from home for all of the family. Sleeping up to 7 guests, it is a great place for both friends and family to come and stay. Click here for more information and to book.
Fife Historic Buildings Trust has two self-catering holiday apartments to let, within Fife. For more information and to book, click below.
Inverkeithing High School pupils and MSPs receive mini-masterclasses in traditional building skills
A ‘Stitch in Time’ for Cupar Town Centre
Cupar Town Centre Heritage Project wants your feedback
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11062
|
__label__wiki
| 0.719348
| 0.719348
|
Quilt Tutorials
Hi Guest, Welcome to the quilting forums, register now —or—
If this is your first visit to the Missouri Star Quilt Co's "Quilter's Forum", be sure to check out the FAQ by clicking the link above. You may have to register before you can post: click the register link above to proceed. To start viewing messages, select the forum that you want to visit from the selection below. We can't wait to hear what you have to say!
- Happy Quilting!
Non Quilting Discussion
Monday Trivia: Rhode Island
Thread: Monday Trivia: Rhode Island
Star lover
Missouri Star
Interesting Facts about Rhode Island:
The Cogswell Tower in Central Falls was the site of an Indian observation point in use during King Phillips War in 1676. The tower was built in 1904 as part of the last will and testament of Caroline Cogswell.
Rhode Island never ratified the 18th Amendment, prohibition.
Judge Darius Baker imposed the first jail sentence for speeding in an automobile on August 28, 1904 in Newport.
Polo was played for the first time in the United States in 1876 near Newport.
Rhode Island was home to the first National Lawn Tennis Championship in 1899.
St. Mary's, Rhode Island's oldest Roman Catholic parish was founded in 1828.
The church is best known as the site of the wedding of Jacqueline Bouvier to John Fitzgerald Kennedy in 1953.
The state was home to the first open golf tournament. The event occurred in 1895.
Rhode Island has no county government. It is divided into 39 municipalities each having its own form of local government.
The Flying Horse Carousel is the nation's oldest carousel. It is located in the resort town of Watch Hill. It was originally rotated by huge draft horses, and was built in 1850.
The first circus in the United States was in Newport in 1774.
Ann and Hope was the first discount department store in the United States the property was opened in Rhode Island.
Rhode Island's official state name is Rhode Island and Providence Plantations.
George M. Cohan was born in Providence in 1878. He wrote, "I'm a Yankee Doodle Dandy," "You're a Grand Old Flag," and a wide variety of other musical entertainment.
Rhode Island is known for making silverware and fine jewelry.
The world's largest bug is on the roof of New England Pest Control in Providence. It's a big blue termite, 58 feet long and 928 times actual termite size.
Rhode Islanders were the first to take military action against England by sinking one of her ships in the Narragansett Bay located between Newport and Providence. The English ship was called "The Gaspee".
Roger Williams, founder of Rhode Island, established the first practical working model of Democracy after he was banished from Plymouth, Massachusetts because of his "extreme views" concerning freedom of speech and religion.
The era know as The Industrial Revolution started in Rhode Island with the development and construction in 1790 of Samuel Slater's water-powered cotton mill in Pawtucket.
Though second in command to George Washington, Nathaniel Greene, a Rhode Islander, is acknowledged by many historians as having been the most capable and significant General of the Revolutionary effort. Cornwallis feared Greene and his forces most. Greene ultimately defeated Cornwallis.
Standing 11 feet tall and 278 feet above ground the Independent Man is a gold-covered, bronze statue placed atop the State House on December 18, 1899.
A reproduction of the original Liberty Bell is in the entrance hall on the south entrance to the State House. It was donated to the people of the state by the United States Treasury Department in 1950, when Harry S. Truman was president. It is about 3-1/2 feet tall and the diameter of the bell at its widest part is approximately 3-1/2 feet. It is such a realistic copy that is even has a crack similar to the original Liberty Bell.
At Little Compton is home to the gravesite of the first girl born to colonists in New England. The baby was the daughter of pilgrims John and Priscilla Alden.
Built in 1880 Channing Memorial Church was named for William Ellery Channing, a leader in the Unitarian Church and the abolitionist movement. Julia Ward Howe, author of the "Battle Hymn of the Republic", attended this church.
The White Horse Tavern was built in 1673 and is the oldest operating tavern in the United States.
Rhode Island founder Roger Williams established the First Baptist Church in America in 1638. The existing structure was built in 1775.
The Redwood Library and Athenaeum in Newport is the United States' oldest library building.
New England's oldest Masonic Temple in Warren was built in the 18th century with timbers from British frigates sunk in Newport Harbor during the Revolutionary War.
Nine Men's Misery monument in Cumberland is the oldest known monument to veterans in the United States. It was erected in memory of the colonists killed in Pierce's Fight during King Phillips War in 1676.
Portsmouth is home to the oldest schoolhouse in the United States. The school was built in 1716.
Since 1785 Bristol has the longest running, unbroken series of 4th of July Independence Day observances in the country.
Swamp Meadow Covered Bridge in Foster is the only remaining covered bridge in Rhode Island.
The first Afro-American regiment to fight for America made a gallant stand against the British in the Battle of Rhode Island.
The first torpedo boat "Stiletto" was built in Bristol in 1887.
Pelham Street in Newport was the first street in the country to use gas-illuminated streetlights.
The Quonset hut was invented at Quonset Point a key naval reserve base.
Mr. Potato Head was named as the official “family-travel ambassador” of Rhode Island in 2000. It makes sense with the Hasbro headquarters located in Pawtucket. He was also the first toy to be advertised on television.
Glendale claims to be home to the world’s oldest penny arcade, with some games dating back to the 1920s, still operating at their original price.
Next time you pay with a dollar bill, remember that Rhode Islander Gilbert Stuart was the artist behind the George Washington portrait featured on the bill.
In 1640, Anne Hutchinson became the first woman to establish an American town, Portsmouth, R.I.
Newport may be home to the oldest standing building in America, the Viking Tower in Truro Park, with some estimates pulling its construction at 1120 AD.
Some Strange Laws in Rhode Island:
- Throwing pickle juice on a trolley is an offense in Rhode Island.
- Intentionally biting off someone's limb is understandably illegal in the Ocean State.
- In case you were considering stringing rope lower than 14 feet across a highway in the state, don't. It's illegal.
- Riding a horse on the highway for the purpose of testing its speed is not allowed either.
- Professional sports, with the exception of hockey and ice polo, need a special license to play on Sundays.
- There is a law requiring loud noises to be made whenever you're passing someone on the left.
- It is illegal to coast downhill in neutral in the state.
- Both challenging, or accepting a dual is illegal in the state.
- Cap guns are illegal.
Post Thanks / Like - 1 Thanks
SuzanneOrleansOntario thanked for this post
SuzanneOrleansOntario
Re: Monday Trivia: Rhode Island
Wow that's some interesting facts.
Enjoy life and do what makes you happy. Everything else will follow.
Every day I try to do one thing that challenges my comfort zone.
Star lover thanked for this post
gmpintos
Rotary Pro
Rhode Island is one of my favorite places to visit. On my bucket list is to drive to the end of Long Island and take the ferry to Block Island......someday.
geegeequilts
Hoschton, Georgia
Interesting facts.
Thanks Anita.
JCY
That covered bridge & fall foliage sure is pretty. Thanks for taking time to share all these interesting facts with us. I'd love to visit New England to view the fall colors, but it probably will never happen. I guess I always can browse pics on the web.
chelea
I was born and raised in RI and live in MA just over the line. There's a lot packed into the "biggest little state in the Union". It's the most glorious place in the summer. As a kid in the 50's-60's, our grandparents would take us to Crescent Park on Narragansett Bay in the evenings where we'd enjoy chowder, clamcakes and watermelon in the shore dinner hall, then walk across the street to the amusement park. I remember riding the carousel, built in 1895, with my grandmother. It has been lovingly restored and last summer I rode it with our granddaughter.
A few more fun facts:
The Big Blue Bug's name is Nibbles Woodaway and he's decorated for the holiday season with lights and a big red nose, ala Rudolph.
The state house dome is the 4th largest self-supported marble dome in the world.
My LQS is in an old mill built in 1844, part of the complex of mills near Ann & Hope. It was originally a dying room for wool.
Newport is not to be missed. It was founded in the early 1600's and lots of colonial homes have been preserved. In the 1800's ultra-wealthy families (Vanderbilts and Astors) built the guilded mansions and many of them are open for touring. Newport is a sailing city and was home to the America's Cup 12 meter races from 1857-1983.
There are many gorgeous state beaches on both sides of the bay...some very popular and big, others small and secluded. The shore is beautiful in every season.
The capitol, Providence, is a vibrant city filled with history and amazing restaurants.
Oh, I could go on and on but you get the picture. If you're visiting southern New England you shouldn't miss it.
Last edited by chelea; May 14th, 2019 at 02:20 AM.
Quick Navigation General Chit-Chat Top
New to the community forum?
We don't know much, but we know quilters
Quilting Questions
How To's and Tutorials
Sew Together, Far Apart
Look What I Found! - Quilting Links & Resources
Quilts By Me
General QBM Chatter
Missouri Star Quilt Company
Squeaky Wheel
Ask the MSQC Girls
Forums Links →
-- Missouri Star -- Default Mobile Style
The Quilting Forum - YOUR Community
All Content Copyright Missouri Star Quilt Co LLC
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11063
|
__label__wiki
| 0.981295
| 0.981295
|
Did Google Censor Alan Dershowitz Videos?
January 11, 2018 By Nathan Guttman
A lawsuit filed in U.S. district court in California alleges that YouTube has unfairly restricted access to videos produced by Prager University, a group founded by conservative pundit Dennis Prager.
Among the videos YouTube had censored, according to Prager’s lawsuit, is a five-minute clip in which Harvard law professor emeritus Alan Dershowitz explains the legal basis for the founding of the state of Israel. “How can this worldwide attack on Israel alone be explained?” Dershowitz asks in the video. “It is pure bigotry. And there’s a word for this bigotry: anti-Semitism.”
YouTube, which is owned by Google, explained that some of Prager’s videos were given restricted access because they were inappropriate for a younger audience.
Banned videos included also the titles: “The Ten Commandments: Do Not Murder,” and “The World’s Most Persecuted Minority: Christians.”
In the lawsuit, Prager claimed that “Google/YouTube censorship is entirely ideologically driven” and described the decision to restrict access to his videos as “arbitrary and capricious.”
Contact Nathan Guttman at guttman@forward.com or on Twitter @nathanguttman
This story "Google Censored Alan Dershowitz Videos: Lawsuit" was written by Nathan Guttman.
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11065
|
__label__wiki
| 0.864712
| 0.864712
|
~Signature MemberAssociate Member~
Lynn H Waltke
Wildlife Art, Birds, Botanicals, and Abstracts
"C.A.B.S. or Committee Against Bird Slaughter. Engaged in stopping the slaughter of songbirds and raptors crossing the Mediterranean on the major bird flyways. "
Committee Against Bird Slaughter. Based in Bonn, Germany, I support this organization for the work they are doing around the Mediterranean.
Conservation Projects & Causes
A Toehold on Life
A Toehold on Life...a portion of the proceeds from the sale of this oil painting will go to C.A.B.S.
Connect with Artist
2018 Virtual Exhibit
See the Virtual Exhibit
Artists for Conservation (AFC) – the world’s leading artist group supporting the environment, representing 500 of the world’s leading nature/wildlife artists from 30 countries.
AFC's mission is to support wildlife and habitat conservation and environmental education through art that celebrates nature.
Contact Us >>
Latest AFC Tweet
Tweets by Natureartists
Follow AFC
AFC 2018 Book
Artists for Conservation 2018 Hardcover Book
$39.95 USD (+S/H)
"The world's leading artist group supporting the environment."
www.ArtistsForConservation.org
© 2019. Artists for Conservation Foundation, Inc. All rights reserved. "Artists for Conservation", "AFC" and the butterfly logo are registered trademarks of Artists for Conservation Foundation, Inc. AFC International Foundation is a registered charity in Canada (860891761 RR 0001) and a registered Society in the province of British Columbia (XS-0059826). The artists featured in this site are Signature Members of the Artists for Conservation Foundation www.artistsforconservation.org. All artwork images featured on this site are owned by the artist and protected by international copyright laws. Terms of Use | Privacy Policy
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11066
|
__label__cc
| 0.578362
| 0.421638
|
Acupressure Techniques Final
Acupressure by Shishir Jain 1611 views
Acupressure by Dr.RAJEEV KASHYAP 7455 views
How to Find Acupressure Points with... by PointFinder Acupr... 3198 views
Acupuncture & acupressure by Ancy Kurian 7604 views
Health Education Library for People
Publié le 27 févr. 2010
This Power Point Presentation by Bhavini R.Shethia.
Publié dans : Santé & Médecine, Divertissement et humour
PDF TECH at PDF TECH
DOWNLOAD FULL. BOOKS INTO AVAILABLE FORMAT, ......................................................................................................................... ......................................................................................................................... 1.DOWNLOAD FULL. PDF EBOOK here { https://tinyurl.com/y8nn3gmc } ......................................................................................................................... 1.DOWNLOAD FULL. EPUB Ebook here { https://tinyurl.com/y8nn3gmc } ......................................................................................................................... 1.DOWNLOAD FULL. doc Ebook here { https://tinyurl.com/y8nn3gmc } ......................................................................................................................... 1.DOWNLOAD FULL. PDF EBOOK here { https://tinyurl.com/y8nn3gmc } ......................................................................................................................... 1.DOWNLOAD FULL. EPUB Ebook here { https://tinyurl.com/y8nn3gmc } ......................................................................................................................... 1.DOWNLOAD FULL. doc Ebook here { https://tinyurl.com/y8nn3gmc } ......................................................................................................................... ......................................................................................................................... ......................................................................................................................... .............. Browse by Genre Available eBooks ......................................................................................................................... Art, Biography, Business, Chick Lit, Children's, Christian, Classics, Comics, Contemporary, Cookbooks, Crime, Ebooks, Fantasy, Fiction, Graphic Novels, Historical Fiction, History, Horror, Humor And Comedy, Manga, Memoir, Music, Mystery, Non Fiction, Paranormal, Philosophy, Poetry, Psychology, Religion, Romance, Science, Science Fiction, Self Help, Suspense, Spirituality, Sports, Thriller, Travel, Young Adult,
il y a 3 mois Répondre
Voulez-vous vraiment ? Oui Non
Votre message apparaîtra ici
Liza AR , Customer Success at Anova Culinary at Anova Culinary
Sadhu Luthra at Self-Employed
Tanalgo Renwren , Product Manager at Oracle Social
inkank
Hunaifah Natangcop at ALAWI TONSI&bros. hospital
1. Acupressure techniques By Bhavini R. Shethia
2. What causes body ache? <ul><li>Energy imbalance </li></ul><ul><li>What causes energy imbalance? </li></ul><ul><li>Physical exertion </li></ul><ul><li>Thought process </li></ul><ul><li>Eating disorders </li></ul><ul><li>Lack of nutritional food </li></ul>
3. What is Acupressure? <ul><li>Acupressure is an ancient healing art using the fingers and other parts of the body to skillfully press key points, which stimulate the body's natural self-curative abilities. </li></ul><ul><li>Acupressure uses gentle to firm pressure and integrates bodywork therapies, therapeutic touch, somatic work, healing imagery, energy psychology, and massage therapy techniques. </li></ul><ul><li>What is “SU JOK” Acupressure? </li></ul><ul><li>The word “SU” in Korean means the hand and “JOK” means foot. </li></ul>
4. How does it work? When these trigger points are pressed, they release muscular tension, and promote circulation of blood, and the body's life force energy to aid healing. Advantages of Using Acupressure:- I nclude relieving pain, balancing the body, and maintaining good health. Acupressure's healing touch reduces tension, increases circulation, and enables the body to relax deeply. By relieving stress, acupressure therapy strengthens resistance to disease and promotes wellness.
5. Let’s know more about Su jok <ul><li>Similarity of Hand to Body (“Yin” & “Yang”) </li></ul><ul><li>Steps in locating the cure point </li></ul><ul><li>- Basic Posture- Above diaphragm or below diaphragm </li></ul><ul><li>- Right or Left </li></ul><ul><li>-Cure point is always highly painful </li></ul>
9. Continue Knowing more about Su Jok <ul><li>Use of other objects & seeds for quick cure & for enhancing Su Jok effect </li></ul><ul><li>Massage Ring, Massaging Stick, Diagnostic Stick and so on…………. </li></ul><ul><li>And seeds like, Moong, Rajma, Methi etc are used for effective treatment. </li></ul>
10. Don’ts of Su Jok <ul><li>When patient is hungry </li></ul><ul><li>When he hasn’t slept well </li></ul><ul><li>If under alcohol influence </li></ul><ul><li>If in periods </li></ul><ul><li>Treatment always to be in sitting posture and not in standing posture </li></ul>
11. Some useful tips for:- <ul><li>Cold Cough </li></ul><ul><li>Back Pain </li></ul><ul><li>Improving Eye Sight </li></ul><ul><li>Knee Pain </li></ul><ul><li>Neck & Shoulder Pain </li></ul><ul><li>Headache </li></ul>
12. Key benefits of SU JOK <ul><li>Fast and marked curative effect </li></ul><ul><li>Safety of its application </li></ul><ul><li>It’s a universal method </li></ul><ul><li>Simple and cost efficient </li></ul><ul><li>Easy to Master- No need to learn and memorize points </li></ul><ul><li>No side effect, if done properly </li></ul>
L'essentiel de PowerPoint 2016
Les fondements de la présentation
Shishir Jain
Dr.RAJEEV KASHYAP
How to Find Acupressure Points with PointFinder
PointFinder Acupressure Guide
Ancy Kurian
What Every Boy and Girl Should Know About Menstrual Cycle Part-2 By Dr. Anu ...
What Every Boy and Girl Should Know About Menstrual Cycle Part-1 by Dr. Anu M...
Transformation From Inside to Outside with Food and Chakras by Ms. Rita Gandhi
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11069
|
__label__cc
| 0.585125
| 0.414875
|
Don’t die before August
Today sees yet a further cut to the lifetime allowance, with the value of tax relieved pension benefits an individual is entitled to accrue during their lifetime, reduced to £1m. Gary Smith, Financial Planner at Tilney Bestinvest, delves into the impact that this reduction will have.
Lifetime Allowance nadir?
“This represents the third such cut that the Chancellor has introduced to this allowance during his term in office, with the limit being slashed from a peak of £1.8m in April 2011 to £1m now, a reduction of 44%. Whilst the Chancellor has confirmed that the lifetime allowance will be subject to inflation linked increases from April 2018, implying the allowance has now reached ground zero – that’s not to say a firm commitment to rule out further reductions.
“As with previous reductions to the lifetime allowance, new protections will be introduced to enable those pension savers who will be affected to preserve lifetime allowances that exceed the standard £1m level. The two protections that are to be introduced are ‘Fixed Protection 2016’ and ‘Individual Protection 2016’, with those affected able to apply for both if required.
“Fixed Protection 2016 will enable an individual to retain a lifetime allowance of £1.25m, but in exchange for securing this limit they won’t be permitted to make pension funding beyond 6th April 2016. This protection will be available to all pension savers, regardless of whether or not their pension benefits exceed £1m.
“Individual Protection 2016 will only be available to those pension savers who have pension benefits that exceed £1m on 5th April 2016. For those who do qualify, their lifetime allowance will be set at the value of their pension benefits on 5th April 2016, subject to a maximum of £1.25m. Unlike Fixed Protection, those who apply for Individual Protection will be able to continue to make pension funding in the future without losing the lifetime allowance they secure on 5th April 2016.
“Whilst these protections are welcome, and will certainly be used by many individuals who are affected, due to the legislation still to receive Royal Ascent, the actual applications for the new protections are not expected to be made available until July 2016. This creates a three to four month holding period where those who intend to apply for one or both of these protections actually retire prior to securing the protection they need to avoid and/or reduce any lifetime allowance tax charges being levied.
Act now to protect your reserves
“HMRC have encouraged those who do intend to apply for these protections to write to them registering their intention and they will then issue a temporary certificate that will expire on 31st July 2016, by which point they will be able to apply for a permanent certificate. This should prevent those who do retire during this period incurring unnecessary lifetime allowance tax charges, but they must ensure that they still apply for the permanent protection when it does become available.
“This will certainly benefit those individuals who do intend to retire prior to July but, we would also strongly encourage all those who don’t intend to retire during this period to register their intention with HMRC as soon as possible. This means that should the unthinkable happen and the individual dies, it will offer the individual provisional protection. Indeed, by securing the temporary certificate it will create an audit trail that identifies to HMRC that they were going to apply for these protections prior to their death.
“So, whilst we clearly can’t confirm the date of your death, we would strongly encourage those who do intend to apply for either of these protections to apply for temporary certificates as a matter of urgency to avoid any unnecessary tax charges being levied on their death before July 2016.
“A further point of note is that, for those who will be applying for Fixed Protection 2016, they must ensure that pension funding ceases from 5th April 2016 and not July 2016, as any payments made after 5th April 2016 will make this protection unavailable to them, potentially costing thousands in tax charges.”
To discuss this or any other financial planning topic please contact Gary Smith on 0191 269 9971 / gary.smith@tilneybestinvest.co.uk
The value of investments, and the income derived from them, can go down as well as up and you can get back less than you originally invested. This press release does not constitute personal advice. If you are in doubt as to the suitability of an investment please contact one of our advisers.
Prevailing tax rates and reliefs are dependent on your individual circumstances and are subject to change. Please note we do not provide tax advice.
Before accessing your pension it is important to consider all of your options therefore you should seek professional financial advice or visit Pensionwise.gov.uk.
Press contacts:
0207 189 9919 / 07768 661382
jason.hollands@tilneybestinvest.co.uk
Gillian Kyle
gillian.kyle@tilneybestinvest.co.uk
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11074
|
__label__wiki
| 0.946841
| 0.946841
|
The Big Bad Fox and Other Tales
0:00/ 45:00
Turn off light Favorite
The main category was divided with the incorporation of the best category of animated feature films in 2015.
The Lego Batman Movie was snubbed in best animated film, but its director, Chris McKay, received a nomination to direct, along with Lee Unkrich and Adrian Molina de Coco, Nora Twomey of The Breadwinner, Benjamin Renner of Big Bad Fox and Patrick Imbert ( creators of Ernest & Celestine) and Tom McGrath of Boss Baby.
In addition to the nominations for the best animated film and direction, Coco was nominated for animated effects, character animation (two), character design, music, production design, storyboard (two), writing, editing and voice acting to Anthony Gonzalez, like Miguel.
The Breadwinner was nominated for best animated independent feature film, direction, character design, music, production design, storyboard, writing, editing and voice acting, for Saara Chaudry as Parvana and another for Laara Sadiq as Fattema.
Boss Baby obtained a total of six nominations, for best animated feature film, direction, character animation (two), character design and Captain Underpants storyboard.
The Big Bad Fox, Despicable Me 3, Lego Batman and Loving Vincent won three nominations each.
The Annie Awards are presented by the International Animation Film Society, ASIFA-Hollywood and the winners will be announced at the ceremony to be held on February 3 at the Royce Hall of UCLA.
Genre: Family
Director: Benjamin Renner, Patrick Imbert
Actors: Antoine Schoumsky, Boris Rehlinger, Céline Ronte, Damien Witecka, Guillaume Bouchède, Guillaume Darnault, Kamel Abdessadok
Country: Belgium, France
Watch and Download Full Movie Online in HD Quality
in Mexico How to train your dragon – is considered by many to be the second most important franchise in DreamWorks, just behind Shrek. This is the reason why the…
Lucasfilm unveiled Solo’s second movie A Star Wars Story on Sunday night during the broadcast of the American Idol television show on ABC. The film, directed by Ron Howard and…
Ralph Breaks the Internet will take Ralph and Vanellope to the strange and wonderful world of the internet, where the protagonists will meet characters from racing games, Sonic the Hedgehog…
Luis and the Aliens
Not too far into this inconceivably atrocious animation, there comes a moment when the beleaguered viewer will realise that the character who keeps Here and Now saying “hey dogs” and…
Country: Denmark, Germany, Luxembourg
Oscar is a small fish whose big aspirations often get him into trouble. Meanwhile, Lenny is a great white shark with a surprising secret that no sea creature would guess:…
Missing Link, the new animated feature film from the studio Laika, has already received enough reviews to obtain a critical rating, and although it seems that this is an entertaining…
Country: Canada, USA
Disney released the trailer for “The Nutcracker and the Four Realms” on Tuesday, just in time for the holidays. Directed by Lasse Hallstrom, the film stars Keira Knightley, Morgan Freeman,…
Genre: Family, Fantasy
The quiet life of a terrier named Max is upended when his owner takes in Duke, a stray whom Max instantly dislikes.
Country: Japan, USA
The British Royal Family, one of the most famous worldwide, is preparing to make a leap to the big screen MDMA but contrary to what you might think, this time…
When I was in the belly of my mother, nobody had any idea that I was going to be born with this look, “says, in first person, the 10-year-old protagonist…
Country: Hong Kong, USA
A Wrinkle in Time is a movie with a committed message that conveys the idea that everyone has a role to play in this world: his own. Published in 1962,…
The Disney Channel animation series will also have its own movie, starring debutant Sadie Stanley. Change in the Air And the studio has just launched the first advance of ‘Kim…
Trailer: The Big Bad Fox and Other Tales
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11081
|
__label__cc
| 0.589754
| 0.410246
|
HBCULOVE
Home › Entertainment
So Sad: Kirk Franklin Mourns His Sister’s 30 Year Prison Sentence
Some harsh time for a complicated woman.
Royce Dunmore
Source: Erika Goldring / Getty
Gospel artist Kirk Franklin is facing difficult times this week when he announced that his sister was sentenced to 30 years in prison.
He revealed the news in an Instagram post saying “I now feel the weight of wondering if I could’ve done more…”
rough week..
A post shared by Kirk Franklin (@kirkfranklin) on Jun 16, 2018 at 7:00pm PDT
It’s not clear what caused his sister’s long sentence.
However, Kirk has been pretty public about the struggles she’s faced, including an addiction to crack-cocaine. In a 2015 interview, Kirk said, “For over ten years, my younger sister was incarcerated in a facility here in Texas. She was in love with a young man who was drug dealer. He introduced her to not only selling drugs, but using as well. When he was arrested for drug trafficking, she was arrested along with him. After she served her time, she was brought before the review board who determined she was ready to be released and brought back into society. The documents were signed and she was set free… but only on paper.”
Kirk continued, “After a few months back into the free world, it became obvious to me rather quickly that my sister was still in prison. It’s what they call being institutionalized. She quickly started using again, becoming very reckless with her body, which turned into her using it as a means to pay for her habit.”
With more talk about prison reform and harsh sentencing, questions do arise on if Kirk’s sister deserved her 30 year sentence in the first place. Is it because of distributing drugs? Using? If she’s been committed to an institution before, shouldn’t her intervention be in the form of rehabilitation instead of prison?
Kirk has yet to go into details about his next steps following the intense news, but we’ll continue to keep you updated if anything major should surface.
gospel , Incarceration , Kirk Franklin , prison , prison reform
Also On Global Grind:
Did You Know These 12 Celebrities Suffered From Depression?
SIGN UP FOR THE GLOBALGRIND NEWSLETTER
Thank you for subscribing to Global Grind!
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11084
|
__label__wiki
| 0.852273
| 0.852273
|
Seeing Soda’s Influence
January 11, 2019 by News
A complex network of research funding, institutional ties and personal influence has allowed the Coca-Cola Company, through its connections with a nonprofit group, to exert substantial influence over obesity science and policy solutions in China, and as a result government policy aligns with the company’s corporate interests, a Harvard study has found.
The study, conducted by Susan Greenhalgh, the John King and Wilma Cannon Fairbank Research Professor of Chinese Society, is the first of its kind to demonstrate not only efforts by the food industry to influence public policy, but their impact as well. The study is described in two January 9 articles published in The BMJ and the Journal of Public Health Policy.
“There have been decades of work on how big pharma and big tobacco have tried to influence science and dictate policy, but the research on big food and big soda is just now emerging,” Greenhalgh said. “I don’t know of any other work that has documented this type of impact, especially on the policy of an entire nation.
“When I reviewed China’s policies, I could see them using the very same language Coke did,” she continued. “For example, they talk about energy balance and making physical activity part of medical treatment or balancing eating and moving…their policy aligns very well with Coke’s interests, and it’s out of alignment with some of the policies advocated by the World Health Organization.”
At the heart of efforts to steer Chinese policy, Greenhalgh said, is a US-based, industry-funded nonprofit known as the International Life Sciences Institute, or ILSI. Founded by then-Coca-Cola Vice President Alex Malaspina in 1978, ILSI now boasts 17 branches worldwide, including one in China, where the organization’s roots run particularly deep.
Though ILSI’s Chinese branch – officially known as ILSI-Focal Point in China – wasn’t established until 1993, Greenhalgh said, its founder Chen Chunming had been connected to the US organization as far back as 1978, when Malaspina visited the newly-reopened nation in search of local partners.
A nutritionist who founded and was the first president of the agency that eventually became the China CDC, Chen maintained deep ties to China’s public health sector, including the Ministry of Health, even after establishing ILSI-China, Greenhalgh said, which allowed her work behind the scenes to exert significant policy influence.
In an effort to understand how that influence may have shifted public policy in China, Greenhalgh turned to an archive of ILSI-China newsletters from 1999 to 2015, which detailed nearly all of the organization’s scientific and public-policy activities, ranging from research funding to organizing conferences to drafting public policy.
The earliest stages of that work, Greenhalgh’s research shows, began in 1999, when ILSI-Global asked its branches to put obesity on their agendas.
From 1999 to 2003, Greenhalgh found, about half of ILSI-China’s work dealt with measurement issues – the organization createda series of China-specific BMI thresholds – and advanced at least some prevention efforts aimed at nutrition, but none centered on physical activity.
By 2004, however, that began to change.
It was then, Greenhalgh said, that Coke began to position itself as an advocate of “healthy active lifestyles,” and to promote the message that all food and drinks could be part of a healthy diet – to avoid obesity, the argument went, physical activity was key.
The change was almost immediately reflected in ILSI-China’s activities, Greenhalgh found. Between 2004 and 2009, a third of ILSI-China sponsored or co-sponsored obesity activities focused on physical activity. Between 2010 and 2015, the proportion nearly doubled while obesity activities focused on nutrition sank to just one in five.
And though the organization hosted a number of conferences dedicated to obesity research, details in the newsletters show that most meetings were packed with experts who had ties to ILSI or industry, Greenhalgh said. In a number of cases, agenda space was even set aside for industry presentations.
That same shift, Greenhalgh said, was reflected in the news stories that appeared in ILSI newsletters – before 2003, the group published no stories suggesting activity could combat obesity. From 2010 through 2015, though, 60 percent of articles backed the idea, and fewer than one quarter focused on diet.
After a series of critical investigative reports by the New York Times in 2015, Coke pulled back on its aggressive promotion of the science of physical activity. But its influence continues to be felt in China since the ILSI structure remains in place and the activity programs it supported are now well established.
And though many scientists might see her results as clear evidence of industry bias, in extended interviews with more than two dozen obesity and public health experts Greenhalgh found most Chinese scientists shrugged off those concerns.
“The vast majority said there was no conflict of interest,” she said. “There were a tiny handful who believed that whenever corporations are funding science it will inevitably be biased, but they were very much in the minority, and most asked me not to use their names because they were afraid of possible consequences…because the political culture in China is very business-friendly and pro-West.”
“Western science and especially American science is considered to be the best in the world, and what happens is these companies present themselves as scientifically and technically advanced and generous because of their social responsibility programs,” she added. “So the feeling is what’s not to love about Coca-Cola?”
Ultimately, Greenhalgh said, one of the reasons ILSI – and by extension Coke – was able to so effectively re-direct Chinese policy on obesity was because they were the only ones conducting the research.
“Basically the story is that the government didn’t care about chronic diseases…but ILSI cared because these companies were pushing the agenda,” she said. “”The fact is that ILSI-China was the only entity that had any money and interest in (obesity,) and they had it because of corporate funding, because Coke wanted to get its solution onto the public health agenda at the earlies possible moment and influence the global discourse on obesity.”
That physical activity solution, Greenhalgh said, runs counter to much of the current research thinking? on combatting obesity.
“In the past, there were a handful of scholars who felt that…the obesity epidemic was actually an epidemic of inactivity,” she said. “But today there are very few people in the field of chronic disease who believe that, and increasingly people are recognizing that while you have to stay active, when it comes to reducing obesity, diet is more important.”
Going forward, Greenhalgh said she hopes to examine the impact of ILSI globally and is working on a book that would explore the organization’s work in China in greater detail.
“It was only because of my background in science and technology studies, which encourages me to look deep down into how science is done and take it apart, that I was able to find this,” Greenhalgh said. “I was shocked when I discovered this. I had no idea.”
“When you read the literature, there’s not much about how Coke is influencing obesity science and policy in the US, but the literature that does exist shows Coke’s efforts,” she continued. “This shows their impact, so I was just stunned.”
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11086
|
__label__cc
| 0.695309
| 0.304691
|
Happy Mother’s Day!
Posted in Uncategorized on May 11, 2017| 1 Comment »
Mothers—sometimes we’re lauded and sometimes we’re hated, but someone is always yelling for us. With that theme in mind, here are three of my favorite books to read on Mother’s Day:
“My Mother is So Smart,” by Tomie dePaola.
I’ve always loved those Mother’s Day questionnaires teachers have our kids fill out each May. It’s fun seeing what pops into my girls’ mind when they’re put on the spot and asked to finish a sentence like: “My mom always says…”
While there’s a laugh in a child’s inability to accurately assess her parent’s age or what her mother might do with an hour’s free time, there’s invaluable wisdom in the answers she gives when asked to articulate when she has the most fun with her mom.
As a mother, I want nothing more than to have my children know they’re loved infinitely and unconditionally, and I can only hope that they appreciate the unique qualities I offer as their mother.
The legendary author Tomie dePaola leaves no doubt as to how he feels about his mother, Florence, or Flossie, as she was better known. Like much of his other work, “My Mother is So Smart” is autobiographical, and it is everything a mother could ever ask for in a tribute from her child.
DePaola writes: “I knew form the time I was really little that my mother was smart.”
He praises her cookies, popsicles and warm breakfasts. He recalls the winter she taught him to walk and the Halloween she made him a bird costume. He speaks with pride of the time she taught the whole neighborhood to sing “Row, Row, Row Your Boat” and the Fourth of July when she showed all the kids how to make their initials with sparklers. He notes that she could drive his grandfather’s delivery truck and dance the polka. And he shares with awe her ability to “change into a movie star when she and my father go out at night.” For the grand finale, dePaola reveals his mother could even stand on her head.
DePaola’s reverence for his mother is moving, and the specificity of the attributes he praises in her make the book all the more intimate. DePaola published “My Mother is So Smart” in 2010 at the age of 76, 10 years after his mother’s passing. At the ages of 9, 7, 3 and 16 months, I wonder what my children think makes me special. And what memories of me will they honor when they’re in their seventh decade?
I’ll be 35 this summer and my mom is a youthful 62. Over the course of our three and a half decades together, I’ve been lucky enough to amass more memories with my her than I could ever possibly record, but I’ll cherry pick a few in honor of her this Mother’s Day:
She decorated my childhood bedroom with heart wallpaper and bedding; so many hearts, she told me, so I would always know how much she loved me.
For years, she tucked notes into my packed school lunches
She once mailed me a tin of chocolate covered raisins at sleep-away Girl Scout camp because she knew I’d be homesick
She has the best handwriting of anyone I know
She’s a determined gin player and if you’re betting money, you better bet on losing it
I probably complained about what was for dinner more nights than not when I was a kid, but these days, there’s nothing that beats having her show up at my house with fully cooked dinner.
Best of all, she has boundless love for her daughters, and there’s not a day we don’t know it.
“Little Rabbit and the Meanest Mother on Earth,” written by Kate Klise and illustrated by M. Sarah Klise.
I’m only nine years into this gig, but I’ve already received my fair share of vitriol from aggrieved children. One of the best insults I’ve ever received as a mother was the time Charlotte called me a “trash mommy.” I can’t, for the life of me, recall what I possibly did to upset her, but she searched her little preschool vocabulary for the worst word she could come up with and she landed on “trash.” It seems, at least at that point, I was doing a pretty good job watching my language around the kids.
In “Little Rabbit and the Meanest Mother on Earth,” Mother Rabbit earns her son’s ire when she insists that he clean up his playroom before he can visit the circus that’s just arrived in town.
I can very specifically remember the hopelessness of attempting to put order to a destroyed playroom—my mom would send me and my sisters into our basement to clean up our mess of Barbies—it felt like descending into a pit of despair from which we’d never emerge.
Little Rabbit’s playroom looks about the same—detritus evenly spaced across the entire floor. Try as he might, his efforts at tidying only seem to make the room messier. When Mother Rabbit concludes that he won’t see the circus that day, boy is Little Rabbit angry:
“’I never get to do anything fun!’ Little Rabbit yelled. ‘It’s not fair! You’re so mean! I’m…It’s…You’re…’ But he was too angry to continue.”
Left pouting in his room, Little Rabbit decides to take drastic measures. He climbs out his playroom window and runs away to join the circus. But before he’ll take Little Rabbit on, the ringmaster wants to know what sort of act he can bring to the table.
“’Well,’ said Little Rabbit, ‘I have the Meanest Mother on Earth.’”
The ringmaster tells him if he can sell 100 tickets to see this horrific mother, Little Rabbit will be included in the evening’s show. With promises of a punishment-plotting, two-headed, green-toothed, tail-eating monster, Little Rabbit draws a big crowd. But when the spotlight shines on Mother Rabbit, the crowd feels short-changed and their anger mounts.
Mother Rabbit saves the day when she promises them an even more terrifying act: The Messiest Room on Earth. The crowd follows them home, where it is properly stunned by Little Rabbit’s rank room. Before leaving, the visitors are invited to take a souvenir or two from the mess, and when the last leave, Little Rabbit finally has his clean room and a greater understanding of just how lucky he his to have a mom like his.
“Little Rabbit and the Messiest Room on Earth” was written and illustrated by the sister team of Kate Klise and M. Sarah Klise who say they “spent many hours as children avoiding the loathsome task of cleaning their room” but make note in their bio that their mother, Marjorie Klise, is actually “the nicest (and smartest) mother on Earth.”
Their story walks the humorous balance of sympathizing with a child’s frustrations but also smirking at that child’s tendency to cast his mother as “the meanest” over the smallest disputes. I believe I was most recently compared to an “evil stepmom” when I asked my second born to put her shoes away.
“Where’s Mommy?” written by Beverly Donofrio and illustrated by Barbara McClintock.
We received this book as a gift from a friend with excellent taste in children’s books (is their anything better you can ask for in a friend?), and it has remained one of my all-time favorites ever since.
“Where’s Mommy?” introduces us to Mary and Mouse Mouse, a little girl and the juvenile mouse that lives below her family’s floorboards. The two are fast friends, but they can’t tell a soul, because:
“If Maria’s parents knew there were mice in the house, they’d get a cat. And if Mouse Mouse’s parents knew their daughter was friends with a human, they’d flee to a hole in the ground.”
Illustrator Barbara McClintock depicts their parallel worlds in fascinating detail—Mary’s family’s cozy mid-century modern, with quirky art, stuffed bookshelves, and scattered children’s toys; and Mouse-Mouse’s subterranean residence, cobbled together from cast-offs from the human world above, bringing to mind the beloved Borrowers: a flashlight for a floor lamp, a watch as a wall clock, and gummy bears standing in as playthings. This plethora of details is what I love most of about McClintock’s work and often leaves me wondering how much time must go into a fully-illustrated spread. The images are certain to captivate the child reader and they always leave something new to discover on subsequent readings.
Beverly Donofrio’s story follows Maria and Mouse Mouse one evening as each gets ready for bed, but can’t find their mothers when it’s time to say goodnight.
When neither gets an answer and their mothers fail to appear, the girls’ shouts intensify, and, before long, the halls are echoing with their voices. It’s funny, when our children are babies, we can’t wait to hear them say “mama” for the first time; but once they master it, they certainly learn how to abuse it.
They search the house, top to bottom; their fathers are of no help, and neither are their siblings. Just when they’re certain their mothers have disappeared, Maria and Mouse Mouse discover them in the backyard shed having a lovely chat together! It turns out that Maria and Mouse Mouse aren’t the only ones with a secret friendship.
Have Books? Will Travel: New York Finds, Part 1
Posted in Uncategorized on May 5, 2017| Leave a Comment »
I was recently in New York to see my youngest sister Lindsay’s Master of Fine Arts thesis show. New York and I haven’t always gotten along—I once had a panic attack shopping on Fifth Avenue in December. So this time around, I was determined to find my happy place in the city with which I just haven’t yet made friends.
I can, of course, appreciate the city’s museums, innumerable restaurants, Broadway Shows and Central Park, but the book scene is where it’s at for me. When I’m in Minneapolis, I can’t leave town without visiting Wild Rumpus or Red Balloon Bookshop; when I’m in Denver, my first stop is The Bookies, and I’m excitedly planning my first trips to the Book Bar and Second Star to the Right, both in the Mile High city, later this summer.
So I set out in search of New York’s finest children’s bookstores, a la Meg Ryan’s The Shop Around the Corner —a place with plenty of shelf space to display recommended titles and a knowledgeable staff, eager to talk shop.
And, boy, did I find it in Books of Wonder! I walked into the store late on a Friday afternoon—the weather outside was dreary, gray and cold—and was greeted by a warm, glowing space, filled with golden, oak shelves chock full of thoughtfully and tidily arranged books. Is there anything more beautiful?
Not until later did I learn that this very bookstore was, indeed, the inspiration for the corner bookstore in “You’ve Got Mail.” The director, Nora Ephron, was a longtime Books of Wonder customer, and she sent her set designers to study every detail of the store in order to recreate it as closely as possible on a sound stage. Meg Ryan even spent a day working at Books of Wonder to prepare for her role, and staff members helped arrange books on the film set.
I spent nearly 2 ½ hours in this cozy utopia of children’s books, perusing virtually every title on the shelves from board books to young adults. The store was blissfully free of the junk that clogs the shelves at big box stores back in Iowa—no Disney characters or books based on TV shows and movies, no stuffed animals or toys or games that I recall. Just the best in children’s literature, including everything from the great authors of the past to today’s big hitters and everyone in between. It’s the perfect place to take a child and turn her loose—there isn’t a title she could pick that wouldn’t be up to snuff.
Not only did they have “all the books,” they had stacks of books signed by my favorite authors and illustrators at no mark-up. (Signed additions can also be purchased or pre-ordered on their website here; currently available are “Dragons Love Tacos 2: The Sequel” by Adam Rubin and Daniel Salmieri and “The Three Billy Goats Gruff” by Caldecott Medalist Jerry Pinkney). Of course, it probably doesn’t hurt that seemingly half of today’s successful authors and illustrators only live a subway ride away in Brooklyn, no joke: Peter Brown, Sophie Blackall and Sergio Ruzzier, to name a few. They might as well form an artists’ commune.
I came away with a signed copy of “The Castle in the Mist” by Amy Ephron for my 9 year old, Eloise, who loves magical fantasy. It’s been described as a combination of “The Secret Garden” and “From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler,” both revered classics.
For my almost-8 year old Charlotte, I selected a signed copy of “The Princess Test” by Gail Carson Levine, who also wrote “Ella Enchanted.” The book is a reimagining of “The Princess and the Pea” (my favorite fairy tale) with a very particular (read: spoiled) blacksmith’s daughter standing in as the heroine. For those who know my Charlotte, I think you’d agree she might have a bit in common with this aspiring princess.
While these signed editions impressed the big girls, I was most excited about my find for 3-year-old Flora. I’ve subscribed to the Horn Book Magazine for years, and this publication is pretty much the authority on anything and everything happening in the children’s book world. So it’s rare a new release escapes my eye and surprises me when it shows up on a bookshelf unanticipated.
However, that’s just what happened with “Tales for the Perfect Child,” a book originally published by author Florence Parry Heide in 1985 but re-released with updated illustrations by Sergio Ruzzier in March of this year.
Heide, who died in 2011, was best known for storytelling that encouraged the mischief in children and reflected their vexation with the adults in their lives. “Tales for the Perfect Child” was certainly written in that vein. It contains eight short stories about children who subtly outwit their parents’ best efforts to make demands of them.
There’s Arthur, who doesn’t want to put on dress clothes to go see Aunt Eunice with his mother; he’d rather stay home in his old clothes and watch his favorite television program. But Arthur doesn’t argue with his mother. Instead, he gets dressed up, heads to the fridge to pour himself a big glass of grape juice and, whoops, most of it gets all over his nice dress clothes. Seeing as he’s no longer presentable, Arthur’s mother leaves her messy child at home, and Arthur gets to watch his favorite program, just like he wanted.
Harry is a child after my own heart. Harry can’t have ice cream until he finishes his carrots, so he waits until his mother leaves the room and puts all of the carrots in “a small plastic bag he kept in his pocket for special times.” When his mother returns, he is commended and gets his ice cream. As a child, I didn’t have any secret bags in my pockets, but I did make mid-dinner trips to the bathroom with my cheeks stuffed with peas like a hamster and into the toilet they went. To quote Heide: “There’s always a way to get out of eating something yucky.”
And I’d be remised if I didn’t mention Harriet, whose special brand of skills will unfortunately be all too familiar to the adult reader (it’s certainly the environment in which I prepare dinner every night):
“Harriet was a very good whiner. She practiced and practiced, and so of course she got better and better at it. Practice makes perfect.”
Harriet wants a piece of pie before dinner, but her mother tells her guests are coming and the pie will be served after the roast beef. Harriet continues to whine and her mother continues to tell her “no” while attempting to finish cooking dinner. But because “a good whiner sticks to one subject” and “a good whiner never gives up” and “good whiners make it very hard for anyone to think of anything else,” Harriet’s mother burns the gravy and hands over the slice of pie to shut Harriet up.
I think there’s something therapeutic for kids in reading stories about children who get the upper hand. The greatest battles between parents and children in our family are in determining who gets to decide what the child wears, what they eat, when they have to help and when they get to play. Our children can live vicariously through Heide’s characters, who all seem to have control over getting and doing what they want.
Heide’s wit and insight on the child’s mind are genius, but Sergio Ruzzier’s illustrations are just as brilliant.
As I mentioned earlier, Ruzzier lives in Brooklyn, but he’s Italian by birth. When he first moved to New York in 1995 to gain a foothold in the picture book world, he was disregarded and told his work was too “European.” It’s undeniable that Ruzzier’s work is unique—pen and ink with soft, chalky watercolors; quirky little animal characters, many with distinctive elongated noses.
From “Two Mice” by Sergio Ruzzier
Ruzzier’s work is unmistakable and ALWAYS fabulous, which is how I knew I had my hands on something special when I pulled “Tales for the Perfect Child” off the shelf at Books of Wonder and caught sight of his cover illustration.
For Heide’s book, Ruzzier has limited himself to pen and ink with light and dark shades of turquoise. He’s drawn Heide’s mischievous children as mice, rabbits, ducks, pigs, puppies, cats and even bugs; and while Ruzzier has chosen animals, his ability to create humor and attitude in those little figures reminds me of Maurice Sendak’s children in books like “A Hole is to Dig” and “Chicken Soup with Rice.”
Ruzzier’s bugs
Sendak’s children
He shows us Ruby obediently “watching” her younger brother Clyde, but he makes it clear by her unconcerned expression that’s she’s doing nothing more than watching as Clyde wreaks havoc throughout the house.
And Arthur’s accident with the grape juice that destroyed his nice suit and tie? Not so much an accident.
And that Harriet? When in full-whine mode, she’s a disagreeable, nasty-looking child, but once she gets what she wants, how innocent and adorable she appears.
If you end up loving this book as much as I do, get excited because Ruzzier also has created new illustrations for “Fables You Shouldn’t Pay Any Attention To,” another Heide classic about a set of children who are careless, discontented and lazy. The book will be rereleased on July 25th.
And if you’re ever in NYC, be sure to indulge at Books of Wonder. They often have stunning window displays created by well-known children’s book illustrators.
Also, watch for a post to come about another fabulous children’s bookstore I was able to visit.
She Persisted!
While researching the illustrator Alexandra Boiger for my last post, I discovered some incredibly exciting news … Her most latest project is a collaboration with Chelsea Clinton on a picture book called, wait for it … “She Persisted” !!!!
The book, due out on May 30th, according to the publisher, “introduces tiny feminists, mini activities and little kids who are ready to take on the world to thirteen inspiration women who never took no for an answer, and who always, inevitably and without fail, persisted.”
The project was likely in the works before Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell verbally attacked Senator Elizabeth Warren and later told the Senate: “She was warned. She was given an explanation. Nevertheless, she persisted.” However, “she persisted” has become the battle cry of women like Warren and those featured in Clinton’s upcoming book, whose persistence has shaped our country.
The book features Harriet Tubman, Helen Keller, Clara Lemlich, Nellie Bly, Virginia Apgar, Maria Tallchief, Claudette Colvin, Ruby Bridges, Margaret Chase Smith, Sally Ride, Florence Griffith Joyner, Oprah Winfrey and Sonia Sotomayor. But a surprise cameo by another inspiration women is promised. One can only hope Clinton pays tributre to BOTH her mother, Hillary Clinton, and Warren, whose determination inspired the title.
“She Persisted” is available for pre-order on Amazon. You can bet I have my order placed, and I’m looking forward to reading about these inspirational women with all four of my daughters.
It’s inevitable. If my cell phone comes anywhere near the vicinity of my ear, one of my four children will either:
start crying, usually while clinging to my leg
hit one of the others
hurt herself
desperately need my attention for what later turns out to be an inconsequential matter
So we moms hide away in closets, pantries, garages and closets in our desperate attempts to finish actual conversations with fellow members of the adult human race. Either that or the person on the other end of the line is forced to suffer through my attempts to talk over the background screeching with teeth clenched and increasing frustration and volume.
Amy Reichert capitalizes on this phenomenon in her book “While Mama had a Little Chat.” She turns the tables, though, and imagines a scenario in which the pleas of the pestering child may actually warrant some attention.
As bedtime is nearing, Mama answers the ringing telephone. Before delving into a “quick little chat” with Uncle Fred, she tasks daughter Rose with completing her nighttime routine, promising she won’t be long.
Ever left your children to ready themselves for bed while you finish the dishes or squeeze in one more load of laundry? Yeah, NOT.GONNA.HAPPEN.
Rose would argue, however, that she had the best of intentions. It’s just that the doorbell rang … and in walked “four muscley men” with supplies from the party store: tables, chairs, balloons, twinkly lights and silverware. They’re wrongly under the impression that Rose’s household is hosting a shindig that evening.
Ever so politely, Rose begs her mother’s attention:
Put off, there’s nothing Rose can do to stop the arrival of eager part-goers, caterers and a magician. She’s sawn in half and a jazz band joins the mix, inviting her to fill in on drums. The party is reaching full strength and full capacity, just as Mama calls down the hall informing Rose that her conversation is at its end.
Fearing she’ll be chastised for all the hubbub, Rose hustles the musicians, the magician, the waiters, and those four party-supply delivery men out the door. Miraculously, when Mama hangs up the phone and heads to check on Rose, all is well.
Reichert has written the parallel frustrations of Mama and Rose with perfect humor. Mama promises a “quick little chat,” but all children know “a second or two” can just as well mean something closer to an hour. Meanwhile, one hardly needs the bold typeface to hear the all-too-familiar shriek in Rose’s voice when she screams: “MAAAAAAAAMA, I need you right now!” Really, right now?
As an added bonus, Reichert composed this story using inventive rhyme, creating a rhythm that’s fun for both the reader and the listener.
Reichert’s story is spot on, but it was Alexandra Boiger’s illustrations that first drew me to the book. With one glance at the cover, I recognized her distinctive style from another of our picture book favorites, “The Little Bit Scary People,” in which she partnered up with author Emily Jenkins.
Boiger’s characters are richly detailed and amusingly unique – large-nosed movers with hair-covered forearms, cater waiters with bushy eyebrows and thin comb-overs, women with all manner of hairstyles. And each character is illustrated with playful, energetic and immensely expressive body language. Boiger’s color palette is distinctive, as well – she mixes mainly cool blue and aqua backgrounds with bold, vibrant splashes of warm reds, oranges and yellows.
Take note of Boiger’s name — anything she lends it too is bound to be a sure bet!
Is This Heaven? No, it’s The Bookies!
Posted in Uncategorized on October 30, 2014| 1 Comment »
I just got back from a family trip to Denver, and by “just” I mean a little over a week ago, but it takes a mom at least that long to catch her breath after surviving the packing, the airport, the late bedtimes and days without naps.
We spent four days in the Mile High City with my younger sister, Allison, who has lived in Denver for five years and is an expert on just about everything the city has to offer. We ate some phenomenal meals at several of the Denver’s most lauded restaurants, saw an stunning exhibit of Chihuly glass at the Denver Botanic Gardens and successfully completed a mountain hike with the kids in tow.
While seeing the sites and enjoying delicious food are always important priorities when we travel, discovering a city’s indie literary scene is typically my personal prerogative.
On past trips to Denver, I was introduced to Tattered Cover, one of the largest independent bookstores in the United States. It has three locations, including one in the hip LoDo (lower downtown) district. This particular store is housed in the historic C.S. Morey Merchantile Building, which dates back to 1896 and was once deemed “the most elegant business house in the West.” Its soaring ceilings, wide staircases, century-old brick and gorgeous wood support beams make the modern-day store the epitome of warehouse chic. Two stories are a filled with endless wood shelves chock-full of the best books in print today, with recommended titles elegantly displayed and accompanied by staff synopses. I could easily spend days on end perusing the offerings and reading in this book lover’s utopia.
When it comes to children’s books, though, Denver boasts another literary gem. Hidden in a strip mall on the city’s southeast side, The Bookies is inarguably one of the very best children’s book stores in the country.
Earlier this fall, I was researching stores for the trip we’re planning to New York sometime in the next year. In the process, I discovered this list from BuzzFeed Community, which compiles the “14 Absolute Best U.S. Kids’ Bookstores,” as voted on by teachers in an online poll. Listed at #10 was The Bookies.
As a one-time journalist (trained at the world’s best J-school – MIZZOU-RAH!), I have my doubts about the authoritativeness of any list generated on BuzzFeed (I’ve seen plenty that are full-blown ridiculousness). But the list DID include the Wild Rumpus in Minneapolis and Reading Reptile in Kansas City, two bookstores I know for a fact are among the best in the business.
With that in mind, we found our way to The Bookies with just enough time to pop in for a look before dinner on our second day in Denver. One step in the door, and I was like a kid on Christmas morning. Never before have I seen such an expansive and comprehensive collection of board books, pictures books, chapter books, teaching supplies and wonderful toys. Twenty minutes, let alone 20 hours, would never be enough to do this store justice.
That afternoon, with the clock ticking on our dinner reservation, we came away with a hastily selected chapter book for each of the big girls, one truly wonderful board book for Flora and a determination to return. Which we did. The next day. And the next day. And if floo powder really existed, I’d be there right now.
Here’s what makes The Bookies exceptional. Not only do they have one of the most thorough collections of children’s literature in the United States, they also have some of the most helpful, friendly and knowledgeable employees you could ask for. Give me a picture book section that isn’t dictated by Disney princesses and I can easily find books that both meet my high standards and entertain my girls. But discovering new chapter books for Eloise and delving into Charlotte’s preferred genre of graphic novels makes me feel like a fish out of water. That’s where my new best friend Ryan steps in (although I don’t know if Ryan knows he’s my new best friend).
Ryan is an ever-smiling, 28-year-old youth literature expert who can just as easily talk to children as he can their book-obsessed parents. He told me he had worked at The Bookies for a year, and it’s apparent that he’s one of the lucky few whose job mirrors his most passionate interest.
Ryan just so happened to be the store’s go-to employee for graphic novels, so I commandeered his help, leaving other customers in my wake. I told him I have absolutely no familiarity with graphic novels, that Charlotte is drawn to them and I needed help finding selections that weren’t too dark. Ryan was off and running, and, man, did he hit it out of the park on his first at bat. I set Charlotte up in a corner of the store with more than a half-dozen of his recommendations, including:
“Cleopatra in Space, Book One: Target Practice,” by Mike Maihack
“Babymouse #1: Queen of the World!” by Jennifer L. Holm and Matthew Holm
“Sidekicks,” by Dan Santat
“Explorer: The Lost Island,” a collaborative volume directed by Kazu Kibuishi and created with the help of several other comics greats
“Lunch Lady and the Cyborg Substitude,” by Jarrett Krosoczka
“Squish: Super Amoeba,” by Jennifer L. Holm and Matthew Holm
“Binky to the Rescue” by Ashley Spires
“Zita the Spacegirl,” by Ben Hatke
Meanwhile, Ryan and I continued on our stroll around the store, this time in search of chapter books with these criteria: must be outstanding, preferably not part of a series and appropriate content for a 6 year old who’s capable of reading nearly anything in the store. Here were some of Ryan’s suggestions:
“An Elephant in the Garden,” by Michael Morpurgo
“A Tangle of Knots,” by Lisa Graff
“Peter Nimble and His Fantastic Eyes,” by Jonathan Auxier
“Wonder,” by R. J. Palacio
“Princess Academy,” by Shannon Hale
“The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate,” by Jacqueline Kelly
“The Lemonade War,” by Jacqueline Davies
“The Land of Stores: The Wishing Spell,” by Chris Colfer
And anything by Gordon Korman, including “Swindle” and “The Hypnotists.”
And that’s how we spent two hours on our second trip to The Bookies.
But here’s the problem… I hadn’t even hit the picture book section yet. So my dear, indulgent sister returned with me for a third time the next day while the girls fit in a quick nap before we had to head the airport. I power shopped like it was Black Friday, and 45 minutes later I had a sack full of new picture books and board books about which I couldn’t be more excited.
So, the girls might not have ended up with any souvenir sweatshirts, but they’ll be enjoying our loot for the next year, at least. And the best part was, nearly all of our selections were available in paperback, and The Bookies offers a 15% discount when you pay in cash, so the pocketbook didn’t suffer TOO badly. We did push the limits on the airline’s bag weight limits on the way home, though. I felt like a narcotics smuggler as I was stuffing the girls’ rolling carry-on bags with all of our books.
I Love Chocolate, But These Books Beat Halloween Candy Any Day!
Posted in Uncategorized on October 25, 2014| Leave a Comment »
I’ll use almost any excuse to give my girls books: the first day of school, the last day of school, lost teeth, birthdays, Valentine’s Day, Easter, the first of December, Christmas, and, of course, our upcoming holiday – Halloween.
I’ll admit, I do this in large part to satisfy my own obsession with children’s books, but, honestly, what better gift can you give your child than a book? They certainly don’t need any more candy than what they’ll collect trick-or-treating!
Oftentimes, I skip the holiday-themed books in an effort to stock the shelves with books that hold their interest year round. However, over the years, we’ve collected a fair number of fantastic books that celebrate the traditions of this spooky holiday. Here are my favorites:
“Harriet’s Halloween Candy,” written and illustrated by Nancy Carlson. (My all-time Halloween favorite)
Carlson is an author/illustrator from Minneapolis who published a series of “Harriet” books in the mid-80s, including this one from 1982, that readers of my generation may remember. In this story, Harriet returns home from trick-or-treating with an enormous haul of candy. She carefully organizes her stash: “First by color. Then by size. And finally by favorites.”
Looking on is Harriet’s little brother, Walt, who was too little to trick-or-treat. Harriet’s mother instructs Harriet to share with her little brother, and she begrudgingly hands over a teensy-weensy piece of coconut candy (“Harriet didn’t like coconut anyway”). She then hoards the rest of her candy until the next day, when she decides the only way to keep it safe for her own consumption is to eat it all, then and there. Unsurprisingly, she ends up green in the face and sick in the stomach and decides “maybe it’s time to share.”
The book is often lauded for its lessons on sharing, but what I love most about the story is the perfection with which Carlson illustrates a child’s obsession with Halloween candy. I assessed, hoarded and overate my Halloween candy every year, just like Harriet. And just like Harriet, I ended up with more stomachaches than I liked.
“Room on the Broom,” written by Julia Donaldson and illustrated by Axel Sheffler.
This book is on display everywhere for Halloween, so if you don’t have a copy already, you must pick one up! It’s a wonderful introduction to the awesome author-illustrator team of Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler (both of the U.K.). Donaldson rivals Suess for her talent with rhyming verse (I’d argue, she comes out on top; I know, blasphemy!), and Scheffler’s illustrations are playful, colorful and simply one-of-a-kind.
If you like what you see, be sure to check out all the rest of their collaborations here; we particularly love “The Gruffalo,” “The Scarecrow’s Wedding,” “Zog,” “Stick Man,” “Charlie Cook’s Favourite Book,” “The Snail and the Whale,” “The Smartest Giant in Town” and “A Squash and a Squeeze.”
In addition to the incredibly imaginative rhyming verse and the fabulous illustrations, “Room on the Broom” is wonderful because the story can be read year-round. Sure, the main the character is a witch, but Halloween isn’t the setting.
This friendly witch is simply taking a ride through the skies with her cat when a strong gust of wind blows off her hat. They go in search of the lost hat and are assisted by a polite dog who recovers the missing item. In return, the dog wonders if there’s “room on the broom” for a dog like him. The dog is welcomed into the fold, and the trio sets off together on the broom. However, the wind hasn’t let up and the witch subsequently loses her bow and wand. A parrot and frog come to her rescue in those instances, and each is welcomed aboard.
Unfortunately, it turns out that the broom cannot carry the load of them, and it snaps in two. The poor witch falls into the clutches of a hungry dragon in the mood for “witch with french fries.” But once more, the witch’s comrades come to her rescue, utilizing tactics much like those of the Town Musicians of Bremen. To thank her dear friends, the witch concocts a magical stew from which rises a brand-new broom “with seats for the witch and the cat and the dog, A nest for the bird and a pool for the frog.”
This is a fabulous book about new friendships and comraderie, plus every child likes a story about a magic witch’s stew!
“The Little Old Lady Who Was Not Afraid of Anything,” written by Linda Williams and illustrated by Megan Lloyd.
This is another classic from the ‘80s, but the story and illustrations have a timeless appeal, which is why it remains in print and widely available today. The book is based on an older folktale about a spooky body that appears bit by bit, and it’s perfect for children who are begging for a “ghost story” but may not yet be ready for the real deal.
In Williams’ rendition, a “little old lady who was not afraid of anything” sets out for a walk in the woods. After the sun goes down and the forest darkens, she encounters a pair of shoes, walking on their own accord and making an ominous “clomp, clomp” sound. She sternly tells the shoes: “Get out of my way, you two big shoes! I’m not afraid of you!” The little old lady bravely continues on her trek home but soon encounters: a pair of pants, a shirt, two white gloves, a tall black hat and, finally, a “very huge, very orange, very scary pumpkin head” that says “boo, boo.”
Now it seems the “little old lady who was not afraid of anything” might just be a little frightened. She runs home as fast as she can and locks the door. When she hears a knock at the door, she summons up her courage and confronts the creepy collection of body parts. She tells them that, despite their best efforts, she’s not afraid of them and encourages them to try scaring the crows in her garden instead.
“Ghosts in the House,” written and illustrated by Kazuno Kohara.
This book was named one of the best illustrated children’s books of 2008 by The New York Times, and for good reason. Kohara’s linotype prints are stunning – the bold black illustrations stand out against vibrant orange paper, with white, semi-transparent ghosts as the only other contrast. I’m tempted to order a second copy of this book just so that I can frame pages from my original copy as Halloween decorations.
While the illustrations are irresistible, the story is equally endearing. A little girl and her cat move into a house on the edge of town only to discover it’s haunted. But Kohara lets us in on a little secret: “the girl wasn’t just a girl. She was a witch!” And that witch knows how to catch ghosts. She pulls her witch’s hat out of her suitcase, and she and her cat round up the mostly-friendly ghosts. Once caught, they send them through the washer, hang them up to dry and inventively turn them into curtains, tablecloths and blankets, making the house into the perfect home for a witch and her cat.
“Five Little Pumpkins,” illustrated by Dan Yaccarino.
Yaccarino is the illustrator behind the popular Nickleodeon shows “Oswald” and “The Backyardigans,” as well as several successful children’s books, including “Every Friday” and “Boy and Bot.” In this board book, he’s offered a playful visual reference for the quintessential Halloween rhyme, a rhyme I remember learning as a preschooler and one that my daughters performed at every one of their Halloween parties:
“Five little pumpkins, sitting on a gate.
The first one said, ‘Oh my, it’s getting late.’
The second one said, ‘There are witches in the air.’
The third one said, ‘But we don’t care.’
The fourth one said, ‘Let’s run and run and run.’
The fifth one said, ‘I’m ready for some fun.’
Ooooooooooo went the wind and out went the light.
And the five little pumpkins rolled out of sight.”
The book serves as a great prompt for older children who enjoy performing the rhyme, and its short verses and bright illustrations make it captivating for babies and toddlers.
“Halloween Faces,” by Nancy Davis.
Davis combines graphic, color-blocked illustrations with the inventive use of die-cut pages, to create a book in which you are able to try various Halloween masks on a boy and girl as you turn the pages. Similarly, the second portion of the book includes die-cut pages that reveal silly, happy, scary and spooky pumpkin faces. The final spread is a fold out that reveals a Halloween party scene, attended by adorably dressed trick-or-treaters.
“Who Said Book?,” written by Phyllis Root and illustrated by Ana Martin Larranaga.
A lift-the-flap book in which a vampire demands to know “who said boo.” Each spread includes a page with a door flap, behind which hide various Halloween characters, none of whom claim to have said “boo.” The tiniest door reveals a mouse, who admits to being the culprit, and the supposedly scary ghost, witches, ghoul, vampire and skeleton yell “EEEEEEEEEEK!” in fearful response.
This book earns merit for the universal appeal of its lift-the-flap format, its creative and unexpected rhymes and the cuteness of its illustrations.
“Witch’s Night Out,” written by Janet Sacks and illustrated by Luana Rinaldo.
This super cool pull-tab book is part of a series of “mini magic color books.” Images revealed through die-cut openings initially appear in black and white. When the tab is pulled, however, the image is revealed in full color. The text makes use of the cute trick and asks readers to guess the color of various characters’ accouterments. For example, we are introduced to Wendy Witch who lives in the land of friendly witches. What color is she wearing? When her image escapes the right margin of the page, we find her wearing a green dress, candy striped tights and purple hat and boots. Similarly, the reader is invited to guess the color of her cat, her friend William Wizard’s cloak and hat, and the color of the moon. Kids are bound to love this one because they’ve never seen pull-tabs works quite this way before.
A Sequel for Smyles and Honey Makes Her Debut
Posted in Uncategorized on October 2, 2014| 2 Comments »
My dog has been immortalized in children’s literature!
If you’ve visited the newly remodeled and reopened Ames Public Library, you may have sat in on reading of “Dog Tales Too: Old and New,” the sequel to the book that introduced us to the library’s beloved mascot, a big blue dog named Smyles.
The book was co-authored by my good friend and former neighbor, Roger Kluesner, who also happens to be a board member for the library’s Friends Foundation and was highly involved in the library’s remodel. Local children’s book author Sarvinder Naberhaus helped shape his vision into wonderfully rhymed verses.
Roger was inspired to write the book after observing Iowa State University’s sheep dog, Chester, patrol our neighborhood long after a large portion of his pastureland was converted into a residential development. Despite the fact that his flock was contained to the west and the south of our houses, the big, shaggy, black dog still felt the need to keep watch over the entirety of his former territory.
Roger imagined the fictional Smyles might also have struggled with the upheaval in his living circumstances, after spending two years in the library’s temporary home on Lincoln Way before returning to the newly remodeled facility on Douglas Avenue. In addition, Roger was quite familiar with the many real-life concerns of those who were uncertain about all of the drastic changes being made to original library, parts of which date back to 1904.
In “Old and New,” Smyles and Chester the Sheep Dog makes each other’s acquaintance while Smyles is touring the town with the bookmobile and his librarian friend, Miss June. Smyles lends a sympathetic ear when Chester expresses his unease with the changes being made to his farmland home. Smyles invites Chester to join him as the bookmobile completes its route, and, along the way, Smyles shows Chester many of Ames’ landmarks that also have been modified in some way over the years.
When the duo makes a stop at Ada Hayden, they run into the one and only Honey B. Good, ever eager for a game of fetch with her tennis ball. For those who know our fabulous dog, you’ll immediately recognize her beautiful golden eyes, red coloring, friendly demeanor and pretty feminine face (yes, I’m biased).
I am so grateful to Roger and illustrator Gordon S. Roy for honoring Honey by including her in this book. Roger is well aware of my children’s book obsession, and it was so kind of him to give me a personal connection to a book that’s sure to be cherished by the children of Ames. In addition, Honey was Austin’s and my first “baby” and the first dog that I’ve trained competitively in obedience – both of these roles earn her a permanently precious place in our hearts, something our friends who also train dogs will understand well.
As the book reaches its conclusion, Smyles and Chester join the residents of Ames as they celebrate the library’s grand reopening. When the ribbon is cut, Smyles bounds through the door, eager to be back home.
As he explores the remodeled library, Smyles is both comforted by what is familiar and thrilled by all that is new, including a vibrant green storytime room and a children’s reading area dubbed “Smyles’ Corner.” As Chester the Sheep Dog puts it: “Your home’s Old and New. It’s changed just like mine has; now I’m not so blue. I can’t herd my sheep far beyond pasture’s end, but I can still guard them and I’ve made a new friend.”
It was Roger’s hope that all those who love the library would embrace the “renewed” building in a similar fashion. Hints of the library’s 104-year history are still apparent, but what’s not to love about more than doubling the facility’s square footage? Or the soaring ceilings and bright and airy spaces? And certainly all of the library’s patrons are happy to see the library (and Smyles) back in its rightful home.
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11090
|
__label__cc
| 0.706205
| 0.293795
|
home genetic news bioinformatics biotechnology literature journals ethics positions events sitemap
HUM-MOLGEN -> Events -> Courses and Workshops
Search - prev / next
Formulating Skin Care Products: Keeping an “Active” Active
Pharma Development and Business
CfPA-The Center for Professional Advancement, Online Live
July 31, 2019 at 11:00 a.m.–12:30 p.m. (ET
The course is designed for individuals active in the Skin Care Industry, working in R&D or Marketing. It will be beneficial to Chemists with basic knowledge of formulation and Marketing executives who want to have an understanding of formulations.
This 90-minute accredited training course will provide useful information about how to maintain the activity of ingredients when they are embedded in cosmetic formulas. This course is designed to help chemists and marketing select the most appropriate excipients according to the active used. It will address the basics of molecular interactions of ingredients with the biochemistry of the skin.
Can't Make this LIVE Webinar?
Simply select the On Demand option when registering and we will send you the link to view the recorded version.
On Demand available approximately 3 business days after the live offering.
Maximize Your Learning!
Attend this course and its Companion Courses:
Formulating Skin Care Products: Selecting Raw Materials
July 17, 2019 • Online Live• Course ID #2866
Formulating Skin Care Products: Preparing Sunscreens
July 24, 2019 • Online Live • Course ID #2867
Organized by: CfPA-The Center for Professional Advancement
Invited Speakers:
Paolo Giacomoni, Ph.D., Consultant to the Skin Care Industry
Dr. Paolo Giacomoni (Insight Analysis Consulting, Madison, AL), is an independent consultant to the Skin Care Industry. He served as Chief Scientific Officer with Elan Rose International (2015-2018) and as VP of Skin Care Worldwide R&D with Herbalife (2011-2014) where he has been responsible for preparing new Skin Care lines.
Dr Giacomoni is a quality - focused leader with over 20 years experience in product research and development for cosmetic products provider.
Previously, Dr. Giacomoni was with Estée Lauder as their Executive Director of Research. During that time he was in charge of research and communications for Clinique and interacted frequently with beauty editors. He was also in charge of meeting with suppliers of raw materials and he understands from both sides, the negotiation process to enter a raw material in a skin care product. He contributed research on cell and surface biochemistry for best-selling products such as Youth Surge, Turnaround Concentrate, Anti-Gravity, UV-Response, Superdefense, Even Better, Laser Focus, and Repairwear Night/Day.
During his tenure at L’Oréal as Head of the Department of Biology and then as scientific attaché to the Director of Applied Research, he built a distinguished record of achievement through research on DNA damage and metabolic impairment induced by UV, and on the positive effects of antioxidants. His action lead to testing and integrating new technologies as part of the product development processes of best selling products such as Lancôme’s Rénergie and Primordial. While with L’ Oréal, he was a founder of the European Society for Photobiology and of the European Network for the Study of the Biology of Aging. During his Academic years he was Maître de Conférences at the University of Paris, France, and Visiting Professor at the University of Milano, Italy.
Dr. Giacomoni is fluent in French, Italian, German, Spanish and English and is the author of 100+ publications and patents representing breakthrough industry concepts. He received his Ph.D., in Biochemistry from Université Paris VI, Paris France; his Masters Degree in Atomic Physics from Università di Milano, Milano, Italy and had Post-Doctoral Training at Deutsches Krebsforschungszentrum, Heidelberg, Germany, at University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI and at University of California, San Diego, CA.
Deadline for Abstracts: n/a
Registration: Please click here for registration information.
E-mail: Jmorbit@cfpa.com
Generated by meetings and positions 5.0 by Kai Garlipp
WWW: Kai Garlipp, Frank S. Zollmann.
7.0 © 1995-2019 HUM-MOLGEN. All rights reserved. Liability, Copyright and Imprint.
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11095
|
__label__wiki
| 0.725952
| 0.725952
|
OpinionWithout Coach’s Corner and Don Cherry, hockey isn’t hockey
ETC StaffDecember 6, 2013497 min
Adam Kozak, Senior Reporter
A $5.2 billion deal was recently reached between Rogers and the NHL that will change the sport viewing landscape for the next 12 years. Millions of dollars in ad revenue will be funneled through different channels, hockey TV personalities will be cut, and more than one hockey game will be broadcast on Saturday nights.
But all I could think of is, will Don Cherry still be on Coach’s Corner?
As a hockey fan, I’m happy to watch the games on whatever network is showing them. Although I have my favourite broadcasters, I choose to watch games based on whether one of my favourite teams or players is playing. If there’s more than one game on at a time, I’ll go with the closest game. If my favourite play-by-play guy happens to be doing the game: fantastic. But if not, ho-hum.
And then there are Saturday nights, where the center of the hockey universe gets a jolt of adrenaline in the form of a 79 year-old, white-haired hockey lifer who has referred to himself as a pitbull. Don Cherry’s built himself up over a 30-year broadcasting career to be named one of the top 10 Canadians by the CBC’s The Greatest Canadian. He’s accomplished this reputation by speaking unabashedly about what he believes in: whether it’s supporting the troops, NHL rule changes, his stance on Europeans – his segment is hockey with a touch of society.
Take this for example: during first intermission in a Saturday night game against Buffalo, all of the reporters in the Foster Hewitt Media Gondola race to the one television and huddle around to watch Coach’s Corner. Some laugh and some snicker, but everyone watches. Why? Because he makes things interesting.
He’s a personality that provides genuine insight into hockey and hockey culture, from Canadian pride, to the troops, to wearing funny suits. He does all of it like no other. Just try matching him up in terms of uniqueness to any other broadcaster out there—everyone else falls short.
In Coach’s Corner, you get content from Cherry you wouldn’t see anywhere else, and in a tone unlike any other. One perfect example came last week, when he talked about fighting—the most hot-button issue in the game right now. It’s what abortion is to ethics. Yet there Cherry is, making a small nuanced point about the difference between fighting in a rage and not. The video clips he used seem innocuous to even the trained eye—I’d wager that most broadcasters would find it awfully difficult to say something prescient about them when stacked up side-by-side. Yet that’s where Cherry’s at his best. Hockey reporters like to say they don’t need to have played the game to write about it, and I agree, but someone who does have experience like Cherry can provide insight that those who without it can’t.
The only other hockey show that demands the attention of the hockey world is Hockeycentral @ Noon, owned interestingly enough by Rogers, which now gets full editorial control of Hockey Night in Canada. I myself and two other interns at The Hockey News had adjusted our lunchtime so that we could listen to the full hour. A show bubbling with the chemistry between Nick Kypreos, Doug MacLean and Darren Millard, the show has pedigree and a personality that would serve as a worthy replacement. And hey, it can still be called Coach’s Corner if MacLean picks it up, since he was a former coach of the Florida Panthers. Few shows provide as many laughs per minute as these guys, yet they can’t be Don.
In last week’s segment, Cherry addressed the media for the first time since hearing the news, saying he wants to continue: “I know I’m good. I didn’t fall off a turnip truck. I know everybody watches so all I’m saying is take it easy, don’t try to ruin a good thing, just leave us alone and we’ll be just as good next year,” he said.
As of right now, the only reason for getting rid of Don Cherry would be for the sake of change itself. After 30 years, he’s as fiery as ever, still providing unique hockey insight and toeing that line of what’s right and what’s wrong that’s made him a unique Canadian icon. And like he said, he’s still number one.
You can get rid of the Hockey Night in Canada theme song, but getting rid of Don Cherry? Ludicrous.
Mental health: students deserve more
The N-word: white journalists are missing the point
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11097
|
__label__cc
| 0.656817
| 0.343183
|
Relationship ( Pb )
In this exchange of letters dating from an extremely turbulent period of their lives, Nayantara Sahgal and E.N. Mangat Rai, two very public figures who had remained at the same time intensely private, broke their self-imposed silence for the first time. When Relationship was first published in 1994, it was received with varying degrees of shock and appreciation. This newly revised edition includes all of the correspondence carried in the previous one, with a short but significant addition: Diary from Chandigarh is an honest and often emotionally wrenching account of Nayantara’s life with her husband and children before the break-up. Both the diary and the letters highlight one woman’s endeavour to remain true to herself, her writing, her ideals and relationships, both outside and within marriage. They speak of a growing and passionate involvement, of the author’s joy and pain at discovering an intellectual companionship while recognizing the difficulties of keeping such a relationship alive. They reflect too, on the dilemmas and compulsions that bind men and women into particular relationships, and the exigencies of public life and its implications for the private sphere. A mirror of the times when a kind of idealism and commitment still seemed possible, Relationship gives the reader an insight into the life and thoughts of one of India’s most successful writers, and one of the most distinguished civil servants of his generation
Nayantara Sahgal is one of India’s best-known writers and thinkers. She is the recipient of the Sinclair Prize for Fiction, the Sahitya Akademi Award and the Commonwealth Writers’ Prize. A member of the Sahitya Akademi’s advisory board for English till she resigned during the Emergency, Sahgal served on the jury read more
Books by Nayantara Sahgal
Plans for Departure
Prison and Chocolate Cake
Day of Reckoning
Sanjay Chopra
Koi Good News?
Zarreen Khan
Map Of The Invisible World
Navagat Peerhi
Pushpal Editor Singh
Buddha Hb
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11099
|
__label__wiki
| 0.59591
| 0.59591
|
Dymytry
DYMYTRY was formed in Prague (Czech Republic) in 2003. It’s unique music style, the band calls Psy-Core. To date the band have released 4 albums (LP), 4 EPs and 1 Live DVD & CD. The main language of those records was Czech, but in June 2017 DYMYTRY released their first EP in English named “United We Stand”, and they keep working on english lyrics to release a full-length english album coming soon.
The band have toured throughout Czech Republic and Slovakia almost constantly, with over 1,000 live shows under their belt. The band’s live shows incorporate masks, costumes, pyro-show, led walls with custom videos for every song, world-class drum solos and much more which constantly adapts, develops and proves to be an impressive stage show for the fans! In 2015 embarked on their first headline tour which covered 32 gigs at medium-size venues (Spring plus Autumn legs). They also participate in a number of co-headline tours with other well known Czech artists. During the spring of 2017 they had a new successful headline tour lined up, and in 2018 the band plans their 15 Year Anniversary headline tour which is going to be the biggest and most impressive to date.
Summer festivals are an integral part of DYMYTRY’s booking schedule. During its existence the band have played at most of the biggest festivals in Czech Republic and Slovakia such as Masters of Rock (CZ), Metalfest (CZ), Rock Pod Kamenom (SK), Rock For People (CZ), Benatska Noc (CZ) and many others. In 2010 they played at Wacken Open Air after they won Czech Wacken Metal Battle contest.
All the band-members are professional musicians with huge studio and live experience. The bands drummer Milos Meier has in-fact been named one of the best Czech drummers of all, endorsed by TAMA and Meinl, performing at many big international drum festivals.
- Foto 1
- EPK
GAS:
Dirk Verseck
dirk(at)headlineconcerts.de
World:
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11102
|
__label__cc
| 0.708357
| 0.291643
|
Academic Governance
Grad Cert in HE Academic Practice
FEE-HELP assistance for students
Community Development Scholarships
For HE Employees
For HE Employers
HE Advisory Services
Resources for Independent HEPs
Higher Education Leadership Institute Pty Ltd trading as Higher Education Leadership Institute (HELI) is a proprietary company established under the Corporations Act 2001. HELI is registered as a Higher Education Provider under the Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Act 2011 [Registration #: PRV14266].
Information about HELI’s financial well-being is contained in the Statement of Financial Standing.
Institutional information about HELI (including our organisational structure) can be found here.
HELI is governed by a Board of Directors that includes a majority of independent members along with a representative of the owners of the Institute. The independence of the Board of Directors provides a mechanism to separate the ownership and governance of the Company from the management of the Institute and to provide independent business, financial and higher education expertise and advice at the highest level of decision-making. The Board of Directors is chaired by one of its independent members. The Board of Directors sets the Institute’s mission and strategic goals in addition to ensuring the Institute continues to meet its legal, regulatory, financial and social obligations and responsibilities.
Members of the Board of Directors
Neil Bridge
Independent Chair
Neil is a highly experienced business leader. After senior posts in the NSW Public Service Neil became Managing Director of a highly regarded RTO, Workplace Australia Group, until its sale in 2007. Neil has since been General Manager of St Patrick’s Institute of Education and Quality and Governance Advisor at The Entourage Education Group.
Apart from leading the corporate oversight of the Institute, Neil also brings his business acumen, knowledge of tertiary regulatory frameworks and keen insight into government policy to this position.
Professor Emeritus L.Z. (Zbys) Klich
Independent member and Chair of the Academic Board
Prof Klich was previously Chair of the Governing Board for Airways Aviation and Global Director of Academic Affairs for SAE Institute. He has also held prior appointments as Vice-President of Southern Cross University in Australia until 2007, and before that as Dean of Education and Dean for Internationalisation, as well as a Research Fellow at the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies.
His PhD research examined exceptional cross-cultural thinking skills. His teaching, research and publications have been in the areas of intercultural studies, professional learning and professional development, collaborative partnerships between universities with regions as well as with industry groups, and has included work published through the NATO Scientific Studies Division, and with the OECD in Europe.
He has been an advisor on several international education projects, he has worked as a consultant for national and state government projects in Australia, he has served on Ministerial Advisory Councils for Education, and he has been a quality auditor for the Australian Universities Quality Agency, as well as a higher education specialist auditor for the Government of Oman.
Dr Peter Ryan
For over 20 years Peter has been actively involved with a number of tertiary education providers, specialising in the areas of regulatory approvals, quality assurance, and corporate and academic governance.
In 2015 Peter established HELI as a new education enterprise aimed at fulfilling a niche role in the independent higher education sector through the delivery of global best-practice advisory services and professional development to independent higher education providers.
As well as being a director of HELI, Peter is also Chair of the Board of Directors of two of Australia’s largest private higher education providers: Australian College of Applied Psychology and SAE Institute.
The Higher Education Leadership Institute (HELI) is a new education provider aimed at fulfilling a niche role in the independent higher education sector.
Through its team of higher education experts and researchers, HELI delivers global best-practice advisory services, mentoring and training to higher education providers.
Calling out the elephant in the room
Do you know what your partner is up to?
AAT continues to thwart TEQSA decisions
Independent Higher Education – the year in review
Do your academic staff meet the standard?
Copyright 2019 Higher Education Leadership Institute ABN 71 606 961 451
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11104
|
__label__wiki
| 0.766062
| 0.766062
|
Programs and Activities ›
Seminars ›
Postdoc Seminar
2015-2016 Postdoc Seminar Series
Weiwei Hu University of Minnesota, Twin Cities
Andrew Thaler University of Minnesota, Twin Cities
The 2015-2016 seminars are organized by Andy Thaler and Weiwei Hu of the University of Minnesota. Seminars take place Mondays from 2:25-3:25 p.m. unless otherwise noted.
2:25 pm - 3:25 pm Minimization Problems with a Polyconvex Type Constraint
Romeo Awi (University of Minnesota, Twin Cities)
Lind 305
2:25 pm - 3:25 pm Decentralised Stability Guarantees for Electrical Power Systems Lind 305
2:25 pm - 3:25 pm A Unifying Framework for Robust Synchronisation in Multi-agent Systems
Sei Zhen Khong (University of Minnesota, Twin Cities)
2:25 pm - 3:25 pm Speed vs Accuracy: Nervous Systems Tradeoffs Using Robust Control
Yorie Nakahira (California Institute of Technology)
2:25 pm - 3:25 pm Modeling and Control of Collective Dynamics
Yongxin Chen (University of Minnesota, Twin Cities)
2:25 pm - 3:25 pm Disturbance Attenuation in Mass Chains with Passive Interconnection
Kaoru Yamamoto (University of Minnesota, Twin Cities)
2:25 pm - 3:25 pm ARock: Asynchronous Parallel Coordinate Update
Yangyang Xu (University of Minnesota, Twin Cities)
2:25 pm - 3:25 pm Arbitrage and Hedging Under Model Uncertainty
Zhou Zhou (University of Minnesota, Twin Cities)
2:25 pm - 3:25 pm On Optimal Low-rank Approximation of Non-negative Matrices
Christian Grussler (Lund University)
2:25 pm - 3:25 pm Stochastic Models for Human Driving Behavior and Applications to Semi-autonomous Safety Systems
Daniel Hoehener (Massachusetts Institute of Technology)
2:25 pm - 3:25 pm Some Relationships Between the Information Theory and Convex Geometry
Arnaud Marsiglietti (University of Minnesota, Twin Cities)
2:25 pm - 3:25 pm Fast, Robust and Non-convex Subspace Recovery
Gilad Lerman (University of Minnesota, Twin Cities)
2:25 pm - 3:25 pm Controlling a Thermal Fluid: Theoretical and Computational Issues
Weiwei Hu (University of Minnesota, Twin Cities)
2:25 pm - 3:25 pm Maximum Principle Satisfying High Order Direct Discontinuous Galerkin Method for Convection Diffusion Problems
Jue Yan (Iowa State University)
2:25 pm - 3:25 pm Solution to the HJB Equation for LQR-Type Problems on Compact Connected Lie Groups
Rohit Gupta
2:25 pm - 3:25 pm Uniqueness, Existence and Regularity of Solutions of Integro-PDE in Domains of R^n
Chenchen Mou (Georgia Institute of Technology)
Romeo Awi Institute of Mathematics and its Applications University of Minnesota, Twin Cities
Yongxin Chen Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering University of Minnesota, Twin Cities
Christian Grussler Lund University
Rohit Gupta University of Minnesota, Twin Cities
Daniel Hoehener Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Weiwei Hu Institute of Mathematics and its Applications University of Minnesota, Twin Cities
Sei Zhen Khong Institute of Mathematics and its Applications University of Minnesota, Twin Cities
Gilad Lerman School of Mathematics University of Minnesota, Twin Cities
Arnaud Marsiglietti Institute for Mathematics and its Applications University of Minnesota, Twin Cities
Chenchen Mou School of Mathematics Georgia Institute of Technology
Yorie Nakahira Control and Dynamical System California Institute of Technology
Richard Pates Department of Engineering University of Cambridge
Andrew Thaler Institute of Mathematics and its Applications University of Minnesota, Twin Cities
Yangyang Xu Institute of Mathematics and its Applications University of Minnesota, Twin Cities
Kaoru Yamamoto University of Minnesota, Twin Cities
Jue Yan Department of Mathematics Iowa State University
Zhou Zhou Institute of Mathematics and its Applications University of Minnesota, Twin Cities
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11106
|
__label__wiki
| 0.708294
| 0.708294
|
Home National News Modi Govt brought Space technology to every Indian household: Dr Jitendra Singh
Modi Govt brought Space technology to every Indian household: Dr Jitendra Singh
New Delhi: Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER), MoS PMO, Personnel, Public Grievances, Pensions, Atomic Energy and Space, Dr Jitendra Singh delivered the Keynote address at the International Space Conference of “Geospatial World Forum” in Hyderabad today. Addressing the conference he complemented Team ISRO for having placed India as a front-line leader in the community of world nations while in the last three years, the use of diverse applications of space technology to carry forward the Modi Government’s infrastructural and transformational programmes has brought space technology to the doorstep of every Indian household.
The minister said that it is primarily the personal indulgence, intervention and patronage provided by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi which has made space technology an essential part of Modi’s “Transforming India” mission, which will finally culminate in the building of “New India”. It was at the behest of Prime Minister that perhaps, the first-of-its-kind, extended brain-storming interaction was held between space scientists and the representatives of different Ministries and Departments in Government of India, in order to understand the areas where space technology could be put into use.
In the last 3 years, Dr Jitendra Singh said, the Team ISRO and the Department of Space have finalised effective MoUs with a host of Ministries, including Ministry of Railways, Ministry of Urban Development, Ministry of Agriculture, Ministry of Human Resource Development, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare etc. Space Technology today is playing a crucial role in carrying forward a number of flagship programmes of the Modi Government, including Smart City programme, Urban and Housing schemes, guarding of unmanned railway crossings, Geo-tagging of MNREGA, procurement of Utilization Certificates of roads and other projects, agricultural soil testing, he added.
The new year began with the January 12th launching of 28 foreign satellites which, Dr Jitendra Singh said, has vindicated the dream of our founding father Vikram Sarabhai and evidently proved that even those nations of the world which began their space programme several years before us have reposed their faith and trust in us to launch their satellites. The last year set some world records like launching of 104 satellites in a single go, launching of South Asia satellite and completion of 3 years of Mangalyaan in the orbit, he added.
Referring to the Geospatial World Forum meet, currently being held, Dr Jitendra Singh said, this event highlights India’s intent of expanding its space programmes for wider application and with wider participation of other partners as well. The presence of representatives and CEOs of some of the leading industrial houses of the world, he said, signifies the keen desire of the world industrial players to collaborate with India to benefit as well as to supplement the applications of space technology for the common goal of the future growth of a global world.
Dr Jitendra Singh
Previous articleDefence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman takes to Skies in an IAF Su-30 MKI
Next articleMother’s Public School, one of the oldest school sin Bhubaneswar, celebrated its Silver Jubilee
Central Apprenticeship Council meets under the chairmanship of Sh. Mahendra Nath Pandey,Minister of Skill development and Entrepreneurship
IFFI is India’s pride; this year’s IFFI is especially significant since it marks the Golden Jubilee Edition: Prakash Javadekar
Mussoorie IAS Academy Director calls on Dr. Jitendra Singh
LPU Alumnus featured in Fortune India ‘40 Under 40’ List of India’s Brightest Entrepreneurs, 2019
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11108
|
__label__wiki
| 0.545517
| 0.545517
|
Follow-Ups: Botox Mom, Bernard Lagat's Son, and Miss America's Daughter
June 26, 2011 Hilary
Many of my blog posts fall into one of the following categories: beauty pageants, child beauty pageants, and competitive children. Today's post features updates on some of my most popular stories in each of these areas. 1) Botox Mom (aka Kerry Campbell/Sheena Upton)- It's been reported that Botox Mom (who never actually used Botox it turns out) is working with the Department of Children and Family Services in California to keep custody of her two daughters. Upton is taking parenting classes, undergoing mental health counseling, and living with a family member to help her girls recover from the events of this past spring. I don't think we'll be seeing the Uptons on this season of Toddlers & Tiaras, do you?
2) Miika Lagat was back in the news this weekend as his dad ran in the US Track and Field Championships. In an interview Lagat reported: "Lagat, who's son Miika is his #1 fan and was cheering for him every lap of the 5,000m on Friday night, said it was OK with Miika that his dad did not win. Bernard said Miika told him BEFORE the race, 'You know what daddy, you've run a lot (this week). If you lose, it's part of running.'" Let's not forget that Miika is five-and-a-half. He's pretty wise for someone so young, but having grown up around racing I guess he's earned his wisdom. I wonder if he will be racing soon?
3) Speaking of children of celebrities, Diana Dreman was just crowned Miss Colorado 2011. What's special about that? Well, her mother is Rebecca King, Miss America 1974. I am 99% sure that this is the first daughter of a Miss America to compete on the Miss America Pageant's stage. As the daughter of Miss America 1970, I have a lot of respect for Diana for putting herself out there-- but I also worry for her. I never did pageants, though there was a moment when I was a kid when I thought, "Hey, I could do that." My mother, wisely, didn't let me participate saying, "If you win, people could say it is because of me. If you lose, it could be because of me. You need to do your own thing." Not surprisingly, my own thing did not involve walking on-stage in a bathing suit (because, really, I think for most people, that is the stuff of nightmares).
In any event, I do think that Diana has the "Miss America look." I read on the pageant message boards that her talent routine is weak (dance), but I would expect her to go pretty far in Vegas come January. First of all, it's a great story for the Pageant. I will definitely be interested to see what a) the mainstream media makes of this story, and b) what pageant insiders make of it. And, of course, I'll share my thoughts!
Two other quick things to note: Rebecca King, Diana's mother (who was also Miss Colorado-- the last to win Miss America!), signaled a new stage in Miss America's development, back in the early 1970s. King was basically the first to use her scholarship money for professional graduate school. She became a lawyer and has had a successful law practice. She has also stayed involved with the Pageant, serving on its Board-- so it will be especially interesting to see how this plays out, since Diana has presumably met much of the Miss A leadership over the years... Second, I can't resist noting that this is not the most (in)famous pageant mother-daughter duo to come out of Colorado. That, of course, would be JonBenet and her mother, Patsy...
In Beauty pageants, Child beauty pageants, Playing to Win Blog Tags Bernard Lagat, Botox Mom, Britney Campbell, Celebrity children, Diana Dreman, Kerry Campbell/Sheena Upton, Miss America, Rebecca King
Chris Bosh of the Miami Heat just lost the NBA Championships. But he's okay with it. Why? Because his daughter, Trinity, got to see him play in the Finals.
Now Trinity is two-years-old. But imagine instead that she was twelve-years-old. How hard would it be to watch your father-- or any parent-- lose a major game or tournament, in person?
This past weekend Bernard Lagat, an Olympic runner, competed in the 2011 Adidas Grand Prix in New York City. Lagat ran the 5000m and came in second. His five-and-a-half-year-old son, Miika was in the stands to watch. How do I know? Because in NBC's coverage they actually miked little Miika and recorded his reaction to the race, showing the visual during the race replays. Miika was screaming for his dad to win, and seemed upset when he came in second. He sat next to his mom during the race, and obviously his parents had to okay their son being miked and recorded. While Miika is adorable and full of personality, was this really the best decision? Clearly a lot of Miika's identity is wrapped up in being the son of a successful runner. What about his own identity?
It's not just the children of athletes who often have a spotlight on themselves based on their parents performances. This can apply to children of performers and politicians, along with notorious figures. For example, Karen Gravano, the daughter of Sammy the Bull, is in the news as part of the VH1 show Mob Wives. Gravano is currently penning a memoir about growing up the daughter of a mobster. And then there's Chaz Bono, also much in the news, who has used the celebrity of his parents as a platform to promote transgender awareness (never mind that as a young girl Chasity was featured on her parents' television show in sequins and make-up, which made his personal struggles more public and in some ways more difficult).
Perhaps most interesting to me are the children of politicians. Politicians regularly use their families, and their children, to promote a particular image to the public. They also use their children to drive home particular issues. For example, the Obamas (especially Michelle) talk about childhood obesity in terms of their own children's "rising BMIs." These same children can become caught in the crossfire when things go awry. When the Arnold and Maria scandal broke, their teenage son's tweets were reported by the media. And then, of course, there are the Palin children. The Palin brood have been used in and across multiple reality television shows (for some of my thoughts on kids and reality TV in general you can read my USA Today op-ed here). When Sarah Palin took off on a summer tour recently her youngest daughter, Piper, was used in the video produced by SarahPAC.
It doesn't have to be this way, of course. Putin shows that there is another path-- although in this country we'd likely prefer something less extreme than essentially hiding family members. But this raises larger questions: should access to children of celebrities be limited in particular ways? Is the media wrong to focus attention on some of them (like Lagat's son being miked and recorded)? Or is this solely a family/parental decision that we should leave up to the parent's discretion?
It's true that children of celebrities get various benefits from having celebrity parents, like access to other celebrities and real material rewards. It is also easier for them to have a platform, if they so chose, as Chaz Bono shows. But, in general, they are thrust into the spotlight against their will and based on the skills and accomplishments of their parents, and not their own. In some ways, then, are these parents no better than Richard Heene, Balloon Boy's father?
In Kids and competition, Playing to Win Blog Tags Bernard Lagat, Celebrity children, Children of politicians, Chris Bosh's daughter
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11114
|
__label__wiki
| 0.678364
| 0.678364
|
Battle of Vicksburg
Medha Godbole Jan 22, 2019
The Battle of Vicksburg was the last nail in the coffin for the Confederate Army of the Confederate States of America. Vicksburg was then the fortress city, dominating the final Confederate controlled areas of Mississippi river. Get to know more here.
"Fiddle-dee-dee. War, war, war; this war talks spoiling all the fun at every party this spring. I get so bored I could scream. Besides... there isn't going to be any war. Not going to be any war? Why, honey, of course there's gonna be a war. If either of you boys says "war" just once again, I'll go in the house and slam the door. But Scarlett..."
The dialogue was from the epic movie Gone With the Wind. The movie was made on the backdrop of American Civil War. American civil war was a monumental landmark in American history. If not for the 11 Southern Slave states, who seceded from the United States, there would not have been American civil war and consequently no Gone with the Wind!
Reverting back to those volatile times of American civil war, which started in 1861 and ended in 1865, the siege of Vicksburg was one of the last assaults by the Union army on the Confederate Army.
Vicksburg, a beautiful city in Warren County, on the banks of Mississippi was the spot of the grand finale of the 2 year effort by the Union Army to gain control over the areas around the river.
Vicksburg Saga
It all started with Vicksburg being the center and the conjoining point for separating the so-called 2 halves of the war - the East and the West. The 'Gibraltar of the West' as Vicksburg was called, became the spot for the final showdown between Gen. Ulysses Grant and Lt. Gen John Pemberton, leading the Union and the Confederate Armies respectively.
The place was also known as 'Gibraltar of the Confederacy'. The Confederate army was at a loss prior to this battle to stop the Union army at Champion Hill and Big Black River Bridge. Grant, to top it all had already won battles at Port Gibson and Raymond, finally to capture the capital of Mississippi state, Jackson.
The main face-off in this league of civil war started on May 18 and it lasted till July 4. All in all, the significance of the battle lies in the fact that this proved to be a turning point in the American civil war.
Vicksburg: May 18 - July 4
Initially Grant tried to break the strong Confederate forte, on May 19 and 22, 1863. The attack done later could gain some success but what Grant got back was a huge number of casualties.
Johnston, one of the commanders of the Confederate Army asked Pemberton to evacuate the city, resulting in saving of his army. Pemberton, however, was of the opinion that it would be an extremely tough task to withdraw safely.
Instead, Johnston staged a preemptive attack on Grant for taking a load off Pemberton. Unfortunately for the Confederate Army, it resulted in a flop show. Meanwhile Grant besieged Pemberton's forces and the task was almost as good as over.
Both the sides were locked in a heavy tiff of artillery and bombing attacks, trying to get the better of each other.
But there was a small problem, as Grant could not afford to lose track of Pemberton's forces who were charging from the rear direction. Hence, he stationed a division in the vicinity of the Big Black River Bridge and another one far off, to act as cover.
The XI Corps commanded by Maj Gen. G Parke, by then had been transferred to Grant's command on June 10. This was like a special task force which was entitled the task to hold Johnston back who was gathering forces at Canton.
To relieve Pemberton, Johnston marched ahead, reaching the Big Black River on 1st July. But he made a mistake of potentially delaying a tough encounter with the XI Corps. By then it was late for the Vicksburg Garrison. Johnston then again fell back to Jackson, the capital of Mississippi.
The Battle of Vicksburg finally ended on July 4, when Pemberton surrendered, after 6 weeks. Civilians and soldiers were left with no food supplies. In addition to this, they were bombarded constantly. Finally, Pemberton had to give up in such circumstances, once he asked for Armistice.
One of the most important facts about this battle is the defeat of the Confederates and huge casualties for both the armies.
This phase was the phase in American history where there was maximum bloodshed.
At first, Grant wanted an unconditional surrender. Later he changed his decision and put forth a proposal to parole all prisoners.
July 4th was considered as the Independence day and the fortress city fell. It also brought about a split in the Confederacy and the Mississippi river was firmly in the hands of the Union after Port Hudson siege on July 9.
Being an engrossing and exhilarating battle, though leading to the Union's victory, it claimed thousands of lives. Keeping this in mind, one assumes that what Martin Luther King Jr. had said about war was true - "War is a poor chisel to carve out tomorrow".
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11115
|
__label__wiki
| 0.819901
| 0.819901
|
Biography of Rosa Parks
Madhavi Ghare Sep 29, 2018
A great civil rights activist, Rosa Parks made major contributions in the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s. Led by the charismatic Martin Luther King, Jr., the movement brought about an enormous shift in the treatment of blacks in the US. They were given equal status by law.
The Civil Rights Movement
The Civil Rights Movement was notable for its insistence on nonviolent methods of protest. Martin Luther King, Jr., received a Nobel Peace Prize for his exemplary leadership. Rosa Parks' initiation into the movement is remarkable, since she tried to nonviolently defend her rights even before Martin Luther King, Jr., had officially initiated the movement.
Rosa Parks: A Timeline
February 4, 1913: Birth
1932: Marriage to Raymond Parks
1944: Volunteer Secretary at NAACP
December 1, 1955: The Montgomery Bus Incident
December 5, 1955: Bus System Protest at Montgomery
November 13, 1956: US Supreme Court order against racial segregation on buses
December 20, 1956: End of the Bus System Protest at Montgomery
1965: Secretary to John Conyers
1988: Retirement
1992: Published 'Rosa Parks: My Story'
1995: Published 'Quiet Strength'
October 24, 2005: Death
The Biography of Rosa Parks
Rosa Louise McCauley Parks was born on February 4, 1913, to James McCauley, a carpenter, and Leona Edwards, a teacher. Parks was of mixed ancestry: she was part African, Cherokee-Muscogee, and Scots-Irish. When her parents separated, she and her younger brother Sylvester stayed with their mother, and relocated to their grandmother's farm in Pine Level.
Home-schooled till eleven, Rosa moved on to the Alabama State Teachers College for Negroes for her secondary education. However, she had to drop out, as she had to care for her sick grandmother and later on, her mother. Her family were members of the African Methodist Episcopal Church, an institution founded by free Blacks in the early 1800's.
In her later interviews, she narrated how she hid from the Ku Klux Klan. These experiences ingrained in her the unjust treatment meted out to blacks. In contrast to these harrowing experiences, Parks also remarked that some of her white neighbors were very nice to their family, which helped her remain balanced in her struggle against white people.
Before the Montgomery Bus Incident
In 1932, Rosa married Raymond Parks, a barber in Montgomery. He was a member of the NAACP. She took on various jobs from being a domestic worker to a housekeeper to a hospital aide. She finished her high school education in 1933. At the time of the Montgomery Bus Boycott, she was working as a seamstress.
In 1943, Rosa Parks joined the NAACP and was elected to be the volunteer secretary to the president of the association, Edgar Nixon. In 1944, Parks worked on the Maxwell Air Force Base, which, being the federal territory, didn't enforce segregation. This experience, in her own words, "opened her eyes up".
Throughout her life, Rosa had seen the segregation between the white and the black people - the life of those times was marked by such color oriented discrimination on a daily basis on every level of existence. She had seen and experienced it in schools and colleges, in the workplace and even in the public transport.
The Montgomery Bus Boycott
In the late 1800s, a series of laws had been passed by the primarily white local administrations in the South known as Jim Crow laws which made segregation between the whites and blacks compulsory in all public facilities, including washrooms, public transport, and even drinking fountains!
The system of segregating the passengers in buses was unusual. The first four rows of seats were reserved for white people, and blacks could sit on the remaining seats. In spite of this formal arrangement, it had become the norm to force the black passengers to move to the rear if white people had no seats available.
The white and black sections were separated by a movable sign that the driver could shift to accommodate more white people. If many white passengers didn't have seats, the drivers could also remove the sign altogether and force the black passengers to get off the bus.
Rosa Parks had suffered numerous times at the hand of this system. Once, when she boarded a bus from the front, the driver told her to re-enter the bus from the rear, as was the rule for blacks. When Parks got off the bus, the driver drove off. Parks recalled this incident in her later life, to explain the hardships she and other blacks had to bear.
~ On December 1, 1955, Parks and four other people were sitting in the first seats of the black section of the bus, right behind the 'white' section. When more white people climbed aboard the bus, the driver moved the board back and asked the four to get up.
~ The other three complied, while Parks refused to give up her seat. The driver told her to move, and threatened her that he would call the police. When she still refused to move, the driver called the police and had her arrested.
Rosa Parks was, later, charged with violating the local law. She appealed the decision, questioning the fundamental legality of segregation. From the day of her trial, December 5, the black community of Montgomery boycotted the public bus system for 381 days. The Blacks organized carpools, commuted in black-driven cabs, or even walked to work.
On November 13, 1956, the United States Supreme Court passed a court order which deemed the racial segregation on buses to be unconstitutional. The news reached the protesting black community of Montgomery on December 20, and the boycott ended the next day.
Although black people won a major legal battle with that decision, life for Rosa Parks and her husband became very difficult. She lost her job and her husband was instructed not to talk about her or the milestone case; as a result, he quit his job. After the trial, they moved to Hampton, Virginia, and then to Detroit. Parks found another job as a seamstress.
In 1965, she was appointed as the secretary and receptionist in the congressional office of the African-American U.S. Representative John Conyers. She worked there till her retirement in 1988. Conyers praised Parks for her integrity. In his own words,
"[She was] just a very special person. There was only one Rosa Parks"
In 1977, her husband, Raymond, and her brother, Sylvester, both died of cancer. Two years later, her mother fell prey to the same disease. These personal losses forced Parks to disengage herself from civil rights activity. However, she rejoined in 1980, by co-founding the Rosa L. Parks Scholarship Foundation.
In 1992 Rosa Parks published her autobiography, titled 'Rosa Parks: My Story', and in 1995, another of her memoirs, titled Quiet Strength. The autobiography details the life of Rosa Parks till her decision to not give up her seat on the bus, while the memoirs talk about the part played by faith in her life.
Rosa Parks - The Honors
She received many honors after the abolition of segregation. The most notable of these were:
Presidential Medal of Freedom by Bill Clinton in 1996
Congressional Gold Medal in 1999
Martin Luther King Jr. Award in 1980
Being named among the 20 most influential and iconic figures of the 20th century by Time magazine
Rosa Parks died on October 24, 2005. She was 92 years old and suffered from progressive dementia. On the day of her funeral, President George Bush ordered all US flags to be flown at half-mast. After the death of Coretta Scott King, the wife of Martin Luther King, Jr., Super Bowl XL (2006) was dedicated to her and Rosa Parks.
Rosa Parks' birthday and the day she got arrested on the Montgomery bus have both been termed 'Rosa Parks Day', and are held in California and Ohio.
Her life paints the picture of a woman unafraid to stand up for what she believed in, eager to help others like her, and determined to drag her oppressed community from the rut of segregation into an hitherto unseen dawn of equality and justice.
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11116
|
__label__wiki
| 0.685819
| 0.685819
|
Seeking hope in Stalin’s Soviet Union - Communism and Harlem
In this article we preview an article in the current edition of History is Now magazine…
Looking back from today, the Soviet Union in the 1930s may not seem like a promised land, but in Depression-era America many US citizens migrated there. Perhaps the most interesting group who made this journey were African-Americans. In this article we look at the fascinating inter-relationship between Harlem, racial issues, the Great Depression and Communism, and how these factors combined to lead some African-Americans to move to Stalin’s brutal Soviet Union.
A glorified, almost saintly, portrait of Stalin, circa 1937. Alas, behind the surface, Stalin was far from being a saint.
In 1917, Russia was a very unstable place. Against the backdrop of the extraordinary suffering that World War I was inflicting on the Russian people, major protests against the government soon produced an earth-shattering change. That change was the Russian Revolution, in which Lenin’s Bolsheviks gained power at the expense of the centuries-old Russian monarchy. After the Revolution, the Russian Civil War broke out, and some Western countries actively supported anti-Bolshevik groups.
One of the reasons for this Western intervention in the Russian Civil War was that the West feared the possibilities for social, economic, political and cultural revolutions that the new Russia brought with it; however, such sentiments were mirrored by the Bolsheviks, who thought that the West might be a territory in which they could expand and grow Communism, although such thoughts did not last. By the end of the Russian Civil War, the hopes that some Bolsheviks harbored about the potential for exporting revolution across Europe were largely extinguished and the ‘revolutionary moment’ in the aftermath of World War I had expired by the end of 1919. Russia, through the medium of the international Communist group known as the Comintern, found America not to have much revolutionary potential at all, despite its revolutionary tradition.
There was one exception though. Through the filter of Marxist-Leninist discourse, America’s black communities appeared to be fertile ground for the Communist Party of the USA (CPUSA). Their experience of slavery, segregation and Jim Crow seemed to present the party and its leader, Earl Browder, with ideal recruits to the cause. This led to an unsuccessful project to develop an all-black Communist movement in America, and after that failed, an inter-racial party initiative to ‘raise the condition of the blacks’ began in the late 1920s. As we shall see, this initiative, as well as others, produced mixed results. This was no truer than in the place that could claim to be the center of African-American culture at the time, Harlem.
Communism in Harlem
The fact that in Harlem, as Mark Naison shows in Harlem Communists during the Depression, the party was largely unsuccessful in flourishing in a majority black neighborhood, would tend to suggest that while the Comintern looked to African-Americans to be their revolutionary vanguard, most African-Americans had at best mixed feelings towards Communism and the Soviet Union. One factor that played a role in reducing the influence of the CPUSA was that it had to compete with pre-existing, exclusively black organizations such as Marcus Garvey’s United Negro Improvement Association (UNIA) and Thurgood Marshall’s National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP).
Naison’s history of Harlem Communism sees the party pass through several distinct phases; its inception, in the aftermath of World War One (the 1920s), the depression years (1929-34), the Comintern’s attempts at developing a Popular Front (1934-39), and the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact/war years (1939-45). In each phase, Naison shows how African-American Harlemites within and outside of the party transposed their interpretations of the USSR and Soviet Communism on to the challenges facing the black community. Looking internationally for solutions to racism and poverty in America was not a new phenomenon. Marcus Garvey’s UNIA had proposed the resettlement of African-Americans to Africa, after a hypothetical armed uprising had taken place to force out white European colonists. Some African-Americans in the South even looked to Japan to be the world leader of non-white people during the 1930s, given the challenge it presented to the British, French, Dutch and Americans in the Asia-Pacific region. The focus on the USSR as a multi-racial state free of segregation or racial persecution was attractive to a broad range of non-Communist Harlemites, although there is little evidence that the core tenets of Soviet Communism penetrated deeply into the black community.
The CPUSA generated great levels of support in Harlem prior to the Popular Front years when it gained a reputation as being an ally against discrimination. It was helped in this as it championed two high profile cases, the trials of the Scottsboro Boys and of Angelo Herndon. The Scottsboro boys were nine African-American teenagers accused of the rape of two white girls in Alabama on flimsy evidence and sentenced to death. The CPUSA persuaded the families to allow the party, not the NAACP, to represent them. Herndon was an African-American labor organizer sentenced to death in Georgia in 1932 under antiquated laws dating back to the pre-Civil War era that equated such activity with slave insurrection and sedition.
These endeavors from the CPUSA did not automatically translate in to more widespread support for the idea of Communism in African-American communities though.
Cyril Briggs
Naison describes the experience of Cyril Briggs, a West Indian journalist who had been fired from the Harlem Amsterdam News in 1917 for his anti-war stance. Briggs founded the Crusader, a broadly Nationalist magazine espousing ideas that were: “dedicated to a renaissance of Negro power and culture throughout the world.” Briggs was suspicious of Garvey’s dominant Nationalist movement, the UNIA, and despite a strong affinity with Garvey’s emancipatory views, he began to view him with mistrust by 1919 as the anti-Communist crackdown across America gathered pace and Garvey, dismissing key leftists from the UNIA, seemed to be cooperating. His initial Crusader editorials, according to Naison, were ‘strikingly similar’ to Garvey’s views, combining black liberation and Nationalism with anti-capitalism.
Naison identifies Briggs’ initial interest in the Bolshevik Revolution as being based largely on what he saw as the Soviet Union’s ‘anti-imperialist orientation’, which was consistent with his pan-African emancipatory Nationalism; the Soviet Union might not be able to do much to prevent lynchings in the Southern states or the resurgence of the Ku Klux Klan, but it could potentially challenge European imperial dominance in Africa and Asia. Unfortunately for Briggs, Lenin’s interest in Africa was minimal. Beyond rhetoric and a small number of African students and revolutionary visitors to Moscow, the USSR was no threat to British, Belgian or French colonies in Africa. Briggs eventually joined the CPUSA in 1920, but his drift to the political left had begun as he moved away from the more accepted Black Nationalist positions of mass repatriation to Africa, and began to argue for a multi-racial, egalitarian America, one that could be achieved through revolution.
Want to read on? Check out the latest edition of History is Now Magazine. The magazine is packed with great history articles, videos and audio!
Click here to download the app!
This article is provided by Nick Shepley from www.explaininghistory.com, a site that has a wide array of history ebooks.
Newer:The miracle of World War 1 at Christmas. Our image of the weekOlder:The United States and King Leopold II's bloody acquisition of the Congo
Categories20th century, Blog Post, Communism
TagsHarlem, Great Depression, Communism, Communism in USA, Cyril Briggs, Mark Naison
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11118
|
__label__cc
| 0.714371
| 0.285629
|
An Olympic athlete
The Olympic Games at Rio de Janeiro, began with a spectacular opening ceremony, which included fireworks, more than 6,000 dancers and Brazil’s most famous song, “The Girl from Ipanema”. Over 11,000 athletes are competing in 306 events and 28 sports.
Competition and cooperation
These sports are performance driven – athletes are rated and rewarded according to their performance. But the Bible says that we are all important because we are all made “in the image of God “Gen. 1:26-27NLT). So let’s not value people according to their performance on the sporting arena or their performance in any other avenue of life.
Sports can bring out the best and the worst in people. How do we compete in sports and as a spectator? Do we respect other competitors? Do we respect coaches? Do we respect marshals, umpires and referees? Do we respect other spectators?
Sports can build character. Athletes need to respect and build relationships with team mates. This is particularly important in team sports where cooperation is vital. What about us? Let’s be good team mates by encouraging one another in our teams at work or church. And by forgiving one another.
Commitment and dedication
Athletes commit to training schedules that require discipline, perseverance and endurance. This is challenging and athletes push themselves to the limit. The Christian life is like a race (2 Tim. 4:7) – it requires discipline and endurance to get through life’s trials and temptations. The Bible says, “let us run with endurance the race God has set before us” (Heb. 12:1).
Christians are to be involved and obedient like athletes, and not like spectators (2 Tim. 2:5). In the context of Christian service, Paul says “.. train yourself to be godly. Physical training is good, but training for godliness is much better, promising benefits in this life and in the life to come” (1 Tim. 4:7-8). He’s saying that spiritual fitness is better that physical fitness. As physical training takes dedication and effort, spiritual training in godliness also takes dedication and effort.
Sports are games and the Olympics are called “Games”. Sport is play and not work (although it’s an occupation for professional athletes). Let’s keep this in mind when we watch the competitions. Let’s not value the game so highly that it becomes an idol that separates us from God.
Greek athletes competed for the “victors crown” (2 Tim. 2:5NIV), which was a wreath placed on the head of a victorious athlete. Paul uses this to illustrate Christians as striving for the prize of a reward for their faithful service for Christ: “Don’t you realize that in a race everyone runs, but only one person gets the prize? So run to win! All athletes are disciplined in their training. They do it to win a prize (crown) that will fade away, but we do it for an eternal prize (crown)” (1 Cor. 9:24-25). He’s saying that we should all run like winners. The goal of winning determines an athlete’s lifestyle. Likewise, striving for the eternal “crown of life” should characterize a Christian’s lifestyle (Jas. 1:12).
Silent spectator
There is a silent spectator watching the Olympic Games at Rio. The statute of “Christ the Redeemer” towers over the city. With a height of 30 metres (98 ft), on an 8 metre (26 ft) pedestal, it looks down from the top of Mount Corcovado, 700-metre (2,300 ft) above sea level. The statue, which can be seen from almost anywhere in Rio de Janeiro, is one of the main landmarks of Brazil. It can be a reminder of our spiritual lives. What do we think about Jesus? If we claim to be a Christian how committed and dedicated are we to serving Him?
Finally, are we “one of Jesus’ athletes” like in this children’s song?
Grab your sneakers, Tie your laces
Pull your socks up, Do you stretches
Hear the Marshall, On your marks
Ready set go, Out of the blocks
In my dreams I have been an Olympic athlete
I’ve been striving for gold down at Rio
In my life I can be one of Jesus’ athletes
And His golden reward lasts forever
Feel the spirit, Hold the torch
Carry the flame, Run the course
Cheer the Aussies, Olympic Games
Patriotic, Fade away
(Neil Holman, 2000)
Written, August 2016
August 11, 2016 | Categories: Christian, Olympic games, Spiritual | Tags: 2016, athlete, Christ, race, Redeemer, Rio, Rio de Janerio, sports | Leave a comment
What does God want us to remember?
At the “real” start of the third millennium
This is the first month of a new year and of a new millennium. As the first year was 1 A.D., so 1000 A.D. was the last year of the first millennium. Likewise, the last year of the second millennium was 2000 A.D., which means that 2001 is the first year of the third millennium. So the celebrations that were held twelve months ago should have been called the beginning of the 2000s, not the beginning of the third millennium, which actually begins this month.
Although one day, month or year is not necessarily more important than another (Rom. 14:5), we all like to celebrate important dates such as birthdays and wedding anniversaries. These are milestones that remind us of significant events along the road of life. Let’s look at some important events that God wants us to remember and celebrate.
Remember the Creator
After the universe was created in six days the Bible says, “By the seventh day God had finished the work He had been doing; so on the seventh day He rested from all His work. And God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it He rested from all the work of creating that He had done” (Gen 2:2-3 NIV). This is not the rest that follows weariness, but the rest of satisfaction and completion of a job well done (Gen. 1:31).
The Sabbath was to be observed by the Israelites as a day of rest from everyday work, as a reminder of their God who rested after His work of creation (Ex. 31:14-17). The principle of one day’s rest in seven was established in Old Testament times for the benefit of individuals, families, employees and even animals (Ex. 20:10; Mk. 2:27). Its establishment in the account of creation implies that it is meant for everyone, not just for Israel.
It is said that God “blessed the seventh day and made it holy” (Gen. 2:3; Ex. 20:11). This indicates two purposes for the Sabbath rest –as a gift (or blessing) from God for the well-being of humanity, and a special (or holy) day for God. Besides physical rest, it also means remembering the Creator and praising God for His provision for us. He had given us life and time, and on this day we are to give some time back to Him.
So, the Sabbath rest is God’s milestone pointing out His goodness to everyone as their Creator as we pause for a regular weekly break from work. Remember, the wisest man that ever lived said, “Remember your Creator in the days of your youth” (Eccl. 12:1). Creation reveals the Creator’s eternal power and divine nature .(Rom. 1:20). But this is less evident when life becomes more troublesome and less enjoyable. Unfortunately, those who reject this revelation, choose to worship idols instead of “the God who made the world and everything in it” (Rom. 1:23,25; Acts 17:24).
Remember the Redeemer
The Israelites were given a second reason for observing the Sabbath day: “Remember that you were slaves in Egypt and that the LORD your God brought you out of there with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm” (Dt. 5:15). It was a weekly reminder of their miraculous deliverance from slavery in Egypt. This act of God is called “redemption,” which means “buying back” or “ransoming from captivity.” Christ was a “redeemer” in that by His sacrificial death He paid the ransom for our sinfulness and so delivered us from slavery to sin and its penalty (Eph. 1:7).
So, the Sabbath is also God’s milestone pointing out His mercy toward His chosen people as their redeemer. As the Sabbath rest included employees, the Israelites were to show a loving concern to others (Dt. 5:14). This was confirmed when Christ healed the man with a shrivelled hand on the Sabbath (Mk. 3:1-5).
Jesus said that He was Lord of the Sabbath and demonstrated this as the Redeemer of the world (Mt. 12:8; Lk. 4:16-21). The Sabbath was “a shadow of the things that were to come; the reality, however, is found in. Christ” (Col. 2:17). After the day of Pentecost, it was more important to remember God’s great salvation for mankind’s sins than to remember the deliverance of the Jews from Egypt. Consequently, the early Christians met for worship and the collection of monetary gifts on the first day of the week in memory of Christ’s resurrection (Acts 20:7; 1 Cor. 16:1-2). Christian worship on Sunday replaced Jewish observance of the Sabbath. It is interesting to note that according to Leviticus 23:15, the day of Pentecost (Acts. 2:1) may have been on the first day of the week. However, some authorities state that the Pharisees believed that the Sabbath referred to here is the holy day of Passover which fell on a different day each year.
The Jews also celebrated their release from slavery in the first month of each year. As God’s people in Old Testament times, they were given a series of annual religious festivals by God. These festivals commemorated occasions when God had reached out in power to intervene for the Jews or had provided for them in a time of distress. It reminded them of God’s presence and activity among them.
The first and most important of the festivals was the Passover, which was celebrated in the first month of the religious year (Ex. 12:1-30; Lev. 23:4-8). The Hebrew calendar is based on the 29.5 day lunar cycle. Their first month commenced after the spring equinox and is equivalent to March/April inour calendar. As their months began at new moon and the Passover began on the fourteenth of the month, the Passover corresponded with a full moon. Easter is its direct equivalent in our calendar, being the Sunday after the first full moon on/after March 21.
The Passover corresponded with the beginning of the grain harvest (Dt. 16:9) and it commemorated the deliverance and exodus of the Jews from slavery in Egypt during the reign of Pharaoh Neferhotep 1 (Ex. 12). This was achieved in a miraculous way through the death of a lamb and smearing the lamb’s blood on their door frames. The plague of death to all the first-born sons in Egypt “passed over” the Jewish households with the sign on the door frames. Soon afterwards the Egyptians urged the Jews to leave their country.
Like the Sabbath, these religious festivals were said to be “a shadow of the things that were to come; the reality, however, is found in Christ” (Col. 2:17). Paul referred to Christ as “our Passover Lamb” (1 Cor. 5:7). So the Passover was an illustration of Christ’s sacrifice for us. As the death of the Passover lamb saved the Jews from death, so Christ’s death can save us from the punishment of eternal death in hell. The similarity is emphasized by the fact that Jesus was crucified at the time of the Passover celebration (Jn. 18:28; 19:14).
When Jesus Christ celebrated the Passover with His disciples, He instituted the Lord’s Supper by relating the breaking of bread and the drinking of wine to His coming death (Lk. 22:7-20). His followers were told to do this in His remembrance (1 Cor. 11:2326). Believers are told, “Whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until He comes” (1 Cor. 11:26). So, the annual Passover was replaced by the weekly Lord’s Supper (Acts 20:7).
It’s obvious that God wants us to remember and celebrate His great achievements in creation and redemption. This can be done by a regular weekly break from work and by a regular partaking of the Lord’s Supper. These are two of the most important things we can do this week, month, year and millennium –and they will refresh us physically and spiritually.
Such celebrations are not only for now but are for eternity, as the role of God the Father and the Lord as Creator and Redeemer is the theme of the great future celebration in heaven: “You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for You created all things, and by Your will they were created and have their being … You are worthy to take the scroll and to open its seals, because You were slain, and with Your blood You purchased men for God from every tribe and language and people and nation” (Rev 4:11; 5:9).
Published, January 2001
December 31, 2010 | Categories: Christian, New year, Olympic games, Spiritual | Tags: celebrate, Creator, deliverance, Lord's supper, New year, Redeemer, rest, Sabbath | Leave a comment
Go for the gold!
This year many of the world’s best athletes and sports competitors will strive for victory at Atlanta, after spending hours each day practicing and developing their skills and directing their minds to the task ahead.
Paul likened life to a race and urged us to emulate a winner by running “in such a way as to get a prize” (1 Cor. 9:24 NIV). It’s been said that “the Christian life is more like a marathon than a sprint.” The marathon runner has a series of goals, one for each stage of the race.
Of course, some don’t even participate in the race, so they can’t get a prize. This is like the unbeliever who comes up with all kinds of excuses (Lk. 14:16-21).
Goals are important for both individuals and teams in the “race of life,” as they provide purpose, hope and vision and give meaning to life. Two people who had clear goals and purposes in life were Jesus Christ and Paul.
Doing God’s will
Christ said that He had come to “save the world” (Jn. 3:17), which “was lost” (Lk. 19:10). This purpose was announced before His birth (“He will save His people from their sins,” Mt. 1:21). He desired to preach as He said “that is why I have come” (Mk. 1:38). In Jn. 4:34 Christ claimed that His goal was to “do the will of Him who sent me and to finish His work.” This work was to bring people to belief and eternal life (Jn. 6:38-40).
The key role of prayer is evidence of Christ’s dependence on God the Father. He “often withdrew to lonely places and prayed” (Lk. 5:16). This culminated in His prayer before the crucifixion of “not my will, but Yours be done” (Lk. 22:42).
Jesus was not distracted by Satan’s temptations (Mt. 4:1-11) or Peter’s impulsive behavior (Mt. 16:21-23, Jn. 18:10-11). This is in contrast to Peter whose progress was hindered when he was distracted by the circumstances of the storm about him (Mt. 14:30-31).
Striving for the prize
Paul was an enthusiastic competitor who had a clear vision of the prize ahead. He knew that “Everyone who competes in the (Olympic) games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown (or medal) that will not last for ever; but we do it to get a crown that will last for ever. Therefore I do not run like a man running aimlessly; I do not fight like a man beating the air. No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.” (1 Cor. 9:25-27). So, the goal before him resulted in a life of clear direction, discipline, dedication and devotion.
This is evident in Paul’s ministry of evangelism when he made himself “a slave to everyone, to win as many as possible” (1 Cor. 9:19) and became all things to all men so that by all possible means he might save some (v. 22). His ambition was to preach the gospel, particularly where Christ was not known (Rom. 15:20).
One of Paul’s goals was “to know Christ” and become more like Him (Phil. 3:10). In following this direction he forgot what was behind and strained towards what was ahead, claiming “I press on towards the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenwards in Christ Jesus” (Phil. 3:14). The image is that of an athlete striving for victory.
Another of Paul’s goals was to please the Lord and be ready for the end of the race (2 Cor. 5:9-10).
Our Race
We are also competitors in the race of life who, like Christ and Paul, should have clear goals and direction.
Two conditions are given in Rom. 12:1-2 for following God’s will. These are: offering ourselves to God (rather than following selfish ambitions); and being transformed by the renewing of our minds (allowing the Holy Spirit to guide our thoughts and actions, Mk. 13:11, Jn. 16:13, Rom. 8:5-6). The consequence of this is that “then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is – his good, pleasing and perfect will” (v. 2).
Like Peter, we can be transformed if we follow Christ’s requests of “you must follow me” (Jn. 21:22) and “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me” (Mt. 16:24).
This includes fleeing from evil (2 Tim. 2:22), idolatry (1 Cor. 10:14) and sexual immorality (1 Cor. 6:18). So, “Let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus” (Heb. 12:1-2). We need to keep Christ in mind, so that we don’t grow weary or give up (v.3) in an endurance race (v.7), that can involve pain (v.11).
Paul noted that interference by legalism had blocked progress in Galatia, although they had been “running a good race” (Gal. 5:7).
According to 1 Cor. 3:8,12-15, believers are rewarded depending on how they run the race of life. It is encouraging to know that we are not alone as we participate with other believers in the divine nature (2 Tim. 2:22, 2 Pet. 1:4).
Goals and Evaluation
Goals provide us with direction and enable evaluation of our progress. They can be short term or long term, general or specific. Shared goals can help us have common purposes in working together as a team in our families and our ministries (2 Cor. 6:14, 1 Cor. 3:8-9).
Christ and Paul were both aware of their progress near the end of their races. Christ prayed, “I have brought you glory on earth by completing the work you gave me to do” (Jn. 17:4) and “It is finished” (Jn. 19:30). Paul’s main goal in life was to “finish the race and complete the task” the Lord had given him (Acts 20:24). Looking back over his life he could say, “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith” (2 Tim. 4:7).
Applying this principle to our lives and ministries would mean evaluating our progress periodically in the race of life (such as daily, weekly, yearly). This is consistent with the requirement to test our own actions and not compare ourselves with others (Gal. 6:4). During such assessments we should confirm the goals and consider the methods used to achieve them and be willing to revise these after praying for God’s will to be done. For example, Paul was willing to change direction and go to Macedonia as a result of the Lord’s leading (Acts 16:9). He was ready to move on for God as soon as each task was finished.
We all need to know God’s will on a daily basis in our race of life and in our families and our ministries. This should be the basis of the goals that indicate the way ahead. We should be goal-driven, not activity-driven. By pursuing the Lord’s goals, we can look forward to “well done good and faithful servant” at the finish line, rather than being accused a “wicked and lazy servant” (Mt. 25:21, 26).
Published, July 1996
December 29, 2010 | Categories: Christian, Olympic games, Spiritual | Tags: evaluation, goals, prize, race | Leave a comment
Olympic Memories – ONE YEAR LATER
How many winners can you remember from past Olympic Games?
The opening ceremony of last September’s Olympic Games in Sydney, Australia was an extravaganza beamed around the world. It had a cast of 12,700 performers backed by a crew of 4,600. These Olympic Games were described by the media as the biggest event ever staged on this planet.
The ceremony commenced with 120 horse riders charging around the stadium with flags flying. Then simulated sea creatures floated and swirled above performers in an ocean of color. This was followed by a rapid tour of Australia’s history beginning with more than 1,000 indigenous people performing their traditional dances. Next, fire was symbolized, followed by plants and animals unique to Australia. Then European settlers arrived bringing farming and industrialization followed by immigrants from all continents to form the multi-cultural society that is Australia today. Finally, workers built an enormous bridge and the finale included the word “Eternity” which is on the Sydney Harbor Bridge.
After this, athletes from 200 countries paraded into the stadium accompanied by a marching band. They were obviously happy to represent their nations and compete in the Games. One athlete from Paraguay held a banner saying “I finally did it.” This expressed the relief and excitement of making the Olympic team after years of dedicated training to attain the required standard of performance.
The heroes of the Olympics are those who won medals. In fact, a theme song during the Games was titled “Heroes Live Forever” which conveyed the thought that these sporting champions would always be remembered. But how many winners can you remember from past Olympic Games? Memories fade and disappear, and even the world we live in will not last forever (Lk. 21:33; Heb. 1:10-12).
There were images of past heroes, now stricken with illness. Muhammad Ali, who once claimed to be “the greatest,” now suffering from Parkinson’s disease, and another past gold medalist now afflicted with multiple sclerosis, held the Olympic torch on her wheelchair. And research on ex-soccer players published recently in the British Journal of Sports Medicine found that half of them suffered from chronic arthritis, anxiety and depression.
The Bible teaches that our souls live forever and that Christians will live in God’s presence forever (1 Th. 4:17). This future reward is called “eternal life” (1 Jn. 5:13). It is a gift from God. However, those who refuse God’s gift of salvation through Jesus will be punished with everlasting destruction and be separated from God forever (2 Th. 1:8-9).
A game consists of the rules by which it is played. An Australian athlete was upset when she was disqualified near the end of the 20 kilometer walk, and some teams failed to exchange the baton correctly in the relay races. Several competitors failed drug tests, and at least four medal winners were stripped of their rewards and expelled from the Games for doping. A swimmer warned that drug use was the biggest threat to the Olympics and called for stricter controls. The failure to follow the rules was not always evident to spectators. Likewise, the Bible says that not all those who behave like Christians will get to heaven. Some will be told by Christ “I never knew you” (Mt. 7:23). The critical test is whether they did the will of God, which includes confessing their sins and receiving Christ as Lord and Savior (Mt. 7:21; Jn. 6:29).
More To Life
Today’s hero is often tomorrow’s “has been.” And there is much more to life than success. The Bible warns against selfish ambition and desire for wealth (1 Tim. 6:10). After all, how do you benefit if you become the most successful person in the world but destroy your future in the process (Mt. 16:26)? Nothing is more important in life than getting right with God so we can spend eternity with Him (Phil. 3:8). The next most important thing is to live for Christ and serve Him by looking after the interests of others (2 Cor. 5:20; Phil. 2:3-5).
As the Olympics are multi-national and multi-cultural, they are often linked with the need for peace. But the world’s greatest need is for peace with God.
Athletes had to perform at the required time and place in order to compete for a medal. Past performances did not count and there was no guarantee that they would qualify for the next Olympics in Athens, Greece in 2004. Similarly, life is brief and we don’t know for certain what will happen tomorrow (Prov. 27:1; Jas. 4:14). There was a reminder of the brevity of life during the Games when Juan Antonio Samaranch, the president of the International Olympic Committee, was called home to be with his seriously ill wife, who died before he could get there.
Proverbs 27:1 tells us, “Do not boast about tomorrow, for you do not know what a day may bring forth.” Last year’s Olympics certainly verified this in many ways. Matthew 16:26 asks this rhetorical question: “What good will it be for a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul?” The lives of now-forgotten Olympic medalists certainly remind us of this. And James 4:14 warns that “You do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes.” Trust the Savior today because “now is the day of salvation” (2 Cor. 6:2). You may not get the opportunity tomorrow.
January 12, 2010 | Categories: Christian, Olympic games, Spiritual | Tags: heros, memories, Olympic, rules | Leave a comment
How To Be A WINNER In The BIG RACE
The biggest sporting event in history is being held in Sydney, Australia this month. More than 10,000 of the world’s best athletes from 200 nations will compete in 28 sports in the Olympic Games. The strongest competition in the world will be broadcast to a worldwide viewing audience of 3.5 billion. Every athlete will be striving for medals and fame.
The ancient Greeks celebrated the great national festival known as the Olympics between 800 BC and the 400 AD. This festival was celebrated every four years in the sanctuary of their god Zeus in Olympia. It involved competitions between representatives from the Greek city-states.
Did you know that Paul was thinking of similar games when he wrote in 1 Corinthians 9:25 that all athletes “go into strict training”? These particular games were celebrated every two years on the Isthmus of Corinth in honor of the Greek gods. The Greeks were passionate about the games and the winners received crowns made of laurel or olive branches. In both the ancient and modern games the athletes practice long hours to improve their endurance, strength, skills and performance.
The Bible compares life to a race, but makes remarkable claims about what is victory. In the game of life we can succeed — but not by our own strength. Let’s look at how we can be winners in life’s race. Our examples are King Solomon, who lived 3,000 years ago, and the apostle Paul, who lived 2,000 years ago. Both competed at the top of their professions.
Solomon’s Race
Solomon was from Israel’s royal family, the son of King David. As king for 40 years he had great wealth and power. You might say he was a winner.
A recent poll voted the boxer Muhammad Ali the greatest sports star of the twentieth century. He carried the torch at the opening ceremony of the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta. As heavyweight champion of the world he boasted, “I am the greatest!” That’s also how Solomon felt, but it did not last. His book, Ecclesiastes, shows how he sought success in life through such things as wisdom, pleasure, possessions, wealth and hard work.
Wisdom: Solomon was devoted to exploring everything by wisdom, and became known as the wisest man in the world (1 Ki. 4:29-34; Eccl. 1:13,16). He was an expert in botany and zoology. He wrote 3,000 proverbs and 1,000 songs. He was so famous people from other nations came to hear him. The Queen of Sheba visited him and confirmed that his wisdom and wealth were far greater than what she had been told (1 Ki. 10:6-7).
Pleasure: Solomon tried to cheer himself with wine, and he acted the fool (Eccl. 2:3). He also indulged in entertainment, and had 1,000 wives who gave him great pleasure. He did whatever made him happy (1 Ki. 11:3; Eccl. 2:8).
Possessions: Solomon had great homes, vineyards, gardens and groves filled with all kinds of fruit trees. He built reservoirs to irrigate his flourishing groves. He had many slaves and owned more livestock than any other king in Jerusalem. It is recorded that he had 12,000 horses, 1,400 chariots and 4,000 stalls to keep them (2 Chr. 1:14; 9:25).
Wealth: Solomon was the richest man on earth (1 Ki. 10:23) — like Bill Gates is today. His great wealth came from commerce, mining, gifts from visitors, and taxes from countries between the Euphrates River and Egypt (1 Ki. 4:21; 10:25). He collected great sums of silver and gold, the treasure of kings and provinces (Eccl. 2:4-8).
Hard Work: Solomon enjoyed working hard for his success. He undertook many great projects, among them being the palace it took 13 years to build (Eccl. 2:10-11,17-22). He had everything a person could desire, but didn’t find lasting satisfaction in success. He learned that man’s appetite is never satisfied (Eccl. 6:7). As he looked at everything he achieved, it was meaningless and futile, like chasing the wind. There was nothing worthwhile anywhere (Eccl. 2:11). He concluded that unless you “remember your Creator … everything is meaningless” (Eccl. 12:1, 8).
His despair resulted from looking for success in all the wrong places — of trying to find his way in life without God. Leaving God out of life’s race leads to disappointment, because life is more than success. Solomon had everything money could buy and power could seize, but couldn’t find satisfaction. He discovered that a life not centered on God is meaningless.
The Right Race?
Are you following Solomon by leaving God out while striving for such things as education, career, money, power, popularity, pleasure, etc.? Only the top three finishers receive a medal at the Olympic Games. Many athletes will not receive a prize, even though they did their best. Others will be disqualified because they broke the rules of their event.
The marathon race will be run along a well-marked route through the streets of Sydney, Australia to the Olympic Stadium. Athletes must follow this route to qualify for the prize. Jesus saw people as being in two categories: those travelling a wide road that leads to destruction, or a narrow road that leads to eternal life (Mt. 7:13-14). Which road are we running on? Those who ignore God and live like Solomon are running down the route that leads to hell and torment.
During much of his life Solomon was in the wrong race! If we are in the wrong race, then our best is not good enough. Without God, our best efforts, no matter how good, are never good enough to get us to heaven.
We can only enter the race to heaven by accepting God’s offer of forgiveness for our sins through Jesus Christ. The Bible says we can be saved by faith in God, who treats us much better than we deserve. Salvation is God’s gift to us and not anything we have done (Eph. 2:8). We can only be winners through Christ’s victory (1 Cor. 15:57; 1 Jn. 5:4-5).
Paul’s Race
The apostle Paul was privileged to have Hebrew religion, Greek culture and Roman citizenship. He had two names: Saul was his Hebrew name and Paul was his Greek name. The son of a Pharisee, he studied under Gamaliel, an esteemed teacher of Jewish law. He was born a pure-blooded Jew of the tribe of Benjamin. He was a member of the Pharisee sect that demanded the strictest obedience to Jewish law. He obeyed Jewish law so carefully that he was never accused of any fault (Phil. 3:5-6).
His first “race” was religion and he excelled in it. He was a fanatical Pharisee who was convinced that Christians were heretics and that God’s honor demanded their extermination (Gal. 1:13-14). He persecuted and imprisoned Christians and approved of Stephen’s death (Acts 9:1-2; 22:2-5,19-20; 26:4-11; 8:1-3). He travelled around the country capturing Christians. So Saul was racing along the broad road to destruction.
But on the way to Damascus he was miraculously confronted by Jesus and converted from the error of his way. He immediately began to live by faith in his Savior. Now on the narrow road to heaven, he preached Christianity, worked with those he had previously persecuted and was persecuted by his previous colleagues.
Paul used the illustration of a race to describe how he lived: “Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on towards the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus” (Phil. 3:13-14). He was looking forward to the end of the race, and the prize in heaven to all who put their trust in God.
We are urged to imitate Paul by following his example (Phil. 3:17). He said, “Run in such a way as to get the prize. Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. Therefore I do not run like a man running aimlessly; I do not fight like a man beating the air” (1 Cor. 9:24-26). He ran hard to win, exercising discipline and self control, with a definite goal and purpose.
Furthermore, he urged us to “throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith … Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart” (Heb. 12:1-3). As runners we should focus on the goal, throwing aside anything that might hinder us, such as materialism and legalism. The “love of money” causes some to wander from the faith, while unbiblical rules stop some from running a good race (Gal. 5:7; 1 Tim. 6:10-12).
As a Christian, Paul could look forward to victory and finishing the race, even victory over death: “I consider my life worth nothing to me, if only I may finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me – the task of testifying to the gospel of God’s grace” (Acts 20:24). Paul knew his mission. Near the end of his life he wrote, “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day — and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing” (2 Tim. 4:7-8). Paul lived by faith.
The Christian’s Race
From Paul’s example we see that Christians are to live by faith and focus on their heavenly destiny. Their goals are: to live like Christ and please God, not others (2 Cor. 5:9; Gal. 1:10; 1 Jn. 2:6); to persevere with passion and be diligent, not lazy (Mt. 25:14-29); to practice humility, not selfish ambition (Mt. 18:4; Phil. 2:3). When asked who is the greatest, Christ said it was whoever is humble like a child. Be a Christ-like servant and don’t have a win-at-all-costs attitude (Mt. 20:25-28).
The Bible says we should: “live” in peace and harmony (Rom. 12:16,18; 1 Cor. 7:15; 2 Cor. 13:11; 1 Th. 5:13; 1 Tim. 2:2; Heb. 12:14; 1 Pet. 3:8); “live” by faith (Rom. 1:17; 2 Cor. 5:7; Gal. 2:20; 3:11; Heb. 10:38); “live” a life of love (Eph. 5:2); and “live” by the Spirit (Gal. 5:16,25).
Sports psychologists coach athletes to be winners because they know how much the mind influences performance and behavior. Christians should have their minds set on what the Spirit desires, as they have “the mind of Christ” (Rom. 8:5; 1 Cor. 2:16). The Holy Spirit is their coach (Jn. 16:13). This is their secret of success: right relationships with God and others. So the key to real success is a relationship, not an achievement.
The Christian’s reward is a prize beyond compare. It is described as “the victor’s crown,” “the crown of life,” “the crown of glory” and “the crown of righteousness” (2 Tim. 2:5; 4:8; Jas. 1:12; 1 Pet. 5:4). Also, since it is kept in heaven, it will never fade away, and never perish or spoil (1 Cor. 9:25; 1 Pet. 1:4; 5:4). As believers are Christ’s servants, their reward is to hear this: “Well done, good and faithful servant” (Mt. 25:21).
Everyone who accepts Jesus into his/her life is a winner. Remember, that the criminal who repented on the cross was told, “Today you will be with me in paradise.” And Lazarus, the beggar, finished up in heaven, while the rich man was tormented in hell (Lk. 16: 22-26; 23:43).
Your Race
Unfortunately many live selfish lives that lead to destruction (Phil. 3:18-19). If you have left God out of your life, your best will never be good enough. No matter what you may achieve, you will not have lasting success or lasting victory. Instead, you will have the emptiness and lack of purpose experienced by Solomon. In this case you need to get in the right race by accepting God’s offer of forgiveness for your sins through Jesus Christ. No great achievement is required, just childlike trust and commitment (Mt. 18:3).
Although you are not competing in the Olympic Games you are running the race of your life. Are you running the good race (Gal. 5:7)? Christians are not only saved by faith, they should also live by faith. This means trust and commitment to God, to the Scriptures and to other Christians. Success depends on your relationship with God.
Where is your commitment and passion in life? Are you chasing after other things like Solomon? Is your attention distracted, or are you developing a new mindset so you will know what God wants you to do in life (Rom. 12:2)? We only have one lifetime, so let’s make it count for God.
Do your best by following Jesus and imitating Paul; don’t be distracted or sidetracked from the race like Solomon.
January 11, 2010 | Categories: Christian, Olympic games, Spiritual | Tags: crown, Paul, race, reward, Solomon | Leave a comment
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11120
|
__label__wiki
| 0.693843
| 0.693843
|
Home One to Watch Great debut album from 2012 BBC Young Musician of the Year!
Great debut album from 2012 BBC Young Musician of the Year!
1948 – Russian Works for Cello & Piano
Laura van der Heijden (cello), Petr Limonov (piano)
The young cellist, Laura van der Heijden scored a sensational hit as winner of the BBC Young Musician contest in 2012. For her debut recording, on the Champs Hill label, she is joined by the pianist Petr Limonov with whom she has previously given recitals at, for example, the Wigmore Hall. The album is titled ‘1948’ – the year that Stalin’s henchman attacked and derided the leading Russian composers of the day.
The main attraction of this CD lies in the two sonatas; namely Prokofiev’s Cello Sonata in C major, Op. 119 and Miaskovsky’s Cello Sonata No. 2 in A minor, Op. 81.
Prokofiev’s sonata was written for the great soviet cellist Mstislav Rostropovich. There are many fine recordings of this work on the market already including those by Truls Mørk & Lars Vogt, Pieter Wispelwey & Dejan Lazic and Rostropovich himself. However from the first notes of this performance it becomes clear that this is going to be a performance well worth listening to. These two artists bring out all of the colours in this melodious, neoclassical work as well as the subtle details and were clearly in the zone for this rather special performance. We also get a spontaneous and highly engaging account of the Miaskovsky work in which Laura is sensitively supported by Limonov.
In between these two accounts we have Shaporin’s Five Pieces for Cello and Piano, Op. 25 – a work that was new to me. In these cello pieces, also written for Rostropovich, Shaporin seems to have been inspired by both Prokofiev and Miaskovsky. Shaporin shows a natural gift for melody and his solid technique never fails in this work. The Aria is an expansive lyrical piece whose melancholy beauty almost reaches the level of Tchaikovsky! The Cd closes with Liadov’s Prelude in B Minor (arranged for cello and piano) which acts as a suitable encore for an imaginative and outstandingly performed debut disk.
Laura has already made a name for herself as a very special emerging talent, captivating audiences and critics alike with her insightful and faithful interpretations on stage. This CD will do much to strengthen her reputation with a wider audience. The performances more than hold their own in a crowded market place and the sound quality achieved by the Champs Hill engineers is exemplary.
Stream on Spotify or buy from Presto Classical.
Laura van der Heijden
Liadov
Miaskovsky
Petr Limonov
Shaporin
Previous articleDebussy’s La Mer – No. 27 in our collection
Next articleNot one, but three Bach Magnificats from Arcangelo
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11125
|
__label__wiki
| 0.743519
| 0.743519
|
Home Idyllwild News Hidden Lake bluecurls prove their vigor and endurance
Hidden Lake bluecurls prove their vigor and endurance
JP Crumrine
A Hidden Lake bluecurl grows to about 4 inches tall, with short stem segments between elliptic leaves, and blue flowers with a five-lobed corolla. Its fruit consists of four smooth, basally-joined nutlets.
Photo courtesy the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
The Hidden Lake bluecurls have proven their resilience and perseverance. Last week, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife published a notice and requested comments on its proposal to remove the San Jacinto Mountain native flower from the endangered and threatened list.
The local plant, whose official name is Trichostema austromontanum ssp. compactum, was identified as a threatened species in September 1998.
Since then, multiple agencies, including the California Department of Parks and Recreation that manages the land where Hidden Lake, home to the bluecurls, is located, and the Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden, have monitored and studied the species.
Hidden Lake is a small montane vernal pool (fresh water marsh) within the San Jacinto Mountain State Park wilderness area, the only known habitat for the native bluecurls.
Last week, the published rulemaking stated, “Having considered the individual and cumulative impact of threats on this subspecies, we find that Trichostema austromontanum ssp. compactum is not in danger of extinction throughout all of its range, nor is it likely to become so in the foreseeable future.”
The Center for Biological Diversity, which had an office in Idyllwild, also praised the decision and success story. “The Endangered Species Act has saved yet another species from extinction,” Ileene Anderson, a senior scientist with the center wrote in a press release. “Thanks to this highly effective law, the beautiful Hidden Lake bluecurls will now be around for generations to come.”
The watershed area where the flower grows is now managed as a natural preserve to protect rare plants and wildlife. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the California Department of Parks and Recreation have developed a long-term monitoring and management plan to ensure the flower is safe into the future, the CBD added.
The 1998 decision was influenced by two major threats to the Hidden Lake bluecurls and the significance of both have been diminished or refuted in the past decade.
Hikers and equestrians were trampling the flowers. As a consequence, CDPR, which manages the lake and land surrounding it, has placed fences and moved a trail, considerably reducing the damage from this threat.
The latest review found that “trampling by humans has been minimized and no visible impacts to [the plant] have been observed from trampling by horses since 2000 because of CDPR’s management.”
“Southern California is home to numerous plants found nowhere else in the world,” Paul Souza, regional director for the FWS’ Pacific Southwest Region, wrote in the press release announcing the proposed delisting. “We appreciate the efforts of our partners to conserve the bluecurls and numerous other rare and endangered plants that maintain functioning ecosystems.”
Researchers also have learned that a small population is not an indicator of prevalent danger. The flowers produce seeds, but most seeds do not germinate in the next growing season. They are not pollinated by insects, but remain dormant, thus protecting the plants throughout environmental and climatic change.
For example, the bluecurl population size fluctuates greatly. It has grown from as few as 75 plants in 2000, to more than 240,000 in 2012 and nearly 60,000 plants in 2015. The scientists studying the plant concluded, “Despite these annual changes in size, the population is best characterized as stable because the variations are natural and tied primarily to the summer level of the lake.”
FWS, along with its partners, have determined that the state’s management of the San Jacinto wilderness area, and especially the Hidden Lake Preserve, has been very effective, the threat from stochastic events is much less than previously believed and an external seed bank also has been created.
A public hearing on the proposal will be scheduled. But comments on the delisting may be submitted to FWS on or before Monday, March 6.
Previous articleBobbie Rants: January 12, 2017
Next articleObituary Patricia Anne Kane Morris Hair: 1928-2016
JP Crumrine is news editor of the Idyllwild Town Crier newspaper.
David Stith January 12, 2017 at 3:45 pm
Curious decision. I am happy that the steps taken to mitigate factors that might have lead to their decline appear to be successful as long as delisting does not lead to a relaxation of those measures. The conclusion that “Trichostema austromontanum ssp. compactum is not in danger of extinction throughout all of its range, nor is it likely to become so in the foreseeable future” supports the decision. However it seems a bit misleading to me since “all of its range” is restricted to such a very small unique area of the San Jacinto Mountains.
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11126
|
__label__wiki
| 0.593471
| 0.593471
|
iProgress
Physical Health Links
iProgress Counseling and Consulting, LLC believes that each person possesses something extraordinary within them waiting to be revealed.
However, the difficulties of life create barriers that hinder people from living purposeful lives.
We want to assist in helping people reach their fullest potential.
Click on a photo to learn more.
Dr. Terrence Johnson
Dr. Johnson was born in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, however, grew up in Jackson, Mississippi. He received his undergraduate degree in Psychology and his master’s degree in Counselor Education with an emphasis in College Counseling from Mississippi State University. He obtained his Doctorate of Professional Counseling degree from Mississippi College. Dr. Johnson is a Licensed Professional Counselor, a Board Qualified Supervisor, a Distance Credentialed Counselor, an Approved Clinical Supervisor, and a National Certified Counselor.
While at Mississippi State, he was a Peer Counselor for the Holmes Cultural Diversity Center, a news reporter for The Reflector, a tutor for Student Support Services, and has been a member of Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity since 2003.
Dr. Johnson served as an Adolescent Opportunity Program Case Manager for Community Counseling Services in Starkville, MS; a Support Therapist for Region 3 Mental Health Services where he serviced Aberdeen High School in Aberdeen, MS; Coordinator at Jackson State University’s Career Services Center; Therapist at the Latasha Norman Counseling Center at Jackson State University; and currently serves as Clinical Professor at Mississippi College for the Doctor of Professional Counseling program.
He is an active member of New Canney Creek M.B. Church in Jackson, MS where he serves as a Sunday School Teacher, Deacon, Youth Leader, Director of the Isaac Johnson Memorial Scholarship Fund, and President of the Steppers of Faith.
Dr. Johnson is also active in his community. He volunteered as a mentor for the Youth Challenge Program and a Telephone Counselor for Contact the Crisis line. He writes in his spare time, he’s published articles in Jackson Free Press Boom Jackson magazine and he’s written for Motivation Magazine.
He recently established his business Change Group, LLC which seeks to assist individuals identify their life’s purpose and assist organizations to better serve the community. Dr. Johnson founded the MasterMind Group which serves as an assembly of individuals committed to better serving their community.
Dr. Johnson’s doctoral research was on the Development of a Mentoring Program for At-Risk African-American Adolescent Males Addressing the Effects of Fatherlessness.
View Dr. Johnson's CV here
Dr. Kendrick Bailey
Kendrick Bailey is from Glen Allan, MS. He went on to receive his high school diploma from Riverside High School in May 2000. Mr. Bailey received his undergraduate degree from Mississippi State University in Psychology as well as a Master’s Degree in Counselor Education from MSU. In addition, Kendrick received his Doctorate of Professional Counseling from Mississippi College.
While at MSU, he served as a Graduate Intern for Student Counseling Services and Sexual Assault Services. He developed a mentoring group for African American males and facilitated a workshop series for Veteran's designed to address the needs of combat Veterans and readjustment process for returning service members to campus. Also, he's been a member of Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Inc. since 2003.
After graduating with his Master's Degree in Counselor Education, he worked two years as a Licensed Professional Counselor with Mississippi State University's Student Counseling Services. Also, he worked as a Licensed Professional Counselor at Cross-Gates River-Oaks Hospital.
Additionally, Mr. Bailey is a Logistics Officer with over 18 years of Veteran service with the Mississippi Army National Guard. He currently serves as the Battalion Operations Officer for HHC 106th Brigade Support Battalion in Monticello, MS. He is a member of the Greater Fairview Baptist Church in Jackson, Mississippi.
Kendrick believes the work he performs enhances individuals' lives by aiding them with discovering their purpose and managing the challenges they face in life. He desires to leave a lasting impression on young professionals through collaboration with training, mentoring, and internship programs to increase knowledge.
Currently, he's employed at Jackson's Veteran Administration Medical Center as a Licensed Professional Counselor where he serves on the Evidence Based Psychotherapy Team. He provides Evidence-Based Psychotherapy treatments to Veterans, and he believes that Evidence-Based Psychotherapies are treatments that are effective in reducing Veterans symptoms and improving their lives. He infuses Client-Centered, Existential and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy practices into his Theoretical Orientation. He believes that the client-therapist relationship is one of equality and understanding.
He resides in Pearl, MS with his wife, the former Tara Lakeisha Caldwell of Jackson, MS and their two children.
Office Hours are Available by Request
2633 Ridgewood Road, Suite 204
info@iprogresscc.com
A Therapist Website by Brighter Vision | Privacy Policy
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11129
|
__label__cc
| 0.543348
| 0.456652
|
Tag Archives: 19th Century England
September 14, 2018 by Moreland
Desire & Decorum: Chapter 1, The Journey Ahead
So do you all remember the film Big? Tom Hanks is a preteen that wishes to be “big” and becomes a 30-year old man?
He tries to find a Zoltar machine to change him back, but meanwhile works for a toy company to make money. Because of his childlike understanding, he moves straight to the top of the company.
Now his idea for a new toy is a computer game/book that you read but get to make choices as to what will happen next. Well Choices is that.
So a while back they had a preview for an Austenlike game Desire & Decorum
You know me and anything Austenlike or Austen related:
So as soon as it was avliable I decided to play:
You have the choice of being male or female and name. You can also customize your avatar and purchase extras if you want.
So the story is set in 1816 in the country village of Grovershire, England. You have enjoyed your life there but your mother is very ill, and on her deathbed reveals a secret. You have never known your father, but your mother reveals that he is the Earl of Edgewater, a very wealthy and powerful man. The two were in love, but his family drove them apart-and she went to Grovershire. How do you feel? You make the choice.
With the death of your mother you head to Edgewater and to meet your father and his family. Now this is an interesting concept to go with, being born out of wedlock in 1816-not the best way to be treated.
It was very hard when you were considered an “illegetimate” child. You had no legal right to any inheritance unless “an explicit, specific, uncontested written bequest, and inheriting a title from a parent was rare indeed, though not, as we’ve seen, quite impossible.”
So you are taken to Edgewater and meet your paternal grandmother the Dowager Countess who is quite spunky. Is she an ally? Or will she try and remove you like your mother was removed?
You also meet Mr. Ernest Sinclaire, master of the nearby Ledford Park. He’s handsome, rich, and also the rude man that almost ran you down on his horse a couple days ago. Yes, you have met him before.
I wonder which Austen hero he will be like? Romantic and wise like Colonel Brandon? Idealistic and does the right thing like Edward Ferrars? Broody and serious Darcy? Playful and stern like Mr. Knightley? Serious like Edmund Bertram? Playful like Mr. Tilney? Passionate like Captain Wentworth?
Or will he be a rogue? Sacrifices love for money like Mr. Willoughby? Selfish and narcissistic like Mr. Wickham? An annoying brown-noser like Mr. Collins? A cruel social climber like Mr. Elton? Only thinks of himself like Frank Churchill? Manipulative like John Thorpe or Captain Tilney? Plotting and cunning like Mr. Elliot?
But more importantly, what about your father. Will he accept you or reject you?
For more Jane Austen games, go to Jane Austen Manors
For more based on Jane Austen, go to Jane Austen’s Guide to Dating
For more Jane Austen stuff, go to Read Jane Austen, Wear Jane Austen
Posted in Austenite
Tagged 19th Century England, Avatar, Based on Jane Austen, Big, Book, Captain Tilney, Captain Wentworth, Catherine Morland, Choices, Colonel Brandon, Computer Game, Deathbed Secret, Desire & Decorum, Dowager Countess, Earl of Edgewater, Edgewater, Edmund Bertram, Edward Ferras, Frank Churchill, Grovershire, Heiress, Illegitimate, Jane Austen, Jane Austen Game, Jane Austen Stuff, John Thorpe, Ledford Park, Mr. Collins, Mr. Darcy, Mr. Elliot, Mr. Elton, Mr. Ernest Sinclaire, Mr. Knightley, Mr. Tilney, Mr. Wickham, Mr. Willoughby, Regency, Regency Courtship, Regency England, Regency Era, Regency Wear, Rich Father, Secret, Tom Hanks, Toy Company, Zoltar Machine
So I already did a post on the opening line of Sense and Sensibility, you should go here if you want to check that out. So Sense and Sensibility is far different from Pride & Prejudice. In Pride & Prejudice we have a basic introduction to the family-5 daughters, and their mother’s need to marry them off.
Sense and Sensibility is a little different.
We get a big family entanglement of who’s who in the family and who’s inheriting. It can be a bit much.
It’s not as bad as Love Actually or He’s Just NOT Into You, but it is pretty knotted. But lucky for you all, that’s what I’m here for. I shall untangle it for you.
So it’s always about the property and land right?
And in this case it’s the same. But the one in question here is Norland Park, belonging to Mr. Dashwood.
Now Mr. Dashwood was a confirmed bachleor, and shared his house with his sister who managed everything for him. Both of them grew older, and Miss Dashwood died. Mr. Dashwood found himself alone and didn’t enjoy it. So he decided to invite his nephew, Mr. Henry Dashwood.
Now Henry is where things become a bit more complicated. Henry has two families.
Now I don’t mean that he was married to two women at the same time, this isn’t Sister Wives. And he wasn’t a conman either. He was a widower who remarried. This might not sound too complicated right now (I mean with how high the divorce rates are today, things are far more complicated,) but it does cause some legal issues I’ll get into later.)
So we have Mr. Dashwood’s first family. This includes his son John, horrible daughter-in-law Fanny,
and awful grandson.
I hate these people. Absolutely HATE THEM.
But more on that later.
And his second family consists of the new Mrs. Dashwood, Elinor, Marianne, and Margaret.
So here we are.
John being older and married was the one that didn’t move into the family homestead. But he and his family visited all the time. The three girls however, joined Old Mr. Dashwood. They take good care of him and greatly amuse him in his old age.
Only one problem.
One thing my drama director always told us:
“Never work with kids or animals. They’ll steal the show.”
It’s true. Kids and animals are too cute, and they don’t even try. They’ll do something that will cause all others to be overlooked.
And here it’s no different.
Yes, the little spoiled brat steals away all the love of his grandfather.
“…this child, who, in occasional visits with his father and mother at Norland, had so far gained the affections of his uncle. by such attractions as are by no means unusual in children of two or three years old, an imperfect articulation, an earnest desire of having his own way, many cunning tricks, and a great deal of noise, as to outweigh all the value of all the attention which, for years, he had received from his niece and her daughters.”
Yep, just another case of those who slaved and cared being pushed aside for something “cuter”.
So the old Mr. Dashwood dies. And leaves things unpleasant. He entails all his money and estate to his grandnephew.
Entailment!
Replace Rothbart with entailment
Entailment sucks!!!!!!!
Entailment was something that was done a lot in the 18th-20th centuries. All the money, property, the whole shebang was entailed to the next male heir. So this is good and bad. It means that Henry will have everything, but only for as long as he is alive. When he dies it will be passed on to John, and then to the kid. This means that the female Dashwoods will receive nothing. The old Mr. Dashwood gave them £1000, but that won’t be near enough for them to marry well.
So I’m sure you are wondering about Mr. Henry Dashwood. I mean he doesn’t have to entail his personal money. Or Mrs. Dashwood’s money. Right?
Well you’re half-right. He wouldn’t have to if he had any. Yep, you see Mr. Dashwood has no money.
He had status and married wealthy. His first wife had a fortune!
Unfortunately, she died.
And left all her money to her only child, John.
When he remarries it’s for love and his second wife is poor. They have only £7000. (I’m not sure if that’s a year or what, but it’s not enough for taking care of his family long-term).
And then he hopes to get the inheritance, but winds up with basically nothing.
To rub salt further in the wound, John doesn’t even need the money. You see John not only has all that dough from his mom, but when he married he increased his net worth tenfold.
Yep, he’s rolling in dough.
So the Dashwoods got the shaft.
But then Henry decides maybe it’s not such a bad thing after all. He is not an old man, he’s still has plenty of years left in him and he could start setting money aside to take care of his family. After all it’s not like he is going to die any day.
For more on Sense and Sensibility, go to A Sense of Sense and Sensibility
For more on the Dashwood family, go to Opening With…
For more on how entailment sucks, go to Fantastic Fantasies
For more on Gone With the Wind, go to At the End of the Rainbow
Posted in Sense and Sensibility
Tagged 18th Century, 18th Century England, 19th Century, 19th Century England, 20th Century, A Family Affair, All Alone, Alone, Animals, Bach, Complicated, Confirmed Bachelor, Conman, Cunning, Cuter, Dashwood Family, Daughter-in-Law, Daughters, Dean Winchester, Divorce, Divorce Rates, Doesn't Like Being Alone, Downton Abbey, Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas, Drama, Drama Director, Dumb and Dumber, Elinor Dashwood, Entailment, Entailment Sucks!, Entails the Estate Away, Estate, Family Business, Family Tanglement, Family Tree, Fanny Dashwood, Father Remarried, Five Daughters, Fortune, Gerald O'Hara, Get Nothing, Gone With the Wind, Grandfather, Grandson, Harvey, He's Just NOT That Into You, Heir, Imperfect Articulation, Inherit, Inherit Everything, Inheritance, Inherited, Jack Skellington, John Dashwood, Kids, Knotted, Land, Legal Issues, Let's Get Started, Lost Fortune, Love Actually, Margaret Dashwood, Marianne Dashwood, Married for Money, Marries for Love, Marry Off Daughters, Marry Up, Miss Dashwood, Money, Mother, Mr. Dashwood, Mr. Henry Dashwood, Mrs. Dashwood, Nephew, Never Say Never, Next Male Heir, Niece, No Money, Norland Park, Nothing Turns Out Like It Should, Occasional Visits, Old Age, Older Brother, Opening, Opening Line, Passed Over, Poor, Possession of a Good Fortune, Pride & Prejudice, Property, Pushed Aside for Something Cuter, Remarriage, Remarried, Remarry, Rich Family, Scarlett O'Hara, Sense and Sensibility, Sense and Sensibilty, Set Money Aside, Single Man, Single Rich Guy Needs a Wife, Sister Wives, Spoiled, Spoiled Brat, Steal the Show, Telling Me There is a Chance, The Bachelor, The Nightmare Before Christmas, Untangle, Wealthy Family, Who's Who, Widower, Willy Wonka, Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, Wrongo, You Get Nothing, Young Mr. Dashwood
November 23, 2014 by Moreland
Fanning All Over the Place
Yes, its true.
I am such a fangirl and have so many, many, many fandoms that I belong to. They take over my life! I mean if you think of all the hours that are put into being a massive fan, it’s astounding!
Here is a list of things (alphabetically) that constantly take over my life. I’m actually breaking this up into a series of posts, as just one was tooooo much.
Anne of Green Gables Series
I love Anne of Green Gables. It is one of my most favorite book series and books turned into films. The book takes place in Canada in the early 20th century. Marilla and Matthew Cuthburt, two elderly people, have decided to take in an orphan boy to help take care of their farm, Green Gables. When Matthew goes to pick the orphan up, he finds a girl instead of a boy! A redhead named Anne. Anne proves to be widely entertaining, spirited, imaginative and a whole lot of fun.
Anne is just so awesome how she is always trying to find a kindred spirit and using her optimism and sweetness in everyday life. She also has an overactive imagination and gets herself into the best scrapes.
All my friends say that I am just like her, which I have to say is definitely true. While I’m missing the red hair; I most definitely have the same temper, imagination, and tendency to get into accidents/scrapes.
Yep I totally would have whacked him too!
So the first book Anne of Green Gables, is about her life as she lives on Prince Edward Island. You get introduced to her character along with meeting the rest of the people who live on the island. She studies hard and ends up getting a scholarship to college, but things happen that makes her decide to wait and become a teacher for the present.
In its sequel Anne of Avonlea, it chronicles her time as a teacher on the island, and her desire to become a writer. She continues to get into scrapes, even though she that being older should make her wiser. Her family also takes in twins, Daisy and Davy, to raise.
In Anne of the Island, Anne goes to college and it chronicles her years there. She also gets six proposals.Yes, not one, not two, not even three, but six!
In the end, she agrees to marry one of her suitors. I won’t tell you who, as you have to read!
Anne of Windy Poplars she can’t get married right away as her fiancé is still in school. She goes to Windy Poplars to teach and has to contend with the politics of the areas, as certain “old families” run the roost.
Anne’s House of Dreams Anne is married and has to deal with the issues of early marriage, running a home, and eventually kids. But that doesn’t stop her from her earlier imaginative games and friendmaking.
Anne of Ingleside details her married life, spotlights her children, and visits old friends and flames.
Besides the wonderful, imaginative, and fun Anne; you also have one of the best romantic heros ever. Gilbert Blythe.
Yep, I’m Anne. I know I say stuff like that all the time, but if I had to pick a fictional character I’m really like, it is her. We are the same although I live about a hundred years later than her. (Yeah an exact 100 years, spooky).
Which means that Gilbert is absolutely perfect for me. Still looking for him. Someday I’ll find him.
Definitely check out the books and the films. Just an FYI the films move away from the stories, and the first two are the only good ones.
For more on the Anne of Green Gables series, go to Part XI: A Movie Lines List’s Excellent Adventure
Austenite/Janeite
Do I really need to explain this? I mean look at the title of my blog and half the things I write about. I am a huge Austenite and love everything Jane Austen.
Jane Austen was an amazing woman who faced all kinds of adversary. She grew up with money, but ended up living in poverty. She fell in love with a high class man, but his family intervened and sent him away. She was given another opportunity to marry a wealthy man that would have saved her and her family from destitution, but she couldn’t marry him as she didn’t love him.
She continued to wait for her true love; although he never walked back into her life. Her first book she ever wrote, Northanger Abbey (then called Lady Susan) was published post-mortem. Her second novel and the most famous, Pride and Prejudice, was turned down several times before being published. In fact, it was published after she wrote her third novel, Sense and Sensibility.
Austen wrote not only great stories that have stood the test of time, but wrote about real issues and her more radical thoughts/philosophies, that wouldn’t be as easily accepted if spoken in person.
There is so much more I could say, but that would take several posts to fill it up. I recommend reading On the 10th Day ‘Til Christmas: Merry Christnas from the Austen Novels to read more of my love for Jane Austen’s work and her characters.
For more on Jane Austen, go to Opening With…
Now I may be one of the few that are far more interested in The Avengers than Magic Mike but I see that as a good thing. The Avengers are another part of the Marvel (now Disney) family. The comic originated in the ’60s, with the team consisting of Iron Man, Ant Man, Wasp, Thor, Hulk, & Captain America. Superheros from all the Marvel comics have joined up as team members through the years, such as Kitty Pryde and Wolverine from the X-Men. Even solo acts like Spider-man, have joined up for a while.
Now the film was amazing. The Avengers is one of the best superhero films to come out.They did an outstanding job as the film gave each superhero its chance to shine and made it about them as a whole, instead of one individual (that’s how it’s done X-Men. Yeah I’m looking at your 2000 series that was really only about Wolverine). Plus you have some extremely hunky guys. There is Chris Evans as Captain America, Robert Downey Jr. as Iron Man, and Mark Ruffalo as the Hulk.
LOVE IT!! Check it out!
I LOVE Back to the Future. Words cannot describe what this film means to me.
After the first time I saw this film, I immediately became obsessed with it. I memorized every single line in the films. I would comb through the TV listings, and watch it every, single time it came on. One time I even got up at 4:00 am! That’s commitment right there. And why not be obsessed with it? Duh, it’s AWESOME!
The film is a combo of Science-fiction, historical fiction, the ’50s, and the ’80s. All things I love and hold dear. Marty McFly (Michael J. Fox), is the youngest of the McFly household and growing up in 1985. He wants to be a musician but is afraid of failing. He’s close friends with amateur scientist and millionare, Dr. Emmet Brown, Doc for short. Doc has finally created the time machine he’s been working on for 30 years. And put it in a Delorean.
Before he can set out on his trip through time, Doc is killed by the terrorists he bamboozled for uranium. Marty jumps in the car and takes off, accidentally going back to 1955 and messing up his parent’s meetup. If he doesn’t get them back together, he’s history.
What’s not to love? Comedy, romance, science-fiction, great music, clothes, Michael J. Fox? Plus amazing gags!
This film was a hit and followed by two more films. In Part II Marty goes to 2015 to fix something, but indadvertedly causes his present to be destroyed. When he goes back to 1985, he finds out his father is dead, mom is married to Biff, and the whole town is run by Biff and is a hell hole. He then has to go back to 1955 in order to refix the time stream. But, it won’t be as easy as before, he can’t run into himself or else the whole time-space continuum will be destroyed!
Part III, Marty discovers that the Doc from 1985 has gone back to 1885. He then has to get the 1955 Doc to help him out and send him to 1885. When he gets there, he discovers that Biff’s however many grand pappy, “Mad Dog” Tanner, is planning on killing Doc.
They not only have to figure a way to get back without any modern convinces, but to make the issue even harder…Doc falls in love with a 1885 woman. Will they survive the Old West? Will Marty ever get back to 1985? Watch to find out!
Great mix of the ’80s & Western film
I visited Universal Studios in 2012 and was devastated to see that they had hardly anything from Back to the Future. The clock tower was destroyed in that big fire, the ride had been taken out for “newer” things, and you couldn’t find any cool souvenirs. When I went in 2013, things were different. Universal Studios has a studio museum that they constantly move props in and out and they had a whole Back to the Future collection. I was having a ball, in fact I wanted to climb over the plexiglass and sit in the Deloran.
Here are the clock tower building plans
And the beautiful car
For more on Back to the Future, go to Just a Friendly Reminder
So I love Batman. He will always be my favorite of the DC comics. And I like all the Batmans!
So here we have a man who’s parent’s die and cause him to become a vigilante; always hoping to finally destroy crime as that was the thing that killed his parents. He is a billionaire, but other than that a normal person. I mean, unlike Superman who has a gazillion powers, Batman relies on his mind, martial arts, and inventions.
He also has his strain of the double life. Just like Sir Percy Blakeney aka The Scarlet Pimpernel, Don Diego de la Vega aka Zorro, and Francisco Domingo Carlos Andres Sebastián d’Anconia from Atlas Shrugged. Batman knows that this charade of a playboy not only hides his intelligence, but the fact that he is be a main piece in destroying the crime. It has to be hard to be thought of and treated “as the richest man and the most spectacularly worthless playboy on Earth” (pg. 56, Atlas Shrugged). But Batman knows that it is a must to continue his work.
So there are many versions of Batman and I pretty much love them all.
So besides the comic books you have Batman (1966 – 1968), starring Adam West. This is a hilarious show as it just makes you giggle. It’s fantastically corny.
Then you have Batman (1989) starring the handsome and wonderful Michael Keaton. In this we have Batman taken to the big screen in a darker way, with none other than the Creeper McCreepy Creep Jack Nicholson as the Joker. He is one of the best as his uber creepiness in real life was magnified on the screen. A great film, you should check out.
In Batman Returns, Michael Keaton is back and facing up against Christopher Walken, the Penguin, and Catwoman. I never really liked the penguin’s part in this film, but Michelle Pfeiffer is the best Catwoman ever. Halle Berry and Anne Hathaway wish they could be as awesome as her. Definitely worth seeing for her and Michael Keaton.
Batman Forever totally sucked. Val Klimer is too stiff and monotone as Batman, Nicole Kidman the therapist is a sex-crazed woman who needs to help solve her own issues before getting into others, and Tommy Lee Jones as Two-Face is just…no wrong. Wrong. The only bright spot is Jim Carrey as the Riddler. He was absolutely perfect, and the only reason I watch this film.
That’s probably how most of us fans would act when we meet out idol.
Batman and Robin is…its a mess. I know it. It is full of puns, lots of stuff makes zero sense, but I LOVE IT! I can’t explain it. I find it absolutely hilarious. I love Arnold Schwarzenegger as Mr. Freeze. Its more of a parody, and I love it.
Besides that you have a some great cartoon series that came out. Such as Batman: The Animated Series. This has to be one of the best versions of Batman ever made. It really develops into the psyche and relationships of Bruce, Dick, Barbara, Comissioner Gordon, etc. Plus you have great villans like the Joker, Poison Ivy, Harley Quinn, etc. It is definitely worth a watch, and it is free on Amazon Instant Watch. I have my own favorite episodes, but Nostalgia Critic really hits on the best ones in the series (although I would add Harley & Ivy episode to that list).
Then we have Batman Beyond. In this they took the story to a different level. It was very dark and used the colors black and red only. It takes place in 2039, and Bruce is all alone. All his old friends have died or left him alone. Terry McGinnis gets involved with Bruce accidentally, and eventually Bruce trains him to become the new Batman and avenger of Gotham City.
And then we have the new Batman films. Now I really liked Batman Begins and The Dark Knight. I didn’t like The Dark Knight Rises however, but I’m like the only one. I just couldn’t get into it and hate how they chose to end with Bane after the Joker. Come on now, seriously. But I thought the first film was great. The only issue I had with the second film was that they didn’t give Two-Face enough screentime, and that he didn’t argue with himself as much as he should have. He didn’t have the same rooted issues. But all in all they were really good.
And I’m super pumped for Batman vs. Superman. Bring on the bat!
For more on Batman, go to That Girl is Poison
I love Bones because of one reason really, FBI Special Agent Seeley Booth played by David Boreanaz.
He is AMAZING!
Bones is about forensic anthropologist Dr. Temperance “Bones” Brennan (Emily Deschanel) who gets hired by the FBI as a consultant to help them solve cases. There is also an amazing secondary cast: wild, artistic, Angela Montenegro who does facial reconstruction; Dr. Jack Hodgins, an entomologist who spurned his family’s wealth and “buisness” to study science; Dr. Zack Addy, genius graduate student who is unfamilar with “social norms”; and Dr. Lance Sweets, the young, handsome, FBI psychologist who helps them out. It is a great show, that I highly recommend.
Ah, the life of a fangirl
For more on my fangirlness, go to How I Differ from Others
For more of my favorite quotes, go to Peeta Please!
Posted in Austenite, Back to the Future, Book Lover, Life as a Fangirl, Modern Times, Musings of Me, Non-Austen Movies, Quotable Quotes, Star Wars
Tagged '80s CGI, '80s film, '80s Hair, '80s Music, '80s Themed Film, 1885, 1950s, 1955, 1985, 19th Century, 19th Century England, 2015, 20th Century, 21st Century, Accident Prone, Act of Love, Adam West, Admire You, Adversary, All About the '80s, Amateur, Amateur Scientist, Amazon Instant watch, Angela Montenegro, Anne Hathaway, Anne of Avonlea, Anne of Green Gables, Anne of Ingleside, Anne of the Island, Anne of Windy Poplars, Anne Shirley, Anne's House of Dreams, Ant Man, Anthropologist, Anybody Home, Ardently Admire, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Artistic, Atlas Shrugged, Austen, Austen Films, Austen Hero, Austen Men, Austen Trivia, Austendom, Austenite, Austenites, Avonlea, Back to the Future, Back to the Future Part II, Back to the Future Part III, Bane, Barbara Gordon, Batman, Batman (1989), Batman and Robin, Batman Begins, Batman Beyond, Batman Forever, Batman Returns, Batman vs. Superman, Batman: The Animated Series, Became Impoverished, Biff Tanner, Big Fire, Billionaire, Blame Jane Austen, Blog, Bones, Book, Book Series, Born Wealthy, Boys in Books Are Better, Bruce Banner, Bruce Wayne, Building Plans, Can Marry only for Love, Canada, Captain America, Carrots, Catwoman, Charade, Children, Chip Skylark III, Chris Evans, Chris Hemsworth, Christopher Walken, CineFix Now, Clint Barton, Clock Tower, College, Comedy, Comfort, Commissioner Gordon, Commitment, Corny, Courage, Crime, Crime-solving, Crimefighter, Daisy, Dancing, Dark, David Boreanaz, Davy, DC Comics, Dead Father, Dead Parents, Delorean, Dick Grayson, Disney, Doc Brown, Don Diego de la Vega, Don't Love People By Halves, Dr. Emmet Brown, Dr. Jack Hodgins, Dr. Lance Sweets, Dr. Temperance "Bones" Brennan, Dr. Zack Addy, Drake & Josh, Early 20th Century, Edward Cullen, Elderly Lady, Elderly Man, Emily Deschanel, Emma, Emmet "Doc" Brown, Entomologist, Extensive Reading, Facial Reconstruction, Fairly Oddparents, Falling in Love, Fan, Fandom, Fangirl, Fangirls, Fans, Farm, FBI Agent Seeley Booth, FBI Agents, FBI Psychologist, FBI Special Agent, Fear of Failing., Fell in love with Wealthy Man, Fiance, Fictional Boyfriend, Fictional Characters, Fights Against Injustice, Film based on a book, Fine Eyes, Forensic Anthropologist, Francisco Domingo Carlos Andres Sebastián d'Anconia, Geek, Genius, George McFly, Gilbert Blythe, Good Opinion, Gotham, Graduate Student, Grand Pappy, Green Gables, Halle Berry, Hannah Montana, Happy, Harley Quinn, Hawkeye, Hell Hole, historical fiction, Hours, How the West Was Won, Huge Romantic Move, Hunk of a Man, I'm Pretty Optimistic, Idol, Imagination, Imaginative Games, Improvement of Mind, Indoor Plumbing, Intelligent, Inventions, Iron Man, Jack Nicholson, Jame Austen, Jane Austen, Jane Austen Books, Jane Austen Films, Jane Austen Heroine, Jane Austen Quotes, Jane Austen Runs My Life, Janeite, Jeremy Renner, Jim Carrey, John Hobbes, Joker, Josh Peck, Justice, Kindred Spirits, Kitty Pryde, Lady Susan, Logan, Loki, Long Walks, Long-Distance Relationship, Lose Temper, Mad Dog, Mad Dog Tanner, Mad Passionate Extraordinary Love, Magic Mike, Marilla Cuthbert, Mark Ruffalo, Married, Married Life, Marry a Fictional Character, Martial Arts, Marty McFly, Marvel, Marvel Comics, Marvel Universe, Mask, Masked Figure, Masked Men are Hot, Masks, Massive Fan, Matthew Cuthbert, Mediocre, Memorized, Memorized Every Line, Mess, Michael J. Fox, Michael Keaton, Michelle Pfeiffer, Millionaire, Mind, Moments, Moments that Mark Your Life, Monotone, Movie Studio, Mr. Darcy, Mr. Freeze, Musician, Na Na Na Na Batman, Nicole Kidman, Northanger Abbey, Nostalgia Critic, Nothing Like Staying Home, Obsessed, Obstacles, Old Family, Old Friends, Old West, Oliver Oaken, Open-Minded, Oprah, Optimistic, Orphan, Orphan Boy, Orphan Girl, Outdoors, Overactive Imagination, Overcome Obstacles, Page, Parody, Petticoat, Play Politics, Playboy, Poison Ivy, Politics, Possession of a Good Fortune, Post-Mortem, Pride & Prejudice, Pride and Prejudice, Prince Edward Island, Proposal, Psyche, Puns, Radical, Reading the Story, Real Issues, Real Life, Red Hair, Redhead, Refuse Proposal, Rich, Riddler, Robert Downey Jr., Romance, Romantic Hero, Running a Home, Scholarship, Science Fiction, Sense and Sensibilty, Sensible, Sex-Crazed, Shadowcat, Short Temper, Single Man, Sir Percy Blakeney, Slate, Socially Awkward, Space-Time Continuum, Spider-man, Spirited, Stands the Test of Time, Star Wars, Steve Rogers, Stiff, Studio, Superman, Teacher, Temper, terrorists, Terry McGinnis, The Avengers, The Dark Knight, The Dark Knight Rises, The Good the Bad and the Doc, The Good the Bad and the Ugly, The Hulk, The Joker, The Penguin, The Scarlet Pimpernel, The West, Therapist, Thor, Tiffanie Debartolo, Time Machine, Time Stream, Tom Hiddleston, Tommy Lee Jones, Tony Stark, Turn of the Century, TV Listings, Twins, Two-Face, Universal Pictures Museum, Universal Studios, Uranium, Val Klimer, Vicky, Vigilante, Villians, Walk Around, Walking Around, Wasp, West, Westerns, What You Never Knew, Wild, Wolverine, Writer, X-Men, X-Men (2000), Zero Sense, Zorro
Beast or Man: The Wolfman (2010)
There is no sin in killing a beast, only in killing a man. But where does one begin and the other end?
So this year I decided to do something very, very different. Now the in the past, all Horrorfests have ended on a film that takes place on Halloween. This wasn’t a credence that I set out to make, it just kind of happened along the way. With Horrorfest I had always planned on ending on Halloween (1978). I knew it was the best way to end the first year with a big bang. Besides, that year I had done the other slasher films that spanned numerous sequels and remakes (Friday the 13th & Nightmare on Elm Street). Horrorfest II I was trying to also end on a really great film that would produce the same kind of bang, and decided on Children of the Corn as that film was creepy. It also happened to take place on Halloween.
This year I was trying to decide what would be the best opener and closer. I was originally going to open with Metropolis as I had done a post in July referencing it. But after I wrote that post, it just didn’t speak to me as an opener. I started going through my drafts and that’s when I spotted The Wolf Man (1941). The Wolf Man has to be my favorite of the classic horror film monsters (along with The Phantom of the Opera). I hadn’t had a chance to review it yet, and since it was the last of the classics I decided it should be the opener.
Once I wrote that post, I was so excited. You see, I felt I really couldn’t to a post on any werewolf films until I had covered the first one. I thought it was only right to start with the original. With that done, I could move onto any other werewolf film I desired. The possibilities were endless.
With the beginning finished, I then set my sights on the end. What could I do that would really pop? As I started thinking and looking, I saw my draft for The Wolfman (2010). And that’s when it hit me.
I could end Horrorfest III with The Wolfman (2010). It could be like bookends!!!! In the beginning the original that started it all and the end the newest rendition. !!! Yes!! It could work and it will. So here we are The Wolfman (2010).
So a little backstory before we begin the review. As you would have read in an older post, I love The Wolf Man (1941). It is one of my all-time favorite horror films. One day in my photography class, we were watching trailers of different films as we were looking at the cinematography and technique. My teacher was on a Mac which has Front Row, and shows you trailers of the past, present, and future films. One trailer I remember looking at was Nightmare on Elm Street (2010). I wasn’t planning on seeing it, as I hadn’t seen the original. But as we reached the end, I saw The Wolfman.
I screamed ay my teacher, stop!! I want to see that. So we watched the trailer.
AWESOME!!! RIGHT!!! So I knew there were going to be changes, I knew it was going to be nowhere near as good as the original, but I was soooo pumped!! So I watched the trailer in February 2009, and saw the film was slated for that October. I couldn’t wait!!!
I ticked off the months, but then in October I discovered it wasn’t out in theaters.
Yep, there had been some production problems, so they pushed it back to February. FEBRUARY!!! V-Day weekend. I was upset, but what could I do? I just had to wait it out.
But then February came and I decided that it would be my V-day present to myself. You see I have never had a boyfriend or date for V-day, so I always just buy myself whatever I want. It’s actually pretty nice as you don’t have to fight with anyone over where to go or what to see; and you are never, ever, ever, disappointed.
I asked a couple of friends who were also single and we bought tickets for opening night. I knew that I wouldn’t be 100% pleased, but I was looking forward to those improved transformation scenes.
So moving on to the review.
So let’s go back in time. The year is 1891 and we are in England. Lawrence Talbot (Benicio del Toro) is the second son of Sir John Talbot (Anthony Hopkins). He and his dad had a lot of issues and problems so he left as soon as he could. Since then he has been a renowned Shakespearean actor, famous throughout all England for his Hamlet and Macbeth.
He recieves a letter from a Gwen Conliffe (Emily Blunt). She was engaged to his older brother Ben, but he has been murdered. Not only was he murdered, but horribly mangled by something. When Lawrence gets the news, he immediately returns home for the funeral.
When he gets there he sees his father and the two have a harsh welcome. Unlike The Wolf Man (1941), where father and son were trying to work on repairing their relationship, Sir John doesn’t care. He still has huge issues with his son not being what he wants him to be. The way that Sir John treats him, causes Lawrence to want to leave, and go far away…but he can’t. He has to properly say good-bye to his brother.
Lawerence does try to get away from his father as he knows staying near him will just cause more fights. He also really wants to see his brother. So he heads down to the local slaughterhouse where the body is kept before burial.
I know but you have to remember this is a small village in 19th century England. They didn’t have a mortuary to hold the body until burial. They also didn’t understand how diseases spread and that it is not a good idea to have a dead body near your food.
There at the slaughterhouse, the butcher gives Laurence his brother’s items, that is everything found on him at the time of his death.
Later that night he heads over to the local pub for a drink and overhears the gossip on the murder. Most of the villagers blame a band of gypsies. Not long after they moved into the area, Ben was murdered. In fact, someone remembers a case occuring years earlier of gypsies moving into the area and dead bodies surfacing. As they discuss this, Laurence remembers that Ben had had a gypsy medallion on him.
This is the first time that Laurence has ever met his brother’s fiance Gwen. Now for you Wolf Man fans, you should recognize that it is the same name given to Laurence’s love interest in the original film. Except in that film she was to marry the hunter/groundsman of the Talbot estates. Anyways, Laurence meets her and can instantly see why his brother fell for her, as he himself is attracted to her.
Of course Lawrence is the most amazing, gentleman/good guy that he would never ever think of putting the moves on her. He does thank her for trying to be there for his father and for everything. He also let’s her know that if she ever needs him, he’ll be there for him.
Gwen is also attracted to him, and you really can’t blame her. If Benecio is in his early 40s, that means her husband to-be was hecka old. Also Benecio/Lawrence has this adorable hurt puppy dog look that makes you just want to show him he is special, and that you care for him. He looks so sad that it makes you just want to take him, and take care of him. Making sure is life is bright and never unhappy again. That look is killer on any girl as it flies through their best defenses. Major chink in the armor.
Sorry, digressing….So with Lawrence back, and the funeral over, Gwen decides to return to London. Laurence would like to leave too, but wth his brother’s death, he now is sole heir to the estate and the first son. When his father dies he will become Sir Lawrence and be expected to uphold all those duties (House of Lords most likely). This isn’t the life that Laurence wants, but at this moment he is too loaded with grief and confusion over his brother’s death that he doesn’t question or try to rebel.
So with Gwen gone, and his father an emotionless robot who only cares about himself; Lawrence takes it upon himself to try and figure out what happened to his loving brother. Now Lawrence is putting on the black cowl and trying to become a vigilante or anything, he just wants some closure about his brother’s death. He heads down to the gypsy camp to try to get some answers.
Where were you the night in question?
That night is a full moon
Which as you’ve guessed it means trouble is going to be roaming about. Lawrence meets up with the gypsy woman Maleva, who tells him that something truly evil has attacked his brother.
But before he can get anything more, the townspeople attack the village. They try to drive the gypsies from the area, and kill a dancing bear they believe to be the beast that killed Ben Talbot.
As they are attacking, a superhuman, wolfish creature descends upon the area and starts slaughtering people.
And I’m not talking about just a few people, this is like a Scream sequel. The body count by the end of this film is in the double digits.
Hey, my generation is the Millennials. They aren’t as classy, they need lots more blood and guts.
Anyways, the werewolf is attacking everyone, and Lawrence spots a young boy running into the woods. At the same time the werewolf spots the boy, causing Lawrence to put himself in the way in order to protect the child. As he does so, the wolf attacks him.
And he gets bitten.
Malvea find him and cares for him, despite the community telling her that it is better for all if they let him die. But Malvea can’t, she says he still is a man and deserves to be treated as such. She also states that only a loved one can kill him.
Malvea honey, I don’t think so. Anyone can kill a werewolf as long as they have some kind of silver object. Nowhere is that in the original film, as if you read my post you would know that film revolutionized werewolf mythology. Click here to check it out now.
And besides that, is there nothing you can do for him? You are a cinematic gypsy in a horror film! You’re supposed to have a potion or herb or special thing that can protect you from turning. Now if you have read my Dracula, The Mummy, The Wolf Man, or Scream 2 posts, you know I make fun of the films when the guy is given a special charm to protect him but then stupidly turns it over to the girl he loves, EVEN THOUGH IT WILL NOT WORK FOR HER.
But I really enjoy that part of the film, as it humanizes the character and makes you adore them. I mean its sweet how much they love the girl in their life that if there is anything that can do to ward of the monster, they prefer them to have it. Even though by doing so they make things worse, hey it’s the thought that counts.
I also hate how gypsies have been giving “B” standing in modern horror films. I mean without their supreme wisdom and knowledge in the supernatural, they are just nomadic people. In real life they are still awesome, in a horror film? That’s just boring.
But I guess that’s just they way it is these days.
So where was I? Oh yeah, Lawrence has been bitten by the werewolf. He is moved back to Talbot Manor, and Gwen returns from London to nurse him back to health. While recovering he has really strange dreams. Lots of blood, murder, and even his mother appears. You see his mother died when he was very, very young and her death severely traumatized her as he discovered her dead body. But why would that death be haunting him now? Is it because of Ben? The slaughtered people seen in the gypsy camp? Or is it something else?
Lawrence actually heals pretty quickly, which he finds kind of odd. And that’s not the only thing that’s odd in the Talbot homestead. One day his father’s manservant, Singh (Art Malik), shows him a case of silver bullets and hints that something monstrous is walking through the woods.
He’s not the only one concerned. Inspector Abberline (Hugo Weaving) comes to town. Yes, yes I’m going to admit it. Any film with Hugo Weaving gets an 10x increase in awesome. I mean this guy is truly one of the most talented actors alive. When he ecomes a role you totally forget that he is Hugo Weaving and just think of him as that character. For me I’m always going, Hugo Weaving was in that film? Oh that’s who was that amazing character. I totally forgot that character was being played by an actor. I mean he is that good. You have Agent Smith in The Matrix, Elrond in The Lord of the Rings trilogy, V in V for Vendetta, the Red Skull in Captain America: The First Avenger, and that’s just to name a few.
Anyways, Inspector Abberline comes to town to investigate. He already believes he knows who the killer is…Lawrence.
Seriously? Lawrence? A Murderer? Come on, this guy wouldn’t hurt a fly. I mean look at him, really look at him. There isn’t a murderous bone in his body! Besides, he just arrived in town so there is no way he could have murdered his brother. Dude, you’re dumb.
But it isn’t completely ungrounded. You see, Lawrence has a history of “mental problems.” You see, I didn’t want to give you the full story so early, but Lawrence’s mother’s death really did a number on him. Now today, we would really try to help the child as we understand such events as those are highly traumatic and can cause serious issues. Then not so much. Lawrence discovered the body and was very upset. He was afraid and kept mentioning a monster had hurt her. Instead of trying to help his kid, Sir John sent him to an insane asylum, where he was tortured. And I mean torture. Many methods to improve these patients were electrotherapy, iron cuffs/collars, bloodletting, dipping the patient in hot or ice-cold water, and a gyrating chair “to shake up the blood and tissues of the body to restore equilibrium”. By the 1900s, many hospitals had added lobotomies to their lists of “cures”.
AAAAAAAAHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Yeah not fun. So Aberline thinks he is the perfect suspect. Laurence though, is having none of that.
Lawrence Talbot: I get your implication, and resent it. You’re clearly aware of my personal history, as I believe I’m aware of yours. Weren’t you in charge of the ripper case a couple of years back?
Det. Aberline: You’re a direct man. So I’ll be equally direct with you. I am not your enemy, Mr. Talbot. You’ve been seen as Hamlet, Macbeth, Richard III, all with that same face. A prudent man would ask who else might be living inside that head of yours?
Laurence doesn’t quite know what is going on and asks Gwen to leave as he’s worried something might happen to her. That night he follows his father, and watches him go down to the family crypt, to the area where his dead mother resides. There he finds a chair with restranints. His father locks the door and stays in the crypt, leaving a confused Laurence.
As Laurence turns to go inside, he becomes…The Wolfman!
Now this was worth the price of admission. These transformation scenes are awesome!!!
Freakin’ sweet!
So now that he is a wolfman, he does what they all do. Ravage the countryside.
The next day the Inspector comes for him and has him arrested to be sent back to the “mental hospital”
Noooooooooo!!!!!!!
How horrible is that. I mean this has to be Laurence’s biggest fear, to be sent back to that horrible place. Poor guy. And I was doing some research last night, not only were insane asylums awful, but the one he has to go to, Bedlam, was one of the worst.
Dr. Hoennegar, the leading physician, takes Laurence under his wing and subjects him to ice treatments, that is to be consistently dunked into ice water and left there for long periods of time.
Can you imagine?
And oh joy, he also gets electroshock therapy.
While he is incarcerated, Sir John comes to visit and tells him a story. You see Sir John is the cause of all this.
Back in the day when he was younger and hunting in India, he heard this rumor about an unusual predator. He travels to the remote cave that the predator calls his home and while there was bit by a feral boy and became a victim of lycanthropy.
Except, it was more than “imagining” he actually became a werewolf and began attacking things.
That’s when Laurence realizes everything about his mother’s death makes total sense. He did see a beast kill her, but it was his father! His father killed his mother and then sent him to a mental institution!!! What a truly, truly evil man to allow his son to be tortured. And now for a second time!!!
Now this was my biggest issue with the film. Every other part of the movie was actually pretty great. It was an amazing homage to the orginal film. Benecio del Toro was actually a huge fan of the original and tried to bring a lot of Lon Chaney Jr. into his acting. But the thing I absolutely hate was the changed relationship with his father.
It just didn’t work in my opinion. I mean that is what truly made the original fantastic, was that everything in his life was going great, he was a great man; and this tragedy strikes that ruins everything. He and his father were finally, finally becoming close and working out all their issues. He had met a nice girl, even though she was engaged, and had hope for that relationship. He loved England and was getting back into the groove of it. But then this horrible thing happens and he has to say good-bye to it all. He knows he is going to die, but what does he do? He goes to his dad and makes sure that he has something to protect him. Because even though he has spent years hating and being angry at his father, he truly loves him. It’s just so wonderful and sad all at the same time
But having the dad the evil guy, I don’t know…it just makes the film feel as if it is missing a huge part of it. It doesn’t hit in the heart like the orginal.
But moving on, so his father murdered his mother and then sent the only witness to a torture chamber (mental hospital) to ensure that those memoris would never come to light as they are only crazy “child fantasies”.
Since then, Sir John has had his manservant Singh has been locking him up so he doesn’t wreck havoc anymore. However, Ben was planning to leave with Gwen once they were married and this enraged Sir John. He wasn’t locked up that night and killed him to keep him from going away. He became so incensed with the power that he ran wild later, killing all in the gypsies camp and biting Laurence purposely.
Omg what a–
He did it on purpose because he wanted a fall guy. He wants to roam free as a werewolf and he allows his son to be caught and tortured. Argh!!! Urhg! this man! I;m so angry I can’t spell right. He needs a good sock in the face.
After he finishes his story he leaves, intent on never returning.
He deserves another punch.
That night Laurence is taken to the observation room, where the good doctor presents him as a curio to his collegues. Unbeknowest to him, moonlight is coming through the window and landing on Laurence. This causes him to turn into….the Wolfman!
This is one of the coolest scenes, but unfortunately I could only find it in Italian. Sorry! But you don’t really need to understand what they are saying to enjoy the effects/makeup.
Dr. Hoenneger: Ah, Mr. Talbot. We are here tonight to illustrate conclusively that Mr. Talbot’s fears are quite irrational. So, we will remain in this room together, and once Mr. Talbot has witnessed that the full moon holds no sway over him, that he remains a perfectly ordinary human being, he will have taken his first small step down the long road to mental recovery. We are all aware that Mr. Talbot has suffered quite traumatic personal experiences. He witnessed his mother’s self mutilations. His young mind, unable to accept it, created a fantastical truth, that his father is to blame. That is father is literally a monster. But, your father is not a werewolf. You were not bitten by a werewolf. You will not become a werewolf, any more than I will sprout wings and fly out of that window.
Freakin’ AWESOME
Totally fangirl over that.
Laurence runs away, being chased by the Inspector, and also wreaking havoc. There are some truly amazing shots of him by the bridge, on statues. Just plain awesome!
The next day he visits Gwen in her antique shop. They realize they have fallen in love, but Laurence knows nothing can come of it. He has to kill his father and himself in order to protect others.
Inspector Abberline comes to see if Lawrence is there, but he is too late. Lawrence has already left for Talbot estate.
Gwen refuses to believe that they can’t be together. She starts studying lycanthropy and tracks down Maleva the gypsy for more advice. Maleva cannot help her, as there is no cure for werewolf.
Noo!
Meanwhile, the Inspector has also headed back to the village and this time armed with silver bullets. That show in the Observation room must have finally convinced him that werewolves are real. Gwen also heads toward Talbot Hall.
Lawrence is the first to arrive and discovers a murdered Singh. He takes his gun loaded with the silver bullets and starts hunting his father.
Sir John Talbot: You have me at a disadvantage. It makes me happy.
Lawrence Talbot: What does?
Sir John Talbot: Well, seeing you here like this. My son returned. It is glorious, isn’t it?
Lawrence Talbot: No, it’s hell.
Sir John is a freak. He needs help. Serious help.
Anyways, it turns out there are no bullets in Singh’s gun, but blanks. Sir John did that on purpose as he will not be destroyed. Sir John attacks his son and the two begin fighting. The full moon comes up and transfroms them into werewolves. And yes, yes we have a werewolf fight. I personally thought it was a little cheesy (and dumb) but this is the millenal generation. And it is something the people want.
So after Laurence burns and decapiitates his father, Gwen walks into the house.
NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO GWEN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
The wolfman, Lawrence, attacks her. Luckily, the inspector had also just arrived on the scene. He tries to use his gun, but misses allowing him to be bit by the werewolf. Gwen steals the gun and takes off, being pursued by the wolfman.
He chases her to a waterfall. With nowhere left to go, Gwen starts begging and pleading with the wolfman, hoping to get to Lawrence. Lawrence reason faintly returns to the beast, who hesitates. He then hears the sound of a posse coming to attack him.
While he is concentrated on them, Gwen shoots him through the heart.
Laurence changes back to his human form, and before he dies thanks Gwen for saving him.
Lawrence Talbot: [his eyes open after being shot by a silver bullet and transforming back into a human] Gwen?
Gwen Conliffe: [crying] I’m sorry…
Lawrence Talbot: It had to be this way.
Gwen Conliffe: I’m sorry.
Lawrence Talbot: [he holds her hand] Thank you. [Dies]
The posse and an injured inspector arrive just as Laurence dies.
So that is The Wolfman. Now do I think it is as good as the original? HECK NO! But that does not mean it isn’t an awesome film. Besides that one thing that majorly irks me, I really enjoyed it. I thought it was a pretty awesome film. The cinematography is beautiful, the acting incredible, and those transformation scenes? Freakin’ awesome! And I did like how they moved the story to show how harshly “mental disabled” people were treated. And you know what? Most of the people who were in those didn’tr even have serious problems. They would throw in the homeless, those with learning disabilities, women of large fortune who had husands that wanted the money but not the girl, etc. It was horrible. Horrible.
But back to the film, I think it is a worthwile view. It may not be exactly how I imagined it, but you do have some great werewolves in this, and no Jacob ones. Real werewolves.
And so ends another Horrorfest. I am so pleased with this years as I was able to redeem myself from last year’s only half the month’s posts. 31 days of terror and woe once again. I hope you all enjoyed it. I wish you all a very happy, and safe, Halloween. May it be everything you wish it to be.
For the previous post, go to The Perfect Murder
For more on werewolves, go to Werewolves Roam Among Us
For more monster movies, go to There’s Nothing Out There. Nothing in the Mist
For more on 19th century England, go to The Past of a Man
For more on insane asylum, go to I Bid You Welcome
For more remakes, go to Don’t F*** With the Original
Tagged 19th Century, 19th Century England, Actor, Adore, Agent Smith, Alvin and the Chipmunks Meet the Wolfman, Angry Mob, Anthony Hopkins, Antique Shop, Art Malik, Autumn Moon, Backstory, Batman, Bear, Beast, Bedlam, Ben Talbot, Benicio del Toro, Beware the Moon, Bitten by a Werewolf, Black Cowl, Blood, Bloodletting, Blunder, Body Count, Bones, Bookends, Boyfriend, Brother's Fiancé, Burial, Butcher, Captain America: The First Avenger, Chair with Restraints, Children of the Corn, Cinematography, Classic Blunder, Classic Cinema, Classic Horror Film, Closure, Confused, Crypt., Cures, Daddy Issues, Dancing Bear, Date, Dead Brother, Dead Fiancé, Dead Mother, Dean Winchester, Dipping the Patient in Ice-Cold Water, Discovered the Dead Body, Disease, Diseases, Dr. Hoennegar, Dracula (1931), Dreams, Electrotherapy, Elrond, Emily Blunt, Emotionless, England, Equilibrium, Estate, Family Crypt, Father Murdered Mother, February, Film Review, First Son, Friday the 13th (1980), Front Row, Full Moon, Funeral, Gentleman, Good-bye, Gossip, Grief, Grizzly Bear, Groundsman, Guts, Gwen Conliffe, Gypsies, Gypsy, Gypsy Camp, Gypsy Charm, Gypsy Woman, Gyrating Chair, Halloween, Halloween (1978), Halloween Night, Hamlet, Happy Halloween, Homage, Horrorfest, Horrorfest II, Horrorfest III, House of Lords, Hugo Weaving, Humanizes the Character, Hunted Now the Hunter, Hunter, Hurt Puppy Dog Look. Sad, India, Insane, Insane Asylum, Inspector Abberline, Iron Collars, Iron Cuffs, Jack the Ripper, July, Kill the Monster, Knowledge, Laura (1944), Lawrence Talbot, Letter, Lobotomy, Lon Chaney Jr., London, Lord of the Rings, Love, Lycanthropy, Mac, Macbeth, Major Chink in the Armor, Make Up, Maleva, Mental Institution, Metropolis (1927), Millennials, Mob, Modern Horror Films, Monster, Monster Film Hero, Monster Movie, Monster Movies, Moon-Filled, Moonlight, Moonstruck, Mortuary, Murder, Murdered, Murderer, Mythology, Nightmare on Elm Street (1984), Nightmare on Elm Street (2010), Not What He Wants Him To Be, Nurse Back to Health, Observation, October, Older Brother, Opening NIght, Original, Period Piece, Photography, Photography Class, Price of Admission, Protective Charms, Pub, Rebel, Rebellion, Red Skull, Remake, Remakes, Returns Home, Revolutionized, Richard III, Robot, Running, Sacrifices Self, Saying Good-bye, Scream (1996), Scream 2, Scream Sequel, Shake Blood, Shakespeare, Shakespearean Actor, Silver, Silver Bullet, Silver Bullets, Singh, Single, Sir, Sir John Talbot, Sir Lawrence, Slaughter, Slaughterhouse, Sole Heir, Spanned Remakes, Spanned Sequels, Special Effects, Strange Dreams, Superhuman, Supernatural, Suspect, Take Care of Him, Talbot Castle, Tearful Good-Bye, Technique, The Matrix, The Moves, The Mummy (1932), The Phantom of the Opera (1925), The Wolf Man, The Wolf Man (1941), The Wolfman, The Wolfman (2010), The Women (1939), Tickets, Time of Death, Torture, Torture Chamber, Tortured, Trailer, Transformation, Transforms During the Full Moon, Transforms into a Werewolf, Traumatized, V, V for Vendetta, Valentine's Day, Vigilante, Village, Vizzini, Ward off the Monster, Werewolf, Werewolf Attacks, Werewolf Bite, Werewolf Fight, Werewolfism, Who's Afraid of Cory Wolf?, Wisdom, Wolf Men, Wolfman, Woods
The Past of a Man: Under Capricorn (1949)
“The past of a man it is something.”
Now this is an Alfred Hitchcock film that is not as well known or talked about, for various reasons. A lot of people think the story is too melodramatic, and others don’t like it because certain elements resemble Rebecca and Gaslight. However, the reason why most people at the time hated it was it came out right after the news of Ingrid Bergman’s affair with Roberto Rossellini, the impeding divorce of her husband Dr. Petter Aron Lindström, and the birth of her twins by Rossellini. (To read more on that go here.) I on the other hand really liked this movie as I love:
Really now, how can you ever think this was horrible?
The title “Under Capricorn” references the Tropic of Capricorn, which bisects Australia. As you can tell now that I’ve explained the title, the film is set in Sydney, Australia during the 19th century.
So before we get into the film, we need to touch on the background history. In the 18th-19th century, England tried to discover a better way to deal with the mass amount of criminal activity and overcrowding jail cells. One thing that England did was hanging. However, people began to get upset about that. Some of the crimes were not really all that bad, but yet people were being given the death penalty. In order to have a harsh punishment, less-crowded jails, and less death-transportation became the way to go. Originally convicts were sent America, but with our revolution in 1776, that option was no longer possible. In the 1780s they started sending people to New South Wales, but with the Napoleonic wars, more labor was needed and they stopped the transportation.
After the war, problems arose again and they turned their attention to Australia. Between 1788-1868, they estimate about 165,000 people were sent Australia from a sentence that was usually 3 years to life (average was 7-14 years). Most people who were sent over were guilty of poaching, arson, robbery, and murder.
They were usually sent to extremely remote areas to prevent escape and discourage any attempt at returning. While it was allowed for people to return after they served their sentence, most people wouldn’t. More often than not they would create a better life in Australia. Typically, criminals would change their names, get land, farm, and create a brand new life for themselves.
This ended in the 1860s, although it had started to drop off by the 1830s. Most of the areas that were for “convicts”, began to become real towns and attracted better emigrants. (Most of this info came from the Victorian Crime and Punishment website, if you would like to check it out)
Now back to the story.
So it is 1831 in Sydney, Australia. Sydney is still a frontier with most of the population being ex-convicts. The new Governor, Sir Richard arrives, bringing along his foppish, indolent, “rich boy” nephew, Charles Adare (Michael Wilding).
It’s one of those guys!
So Charles is hoping that he will make a fortune out here in Australia. While there he meets the gruff Samson Flusky. Samson is a convict that had been transported from Ireland out to Australia to serve his time, for murder.
But now he is a successful buisnessman. He owns a lot of land and makes a lot of dough. He is highly respected in the community.
Anyways, so Samson has now reached the legal limit of land he can purchase and needs to look to new ways in order to expand his business. He wants Charles to purchase the land and sell it to Samson, guaranteeing a good profit.
Charles is intrigued by the prospect and agree to the invitation of dining at Samson’s house. While there, he has a pleasant surprise. He knows Samson’s wife, Lady Henrietta (Ingrid Bergman).
She was friends with Charles’ sister but now has encountered a lot of problems. She is an alcoholic and shunned by society as she is seen to be crazy.
Sam decides to invite Charles to visit as much as he wants, hoping it will help bring his wife out of her current depression.
Now Charles has always had a crush on Henrietta and is confused at her crazed behavior and decline. He asks his uncle about what happened to her. Lady Henrietta was the daughter of one of the fine Irish gentry. To the surprise of everyone, she ran off with one of the handsome stable boys, Samson, to elope in England. Lady Henrietta’s brother went after them and was killed by Samson. Instead of the noose, Samson decided to go to Australia.
Lady Henrietta followed him to Australia and waited seven years for the term to end. After Samson served his years, he was different. He wanted to be rich and to buy everything, but that was never enough. Henrietta was extremely unhappy and began drinking.
Now unbeknownst to all, Samson’s housekeeper Milly has a crush on him.
She has been running the house and secretly feeding Lady Henrietta alcohol. She is hoping that Henrietta will kill herself, leaving Samson all to Milly.
Charles decides to help try and restore Henrietta’s confidence. At Sam’s urging, he moves into their home. But that’s not all he’s interested in. He has always found Henrietta to be attractive, and now she is vulnerable and needy. He begins to pursue her.
Charles’ work has been going great. In fact, Henrietta gains enough courage to try and take the power back from Milly and put her in her proper place as housekeeper, not wife. Milly turns things around and Henrietta runs up to her room and locks herself in. Charles goes in to talk to her and Milly sees them. She tries to use it to her advantage, telling Sam all kinds of lies about their behavior. This angers Sam, who kicks her right out of the house. (Sam you rock! I always had a soft spot for Sam. I don’t know if it was because he was played by Joseph Cotten or because he just seems like a great guy who has been mistreated.)
Henrietta is doing much better, and improving more and more each day. In fact she is doing so well, that when she receives an invitation to the Governor’s Ball, she is eager to go. They all get ready, but Sam decides to not go after all. He had purchased a ruby necklace for her, but after overhearing how Henrietta and Charles don’t consider ruby to be the right accessory, he decides not to give it to her. You see Sam has enjoyed having Charles there as he has helped his wife, but at the same time it has been upsetting. With the two together, it makes him realize just how different he and Henrietta are. He thought it could be different in Australia, but sees that moving to a new place hasn’t really changed societal rules. Sam thinks the rest of the ball will be the same, and that he’ll be too out of his element or that he’ll embarrass himself. He decides to stay home.
Sad and lonely
At the ball, Henrietta stuns everyone as they all adore her. And more importantly, Henrietta has a great time.
Back at the house, Milly has returned.
Milly asks for forgiveness and her job back but also starts talking smack about Henrietta. She tells Samson exaggerated stories of what has been going on between Henrietta and Charles. The two had shared only one kiss, and everything had been instigated by Charles. Milly, on the other hand, insists that Henrietta is the one that has been carrying on and that it has gone much, much further. To further push the issue and him, she tells him that Henrietta is of a different class than her and Samson, and those people do things non-aristocrats could never get away with.
I mean seriously this girl is a major jerk.
You just need to understand that he loves his wife and back the heck away from him. You- you-
At first Samson shrugs it off. Charles is younger than Henrietta and more concerned about clothing than anything else. But that evil woman Milly keeps pushing him, and when she mentions the differation in classes, that’s where he snaps.
Sam goes to the ball, makes a scene, and humiliates Henrietta in front of everyone
She returns home, weeping and half-crazed.
Charles runs after her and tries to help her. He tells her to leave Sam, but Henrietta can’t. She tells Charles that she deeply loves her husband and is bound to him. You see, Sam didn’t shoot her brother, she did.
Yep, that’s right. Sam has never killed anyone. Henrietta fell in love with Sam as he was kind and handsome. Can you blame her? He’s one attractive man.
The two wanted to marry, but it was impossible as Samson was a much lower class than Henrietta. So the ran off to England, but her brother followed them. Her brother tried to kill Samson, but missed and the two struggled. Henrietta took the gun and shot her brother so he wouldn’t kill Samson. Samson took the blame as he didn’t want her to suffer in jail.
Unfortunately, that didm’t actually help. Henrietta couldn’t stay at home, and couldn’t leave Samson by himself so she followed him to Australia. Not only has she been dealing with the guilt of killing her brother, but the guilt of allowing Samson to rot in prison for her deeds. To further this, when Samson came out of prison he was a changed person. This lead to even greater guilt and drove Henrietta to the bottle. No wonder she’s been going crazy.
Now even though Henrietta admits this to him, Charles doesn’t really believe her. He thinks it is just her way of trying to protect the man she loves.
When Samson sees Charles in his house with Henrietta, he becomes incensed for the betrayal and kicks Charles out.
Charles steals Sam’s horse and takes off. While riding, the horse breaks its leg, causing Charles to have s a really bad fall. He reluctantly returns to the house and relays the news. Samson goes for his gun to “shoot the horse”, but Charles believes he is going to kill him, as he has “killed” before. The two struggle over the gun and during the conflict, Charles is shot.
With Samson’s past, he is immediately thrown into prison, to either rot for good or be hanged. Henrietta tries to save him and tells the Attorney General the truth. That Samson has never killed anyone, she did it. This presents a serious problem for Samson. The only way he can get out of his predicament is if he corroborates Henrietta’s story, but then she will be sent back to Ireland to stand trial and imprisonment. If he says his wife is lying, then he will be killed. The Governor is really pushing a conviction as he wants someone to be punished for trying to harm his nephew. The AG gives Samson twenty-four hours to decide.
A no win situation
Back at the house the evil Milly sees the perfect oppurtunity to get Sam. She tries to poison Henrietta and plants a shrunken head on her bed to further scare her. Fortunately, she is discovered and ousted.
Meanwhile Charles has recovered from his wound and vouches for Samson, telling everyone that it was an accident.
Charles is put on a ship back to Ireland, and Samson and Henrietta are now happy. Henrietta has been freed from the poisonous Milly and finally from the guilt of what she did to her brother and Samson. Samson is better as he finally knows that Henrietta truly loves him and that he didn’t destroy her life.
All in all, this film really teaches you one thing:
Yep, sometimes you just need to move on.
For to the previous post, go to Werewolves Roam Among Us.
For more on Alfred Hitchcock, go to Horrorfest III: The Revenge
For more on Joseph Cotten, go to You Think You Know Something, Don’t You?
For more on Ingrid Bergman, go to I’ll Always Be There When You Need Me
For more on the Victorian Period, go to Redone Done Right
Tagged 18th Century, 18th Century England, 19th Century, 19th Century England, Accident, Affair, Alcohol, Alcoholic, Alfred Hitchcock, All Kinds of Crazy, America, American Revolution, Arson, Attorney General, Attractive, Australia, Bad Fall, Ball, Being Vulnerable, Betrayal, Biggest Jerk, Bound to You, Brand New Life, Broken Leg, Buy, Buy Everything, Can't Leave, Change Name, Changed, Changed Person, Charles Adare, Clothing, Courage, Crazy from Grief, Crime, Crimes, Criminal Activity, Crush, Crushing, Death Penalty, Decline, Deported, Depressed, Depression, Destroy their Life, Different, Different Backgrounds, Divorce, Do Not Dwell in Past, Dr. Petter Aron Lindström, Drinking, Elope, Encourages, Encourages You, Escape, Escape from Prison, Evil, Ex-Convict, Extradited, Farm, Feel Guilty, Filled with Courage, Followed, Fop, Forgive, Forgive and Forget, Forgiveness, Fortune, Free, Freed, Frontier, Gaslight, Gentry, Get Away, Goes Against Society, Going Crazy, Governor, Governor's Ball, Guilt, Gun, Half-Crazed, Handsome, Hang 'Em High, Hanging, Has an Affair, Horse Thief, Housekeeper, Humiliates, I Won't Leave You, I'm Back, Imprisonment, Increase in Fortune, Ingrid Bergman, Invitation, Invitation to the Ball, Ireland, Irish Gentry, Jail, Jail Cell, Job, Joseph Cotten, Kick Butt, Kicked Out, Kicking Butt, Kill Self, Killed Her Brother, Kind, Kiss, Lady Henrietta, Land Owner, Legal Limit, Let Someone Take the Blame, Limit, Linger on the Past, Love Affair, Loves, Lower Class, Makes a Scene, Michael Wilding, Milly, Mistreated, Mistreated People, Murder, Murderer, Napoleonic Wars, Needy, New South Wales, Non-Aristocrats, Noose, Overcrowded, Past, Period Piece, Poacher, Poaching, Poison, Poison with Jealousy, Poisoned, Profit, Pursue, Rebecca, Rebecca (1940), Remote, Respected Member of the Community, Rich, Rich Boy, Robbery, Roberto Rossellini, Rot in Prison, Ruby, Ruby Necklace, Samson "Sam" Flusky, Samson Flusky, Self-Estem, Sell, Seven Years, Ship, Shoot the Horse, Shrunken Head, Shunned, Shunned by Society, Shunning, Sir Richard, Snaps, Social Cues, Social Graces, Social Status, Socially Awkward, Society, Society Rules, Stable Boy, Steals a Horse, Stuck in the Past, Suicide, Sydney Australia, Technicolor, Things Changed, Toy Story, Transportation, Trial, Tropic of Capricorn, Twins, Under Capricorn, Victorian Crime and Punishment, Victorian Period, Vulnerable, Wants Old Job Back, Weeping, Wife, Wife Had an Affair, Wife Leaves Him, Worrying About the Past, Younger
If Only It Was the Picture Who was to Grow Old, and I Remain Young: The Picture of Dorian Gray (1945)
If only it was the picture who was to grow old, and I remain young. There’s nothing in the world I wouldn’t give for that. Yes, I would give even my soul for it.
So my roommate has been reading The Picture of Dorian Gray and I decided that it was the perfect time to include a post on this film version of the book.
So The Picture of Dorian Gray is one of my favorite classics novels, and this movie did a pretty good job of keeping things pretty similar only making a few changes.
So Dorian Gray is a handsome, wealthy, young man living in 19th century England. While he is an intelligent and educated young man he is very naive and easily manipulated. He is also a people pleaser, and easily changes his opinions and views to suit what others think.
He is having his portrait done by the accomplished artist Basil Hallward. One day, Basil’s friend Lord Henry Wotton stops by right before a painting appointment. Basil tries to get rid of his friend as he knows that Lord Henry’s cynicism will destry Dorian. In fact Basil has been trying to keep them apart for a long time now. However, it doesn’t work as Dorian shows up for his appointment while Lord Henry is still there.
Dorian is quickly taken with Lord Henry’s “wisdom” and “philosophy”. Lord Henry tells Dorian that the only life worth living is one dedicated entirely to pleasure. Lord Henry convinces Dorian that youth and beauty will bring him everything he desires, and that once its over his life is too.
Dorian becomes depressed at this and nothing Basil says will help him. While Dorian is being painted he wishes that his portrait could age instead of him. He makes this statement in the presence of a certain Egyptian statue, which supposedly has the power to grant wishes. (In the book, there is no mention of an Egyptian statue, in fact in the book they never explain how he stays young forever.)
Dorian’s wish is granted and his soul is transferred to the painting. Now the painting ages instead of him.
Now that Dorian is only after beauty and pleasure he goes and visits a tavern and falls in love with Sybil Vane, a singer/entertainer. (In the book she was an actress who performed wonderfully and Dorian fell in love with her acting). Dorian hasn’t told Sybil what his name is yet, she refers to him as Sir Tristan her knight. Sybil is played by Angela Lansbery. Donna Reed really wanted this part, but was given Gladys instead.
Unfortunately, when Lord Henry finds out he is none too pleased. He gives Sybil a “virtue test” which she fails. (In the book Sybil couldn’t pretend to suffer or be in love with her fellow actors as all her love and emotion for Dorian eclipsed them).
The next morning, Lord Henry informs Dorian that Sibyl killed herself. Dorian is freaked out and feels guilty but copies his mentor Lord Henry and acts indifferent. He goes to the opera right after and lives it up. That night, Dorian sees a change in the portrait. It now has a cruel look to him and Dorian hides it away, afraid that others will see it. He continues his sinful and heartless life.
Time passes by and Dorian is now entering into his 40th birthday. He still looks as young and beautiful as ever. The painting has now become atrocious and is locked away from everyone. Dorian has even gotten rid of his old servants who might see it.
Ivan Le Lorraine Albright’s famous painting of the decayed Dorian Gray – which took approximately one year to complete – is now owned by the Art Institute of Chicago, where it has been on display for many years.
I can’t reveal the rest of the film as if you haven’t read the book it will give away the ending. You should definitely read the book and check out this film.
One thing that is extremely different about this film is that they add an additional relationship. In the movie Basil has a niece, Gladys (played by Donna Reed), that has always had a crush on Dorian and now that he remains young and she has gotten older they are able to connect.
What else is really interesting is that the movie is black and white except for four times when Dorian Gray’s picture is shown in color.
Sorry to end so abruptly but I’m telling ya that you need to check the ending out for yourself. I would hate myself for ruining it for anyone out there.
Here’s a cover page I made for my facebook this year for my countdown to Halloween.
To start Horrorfest II from the beginning, go to There Are Many Strange Legends in the Amazon: The Creature From The Black Lagoon (1954)
For the previous post, go to A River of Candy Corn Runs Through It: Sabrina the Teenage Witch (1997)
For more on Oscar Wilde, go to The Two Times to be Over
For more films based on books, go to Feast Your Eyes On My Accursed Ugliness: The Phantom of the Opera (1925)
For more on Angela Lansbury, go to Because I Am Mad, I Hate You. Because I Am Mad, I Have Betrayed You: Gaslight (1944)
Tagged 19th Century, 19th Century England, Actress, Angela Lansbury, Art Institute of Chicago, Basil Hallward, Beauty, Donna Reed, Dorian Gray, Egyptian Statue, Entertainer, Film based on a book, Gladys Hallward, Handsome, Heartless, Ivan Le Lorraine Albright, Knight, Lord Henry Wotton, Opera, Oscar Wilde, Painting, People Pleaser, Pleasure, Portrait, Sinful, Singer, Sir Tristan, Soul Transference, Suicide, Sybil Vane, Tavern, The Picture of Dorian Gray, The Picture of Dorian Gray (1945), Virtue Test, Wealthy, Youth
Mr. Darcy: Man of Dreams
The many handsome men who have played Mr. Darcy
Last night I dreamed I went to Manderly…
Just kidding! 😀 Last night as I dozed off to La-la-land, Mr. Darcy decided to make a pit stop and visit me along the way.
Anyways, in my dream last night Mr. Darcy appeared. Not very unusual you might say, as many women dream of him with his face being one of these above choices. But to me I found it odd as:
The last thing I thought of before I went to bed was the movie, Walk the Line. If any famous man showed up in my dreams I was expecting it to be Johnny Cash or Joaquin Phoenix
Mr. Darcy wasn’t his usual self, a gentleman from Regency England, but instead an Englishman from present time
Usually if Darcy makes an appearance in my dreams he never comes as a modern man. Must be watching too much Lizzie Bennet Diaries or something. ( I heavily recommend the Lizzie Bennet diaries as I felt they are doing a wonderful job.)
So Mr. Darcy, a Bill Gates/Steve Jobs technology emperor, was visiting me. Apparently we had mutual friends. I had to clean my whole house as I knew Mr. Darcy would be insufferable making fun of anything he feels that is tacky or beneath him. I also spent hours preparing the perfect meal, so he couldn’t make any comments about it being lowbrow. However, he had already had his change of heart and was trying to be kind to me:
When my niece wakes me up asking me to make her breakfast and play barbies.
I spent the whole dream working, that when I woke up I felt even tireder than before. Aw, but such is life!
But it got me thinking, if Mr. Darcy was in today’s time what do you think he would be interested in doing? He would have plenty of money and a good education, what do you think he would be most interested in?
For more of my dreams, go to Krueger Town
For more on Mr. Darcy, go to Mr. Darcy’s Dream Date
For more on the Lizzie Bennet Diaries, go to It is A Truth Universally Acknowledged…
Posted in Nightmares & Dreamscapes, Pride and Prejudice
Tagged 19th Century England, Admire, Admire You, Barbies, Beneath HIm, Bill Gates, Breakfast, Change of Heart, Cleaning, Colin Firth, David Rintoul, Dream, Dream Come True, Dream Date, Dream of Him, Dreaming, Dreaming of Mr. Darcy, Dreams, Dreamy, Education, Elliot Cowan, England, Englishman, Fitzwilliam Darcy, Gentleman, Joaquin Phoenix, Johnny Cash, Kind, La-la Land, Laurence Olivier, Lizzie Bennet Diaries, Lost in Austen, Love You, Lowbrow, Man of My Dreams, Manderly, Matthew Macfadyen, Money, Mr. Darcy, Neice, Pit Stop, Plenty of Money, Present, Present Day, Pride & Prejudice (1995), Pride and Prejudice, Pride and Prejudice (1940), Pride and Prejudice (1980), Pride and Prejudice (1995), Pride and Prejudice (2005), Rebecca, Rebecca (1940), Regency England, Steve Jobs, Tacky, Techno Wizard, Technology, Visit, Wake Up, Walk the Line
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11133
|
__label__cc
| 0.637
| 0.363
|
Long-Running Gay Mags ‘Out’ and ‘The Advocate’ Rumored to Be Up for Sale (Updated)
Written by Alexander Kacala on March 23, 2017
This post is also available in: Français
Here Media, the company that owns Out and The Advocate, is rumored to be selling the two iconic LGBT media brands, says the New York Post.
UPDATE, March 23, 2017: The Advocate has since responded to the New York Post piece, claiming the original story contained “a number of errors.”
The Post reports that Here Media had hired investment bank Houlihan Lokey to shop the two LGBT print publications and their related digital sites.
The Post also claims the print publications “barely break even,” though the web properties are “money-makers, bringing a profit of about $3 million for the combined print and digital operation on revenue of about $15 million.” The Advocate has since refuted those numbers, claiming:
Here Publishing reports today that both the print and digital operations are profitable. In fact, Here Publishing in 2016 saw revenue of $14.8 million against expenses of $11.1 million, for a robust profit margin of 24.6 percent on operating income of approximately $3.6 million.
“We’ve never had more interest in investing in the company than when that puzzling article came out,” says Here Media CEO Paul Colichman. “I guess I should be grateful people are finally noticing our success.”
The Advocate celebrates its 50th anniversary this year, Out magazine its 25th.
Other changes in the world of LGBTQ media include Davler Media Group’s acquiring of the magazine Metrosource and GT magazine, formerly Gay Times, getting a new owner, James Frost.
Famed queer publication the Washington Blade is also set to expand its print empire by launching a sister publication, the Los Angeles Blade.
Out Magazine The Advocate
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11135
|
__label__cc
| 0.634892
| 0.365108
|
Anchorage: 4th Avenue Theatre
Home » Anchorage: 4th Avenue Theatre
I’m a naturally curious person and one way I try to make sense of new experiences in the world is through story. When I’m exploring a new city, that seems to manifest most readily by looking for something that catches my eye and then trying research the story behind it. Anchorage’s historic 4th Avenue Theatre has held my attention ever since my first trip to The Last Frontier in 2009. Ask anyone who’s local and they’ll tell you a story about the theatre…
“Oh, that’s where my husband and I had our first date!” one woman told me.
“I remember going to auctions there, after they stopped showing movies. They did all kinds of cool stuff,” said another.
“That building is one of the few historic centerpieces that’s still left of downtown,” a man said.
Even before it was “historic,” apparently folks knew that the Lathrop Building, as it is more formally known, marked a turning point for the city. In 1947, the year of its completion, the Anchorage Daily Times reported: “The theatre is a landmark in the transition of Anchorage from a frontier community to a city of permanence. It is a landmark in the development of a city in which families live, work, play, and die.”
All too soon, however, the theatre was what actually “died,” closing its doors for a while in early 80’s, then going through several renovations and ownerships and reincarnations. In 2009, it was purchased by Peach Investments–an organization nobody I talked to seems to know about, and one that is only listed in the yellow pages but has no website that I could find. Other than basic upkeep, the company is said to be holding back on major investments, though even that is hard to confirm. Meantime a partnership of Anchorage-area organizations got together to post photographic murals along the sides of the building, facing the main drag of the busiest block in town. The photos are a nice touch, but it’s a little eerie seeing the picture of what 4th Avenue Theatre used to be slammed right up against the peeling paint and busted light bulbs.
I had hoped to go inside and take a look around, maybe even glimpse the famous gold leaf mural of Mount McKinley–but no such luck. Even the local news stations who attempted to contact Peach Investments
got no response regarding intentions for the building or its future
use. I guess this is one story that, like the rest of Anchorage, I’m going to have to wait to learn the ending.
A Little Dino of an OfferArchive
Anchorage: Fur Rondy AnticipationArchive
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11136
|
__label__wiki
| 0.828035
| 0.828035
|
For the Future of Quantum Technology
Date 2019-03-07 CategoryNews
“BeyondC research project with partners from Austria and Germany starts in March
The recently granted collaboration project “Quantum Information Systems Beyond Classical Capabilities (BeyondC)” coordinated by the University of Vienna will exploit the unique features of quantum science to go beyond the capabilities of classical technology. World-leading scientists from eleven research groups in Austria and one partner group at the Max Planck Institute of Quantum Optics in Germany will combine their wide-ranging expertise to demonstrate quantum superiority by realizing the first medium-sized quantum information processing device.
The control of quantum systems is one of the most important and influential achievements of the twentieth century. In particular, quantum information theory has developed into a vast area of research and has achieved visibility far beyond its own boundaries. A prominent example is the intense research that, over the last decades, has led to quantum algorithms for quantum computation, simulation, and annealing. Furthermore, the tremendous progress has paved the way for protocols, sets of procedures for transmitting data between computers, for benchmarking and correcting computing errors as well as for proposals for classical and quantum machine learning. Despite these advances, current devices for quantum information processing can still be simulated classically. Hence, they do not yet offer any advantage compared to their classical counterparts. The realization of large-scale quantum devices, with their rich applications such as quantum computing and quantum simulation, requires further advances in quantum technology and strong theoretical support.
World-leading quantum scientists from Austria and Germany have joined forces to achieve the experimental regime of quantum systems for so-called quantum superiority, the ability of quantum computing devices to solve problems that their classical counterparts cannot. The recently granted Special Research Programme “Quantum Information Systems Beyond Classical Capabilities (BeyondC)” headed by Philip Walther from the University of Vienna is endowed with 5,3 M€ by the Austrian Science Fund FWF. In addition, the German Research Foundation (DFG) will contribute a total of 0,28 M€ to Ignacio Cirac’s Theory Division at the Max Planck Institute of Quantum Optics (MPQ), the partner group in Germany. The aim of the consortium is to develop and exploit new methods and tools to describe, characterize, validate, and manipulate quantum systems. New algorithms specifically designed to demonstrate quantum superiority with medium-sized quantum devices will be put forward. At the same time, the envisioned progress will allow novel realizations of applied quantum information processing taking us close to industrial applications.
What makes “BeyondC” unique is the diverse and interdisciplinary expertise in quantum information of its scientifically outstanding consortium which devotes itself to one common aim. In close collaboration, renowned quantum scientists from six experimental and six theoretical research groups based at the University of Vienna, the University of Innsbruck, IQOQI Innsbruck of the Austrian Academy of Sciences (ÖAW), IST Austria and the Max Planck Institute of Quantum Optics (MPQ) in Garching, Germany, are set to realize a certified medium-sized quantum information processing device and to demonstrate quantum superiority.
The following three strands of research driven by the “BeyondC” consortium members currently lead the quantum information efforts and will be utilized for the intended investigations: photons, ions in ion traps and superconducting circuits. Moreover, combinations of these systems will be exploited with the goal of gaining control of larger systems and of connecting remote quantum devices. The consortium will step into new scientific territory by scaling platforms and validating their performance with novel theoretical schemes suitable for medium-scale quantum information processing. These research efforts will be complemented by feasibility studies on new methods serving as test-beds for mid-scale characterization and validation methods. The experiments will operate in the regime beyond the means of classical computers and have the potential to set scientific milestones in numerous research areas with applications in quantum many-body physics, chemistry and optimization problems.”
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11144
|
__label__wiki
| 0.891692
| 0.891692
|
Rochel Leah Bernstein: Protecting Children From Sexual Abuse
BY Ryan Torok | Jan 3, 2018 | The Mensch List
Rochel Leah Bernstein is on a mission to protect children from sexual abuse at schools, congregations, camps and after-school programs.
With the support of the Jewish community business incubator Jumpstart Labs, Bernstein has launched The Child Safety Pledge, which seeks to have funders of youth-serving organizations require those organizations to take measures to prevent and respond to child sexual abuse within their operations and programs.
“I am urging funders, philanthropists in the Jewish community and the community at large to step up,” the 33-year-old Bernstein said. “There’s so much money spent in the Jewish world on Jewish education, and Jewish education is not enough without child safety. So, to me, anyone who funds Jewish education is someone who should be — if they are not already — funding child safety.”
The Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family Foundation is one of four founding signatories to the pledge.
Bernstein, a survivor of sexual abuse, said that Erin’s Law — legislation first adopted by Illinois in 2013 and then by 30 other states, including California, after a campaign by sexual assault survivor Erin Merryn — provided her the inspiration for the pledge. In addition to her personal experience, she also was guided by the philanthropic example set by her parents. Her late father, Zalman Bernstein, was a billionaire businessman who endowed the Avi Chai Foundation, which functions in Israel and the United States, and the New York-based Tikvah Fund, and gave hundreds of millions of dollars to Israeli causes and other charities. Her stay-at-home mother volunteered to aid the sick and the disabled.
“At home I saw, on a small scale and on a large scale, a dedication to the community,” she said.
Bernstein, who is divorced, has three daughters — ages 4, 6 and 10 — and an 8-year-old son. She is raising them shomer Shabbos and in a kosher household, though she does not subscribe to any denomination. Although she was raised observant — “frum from birth,” she said — she has gone through many phases in her spiritual journey.
“I try very hard not to be labeled,” she said. “It’s not my thing.”
Bernstein also volunteers at Tomchei Shabbos, an organization that provides free groceries to low-income families. At Tomchei Shabbos, she has started an event that invites children to wrap gifts and make cards for children in need.
“Anyone who funds Jewish education is someone who should be … funding child safety.”
“I try to make my home and my family an environment where my kids are learning about giving,” she said.
For several years, Bernstein funded and helped implement healthy eating and nutrition programs at her children’s Orthodox day school.
“I don’t know about Reform and Conservative schools,” she said, “but Orthodox ones have issues with nutrition.”
She is confident her work can make a difference in the community.
“At the end of the day, unfortunately, I don’t know that we are able to — by ‘we’ I mean society — eradicate child sexual abuse,” she said. “But I believe if we make our institutions unsafe for predators, they won’t come to our institutions.”
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11152
|
__label__wiki
| 0.584633
| 0.584633
|
A Tribute to Terrorists
BY Karen Lehrman Bloch | May 23, 2018 | Karen Lehrman Bloch
As a New York City parent, I knew something like this was in the offing. I just never thought it would be this egregious.
The Beacon School, a “highly selective” public high school in Hell’s Kitchen, held a moment of silence last week for the 62 Gazans killed trying to storm Israel’s border, 50 of whom were confirmed as Hamas terrorists while several others allegedly were part of Islamic jihad.
Before jumping to conclusions, we should put this into the proper context.
The Beacon School never had a moment of silence for the dozens of Syrian children gassed to death by President Bashar al-Assad, nor for the scores of Palestinians slaughtered in Syrian refugee camps. Though the school bills itself as progressive, it has never mourned the gay men that the Iranian theocracy has executed by hanging, nor Pakistan’s enforced honor killings or its stoning of women.
In fact, silent tributes at the school are very rare. So, just like the United Nations, the mainstream media and an alarming number of universities across the country, the Beacon School has a “social conscience” only when the perpetrators are Israelis, and even if the victims are mostly terrorists.
As one Jewish father put it: “I did not send my child to a New York City public school to pray for Hamas operatives.”
Principal Ruth Lacey has yet to be available for comment. A Department of Education spokesman told the New York Post: “We support civic engagement and advocacy amongst students, and encourage schools to provide inclusive environments where students are able to respectfully discuss current events.”
But there was no discussion before or after the moment of silence. And from what I heard, many Jewish students at the school did not feel respected at all.
Jewish parents at my son’s elementary school — all Upper East Side Democrats — were aghast at Beacon’s illiberal political act. It was the only reassuring aspect about the incident.
Hearing the truth straight from the terrorists’ mouths doesn’t seem to matter to most progressives. Hamas asserts time and again its intent to murder “every Jew,” and it makes little difference.
The Forward published a bizarre piece on the Beacon controversy that literally made no mention of Hamas. Who was killed? “Dozens of Palestinians.” It’s almost as if they are trying to signal Hamas: “Don’t worry; let us do the talking.” How progressive.
Progressives buy into every lie about Israel because they have been taught to replace critical thinking with victimhood ideology, and victimhood ideology teaches that Israel is the absolute worst “white colonialist offender.” The fact that Israelis are not white; that Jews have been occupied, persecuted and slaughtered en masse throughout history; that Israel has made repeated offers for peace that have been rebuffed; and that Israel doesn’t start wars but defends itself against forces indoctrinated to hate Jews — all of this is conveniently ignored.
I hope someday someone examines how Israel came to be seen as the worst “white colonialist” offender. Was it a coincidence, or perhaps the remarkable success of the propagandistic theories espoused by people like Edward Said, a Palestinian American professor at Columbia University, 70 blocks north of Beacon? Said is best known for wiping away centuries of Arab conquest and occupation and blaming it on the West.
None of this, of course, is to suggest that Israel is immune to criticism. The sharpest criticism can be found in Israel’s vibrant media, something sorely missing in its neighborhood. I wonder if students at Beacon have been taught this balanced perspective.
Meanwhile, about a week after Beacon’s “tribute” to Hamas, the third grade at my son Alexander’s school had a special “Journey to America” musical performance. Unlike Beacon’s moment of silence, this was completely apolitical: they told the story of immigrants’ journeys to America, an essential part of the American story.
So, the question remains: Why can’t progressive administrators in high schools and progressive professors in academia understand the difference between blatant politicization and proper education? I don’t know the answer, but for America’s sake, I just hope it’s not that their goal is indoctrination.
Karen Lehrman Bloch is an author and cultural critic.
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11153
|
__label__wiki
| 0.618489
| 0.618489
|
General Regions
Current Neighborhoods
Kitchens and Dining Rooms
Family Spaces
Lower level finishes
Porches and Outdoor Living Spaces
Knoblauch Builders LLC is a Minnesota company started in 1999 by John and Sharon Knoblauch. John and Sharon met at the College of Saint Benedict and Saint John’s University. John completed a degree in business administration while Sharon received a degree in accounting. The couple graduated in 1984 and were married three years later. Soon after, they had three beautiful children, Joseph, David and Sarah.
Prior to starting Knoblauch Builders, John was a designer and lead coordinator for 12 years. He oversaw the construction of over 300 homes with his own real estate brokerage company named Metro Area Properties Incorporated, representing a company called Deutsch construction located in New Prague, Minnesota. Out of college, Sharon worked as an accountant. She is now the full time business manager, accountant, and designer for Knoblauch Builders. She is also a real estate agent for our brokerage clients.
Through Knoblauch Builders, John and Sharon have built over 170 homes and have completed over 30 remodel projects and basement finishes. John and Sharon can help you with building your new home, or remodel your existing home through Knoblauch Builders. You are also welcome to take advantage of our real estate brokerage company, Metro Area Properties, to sell your existing home.
In 1855, John’s great grandfather, Anton Knoblauch, came down the Minnesota River from St. Paul on a paddle wheeler and got off the boat at Carver, Minnesota. He Prospered in this new land of opportunity where he operated a grain elevator and a bank. He and his wife, Anna, raised a family which included John’s great-grandfather, William Joseph.
In 1910, William and his wife Edith moved to a homestead site on the north side of Carver county where they operated a fruit farm and William became the director of the Excelsior Fruit Growers Association. William and Edith had three children, Marguerite, Marc and Charles. John’s grandfather was Marc. Marguerite lived at the homestead site until she was 101 years old. John and his father, Joe, purchased the property from Marguerite and her brother Charles in September of 1995. This started the development of Knob Hill Lane. John and Sharon designed, developed, and built their own home along with 20 of their neighbor’s homes on this historical land.
John Knoblauch, the youngest of 6 children, grew up in Hopkins under the shadow of parents, Joe and Margie Knoblauch. Joe was a school principal in Hopkins for over 30 years and was also a real estate developer/investor.
Sharon Walter grew up in Chaska on highway 41, which was still a small rural dirt road when she was born. Her parents, Dallan and Donna walter, were proud hardworking folks with Dallan’s ornamental iron work known throughout the region.
Knoblauch Builders, LLC ◦ Excelsior, Minnesota 55331 ◦ 952.474.5662
License# BC242294
Copyright © 2018, Knoblauch Builders, LLC. All rights reserved.
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11158
|
__label__cc
| 0.602319
| 0.397681
|
Image by Karen Arnold from Pixabay
“He is richest who is content with least, for contentment is the wealth of nature.”
— Socrates
In this final post on Strive for Simplicity, Economise on Energy (SEE) we’ll summarise what’s gone before and end with a list of what we can do to get the ball rolling and a few other nuggets of interest to whet your appetite for change.
We looked at how SEE is expressed through Taoist traditions, the I Ching, Wabi-Sabi and Nature. This was followed by an exploration of how Western culture has lost sight of living simply with an unhealthy adherence to civil law and its development of “bureaucratic insanity.” A useless complexity bound by rigid absolutism enforced by an army of “robopaths” is in direct opposition to Natural and Common Law – not least the human wish to work together and seek self-sufficiency. A resurgence in voluntary simplicity and the natural community virtues that arise if cooperation were given the needed nourishment were also explored.
The challenge of simplifying our lives in order to reconnect with beauty and truth in practical ways can only be achieved with knowledge of how we use our energy – thoughts, feelings/emotions and body awareness. Our task is to use our energy more productively so that we turn towards creativity in everyday life. As a primer for further discussion on energy as it relates to applying SEE, we reviewed the nature of energy and the centres/chakras from a 4th Way perspective. The role of our planet, organic life and the moon as largescale sources that might drain our energy were reviewed, with a brief description of ancient and modern myths.
We then looked specifically at energy economy and conservation. After using the analogy of the house as our body-mind system we returned to Taoist and I Ching symbolism through the archetype of The Well as our fundamental resource, The Mouth as nourishment and The Cauldron as the alchemical vessel by which consciousness is refined to make SEE a possibility. This acted as a backdrop to the subject of sex and sexual energy which was briefly explored from a cultural perspective and the divisions and pathology which has led our sexual-creative centre being misused.
Beginning with a confirmation by science of the reality of the Chinese energy system we delved into the nature of sexual energy and back to the 4th Way views of the sex centre’s role in relation to culture, sexual relations and masturbation – a dynamic that is not just focused on the gentials but appears throughout our culture under different guises, all of which lead to the loss of intellectual, emotional, physical and spiritual energy.
Finally, a brief look at the brain as the hub of energy refinement and loss was covered, along with some pointers on a digital detox from social media and other forms of infotainment – a major source of energy drain. Two bio-mechanisms of procreative sex and pair-bonding were highlighted and the role of dopamine in the reward circuitry of the brain leading to a circle of unrecognised addictions. In light of these, we delved further into a narcissistic and orgasm-centred culture predicated on addictive behaviours which have displaced intimacy and bonding behaviours. This was followed with an introduction to the love-making art of Karezza as the most useful method for sustaining intimacy and harmony within a relationship.
Posted in Community, Environment / Nature, Health, Psychology, Spirituality / Esoterica, Technology and tagged Addiction, attention, complexity, energy, Karezza, mindfulness, natural law, nature, Official Culture, sex, sexual energy, Simplicity and Economy Of Energy (SEE), spirituality, Taoism, Time on June 5, 2019 by M.K. Styllinski. Leave a comment
The Kiss (Lovers), Gustav Klimt, oil and gold leaf on canvas, , 1907–1908.
“Behind every shallow sexual interaction, there hides a person who does not want to see or be seen at a deeper level.”
― Michael Mirdad, An Introduction To Tantra And Sacred Sexuality
Before we continue exploring the vital role of simplifying and economising through attention to sexual energy let’s take a brief detour into the brain and the spaghetti junction of incessant thoughts.
An enormous amount of energy is expended in thinking deeply about a subject and still more when our thoughts are a product of stress and anxiety. Factor in low-grade fantasy and you have a major energy drain in the mind-body system. With such a breach, our perception, impressions – what we give out and receive – and ability to think critically is seriously impaired by subjective evaluations, warped still further by defensive mechanisms and stagnant beliefs.
The brain is a big, jelly-like battery making up 2 per cent of our body weight. Even at rest, this incredible hub gobbles up a whopping 20% of the body’s energy. [1] It’s long been known that the brain uses more energy than any other human organ, – up to 20 per cent of the body’s total output., with two-thirds of that energy used to help neurons or nerve cells “fire” the remaining third devoted to general “housekeeping,” and cell-health maintenance. [2]
Each neuron has a small voltage 70 millivolts or 0.07 volts. That may not seem much when compared to the 1.5 volts of a AA battery or the 115 volts from a wall socket, but at the microscopic scale, which is where it functions, it’s pretty impressive. In fact, when you take into account that the brain is made of 80 billion neurological batteries each of which contains four times the electrostatic force that normally results in lightning during a thunderstorm. [3]
Our brains pack a powerful punch.
And when the procreative urge gets in on the act, usually as a form of grounding all that “electrostatic” tension, then a massive explosion of neurochemicals occurs at the point of climax. Sexual saiety is the result – or offspring.
The point is, this is a major “charge” which has a major downside and may not only be exhausting your physiological responses and your nervous system but re-wiring the neurology of the brain toward habituation. We become addicts to what is a very narrow mental and biological mechanism rationalised by the intellect, fuelled by ignorance.
Posted in Establishment / Elite, Health, Occult, Psychology, Spirituality / Esoterica and tagged alchemy, biochemicals, biology, bonding, brain, centres, chakras, Chinese medicine, dopamine, economy of energy, energy, energy conservation, Gnosticism, healing, Heaven, Karezza, Kundalini, love, marriage, meridians, mind, Narcissism, orgasm, sex, Sex Magick, sexual abuse, sexual energy, sexual pathology, sexuality, Simplicity, Social Media, Tantra, Taoism on June 1, 2019 by M.K. Styllinski. Leave a comment
Infrakshun / pixabay.com
‘In order to make gold, you need to have gold.’
— Medieval alchemist
Energy Matrix
Eastern philosophy and medicine has been well in advance of the West when it comes to recognising the energy of the body and mind. For thousands of years Chinese, Tibetan, Japanese and Indian practitioners had knowledge of the channels or meridians which carried two kinds of force, yin and yang, which flow along a network of energy pathways which map the entire body.
It is now accepted that our bodies are electromagnetic in nature with these energy pathways acting as electricity conductors, a fact of which acupuncturists take full advantage in order to regulate and “unblock” certain imbalances in the energy field. Knowledge of the energy network of meridians forms the diagnostic methodology behind Shiatsu/Acupressure, Qigong, Tai Chi and Yoga. Indeed, science seems to be catching up with what the ancients have already known for thousands of years.
As no anatomical foundation was perceived to exist for the meridian network in our current Darwinian-saturated science establishment the concept had been discarded and ignored as the Newtonian/Cartesian mindset held sway. However, a flurry of new experiments emerged in 2013 which produced a new anatomical foundation called the ‘Primo Vascular System’. Researchers at the Seoul National University in South Korea describe the PVS as “… a previously unknown system that integrates the features of the cardiovascular, nervous, immune, and hormonal systems. It also provides a physical substrate for the acupuncture points and meridians.” They propose “…a new vision of the anatomical basis for the PVS and the vital energy—called “Qi”—as an electromagnetic wave that is involved very closely with the DNA in the PVS.”
What is most fascinating is the duplication of the PVS by the vascular and the nervous systems during the very early stage of body development. Consequently: “… the PVS combines the features of the vascular, nervous, immune, and hormonal systems. The PVS in all its aspects is understood as a system that covers the entire body, and regulates and coordinates all biological life processes.” [1]
This was followed in 2016 with discoveries on the microstructure of the PVS via the use of a patented microscopy system by Professor Vitaly Vodyanoy of Auburn University in Alabama. He revealed for the first time “the microstructure of the miniscule, translucent system of vessels, subvessels and stem cell-filled nodes—together making up the primo-vascular system…” which appears in and on blood vessels, organ tissue and the lymphatic system. As for less complex biological of rats, it too features in the human system. [2]
Instead of a simplistic version of meridians lying on the surface of the skin, classical Chinese texts have always indicated the three-dimensional nature of energy pathways which carry liquid Chi to the internal organs. This liquid is made of stem-cells packed with DNA. And we know the enormous healing and regeneration properties of stem-cells and the mysterious nature of DNA as one factor in the interface of consciousness with knowledge and reality.
Now, keep in mind the importance of liquid in our bodies and its role in carrying protective and nourishing information.
Posted in Health, Psychology, Spirituality / Esoterica and tagged alchemosexuality, alchemy, biochemicals, biology, brain, centres, chakras, Chinese medicine, DNA, Earth, economy, economy of energy, energy, energy conservation, food for the moon, Fourth Way, Gnosticism, Gurdjieff, Heaven, I Ching, Kundalini, love, meridians, Mouravieff, Ouspensky, ponerology, Primo Vascular System, semen, service to others, service to self, sex, sex centre, sexual abuse, sexual pathology, sexuality, Simplicity, Tantra, Taoism, yin-yang on May 22, 2019 by M.K. Styllinski. Leave a comment
© Creator76 | Dreamstime.com
“A man builds a fine house; and now he has a master, and a task for life: he is to furnish, watch, show it, and keep it in repair, the rest of his days.”
To conserve our energy in the way we think, feel and act we need to know how they might all relate in simple terms. So, let’s simplify it.
Think of energy efficiency (upgrades) and energy conservation (energy use) leading to the correct economy for your life. The home can be thought of as a metaphor or symbol of your mind and body. (If you like, this is an extension of Jordan Peterson’s thinking of tidying up your room).
Energy conservation involves using less energy by changing your behaviours and habits. Energy efficiency, on the other hand, involves using techniques, traditional systems of knowledge and new technologies that requires less energy to perform the same function.
Energy efficiency = all those qualities and techniques you can find to maximize your potential and minimize chaos. Accumulate energy for creativity and minimize loss from internal and external entropy.
Energy Conservation = simplifying your life through judicious, careful attention and limiting unnecessary drains on energy. employing measures which ensure you are not only efficient but have a constant supply on tap. Conservation sometimes means getting very creative. The more you conserve, the more likely that can be!
In other words, to be energy efficient means looking at ways your personality system can be upgraded so that less energy is needed to perform certain functions and which provides qualitatively better results. This can be “costly” in the short-term but requires much less effort in the long-term. This includes insulation, replacements, careful monitoring and upgrades.
Energy conservation involves actively seeking new ways to on your internal efficiency. You change your relationship to energy within your home. You seek ways to receive energy for minimum loss and a minimum amount of effort. It is strategic, long-term and eminently practical. It requires a re-calibration of existing appliances (organs of perception; centres) in order to extract a maximum amount of energy. The energy that you have is used wisely.
In other words, it means a change in overall behaviour through commitment and a creative application of knowledge.
How might we use our energy more efficiently?
Insulate, upgrade and monitor.
Insulate your mind and body from that which would drain but remain porous enough to let constructive influences through. And if you have good quality insulation then you have more energy to produce warmth and proper flow of electricity and therefore creative potential. (It might be stretching this metaphor to its limit but it’s no coincidence that key brain areas found to have more nerve fibre insulation or “myelination” equates to advantageous personality traits!)
Posted in Environment / Nature, Health, Psychology, Spirituality / Esoterica and tagged alchemosexuality, alchemy, biochemicals, biology, centres, Chinese medicine, economy, energy, energy conservation, Fourth Way, gender roles, Gurdjieff, I Ching, men's rights, ponerology, postmodernism, Radical Feminism, Schizoidia, sex, sex centre, sexual abuse, sexual pathology, sexuality, Simplicity, Taoism on May 22, 2019 by M.K. Styllinski. Leave a comment
Practice Self-Control (2)
“Instant gratification takes too long.”
– Carrie Fisher
Delaying gratification
The late Hollywood star Carrie Fisher certainly knew about instant gratification. Known for her biting wit and satirical bent the above quote was a comment on her own weaknesses but also described the nature of culture in the 21st Century. Gratification, in all its guises has proven to be the primary channel through which the human family escape reality and the darkness within.
That drive for the instant “hit” gets ever stronger the moment it is satiated. This leads to the following statistics:
Obesity: About 36 percent of American adults are obese — more than 1 in 3. And, globally, more than 1 in 10 humans are obese.
General substance abuse: Nearly 21 million Americans ages 12 and older had a substance use problem in 2015.
Alcohol: Excessive alcohol consumption is responsible for an average of 88,000 deaths each year.
Sex: The National Council on Sexual Addiction Compulsivity estimated that 6%-8% of Americans are sex addicts, which is 18 million – 24 million people.
Pornography: More than 80% of women who have porn addiction take it offline. Women, far more than men, are likely to act out their behaviors in real life, such as having multiple partners, casual sex, or affairs.
Gambling: Over 80 percent of American adults gamble on a yearly basis. [1]
The above are extremes. But for every addiction that becomes full-blown there’s another one germinating in the wings. We don’t have to be a gambler or substance abuser to know that we have a problem with controlling our desires and impulses. Often it’s a very fine line between addiction and what is considered “normal.” Equally we can be addicted to all kinds of covert negative behaviours which cry out for limitations and order. “Think before you speak” might be the most obvious and applicable to most of us. Practicing self-control means that you’re able to delay ego-gratification without going into an emotional tailspin. Do this often enough and it becomes an asset, thereby improving the quality of your life.
Stanford professor Mischel has spent his life exploring this very topic and provided some very interesting data that proves self-control is a key component of individual mastery. His psychological studies date back to the 1960s and involved children with an average age of 4 – 5 years old. Mischel and his research team published their findings in 1972 as Cognitive and Attentional Mechanisms in delay of gratification and it remains the most influential experiment on self-control available. These experiments were refined and improved over the decades, but the basic format remained the same. Popularly known as “The Marshmallow Test” from the book of the same name, Mischel’s discoveries and conclusions make fascinating reading, so we’ll return to some of suggestions on building self-control later on. Meantime, let’s look at what this ground-breaking experiment was about.
Posted in Health, Psychology, Spirituality / Esoterica and tagged Addiction, brain, Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), cognitive therapy, conditioned response, cool system, defence mechanisms, desires, emotions, fear, food, gratification, healing, hot system, instincts, intimacy, limbic system, maladaptive overcontrol, meaning, myth, neurology, overcontrol, perfectionism, prefrontal cortex, psyche, RO DBT, self-control, sex, system 1, system 2, The Marshmallow Test, will-power on February 7, 2019 by M.K. Styllinski. Leave a comment
Respect Yourself (2)
The archetype of the Hero slaying the dragon of inner and outer chaos
St George on Horseback, 1505, engraving, Albrecht Durer
The four instinct / survival archetypes
C.G. Jung’s mandala from The Red Book
The idea of archetypes is very useful as a metaphorical tool in relation to healing and clawing back some self-respect – indeed to understand all of the 31 suggestions we’ll eventually explore. This might be a long way round the block to arrive at self-respect, but bear with me, you’ll see how it all comes back to this quality by the end.
Firstly, what are archetypes?
The concept of archetypes goes back to Plato who called them “forms” which he believed were reflected in the material world. But the basic concept is probably as old as human evolution itself. This theory was further advanced to a considerable degree by the swiss psychologist Carl Jung who called the source of these accumulated blueprints archetypes which fuelled the little “I”s or “psychic complexes” within the human mind.
Archetypal images, iconography and literary themes are sourced from universal patterns or motifs which in turn, are accessed from what is known as the collective unconscious, and closely connected (if not the same) as the akashic records mentioned in theosophical and anthroposophical literature. Think of it like a psycho-spiritual reservoir of ancestral experience, containing both the darkness and light of collective wisdom spanning possibly hundreds of thousands of years of human interaction with social groups and the environment.
This accumulated energy has a direct connection to personal unconscious and has defined the content of mythologies, legends and fairy tales of global cultures. It is the soul’s software, if you will, and a source of great teaching. Archetypes are psychic blueprints of emotion and instinct that lie in the triune system of the brain (reptilian, limbic and neo-cortex) as a psychic and structural template to primordial nature. They have a positive and negative aspect, the latter known as “The Shadow” which has been discussed frequently throughout this blog. The idea is that through confronting and then integrating these dark elements which have been denied and locked away we can dissolve the negative impact which would otherwise surely have occurred.
They are dualistic in nature and operate according to the nature of the unconscious which economises and conserves energy whilst also remaining highly adaptable. New personal narratives containing these archetypes appeal to the its adaptive processses and lay down new neural pathways from intense learning carried out in the present and overlaying the now defunct patterns of the past. The personal reservoir of the unconscious has a creative, tailor-made version of archetypes which are a unique product of your own stored life experiences. Along side this personal source is the collective or universal unconscious. Our intention is like an upload to that resources which responds in kind offering an automatic download which we access through our dreams. The images, motifs and mythical themes are identical for all.
Posted in Psychology, Spirituality / Esoterica and tagged adaptive unconscious, archetypes, Carl Gustav Jung, chaos, collective unconscious, conscience, dragon, hero, integration, Jordan B. Peterson, metaphysics, morality, Narcissism, NARM, order, positive disintegration, self-awareness, self-development, self-esteem, self-help, self-respect, sex, shadow, soul, spirituality, trauma, victimhood on January 24, 2019 by M.K. Styllinski. Leave a comment
The Hissy Fit Generation and the Loss of Free Speech IV: The Narcissism Factor (1)
Photo by Janko Ferlič on Unsplash
“We’ve all been raised on television to believe that one day we’d all be millionaires, and movie gods, and rock stars. But we won’t. And we’re slowly learning that fact. And we’re very, very pissed off.”
– Chuck Palahniuk
We live in a culture that promotes degrees of narcissism as though it were perfectly normal. Indeed, the core of American exceptionalism and NATO warmongering is large-scale abusive narcissism, so it is little wonder Americans are being confronted with a choice to become part of that pathology or to resist it. It is that resistance by our younger generations that may define our future.
So, are millennials inherently narcissistic? Absolutely not. In fact, the common belief that millennials and Generation Z are narcissistic by default is often sourced from older generations like the Baby Boomers [1] many of whom happily gloss over the fact that it is they who are largely responsible for the psychological conditions now surfacing in the young. Many findings are reflective of a mixed bag of societal conditioning that points to generational confusion and a loss of meaning more than any one overarching psychological condition.
Postmodernism and its viral-nihilism has a lot to do with the suffering of millennials. Similarly, clusters of narcissism may emerge in certain groups like the SWJ’s for example and other forms of radicalism, but this is quite different to labelling a whole generation as inherently narcissistic. Such a ready conclusion might even exacerbate the problem. It is more probable that they have common narcissistic traits as symptoms of Official Culture which feed into a host of other mental conditions. So, it seems the extent of this “narcissism” within the millennial generation and Generation Z is still under question, though evidence is growing that this condition is pervasive to some degree or another.
One study carried out by Joshua Grubbs, a clinical psychologist at Case Western Reserve University, millennials and BB’s and older were asked to rank generations on their narcissism. Millennials came in at 65.3 on a 100-point narcissism scale, rating themselves as 61.4. Grubbs’ study found that despite admitting that they had narcissistic traits they didn’t like the label of narcissist and felt it to be a “putdown.” They also, (unsurprisingly perhaps) rejected accusations of arrogance, selfishness and vanity. Yet, if we are told something often enough we may come to believe it whether this is overstated or understated. This may have an effect as they grow older. Or as Grubbs stated: “Over time, the ‘narcissistic’ label could impact how millennials feel, their mental health (and) their attitudes about themselves and general generation.” [2]
Interestingly, it was classic narcissists that didn’t mind the diagnostic label and according to Grubb: “..there are very few of them.” He believes that it is more a case of individualism than overt narcissism, though speaking generally his study led him to conclude that: “on the whole, people of my generation probably are more narcissistic than in past generations.”
This is a real diffculty: if these generations do have a predominance of narcissism, then a constant reiteration of this label may further entrench the condition. This has been proven to be so in a variety societal milieus in my own experience from prison inmates to ethnic communities. If you are told you are an offender often enough then you may come to believe it, especially when the inducement to remain under such a category is more compelling than constructive change, which often lacks social support. Falling back into victimhood isn’t useful either, but since that too is encouraged in our social systems we have a complex vicious circle which is sadly not broken by adopting multidisciplinary solutions.
It is also true that an entitlement complex in the millennial generation is on the rise. A University of Hampshire study found that “youngsters scored 25 percent higher than people aged 40 to 60 and 50 per cent higher than those over that age bracket.” [3] [4] Which may explain why millennials suffer increasing anxiety and stress when they don’t get their own way. It is also evident from Grubbs’ research that millennials “experience more anger, frustration and sadness over the [narcissism] label than other generations”. The fact that it bothers them shows that the majority of millennials are not suffering from classical Narcissistic Personality Disorder (NPD) but incorporating the traits of narcissism as opposed to full blown pathology. And Official Culture thrives on promoting narcissistic habits and values. Again, postmodernist philosophy and left-liberal politics is instilling false expectations and the stress and anxiety that comes with it; not least from a depressed market for work and job satisfaction. Match this with a socially encouraged infantilism it can only lead to the rise of a lost generation, rather than an inherently narcissistic one, though obviously these lines are very blurred.
Posted in Health, Psychology, Psychopathy and tagged Baby Boomers, business, Generation Z, love, Millennials, Narcissism, narcissistic personality disorder, pathological narcissism, ponerology, relationships, sex on November 24, 2017 by M.K. Styllinski. Leave a comment
The Hissy Fit Generation and the Loss of Free Speech III: Millennials and Generation Z
“My life feels like a test I didn’t study for.”
– quote from a Millennial
“…if this nation has any chance of survival, of carrying its traditions deep into the 21st century, it will in no small part depend on members of my generation, Generation X, the last Americans schooled in the old manner, the last Americans that know how to fold a newspaper, take a joke, and listen to a dirty story without losing their minds … We are the last Americans to have the old-time childhood. It was coherent, hands-on, dirty, and fun.” – ‘Why Generation X Might Be Our Last, Best Hope’ By Rick Cohen, Vanity Fair
I am also part of Generation X. We experienced life without the internet, emails, cell and smart phones and navigated through different challenges and struggles, from the revolutions and socioeconomic upheavals of the 1970s; the celebrated greed of the 1980s and the structural transformations of the 1990s. The same challenges exist for today’s young adults but with many more layers of social and cultural complexity. Technology, under the direction of the social engineers is only making things worse, since it offers yet another form of addiction on top of intense political and ideological interference, all of which is channelled through these younger generations who have almost no defences against it.
I found making sense of our Official Culture immensely challenging during my twenties and early thirties manifesting as depression and panic attacks, the struggle of which took up most of my sense of self. It eventually required serious soul-searching and the confrontation of the root causes of these fears and traumas in order to move forward. I was lucky to have assistance in that endeavour even if it was a form of “tough-love” to get me to the place where a more objective perspective was possible. Such a process is deeply unpleasant; often like a form of dying as emotions are healed and the old, false self of programming and egoic survival is stripped away. This takes time, effort and a lot of patience, which is one reason why it is so assiduously avoided.
So, I have sympathy with the psychological crisis that millennials are facing and how important it is that they are given the information and assistance to turn their lives around. But it will be monumental task.
When children have been brought up to be narcissistic and entitled through no fault of their own; where society itself normalises those same qualities, young people have to attempt to navigate through such a morass of conflicting messages and superficial dross that it is no wonder they are floundering. Millennials have (literally) everything at their fingertips but wholly attached to unrealistic aims and ambitions, but detached from social skills and dynamics that would build and sustain them through the inevitable challenges they must face. In one sense, we are witnessing a re-run of the 1960s, that surge in potential awareness of what could be…This time, a genuine millennial passion is shackled by prior conditioning, an unstable foundation that is constantly shifting beneath their feet making it all but impossible to orient themselves. They have been brought to believe themselves special; nurtured to anticipate and expect great things, but they do not have the inner resources to match the outer reality. Hence, the internal or external “hissy fit” when expectations fail to match that reality, be that from differing views or workplace demands.
When seeking to analyse and appraise younger generations and the challenges they must face, there are no doubt plenty of exceptions to this rule and a great many young adults who do not fit into the following psychological profile. Yet, it seems there are not enough, otherwise we wouldn’t be having the symptoms rising up in our youth that we do. Similarly, the following is not designed to rip apart millennials in order to feel better about my own generation. It is concerned with pin-pointing the problems in order to achieve clarity and possible solutions. The older generations have a responsibility to assist those who come after since, as parents, we have also played a part in shaping them. With the right kind of mentoring and the right kind of knowledge, they might develop the self-awareness and life skills they need. Building that knowledge-base will be up to them, as will facing their fears and discovering their own higher nature and creativity within. Our collective future depends on it.
Posted in Economics / Economic Collapse, Movies-Television, Psychology, Psychopathy, Social Engineering, Technocracy, Technology and tagged Baby Boomers, conservative, Generation X, Generation Z, Hysteriodal Cycle, left-liberal, Millennials, Narcissism, postmodernism, sex on November 23, 2017 by M.K. Styllinski. 1 Comment
Satan’s Little Helpers VIII: Weimar, Magick and “Cherry Marines”
Authentic US military badges with occult-themed insignias (See more here )
A recent article from Wayne Madsen reminded us of a child pornography ring in the 1980s that extended from Oregon to the San Francisco Bay area over to Chicago and Washington, DC. This involved many officers of the U.S. Navy and yet another breach in a sub-network which the author believes was covered up by one John Lehman, then Secretary of the Navy who engaged in similar cover-ups, sexual misdemeanours and crimes. Madsen has since had to vacate his U.S. home due to death threats.[1]
The Navy has an odd history of pathogenic infiltration. The advances from MK-ULTRA experimentation permeated the U.S. military and in particular, Naval Intelligence. A former Navy Officer with serious mental problems which lent themselves to the creation of Scientology was L. Ron Hubbard and his rocket scientist friend, Jack Parsons. These men may have helped to subvert still further the military rituals of Navy personnel. Both were involved in Aleister Crowley’s Black Magick society Ordo Templis Orientis (OTO) which was attracting many converts from government, military and corporate sectors of society. (Now it seems the organisation has new recruits from the social network generation which, until recently, included Peaches Geldolf. How’s that for marketing? )
Hubbard was said to have been drafted in by the Office of Naval Intelligence (ONI) to break up a satanic cult that was spreading among top scientists with Parsons as the focus of the activity. It seems highly dubious that Hubbard was given the job of foiling such a ring should that even have been possible. Perhaps this had been the initial operation but whether during or after his assignment he played a vital role in either the creation of, or expansion of said cult rather than its disbandment. With the inspiration of Crowley’s integration of various sets of Magick, Hubbard and Parsons were engaging in their own Magickal studies by 1946, including an extended set of Sex Magick rituals called the “Babylon Working,” intended to summon a goddess or “moonchild.” [2] Parsons continued to immerse himself in Crowleyian rituals believing he was the Anti-Christ only to die in a suspicious accident a year later. Meantime, Hubbard was about to write Dianetics which swiftly became the basis of Scientology, itself rooted in Black Magick as a consequence of Hubbard’s fascination with The Book of Law and Thelmic rituals.
After Crowley’s unceremonious death in 1947, the role of “the Beast” was wide open. According to Ron De Wolf, Hubbard’s son, his father took it upon himself to fully embrace Satanism, not as a form of worship but to understand that he himself was one with Satan. This realisation came from:
“… the creation of what they call embryo implants—of getting a demonic spirit to inhabit the body of a foetus. This would arrive care of Black-Magic rituals, including the use of hypnosis, drugs, and other destructive practices. One of the important things was to destroy the evidence if you failed at this Immaculate Conception. That’s how my father became obsessed with abortions.” [3]
An axe to grind? or was there truth to his son’s accusations?
Regardless, it seems Hubbard, Parsons and other participants were happily riding high on the infusion of narcotics and magickal practices that were busy doing the rounds on the intelligences circuits. Hubbard is unlikely to have found his brain-washing techniques from anywhere else. He used the workings of occult rituals and nuggets of mind control secrets going on at the time to launch his career from a failed science-fiction writer to a global multi-million dollar icon, creating the hugely successful religion of Scientology. [4]
The U.S. Navy’s role in sexpionage and ritual abuse was explored by Kay Griggs in 1998 with a 8-hour interview conducted by Pastor Rick Strawcutter in 1998. Kay had married Colonel George Griggs in the early 80s. Her husband was a Marine Corps Chief of Staff and head of NATO’s Psychological Operations, which over time, had given her an intimate knowledge of the true nature of “leadership training, drug-running and weapons sales, and the secret worldwide camps that train professional assassins.” Her story further supports the increasing evidence that blackmail, sex rings and mind programming rituals are endemic within the military-intelligence world. It also allows us not only to understand why the military is obsessed with sex as a means of control, just like their Israeli counterparts, but why there is such a resounding silence on the cover-up of 9/11 when truth inevitably seeps out through the cracks of official culture. Blackmail and sex are the fail-safe modes of secrecy. The more extreme the sexual deviancy, the more certain is the guarantee of silence.
Or visit: Disclose.tv – Kay Griggs – Colonel’s Wife Tell-All Interview.1/4
Kay Griggs delivers a highly believable account based on her own observations, the people she met within these social circles and from her husband’s behaviour, but most importantly, from the extensive writings in his diary. While her Christian belief only occasionally veers towards proselytizing, her account is a sincere and honest one; enriching our understanding of how the U.S. Army and Navy intelligence networks operate behind the scenes.
When she begun to receive death threats due to this first-hand knowledge and her unique insights into this military cartel, she decided to go public in 1996. Sarah McClendon, former senior member of the White House press corps, and Army Intelligence veteran, took her in and gave her valuable advice as to what her next move should be. McClendon was the perfect ally offering her the needed psychological tools to survive the coming months and years. After Griggs had failed to get the media to take on her story and after McClendon advised Griggs to go public, this led to the now well-known video interviews with Pastor Strawcutter on his 500 watt pirate FM station at 99.3 in Lenawee County, Virginia. The interviews were released in 2000 as a 2hr edited video and a later an extended 8 hour version. Since that time, Kay Griggs has been living in her Virginia home giving occasional talks for interested parties.
In the interview, Griggs talks about key military officials who were rather worried about her husband Colonel George Griggs and his diary which is still in her possession. Brigadier General James R. Joy (ret.) General Charles C. Krulak, General Al Gray Cook (ret.) General James L. Jones, General Charles E. Wilhelm and General Carl Steiner are all implicated in secret black ops, one of which led to the highly suspect killings of civilians in the Waco massacre * and the 1983 bombing of a Beirut barracks in which 241 marines died and 80 seriously wounded. According to Griggs, both examples employed media manipulation and PSYOPS to cover the fact these were false flag operations. General Al Gray, USMC, 29th Commandant of the Marine Corps, is an alleged enthusiastic participant in gay orgies within the military and at the time of writing, is still actively engaged in PSYOPS operations overseas and nationally. Many other high-ranking officials have participated in these ritual-sex initiation rites.
The video also supports the evidence that organised blackmail is not just a MOSSAD speciality but a way of life within the U.S. military special operations units. Linked to this are the University fraternities which, like several authors she confirms are recruitment centres for intelligence officers. Princeton University has a fraternity called “Cap and Gown” while Yale University has the not so secret society “Skull and Bones” both of which list a ‘who’s who’ of the rich and famous. Senator John Kerry, George Bush Sr. and Bush Jr. were all “Bonesmen.”
Griggs recounts her husband’s history as a member of the “Cap and Gown” where unusual sex acts were part of initiatory rituals designed to recruit and control participants. “Dining in,” “shell back,” the “Tail hook” and “cherry marines” are not just military terms but code names for group sex activities which are part and parcel of a homosexual induction. Young men are allegedly stripped, violated, humiliated and raped. Although the alleged orgies in question are predominantly homosexual, there were also bi-sexual orgies. General Al Gray, General Jim Joy, and General Sheehan were initiated “cherry marines,” and given the task of indoctrinating new recruits for a wide range of useful purposes.
While part of a standard formula for blackmail and mind control, this also serves as a means for rapid advancement through the ranks if you play the game. It has a high cost however – you become shadow government property and prone to emotional overload as the heavy weight of a suppressed conscience returns. The layers of programming designed to dehumanise don’t always strip the individual of their soul and they become the walking dead, unable to escape their fragmented mind. Consequently, many law enforcement and military personnel go off “pop” for precisely these reasons. It would seem that if you begin to question too much, the Army and Navy have facilities for using psychiatry as a means to detain those who become too vocal or manage to free themselves from programming. Eastern State Mental Hospital in Williamsburgh is one such place that is alleged to have a high quota of Army Intelligence personnel who have not played ball. Sectioning is a convenient method of removing troublesome men who ask too many questions. [5]
Wayne Madsen’s claim of a high level “X-file” secrecy standing for paedophilia and homosexual blackmail protocols within the US Navy and Marine Corp is given further support from Griggs. It is improbable that Grigg’s husband would have shared titbits of information regarding these bizarre rituals if they didn’t have a high percentage of authenticity. The revelations over the years of serial paedophilia networks in the world at large are an obvious reality so it is hardly illogical to assume that even worse takes place far from prying eyes.
Nazi philosophy, weapons technology and the sciences were not the only things to be injected into the United States psyche from Operation PAPERCLIP. Another strain which may have come through this conduit was known as “The Pink Triangle,” an infestation of occult driven sexual deviants which included rapists, criminals and paedophiles. The individuals were tagged with a pink triangle before being sent to concentration camps during War time Germany. Homosexual men and women were tragically included in this persecution, something which is seldom remembered. However, the key issue here is sexual psychopathy regardless of orientation. According to Griggs and others, thousands of these pink triangle candidates, were brought over to the States and distributed within the ranks of certain shadow government projects.
“The Pink Triangle”
Griggs’ testimony is not the only source that suggests gay sex dominates much of the ritual initiation process within the Navy SEALS and Marine Corp. Despite the Nazi Party’s opposition to homosexuality and persecution of gay men, homosexuality may have been partially institutionalised within the Nazi Elite in Germany at the time and focused within the SS guard. Obviously, this does not preclude the murder of thousands of homosexuals. The formula of scapegoating a minority in order to maintain the functioning of an Elite that harbours the same sexual orientation continues to this day. Whether we refer to paedophiles or homosexuals being compromised to take the heat of Establishment figures, or Zionists who routinely sacrifice Jews and gentiles alike to maintain the long term strategy of their plans, the same sexpionage continues its sordid path.
The Weimar Republic during the 1920s – as with much of Establishment circles within Europe in general – was host to a rising “cabaret” culture amongst artists, writers and the Elite which included a sub-culture of transvestites bi-sexual, and gay men and women. As is ever the case, decadence gives rise to greater extremes and the underworld is not long to follow. Brothels, pornographers and prostitutes were multiplying in Berlin as one of the most sexually liberal cities at the time. Gay culture was thriving. Yet the dark underbelly of these seemingly liberal values was also present. Exploration of sexual identity and freedom wasn’t the issue in pre-war Weimar as with other pre-pathocratic Empires, rather, it was the red flag of sexual deviance and debauchery that was a marker of a pathological indulgence to which the Nazi Elite happily encouraged.
The Salon I, Otto Dix 1921.
“The Nachtlokals (private nightspots) in particular teemed with non-German speaking thrill-seekers. For the newest clientele, humiliation and sexual degradation served as an equal attractant as the old Naked Dance revue itself. In one Lokal favored by Dutch vacationers, businessmen and their wives tossed foreign coins to any female German in attendance willing to strip completely nude. Outside the tourist hotels and downtown pensions, knowing gigolos and pretty boys, dolled up in rouge and mascara like wax mannequins, displayed their androgynous wares. The the merry-making Ausländer, Berlin was conducting a clearance sale on human flesh. Sex was everywhere and obtainable on the cheap. The Kaiser’s Germany, in the minds of many, was finally repaying its war debts.” – Mel Gordon, Voluptuous Panic: The Erotic World of Weimar Berlin. (courtesy of Metal on Metal)
The degeneration of the New Society in the Weimar Republic is quite apparent with the rise in bohemian art which became darker and darker from the period after World War I, culminating in the Nazi Pathocracy of the Third Reich. Sexual depravity, murder and the general denigration of women even led to a new art form of snuff painting where the female form was mutilated or an act of murder was graphically depicted as a form of sadistic celebration. Otto Dix and George Grosz were two of the most enthusiastic proponents of sexual murder or “Lustmord” in German. In a disturbing book about the Weimar Republic’s burgeoning avant garde and sexual “liberation”: Lustmord: Sexual Murder in Weimar Germany”, author Maria Tatar states:
“… often viewed as the birthplace of a transgressive avant-garde modernism, where representations of female sexual mutilation abound…. Tatar show that male artists openly identified with real-life sexual murderers–George Grosz posed as Jack the Ripper in a photograph where his model and future wife was the target of his knife–but she also reveals the ways in which victims were disavowed and erased.” [6]
This “aestheticized violence” was funded by a “transgressive energy” which seeped into the socio-political life of the German Elite. There appeared to be a simmering undercurrent of pathology surfacing in the collective unconscious of the Republic. Certain of these shadows were about to manifest as National Socialism.
Otto Dix “Lustmord” (1922)
Carl Hofer “Lustmord” (1923)
Freud’s nemesis and sexologist Wilhelm Reich among others, affirmed that many top Nazi leaders and Germanic fascism during the 1930s was in fact “a male state organized on a homosexual basis.” [7] It is also interesting to note that while many homosexuals were sent to concentration camps there is a possibility that this was more a case of it being after the fact, rather than a conscious policy of persecution. Hitler’s own perceptions and treatment of women displayed distaste and confusion, if not contempt. Even if Mein Kampf revealed copious evidence for his hatred of Jews, Arabs, Communists and Eastern peoples there was not one word for those with a homosexual orientation. You could hardly say that this was due to a cultural sensitivity.
Hitler filled key positions with known or suspected homosexuals. His most trusted companions General Ernst Roehm was a gay man, as was Rudolf Hess. He was also a paedophile and transvestite in his spare time, similar to his colleague Herman Goering who was a drag queen when the fancy took him. Roehm, Hitler’s one-time protégé, eventually commanded the Nazi Storm Troopers more commonly known as the SA (an acronym for Sturmabteilung) and had a larger-than-life sexual appetite, often frequenting Turkish bars and gay clubs across Germany. He made it his personal quest to procure Roehm’s close knit coterie of strategists Edmund Heines, Karl Ernst, Ernst’s partner Captain Rohrbein, Captain Petersdorf, Count Ernst Helldorf, all of whom were homosexual.
It is safe to say that bi/homosexuality or some brand of sexual perversion were useful for advancing one’s career in the Third Reich. According to The Pink Swastika by authors Scott Lively and Kevin Abrams:
Himmler was not so much opposed to homosexuality itself as to the fact that non- qualified people were given high rank based on their homosexual relations with Roehm and others. For example, SA Obergruppenfuhrer (Lieutenant General) Karl Ernst, a militant homosexual, had been a hotel doorman and a waiter before joining the SA. “Karl Ernst is not yet 35,” writes Gallo, “he commands 250,000 men…he is simply a sadist, a common thug, transformed into a responsible official.” [8]
This strange brand of nepotism was a hallmark of the SA. By 1933, the elite grouping had grown far larger than the German army, yet the Vikingkorps (Officers’ Corps) remained almost exclusively homosexual. “Roehm, as the head of 2,500,000 Storm Troops … had surrounded himself with a staff of perverts. His chiefs, men of rank of Gruppenfuhrer or Obergruppenfuhrer, commanding units of several hundred thousand Storm Troopers, were almost without exception homosexuals. Indeed, unless a Storm Troop officer were homosexual he had no chance of advancement”. [9]
In point of fact, when perusing Nazi Reich propaganda and folklore in praise of the muscle-bulging, blonde, blue-eyed, Aryan archetype, it is replete with distinctly homo-erotic undertones. This has been passed down into gay erotica via the likes of Tom Findland with his kitsch renderings of black leather-clad beef-cakes donning Luftwaffe caps, high-top boots and whips. The Nazi overtones have also found their way into many sado-masochist gatherings in contemporary society where whips, PVC, black masks and various forms of mock torture tools of domination and submission form more than an echo of the SS and Nazi regalia.
German Cabaret dancer circa 1930 (left) Contemporary S &M fashion (right)
Tom Findland’s art 1963
Elite insider Professor Carrol Quigley in his book Tragedy and Hope, describes Captain Roehm and his cult of homosexual Storm Troopers as having staged the burning of the Reichstag, and used intimidation tactics to scare people into supporting Hitler and his Nazi party. A plot was hatched to burn the Reichstag building and blame the Communists, the historical veracity of which is now beyond dispute.
Quigley states:
“Most of the plotters were homosexuals and were able to persuade a degenerate moron from Holland named Van der Lubbe to go with them. After the building was set on fire, Van der Lubbe was left wandering about in it and was arrested…[…] Most of the plotters were homosexual [and that] ….most of the Nazis who were in on the plot were murdered during the ‘blood purge’ of June 30, 1934.” [10]
Kazimiers Moczarski a Polish journalist and anti-communist activist while in prison, conducted interviews with two German SS-men, SS-Sturmbannführer of BdS Krakau Gustaw Schielke and Nazi war criminal SS-Brigadeführer Jürgen Stroop who reported on the continued presence of homosexuals in the Nazi hierarchy, despite their persecution in Germany society:
“A policeman well acquainted with Germany’s homosexual element [spoke up and said they] kept files on all known and potential pederasts. He remarked that very few homosexuals in the NSDAP were as “indelicately” treated as was Roehm …”So maybe a few of the fags in the party did get knocked off. There were plenty of others who made out just fine. They remained active party members…..got promotions… [and were] protected by the top NSDAP brass.” [11]
SS Women were present in concentration camps and security staffing at an administrative capacity but there were no female SS officers.
The peculiar degeneration of Germany at the time does not mean to indicate homosexuality as somehow partly culpable, but why it may have formed part of the Elite’s predispositions. It seems Nazi Germany’s chaos lent itself to a vast panoply of pathological “deviancy,” where channelling psychopathy from on high was characterised by the fascism and occult leanings of the time. [12] Equating homosexuality with Nazism and psychopathy is obviously not the intention here, nor is it to be associated with a bigoted right-wing agenda that wishes to bury the very idea of homosexuality. Yet there remains a truth that this sexual orientation may well have formed a part of occult initiation in the context of ceremonial, sexual psychopathy of Heinrich Himmler’s SS and elements within the Gestapo. This in turn had implications for sexual psychopathy as a whole and according to the process of ponerisation. [13]
On this subject, author Peter Levenda offers his take:
Hitler…took a very broad-minded view of sex. Indeed, he said to have known about SA Leader Ernst Roehm’s homosexuality for years and tolerated it…a rather astounding generosity for that man in that time and place. In fact, a great many SA men were homosexuals, which should give the nervous nellies in the Pentagon pause: for the Brownshirts – the dreaded Storm Troopers; the brawling two fisted beer hall fighters; the drunken angry mob of volunteer militiamen who defeated Communism in Germany and who propelled Hitler to power – were the epitome of military machismo…and Roehm, their leader and queen was the ultimate fighting man. [14]
Although it is an established fact the Storm-troopers and many members of the Nazi military were homosexual and/or bi-sexual it is also true of those who seeded ideas into Hitler’s mind, most notably occultists Jorg Lanz Von Liebenfels and Guido von List. Lanz was a former Cistercian monk who had been excommunicated for his homosexuality. After being expelled from the monastery, Lanz formed the occultic order Ordo Novi Templi or The Order of the New Temple (ONT). The ONT was an offshoot of the Ordo Templi Orientis (Order of the Eastern Temple) which practiced tantric sex rituals.
Surrounding the Greek-Hellenic, Aryan, blond-haired, blue-eyed youth worship in German high society at the time, was the Germen Ordnunq (Order) and the Thule Gesellschaft (Thule Society) infused by German folklore and Madam Blavatsky’s Theosophy. Hitler was introduced to the Thule Society by his occult mentor Deitrich Eckhart and went on to gain control of the German Workers Party on August 8, 1921. With General Roehm’s charismatic assistance he changed the party into the German National party, then Socialist Workers Party and ultimately the Nazi Party.
If the Nazi Elite that was funnelled into post war America was predominantly a pathogenic infection of psychopaths and sexual deviants, it is the whole package of Satanic perception which included, by default, a certain entropic way of life. Since there are paedophile and child rape networks operating in the States at the public level, are there also occult rituals framed around a Satanic belief system that employs Sex Magick and abuse at the apex of Establishment power? **
Ernst Roehm
Kay Griggs believes that all those in special operations are bi-sexual due to the nature of the pyramid. If you want to rise to the top then it seems that one has to start at the bottom … so to speak. Sex is the key and blackmail ensures that once there you cannot open any other doors except those assigned to you. It is then that a literal “conspiracy of silence” becomes more understandable; in the context of chronic sexual abuse, it requires low maintenance.
If those who rebel and reject the reality of such a Faustian bargain, then threats and murder are two methods by which high ranking military officials are kept in line. Emotionally weak boys, who have low self-esteem, often from a poverty-stricken background, where mental disorders are common place, are systematically groomed for top government positions. Obviously these teenagers are easy to indoctrinate with promises of careers paved with gold which might lead to wealth and status. Meantime they become Manchurian candidates and/or part of units engaged in black operations. Based on mind control literature so far, it seems that there is a Germanic-Jewish demographic which has been most associated with such programming.
Though CIA mind control and sexual politics seems to have seeped that bit further into the Navy than other military departments, Griggs makes the assertion that the CIA is further down the ladder of influence in covert operations than we may think. This is also supported by Walter Bowart’s Operation Mind Control where it is said that the NSA is at the top of the “black arts” pyramid.
Griggs posits another grouping of criminals working within the government and military that she refers to as “The Joint” nested in the Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe (SHAPE) based in Casteau, Belgium. It is the primary base for illicit weapons sales, narcotics and money laundering, with the army running the whole show. NATO brass may act as its protector, while in return, The Joint, based in New York, ensures the funding channels are continually open. (This brings us full circle back to the infamous region of the Dutroux case).
She then makes the link to Naples, Italy, where it is alleged that the U.S. Navy practices paedophilia and group sex as a part of the methods of occult initiation for future blackmail, just as it did in war-time Italy with the help of Catholic priests. It was Italian mothers of procured children who were raped in these havens that banded together to stop such activities. As the media of the time would not listen, they sought out the wives of these soldiers and officers and alerted them to the actions of their husbands and eventually brought down the German government at the end of the war.
Let us remember that the constant theme of procuring children for sexual abuse and to train them to be mercenaries, agents and assassins appears right across the history of Naval and Army intelligence. Setting up despots across the world to do European and US bidding is nothing new. Griggs confirms Dave McGowan and others’ hypotheses that many of the dictators of the past, including Pol-Pot and Mao Tse Tung and numerous others were “turned” via Catholic priests in the pay of mind control programming and placed in strategic geo-political situations favourable to US and Israeli interests. They are taken out when no longer useful. If we cast an eye over a handful of dictators from the recent past we can see that that has clearly been the case and is a standard geostrategic formula alongside terror tactics and the balkanzation of a targeted country. (Think Saddam Hussein, Nicolae Ceausescu, Idi Amin, Ayatollah Khomeini etc.)
From the brutal expression of Nazism there lies a “higher” expression of occult endeavour, though no less dangerous. The foot-soldiers of ceremonial psychopathy have their initiates who dispense the wisdom from on high in order to entrap the intelligentsia, having made a career of their mental acuity and hubris. Rather than being the exclusive province of the military, a sixty year old occult club has members from Christianity, academia, governmental agencies and NGOs across the globe, with centres of influence in virtually every nation in Europe and the Americas.
One of those clubs is the Lucis Trust and its various affiliations operating through the United Nations and a multitude of associated organisations. From the military-occult branch of the Anglo-American Establishment we have the theosophist, freemasonic and socialist beliefs expressing themselves as a the New World Religion in waiting, care of the Light Bringer – Lucifer himself.
We will take a closer look at the Lucis Trust in the next post.
* On April 19, 1993, in Waco, TX, Leader of the Branch Davidian David Koresh and his followers came under attack from the US Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms and the FBI. Despite the Federal authorities not obtaining a search warrant they decided to take the centre by force. According to the documentary, Waco: Rules of Engagement, and several accounts by surviving members, Federal agents acted recklessly and with intent to murder Davidian members finally setting the centre on fire and allowing more than Seventy-six men, women and children, including the sect leader, David Koresh, to die in the fire. Prior to the massacre an almost two month onslaught of PSYOPS was carried out with loud speakers which played sounds of rabbits being slaughtered, the sound of a dentist’s drill, and clips from talk shows about how David Koresh is much hated, played 24 hours a day along with flashing bright lights. For further details see the documentary film: WACO: Rules of Engagement (1997) http://www.waco93.com/
** It is noteworthy that Aleister Crowley and other occultists were firmly of the belief that young male children could be used as psychic portals via sexual activity during occult rituals. Bi-sexuality and sexual techniques of an infinite variety were part and parcel of satanic rituals. The pathogenic undercurrents gave rise to this dark inversion as a tool for the invocation of demonic influences and the initial power that comes with it. However, as is always the case with short-cut enlightenment based around intellect and material desires – it came at a price.
[1] ‘Gannongate threatens to expose a huge GOP pedophile and male prostitution ring’By Wayne Madsen, Online Journal, February 2005.
[2] L. Ron Hubbard – Messiah? Or Madman? Understanding Scientology by Margery Wakefield published in 1991 by the Coalition of Concerned Citizens (PO Box 290402, Tampa, Florida 33687), a now-defunct organization founded by Margery Wakefield.
[3] Penthouse Interview With Ron De Wolf, L. Ron Hubbard Jr. – L. Ron Hubbard Jr. Penthouse, June 1983 | See also: Sinister Forces – A grimoire of American Political, Witchcraft By Peter Levenda (2006)].
[4] The Church of Scientology has attracted a huge number of critics as well as many Hollywood celebrities, the most vocal of which is the actor Tom Cruise. Accusations of corruption, intimidation, brainwashing, exploitation and cult-like activities have all been levelled at the organisation. They have also gained a reputation for aggressively pursuing their detractors with mafia-style intensity as many critics have discovered. With a founder like Hubbard it is small wonder that there are problems.
[5] The nature of psychiatry means that it can be easily used as a medical control for dissidents and whistleblowers. (United States District Court, District Of Connecticut: Elizabeth A. Marczeski v. Susan B. Handy, Sara Steere, Patrick K. Fox, M.D., Bruce Knox, Pramodini Desphande, M.D., Mark Puglisi, Vincent Franco And Garrell Mullaney http://www.ctd.uscourts.gov/Opinions/090904.HBF.Marczeski.pdf) Pre-trail detainees are a convenient way to ensure that those with legitimate concerns are kept out of the way of public scrutiny. Moreover, if they were not already fighting mental instability from the continual pressure and stress of initial circumstances then being locked up in a hospital for the criminally insane with a prescribed regime of drugs is enough to be a self-fulfilling prophecy. After all, “medication” can be a euphemism for an overwhelming injection of toxic substances and “quiet rooms” a place for solitary confinement.The issue of civil liberties is of the utmost importance in the US today as the constitution becomes irrevocably eroded. Someone may be involuntarily detained for psychiatric examination for a period of time (usually 24 to 72 hours depending on the state). Yet if a government official deems the individual a danger, at his opinion and in the opinion of hand-picked psychiatrists (with the required political bias) then a subject can be detained indefinitely. A judge has the power to detain, section or commit an individual based on his opinion.
As in the story of Sandra in “The Rule of Law” series illustrated, many judges are just as open to corruption as any other law and justice official. Involuntary commitment is commonly viewed as inherently unconstitutional. Though with little of the constitution left, it is logical that it is becoming wide open to politicisation and thus a perfect tool of a Pathocracy.
Many of us are aware of the Soviet Union, some Eastern European countries and presently China, using Political (and ponerized) Psychiatry to lock up dissidents and religious persons in psychiatric institutions. How many of us know that the US is gradually doing the same thing to its own people? Psychiatric Fascism is nothing new. (On June 22, 1999, the United States Supreme Court ruled in Olmstead v. L.C., against unnecessary confinement of people with disabilities, including the mentally ill, in institutions. However, in the United States, 42 States have now passed legislation allowing court-ordered involuntary treatment of outpatients with psychiatric drugs. The United States Secret Service still obtains involuntary psychiatric hospitalizations of those it believes to be a danger to protectees, without any claim that these “dangerous” individuals are “mentally ill.” As the USSS incorporates the Department of Home Security, claims of “terrorist” or “sexual abuser” can be politicised and used as a means to incarcerate and detain persons indefinitely, whatever so called constitutional amendments are applied.) Pretrail detainees linked to the “war on terrorism” and other such bogus forms of propaganda have been rising significantly, most of whom have nothing to do with any form of genuine terrorism. (“Hundreds of detainees continued to be held without charge or trial at the US naval base in Guantánamo Bay, Cuba. Thousands of people were detained during US military and security operations in Iraq and Afghanistan and routinely denied access to their families and lawyers.”- Amnesty International report on US 2005).
Detention has historically been associated with widespread abuses, from physical mistreatment to denial of detainees’ basic procedural guarantees. If we remember the ponerization via the medicalization of the law and justice system which is unequivocally fused with crime networks then we must be very worried indeed concerning the rights of dissidents and whistleblowers everywhere. The Pretrail detention system was already in a state of “crisis” some ten years previously even before the dangerous reflex of the “War on terror.” (‘The Pretrail Detention Crisis – The Causes and the Cure.’ By Douglas J. Klein, Journal of Urban and Contemporary law Vol. 52 /281. Washington University 1997.)
Abuses of detainees are still rolling in as the Pathocracy spreads its “pathogens.” Being presumed innocent until proven guilty seems to be a sadly quaint notion. Certainly, many are non-abductions and not necessarily slavery related. Nevertheless, as related in Chapter 17, the numbering of missing people in the United States continues to rise with statistics vague on root causes. The Federal government estimates over 2,300 Americans are missing everyday and around 900,000 persons per year. No wonder trafficking and slavery networks can run their businesses with relative ease.
[6] Tatar, Maria Lustmord: Sexual Murder in Weimar Germany (1997)
[7] pp.123-127; The Mass Psychology of Fascism by Wilhelm Reich, Published by Penguin, 1970.
[8] Lively. Scott; Abrams, Kevin, The Pink Swastika: Homosexuality in the Nazi Party . Published Founders Publishing Corp. (1995) | ISBN-10: 0964760908.
[9]Summarised article: ‘Homosexuality and the Nazi Party’ The militant homosexual core of the National Socialist party, by Scott Lively, 1996, source: Leadership University.
[10] op. cit. Quigley (p.437)
[11] pp.38-39; Rozmowy z katem (Conversations with an Executioner) by Kazimiers Moczarski, published by Prentice-hall, Inc. 1977.
[12] The following quotation from Jose Landowsky’s banned Red Symphony written between 1936-1938. The conversation between a government Stalinist and his assassin explains the psychological “predisposition” at the time of Nazi Germany’s pathocratic rule and the Communist knowledge of its use for blackmail. The background to the dialogue is connected to a German officer of the Armed Forces High Command or the Oberkommando der Wehrmacht (OKW) who is forced to become double agent for Russia when found by the Cheka Secret Police (GPU) having sexual relations with his lover called “Fritz.”
p.291: “In the war, in our war, we take advantage of the virtues and moral of the adversary… In your case, doctor, it’s the parental love. We turn those bourgeois principles into efficient weapons. But the bourgeoisie does not only possess virtues; it has also vices […] It is rare to find a person, especially if he belongs to certain families or occupies a high position, not having any flaws or vices. The thing is to find out what it is, to prove it and to use it against the person. Where death threats fail, a ‘chantage’ exerted with art, always wins. […] A man then goes back to his country. He will have to shut up or praise, according to each case. If he’s a politician he will have to serve us. If he’s a member of the military or a diplomat, he will have to betray. […] If the weapon we use was well known, then nobody would be surprised any more of all the very many unexpected treasons that are done in our favour.
[…] they must go on as if nothing had happened. […] Sabotaging, softening things out and changing the opinion of the sectors that are the most opposed to us. “It is an inexplicable and unexplained fact that we have big sympathies in the hierarchy of the German military and even inside the Nazi party. […] If in Versailles the factor of resentment and despair played a role, this intimate chaos inside every German also had a big part to play. Yes, those have been factors, but those who played with these factors were men, if we can actually call them men, whose degeneration put them in our hands.” (Landowsky, 1950) A German who is forced to become double agent for Russia from the Oberkommando der Wehrmacht or German Armed Forces High Command (OKW) and his gay lover.
[13] The homo-eroticism inherent in much of gay S&M, black leather regalia comes down the generations with a decidedly strong homage to the SS jackboot and Nazi Chic. What is culturally significant is why the allusions and use of Nazi fashion in this particular form of sexual expression? It is noteworthy that much of the S&M ethos can be traced back to gay male leather culture, in turn stemming from the biker culture which formalized itself out of the group of men who were soldiers returning home after World War II.
[14] op. cit. Levenda, (p.129)
See also: Nazi Occult and Mind Control
Posted in Abuse, Establishment / Elite, Mind Control, Occult, Psychology, Psychopathy, Religion, Spirituality / Esoterica and tagged Army intelligence, art, Avant garde, Babylon Working, Beirut barracks bombing, Belgium, Berlin, Black Magick, blackmail, Bondage, brainwashing, Brigadier General James R. Joy, Brownshirts, Cap & Gown, Captain Petersdorf, Captain Rohrbein, Catholic Church, Cherry marines, child pornography, child rape, CIA, Crowley, demonology, Dianetics, Existential Satanism, Freemasonry, General Carl Steiner, General Charles C. Krulak, General Charles E. Wilhelm, General Ernst Roehm, General James L. Jones, Hitler, Lucis Trust, Marc Dutroux, Mein Kampf, mind control experiments, MK-ULTRA, Mossad, National Socialism, Navy SEALS, Nazi regalia, Nazi SS, Nazis, Nazism, Occult military insignias, occultism, Operation Paperclip, Ordo Templis Orientis (OTO), paedophile rings, paedophilia, pathocracy, ponerisation, Professor Carrol Quigley, PSYOPS, Reichstag, rituals, Rudolf Hess, sado-masochism, Satan, Satanic Ritual Abuse (SRA), Satanism, Scientology, sex, Sex Magick, Storm Troopers, Sturmabteilung (SA), Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe (SHAPE), The Joint, Thule Society, Virginia, Waco massacre, Weimar Republic, Zionists on April 22, 2014 by M.K. Styllinski. 14 Comments
Feminism or Infiltration? III: Libido of the Ugly
Feminism, if not infiltrated has without doubt become infected by the same strains of pathology as any other ideology or belief that has the seeds of truth within it and thus a threat to the Pathocracy. Nowhere is this more evident than in its response to the many dissenters of the new feminism that was riding the wave of acceptance in the early seventies.
One antidote which provided plenty of vitriolic critique came from Argentine-German Esther Vilar whose book: The Manipulated Man made plenty of fresh-faced feminists even more apoplectic with rage and shock. Rather than white, middle-class women being the object of oppression and exploitation Vilar claims that the reverse is true – it is women who employ a sophisticated mixture of emotional manipulation, blackmail and psycho-strategy to gain the upper hand in a relationship of which most men are not aware. Some of the strategies she believes women use include luring men with sex and specific seduction strategies; using praise to control men administered at optimal moments for maximum effect and the use of love and romance to mask real intentions.
Though it might seem obvious now, it was heretical stuff and mightily controversial at the time. As regards men in contemporary society, Vilar listed some of the disadvantages she saw for men compared to women:
Men are conscripted; women are not.
Men are sent to fight in wars; women are not.
Men retire later than women (even though, due to their lower life-expectancy, they should have the right to retire earlier).
Men have almost no influence over their reproduction (for males, there is neither a pill nor abortion — they can only get the children women want them to have).
Men support women; women never, or only temporarily, support men.
Men work all their lives; women work only temporarily or not at all.
Even though men work all their lives, and women work only temporarily or not at all, on average, men are poorer than women.
Men only “borrow” their children; women can keep them (as men work all their lives and women do not, men are automatically robbed of their children in cases of separation — with the reasoning that they have to work). [1]
Vilar’s book certainly caused a veritable storm of indignant protest in its day, mostly from feminists. Admittedly, even by today’s standards decrying all women as essentially “bitches” and “stupid” is as extreme as generalising that all men are chauvinist thugs. This serves only to polarise gender issues rather than offer progressive understanding. It is an extreme book by anyone’s standards, not least the reaction it caused including death threats and the most abject vitriol that understandably took Vilar by surprise. However, not only did the book provide a counterpoint to the unassailable feminist movement as a whole, it also acted as a mirror for narcissistic feminists and their unfortunate trajectory. It certainly got people talking and allowing more moderate versions of Vilar’s critique to emerge.
Regardless of the psychological reasons for writing such a work, in her 1998 preface to the new edition she stated:
As absurd as it may sound, today’s men need feminism much more than their wives do. Feminists are the last ones who still describe men the way they like to see themselves: as egocentric, power-obsessed, ruthless and without inhibitions when it comes to satisfying their instincts. Therefore the most aggressive Women’s Libbers find themselves in the strange predicament of doing more to maintain the status quo than anyone else. Without arrogant accusations, the macho man would no longer exist, except perhaps in the movies. If the press stylise men as rapacious wolves, the actual sacrificial lambs of this ‘men’s society’, men themselves, would no longer flock to the factories so obediently.
So I hadn’t imagined broadly enough the isolation I would find myself in after writing this book. Nor had I envisaged the consequences which it would have for subsequent writing and even for my private life — violent threats have not ceased to this date. A woman who defended the arch-enemy — who didn’t equate domestic life with solitary confinement and who described the company of young children as a pleasure, not a burden — necessarily had to become a ‘misogynist’, even a ‘reactionary’ and ‘fascist’ in the eyes of the public.[2] [Emphasis mine]
Though conveniently brushing aside her tendency to reduce issues down to simplistic, hackneyed white-washing she nevertheless raises important points in the above. Is a woman allowed to be all the things that feminism seems to squash? Or have we indeed arrived at a strange point where much of feminism in the modern Western world is unyielding to the point that it has indeed become another belief without the ability to evolve? It certainly seems that way.
Though economic shifts have played an enormous part in twisting the gender roles, of far more importance is the effects of an anti-human world on our core selves. In post-modern societies of cynical materialism and fake spirituality everything is filtered through this narcissistic façade where the perfection of the body is sought for and according to the whims of advertising, fashion and the stale clichés of male and female stereotypes. The effects of this on women are processed differently.
Studies show that emotional intelligence or a social cognition is higher in women with logical/mathematical intelligence and IQ tests persistently higher for men. [3] Does that mean women are more stupid? Absolutely not. Knee-jerk reactions from academics and media commentators feed into preconceived definitions of what it means to be male and female, each grinding their respective axes on the wet-stones of their own visions of emancipation.
In the same way, recent studies have confirmed the obvious assertions (obvious accept to the financiers of this research) that when either sex shows more flesh they are considered less intelligent. Once again, for both sexes it is the body and the mind as separate entities just like the functioning of male and female that promotes erroneous conclusions:
The new research suggests we see others as having two aspects of the mind – called agency and experience. Agency is the capacity to act, plan and exert self-control, while experience is the capacity to feel pain, pleasure and emotions. Interestingly, the amount of skin shown can determine if we see another as one of ‘experience’ or ‘agency’. During the study, men and women who focused on the body regarded that person as ‘experience’ with little capacity to plan and act. Professor Gray suggested this was because people automatically think of minds and bodies as separate things, even opposites. The capacity to act is more often tied to the ‘mind’ while experience is linked to the body.”[4]
Could it have anything to do with the strictly rationalist and reductionist brand of science still holding sway in the halls of academia? [5]
The above findings says much about our conditioned learning that sees mind and body as separate rather than a holistic system. This also explains why both sexes are trapped in their respective mirrors. If showing more skin immediately equates women with the “experiencer” label and man with “agency” this not only confirms how disconnected we have become from our natural bodily state but a culture that glorifies commodity and quantity over quality and substance. It is little wonder that women will be placed in the “bimbo” with “little capacity to plan and act” while feeling “pain pleasure and emotions,” and thus “sexually available”. Conversely, men will automatically confirm the sporty, alpha male as well as being sexually available rather than the sensitive, “touchy-feely” type.
With the onset of largely iconic gay influences which have helped to encourage the uniform brand of gym-bodies in the last several years, this describes the upward curve of narcissism and vanity rather than health and fitness based on useful service to others. More gender clichés are served up for consumption from a technophilic society keen to keep it that way.
If women are suffering inside from a battery of historical and feminist led modern influences then men’s role as an emotionless robot with pectorals bigger than his porn-rag fantasy and the excess feminisation that produces the little boy syndrome unable to do anything but watch TV and play video games is directly related. But both sexes have been responsible for its continued fixation as they try on new ways of viewing their relative positions without awareness of natural predispositions.
For instance, women’s beauty is both a complex mix of power and pariah. Naomi Wolf illustrates on the one hand, the relentless push to find love and appreciation from readily available masks which women have donned as much for competition with other females as the goal of material acquisition which drives some men’s ambition. She explains:
Whatever is deeply, essentially female — the life in a woman’s expression, the feel of her flesh, the shape of her breasts, the transformations after childbirth of her skin–is being reclassified as ugly, and ugliness as disease. […] At least a third of a woman’s life is marked with aging; about a third of her body is made of fat. Both symbols are being transformed into operable condition–so that women will only feel healthy if we are two thirds of the women we could be. How can an ‘ideal’ be about women if it is defined as how much of a female sexual characteristic does not exist on the woman’s body, and how much of a female life does not show on her face?” [6]
When men respond to the facade it often acts as a mirror of his narrowing values and lack of authenticity. Or in the words of H.L. Mencken, he has been directed to worship “the libido for the ugly” and take this as reality. Wolf comments: “What becomes of a man who acquires a beautiful woman, with her “beauty” his sole target? He sabotages himself. He has gained no friend, no ally, no mutual trust: She knows quite well why she has been chosen. He has succeeded in buying something: the esteem of other men who find such an acquisition impressive.”
Despite Wolf’s assertions in her writings that this is all about men oppressing women the truth is somewhat more complex which should become evident as we continue. And let’s not pretend that women do not do exactly the same by setting the “trap” for such mutually satisfactory contracts while claiming innocence. Nonetheless, it is little wonder that women are still seen as sexual objects when relationships at both ends of the spectrum are determined by sex as “fast food” trail-blazed by the mainstreaming of pornography and online dating.
Again, do women really want to be “equal” when that equality is dysfunctional at the outset?
Wolf reverses the male objectification:
Women could probably be trained quite easily to see men first as sexual things. If girls never experienced sexual violence; if a girl’s only window on male sexuality were a stream of easily available, well-lit, cheap images of boys slightly older than herself, in their late teens, smiling encouragingly and revealing cuddly erect penises the color of roses or mocha, she might well look at, masturbate to, and, as an adult, “need” beauty pornography based on the bodies of men. And if those initiating penises were represented to the girl as pneumatically erectible, swerving neither left nor right, tasting of cinnamon or forest berries, innocent of random hairs, and ever ready; if they were presented alongside their measurements, length, and circumference to the quarter inch; if they seemed to be available to her with no troublesome personality attached; if her sweet pleasure seemed to be the only reason for them to exist–then a real young man would probably approach the young woman’s bed with, to say the least, a failing heart.” [7]
And such a “training” for the young woman has already been taking place for many years. “Failing hearts” are occurring in both men and women though expressed differently. Sure, the above sexual objectification occurs on a daily basis. But let’s not forget the same toxic effects from the narcissistic arsenal of damaged women who objectify men through manipulation and dangerous emotional games which have nothing to do with appearance but everything to do with a deeper imperative, whether it be the biological urge for birthing or the need to have emotional control., the effects of which can be highly toxic in both marriage and partnership. But because the “fairer sex” are historically “oppressed” then it cannot be possible that covert forms of female induced oppression against the male exist…
What remains true is that our identity – whether we are gay, lesbian, straight, bi or transgender – is under attack from social engineering where movements become progressively hollowed out by pathological individuals who corrupt the purity of intent and replace it with a counterfeit version – a form of psycho-subversion, if you will. It is truly a “group-think” which derives its energy from an Orwellian “double think” where paramoralisms and paralogic reign supreme. (You’ll see why if you keep up to date with future series).
Feminism isn’t the only one.
TAMARA KVESITADZE: opening ceremony of statue |‘Man and Woman’ on October 30th, 2010 in Batumi, Georgia (Effigies)
Women in the West have finally clawed back many of their rights to find that they are ironically mirroring the male who was already a victim of an economic and social contract drawn up by those who cannot be considered in anyway “normal”. When you fight for the right not to be objectified, to have a place in politics or to be treated as an intellectual equal – this is right and proper. But such a wish has gone much further so that the same quality of injustices are visited upon the male the recognition of which is largely swept away by a form of narcissism masked by largely white, Western feminism. Whether in the family courts or the toxic effects of feminist belief within relationships, this is not going anywhere good for either sex.
We are spiritually and psychologically compromised in ways we are only just beginning to fathom. And feminists are in danger of fighting for the right to be exploited at a higher rung of the ladder that actually leads nowhere.
Whatever has been “deeply, essentially female” and male is in danger of being comprehensively discarded by the feminism of the 21st century. A new way to perceive ourselves and the material world is desperately needed. It is not the lack of material power, freedom in the work place or the red herring of gender equality but the toxic effects of a body-centrism that claims both male and female – the objectifying of the female form and women’s embrace of such a caricature and the disempowerment of both gender roles. This may be one reason that women’s narcissism is through the roof whilst the recognition of the female paedophile, child abuser, pathological narcissist and psychopath are only just managing to break through the cultural bias so that deep research can take place.
A recent report distinct for its large demographic analysis confirmed the emergence of women “reclaiming their power” both in the market place and in relationships. The objective of the project was to: “… find out how close, intimate relationships vary over a lifetime.” The results of the study which were published by Professor Robin Dunbar of Oxford University, UK in the Journal of Scientific Reports came from the analysis of the texts of mobile phone calls of three million people incorporating the age and sex of callers providing a very “big picture” of people’s lives. It gave overwhelming evidence that “romantic relationships are driven by women” based on “pair-bonding” proving that this is much more important to women than men. From the data as a whole, researchers determine that: “…a woman’s social world is intensely focussed on one individual and will shift as a result of reproductive interests from being the mate to children and grandchildren.” [8]
The project also wanted to “…find out how the gender preference of best friends, as defined by the frequency of the calling, changed over the course of a lifetime and differed between men and women.” Professor Dunbar’s team reported that: “… women start to switch the preference of their best friend from about the mid-30s, and by the age of 45 a woman of a generation younger becomes the ‘new best friend.’ Men tended to choose a woman (a girlfriend or wife) as a best friend much later in life and for a shorter time.
“Women, however, choose a man of a similar age to be their best friend from the age of 20. He remains for about 15 years, after which time he’s replaced by a daughter.” At the beginning of a relationship women call their spouse more than any other person, but as their daughters become old enough to have children, the focus is transferred and they become the centre of the woman’s life. In the words of Professor Dunbar: “…at root the important relationships are those between women and not those between men.” [9]
Let’s re-visit Esther Vilar’s somewhat wild musings on this issue back in 1971:
… only women exist in a woman’s world. The women she meets at church, at parent-teacher meetings, or in the supermarket; the women with whom she chats over the garden fence; the women at parties or window-shopping in the more fashionable streets; those she apparently never seems to notice – these women are the measure of her success or failure. Women’s standards correspond to those in other women’s heads, not to those in the heads of men; it is their judgment that really counts, not that of men. A simple word of praise from another woman – and all those clumsy, inadequate male compliments fall by the wayside, for they are just praises out of the mouths of amateurs. Men really have no idea in what kind of world women live in; their hymns of praise miss all the vital points. [10]
This extract at least, is not quite as extreme when there is some statistical and socio-biological data to back it up. Professor Dunbar believes this proves that we are returning to a more matriarchal based society. However, if under psychopathological dominance it is unlikely to resemble the kind of “equality” that human society yearns for.
With this in mind, could the real shift that ripped the sexual and emotional inheritance from our daily lives have buried a truth that there was something sacred and mutually empowering in the sexual act and by extension, the relationships between men and women – and other sexual orientations?
Eisler and many others believe so:
The search for this lost wisdom by mystics – and by women and men throughout the ages – is the search for reconnection with our partnership roots. It is the search for a way of relating that is the antithesis of the dominator mode, where in both reality and myth polarization and strife, conflict and separation, winning and losing, dominating and subduing, dismembering and disembodying, conquering and controlling, in short, force, fear, and violent disconnection, are the central themes. And its very essence, as mystical writings have so often brought out, is the search for a means of healing what was so brutally rent asunder with the shift to a dominator world: the fundamental erotic, and with this also spiritual, connection between women and men. [11]
Perhaps the only thing that will change the fortunes of both sexes is the recognition that male and female understanding lies beyond the terminal dance within the society’s economic, corporate and political framework. The success of one gender over another in order to retain the same consequences of mass pathology perpetrated by high level psychopaths and stepped down to endemic narcissism, must be seen for what it is if we are to free ourselves from a perception that men and women are constantly equated with inferiority or superiority – my rights as opposed to your rights. Perhaps we need to obtain a big picture view of the forces that shape us, otherwise, all the wonderful creative ideas that lie within so many great minds will prove to be still-born, yet again. That necessarily means an equally radical shift in perception that saw the division between the sexes all those years ago, so that a bridge may once again be formed.
The devaluation of women is a disaster for men. The devaluation of men is a disaster for women. Our misplaced anger and its projection into the external world are too easily channelled into causes and beliefs that temporarily mollify but ultimately benefit no one. The psychological knowledge of the psychopathic trickster that exists to create division between the two must form part of our collective education for young and old. Until we begin to see the culprit is the institutional and ceremonial psychopath – the embodiment of natural evil – that loves to create ideologies to divide and rule, then the true roles of men and women – heterosexual and homosexual – will continue to be obscured and pathologised.
In the next post we’ll have a look at some of the causes and effects of our present confusions in order to observe what we may call the “Sex Establishment” and how it not only benefits from such gender divisions, but has grown to distort and subvert the very concept of sex and sexuality.
[1] The Manipulated Man by Esther Vilar Published by Abelard-Schuman 1972 | ISBN-10: 0200718754
[3] ‘Men cleverer than women’ claim BBC News, August 25, 2005.
[4] ‘Cover up to look smart: Men and women who bare more flesh are regarded as less intelligent, study finds’ By Lauren Paxman, The Daily Mail, Femail, 11 November, 2011.
[5] For more on this do read The Science Delusion by Rupert Sheldrake.
[6] p.232; The Beauty Myth: How Images of Beauty Are Used Against Women by Naomi Wolf. Published by Harper Perennial, 1992 Reprint: 2002 | ISBN-10: 0060512180.
[7] Ibid (p.154)
[8] ‘Phone data shows romance ‘driven by women’ BBC News, April 2012.
[10] op. cit. Vilar.
[11] Eisler, Riane; Sacred Pleasure: Sex, Myth, and the Politics of the Body, Published by Harper Collins, 2012.
Note: (February 2018) This 3 part essay on Feminism was written in original form more than ten years ago. Since then, Third Wave Feminism has metastasized into something much worse. Postmodernism and its neo-Marxist roots; gender and women studies; Social Justice Warriors; left authoritarianism and the blindness of many liberals have fused together turning a growing number of universities and even schools into indoctrination centres. Victimhood is the new ideology, a product of cultural stagnation and social engineering which is now threatening free speech and what is left of democracy in the West. It seems ponerological infiltration is occurring through the extreme left more rapidly than the far right. For more on this subject and its root causes and effects see the series: The Hissy Fit Generation And The Loss of Free Speech.
Posted in Psychology and tagged bodycentrism, family courts, female, female psychopath, feminism, feminist, gay, gender, gender equality, gender roles, identity, Journal of Scientific Reports, lesbian, male emasculation, Narcissism, Oxford University, Pathology, Radical Feminism, sex, sexuality on February 11, 2014 by M.K. Styllinski. Leave a comment
The Psychopath: A Different Species? II
“Natural human reactions … strike the psychopath as strange, interesting, and even comical. They therefore observe us… They become experts in our weaknesses and sometimes effect heartless experiments.”
– Andrew Lobaczewski, ‘Political Ponerology’
Are there neurophysiological signs which could indicate the presence of psychopathy? Research into differences between the brain of a psychopath and a normal person is providing many insights into the behaviour of our predatory neighbours.
The British Journal of Psychiatry found that psychopaths “showed less activity in brain areas involved in assessing the emotion of facial expressions…” [1] with a high possibility that this psychological “disease” is the result of a dysfunction of the frontal cortex of the brain. In one study from Canada described by bio-medical scientist Renato M.E. Sabbatini, PhD, the results showed that there was significant:
…. Impair[ment] on all the ‘orbitofrontal- ventromedial tasks’ but not in the function of other areas of the frontal cortex. The similarities between psychopaths and patients with prefrontal cortex damage surfaced in several areas of the study. ‘Both the psychopath and the orbitofrontal or ventromedial frontal patient show an exaggerated preoccupation with sexual matters, acting in a promiscuous and impersonal maladaptive way,’ observed the researchers. ‘Both are remarkable for their lack of social and ethical judgment. Both neglect long-term consequences of their actions, choosing immediate gratification over careful planning.’ [2]
Brain dysfunction supports the evidence that they may look human but for all intents and purposes they act in ways that are anti-human. Or, as psychotherapist Amos A. Gunsburg describes it, they are “humanoids” mimicking those with conscience:
Mankind has spent centuries trying to make sense of these creatures as some form of human being. All in vain. Not only in vain, but at enormous on-going cost to our civilization. These creatures are not human beings gone wrong. They are a different species … dedicated to the murder of human values … as a prelude to the murder of human beings … e.g., the tactics used by Nazis, past and present.
They laugh at us. They say: “No one understands us. People can’t put themselves in the minds of men who act without a conscience. They try to understand, but they can’t.”
These creatures do not THINK human. They do not SPEAK human. They do not know what it is to BE human. We classify them as “humanoid.”
Yes, they have human form. If we manage to resist their onslaught long enough, we will eventually develop technical scanning equipment which will measure how different they are from human beings, despite their similarity of form. In the meantime, the quality of our lives … and often our very lives … depends on our recognizing these creatures for what they are, and taking steps to neutralize their attempts to destroy us. [3]
If you are thinking that the above is way too harsh – then you are not getting it. It is exactly this immediate projection of conscience onto effectively empty shells which allow entry and conquest of the soul.
It really is that profound.
It is also important to note that we must not adopt the same psychopathic traits in order to oust the “humanoids” in our midst. The only way we can reduce the effects of psychopathic actions is to build our awareness of the problem so that we set in motion a new social contract that would prevent psychopaths from assuming positions of responsibility and power. Prevention seems to be the key and that comes from a strong knowledge base. The lessons of history show us very clearly what we have repeatedly failed to do: prevent unhealthy conditions arising which attract and thereby foster pathological infection. Once taken root as an individual and collective “dance” between the predator and prey, there is usually only one conclusion – the dissolution of the organism, whether it be an individual, community or nation.
We know that psychopaths take special pleasure in cheating, deceiving, lying and manipulating. Indeed, it is this drive that informs much of the psychopath’s reason for engaging with his victim. Prolonging this dance saps the emotional energy from an individual or group leading to innumerable states of negative emotion vital to the game. The psychopath is then able to extract the maximum quotient of energy from the suffering which amounts to a massive endorphin rush. The bigger the potential for emotional drama the greater the “hit”, which means it’s also important to recognise the power of bio-chemicals in the “dance” between the normal person and the primary narcissist and psychopath. The greater the deception, the bigger the high.
One might say that psychopaths are addicted to extracting psycho-spiritual nutrients of those with conscience.
Dopamine is one such neurochemical that plays a part in all sexual activity. It is involved in the pleasurable high that is experienced during orgasm and activates the reward circuitry in the brain. Just as the drug addict craves his drug of choice to release the dopamine rush, this operates in a similar way when we become attached, dependent or “addicted” to someone who gives us the same rush.
The neurochemical that is responsible for “love” bonding is oxytocin, which is released into the bloodstream during sex. It is a fascinating bonding hormone associated with nurturing and affection. Present in women in higher quantities than men, this hormone is also linked to emotional and physical benefits which include the healing of wounds and the tranquilising effect that can help us in times of stress. Breast-feeding stimulates oxytocin production in both mother and child while the connection between milk production and oxytocin promotes the mother-baby bond. During sex the chemical is stimulated by the female hormone oestrogen and enhances its effect, whereas with men, the opposite is the case, where testosterone dampens down production. (This may explain why women want to cuddle up after sex and talk and men become drowsy and switch off). However, despite glowing reviews of the benefits of oxytocin, it is not a panacea.
Psychologist Shelley E. Taylor, PhD and her work on oxytocin shows that the hormone may also “enhance negative social cues.” Taylor found that “…oxytocin rises not only in women who are in good, affectionate relationships, but also in women who have distressed relationships. In the latter case … oxytocin may be signalling the need to seek other social contact.” In other words, it is not saying stay close to that person but stay close to someone, anyone as long as that oxytocin high is maintained. The Doctor gives some salutary advice on this point: “It’s never a good idea to map a psychological profile onto a hormone; they don’t have psychological profiles.” [4]
Further research from Mount Sinai School of Medicine psychologist Jennifer Bartz, PhD and her colleagues had some interesting results when they exposed men and women with border line personality disorders who often had volatile relationships to a dose of oxytocin. Data showed decreased ability to work in a team and a parallel erosion of trust compared with a placebo.[5]Chemicals seem to have a dark side which can act as a potential trap in dysfunctional relationships. Mental health is a key factor as to how those chemicals will augment or help to confuse the relationship in question. If one is a psychopath then this chemical reactions can be turbo-charged on the part of the “prey”.
Unsurprisingly, sociopaths/psychopaths and pathological narcissists seem unable to secrete the hormone in anything like the same amounts contributing to the reasons for zero empathy and high levels of manipulation that eventuate. [6] What does this say when a woman is stimulated to overflow with levels of dopamine and oxcytocin in a psychopathic partner who has a hyper-reactive dopamine reward system and a lack of oxcytocin? [7] Greater and greater need for sexual and emotional hits on the part of the psychopath while the victim is trapped to giving all by an illusion made in flesh. The vampire sucks the blood of his prey until there is nothing but an empty container; an intense biochemical bond that effectively “milks” the endocrine system of the victim and which has nothing to do with any authentic emotion but everything to do with a primal addiction. Hence the reason that so many women and men have difficulty in extricating themselves from the psychopath’s powerful sphere of influence.
It is not just the tenacious nature of the psychopath’s personality but a very real physiological pull sourced from an abnormally intense biochemical bond that clamours to be satisfied despite the abusive nature of the relationship. The pain and anxiety is however, partially ameliorated by the release of oxytocin ensuring that the victim is led down the deadly garden path for more. Frequent sex alongside a permanent state of anxiety and pressure keeps the victim trapped in a spider’s web of dependency that gradually destroys the life and soul of the individual. The psychopath begins dispensing pleasure and pain simultaneously, until that is, life becomes intolerable. Then the real fight begins for freedom, one that the psychopath sees as the disappearance of “food.” This is how the psychopath bypasses logic and rationale by essentially making an addict out of his victim.
Official Culture is loaded towards the psychopath, making it even easier to succeed in their quest to trap. Despite the victim hating the predator in her life, he nevertheless remains an object of desire she is powerless to resist without considerable outside support. When pathological or dysfunctional expressions of sexuality become the norm this further encourages psychologically compromised individuals to take advantage and propagate such deformations. Where people so often go wrong is by confusing the psychopath with a normal human being and thus misunderstanding that this has nothing to do with your explanation of the facts and logic within a given situation. The psychopath will always find ways to move the goal posts and invent reality according to his desires. Truth means nothing. It is about maintaining the bio-chemical dance and the use of any and all methods to sustain it, until that person is a husk of her former self. When that happens he simply moves on to another source to feed on. For these humanoids, there is no real distinction between a tree, a rock and a human – all are circulating objects in the psychopath’s heliocentric Universe existing as psycho-biochemical nutrition to feed his black hole of existence. Any semblance of introspection goes no further than a primal cunning of decision-making regarding how best he can quench that insatiable appetite to dominate and control.
Take one psychopath who was interviewed by Robert Hare’s team who was happy to share his thoughts on this point: “The first thing I do is I size you up. I look for an angle, an edge, figure out what you need and give it to you. Then it’s pay-back time, with interest. I tighten the screws.’ Another admitted that he never targeted attractive women – he was only interested in those who were insecure and lonely. He claimed he could smell a needy person ‘the way a pig smells truffles.’” [8]
The data at present suggests that kind, vulnerable and “giving” women are particularly targeted by these individuals, though it is more than conceivable that men can be equally targeted by the female version in the right setting. Because of his talents for mimicry and an almost psychic knowledge of the emotional profile of his prey, it is easy to insinuate himself into the lives of those naturally trusting. When caught manipulating the truth or blatantly lying, it matters little: “…they are seldom perplexed or embarrassed – they simply change their stories or attempt to rework the facts so that they appear to be consistent with the lie. The results are a series of contradictory statements and a thoroughly confused listener.” [9] What makes matters far worse for the victim is that he has no remorse for his actions, with “… a stunning lack of concern for the devastating effects their actions have on others. Often they are completely forthright about the matter, calmly stating that they have no sense of guilt, [and] are not sorry for the pain and destruction they have caused [which] is associated with a remarkable ability to rationalize their behavior.” [10]
Since they see no flaws in sense of self, they see no reason to change. According to their own pathological egotism, they can do no wrong. And it is from this realisation that metaphysician, historian and author Laura Knight-Jadczyk makes this chilling set of speculations:
Anyone who has ever observed a cat playing with a mouse before killing and eating it has probably explained to themselves that the cat is just “entertained” by the antics of the mouse and is unable to conceive of the terror and pain being experienced by the mouse, and the cat, therefore, is innocent of any evil intent. The mouse dies, the cat is fed, and that is nature. Psychopaths don’t generally eat their victims.
Yes, in extreme cases the entire cat and mouse dynamic is carried out and cannibalism has a long history wherein it was assumed that certain powers of the victim could be assimilated by eating some particular part of them. But in ordinary life, psychopaths and narcissists don’t go all the way, so to say. This causes us to look at the cat and mouse scenarios again with different eyes. Now we ask: is it too simplistic to think that the innocent cat is merely entertained by the mouse running about and frantically trying to escape? Is there something more to this dynamic than meets the eye? Is there something more than being “entertained” by the antics of the mouse trying to flee? After all, in terms of evolution, why would such behavior be hard-wired into the cat? Is the mouse tastier because of the chemicals of fear that flood his little body?Is a mouse frozen with terror more of a “gourmet” meal?
This suggests that we ought to revisit our ideas about psychopaths with a slightly different perspective. One thing we do know is this: many people who experience interactions with psychopaths and narcissists report feeling “drained” and confused and often subsequently experience deteriorating health. Does this mean that part of the dynamic, part of the explanation for why psychopaths will pursue ‘love relationships’ and ‘friendships’ that ostensibly can result in no observable material gain, is because there is an actual energy consumption?
We do not know the answer to this question. We observe, we theorize, we speculate and hypothesize. But in the end, only the individual victim can determine what they have lost in the dynamic – and it is often far more than material goods. In a certain sense, it seems that psychopaths are soul eaters or ‘Psychophagic.’ [Emphasis mine] [11]
And “soul-eaters” comes closest to the place which psychopaths have in our civilisation, and the social and cultural inheritance they have inspired. They are the progenitors of evil alluded to in so many ancient wisdom texts which intuitively grasped the meaning thought without the science of neuropsychology to back it up. If there is indeed a chemical and “energy” component to the interaction with psychopaths then the dimensions of their predatory dynamics may expand into areas we simply do not yet understand. Nevertheless, we must guard against their encroachments with the seriousness of a scientist dealing with an explosive device or a highly contagious disease.
Perhaps then we may understand how it is that humanity has gone so far down the road to chaos.
The following extract is from the book by clinical psychologist Martha Stout called The Sociopath Next Door. (Stout uses “sociopath” in place of psychopath). Her eloquent appraisal of the psychopath’s mind goes right to the heart of why we must educate ourselves and the consequences for society and its direction if we don’t:
Imagine – if you can – not having a conscience, none at all, no feelings of guilt or remorse no matter what you do, no limiting sense of concern for the well-being of strangers, friends, or even family members. Imagine no struggles with shame, not a single one in your whole life, no matter what kind of selfish, lazy, harmful, or immoral action you had taken. And pretend that the concept of responsibility is unknown to you, except as a burden others seem to accept without question, like gullible fools. Now add to this strange fantasy the ability to conceal from other people that your psychological makeup is radically different from theirs. Since everyone simply assumes that conscience is universal among human beings, hiding the fact that you are conscience-free is nearly effortless. You are not held back from any of your desires by guilt or shame, and you are never confronted by others for your cold-bloodedness. The ice water in your veins is so bizarre, so completely outside of their personal experience, that they seldom even guess at your condition.
In other words, you are completely free of internal restraints, and your unhampered liberty to do just as you please, with no pangs of conscience, is conveniently invisible to the world. You can do anything at all, and still your strange advantage over the majority of people, who are kept in line by their consciences will most likely remain undiscovered.
How will you live your life? What will you do with your huge and secret advantage, and with the corresponding handicap of other people (conscience)? The answer will depend largely on just what your desires happen to be, because people are not all the same. Even the profoundly unscrupulous are not all the same. Some people – whether they have a conscience or not – favor the ease of inertia, while others are filled with dreams and wild ambitions. Some human beings are brilliant and talented, some are dull-witted, and most, conscience or not, are somewhere in between. There are violent people and nonviolent ones, individuals who are motivated by blood lust and those who have no such appetites. […]
Provided you are not forcibly stopped, you can do anything at all. If you are born at the right time, with some access to family fortune, and you have a special talent for whipping up other people’s hatred and sense of deprivation, you can arrange to kill large numbers of unsuspecting people. With enough money, you can accomplish this from far away, and you can sit back safely and watch in satisfaction. [Emphasis mine] [12]
Far from being the kind of criminal psychopaths who are the serial killers of celluloid, the real destroyers of civilisation are the garden variety humanoids you might find in everyday life. What Stout describes above is exactly what characterises most of the Establishment institutions of our day. High level psychopaths corral the public into perpetual wars, economic insanity and repetitive social policies devoid of imagination and creativity but replete with CoIntelpro programs appealing to all social classes and psychological profiles. Power must be maintained for a minority and power for its own sake is the psychopath’s aphrodisiac.
When you have established a network of hierarchical systems over a considerable period of time, it is relatively easy to inculcate normal people towards a pathological perception of reality, thus giving more and more protection to a burgeoning psychopathic elite. Robert Hare makes this pertinent observation: “Try to imagine someone who seeks power for no reason other than to have power, or someone who deceives just to experience the delight of having done so. Or someone who tortures another person physically or emotionally for the enjoyment of watching them suffer. Imagine someone doing these things, and not losing a moment of sleep at night (zero remorse).” And most importantly: “… add to all this, the ability to conceal themselves from an extremely naive public”. [13]
We are like a herd of wildebeest being observed by crocodiles from the deep water, or a grazing herd of gazelles under the eyes of cheetahs crouching in the grass. The thrill of the chase (the act of deceiving) is just as thrilling to the essential psychopath as the final kill, whether literal or not. As psychologist Dr. Anna C. Salter mentions: “Deception is not just a by-product of deviant activities for the psychopath; often it is the main event.” [14]
There are many methods by which the psychopath quarries its prey just as there are variations of psychopaths and psychopathic tendencies. They are acutely aware that they are different to normal people and disturbingly enough: “… learn to recognize each other in a crowd as early as childhood… develop[ing] an awareness of the existence of other individuals similar to them.” [15] A narcissistic culture helps maintain the camouflage of psychopathy by erecting ego-fed barriers against anyone who has been duped or fooled by the psychopath. That is, people would rather go along with the manipulation and herd mentality rather than admit what they intuitively feel to be right. Moreover, a mass psychosis akin to the psychological impairment of “Stockholm syndrome” where the abused comes to love their abuser may well be in operation.
Our own collective self-importance is proving to be a boon in protecting evil. When built from a foundation of fear and insecurity cherished beliefs are wide open to being torn down at some point along the trajectory of pathocratic inculcation and are an essential part of the fall of Empires. Such an event can be extremely painful and can cause extreme cognitive dissonance in the victim when embroiled in the psychopath’s deadly games. This is why self-knowledge must replace ignorance on this issue, as much for a person’s potential to grow and expand their awareness as it is for society as a whole to get past beliefs which allow evil to continue undeterred.
There are also a number of secondary psychopaths that exhibit the same traits, though with modifications. These include being prone to stress, worry or guilt and the avoidance of pain. In other words: the obstruction of their formidable desires. They have vestigial conscience which is eclipsed by the lure of vicarious temptations the satisfaction of which forms the core reason for their lives. There are those who are governed by powerful sex drives and unpredictable rages where the endorphin rush leads them to risk-taking and any illicit or illegal indulgence. Others prey on the victims using charisma and charm with the ability to attract as if casting a spell. Lies and almost supernatural persuasion are an integral part of the psychopath’s emotional weaponry. They are often irresistible which is why so many women fall prey to their machinations. (Though there are also female psychopaths the data at the present time suggests the number is lower. However, this may be due to cultural camouflage and natural discourse of disbelief regarding the idea of female psychopathy as we shall see). [16]
As discussed, there are still those who posit that the psychopath can be cured or that it is the environment that is a defining factor in producing primary or essential psychopathy. Such approaches are not in alignment with the facts however, and play right into their hands. Most psychopaths would gladly support such an approach and greedily use new curative processes as a means to pull the wool over the eyes of their assigned psychologists that they “getting better” or have “miraculously changed.” The statistical truth shows a different story. Scores of studies have repeated the same findings which show that the attempts to cure psychopaths merely gives them new and useful psychological information which they use to dupe their therapists and future victims. [17] The very notion of psychotherapy in this context could be erroneous from the outset as one journalist mentioned: “It is the conscience, and the related capacity for concern for others, that drives the serious scrutiny of one’s motives, which underlie one’s behaviour. Yet psychopaths lack conscience and concern by definition.” [18]
Faulty wiring in the brain and a suitable set of genetic indicators may denote a condition that is incurable because it is natural for that person. However, such individuals may respond to medication whilst steps are taken to make sure that they live their lives away from positions of responsibility and influence.
To underestimate the depths to which the psychopath is prepared to go to achieve his or her aims is to assist the fulfilment of their primal desires. The emergence of psychopathy in any given culture has profound implications for the future psychological health. We have seen the effects of a critical mass of psychopaths who hijack centres of power to create a Pathocracy. Such a process does not lend itself to simplistic appraisals. It may be sometime before we can truly understand the trajectory of evil and how it manages to maintain its freedom and impunity.
Robert Hare reiterates this point in the following extract:
It is true that the childhoods of some psychopaths were characterized by material and emotional deprivation and physical abuse, but for every adult psychopath from a troubled background there is another whose family life apparently was warm and nurturing, and whose siblings are normal, conscientious people with the ability to care deeply for others. Furthermore, most people who had horrible childhoods do not become psychopaths or callous killers. Illuminating as they may be in other areas of human development, the arguments that children subjected to abuse and violence become abusive and violent adults are of limited value here. There are deeper, more elusive explanations of why and how psychopathy emerges[19]
One thing we can say for sure, is that humanity is gradually waking up to the predator in our midst. And for that reason alone, the future has more possibilities and thus more hope.
[1] Psychopaths’ brains ‘different’ BBC News, December 2006.
[2] ‘The Psychopath’s Brain – Tormented Souls, Diseased Brains’by Renato M.E. Sabbatini, PhD, 1998 Universidade Estadual de Campinas. Brain & Mind Magazine, Campinas, Brazil, Center for Biomedical Informatics.
[3] ‘Beyond Sanity’ By Amos M. Gunsberg, founder of the School for Quality Being Psych News International, Vol. 2 Issue 5.
[4] ‘Oxytocin’s other side’ By Beth Azar American Psychological Association, March 2011, Vol 42, No. 3 page 40.
[6] Thanks, Mom!’ by Tiffany O’Callaghan, ‘Time Magazine, June 7, 2010.
[7] ‘Psychopaths’ Brains Wired to Seek Rewards, No Matter the Consequences’ Science Daily, Mar. 14, 2010.
[8] op.cit. Hare (p.147)
[10] Ibid. (p.42)
[11] ‘The Psychopath – The Mask of Sanity’ by Laura Knight-Jadczyk and members of the Quantum Future School; a Special Research Project of the Quantum Future School. http://www.cassiopaea.com.
[12] Stout (p.1-2)
[14] (p.123) Predators: Pedophiles, Rapists, And Other Sex Offenders (2004) By Anna C. Salter
[15] (p.151) Political Ponerology Lobaczewski
[16] Abnormal Behavior, Sixth Edition, by David, Derald, and Stanley, 2000. “The American Psychiatric Association that the general estimate is 3 percent for men, and less than 1percent in women [Personality Disorders and Impulse Control Disorders, 238].
[17] ‘Beyond therapy: Some evil can’t be cured’, by Norman Doidge, National Post, January 07, 2000. “…a recent Canadian study on group treatment for 238 sex offenders (rapists, incest offenders) from Warkworth penitentiary in Ontario… includ[ing] some well-documented psychopaths. All were taught to “empathize” with victims, and understand their “offence cycle” as part of treatment. After their release, it was found that those who had scored highest in terms of “good treatment behaviour” and who had the highest empathy” scores were the more likely to reoffend on release into the community. […]The important study by Seto and Barbaree replicated — unintentionally — a 1992 Canadian study that found treated psychopaths reoffend more than psychopaths who are not treated. A larger study, just completed in Britain, shows the same. It may be that all psychopaths learn, in our new ersatz empathy institutes, is how to manipulate better by appearing more caring.”
[19] op. cit. Hare (p.5)
Posted in Health, Psychology, Psychopathy and tagged "soul-eaters", Addiction, biochemicals, brain, British Journal of Psychiatry, co-dependency, conscience, ego, Elite, Mount Sinai School of Medicine, Narcissism, neurochemicals, neurology, oxytocin, pathocracy, Pathology, predator, psychiatry, psychopath, psychopathology, psychophagic, sex, Society on January 31, 2014 by M.K. Styllinski. 1 Comment
Pornucopia: The Cult of the Body III
Teledildonics: Sex through skype
Consider this sensate vision of a Brave New World from technology expert Marshall Brain, a vision that is far from fantasy, rather, very close to being a reality in the not so distant future.
An interactive experience called the Vertebrane system is an extremely powerful wireless computer system “…manufactured so that it replaces one of the upper cervical vertebrae in your spine. A small fuel cell is packaged with the computer, and it uses glucose in the blood for power.” The technology would allow the brain to be able to smell, taste, touch and hear everything experienced by your in-game body, where sensations like balance, muscle position, pleasure and pain would mimic your biological body in precise ways. The ease of use and invisibility of such a system provides endless possibilities for virtual sex:
Vertebrane system installs shunts into every nerve pathway connecting to your brain. That happens both with sensory nerve fibers heading toward the brain and with a muscle control fibers heading out. Then the Vertebrane system can disconnect your brain from your biological body and connect it to an in-game body in a completely natural and realistic way. Your virtual in-game body is your body as far as your brain is concerned, and your immersion in the game is complete. […] Vertebrane porn will so completely overshadow the porn that we see in our world today that, for many, porn will transform into a necessity. The quality of Vertebrane porn will lure millions of today’s porn users to install Vertebrane systems in their bodies. Porn will be a constant part of the daily lives of a significant percentage of the population. […] [1]
As the virtual world increases, for those with cash to create it, it may well be that they will become progressively tuned out from reality in favour of a purely subjective one: pseudo lives existing to escape from the real. Those with money will have blancmange for brains while those without will continue the mad struggle to survive. Do not assume that this is from the minds of over enthusiastic futurists. Apparently, this “hyper-reality” will be available for budding escapees within a decade, if not sooner.
At the lower end of the market the subtly named Teledildonics [2] shows a portal for the latest advances in virtual sex and which according to this site, is “poised to take the world by storm the next few years.” The writer believes: “…while technology will allow for full-body suits which stimulate all five senses, the first generation of teledildonic devices will be much simpler. The hardware currently being developed by several manufactures consist of a device that you would strap onto your pelvic region. The first TD devices will be automatic penis stimulators which connect to your computer via a cable so that software running on your machine can control the motions of the device.” [3]
Clicking on the so called sponsor of the site takes you to “Virtual Sex Machine: The Future of Virtual Sex” from Pennsylvania based company Virtual Reality Innovations Inc. In their FAQ section we are treated to the so called erotic delights of this piece of hardware where “The Virtual Sex Machine connects to a PC’s parallel port and will respond to software triggers on an erotic CD ROM to mimic the action on screen. This will, according to the makers, allow for “long distance relationships to advance to a higher level.” [4]
President of Simulate Entertainment, a company that is making large profits from Internet-connected sex devices, believes that “This is not something that just the lunatic fringe does,” adding that: “The Iraq war…was kind of a boom for our company.” (Since the porn ridden US military is well used to introducing its “seductive” democracy amid blood and corpses this should go down very well indeed.) [5]
Though virtual technology seems some way from reaching the Vertebrane levels of emptiness, the industry is apparently gaining in strength day by day towards a more “multi-sensual experience of virtual sex,” as one researcher gushed. Fusing explicit video imagery with real-life tactile sensation or eliciting pleasure receptors in the brain, there are those working to make it a reality.
Marvin Minsky, a professor emeritus at MIT believes direct brain manipulation is not so far-fetched: “It’s bound to happen … and is not as far off as some people think. They are doing things with monkeys but it is not a big world-class industry yet, so that could take 20-30 years.”… “But if the game [industry] people got involved in some underdeveloped country that didn’t have any laws against it, it could all happen twice as fast.” [6]
Researchers at the University of York’s Audio Laboratory had success in using crossmodal attention affects (the addition of smell, taste and touch into the virtual reality experience) in order to heighten the realism of virtual sex to partners separated by distance. According to one article: “They’ve even considered employing a mouthpiece to simulate different textures against the tongue and mouth — for virtual food chewing, they claim.”
But of course, this technology won’t be relegated to wholesome exploits of food chewing. This will be first tracked to a porn world expansion, the likes of which will take us further and further into disconnection. Or, as the author states: They’ll embrace simulated celebrities, impossible anime bodies and fetishes previously only imagined. This virtual hedonaut will reach out with a haptic glove, stare into programmed eyes and touch flesh that exists as little more than a dream.”
As the technology continues to develop whole new virtual communities will appear dedicated to a new kind of social simulation. In fact, it’s already here. According to virtualsex.com you can “Get paid real money to have virtual sex!” The home page of the website continues:
Red Light Center (RLC) is a virtual world for adults modeled after the famous Red Light District of Amsterdam. Since it first opened in 2006 RLC has become an adult community boasting over 8,000,000 users worldwide.
Red Light Center is a virtual adult playground containing everything a Red Light District contains in real life: nightclubs, bars, strip joints and highly detailed virtual sex clubs. These range from small stylish bars to BDSM areas and swinger’s clubs. By using the menus on the screen, users can engage in virtual sex.
Real people are needed to fill these virtual sex clubs, and they get paid by the customers for providing virtual sex services. These are “Working Girls/Guys,” and they can make a LOT of money!
If you have experience as a phone sex operator or a webcam model, you’ll be a natural “Working Girl/Guy,” but if you are new and have never done any type of sex work before, don’t worry! You can get all the personal support you’ll need to get started.
“A whole new way to have sex,” for sure. But is it ultimately a healthy way? Now that Google Glass has offered an app which enables us to view each others love-making and sexual exploits we are well on the road to a virtuality that will make the selfie narcissism of today seem positively quaint.
Pornography may be used to release tension and to fuel desire. It may be used as entertainment in a regulated environment, or, it could be a tool that can tip the balance from fantasy to reality. Although the definitive link between pornography and crime has not been found, it seems that with sexual crime it is often either lurking in the background or is part of the fantasies of the perpetrator. As one Professor of criminology put it: “Pornography does not represent a blueprint for rape but is essentially an aphrodisiac, that is, food for the sexual fantasy of persons mostly males who like to masturbate.” [7] It could also be said that use of pornography might cause rape by allowing the increase in likelihood of those already inclined to rape to commit such a crime, which in turn, could increase the incidence, overall.
One of many quantitative studies which evaluated 12,000 participants concluded that “exposure to pornography puts viewers at increased risk for developing sexually deviant tendencies, committing sexual offences, experiencing difficulties in intimate relationships, and accepting the rape myth.”[8] (Rape myth refers to most people’s perceptions that the attacks are based on sexual desire rather than power and control)
A sadist who repeatedly suffocated his nine year old stepson had this to say in an interview: “After about two years of molesting my son, and all the pornography I had been buying, renting, swapping, I had got my hands on some bondage discipline pornography with children involved. Some of the reading that I had done and the pictures that I had seen showed total submission. Forcing the children to do what I wanted. And I had eventually started to using some of this bondage and discipline with my own son.” [9]
And from a power rapist: “At first my fantasies were of consensual sex when I was masturbating. When I first started out. And they stopped to where I was reading pornography. I was thinking while watching this pornography, women, the way they posed in this pornography, women liked it rough. Women wanted it rougher. And I would get rougher with my victims and I would get more excited by that.” [10]
This suggests that pornography, if not a deciding factor, played a large part in increasing the already distorted perceptions of the rapist and thus speeding up the process. To prove such causative links with laboratory precision will remain a problem.
Though keeping labels of “liberal,” “conservative” and “radical feminism” out of the mix is not easy, what we know about neurology supports the data that exposure to violent pornography can significantly enhance an individual’s arousal in response to the portrayal of rape. “Entertainment” which depicts sexual violence against women can and does act as a stimulus for aggressive acts against women, and at the very minimum, a greater acceptance of the aforementioned ‘rape-myths’ that feed into the underlying idea of women as objects available to abuse and degrade. The end result is a highly distorted view of sexuality and the further relegation of love and intimacy into the distant background.
The issue may not be that standard pornography is “evil” and induces abuse, rape and general mayhem rather that the nature of the effects may be more of a psycho-spiritual corrosion. Erotica could be said to be respectful artistic expression, free of sexism, racism, and homophobia. It could be said to “arouse” appreciation of beauty rather than the reflex of base, chemical desire and the reaffirmation of stereotypes.
Hard core porn cannot be said to be anything other than the opiate fix with a persistent devaluation of both the male and feminine principle, where cultural clichés inform its basic expression. These precepts may encourage a psychological distortion in the young as to what is to be considered “arousing” and “liberating” leading to an undue emphasis on the body, its instincts while adding to the difficulties in forming normal relationships.
While workers in sex technology sing the praises of such instruments they neglect to understand the addictive quality for those already alienated in increasingly disconnected societies that maybe craving more than virtual stimulation, but true intimacy. Like the misunderstanding of love and sex, this merely takes us further into the hinterlands of confusion where nothing is genuine; where sex seeks to be permanently divorced from authentic experience and loving relations. Yet research continues to squeeze out cash from our diverted sexual energies.
As the world becomes more destabilized and uncertain, virtual realities – and especially auto-erotic ones – will become an important means to escape. What’s more, it will become normalised.
[1] ‘The Day You Discard Your Body’ Chapter 12 , ‘The Lure of Porn’ by Marshall Brain, marshallbrain.com, 2005.
[2] Teledildonics /tel`*-dil-do’-niks/ /n./ Sex in a computer simulated virtual reality, esp. computer-mediated sexual interaction between the VR presences of two humans.
[3] http://www.teledildonics.com
[4] http://www.vrinnovations.com
[5] ‘US troops upload photos of dead Iraqis for porn’ The Independent, By Andrew Gumbel, 29 September 2005.
[6] ‘The Multi -Virtual Reality of Sex’ by Adam Tanner, Reuters, Apr 17, 2006.
[7] ‘Pornography, Sex Crime and Public Policy ‘By Berl Kutchinsky, Professor of Criminology, Institute of Criminology and Criminal Science University of Copenhagen, Denmark. May 1991.
[8] ‘Pornography – Dangerous to Viewers’ March 13 2002 – Dr. Elizabeth Oddone-Paolucci and Dr. Mark Genuis, researchers at the National Foundation for Family Research and Education, are co-authors of the study published in the scientific journal Mind, Medicine and Adolescence.
[9] (p.92) Predators: Pedophiles, Rapists, and Other Sex Offenders By Anna C. Salter. Published by Basic books, 2004. | ISBN-10: 0465071732.
Posted in Health, Social Engineering, Technocracy, Technology and tagged adult toys, biochemicals, crime, Google Glass, internet porn, opiate, porn, pornography, red light center, sex, sex industry, sexuality, soft porn, teledildonics, vertebrane, Virtuality, voyeurism on January 24, 2014 by M.K. Styllinski. Leave a comment
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11166
|
__label__cc
| 0.664904
| 0.335096
|
Holliston Car Accident Lawyer
The Massachusetts Executive Office of Public Safety and Security indicates that over 300,000 people have been injured in motor vehicle accidents in the state since 2010. While Boston is clearly the leader in terms of population density in our area, a significant number of Massachusetts residents live in the area immediately to the west of Boston, often referred to as the “MetroWest.” Holliston, Massachusetts is a town in the MetroWest with a population of almost 15,000 people located in Middlesex County. Only 21 miles from the city, Holliston has a significant number of residents that commute to and from Boston each day for work. In addition, Holliston does not have a public transit system that connects it to Boston and the surrounding communities, forcing residents to be very dependent on their cars. Holliston is easily accessible from Interstate 195 and the Massachusetts Turnpike, and State Routes 16 and 126 pass directly through the town.
Car accidents can leave victims with significant injuries
When motor vehicle accidents happen, the forces involved can often be tremendous. In some cases, drivers and passengers can be thrown from their vehicles and come into contact with the ground or another car or truck, potentially causing further injury. Even when vehicle occupants stay inside of their car, they can often strike objects or surfaces within the vehicle causing equally serious injury. Among the most common injuries car include:
Facial fractures
Neurological injuries
Determining fault is one of the most important issues after a Massachusetts car accident. Under the tort law of our state, people who are injured by another’s negligent act or omission can often recover for their losses by filing a legal claim against the negligent party or parties. Common sources of legal liability in car accident cases include other drivers, car manufacturers, non-vehicle commuters using the roadways, and government agencies that are responsible for road construction and maintenance. While negligent conduct may sometimes be apparent, in other cases it may take significant investigation to uncover. The assistance of an attorney can invaluable to car accident victims seeking financial recovery, and often can have a significant impact in the ultimate outcome of a case. Often, insurance companies or other parties will try and offer unrepresented parties an unreasonably low settlement offer in exchange for victims giving up their right to sue.
Contact a Holliston car accident lawyer today to schedule a free consultation
Individuals who have been injured in a Holliston car accident can often recover significant financial compensation for their injuries and other associated losses. Among the kinds of damages that are often available in a Massachusetts car accident case are those for past, current, and future medical expenses, lost income, loss of quality of life, and damage to property, among others. Attorney Daniel Cappetta and his team of experienced personal injury lawyers are committed to helping the victims other others’ negligence obtain justice through the civil court system. To schedule a free initial consultation with an attorney, call our office today at (508) 969-9505 or complete our online contact form available here.
Holliston Car Accident Lawyer | Middlesex County Auto Injury Attorneys
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11167
|
__label__cc
| 0.582196
| 0.417804
|
Funeral service for Clayton Lane Bruntjen
A funeral service will be held for Clayton Lane Bruntjen at 11 a.m. Wednesday, Feb 11, at Hosanna Lutheran Church in St. Charles, Ill. The church is located at 36W925 Red Gate Road.
A Wake Forest junior, Clayton died unexpectedly Feb. 5 at his off-campus residence.
Visitation will be from 3 p.m. to 9 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 10, at the church. Prior to the service, visitation will be held also from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m. on Wednesday at the church.
A luncheon will follow the funeral.
If a memorial service is scheduled at a later date at Wake Forest, the University will announce the details.
For those grieving at Wake Forest, the University offers assistance to all. The Counseling Center may be reached at 758-5273. The Chaplain’s Office may be reached at 758-5210. For faculty and staff, there is also the Employee Assistance Program at 716-5493. Please do not hesitate to seek support.
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11168
|
__label__wiki
| 0.93723
| 0.93723
|
www.metamorphic.org.uk
Metamorphic are a contemporary song-based jazz/folk sextet who play original music composed by pianist Laura Cole. The group’s second album, Coalescence, was released on the F-ire label in June 2013 to critical acclaim, garnering 4 star reviews from the likes of John Fordham in the Guardian, Peter Quinn at Jazzwise, and Brian Morton at Jazz Journal; Brian Morton later named Coalescence as his Album of the Year 2013. The album has received radio play on Jazz on 3 and Late Junction. Metamorphic were selected by Jazz on 3, along with three other bands, to play at the Manchester Jazz Festival on the BBC Introducing Stage in 2013, and have also played at the Jazz on 3 night Jazz In The Round, the QEH Foyer, as well as appearing regularly at The Vortex. Metamorphic toured with Norwegian vocal trio Royst in the UK last year, which was PRS supported. The sextet will be playing at The Crypt in Camberwell this June, The Marlborough Jazz Festival in July and Kings Place in December in a double bill with The John Martin Quartet.
Metamorphic are: Chris Williams, alto (Led Bib); John Martin, tenor/soprano (The John Martin Quartet); Kerry Andrew, vocals (Juice); Tom Greenhalgh, drums (World Sanguine Report); Paul Sandy, double bass (The Dead Victorians); Seth Bennet, double bass; Laura Cole, piano/composer/arranger (Engine Room Favourites)
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11170
|
__label__wiki
| 0.855796
| 0.855796
|
My Side of the Mountain
Sam leaves home for the mountains after being told that the family trip has been canceled, preventing him from doing the algae experiments he had planned for. The film chronicles his struggle for independence, and his battle with the forces of natures.
"A slender, honest study of a boy learning to be a man in his own way." - Howard Thompson, The New York Times
James B. Clark
Danny McIlravey, Frank Perry, Gina Dick, Paul Hebert, Peggi Loder, Ralph Endersby, Teddy Eccles, Theodore Bikel, Tom Harvey, Tudi Wiggins
Movies > Classic Cinema
Movies > Drama
Mean Creek 90 mins Sam (Rory Culkin) can't seem to forget the day he was beaten at school by the class bully, George. His teenage brother Rocky won't let…
Megan Leavey 117 mins A film based on the true life story of a young marine corporal (Kate Mara) whose unique discipline and bond with her military combat dog…
Megan Leavey
Explorers 110 mins In their makeshift laboratory, three boys (Ethan Hawke, River Phoenix and Jason Presson) use an amazing discovery and their ingenuity to build their own spaceship…
Danny Collins 107 mins Inspired by a true story, Al Pacino stars as aging 1970s rocker Danny Collins, who can't give up his hard-living ways. But when his manager…
Danny Collins
Storm Boy 99 mins Michael Kingley (Geoffrey Rush), a successful retired businessman and grandfather recounts to his grand-daughter the story of how, as a boy, he rescued and raised…
The Man Who Invented Christmas 105 mins This is the story of the magical journey that led to the creation of Ebenezer Scrooge (Christopher Plummer), Tiny Tim and other classic characters from…
The Man Who Invented Christmas
Fanny's Journey - Le voyage de Fanny 95 mins Based on a true story, FANNY'S JOURNEY is an incredible tale of bravery, strength and survival, a story of a daring young girl. In 1943,…
Fanny's Journey - Le voyage de Fanny
The Thief Of Bagdad
Kino Lorber
School of Life - L'école buissonnière
Distrib Films
Good Deed Entertainment
The Golden Head
Outcast of the Islands
NYX Channel
Albion: The Enchanted Stallion
Yamasong - March of the Hollows
Frog Dreaming - The Quest
Umbrella Entertainment
Swallows and Amazons
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11177
|
__label__cc
| 0.55736
| 0.44264
|
Breeders’ Cup Classic: How To Bet $100
Filed Under:Breeders' Cup Classic, Horse Racing, How I'd Bet $100, Kevin Martin
By Kevin Martin
This year’s Triple Crown winner, Justify, retired in the summer due to an injury, so he won’t be among the 14 starters in this Saturday’s Breeders Cup Classic at Churchill Downs. While the race might not have its big-name superstar, it’s full of talented runners and plenty of gambling options. It’ll be a great race to place a wager.
Two talented entries with a shot to win at a square price are Yoshida and Catholic Boy. Catholic Boy has won twice at the 1 1/4 mile distance of the Classic. After a series of high-class scores on the turf, Yoshida scored in his only career race on dirt when he won the Grade 1 Woodward in his most recent start. With odds that could hover around 10-1, they will offer value for their backers should either hit the wire first on Saturday.
Bob Baffert won’t have his Triple Crown winner, but he has two starters, in West Coast and McKinzie, with the potential to give the trainer his fourth Breeders’ Cup Classic win in the last five years. Baffert has been targeting the Classic since the summer, and he enters the race with a well-rested pair in peak form.
The $100 Breeders’ Cup Classic Bet
I think either Yoshida and Catholic Boy could score at square odds, but I give a slight edge to Catholic Boy, since he has two wins at the Classic distance. I will use half of my $100 bankroll for a $50 win bet on his nose.
I’ll use the remainder of the bankroll on a $2 trifecta box using Catholic Boy, Yoshida, West Coast, and McKinzie. The total cost on that bet will be $48 ($2 x 24 possible outcomes = $48). If any of my four selections finish first, second, and third in any order, the trifecta bet will be a winner.
The best case scenario for this $100 bet would be if Catholic Boy wins and the second and third positions are filled out by Yoshida and either West Coast or McKinzie.
>>MORE: Breeders’ Cup Classic: No Justify, But Bob Baffert Returns With Talented Duo
How to Ask for the Bet
When it comes to placing the wagers proposed here, it requires some knowledge in the language of betting on horse races. When placing a bet with a live teller at a racetrack or at an off-track betting facility, you need to use the track name, race number, type and amount of the bet, and the program number(s) for the horse(s) you are playing. Another option is to bet the race online, which is legal in most states — just do your research to ensure you are betting with a reputable company. Many of the online wagering sites have information about how to place bets if you are new to the game.
Let’s start with the trifecta, it requires some precise language, so ask for it exactly like this:
“Churchill Downs race 11, $2 trifecta box, 3, 6, 7, 10” (The BC Classic is the 11th race at Churchill on Saturday, Catholic Boy, McKinzie, West Coast, and Yoshida are numbers 3, 6, 7, and 10 in the race program. The bet has a total of 24 possible outcomes, so for $2 the total cost of the bet is $48)
The win bet is easy, simply ask for:
“Churchill Downs race 11, $50 to win on the 3” (Catholic Boy is number 3 in the race program)
That’s it and with $2 to spare! Good Luck!
Post time for Saturday’s Breeders’ Cup Classic at Churchill Downs is scheduled for 5:44 ET.
For more information all 14 expected starters, check out the Hello Race Fans 2018 Breeders’ Cup Classic Cheat Sheet
Kevin Martin is the founder of the thoroughbred racing history site Colin’s Ghost.
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11179
|
__label__cc
| 0.705136
| 0.294864
|
Before you start a juice cleanse diet, know that drastically restricting your caloric intake to drop pounds may backfire: In a 2010 study, women placed on a 1,200-calorie diet for three weeks had elevated levels of cortisol, our primary stress hormone. [Tweet this fact!] Chronic stress has been associated with an increased risk of weight gain as well as coronary heart disease, hypertension, diabetes, cancer, and impaired immune functioning.
Health care experts haven't reached a consensus on the issue of vitamin and mineral supplements. Many say that if you are healthy and eat a well-balanced diet, you don't need any. But not all of us eat a well-balanced diet. And sometimes, you may follow a nutritious diet and still be deficient. Many women fail to get the adequate amount of vitamins and minerals. Stress increases your need for vitamins and minerals, especially C, B-complex and zinc.
Sleeping seven to nine hours a night for five days straight may stave off bags under your eyes as well as saddlebags on your thighs. When women get enough sleep, they don’t take in extra, unnecessary calories to stay awake, according to a study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Read: Adequate beauty rest can help you pass up pick-me-up snacks and head off added pounds.
There were also supplementation programs that targeted nonpregnant women. National supplementation programs that provided food baskets to low-income families increased maternal BMI and improved household food insecurity (92, 93). However, there were some unintended consequences. In Mexico, food transfer programs disproportionately increased weight gain in overweight women compared with underweight women (93), and 1 study in Bangladesh found that food transfers had larger impacts on men's intake than women's intake, except with less preferred foods (94). Adolescents who received protein-energy supplementation at school showed an increase in weight gain during supplementation, as well as improvements in school attendance and mathematics scores (46, 95). However, the impact of supplementation on micronutrient deficiencies and, specifically, hemoglobin concentration, was limited (46).
Frankly, looking around, it seems your choice is either a magazine that barely addresses fitness, or going straight to the hardcore muscle-building mags. I was hoping for something reasonably in-between with Women's Health, but failed to find it. If someone knows of such a magazine, I'd be interested to hear it (I tried Women's Fitness, which suffers from the same problems as Women's Health). The good news is that my subscription to Women's Health seemed to get me a good price on Men's Health, which I am switching over to because some reviewers recommended it for those disappointed with the content of WH. I'll see how that works out.
UN Women believe that violence against women "is rooted in gender-based discrimination and social norms and gender stereotypes that perpetuate such violence", and advocate moving from supporting victims to prevention, through addressing root and structural causes. They recommend programmes that start early in life and are directed towards both genders to promote respect and equality, an area often overlooked in public policy. This strategy, which involves broad educational and cultural change, also involves implementing the recommendations of the 57th session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women[146] (2013).[147][148][149] To that end the 2014 UN International Day of the Girl Child was dedicated to ending the cycle of violence.[112] In 2016, the World Health Assembly also adopted a plan of action to combat violence against women, globally.[150]
Women often received micronutrient supplements during antenatal and postnatal care (13, 35–42, 51, 60), and, as such, supplementation was often targeted to pregnant and lactating women. The delivery of micronutrient supplementation commonly occurred in health care settings for at-home consumption. Community-based antenatal care that involved home visits by community health workers was also a common delivery platform for supplementation delivery. There were some studies that reported micronutrient supplementation to adolescents, women of reproductive age, pregnant women, and women with young children outside of the antenatal care setting. These included primary health care clinics, home visits, community centers, pharmacies, and workplaces (32, 38–43, 45, 52, 53). Adolescent girls were also reached by community- and school-based programs (26, 41, 46). School-based programs were more efficacious in reducing rates of anemia among adolescent girls, compared with the community-based interventions (26, 46). However, many of the reported studies to date involved small samples of adolescents in controlled settings, and additional research is needed on the effectiveness of these programs (59, 62).
I subscribed to this in MY early 20's way back in the magazines infancy. Back when the cover photo's were black and white and most of the cover "models" were female athletes. It's changed since then, catering a little more to the "Cosmo" crowd. Which is fine, just not for me. It just doesn't feel like it applies as much to someone in their thirties married with kids as someone in their twenties who apparently has the money and lack of self-control to spend $90 on a designer t-shirt (really).
As women, many of us are prone to neglecting our own dietary needs. You may feel you’re too busy to eat right, used to putting the needs of your family first, or trying to adhere to an extreme diet that leaves you short on vital nutrients and feeling cranky, hungry, and low on energy. Women’s specific needs are often neglected by dietary research, too. Studies tend to rely on male subjects whose hormone levels are more stable and predictable, thus sometimes making the results irrelevant or even misleading to women’s needs. All this can add up to serious shortfalls in your daily nutrition.
Use MyPlate (PDF – 281 KB) as a guide to build a healthy diet. Think about filling your plate with foods from the five food groups — fruits, vegetables, grains, proteins, and dairy — at each meal. Snacks can be a good way to fill in fruits and whole grains you might have missed at meals. Most of us don’t need complicated calorie counting programs or special recipes for healthy eating.
Focus on the long term. Diets fail when people fall back into poor eating habits; maintaining weight loss over the long term is exceedingly difficult. Most people regain the weight they've lost. In fact, some studies indicate that 90 to 95 percent of all dieters regain some or all of the weight originally lost within five years. Your program should include plans for ongoing weight maintenance, involving diet, exercise and a behavioral component. While there are some physical reasons for obesity, there are also behavioral reasons for excessive eating. For example, many women use food as a source of comfort (perhaps to deal with stress). For these women, a weight loss program with a behavioral component will offer alternatives to replace food in this role.
When women reach childbearing age, they need to eat enough folate (or folic acid) to help decrease the risk of birth defects. The requirement for women who are not pregnant is 400 micrograms (mcg) per day. Including adequate amounts of foods that naturally contain folate, such as citrus fruits, leafy greens, beans and peas will help increase your intake of this B vitamin. There also are many foods that are fortified with folic acid, such as breakfast cereals, some rices and breads. Eating a variety of foods is recommended to help meet nutrient needs, but a dietary supplement with folic acid also may be necessary. This is especially true for women who are pregnant or breast-feeding, since their daily need for folate is higher, 600 mcg and 500 mcg per day, respectively. Be sure to check with your physician or a registered dietitian nutritionist before taking any supplements., .
Nutrition is particularly important when you are pregnant. Weight gain during pregnancy is normal—and it's not just because of the growing fetus; your body is storing fat for lactation. The National Academy of Sciences/Institute of Medicine (NAS/IOM) has determined that a gain of 25 to 35 pounds is desirable. However, underweight women should gain about 28 to 40 pounds, and overweight women should gain at least 15 pounds. The IOM has not given a recommendation for an upper limit for obese women, but some experts cap it as low as 13 pounds. If you fit into this category, discuss how much weight you should gain with your health care professional. Remember that pregnancy isn't the time to diet. Caloric restriction during pregnancy has been associated with reduced birth weight, which can be dangerous to the baby.
During adolescence and early adulthood, women need to consume foods rich in calcium to build peak (maximum) bone mass. This will reduce the risk of developing osteoporosis, a progressive condition where there is a loss of bone that leaves those affected more susceptible to fractures. Women also need an adequate iron intake because they lose iron through menstruation. Women also need an adequate intake of calories to support energy and nutritional needs in order for the body to function properly. The amount of calories that an individual needs varies for each person and is based on age, gender and activity level. As a general recommendation, women between 23 and 50 years of age generally need between 1,700 and 2,200 calories per day to maintain their current energy needs and body weight. Older women generally require fewer calories to support and sustain energy needs. Consuming fewer than 1,500 calories per day, even in attempts to lose weight, can put women at nutritional risk and can result in malnutrition and poor health. For more information on how to calculate one’s nutritional needs, go to www.choosemyplate.gov and insert your personal information. The 2005 Dietary Guidelines for Americans is another reference or guide to assist you in learning to eat a balanced and nutritious diet for good health.
According to the American Heart Association, it's better to eat more complex carbohydrates (vegetables, fruits and whole grains) than simple carbohydrates found in sugars. Complex carbohydrates add more fiber, vitamins and minerals to the diet than foods high in refined sugars and flour. Foods high in complex carbohydrates are usually low in calories, saturated fat and cholesterol.
The average woman should get 10 to 35 percent of her daily calories from protein. Protein helps prevent muscle tissue from breaking down and repairs body tissues. Sources of animal proteins include meat, fish, poultry, eggs, milk and cheese. Vegetable proteins include dried beans and peas, peanut butter, nuts, bread and cereal. (A three-ounce serving of cooked chicken contains about 21 grams of protein.)
While the rates of the leading causes of death, cardiovascular disease, cancer and lung disease, are similar in women and men, women have different experiences. Lung cancer has overtaken all other types of cancer as the leading cause of cancer death in women, followed by breast cancer, colorectal, ovarian, uterine and cervical cancers. While smoking is the major cause of lung cancer, amongst nonsmoking women the risk of developing cancer is three times greater than amongst nonsmoking men. Despite this, breast cancer remains the commonest cancer in women in developed countries, and is one of the more important chronic diseases of women, while cervical cancer remains one of the commonest cancers in developing countries, associated with human papilloma virus (HPV), an important sexually transmitted disease. HPV vaccine together with screening offers the promise of controlling these diseases. Other important health issues for women include cardiovascular disease, depression, dementia, osteoporosis and anemia. A major impediment to advancing women's health has been their underrepresentation in research studies, an inequity being addressed in the United States and other western nations by the establishment of centers of excellence in women's health research and large scale clinical trials such as the Women's Health Initiative.
Nutrition education interventions were often implemented in conjunction with other programs, and it was difficult to identify the effects of nutrition education alone. In addition, many studies reported on one-on-one counseling and group education, and it was not possible to differentiate the impact. The effects of nutrition education were often greater when combined with other resource-based interventions, such as micronutrient supplementation (31, 32), home gardening (28), food supplementation (33), and water provision (22). For nutrition education programs targeting mothers, those who were more educated or of higher socioeconomic status more often translated the intervention to nutritional outcomes (33). This suggests that the effectiveness of nutrition education might relate to individuals’ ability to access resources and implement information received.
Omega-3 fatty acids — essential to health and happiness, reviewed by Dr. Mary James, MD. From conception to old age, every cell in our bodies needs omega-3’s. Learn how omega-3 fatty acids benefit every body system — from the brain to the heart, breast, bones, colon, skin and more, this is one nutrient that can make all the difference to our health, our happiness, and — perhaps best of all — our longevity.
Most traditional fitness plans happen in predictable patterns that usually involve moving in two planes of motion—up and down or forward and backward—ignoring the third plane of motion, lateral. “Move your body in all directions to create the most fit, functional, and athletic physique,” Stokes says. If you're a runner, cyclist, or walker, remember to include movements such as jumping jacks, side shuffles, side lunges, and carioca (the grapevine-like move) in your warm-up or cool-down, she suggests.
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11180
|
__label__cc
| 0.662948
| 0.337052
|
Lipid-based nutrient supplement (LNS) programs are intended to enrich diets with micronutrients and essential fatty acids (97), and are often used in emergency settings to meet nutritional needs of pregnant and lactating women (98). Of the studies that report on women's health outcomes, LNSs provided to pregnant and lactating women increased body weight and midupper arm circumference, particularly of multiparous women and women >25 y of age (99). They were associated with increased plasma α-linoleic acid, although not plasma lipids and other fatty acids (100). LNSs did not affect women's immune responses, particularly pregnant women's anti-malarial antibody responses (101). There was limited evidence connecting LNS supplementation to unhealthy weight gain and retention, and this is being explored in ongoing studies in Ghana (97).
When you’re at the bar or a party and starving, your options aren’t always the best. But if it’s bruschetta, chips and salsa, or wings, go for the chicken (though nuts would be even better). Protein fills you up faster than carbs do, making it less likely that you’ll overeat, says Christopher Ochner, Ph.D., a research associate at New York Obesity Nutrition Research Center at St. Luke's Roosevelt Hospital Center. And since it’ll keep you satiated longer, you won’t be as tempted when your friend orders a brownie sundae or brings out a tray of blondies.
For girls and adult women, educational interventions are considered a powerful means of improving their health and nutritional status throughout their lives. Education level is often associated with maternal caregiving practices and the nutritional outcomes of their children (174, 175). Few studies, however, evaluated the impact of education as an intervention on women's nutrition outcomes. Instead, many studies used survey data and reported on associations between education and nutrition. For instance, in low- and middle-income countries, higher levels of education were associated with lower prevalence of underweight and higher prevalence of overweight among women (176, 177). However, this depended on the type of employment in which women participated (178, 179). In addition, in many high-income settings, the converse was true (177). Level of literacy was also associated with improved anthropometric measures. In southern Ethiopia, literate mothers were 25% less likely to be undernourished than were illiterate women (180). One econometric analysis suggested that doubling primary school attendance in settings with low school attendance was associated with a 20–25% decrease in food insecurity (181). Overall, though, these associations were limited in their ability to draw conclusions about causality and the effect of education interventions on nutrition outcomes.
As the science of nutrition continually evolves, researchers recognize that nutrients needed to maintain a healthy lifestyle must be tailored to the individual for maximum effectiveness. Recognizing that people are not all alike and that one size does not fit all when it comes to planning and achieving a healthful diet, the Institute of Medicine's dietary guidelines, titled "Dietary Reference Intakes for Macronutrients," stress the importance of balancing diet with exercise and recommends total calories based on an individual's height, weight and gender for each of four different levels of physical activity.
In 2000, the United Nations created Millennium Development Goal (MDG) 5[43] to improve maternal health.[44] Target 5A sought to reduce maternal mortality by three quarters from 1990 to 2015, using two indicators, 5.1 the MMR and 5.2 the proportion of deliveries attended by skilled health personnel (physician, nurse or midwife). Early reports indicated MDG 5 had made the least progress of all MDGs.[45][46] By the target date of 2015 the MMR had only declined by 45%, from 380 to 210, most of which occurred after 2000. However this improvement occurred across all regions, but the highest MMRs were still in Africa and Asia, although South Asia witnessed the largest fall, from 530 to 190 (64%). The smallest decline was seen in the developed countries, from 26 to 16 (37%). In terms of assisted births, this proportion had risen globally from 59 to 71%. Although the numbers were similar for both developed and developing regions, there were wide variations in the latter from 52% in South Asia to 100% in East Asia. The risks of dying in pregnancy in developing countries remains fourteen times higher than in developed countries, but in Sub-Saharan Africa, where the MMR is highest, the risk is 175 times higher.[39] In setting the MDG targets, skilled assisted birth was considered a key strategy, but also an indicator of access to care and closely reflect mortality rates. There are also marked differences within regions with a 31% lower rate in rural areas of developing countries (56 vs. 87%), yet there is no difference in East Asia but a 52% difference in Central Africa (32 vs. 84%).[37] With the completion of the MDG campaign in 2015, new targets are being set for 2030 under the Sustainable Development Goals campaign.[47][48] Maternal health is placed under Goal 3, Health, with the target being to reduce the global maternal mortality ratio to less than 70.[49] Amongst tools being developed to meet these targets is the WHO Safe Childbirth Checklist.[50]
If YOU want to join other like-minded women who are supportive and encouraging, you need to consider participating in this elite group. BellaBabes is for women of all ages and physical abilities. Each participant receives individual attention and programming. Whether you are looking for a quick start to your fitness journey or are a seasoned athlete - BellaBabes will help you reach your goals faster and more effectively.
Equally challenging for women are the physiological and emotional changes associated with the cessation of menses (menopause or climacteric). While typically occurring gradually towards the end of the fifth decade in life marked by irregular bleeding the cessation of ovulation and menstruation is accompanied by marked changes in hormonal activity, both by the ovary itself (oestrogen and progesterone) and the pituitary gland (follicle stimulating hormone or FSH and luteinizing hormone or LH). These hormonal changes may be associated with both systemic sensations such as hot flashes and local changes to the reproductive tract such as reduced vaginal secretions and lubrication. While menopause may bring relief from symptoms of menstruation and fear of pregnancy it may also be accompanied by emotional and psychological changes associated with the symbolism of the loss of fertility and a reminder of aging and possible loss of desirability. While menopause generally occurs naturally as a physiological process it may occur earlier (premature menopause) as a result of disease or from medical or surgical intervention. When menopause occurs prematurely the adverse consequences may be more severe.[114][115]
Also known as “myofascial release,” foam rolling is an easy way to benefit your entire body. “While stretching addresses the length of muscle fiber, rolling improves the quality of the tissue,” says Rob Sulaver, CEO and founder of Bandana Training. This leads to tension- and pain-free muscles, which function better so you perform better. Be sure to roll for five minutes before your workout. Not sure what to do? Try these 10 ways to use a foam roller.
Having the proper footwear is essential for any workout, and for winter runs, that means sneaks with EVA (ethylene vinyl acetate), says Polly de Mille, an exercise physiologist who oversees New York Road Runner's Learning Series for first-time New York City Marathon runners. “Polyurethane tends to get really stiff and cold in the winter, which could increase your risk of injury.” Another important feature is a waterproof and windproof upper: Look for shoes made with Gortex, or wrap your mesh uppers in duct tape to keep feet dry and warm.
What you eat and drink is influenced by where you live, the types of foods available in your community and in your budget, your culture and background, and your personal preferences. Often, healthy eating is affected by things that are not directly under your control, like how close the grocery store is to your house or job. Focusing on the choices you can control will help you make small changes in your daily life to eat healthier.
The best training tool you're not using: a jump rope. “It may seem a little juvenile until you think of all the hot-bodied boxing pros who jump rope every single day,” says Landon LaRue, a CrossFit level-one trainer at Reebok CrossFit LAB in L.A. Not only is it inexpensive, portable, and easy to use almost anywhere, you’ll burn about 200 calories in 20 minutes and boost your cardiovascular health while toning, he adds.
For some simple suggestions about eating a healthy, balanced diet, check out the "New American Plate Concept" from the American Institute for Cancer Research. This concept suggests you fill your plate with two-thirds or more of vegetables, fruits, whole grains or beans and only one-third or less of animal protein. This simple principle can guide you toward healthier eating. For more details, visit http://www.aicr.org/site/PageServer?pagename=reduce_diet_new_american_plate.
Women's menstrual cycles, the approximately monthly cycle of changes in the reproductive system, can pose significant challenges for women in their reproductive years (the early teens to about 50 years of age). These include the physiological changes that can effect physical and mental health, symptoms of ovulation and the regular shedding of the inner lining of the uterus (endometrium) accompanied by vaginal bleeding (menses or menstruation). The onset of menstruation (menarche) may be alarming to unprepared girls and mistaken for illness. Menstruation can place undue burdens on women in terms of their ability to participate in activities, and access to menstrual aids such as tampons and "sanitary pads". This is particularly acute amongst poorer socioeconomic groups where they may represent a financial burden and in developing countries where menstruation can be an impediment to a girl's education.[113]
The U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) food pyramid system (www.mypyramid.gov) provides a good start by recommending that the bulk of your diet come from the grain group—this includes bread, cereal, rice and pasta— the vegetable group; and the fruit group. Select smaller amounts of foods from the milk group and the meat and beans group. Eat few—if any—foods that are high in fat and sugars and low in nutrients. The amount of food you should consume depends on your sex, age and level of activity.
Community centers NC HH or individual food security, NC food expenditures, NC food consumption, ↑ social status, ↑ self-confidence ↑ health and knowledge, ↓ anemia, ↑/NC HH food security, NC individual food security, NC food expenditures, ↑/NC food consumption, ↑/NC dietary diversity, ↑ MN-rich foods (Fe, vitamin A, vitamin C, calcium), ↑/NC intake of protein, ↑ ASF intake, ↑/NC BMI, ↑ weight gain, ↑ social status, ↑ self-confidence, ↑/NC decision-making ↑ health and nutrition knowledge, ↓/NC anemia, ↑/NC HH food security, ↑/NC food expenditures, ↑/NC HH food consumption, ↑/NC dietary diversity, ↑ nutrient-rich foods (Fe, vitamin A), NC intake of protein, ↑/NC intake of vegetables and ASF, ↑/NC BMI, ↓ underweight, ↑ weight gain, NC diarrheal morbidity, ↑ self-confidence, ↑/NC decision-making, ↑ control HH resources ↑ health knowledge, ↑/NC HH food security, ↑/NC HH food consumption, ↑ dietary diversity, ↑ self-confidence, ↑/NC decision-making
Women have traditionally been disadvantaged in terms of economic and social status and power, which in turn reduces their access to the necessities of life including health care. Despite recent improvements in western nations, women remain disadvantaged with respect to men.[6] The gender gap in health is even more acute in developing countries where women are relatively more disadvantaged. In addition to gender inequity, there remain specific disease processes uniquely associated with being a woman which create specific challenges in both prevention and health care.[18]
Folate or vitamin B9 (also known as folic acid when used in fortified foods or taken as a supplement) is another nutrient that many women don’t get enough of in their diets. Folate can greatly reduce the chance of neurological birth defects when taken before conception and during the first few weeks of pregnancy. Folate can also lower a woman’s risk for heart disease and certain types of cancer, so even if you’re not planning on getting pregnant (and many pregnancies are unplanned), it’s an essential nutrient for every woman of childbearing age. In later life, folate can help your body manufacture estrogen during menopause.
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11181
|
__label__cc
| 0.563971
| 0.436029
|
Scientists suggest silicon chips should be allowed to make errors
May 26, 2010 by Lin Edwards, Phys.org
(PhysOrg.com) -- Researchers in the U.S. have discovered allowing silicon chips to make errors could ensure computers continue to become more powerful, while using less energy.
Makers of silicon chips struggle to squeeze more performance out of chips for the same power, but the latest research findings suggest they could provide greater performance with lower power requirements if the rules governing how chips work were relaxed.
Moore’s Law predicts that the number of transistors (tiny switches) that can fit on a given area of silicon for a given price will double every 18-24 months, and this Law has been followed by reducing the size of transistors, which generally results in more powerful processing. The problem is that as the transistors become smaller their reliability and variability become issues.
Rakesh Kumar, Assistant Professor of Computer Engineering at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, thinks the insistence on making silicon chips operate with no errors is hastening the end of Moore’s Law and forcing chip manufacturers to run the chips at a higher power than necessary just to ensure the chips never make mistakes. A sizeable proportion of chips also have to be rejected if they are less than perfect, and this increases manufacturing costs. The problems are all worsening as the size of components continues to decrease.
In an interview with the BBC Professor Kumar said that instead of insisting on perfect, error-free chips, we should embrace the imperfections to make what he calls “stochastic processors” that will be allowed to make random errors. He pointed out that the hardware is already stochastic, which means it is not flawless, and spending more money to make it appear to be flawless is a waste.
Kumar and colleagues are putting these ideas into practice by designing chips that are not flawless, and then managing the number and type of errors. This can reduce the power consumption by up to 30 percent, and the reduction is even 23 percent with error rates of just one percent.
Professor Kumar said the errors will not usually have a significant effect on a computer, but in other cases they could cause a computer to crash. To counteract this, the team is investigating ways to make applications that respond to errors by simply making the execution of instructions take longer, or which use a log of a user’s actions to identify unexpected errors. This research may be useful for making existing applications better able to cope with errors that already occur.
© 2010 PhysOrg.com
Two chips in one: Researchers combine microprocessor materials
Building a Molecular Computer Chip
Scatterometry -- measuring ever-smaller chip production
Intel, IBM roll out new computer network chips
AMD Planning 16-Core Server Chip For 2011 Release
Apr 27, 2009 weblog
Japan falls behind in chip manufacturing
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11184
|
__label__wiki
| 0.808211
| 0.808211
|
Region could feel swine fever blow for next decade, Cargill says
- Monday, July 8, 2019 - 2 weeks ago No Comments 932 Views
It could be as long as a decade before China recovers from its outbreak of African swine fever, the deadly pig disease that’s decimating hog herds in the world’s largest pork consumer.
That’s according to Cargill Inc., one of the world’s largest agricultural commodity traders. The virus, which kills most infected pigs within 10 days, has already spread to most Chinese provinces. Official reports of a 24% decline for the nation’s herd are “conservative,” said John Fering, managing director for Cargill’s premix and nutrition business in the Asian nation.
China’s hog-herd losses are tough to estimate and could be anywhere between 20% and 70%, according to Rabobank.
“This is not a short-term event,” Fering said by phone. “This is going to take several years, if not a decade, to fully achieve structural recovery.”
The virus was first reported in China in August. Since then, there have been more than 140 outbreaks, forcing the nation to boost meat imports. While the government has tightened animal-safety controls, the structure of the country’s hog industry, with many backyard operations, has made it harder to stop the spread of disease.
China has boosted its pork imports, but demand has also increased for other meats in substitution. The nation’s consumers “aren’t discriminating between a disease that only affects the hog and what can be transmitted to humans,” turning them off from wanting to eat pork and reducing consumption, Mizuho said in a report last month.
“Substitution to alternative sources is one part of the solution to close the gap” between protein supply and demand, Fering said. Poultry is likely to be the top beneficiary, both in terms of China’s domestic market and overseas, he said. Eggs will come second, followed by beef and aquaculture.
The switch to poultry is helping to keep China’s demand for soybean meal from cratering, Fering said. Prices are also attractive relative to other vegetable proteins, helping keep soy meal in feed rations, he said.
“Given the severity of the disease challenge we’ve confronted, it hasn’t been quite as negative on soybean meal demand as we might’ve expected,” he said.
While Cargill says shipment flows are currently hard to predict, the Minneapolis-based company said it’s well-positioned to benefit due to its global asset footprint and its ability to respond to rapid changes in global trade.
“This is our core competency. It’s the business we’ve been in for a very long time,” he said. “Cargill and our leading competitors are pretty well equipped from a business, geographic presence and asset base.” Mario Parker & Isis Almeida, Bloomberg
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11185
|
__label__wiki
| 0.641669
| 0.641669
|
Period of Debate
Erle Ellis, Mark Maslin, Nicole Boivin and Andrew Bauer, “Involve social scientists in defining the Anthropocene,” Nature 540 (December 2016), 192–193
Jan Zalasiewicz, Colin Waters and Martin J. Head, “Anthropocene: its stratigraphic basis,” Nature 541 (January 2017), 289
Karen L. Bacon and Graeme T. Swindles, “Could a potential Anthropocene mass extinction define a new geological period?” Anthropocene Review 3:3 (2016), 208–17
Philip L. Gibbard and John Lewin, “Partitioning the Quaternary,” Quaternary Science Reviews 151 (2016), 127–39
Last week’s paper is the most systematic recent contribution to the debate about the Anthropocene’s stratigraphic formalization. Here’s a round-up of a few others.
Ellis, Maslin, Boivin and Bauer’s short polemic in Nature swerves between misunderstanding and something rather like paranoia. The misunderstanding lies in their belief that the Anthropocene epoch in its stratigraphic sense is supposed to begin with the beginning of “human influence” on the planet. As Maslin and Erle put it in an amplifying article in The Conversation, they’re under the impression that the Anthropocene Working Group have decided “to declare the start of human transformation of Earth in the 1950s.”
That’s wholly mistaken, as anyone who’s read any of the AWG’s papers (and regular readers of this blog) will know. The base of the Anthropocene is meant to correspond to a change in the rock record that distinguishes the present state of things from the way things were in the (also very human-influenced) Holocene epoch. The beginning of “human influence” has nothing to do with it.
Ellis et al. think that the formalization of the Anthropocene would “divide Earth’s story into two parts: one in which humans are a geological superpower—an epoch called the Anthropocene—and the other encompassing all that came before.” As a matter of actual numerical fact, adding this further epoch would mean that geologists had divided Earth’s story since the Cambrian explosion (the last 541 million years) into thirty-nine parts instead of thirty-eight.
The paranoia creeps in from the opening sentence: “Three dozen academics are planning to rewrite Earth’s history.” What the AWG are planning to do is to submit a proposal to a scientific sub-commission that might vote to forward it to a scientific commission that might in turn vote to pass it on to a scientific union for ratification. The procedure that’s being envisaged for reforming the Geologic Time Scale could hardly be more cautious, or carried out more in public view. But Ellis et al. strike a monitory tone:
The formalization of the Anthropocene must be more transparent and have wider input and assessment. The criteria for assessing the sciences of the new epoch need to be published and peer reviewed, rather than agreed in private meetings.
I don’t know what they mean by calling for published criteria for “assessing the sciences of the new epoch”: I suppose just criteria for “assessing the new epoch.” In which case, the good news is that the International Stratigraphic Guide (the standard “guide to stratigraphic classification, terminology, and procedure”) can be downloaded here. An entire discipline within geology is devoted to thinking about the criteria about which Ellis et al. are concerned, and the AWG’s publications make constant reference to them. It’s very hard to credit the claim that the rules are being made up in “private meetings.”
But here’s the really strange thing. The Nature article implies—and the Conversation article implies more heavily—that there’s something unseemly, if not downright suspicious, about how the AWG excludes critical voices from its membership. “We teamed up with colleagues to challenge the Anthropocene Working Group’s view of the world,” Maslin and Ellis say. The AWG must “open its decision-making processes to review.” One could read both articles—and, most notably, Erle Ellis’s disclosure statement appended to the latter—without realising that the members of the AWG and the signatories of last week’s paper by the AWG include, well, Erle Ellis.
Zalasiewicz, Waters and Head’s letter in the next month’s issue of Nature is a brief, patient explanation that “the ‘anthropogenic’ epoch of Ellis et al. is different” to “the geological Anthropocene.”
Karen Bacon and Graeme Swindles make an argument that I’m surprised isn’t made more often. The current crisis looks rather like the early stages of a mass extinction. On a crude but effective measure, a “mass extinction” is when 75% of living species are wiped out. We’re not remotely near that level at the moment, but the extinction rate is high and climbing. It’s a similar story with the rise in global temperature and atmospheric carbon. That’s an observation familiar from books like Elizabeth Kolbert’s Pulitzer-winning The Sixth Extinction. What Bacon and Swindles point out is that Phanerozoic mass extinctions have previously defined the ends of geological periods, if not geological eras, rather than geological epochs (epochs fit inside periods; periods fit inside eras). So it might be too hasty to identify the Anthropocene now as a new epoch:
Perhaps debates over the timing of the Anthropocene boundary would be better focused on considering the likelihood of a new period in the next century rather than a new epoch in the 20th century to define the age of human dominance on the Earth System. In the mid-term future, a new period boundary may completely overwrite the proposed epoch boundary for the Anthropocene. (p. 231)
That’s a reasonable argument for which I have quite a bit of sympathy (though here again we see a glimpse of that red herring about “the age of human dominance”). But it’s an argument to which the AWG responded convincingly in last week’s paper, albeit without citing Bacon and Swindles directly. The AWG’s aim is to represent the geological column as it actually exists right now. It’s not to establish the final and definitive version of the Geologic Time Scale. As they write:
Waiting until fuller effects become clear would be in essence an appeal to the future, a path we are trying to avoid in documenting extant geologic evidence for an Anthropocene epoch. Recently elapsed (and in part irreversible) changes already imprinted on the stratigraphic record provide reasonable evidence that epoch-scale change has now taken place. (p. 218)
Gibbard and Lewin’s paper gives a longer view: it’s about the conceptual organisation of the Quaternary period as a whole, not just the Anthropocene. Philip Gibbard is, like Erle Ellis, a member of the AWG who’s more sceptical than most of the move towards stratigraphic formalization. Unlike Ellis he’s himself a geologist, and he wasn’t one of the 26 members who signed last week’s paper. In fact, “Partitioning the Quaternary” and a couple of other papers he co-authored were among the critiques to which last week’s paper responded
Gibbard and Lewin reflect on how the Quaternary should be partitioned, but also and more interestingly on how one should think about those partitions. The question of how to demarcate the Quaternary and its sub-units can stir up ferocious controversy amongst specialists. But the actual fixing of boundaries is only one part of a continuous process of interpretation. That’s true of any historical interval. When you organise a continuous span of time into sections (“late antiquity,” “the High Middle Ages,” “the boomer era,” or whatever), the dividing lines always come packaged up with attitudes towards those lines that might well matter more than the lines themselves.
Hence Gibbard and Lewin: “Without hierarchical subdivision, stratigraphic history would seem the equivalent of an interminable tsunami with associated surges, waves, ripples and organic flotsam,” but when you make such divisions, “it can be that researchers are guided towards putting everything into pre-defined time boxes that they do not actually fit. Sharp changes may be overemphasized when there are only markers of convenience in continuous trajectories” (pp. 137, 128). It’s not just a question of where you place (for instance) the Holocene–Anthropocene boundary. It’s equally a question of precisely what convenience you think you gain from that “marker of convenience.”
Gibbard and Lewin don’t have an enormous amount to say about the Anthropocene itself in this paper. Other live debates—the relative place of climate and paleontology in partitioning the Quaternary; the nature and status of the puzzling climatic transition in the early to middle Pleistocene—take up more of their time. They’re clearly concerned, though, that fixing the Anthropocene’s stratigraphic base might foster that tendency they describe to “overemphasize” sharp changes within basically continuous processes: to mistake partitions in the Geologic Time Scale for “material essences” instead of “helpful artifice[s]” (p. 137). And they think that Earth System scientists have been pressing the case for a single start date for the Anthropocene, whereas geologists proper have (“ironic[ally]”) been more warily attentive to the temporal complexity of Earth-system responses to anthropogenic forcings.
I’m not sure that last is a fair representation of how the debate has gone so far. But it’s absolutely true that the Anthropocene epoch, like every other geologic time division, is neither more nor less than a prospectively helpful artifice through which to try to articulate the history of the Earth. The refinement of that artifice, of that craft of conjunction and disjunction, is precisely what’s at issue.
Author erinaceusPosted on June 25, 2017 April 6, 2018
Previous Previous post: New Papers from the Anthropocene Working Group (part 5)
Next Next post: Brain Power
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11186
|
__label__cc
| 0.697719
| 0.302281
|
Call our Advocates today on 01624 639350
eGaming
Employment Law for Business
Commercial, Corporate and Finance
Immigration for Business
Trusts, Foundations and Companies
Technology, BioMed and Data
For You (Individuals)
Business for the Self Employed
Wills, estates, trusts and family settlements
Real Estate and Property
Immigration For Individuals
MannBenham provides a comprehensive service for people in need of legal advice. Whatever legal service you require we have a specialist advocate or lawyer who can assist.
Financial Services and Private Equity
Pensions and Insurance
Probate in the Isle of Man
What is Probate?
Where someone has died (“the Deceased”), somebody else has to deal with their affairs and ensure that the assets of the Deceased are distributed to those entitled to them, after the payment of their liabilities.
If the Deceased has made a Will, the persons named in the Will as executors will usually need to apply to the Isle of Man Court for authority to administer the Estate. This application is commonly referred to as an application for a “Grant of Probate” of the will. If the Isle of Man Court is satisfied with the application, the Probate Registry will issue a sealed deed which gives the Executors the rights in law to control and deal with the Estate in the place of the Deceased. This document is known as the “Grant of Probate”.
What if the deceased left no will?
If the Deceased has not left a Will (or has left a Will without naming Executors), a similar procedure is used to secure the requisite authority for “Administrators”. Administrators are effectively the same as Executors.
The Administrators will be charged with winding up the Estate. Instead of “Grant of Probate”, the “Grant of Administration” will appoint the Administrators to perform the same functions as the Executors.
The major difference between the Estate being dealt with under Grant of Probate is that in the case of Probate there is a Will according to which the Estate is distributed, whereas in the case of Administration there is no Will. The Estate is administered in accordance with laws laid down in the Administration of Estates Act (also known in most countries as the laws of “Intestacy”). Under Intestacy the assets are distributed to the nearest living relatives of the Deceased according to a particular pattern.
For the remainder of this guide, all references to “Probate” refer to both Grant of Probate and Grant of Administration.
Is Probate always required?
In the Isle of Man there is not an absolute requirement to apply for Probate. However, almost invariably banks and other financial institutions will require Probate before they will release assets to the person appointed to administer the Estate.
There are instances where Probate may not be required, although banks and other financial institutions are involved. For example, if the Deceased held assets jointly with another person (e.g. a partner), it may be that these asset pass automatically to that surviving person and there will be no requirement for Probate in relation to these assets.
Where the estate is low value, Probate may not be required.
What if the Deceased was domiciled outside of the Isle of Man but has assets in the Isle of Man?
If the deceased was domiciled outside of the Isle of Man, but died holding assets in the Isle of Man, the procedures for Probate in the Isle of Man are substantially the same except that particular documents will be required from the country in which the deceased was domiciled before Grant of Probate or letters of Administration are issued by the Probate Registry in the Isle of Man.
As a general rule, the Isle of Man Probate Registry would require a Court sealed copy of the Grant of Probate and Will (if applicable), from the Court or Registry which issued the Probate. If these documents are in a foreign language, the Isle of Man Court will also require an original notarised translation of the documentation into English.
How soon can Probate be Granted?
Grant of probate will not be issued for at least seven days after death and it may take some time longer. There is a practical reason for this minimum delay of seven days. The Probate Office need to be sure that there are no conflicting claims arising for example from newer wills or by nearer relatives as Grant of Probate and letters of Administration are very important legal documents providing very wide powers to the executors or administrators which cannot be easily revoked and are easily abused if they fall into the wrong hands. Provided correct documentation accompanies an accurate application, the Registry generally turns the application around in four weeks.
At MannBenham we have experience in making applications for Grants of Probate and Grants of Administration, both for people domiciled in the Isle of Man and those who have assets in the Isle of Man.
If you find yourself in a position of considering whether Probate is required or not, we can help you review the person’s estate and give you clear guidance on whether Probate is needed.
If Probate applies to you, we can assist you in understanding what steps need to be taken and points that need to be considered and addressed. We can also help you in administering the estate and can provide executorship services.
Our in house accounting team is also experienced in drawing and maintaining the required estate accounts and filing of estate tax returns and can help you with this.
Should you wish advice regarding Probate or just wish to understand your options, please feel free to speak with one of our Probate team on 01624 639350.
This guidance only provides a brief overview of the probate process. It should not be taken as providing legal advice or as providing a comprehensive guide. No person should act in reliance on any statement contained in this guide without first obtaining specific legal advice.
A Quick Guide to Divorce
Divorce - Who gets what and why
Non-matrimonial/civil partnership assets
Business assets and divorce
Should I make a Will?
Is your will open to challenge?
Rectification of Trust Documents: all may not be lost.
Isle of Man Probate - Frequently Asked Questions
Contacts for Probate in the Isle of Man
© 2016 MannBenham Advocates Limited
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11190
|
__label__wiki
| 0.710126
| 0.710126
|
10 Most Insane Recent Conspiracy Theories
Mike Floorwalker July 24, 2016 0
The annals of far-out conspiracy theories ran deep even before the advent of the Internet. If you think about it, the type of planning, execution, and silence on the part of all involved make such large-scale conspiracies extremely unlikely.
But we now apparently live in times where outright insanity is part of our daily news cycle. So, hey, did you hear about these recent conspiracy theories?
10 The Chipotle E. Coli Outbreak Was Bioterrorism
Fast casual chain Chipotle Mexican Grill has had a number of problems with foodborne diseases, including a multistate E. coli outbreak in late 2015. The FDA never pinpointed the source of the outbreak due to the large selection of fresh ingredients mixed together in dozens of ways. But that didn’t stop some intrepid websites from exposing the outbreak as an attack by “food terrorists.”
Since Chipotle has always maintained a public anti-GMO stance, biotech henchmen supposedly used spray bottles to nebulize the virus onto the readily accessible fixings in several locations. As one article’s subhead stated, “GMO industry routinely resorts to tactics that resemble terrorism or criminal mafias.”
The food terrorists may also be framing top Chipotle executives for buying bundles of cocaine, as evidenced by the arrest of the guy in charge of repairing the chain’s relationship with the FDA.
9 Prince And Merle Haggard Were Killed Over Chemtrails
Photo credit: NOAA
If you believe the theory, many or all of the vapor trails you see in the wakes of planes are loaded with chemicals (“chemtrails”) as part of a plot by the government/New World Order/Illuminati to sicken us for a variety of sinister reasons. Famous proponents of this theory include music legends Merle Haggard and Prince, who died exactly two weeks apart in April 2016.
Both had mentioned chemtrails in their music—Prince on “Dreamer” (2003) and Haggard on “What I Hate” (2011). Prince had also spoken extensively on the subject in public. Proponents believe that both icons were killed by a weaponized “chemtrail flu,” a less virulent version of what the conspirators are spraying on all of us every day.
8 Pokemon Go Is Spying On Us
As the augmented reality mobile game Pokemon Go takes the world by storm, conspiracy theorists are freaking out that the game and its parent company, Niantic, could assist the New World Order in spying on everyone.
For starters, the game is powered by Google Earth. Niantic founder John Hanke was one of the founders of Keyhole, which was purchased by Google to develop Google Earth. Conspiracy theorists are scared because Keyhole was partially funded by a CIA venture capital firm.
The game’s privacy policy acknowledges that data may be shared with law enforcement or “government officials,” and its default settings were initially accessing much more data, including contacts and photos, than developer Niantic intended.
Chinese bloggers are trying to block the game’s entry into their country, positive that it is a ploy by the US and Japan to locate all of China’s military bases. In an added twist, the hot new theory is that Japan is using the game to spy on the US and that “Go” actually stands for “Global Offensive.”
7 The 2016 NBA Finals Were Rigged
Photo credit: onpointpress.net
In 2016, the Cleveland Cavaliers improbably won the NBA Finals in seven games to bring home the championship trophy. Their opponents, the Golden State Warriors, had decimated the league with the best regular season record in NBA history. The Warriors were the defending champs, and the city of Cleveland had not won a major sports championship for seven decades.
The issue came to a head when the NBA posted the schedule for the Cavaliers-Warriors Finals series on Facebook . . . before Game 7 of the Eastern Conference semifinals. Although the Warriors had won their series, the Cavs had yet to defeat the Oklahoma City Thunder to earn their Finals berth.
The mistakenly posted schedule—probably one of several prepared—was removed quickly, but the damage was done. A series of questionable calls in the Finals didn’t help, culminating in Warriors star Stephen Curry’s ejection from Game 7 for throwing his mouthguard at a fan.
6 Rapper Gucci Mane Is A Government Clone
Photo credit: The Guardian
In 2014, rapper Gucci Mane was convicted on two counts of firearm possession by a felon, a serious crime for which he faced 20 years in the slammer. Sentenced to about 2.5 years, he was released 116 days early in mid-2016.
This early release—the result of time served while awaiting trial not being credited properly—was the first thing to garner suspicion from the conspiracy crowd. Within a week, they realized that a clone created by the government had been released instead of Gucci.
During his time in the clink, Gucci had lost weight, gotten in shape, expanded his vocabulary, and removed an ice cream cone facial tattoo—solid evidence that the rapper had been cloned for unknown reasons. When responding to the rumors, Gucci would neither confirm nor deny and seemed pretty amused by the whole thing.
5 Katy Perry Is JonBenet Ramsey
Photo credit: Us Weekly
In conspiracy theory lore, one gold mine of endless speculation has been the murder of six-year-old JonBenet Ramsey in her Colorado home on Christmas 1996. The case captivated the public imagination because her parents made inconsistent statements to police and JonBenet had participated extensively in child beauty pageants.
The most bizarre theory posits that JonBenet wasn’t murdered but grew up to become pop star Katy Perry instead. This theory asserts that JonBenet’s name, not her body, was sacrificed to the Dark Forces in order for her to attain stardom. Katy has not commented on the theory—not because it is patently ridiculous but obviously because she has something to hide.
4 California’s Drought Is Engineered
Photo credit: The Huffington Post
As of mid-2016, California has endured a serious lack of rainfall for four years. Reservoirs are emptying, water is being rationed, and other states are assisting, but the only real solution is for it to start raining again. However, if you believe the conspiracy theories, the drought has been geoengineered by the government to try to slow down global warming.
Combined with the chemtrails theory, the supposed logic here is that the government believes that spraying the atmosphere with a noxious mixture of aluminum, barium, and other toxic substances will absorb sunlight and slow global warming’s advance.
To achieve the maximum effect, weather conditions must be clear. So government agencies have taken control and made it stop raining. Which begs the question: If they can control the weather, why not just make it cooler?
3 Zika Virus Spread By Genetically Modified Mosquitoes
Headlines began appearing in 2015 about a terrifying new virus that causes few symptoms in adult patients beyond those of a common flu. When pregnant women are infected, however, Zika virus can cause severe birth defects, most notably microcephaly (a shrunken brain cavity and undersized skull).
The virus is passed to humans by certain infected female mosquitoes. According to conspiracy theorists, these mosquitoes were genetically engineered to purposely spread the virus. This theory centers on the company Oxitec, which does experiment with genetically modified mosquitoes. They want to control the mosquito population by engineering sterile males to hinder the spread of such diseases. So far, their trials have been successful.
2 NASA Covered Up A UFO Sighting
Photo credit: stgist.com
In July 2016, a YouTube video of a live feed from the International Space Station (ISS) showed a small, bright dot traversing the field of view and descending toward Earth. Then the feed abruptly cut off. Of course, the bright dot was an alien spacecraft, which was covered up when the live feed was cut.
It was not difficult for this theory to find an audience online. NASA spokesman Daniel Huot patiently explained that seven HD cameras mounted around the ISS are automatically timed to cycle between all the cameras. The “cut” was simply the timer cycling to the next camera. As for the UFO, all manner of reflective space debris could have caused the effect seen on the tape.
1 Donald Trump Is A Plant
Finally, we have Donald Trump, one of the most divisive candidates to secure a US presidential nomination. Trump has mounted a campaign based largely on xenophobia, racism, and nationalism, confounding those who have watched like-minded supporters come out of the woodwork to a hugely unexpected degree.
According to this conspiracy theory, Trump’s candidacy was never meant to be successful. Instead, it was meant to give Hillary Clinton an easy victory by matching her up against the most unelectable opponent possible.
Given the frequency of Trump’s outrageously offensive statements early in his campaign, this almost makes sense. Trump was once friendly with the Clintons, and he used to describe himself as a Democrat with moderately liberal values. Trump even contributed to Clinton’s 2008 campaign.
Supposedly, a secondary goal of Trump’s fake campaign was to use the media to increase his brand and power in the business world. Although this does sound plausible, nobody took it seriously until a former Trump staffer publicly asserted that all of the above is true.
Mike Floorwalker
Mike Floorwalker's actual name is Jason, and he lives in the Parker, Colorado area with his wife Stacey. He enjoys loud rock music, cooking and making lists.
Read More: Twitter
Top 10 Bizarre Services You Can Buy Online
10 Weird Things We’ve Learned About The Mind And Consciousness
Top 10 Bizarre Weapons of the Allies
10 Highly Unusual Examples Of Folie A Deux Or Shared Psychosis
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11194
|
__label__cc
| 0.609469
| 0.390531
|
Top 10 Record-Breaking Water Park Attractions
Art Andersen February 20, 2018 0
Summer means days of sun, swim, and fun. Families all over the world migrate to water parks to combine all three, hopefully avoiding danger. Whether they’re local pools or extreme waterslides, water-based attractions provide no shortage of excitement and entertainment. The International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions (IAAPA) reports that in the US alone, these parks directly contribute over $50 billion to the economy annually and provide jobs to upwards of 2.3 million people.[1]
Despite nearly all water parks providing a family-friendly atmosphere, there is no doubt that these enjoyable summer destinations also provide attractions to satisfy even the most hardened thrill-seekers. These extreme rides have been known to cause injury or even death. The following list is sure to intensify your thirst for water adventure (pun intended) while also providing relief from the soaring temperatures and scorching sun of the summer season.
10 World’s Tallest Waterslide
Measuring a staggering 51.4 meters (168.6 ft) tall, the dangerous Guinness World Record–holding Verruckt waterslide translates from the German language to “crazy” or “insane.” The waterslide, located at Schlitterbahn in Kansas City, Kansas, was announced late 2012. The ride, delayed by construction complications, eventually opened to the masses at the end of July 2014. The ride was designed by the co-owner of the water park, Jeff Henry, to accommodate three people in an adventure that plummets 17 stories downward at speeds of up to 100 kilometers per hour (60 mph). The spectacular slide is taller than both Niagara Falls and the Statue of Liberty (not counting the base). The controversial design features hundreds of steps to reach the top.
In a gruesome incident which took place in August 2016, Caleb Schwab, son of Republican state representative Scott Schwab, suffered a “fatal neck injury” while riding Verruckt and died immediately.[2] His death shocked the community and ultimately resulted in the (still) planned demolition of the slide. The Associated Press suggests that Kansas “is known for its light regulation of amusement park rides.” Unfortunately, it appears the slide was too extreme and resulted in catastrophe.
9 World’s Longest Waterslide
Located at Action Park in Vernon, New Jersey, the world’s longest waterslide measures 602 meters (1,975 ft) long, which equates to over one-third of a mile! The unnamed waterslide is composed of 20 sections, each 30 meters (100 ft) long. The primary material of the slide is polyvinyl chloride, which is also used to make the bounce houses that children enjoy. You guessed it: That means that this slide is inflatable. It takes over two hours to fill with air, utilizes approximately 3,800 liters (1,000 gal) of water per hour, and offers rides that can last up to 90 seconds.[3]
The slide was certified by Guinness World Records in 2015 as the longest waterslide, but it was not open to the public. The ride hadn’t established a weight limit, so its potential for danger was relatively unknown. Another factor was the “lengthy process” of state certification. However, a select few employees were allowed to take their turn on the record-setting ride.
8 World’s Longest Water Coaster
It’s not just a slide; it’s a water coaster! Mammoth, located at Holiday World & Splashin’ Safari in Santa Claus, Indiana, is constructed of a combination of slides as well as a conveyor belt, allowing riders to have a similar experience to a roller coaster, while being drenched in water. The ride, which opened May 2012, dethroned its record-holding predecessor, Wildebeest, which is located at the same water park. Mammoth’s unparalleled twists, turns, and rises total a length of 537 meters (1,763 ft.)[4]
The coaster is designed for rafts of up to six people, situated to face inward, ensuring that families can enjoy the record-setting fun together. These brave Mammoth riders will experience six drops along the coaster’s track. Spinning down the winding path, which overlooks the rest of the expansive Holiday World & Splashin’ Safari water park, may be the optimal ride for the ultimate thrill-seeker.
7 World’s Tallest Water Coaster
Schlitterbahn Galveston Island’s water coaster, MASSIV, lives up to its name. The depth-defying attraction, located in Galveston, Texas, is perched 24.9 meters (81.6 ft) in the sky and was created to mark the site’s tenth anniversary.[5] The water coaster consists of several uphill climbs and a compensating triple drop near the end. The ride has been certified by Guinness World Records as the tallest water coaster.
Although riders simply enjoy the waterslide for its thrill, there was no lack of exacting science that went into its creation. Schlitterbahn’s lead designer, Emily Colombo, remarked on how balancing “g-forces, ride dynamics, and velocities” was vital to yielding a successful ride. The coaster is sure to be enjoyed by all, due to its variation in speed and vigor. The park’s general manager commented that this versatility is “something we are always looking for in our attractions.”
6 World’s Longest Lazy River
Photo credit: Facebook/BSR Cable Park
Providing some respite for thrill-seekers and Heaven for relaxers, the lazy river at BSR Cable Park in Waco, Texas, is just shy of 1.6 kilometers (1 mi) long.[6] This earns it the title of longest lazy river in the world. The lazy river offers parts drenched in sun and parts covered in shade, catering to all riders’ preferences.
While it doesn’t vary greatly from other lazy rivers, what it lacks in uniqueness, it makes up in sheer size. The river is adult- and kid-friendly and guaranteed to satisfy the need for summer refreshment, especially given the sizzling temperatures Texas can see during the season.
5 World’s Largest Outdoor Wave Pool
Photo credit: Siam Park City
The first non-US destination on the list is Siam Park City (a water park, not a city) in the Khan Na Yao district of Bangkok, Thailand. Not only is it Asia’s largest water park, but it certifiably possesses the world’s largest wave pool, according to Guinness World Records. The wave pool is an astounding 13,600 square meters (146,400 ft2) and a destination for young children and adult thrill-seekers alike. The pool has the potential to generate waves up to 1.5 meters (5 ft) high but is controlled not to exceed 60 centimeters (24 in) to ensure the safety of all patrons.[7]
Despite the countermeasures in place, wave pools still pose a safety threat, especially to children. When children enter a wave pool to a depth above their height, the constant flow of water and uneven conditions make it the perfect storm for drowning. But for most, this wave pool can be a great compromise between the flowing waters of a lazy river and the rushing rapids of a water coaster.
4 World’s Largest Indoor Wave Pool
Photo credit: Vr1
Shifting back across the globe to the West Edmonton Mall in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, is the World Waterpark, which features the world’s largest indoor wave pool, called Blue Thunder. Blue Thunder possess four active wave bays, each containing two panels powered by a 1,500-horsepower hydraulic implement. There are two additional wave bays that have been deactivated, a consequence of overwhelming injury due to the excessive intensity of the waves! When all panels were enabled, the waves were too high and rough for even the most experienced swimmers.[8]
With the seemingly endless rush of water feet above a swimmer’s head, the outcome is never promising. Thus, Blue Thunder today generates waves of 1.5 to 1.8 meters (5–6 ft), utilizing only the inner wave bays. The pool can hold a whopping 12.3 million liters (3.2 million gal) of water. Blue Thunder is also frequently used after hours for private surfing, kayaking, paddleboarding, and other related endeavors. The waves are then adjusted accordingly to become more intense.
3 World’s Longest Tube Waterslide
What is located in Erding, Germany, is 356.3 meters (1,169 ft) long, and ensures enjoyment along the way? The Magic-Eye at Galaxy Erding water park, of course. This ride is the longest inner tube waterslide in the entire world, as certified by Guinness World Records in November 2010.[9] No recent attempts have been able to surpass the legendary length of Magic-Eye. The waterslide opened May 2007 and was built by Klarer Freizeitanlagen AG, Switzerland, a world-renowned leader in waterslide construction.
Magic-Eye’s record-setting length is complemented by its 22-meter (72 ft) height. The tube slide features a distinct interior distinguished by continuous seemingly glowing lines that create an unmatched viewing experience while riding. The design can be overwhelming to some patrons due to its strobe-style effect, which could arguably be potentially fatal if someone with epilepsy were to ride the waterslide alone.
2 The United States’ Largest Outdoor Water Park
Photo credit: Wisconsin Dells
Noah’s Ark Water Park in Wisconsin Dells, Wisconsin, is the United States’ largest outdoor water park, totaling 70 acres.[10] Although the park doesn’t possess any record-setting attractions of their own accord, the 51 rides work together, marking Noah’s Ark as the crown jewel of Wisconsin Dells, dubbed the “water park capital of the world.” Despite the town’s small population, it contains 28 water parks, with Noah’s Ark undoubtedly the focal point.
Thrill-seekers can enjoy rides that, for example, offer a near-vertical drop in which the floor gives out beneath riders or a 400-meter-long (1,300 ft) water coaster that showcases unexpected turns and bumps. On the other end of the spectrum, those in search of a more relaxed day at Noah’s Ark Water Park can enjoy a ride on the lazy river or a dip in the wave pool, which alternates wave functionality on and off every ten minutes.
Some of the more extreme rides have been known to malfunction. For instance, it is not uncommon for riders to get stuck on the Scorpion, in which they actually do a loop (similar to a roller coaster). This goes to demonstrate the truly risky nature of water entertainment. Although the weather of Wisconsin fluctuates from sweltering in the summer to freezing in the winter, Wisconsin Dells also provides an abundance of indoor water parks that will fulfill aquatic adrenaline-chasers’ desires year-round.
1 World’s Largest Indoor Water Park
Photo credit: Technouwe
Rounding out the list, we’re headed back to Germany to the sprawling Tropical Islands Resort, located in Krausnick, a bit southeast from the capital, Berlin. This jaw-dropping indoor water park utilizes more than 16 acres of land and can accommodate up to 6,000 guests at any given time.[11]
The luxurious Tropical Islands Resort serves patrons of all ages, featuring paddling areas and proportionate waterslides for youth as well as bigger attractions and a Bali-inspired lagoon, perfect for adults seeking both adventure and relaxation. Tropical Islands Resort is climate-controlled and topped with a glass roof, allowing everyone to immerse themselves in the sunshine, regardless of the varying temperatures, all year long.
Read about more bizarre and even dangerous attractions on 10 Insane Rides From The World’s Most Dangerous Amusement Park and 10 Bizarre Theme Parks From Around the World.
Top 10 Flight Upgrade Tips
10 Cool Things You Wouldn’t Expect To Find In A Cave
Top 10 Most Talked-About Hotels In The World
10 Of The Most Stunning And Unique Buildings In The US
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11195
|
__label__wiki
| 0.672115
| 0.672115
|
Evolutions in DNA Forensics
By Ken Strutin, 30 Apr 2016
The human body is our vessel for life’s journey.1 In the laboratory, its blueprint becomes the prosecutor of crimes and the liberator of innocents. Since its inception as a forensic tool,2 DNA has had a dual nature: (1) scientifically girded evidence of guilt; and (2) hard to access proof of innocence.3 Still, the convolutions of DNA science are prompting new questions about societal and legal values including privacy, accuracy, and accessibility.4
Plea bargaining, in the light of DNA exonerations, has become a bottleneck for wrongful convictions;5 genetic investigations are evoking the specter of racial profiling;6 the use of low copy and shed DNA is pushing the limits of evidentiary boundaries;7 and discovery of the source codes behind laboratory analytics has become the next challenge for procedural due process.8
We live in a chimeric culture where anything will soon be possible and genetic material endlessly collected and analyzed with little oversight.9 Rights will be defined by the ultimate fusion of science and law.10 Indeed, the day will come, when a genetic sketch artist with a 3-D printer will be producing suspects on demand.11 So it is that the achievements of science test the limits of the jurisprudence.
This article is a collection of recent and notable developments concerning DNA as forensic science, metric of guilt, herald of innocence, and its emerging place in the debate over privacy and surveillance.
H.R.320 – Rapid DNA Act of 2015
“To establish a system for integration of Rapid DNA instruments for use by law enforcement to reduce violent crime and reduce the current DNA analysis backlog.”
18 U.S.C. S 3600 Innocence Protection Act of 2004
“To protect crime victims’ rights, to eliminate the substantial backlog of DNA samples collected from crime scenes and convicted offenders, to improve and expand the DNA testing capacity of Federal, State, and local crime laboratories, to increase research and development of new DNA testing technologies, to develop new training programs regarding the collection and use of DNA evidence, to provide post-conviction testing of DNA evidence to exonerate the innocent, to improve the performance of counsel in State capital cases, and for other purposes.” [H.R. 5107]
Armstrong v. Daily, 786 F.3d 529 (7th Cir. 2015)
“We affirm the district court’s decision to allow both claims to proceed. First, plaintiff’s federal due process claims against all defendants based on the destruction or loss of exculpatory evidence are not barred by the availability of state tort remedies for the same wrongs. The doctrine of Parratt v. Taylor, 451 U.S. 527, 101 S.Ct. 1908, 68 L.Ed.2d 420 (1981), does not apply to the actions of law enforcement officers that undermine the fairness of a criminal trial. Second, at the time of the original investigation, it was clearly established under Killian v. United States, 368 U.S. 231, 82 S.Ct. 302, 7 L.Ed.2d 256 (1961), and then Brady v. Maryland, 373 U.S. 83, 83 S.Ct. 1194, 10 L.Ed.2d 215 (1963), that bad-faith destruction or loss of exculpatory evidence would violate a suspect’s due process rights. Brady made clear that the police and prosecution could not suppress exculpatory evidence. A reasonable police officer or prosecutor would not have concluded that he could instead destroy evidence to avoid disclosing it to the defense. Third, if plaintiff can show that the unconstitutional destruction of exculpatory [DNA] evidence in 2006 caused him to suffer a deprivation of liberty, he can sue for that injury without having gone through a second trial. Finally, while there is some disagreement among courts about the conditions for obtaining a civil remedy for destruction of exculpatory evidence, those disagreements do not support a qualified immunity defense. It was clearly established in 2006 that the defendants’ alleged conduct of destroying the evidence would violate defendant’s due process rights. That is sufficient to defeat the qualified immunity defense.”
Bill v. Brewer, 799 F.3d 1295 (9th Cir.2015)
“In this 42 U.S.C. S 1983 action, three Phoenix police officers allege that two other officers violated the Fourth and Fourteenth Amendments when, pursuant to a state court order, they obtained DNA samples from the plaintiffs to exclude them as contributors of DNA at a crime scene. The district court dismissed the complaint, and we affirm.”
Buffey v. Warden, 782 S.E.2d 204 (W. Va. 2015)
“Based upon the foregoing analysis, this Court finds that the State’s failure to disclose favorable DNA test results obtained six weeks prior to the Petitioner’s plea hearing violated the Petitioner’s due process rights, to his prejudice. This Court reverses the June 3, 2014, order of the Circuit Court of Harrison County and remands this matter for an order granting habeas relief and permitting the Petitioner to withdraw his guilty plea.” See also Morrisey Will Not Appeal Buffey Case, Charleston Gazette-Mail, Jan. 25, 2016 (“State Attorney General Patrick Morrisey will not file an appeal with the U.S. Supreme Court in the case of a Clarksburg man who has been in prison for 14 years because prosecutors withheld evidence while he was in the process of pleading guilt.”)
Commonwealth v. Kostka, 471 Mass. 656, 31 N.E.3d 1116 (2015)
“The Commonwealth seeks to compel Christopher Kostka to provide a saliva sample from which it may obtain Christopher’s deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA). The Commonwealth filed a motion in the Superior Court to compel the taking of a saliva sample, arguing that a DNA sample is necessary in order to determine whether Christopher is the identical or fraternal twin of his brother, Timothy Kostka, who has been indicted on charges of murder in the first degree and armed home invasion. Christopher is not a suspect in that case. A judge of the Superior Court allowed the Commonwealth’s motion and ordered Christopher to provide a buccal swab; Christopher refused to comply, and a judgment of contempt was entered against him. After the Appeals Court affirmed the judgment, Commonwealth v. Kostka, 86 Mass. App. Ct. 69, 72-73 (2014), we granted Christopher’s application for further appellate review. We conclude that the Commonwealth has not made the requisite showing, see Commonwealth v. Draheim, 447 Mass. 113 (2006), to support the compelled production of a DNA sample from an uncharged third party in a criminal proceeding and, accordingly, that the judgment of contempt must be reversed.”
Commonwealth v. Robinson, No. CC 201307777 (Pa. Ct. Com. Pl. Feb. 4, 2016)
“AND NOW, to-wit, this 4th day of February, 2016, this Court hereby DENIES, Defendant’s “Application Pursuant to Title 42 Pa.C.S.A. Section 702(B), Interlocutory orders, for Amendment to Include Certification of the Interlocutory Discovery Order Issued on December 7, 2015.” This Court denied Defendant’s discovery request for the “source code” for Cybergenetics TrueAllele Casework System, which was used to test a bandana recovered from the crime scene which the Commonwealth alleges belongs to Defendant. This source code is the intellectual property of Cybergenetics.”
Crabbs v. Scott, 786 F.3d 426 (6th Cir. 2015)
“Keith Crabbs sued the Franklin County Sheriff under the Fourth (and Fourteenth) Amendment for requiring him to submit to a DNA cheek swab after a jury acquitted him of voluntary manslaughter. The sheriff responded that Ohio’s sovereign immunity insulated him from the lawsuit because state law required him to take the sample. That is not quite true. In 2010, Ohio law required criminal defendants to submit a DNA sample after a felony conviction. See Ohio Rev. Code Ann. S 2901.07(B) (West 2010). Today, Ohio law requires county sheriffs to collect DNA after a felony arrest. Ohio Rev. Code S 2901.07(B)(1)(a). The new law applies “during the intake process” to anyone arrested “on or after July 1, 2011.” Id. In this case, the relevant events straddle the July 1 start date and prompt two questions: Does the statute require a DNA sample for a felony defendant arrested before July 1, 2011, and rearrested after that date for violating bond? And does the statute require a sample after an acquittal if the sheriff was unable to collect one during the intake process? No is the answer to both questions, and for these reasons and others elaborated below the State’s sovereign immunity does not bar this civil rights action. We affirm.”
People v. Addison, 24 N.Y.S.3d 879 (N.Y. Sup. Ct. Bronx Co. 2016)
“By Decision and Order, dated September 2, 2015, this Court denied as untimely the People’s motion for an order authorizing the taking of a saliva sample from defendant Muhammad Addison (“Defendant”). The People now move to reargue. In their original moving papers, the People argued that they were entitled to such an order under CPL 240.40 based on the material and relevant evidence that a subsequent DNA comparison would yield. Though Defendant opposed the motion based on untimeliness under CPL 240.90 (1), the People never acknowledged the motion’s late filing nor proffered good cause for the delay, as required by CPL 240.90 (1).
On reargument, the People make the following assertions: (1) this Court erroneously held that the People’s motion implicates Defendant’s constitutional rights;(2) even assuming the People were obligated to demonstrate good cause, the material and relevant evidence yielded by a DNA comparison should have warranted a finding that CPL 240.90 (1)’s good-cause requirement was satisfied and the delay therefore should have been excused; (3) Defendant failed to demonstrate that he was prejudiced by the delay or that the delay was a result of prosecutorial bad faith; and (4) the length of delay between Defendant’s arraignment and the People’s motion to compel a saliva sample—here, 340 days—was de minimus, and, accordingly, the Court should have ignored the lapse (People’s Rearg Mot 5). . . .
Here, because the People’s motion implicates a constitutional right, was filed nearly one year after Defendant’s arraignment, and without any showing of good cause, this Court’s denial of the People’s application stands.”
People v. Collins, 49 Misc. 3d 595, 15 N.Y.S.3d 564 (N.Y. Sup. Ct. Kings Co. 2015)
“In these unrelated cases, defendants Collins and Peaks face violent felony charges. What the cases have in common is that the People applied to introduce DNA evidence at each defendant’s trial. In defendant Collins’ case, the People obtained two DNA “mixtures,” each apparently from three contributors, from the handlebars of a bicycle ridden by the perpetrator of a shooting. The DNA samples were very small, and so they were tested with “high sensitivity” analysis in the laboratory of New York City’s Office of the Chief Medical Examiner (OCME). After that, a new OCME software program called the Forensic Statistical Tool (FST) indicated that one DNA mixture was 972,000 times more probable if the sample originated from defendant Collins and two unknown, unrelated people than if it instead originated from three unknown, unrelated individuals. The other mixture was 19.4 times more probable if the sample originated from Collins and two unknown, unrelated people than if it instead originated from three unknown, unrelated individuals. One might reasonably expect that this evidence would be conclusive on any identity issue at trial.
In defendant Peaks’ case, the People obtained a DNA “mixture” from the bra of the victim of a sexual assault. At least one female and two males contributed DNA to the sample. Using standard DNA analysis, not “high sensitivity” analysis, and using the FST software, an analyst determined that the sample was 19.6 times more probable if the sample originated from defendant Peaks, the victim, and an unknown, unrelated person than if it instead originated from the victim and two unknown, unrelated persons. One might reasonably expect that this evidence would be highly persuasive on any identity issue at trial. Defendant Collins has moved to preclude the DNA evidence in his case on the theory that neither “high sensitivity” DNA analysis nor the FST is generally accepted in the relevant scientific community. Defendant Peaks has moved to preclude DNA evidence on the theory that the FST is not generally accepted in the relevant scientific community. This court ordered that a Frye hearing be held (see Frye v United States, 293 F 598*598 1013 [DC Cir 1923]), and the cases were consolidated for the hearing. . . .
This court concluded that evidence derived both from high sensitivity analysis and from the FST is not yet proved to be admissible under the Frye test. The court is not happy with that result. This court has heard for years about the high sensitivity initiative, with all of the incumbent expense. And this court understands as well the sincere effort that Dr. Caragine, Dr. Mitchell, and many others have put into the development of the FST. They must continue, if they are to persuade.”
People v. Ealy, 2015 IL App (2d) 131106 (Ill. App. Ct. 2015)
“A jury found defendant, James Ealy, guilty of first-degree murder, and the trial court sentenced him to a term of natural life imprisonment. On appeal, defendant argues that he is entitled to a new trial due to the cumulative prejudice of three trial errors: (1) the admission of evidence that, unlike several other people whom the police interviewed, defendant refused to consent to DNA testing, and the State’s argument to the jury that his refusal showed consciousness of guilt; (2) the exclusion of evidence that, like defendant, other residents of his apartment complex paid rent in installments each month; and (3) the State’s closing argument that an acquittal based on the absence of fingerprints or DNA evidence would improperly “reward” defendant. Defendant also argues that a new trial is necessary because the jury returned inconsistent verdicts in finding him guilty of intentional murder and not guilty of knowing murder.
The State denies any trial error. Alternatively, the State argues that (1) defendant forfeited his challenge to the admissibility of his refusal of DNA testing and (2) “any alleged evidentiary errors and instances of prosecutorial misconduct did not rise to cumulative error.”
We hold that (1) defendant preserved his challenge to the admissibility of his refusal of DNA testing; (2) the trial court abused its discretion in admitting the evidence of the refusal and allowing the State to argue that it showed consciousness of guilt; (3) the court did not abuse its discretion in excluding evidence that other residents of the apartment complex paid rent as defendant had; (4) the State’s argument that the jury should not “reward” defendant for the absence of fingerprints or DNA evidence was not prosecutorial misconduct; and (5) the admittedly inconsistent verdicts do not warrant a new trial. The State produced overwhelming evidence of defendant’s guilt such that any trial error was harmless beyond a reasonable doubt. We affirm.”
People v. M.F., 25 N.Y.S.3d 816 (N.Y. Sup. Ct. Bronx County 2016)
“Defendant M.F. is charged with Rape in the First Degree and related charges arising from an alleged incident that took place on September 5, 2010 at the Capri Motel in Bronx, New York. Defendant moved in limine for an order precluding the prosecution from seeking to admit a DNA report without calling to testify each of the five or six criminalists who had a role in preparing the report for the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner (OCME). Defendant claims his confrontation rights under the Sixth Amendment and New York law will be violated if the results of the report are allowed to be introduced through the analyst who made the final assessment of the data. . . .
In sum, the motion to bar admission of the DNA report in the absence of laboratory witnesses is separated into three distinct components: a) the initial analysis, in which the initial analyst took the alleged victim’s cervical sample, b) the machine driven testing performed by several technicians and c) the analysis of the data and the report’s conclusions as found by the supervising analyst. The initial analyst’s work is deemed to be testimonial and the technical preparation of the DNA graphs is presumed not to be testimonial subject to contrary evidence elicited at trial. The data resulting from the testing protocols will be admissible through the testimony of the witness the People have proffered, the supervising analyst. Accordingly, the defense motion is granted in part and denied in part.”
People v. Muhammad, No. 14-65263-FC (Mich. Cir. Ct. Dec. 15, 2015)
“The primary issue in this case involves statistical implications of DNA analysis conducted on a shoe recovered from an armed robbery crime scene. The Defendant does not object to the analysis’ results but contends that the statistical evaluation attached to it is unreliable and inadmissible. . . .
In conclusion, this Court finds: 1. Multiple entities have extensively tested STRmix for validity, 2. The testing process adhered to generally accepted standards, 3. Experts in the field analyzed STRmix through peer review publication, 4. Of the hundreds of tests done, the only errors discovered involved extremely low levels of DNA but no specific error rate has been developed, 5. The concept of probabilistic genotyping is accepted in the community of DNA analysts and is in the process of achieving preferred status over conventional approaches like CPI (Exhibit 21), 6. The MCMC [Monte Carlo Markov Chain] principles underlying probabilistic genotyping and the STRmix program are relied upon by experts in many fields outside the context of litigation, and 7. Courts in New York have admitted STRmix results, and courts in Pennsylvania, Virginia, New York and Ohio have admitted results from a program based upon similar principles. STRmix meets the reliability criteria for admission under MCR 702.”
People v. Wright, 25 N.Y.3d 769, 16 N.Y.S.3d 485 (2015)
“We are presented in this appeal with a confluence of prosecutorial [25 N.Y.3d 771] misconduct committed during closing argument, and a series of critical lapses by defense counsel when faced with the prosecutor’s obvious transgressions from the leeway generally afforded attorneys during summation. As the record establishes, defense counsel failed to object, time and again, when the prosecutor repeatedly misrepresented to the jury critical DNA evidence as proof of defendant’s guilt, in contradiction of the People’s expert testimony. We conclude defense counsel was ineffective, and, on the record before us, defendant was denied a fair trial as a result. Therefore, the order of the Appellate Division should be reversed.”
Phillips v. State, 226 Md. App. 1, 126 A.3d 739 (Md. Ct. Spec. App. 2015)
“This case requires us to decide what to do with a statute that appears to be obsolete regarding the admissibility of DNA evidence. Following a jury trial in the Circuit Court for Prince George’s County, appellant Richmond Phillips (“Phillips”) was convicted of two counts of murder in the first degree, one count of use of a handgun in a crime of violence, and one count of child abuse in the first degree. He was sentenced to two consecutive terms of life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. On appeal, Phillips challenges the DNA evidence the State used against him. The State argues that the DNA evidence was automatically admissible under S 10-915 of the Courts and Judicial Proceedings (“CJP”) Article of the Maryland Code. Section 10-915, however, requires that, to be admissible, a DNA profile must include certification that the analysis was performed according to standards promulgated by two entities that no longer exist. Phillips asserts that the DNA evidence failed to comply with this factually obsolete statute and, therefore, that the trial court was correct in conducting a Frye-Reed hearing to determine whether to admit the DNA evidence. Phillips alleges, however, that the trial court erred in concluding that the DNA evidence was admissible under Frye-Reed. For the following reasons, we will affirm the judgments of the circuit court.”
State v. Armstead, 2015-Ohio-5010 (Ohio Ct. App. 2015)
“{P 26} Armstead was never informed that his compliance with Det. Phillips’ requests was completely voluntary. Furthermore, Armstead was not the subject of any outstanding warrants, and Det. Phillips testified that he had no probable cause to arrest him. The fact that the trial court found that Det. Seiter had probable cause in 2012 to obtain an arrest warrant for Armstead is irrelevant to the probable cause analysis we must make as result of Det. Phillips’ actions. Det. Phillips admitted he only knew a DNA swab was needed, he knew nothing of the alleged crime or why Det. Seiter desired to talk with Armstead. We also note that Armstead’s continued detention was in no way related to the purpose of the original stop of the driver.”
United States v. De Watson, 792 F.3d 1174 (9th Cir. 2015)
“We address whether new DNA tests that make previously useless DNA capable of identification amount to “newly discovered DNA evidence” under the Innocence Protection Act . . . .
No tradition is more firmly established in our system of law than assuring to the greatest extent that its inevitable errors are made in favor of the guilty rather than against the innocent. Our legal tradition has always followed Blackstone’s principle that “it is better that ten guilty persons escape than that one innocent suffer.” The moral force of our criminal law requires this allocation of the risk of error, both with respect to standard of proof and to scientific testing of newly discovered evidence critical to guilt. “It is critical that the moral force of the criminal law not be diluted by a standard of proof [or, we suggest, a rejection of scientific testing] that leaves people in doubt whether innocent men are being condemned.” Not all share our revulsion at punishment of the innocent, of course. But Americans have always been revolted by the notion that it is better that the innocent suffer than that some of the guilty go free.
Consistent with our tradition, Congress has created a device to end the suffering of the innocent, where their innocence is scientifically demonstrable by DNA evidence, even after their convictions have become final. The most hallowed principle of our criminal law, protecting the innocent, requires us to eschew a crabbed, restricted construction of the statute. Watson moved in timely fashion for previously unperformed DNA testing, based on newly discovered evidence — the results of DNA testing not possible at the time of trial — that could well prove his actual innocence and mistaken identity. His motion should have been granted.”
Convicting the Innocent Redux in Wrongful Convictions and the DNA Revolution: Twenty-Five Years of Freeing the Innocent (CUP 2015)
“My book, “Convicting the Innocent: Where Criminal Prosecutions Go Wrong,” published in 2011, tells the story of the first 250 DNA exonerations in the United States. There have now been 330 DNA exonerations. There is no other country in the world in which such a large group of people have been exonerated by DNA evidence. This Chapter updates data collected when researching the book, and in many respects, the patterns remain the same. Many faced quite severe sentences. Twenty exonerees had been sentenced to death. Ninety-two were sentenced to life in prison, 12 of which were sentenced to life without parole. The vast majority, 80 percent of these DNA exonerees, were racial minorities. There have been some notable changes in the composition of the most recent set of DNA exonerations. The more recent DNA exonerations include far more murder convictions than the first 250 DNA exonerations. These changes have impacted the types of evidence prominent in the cases. Similarly high percentages of cases involve eyewitness misidentifications (70%) and forensics (69%). Most striking, more of the cases include false confessions (21%) and informant testimony (22%). Many of the most recent exonerations were particularly hard fought along the path to eventual exoneration. Often because prosecutors were swayed by confession evidence they continued to litigated cases for years, even despite DNA tests results. Indeed, 22 of the recent 80 cases involved DNA analysis, 18 of which DNA exclusions of individuals that were nevertheless convicted; 3 more of which involved DNA exclusions concealed from the defense, and one more case, which involved a sample mix-up leading to an error in DNA analysis. Of the 227 cases that involved forensic evidence, 46% or 105 cases, involved invalid, erroneous, or concealed forensics. Almost half of the cases with eyewitness identifications involved cross-racial identifications. Twenty-nine of these inmates received vacaturs during appeals or post-conviction occurring prior to their DNA exonerations, representing 14% of the 204 that had written decisions published by judges. These most recent exonerations are particularly troubling, because some of the same underlying practices that can lead to wrongful convictions are with us today, even if reforms are spreading and attitudes towards criminal justice are shifting.”
Cops in Lab Coats: Curbing Wrongful Convictions Through Independent Forensic Laboratories (CAP 2015)
“Situated firmly at the intersection of the courtroom and the lab room, Cops in Lab Coats illustrates the legal and personal gravity of forensic science as a tool for police and lawyers alike. Thompson combines her studies of wrongful convictions, scientific mishandling in the lab room, and the legal interplay of analysts and lawyers to hone in on the need for independent crime labs nationwide. Cops in Lab Coats brings a fresh and critical perspective to the world of forensic science and illustrates the dire need for independence between crime labs and police departments across the country.”
Damning Cascade of Investigative Errors: Flaws in Homicide Investigation in the USA in The Handbook on Homicide (Wiley-Blackwell 2016)
“This chapter explores the investigative errors, prosecutorial misconduct, and flawed police procedures that are often the cause of wrongful convictions in the United States. The authors [Deborah Davis and Richard A. Leo] discuss the difficulty of the criminal investigative process and the inevitable infusion of bias during investigations, giving specific examples of the cognitive and motivational biases that may permeate both investigations and trials. The authors argue that judgment about specific evidence is both shaped by, and itself shapes, judgments of other evidence, which may lead to an escalation of errors during the course of an investigation. In order to reduce these procedural errors, the United States must consider certain reforms, such as removing forensic testing units from police departments, prohibiting the introduction of trial evidence based on invalid or untested forensic methods, and reforming the interrogation process.
Inside the Cell: The Dark Side of Forensic DNA (Nation Books 2015)
“Josiah Sutton was convicted of rape. He was five inches shorter and 65 pounds lighter than the suspect described by the victim, but at trial a lab analyst testified that his DNA was found at the crime scene. His case looked like many others—arrest, swab, match, conviction. But there was just one problem—Sutton was innocent. We think of DNA forensics as an infallible science that catches the bad guys and exonerates the innocent. But when the science goes rogue, it can lead to a gross miscarriage of justice. Erin Murphy exposes the dark side of forensic DNA testing: crime labs that receive little oversight and produce inconsistent results; prosecutors who push to test smaller and poorer-quality samples, inviting error and bias; law-enforcement officers who compile massive, unregulated, and racially skewed DNA databases; and industry lobbyists who push policies of “stop and spit.” DNA testing is rightly seen as a transformative technological breakthrough, but we should be wary of placing such a powerful weapon in the hands of the same broken criminal justice system that has produced mass incarceration, privileged government interests over personal privacy, and all too often enforced the law in a biased or unjust manner. Inside the Cell exposes the truth about forensic DNA, and shows us what it will take to harness the power of genetic identification in service of accuracy and fairness.”
Negotiating Accuracy: DNA in the Age of Plea Bargaining in Wrongful Convictions and the DNA Revolution: Twenty-Five Years of Freeing the Innocent (CUP 2015)
“Hundreds of exonerations have made DNA a kind of poster child for the innocence movement and the demand for more accurate evidence in criminal cases. But most wrongful convictions are not simply the result of evidentiary mistakes. In the marketplace of plea bargaining, convictions are the result of numerous inputs — a defendant’s criminal record, prosecutorial bargaining habits, the size of the trial penalty, whether the defendant is out on bail — that have nothing to do with the accuracy of the evidence. The bargained nature of these convictions means that accurate evidence is just one piece — and not always the most important piece — of the larger negotiation process that establishes guilt. We might say that the plea process is structurally tolerant of inaccuracy, precisely because it transforms accuracy into a commodity that may be traded and negotiated away in exchange for agreement. This is a recipe for wrongful conviction. The innocence movement, for example, has uncovered numerous cases where innocent defendants pled guilty to homicide and rape in order to avoid the death penalty. The pressures to plead are likewise pervasive in the misdemeanor system, in which thousands of people are rushed through assembly-line processes and routinely plead guilty to minor crimes of which they are demonstrably innocent. Ultimately, we should recognize plea bargaining as a source of wrongful conviction in its own right, and add it to the canonical list of wrongful conviction sources such as mistaken eyewitness testimony, lying informants, and bad forensics.”
Race and the Law in the Genomic Age: A Problem for Equal Treatment Under the Law, SSRN (2015)
“This is the “Age of Genomics”, and yet people who study race and the law often resist integrating biological insights into their understanding of human psychology and behavior. The historical reasons for this resistance are understandable, but the biological sciences have been undergoing a recent renaissance, which creates a contemporary problem of translation. This article explains why the appropriate response of the law to recent developments in the evolutionary and biological sciences is to recognize that there is more, rather than less, cause for concern with respect to how racial concepts typically function in the law. The short reason is twofold. First, belief in race is prone to function in ways that are far more prejudicial than probative of most issues relevant to criminal or civil liability. Second, racial concepts function automatically and unconsciously, often without racial animus or discriminatory intent. Hence, current equal protection doctrine, which requires a finding of discriminatory intent and is the central legal mechanism for guaranteeing the equal treatment of persons under the law, is poorly suited to guarantee equal treatment.
In fact, properly understood, evolutionary and biological paradigms offer support for many of the central empirical claims that critical race theorists have been making about race, law and society for some time now. Among those that Devon Carbado and Daria Roithmayr identify as “key modernist claims of the theory about which there is general consensus among practitioners in the United States” are the following: (1) “Racial inequality is hardwired into the fabric of our social and economic landscape”; (2) “Race is [nevertheless] a social construction whose meanings and effects are contingent and change over time”; (3) “Racial stereotypes are ubiquitous in society and limit the opportunities of people of color”; (4) “Because racism exists at both the subconscious and conscious levels, the elimination of intentional racism would not eliminate racial inequality”; (5) “The concept of color blindness in law and social policy and the argument for ostensibly race-neutral practices often serve to undermine the interests of people of color” (Carbado & Roithmayr 2014). Although critical race theorists have typically rejected evolutionary and biological paradigms, an increasing number have begun to argue for more direct engagement with the social sciences (Carbado & Roithmayr 2014). This chapter, written for the section on biology for the Oxford Handbook on Law and Technology, suggests that there may be room for cross-fertilization with the evolutionary and biological sciences as well.
The chapter ends by identifying four legal and policy implications. First, remedial forms of affirmative action should be used to cure not only for past practices of intentional discrimination but also for continuing effects of current unconscious discrimination. The shelf life of affirmative action is not likely to expire anytime soon, and its remedial use should be broadened. Second, the Supreme Court should reinterpret the Equal Protection Clause of the United States Constitution so that it protects against not only intentional discrimination but also any disparate impact caused by racial beliefs that regularly function to produce inequality, as described in this chapter. Third, more policy focus should be placed on integration — a goal that has largely been abandoned since the last concerted efforts to enforce Brown v. Board of Education in the 1980s (Anderson 2011). Fourth, state actions and police policies that impact minorities should be based on deliberations that involve more diverse constituents. Mechanisms to produce racially diverse juries should be developed in some criminal and antidiscrimination cases.”
Communicating the Results of Forensic Science Examinations (NIST 2015)
“During the 20th century, forensic scientists traditionally relied on heuristic techniques to analyze and compare forensic science evidence that can help link a suspect or defendant to the location or victim of a crime. They commonly reported categorical opinions on the evidence in courts. Drawing on developments in forensic statistics and DNA evidence, legal and scientific scholars have pressed forensic scientists to measure the validity and reliability of their techniques and to evaluate and quantify the weight of the evidence in each case in a fair, balanced and transparent fashion. A successful transition from an opinion-based system to one in which measurements are more quantitative and opinions are supported by statistical analyses requires investigating the nature of forensic inference processes and the findings of cognitive psychology on how to best convey scientific information to decision makers. This report on communicating the results of forensic science examinations was prepared for the Office of Law Enforcement Standards (OLES) of the National Institute of Standards (NIST) following the creation of an expert working group selected to provide expertise in forensic science, law, psychology, and statistics. It includes an overview of the nature of forensic inference (written by Graham Jackson); a survey of the current modes of presenting forensic identification findings (David Kaye); a review of jury studies and the psychology of efficient communication (Cedric Neumann and Valerie Reyna); conclusions and recommendations for improving communication (Cedric Neumann and Anjali Ranadive). Also included is a pilot study performed by Damon Bayer, Cedric Neumann, and Anjali Ranadive designed to compare the understanding and rational usage of forensic information by individuals confronted with likelihood ratios presented in different manners and to explore the challenge of measuring people’s understanding of that information.”
Cops in Lab Coats and Forensics in the Courtroom, SSRN (2015)
“Law enforcement’s past cover-ups of faulty forensics is at the heart of Sandra Guerra Thompson’s new book, Cops in Lab Coats: Curbing Wrongful Convictions Through Independent Forensic Laboratories. Thompson posits that forensic labs should be independent, rather than controlled by prosecutors and used to convict persons no matter the human cost. In brief, Thompson’s book captures the recent history of forensic validation — and invalidation — and its critical impact on the criminal justice system. Her inclusion of wrongful convictions mirrors the national conversation where innocence is the primary impetus to ensure that forensic disciplines become more reliable, forensic findings more testable, and forensic inquiries more independent.”
Notification re: FBI Allele Frequency Corrections and DNA Mixture Interpretation Issues in Texas (Tex. For. Sci. Comm’n 2015)
“This letter provides notification to the community regarding an issue of potential concern to judges, criminal prosecutors, criminal defense lawyers, victims and defendants in the Texas criminal justice system. The concerns involve the interpretation of DNA results where multiple contributors may be present, commonly referred to as DNA mixture interpretation. The attached document details the origin and scope of the concerns. While the Commission assess the issues described in the attached document, we recommend any prosecutor, defendant or defense attorney with a currently pending case involving a DNA mixture in which the results could impact the conviction consider requesting confirmation that Combined Probability of Inclusion/Exclusion (referred to as “CPI” or “CPE”) was calculated by the laboratory using current and proper mixture interpretation protocols. If the laboratory is unable to confirm the use of currently accepted protocols for the results provided, counsel should consider requesting a re-calculation of CPI/CPE. The extent to which any closed criminal cases may require re-analysis will be a subject of Commission review and subsequent notification to the stakeholder community.”
As Though They Were Not Children: DNA Collection from Juveniles, 89 Tulane L. Rev. 435 (2014)
“The federal government and every state but Hawaii mandate DNA collection from juveniles as a result of some contact with the criminal justice system. A conviction in criminal court, a delinquency adjudication in juvenile court, and even a mere arrest can trigger compulsory DNA collection. Law enforcement also seeks DNA from juveniles based on their consent. This Article provides a comprehensive accounting of current juvenile DNA collection legislation and case law. It situates DNA collection from juveniles within the law’s long-standing and renewed emphasis on special treatment of children both generally and with particular attention to criminal law and juvenile justice. Bringing to bear Supreme Court jurisprudence, neuroscientific and psychosocial research, juvenile court history, and the critical lens of childhood studies, it argues that compulsory DNA collection from juveniles is not reasonable under the Fourth Amendment and cannot withstand scrutiny. The government interests served by DNA profiling are reduced with respect to juveniles, and the privacy interests are enhanced. Many of its benefits, including deterrence, are lost with regard to juveniles. The Article calls for restrictions on the practice will protect children, and their childhood, while preserving law enforcement’s ability to exploit genetic databasing and aggregate data collection where its rationale justifies its application.”
Between Openness and Privacy in Genomics, 13(1) PLoS Med 1 (2016)
“Advancing genomic research depends on the accessing and sharing of genomic data. However, the increasing need for sharing escalates the tension between genomic privacy and openness. Promoting openness while protecting privacy is a challenge that cannot be overcome only with technical solutions such as encryption and differential privacy. Although such solutions are crucial, we still need to confront some fundamental normative tensions that are intensified in the era of genomics and big data. Here are at least three: The right to genomic privacy is not an absolute right. If privacy is understood as control over information or data, privacy is not about maximal levels of control, but rather about reasonable measures of control. Although individual control is necessary, it is not a sufficient safeguard of privacy. Individuals’ willingness to be open about their data does not obviate responsibility for reducing privacy risks on the part of the data users. Data governance models, such as data cooperatives, that enable meaningful and continuous roles of the individuals whose data are at stake hold promise for reconciling privacy and openness.”
Breaking Bad Science: Due Process as a Vehicle for Postconviction Relief When Convictions Are Based on Unreliable Scientific Evidence, 89 St. John’s L. Rev. 195 (2015)
“This Note argues that due process requires a new trial when scientific evidence necessary to the conviction becomes so unreliable as to call the validity of the jury’s verdict into question. Part I of this Note discusses how scientific evidence is admitted, the procedure for a convicted defendant’s postconviction relief once that evidence is deemed unreliable, and the constitutional protections that a convicted defendant is afforded under the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. Part II of this Note examines the divide among appellate courts as to whether the Due Process Clause requires a new trial when a conviction is based on evidence that has later been shown to be unreliable. Part III of this Note argues that due process requires a new trial when scientific evidence in the original trial is shown to be sufficiently unreliable as to compromise confidence in the accuracy and integrity of the jury verdict. A conviction later found to be based upon unreliable scientific evidence deprives the defendant of a fundamentally fair trial and thereby violates the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment, under both procedural and substantive due process theories, because it raises an intolerable risk of an inaccurate verdict and undermines the integrity of the criminal justice system. Because the Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act impedes the rights of a petitioner to assert his or her fundamental right to a fair trial, this Note argues that the statute, as currently written and applied, should be found unconstitutional under strict scrutiny review. A new trial will ensure that innocent defendants do not fall victim to the inherent shortcomings of the scientific evidence juries so readily embrace.”
Calling Out Maryland v. King: DNA, Cell Phones, and the Fourth Amendment, 51(5) Crim. L. Bull. 1212 (2015)
“In Maryland v. King, the Supreme Court narrowly upheld a Maryland statute that permits police to obtain a DNA sample from an arrestee without a search warrant. A year later, the Court drastically changed course and provided significantly more protection to an arrestee’s privacy. In a unanimous decision, the Court in Riley v. California held that police must obtain a search warrant before they can search the cell phone of an arrestee.
This article is the first to compare the Court’s conflicting decisions in Riley and King. Riley and King present the same issue: governmental invasion of privacy for purposes of general crime solving. The Court in King refused to admit that the true purpose of obtaining an arrestee’s DNA was for crime solving, and it justified the intrusion into the arrestee’s privacy largely on the grounds that the Government would use the DNA collected to identify the arrestees. Since DNA was merely a better, more advanced form of fingerprinting, the Court argued, the use of the DNA collected from arrestees significantly furthered the Government’s interest in identification. The Court in Riley, however, recognized that a search of an arrestee’s cell phone could be for nothing more than general criminal investigation.
The Court’s holding in King is impossible to square with its holding in Riley. If a search warrant is required for police to search an arrestee’s cell phone, it follows that a search warrant should be required to search a person’s DNA. Given the significantly broader protection granted to arrestees in the later Riley decision, King has been doctrinally eroded.
In light of this doctrinal erosion and the unlikelihood that the Court will overturn King in the near future, lower courts should interpret King narrowly. State DNA statutes should be upheld only if they match the specific holding in King. DNA searches should be permissible only if the person was arrested for a violent felony, and the arrest was supported by a judicial determination of probable cause. Furthermore, if the investigation into the arrestee ceases or the charges are dropped, the DNA sample should be automatically destroyed and the records automatically expunged from the state and Federal DNA databases.”
Can DNA Be Speech?, SSRN (2014)
“DNA is generally regarded as the basic building block of life itself. In the most fundamental sense, DNA is nothing more than a chemical compound, albeit a very complex and peculiar one. DNA is an information-carrying molecule. The specific sequence of base pairs contained in a DNA molecule carries with it genetic information, and encodes for the creation of particular proteins. When taken as a whole, the DNA contained in a single human cell is a complete blueprint and instruction manual for the creation of that human being.
In this article we discuss myriad current and developing ways in which people are utilizing DNA to store or convey information of all kinds. For example, researchers have encoded the contents of a whole book in DNA, demonstrating the potential of DNA as a way of storing and transmitting information. In a different vein, some artists have begun to create living organisms with altered DNA as works of art. Hence, DNA is a medium for the communication of ideas. Because of the ability of DNA to store and convey information, its regulation must necessarily raise concerns associated with the First Amendment’s prohibition against the abridgment of freedom of speech.
New and developing technologies, and the contemporary and future social practices they will engender, necessitate the renewal of an approach towards First Amendment coverage that takes into account the purposes and values incarnated in the Free Speech Clause of the Constitution. This article proposes and applies a framework for analysis in the context of contemporary social practices that involve the manipulation of DNA, as a case study from which we can hope to gain valuable insights regarding First Amendment doctrine in general.”
Cloning Miranda: Why Medical Miranda Supports the Pre-Assertion of Criminal Miranda Rights, 2015 Wis. L. Rev. 863 (2015)
“Courts across the country have concluded that suspects cannot assert their Miranda rights before being subjected to custodial interrogation. This reluctance to credit pre-assertions can be traced to dicta from McNeil v. Wisconsin, in which the Supreme Court noted that “[m]ost rights must be asserted when the government seeks to take the action they protect against.” This article challenges this notion by drawing an analogy between criminal suspects and patients. In 1990, Congress passed the Patient Self-Determination Act (“PSDA”), the so-called medical Miranda, which requires health care providers who accept money from Medicaid or Medicare to inform patients of their rights regarding advance directives and the refusal of medical treatment prior to admission. The goal of the PSDA is to inform patients of their health care rights prior to admission so that they can assert those rights before pressed into an unfamiliar environment in which they face possible isolation and coercion. This article contends that the same principles that led to the passage of the PSDA support the ability of suspects to be able to pre-assert their Miranda rights when custodial interrogation is “imminent.” It also sets up a framework for determining whether a suspect properly pre-asserted his Miranda rights.”
Could Secondary DNA Transfer Falsely Place Someone at the Scene of a Crime?, 61 J. Forensic Sci. 196 (2016)
“The occurrence of secondary DNA transfer has been previously established. However, the transfer of DNA through an intermediary has not been revisited with more sensitive current technologies implemented to increase the likelihood of obtaining results from low-template/low-quality samples. This study evaluated whether this increased sensitivity could lead to the detection of interpretable secondary DNA transfer profiles. After two minutes of hand to hand contact, participants immediately handled assigned knives. Swabbings of the knives with detectable amounts of DNA were amplified with the Identifiler(R) Plus Amplification Kit and injected on a 3130xl. DNA typing results indicated that secondary DNA transfer was detected in 85% of the samples. In five samples, the secondary contributor was either the only contributor or the major contributor identified despite never coming into direct contact with the knife. This study demonstrates the risk of assuming that DNA recovered from an object resulted from direct contact.”
Databases, E-Discovery, and Criminal Law, 15 Rich. J.L. & Tech. 6 (2009)
“The enduring value of the Constitution is the fundamental approach to human rights transcending time and technology. The modern complexity and variety of electronically stored information was unknown in the eighteenth century, but the elemental due process concepts forged then can be applied now. At some point, the accumulation of information surpassed the boundaries of living witnesses and paper records. The advent of computers and databases ushered in an entirely new order, giving rise to massive libraries of factual details and powerful investigative tools. But electronically collected information sources are a double-edged sword. Their accuracy and reliability are critical issues in the hands of prosecutors and their accessibility a hard-won necessity in preparing a defense.
This article examines the use of computer databases and electronic evidence from both standpoints. With limited guidance from federal and state criminal discovery rules, the courts have had to rely on constitutional principles and analogies to civil procedure when faced with database and electronic document discovery requests. A tension exists between the government’s proprietary interest in preserving the sanctity of its databases and the right of the defense to assail the accuracy of the databases’ output or to use them as investigative tools. As the gold standards of forensic science have come to be questioned, so too the inviolability of government databases must be rethought. And the defense’s right to prepare its case and receive a fair trial makes it necessary to use database knowledge comparable to the prosecution. Much of this information is generated solely by the government or its experts. The civilian alternatives are prohibitively expensive, inadequate, or non-existent. This review will highlight the problems created by disparities in resources and the role of constitutional and procedural remedies in the future development of criminal electronic discovery.
The discussion is divided into several areas, beginning with an examination of the benefits of database discovery in criminal practice under Part I. Part II is an analysis of the small body of criminal electronic discovery cases involving databases and the rules that have been applied over the years. Parts III and IV analyze the constitutional foundations for defense access to government database tools under due process, compulsory process and the right to confrontation. Applications of these theories are illustrated through developments in DNA database discovery in Part V, which highlights challenges to the quality of data and the right to access DNA databanks for defense investigation. The issues that arise in challenging evidence derived from databases, particularly data relied on by experts, are discussed in Part VI. The ongoing problem of achieving defense parity with prosecution resources and the constitutional grounds for overcoming objections to disclosure or access to database information is considered in Part VII. Finally, the conclusion, Part VIII, considers the enormity of the task facing advocates as the criminal justice system, and society at large, come to terms with this next wave in the Information Revolution.”
Differentiating Between Monozygotic Twins Through DNA Methylation-Specific High-Resolution Melt Curve Analysis, 476 Analytical Biochem. 36 (2015)
“Although short tandem repeat profiling is extremely powerful in identifying individuals from crime scene stains, it is unable to differentiate between monozygotic (MZ) twins. Efforts to address this include mutation analysis through whole genome sequencing and through DNA methylation studies. Methylation of DNA is affected by environmental factors; thus, as MZ twins age, their DNA methylation patterns change. This can be characterized by bisulfite treatment followed by pyrosequencing. However, this can be time-consuming and expensive; thus, it is unlikely to be widely used by investigators. If the sequences are different, then in theory the melting temperature should be different. Thus, the aim of this study was to assess whether high-resolution melt curve analysis can be used to differentiate between MZ twins. Five sets of MZ twins provided buccal swabs that underwent extraction, quantification, bisulfite treatment, polymerase chain reaction amplification and high-resolution melting curve analysis targeting two markers, Alu-E2F3 and Alu-SP. Significant differences were observed between all MZ twins targeting Alu-E2F3 and in four of five MZ twins targeting Alu-SP (P < 0.05). Thus, it has been demonstrated that bisulfite treatment followed by high-resolution melting curve analysis could be used to differentiate between MZ twins."
DNA by the Entirety, 115 Colum. L. Rev. 873 (2015)
“The law fails to accommodate the inconvenient fact that an individual’s identifiable genetic information is involuntarily and immutably shared with her close genetic relatives. Legal institutions have established that individuals have a cognizable interest in controlling genetic information that is identifying to them. The Supreme Court recognized in Maryland v. King that the Fourth Amendment is implicated when arrestees’ DNA is analyzed, and the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act protects individuals from genetic discrimination in the employment and health-insurance markets. But genetic information is not like other forms of private or personal information because it is shared — immutably and involuntarily — in ways that are identifying of both the source and that person’s close genetic relatives. Standard approaches to addressing interests in genetic information have largely failed to recognize this characteristic, treating such information as individualistic.
While many legal frames may be brought to bear on this problem, this Article focuses on the law of property. Specifically, looking to the law of tenancy by the entirety, this Article proposes one possible framework for grappling with the overlapping interests implicated in genetic identification and analysis. Tenancy by the entirety, like interests in shared identifiable genetic information, calls for the difficult task of conceptualizing two persons as one. The law of tenancy by the entirety thus provides a useful analytical framework for considering how legal institutions might take interests in shared identifiable genetic information into account. This Article examines how this framework may shape policy approaches in three domains: forensic identification, genetic research, and personal genetic testing. In some of these domains, experts are already advocating for policies consistent with this framework.”
DNA Without Warrant: Decoding Privacy, Probable Cause and Personhood, 18 Rich. J.L. & Pub. Int. 319 (2015)
“An arrest is not a medical procedure and probable cause is not consent, and yet for purposes of genetic sampling they have become so. The Constitution considers people to be information containers with rights. And for the most part, the confiscation of a person’s genome in the stationhouse is a search. But the Supreme Court seems to parse constitutional privacy between data that originates from within (biologics) and data stored without (technology). Relying on the history of identification metrics, the necessity of stationhouse identification and the rationale of custodial control, the Court has lowered the threshold of biological privacy at arrest. In contrast to the low esteem in which privacy interests in the human genome seem to be held, there is a societal, even global, consensus building over the protection of privacy in digital data, such as the right to be forgotten. Today, the right to privacy in ourselves and in our machines are at loggerheads due in large part to the Supreme Court’s perceptions of privacy, probable cause and personhood. In Part I, this article explores the challenges to privacy, personhood and probable cause raised by DNA collection as identification sanctioned in Maryland v. King. Part II considers the presumed infallibility of DNA testing that undergirds the Supreme Court’s embracement of genetic identification. Lastly, in Part III, this article will try to decipher the Court’s Fourth Amendment logic in denying privacy to the information in human cells but embracing them in cell phones in Riley v. California.”
Effects of DNA Databases on Crime, SSRN (2015)
“Since 1988, every US state has established a database of criminal offenders’ DNA profiles. These databases have received widespread attention in the media and popular culture, but this paper provides the first rigorous analysis of their impact on crime. DNA databases are distinctive for two reasons: (1) they work mainly by increasing the probability that a criminal is punished rather than the severity of the punishment, and (2) they exhibit enormous returns to scale. I [Jennifer L. Doleac] exploit the details and timing of state DNA database expansions in two ways, first to address the effects of DNA profiling on individuals’ subsequent criminal behavior and then to address the impacts on crime rates. Using a regression discontinuity analysis, I show that DNA profiling deters criminal activity for both violent and property offenders. Then, using an instrumental variable approach, I show that larger DNA databases reduce crime rates, especially in categories where forensic evidence is likely to be collected at the scene — e.g., murder, rape, assault, robbery, and vehicle theft. Back-of-the-envelope estimates of the marginal cost of preventing each crime suggest that DNA databases are much more cost-effective than traditional law enforcement tools.”
Forensic DNA Phenotyping in Criminal Investigations and Criminal Courts: Assessing and Mitigating the Dilemmas Inherent in the Science, SSRN (2015)
“Forensic DNA Phenotyping (“FDP”), estimating the externally visible characteristics (“EVCs”) of the source of human DNA left at a crime scene, is evolving from science fiction toward science fact. FDP can already identify a source’s gender with 100% accuracy, and likely hair color, iris color, adult height, and a number of other EVCs with accuracy rates approaching 70%. Patent applications have been filed for approaches to generating 3D likenesses of DNA sources based on the DNA alone. Nonetheless, criminal investigators, particularly in the United States, have been reticent to apply FDP in their casework. The reticence is likely related to a number of perceived and real dilemmas associated with FDP: is FDP racial profiling, should we test unknown and unseen physical conditions, does testing for behavioral characteristics impermissibly violate the source’s privacy, ought testing be permitted for samples from known sources or DNA databases, and should FDP be limited to use in investigations only or is FDP appropriate for use in a criminal court. As this article explains, although those dilemmas are substantive, they are not insurmountable, and can be quite easily managed with appropriate regulation and protocols. As FDP continues to develop, there will be less need for criminal investigators to shy away from FDP. Cold cases, missing persons, and victims in crimes without other evidence will one day soon all be well served by FDP.”
Genetic Privacy and Latent Crime Scene DNA of Non-Suspects: How the Law Can Protect an Individual’s Right to Genetic Privacy While Respecting the Government’s Important Interest in Combating Crime, SSRN (2015)
“An individual has no right to privacy in genetic material they leave behind at a crime scene, even when that DNA naturally sloughs off. This absence of privacy occurs because courts consider latent crime scene DNA falls under the abandonment exception to the Fourth Amendment warrant requirement, or fail to utilize the Fourth Amendment when considering DNA collection, analysis and comparison. The Fourth Amendment requires a search or seizure to be reasonable and that it not violate an individual’s reasonable expectation of privacy: this requires that the individual exhibit a subjective expectation of privacy, and that society recognize that expectation as legitimate.
Law enforcement officials collect all DNA at crime scenes, and that DNA eventually winds up in state and federal DNA databases, such as NDIS. These databases are routinely searched by law enforcement to compare with other samples found at crime scenes or obtained from suspects. There is a right to privacy in genetic material. This right is reflected in judicial decisions, in legislation, and in public discourse. Searching a database or reanalyzing latent crime scene DNA of individuals neither connected to nor implicated in a crime constitutes a search because private individuals retain a high expectation of privacy in their DNA.
Since DNA can determine numerous things about an individual, including private medical information and information that could lead to potential discrimination such as diseases and ethnicity, since DNA is retained indefinitely in databases, and since those databases will continue to include genetic profiles of innocent individuals, courts should analyze the collection, analysis and retention of DNA found at crime scenes under the Fourth Amendment and require a warrant and particularized, reasonable suspicion. Similarly, legislators should protect an individual’s right to privacy in his or her inevitably shed DNA, even when it is found at a crime scene.”
Going Local: The Fragmentation of Genetic Surveillance, 95 B.U. L. Rev. 1491 (2015)
“The FBI’s two-decade-long dominance of the use of genetic surveillance for law enforcement purposes is ending. In its place, local police departments are creating DNA databases that operate outside of the FBI’s national DNA database network. These local databases, which until now have remained unexamined, promise local law enforcement agencies freedom from the federal laws and regulations that govern the FBI’s national network. This Article relies on original qualitative empirical research to describe why agencies created local databases and how these databases operate. It finds that while local DNA databases offer promise as a crime-solving tool, they generate harms that so far have been ignored. These harms include exacerbating racial inequities, threatening privacy and dignity interests, and undermining the legitimacy of the police. Because law enforcement agencies have not internalized these harms, the self-imposed regulations that currently restrain law enforcement’s use of local DNA databases are insufficient. This Article proposes several modest, yet effective, reforms that will minimize the harms generated by local DNA databases, while at the same time preserving law enforcement’s ability to wield this tool.”
Government Analysis of Shed DNA Is a Search Under the Fourth Amendment, 48 Tex. Tech. L. Rev. 287 (2015)
“This article addresses whether the Fourth Amendment is implicated when police surreptitiously collect and analyze a person’s involuntarily shed DNA. Law enforcement officers will often obtain shed or abandoned DNA samples from persons who they suspect have committed crimes, but lack sufficient evidence to arrest or detain such persons. When utilizing abandoned or shed DNA for criminal investigative purposes, there are two state actions which arguably trigger Fourth Amendment protection. First, the collection of the biological material which contains a person’s DNA might be considered a search under the amendment. Courts, however, have uniformly rejected this argument. For example, when police are interested in determining whether a suspect may be connected with an unsolved crime for which they collected a DNA sample from the crime scene, they will covertly obtain the suspect’s DNA from a fast-food wrapper or hair sample taken from a barber-shop floor. To date, judges have concluded that persons have discarded the DNA-laden cells obtained by police in these circumstances, and thus under Fourth Amendment law, retained no privacy interest in the item seized by police.
Second, the analysis of the DNA sample might trigger Fourth Amendment safeguards. This second issue – whether the Fourth Amendment is implicated when police surreptitiously analyze a citizen’s involuntarily shed DNA – is the topic of my [Tracey Maclin] paper. Most recently, two state high courts, Maryland and Massachusetts, have rejected Fourth Amendment claims that government analysis of DNA samples lawfully obtained from persons constitutes a search under the Fourth Amendment. The Supreme Court denied certiorari in the Maryland case – Raynor v. Maryland, 99 A. 3d. 753 (Md. 2014), cert. denied, 135 S. Ct. 1509 (2015). The result in Raynor conflicts with a ruling of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, the federal circuit in which Maryland sits. In United States v. Davis, 690 F. 3d 226 (4th Cir. 2012), the Fourth Circuit ruled that the analysis of a suspect’s DNA sample from clothing lawfully obtained by the police was a search. The Fourth Circuit explained that “analysis required to obtain a DNA profile . . . generally qualifies as a search, because an individual retains a legitimate expectation of privacy in the information obtained from the testing.” However, the Court has requested the Commonwealth of Massachusetts to file a reply to the certiorari petition filed in the Massachusetts case – Commonwealth v. Arzola, 26 N.E. 3d 185 (Mass. 2015). In concluding that analysis of a DNA sample does not constitute a search, both the Maryland and Massachusetts high courts relied heavily on the Supreme Court’s 2013 ruling in Maryland v. King, which held that where police have probable cause to arrest for a serious offense, “taking and analyzing a cheek swab of the arrestee’s DNA is, like fingerprinting and photographing, a legitimate police booking procedure that is reasonable under the Fourth Amendment.”
Specifically, Part I of my article discusses whether analysis of abandoned DNA constitutes a search under the Fourth Amendment. Part II of the article considers a conflict in the Supreme Court’s cases when new technology or science gives law enforcement authorities enhanced capabilities to discover information arguably protected by the Fourth Amendment. In some cases, when deciding whether a search occurred, or the reasonableness of a challenged search, what a particular intrusion actually reveals matters little; what matters is the potential risk to privacy posed by new technology. In other cases, the fact that a particular intrusion has the potential to disclose highly personal data or massive amounts of information is constitutionally irrelevant. The only thing that matters is what was actually revealed by the intrusion. Finally, Part III of the article considers the implications of leaving the analysis of shed DNA unregulated by the Fourth Amendment.”
Government Retention and Use of Unlawfully Secured DNA Evidence, 48 Tex. Tech. L. Rev. 269 (2015)
“In Maryland v. King, the Supreme Court allowed police to extract a DNA sample from the cheek of a lawfully arrested individual without first securing a warrant, likening the sample to photos and fingerprints routinely taken during booking. Although King has already prompted a substantial body of critical commentary, to date an important outgrowth of the decision has eluded attention: What if, unlike in King, an individual is unlawfully arrested, without probable cause, yet police secure a DNA sample pursuant to a routine booking procedure? In his King dissent, Justice Scalia surmised that “[a]s an entirely predictable consequence of [the majority’s] decision, your DNA can be taken and entered into a national DNA database if you are ever arrested, rightly or wrongly, and for whatever reason.” As it turns out, under current exclusionary rule doctrine, there is considerable truth to Justice Scalia’s assessment. In a line of cases stretching back several decades, courts have permitted police to retain and use for investigative purposes photos and fingerprints secured through unlawful arrests. Suppression is required when it can be shown that the purpose of the illegal arrest was to secure the prints, photos, or both — a finding often undercut when the evidence is acquired pursuant to a routine booking procedure. Against this backdrop, the King majority’s willingness to uncritically couple DNA samples with fingerprints and photos assumes added importance. This article, part of a symposium hosted by the Texas Tech School of Law, addresses whether the coupling obliges an equally uncritical application of exclusionary rule doctrine vis-a-vis unlawfully secured DNA. Answering in the negative, the article urges legislative action to limit the government’s ability to retain and use unlawfully secured DNA.”
Lay Understanding of Forensic Statistics: Evaluation of Random Match Probabilities, Likelihood Ratios, and Verbal Equivalents, 39(4) Law & Hum. Behav. 1 (2015)
“Forensic scientists have come under increasing pressure to quantify the strength of their evidence, but it is not clear which of several possible formats for presenting quantitative conclusions will be easiest for lay people, such as jurors, to understand. This experiment examined the way that people recruited from Amazon’s Mechanical Turk (n = 541) responded to 2 types of forensic evidence — a DNA comparison and a shoeprint comparison — when an expert explained the strength of this evidence 3 different ways: using random match probabilities (RMPs), likelihood ratios (LRs), or verbal equivalents of likelihood ratios (VEs). We found that verdicts were sensitive to the strength of DNA evidence regardless of how the expert explained it, but verdicts were sensitive to the strength of shoeprint evidence only when the expert used RMPs. The weight given to DNA evidence was consistent with the predictions of a Bayesian network model that incorporated the perceived risk of a false match from 3 causes (coincidence, a laboratory error, and a frame-up), but shoeprint evidence was undervalued relative to the same Bayesian model. Fallacious interpretations of the expert’s testimony (consistent with the source probability error and the defense attorney’s fallacy) were common and were associated with the weight given to the evidence and verdicts. The findings indicate that perceptions of forensic science evidence are shaped by prior beliefs and expectations as well as expert testimony and consequently that the best way to characterize and explain forensic evidence may vary across forensic disciplines.”
Microbial Forensics: The Biggest Thing Since DNA?, 51 Crim.L.Bull. 726 (2015)
“We live in a microbial cloud. Our bodies are home to between two and six pounds of microbial life-cells that do not share our DNA but replicate and live on our skin and hair, in our colons, between our toes, and in our mouths. Although some microbes are pathogenic, most are benign; and many are beneficial. For instance, the microbes in our colons are essential to proper digestion. We now realize that bacteria aid in the development of the immune system, fight off pathogens, and regulate our metabolism. Understandably, scientists are paying increasing attention to the human microbiome. The growing appreciation of human microbiome is already having a profound effect on the practice of medicine. By way of example, physicians are now using fecal transplants to “infect” a patient with healthy intestinal bacteria to treat microbe-related diseases. The new insights into the microbial cloud also have forensic implications. As this article explains, microbial analysis can potentially be employed in: –tracing infections to a source; –more broadly, making personal identifications; –improving estimates of post-mortem interval; –identifying types of body fluids; and –soil mapping. Some Spanish and American courts have already admitted expert testimony based on microbial forensic techniques. However, it is far too early to proclaim that the recognition of the importance of the human microbiome is the second coming of DNA. Yet, it is virtually inevitable that in the future litigators will encounter such testimony in court. The purpose of this article is two-fold. First, the article will help generally familiarize members of the American legal profession with the new field of microbial forensics. Secondly, we hope that that familiarity will stimulate a discussion of the question whether any of the foreseeable applications of microbial forensics have sufficient empirical validation to satisfy Daubert and produce admissible evidence.”
Myth of Arrestee DNA Expungement, 164 Univ. Penn. L. Rev. Online 51 (2015)
“Building on a trend that began with collecting DNA from convicted offenders, most states and the federal government now collect DNA from felony arrestees. The national DNA database now contains information on more than 2 million arrestees. While some of these arrests will result in guilty pleas or convictions, a substantial number will not. In fact, in many cases arrests lead to dismissed criminal charges or no charges at all. Should these arrestees forfeit their genetic information nevertheless? Every jurisdiction that collects arrestee DNA permits eligible arrestees to seek the expungement of their genetic profiles. While formal expungement is the law, it turns out that arrestee DNA expungement is largely a myth. In most states that collect arrestee DNA, the initial decision by the police to arrest that person turns out in most cases to lead to the permanent collection and retention of the arrestee’s genetic information, regardless of whether charges are dismissed or never brought at all. This essay is the first to provide preliminary data on actual arrestee DNA expungement, and argues for quick, efficient, and state-initiated expungement procedures.”
Negotiating Accuracy: DNA in the Age of Plea Bargaining, SSRN (2015)
Neuroscience and Behavioral Genetics in U.S. Criminal Law: An Empirical Analysis, 2 J. Law Biosci. 485 (2015)
“The goal of this study was to examine the growing use of neurological and behavioral genetic evidence by criminal defendants in US criminal law. Judicial opinions issued between 2005–12 that discussed the use of neuroscience or behavioral genetics by criminal defendants were identified, coded and analysed. Criminal defendants are increasingly introducing such evidence to challenge defendants’ competency, the effectiveness of defense counsel at trial, and to mitigate punishment.”
Rule of Probabilities: A Practical Approach for Applying Bayes’ Rule to the Analysis of DNA Evidence, 67 Stan. L. Rev. 1447 (2015)
“Bayes’ rule is not being used to guide jury decision making in the vast majority of criminal cases introducing evidence of DNA testing. Instead of telling juries the “source probability,” the probability that the individual whose DNA matches was the source of the forensic evidence found at the crime scene, experts only present pieces of the puzzle. They provide the probability that a randomly selected innocent person would have a match or the expected number of innocent matches in the database. In some cases, the random match probability will be so low (one in a quadrillion) that the intuitive source probability is practically one hundred percent. But, in other cases, with large database trawls and random match probability at 1 in a million, jurors will have no ability to convert the random match probability or the likelihood ratio based on expected number of matches into relevant data that will help them address the question of guilt. This Article shows that a correct application of Bayes’ rule should lead fact-finders and litigants to focus on the size of two variables that influence the source probability: the probability that a non-source in the DNA database would have an alibi, and the probability that the source of the DNA is included in the database. This Article suggests practical means of estimating these two variables and argues that as a legal matter these parameters as well as the Bayesian posterior source probability are admissible in court. In particular, focusing on the prior probability that the “database is guilty,” i.e. the probability that someone in the database is the source of the forensic evidence, is not just analytically and empirically tractable, but avoids the evidentiary limitations concerning a particular defendant’s prior bad acts. Appropriate application of Bayes’ rule, far from preempting the fact-finding and adversarial process, can guide advocates to engage the important aspects of the evidence that are still likely to be open to contestation. Perhaps most important, appropriate application of Bayes’ rule will also allow jurors to reach verdicts via a coherent path that employs sound logic and reasoning.”
Should Arrestee DNA Databases Extend to Misdemeanors?, SSRN (2014)
“The collection of DNA samples from felony arrestees will likely be adopted by many more states after the Supreme Court’s 2013 decision in Maryland v. King. At the time of the decision, 28 states and the federal government already had arrestee DNA collection statutes in places. Nevada became the 29th state to collect DNA from arrestees in May 2013, and several others have bills under consideration. The federal government also encourages those states without arrestee DNA collection laws to enact them with the aid of federal grants. Should states collect DNA from misdemeanor arrestees as well? This article considers the as yet largely unrealized but nevertheless important potential expansion of arrestee DNA databases.”
Study of Criteria Influencing the Success Rate of DNA Swabs in Operational Conditions: A Contribution to an Evidence-Based Approach to Crime Scene Investigation and Triage, 20 For. Sci. Inter.: Genetics 130 (2016)
“DNA is nowadays swabbed routinely to investigate serious and volume crimes, but research remains scarce when it comes to determining the criteria that may impact the success rate of DNA swabs taken on different surfaces and situations. To investigate these criteria in fully operational conditions, DNA analysis results of 4772 swabs taken by the forensic unit of a police department in Western Switzerland over a 2.5-year period (2012–2014) in volume crime cases were considered.
A representative and random sample of 1236 swab analyses was extensively examined and codified, describing several criteria such as whether the swabbing was performed at the scene or in the lab, the zone of the scene where it was performed, the kind of object or surface that was swabbed, whether the target specimen was a touch surface or a biological fluid, and whether the swab targeted a single surface or combined different surfaces. The impact of each criterion and of their combination was assessed in regard to the success rate of DNA analysis, measured through the quality of the resulting profile, and whether the profile resulted in a hit in the national database or not.
Results show that some situations—such as swabs taken on door and window handles for instance—have a higher success rate than average swabs. Conversely, other situations lead to a marked decrease in the success rate, which should discourage further analyses of such swabs. Results also confirm that targeting a DNA swab on a single surface is preferable to swabbing different surfaces with the intent to aggregate cells deposited by the offender.
Such results assist in predicting the chance that the analysis of a swab taken in a given situation will lead to a positive result. The study could therefore inform an evidence-based approach to decision-making at the crime scene (what to swab or not) and at the triage step (what to analyse or not), contributing thus to save resource and increase the efficiency of forensic science efforts.”
Visualizing Trials with Large DNA Databases, SSRN (2015)
“This essay seeks to help the reader follow the analysis by Ayres and Nalebuff of the use of probability theory in assessing DNA evidence drawn from large databases. I [Nicholas L. Georgakopoulos] first guide the reader through visualizing a simpler paradox of probability theory: the rare disease test. I then offer a visual understanding of their paradigmatic setting: DNA evidence from a large database identifies an individual, but a deceased prime suspect also exists whose DNA is not available. A third unknown perpetrator whose DNA is not in the database is also a possibility. Consider the three possible scenarios. In the first scenario, the deceased prime suspect is the perpetrator, and the DNA test produces a false positive identification. In the second scenario the unknown perpetrator is guilty, and again the court observes a false positive. The third scenario has the perpetrator in the database, and the court observes a true positive. Effectively, the court needs to ascertain the probability of the third scenario, which turns out to be highly likely. This approach makes visible the possibility of a false positive after a false negative.”
23andMe Transparency Report, beSpacific, Nov. 22, 2015
“Along with other companies that provide paid services to customers that comprise the collection and identification of sensitive PII specific to health and genealogy issues, such as Ancestry.com, there is increasing focus on how this information can impact individuals at work, for security reasons, and when attempting to qualify for various types of insurance. 23andMe states: The mission of this company is “To help people access, understand and benefit from the human genome.””
Advances in DNA Tech Pave Way for Convicts to Get New Tests on Evidence, Ars Technica, July 16, 2015
“The legal flap—brought by a Montana man convicted of sexually abusing a 14-year-old girl in 2006—concerns the Innocence Project Act of 2004 (PDF). The measure, hailed by the defense bar, gave criminals three years to seek DNA testing of evidence after their conviction. Under that law, the three-year statute of limitations may be extended if a convict can demonstrate that there is “newly discovered DNA” evidence. The 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals, ruling in favor of Bill Watson’s bid for renewed testing of the victims’ underwear and other evidence, said advancements in DNA testing amounted to newly discovered DNA. The court said it did not matter if it was the same DNA evidence taken from the crime scene or if the testing was sought seven years after the conviction.”
Brief History of Forensics, Wash. Post, Apr. 21, 2015
“The Washington Post colleague Spencer Hsu continues his great reporting on the continuing crisis in the world of forensic science. Over the weekend, Hsu broke the story that Justice Department officials now concede that “an elite FBI forensic unit gave flawed testimony in almost all trials in which they offered evidence against criminal defendants over more than a two-decade period before 2000.” This is far from the first such story. It isn’t even the first such story from the FBI’s crime lab, long considered one of the most elite labs in the world. In fact, over the last several years there seems to be a new crime lab in crisis about once a month. A big part of the problem is misplaced incentives. A couple years ago I [Radley Balko] reported on a study which found that in many states, crime lab analysts are actually paid per conviction. And few years before that study came out, one of its authors — Roger Koppl of Fairleigh Dickinson University — and I wrote a piece about how we could institute some meaningful reforms to get those incentives pointing in the right direction. But Hsu’s story seems like a good opportunity to post a bit of a history of forensics that I wrote a few months ago. This was initially part of my four-part series on the use of bite mark evidence in the courts. We cut it because the series was already pretty long. But I think it provides some useful context for these alarming stories we’re seeing today.”
Building a Face, and a Case, on DNA, N.Y. Times, Feb. 24, 2015, at D1
“Investigators are increasingly able to determine the physical characteristics of crime suspects from the DNA they leave behind, providing what could become a powerful new tool for law enforcement. Already genetic sleuths can determine a suspect’s eye and hair color fairly accurately. It is also possible, or might soon be, to predict skin color, freckling, baldness, hair curliness, tooth shape and age. Computers may eventually be able to match faces generated from DNA to those in a database of mug shots. Even if it does not immediately find the culprit, the genetic witness, so to speak, can be useful, researchers say.”
Cert Petition: Is DNA Testing Blood on Seized Clothing a Fourth Amendment ‘Search’?, Wash. Post, Dec. 7, 2015
“Why is blood removal and testing a Fourth Amendment search? Here’s an overview from the petition: Extracting and subsequently testing DNA on a person’s clothing is a Fourth Amendment search for two different reasons. First, a person’s own clothing is part of his “effects” if not also part of his “person[]” that the text of the Fourth Amendment plainly protects. U.S. Const. Amend. IV. Physically invading a person’s item of clothing, and scraping away what it contains with an intent to obtain a DNA profile, is a trespassory physical intrusion into the person’s effects with the intent to obtain information that constitutes a Fourth Amendment search. See United States v. Jones, 132 S.Ct. 945, 949 (2012).
Second, extracting the DNA from blood and creating a DNA profile implicates the property owner’s reasonable expectation of privacy under Katz v. United States, 389 U.S. 347 (1967). The Court has already recognized that conducting chemical tests on blood samples is a Fourth Amendment search. See Skinner v. Railway Labor Executives’ Ass’n, 489 U.S. 602, 616–17 (1989) (“The ensuing chemical analysis of the [blood] sample to obtain physiological data is a further invasion of the tested employee’s privacy interests”). The Court has similarly held that chemical testing of urine samples is a Fourth Amendment search in light of its potential to “reveal a host of private medical facts about an employee, including whether he or she is epileptic, pregnant, or diabetic.” Id. at 617. The same analysis applies to chemical testing of a seized blood sample to create a DNA profile and identify the sex of the person whose blood was found on the sample.”
Concern Grows Over DNA Evidence Errors in Texas, Click2Houston, Oct. 1, 2015
“Forensic labs are already backed up with tons of work and now prosecutors say they will have to go back and retest a lot of old cases. This afternoon the Texas Forensic Science Commission held a tense meeting discussing misinterpretations with DNA analysis. They said since the late 1999 scientists used a common formula to determine the likelihood that someone on trial would have the same genetic makeup as someone else and the FBI has flagged what it calls minor discrepancies.”
Cops Forced to Give DNA Samples Have No Case, Courthouse News, Aug. 31, 2015
“Three Phoenix police officers whose DNA was collected without their consent – but through a search warrant – do not have a Fourth Amendment claim, the Ninth Circuit ruled Monday.”
Cops Seek DNA Information from Ancestry.com and 23andMe, ABA J, Oct. 20, 2015
“Police searching for suspects are looking beyond criminal DNA databases for genetic information. In one case, police searched a publicly available database at Ancestry.com and wrongly identified New Orleans filmmaker Michael Usry as a suspect in a cold-case murder in Idaho based on a DNA sample provided by Usry’s father, Wired reports. The New Orleans Advocate had a story on the case last March.”
Dark Side of DNA Databases, The Atlantic, Oct. 8, 2015
“As news of these unexpected pairings swept the nation, lawyers in other cities pressed for similar searches. If there were 122 matches in a 65,000-person sized database, how many such matches might be found in the 11 million-person national database? But rather than embrace the inquiry, the FBI called the Arizona results “misleading” and “meaningless,” and suppressed the findings. FBI leaders reprimanded the Arizona lab, claiming that disclosing the results violated its agreement with the FBI. They further threatened to cut off access to the national database to any lab that independently conducted their own such studies. Why were the findings from the Arizona lab so explosive? The answer turns half on an understanding of math, and half on an understanding of law. And as is so often the case with forensic evidence, the gap between those two worlds proved critical.”
DNA by the Numbers, Forensic Mag., Oct. 20, 2015
“Nowadays increasing numbers of evidentiary traces are collected at crime scenes and submitted for DNA analysis at the forensic laboratories. However, almost 50% of the analyzed DNA samples do not result in valuable DNA typing information and a few studies show that the possibility to actually obtain usable DNA profiles can depend on the trace type. Evaluating the DNA results obtained for various sampled traces can provide us information on which traces are most promising to select for DNA analysis. Such information can guide crime scene investigators in decision-making.”
FBI Notifies Crime Labs of Errors Used in DNA Match Calculations Since 1999, Wash. Post, May 29, 2015
“The FBI has notified crime labs across the country that it has discovered errors in data used by forensic scientists in thousands of cases to calculate the chances that DNA found at a crime scene matches a particular person, several people familiar with the issue said. The bureau has said it believes the errors, which extend to 1999, are unlikely to result in dramatic changes that would affect cases. It has submitted the research findings to support that conclusion for publication in the July issue of the Journal of Forensic Sciences, the officials said. But crime labs and lawyers said they want to know more about the problem before conceding it would not make much difference in any given case.”
Forensic DNA Evidence Is Not Infallible, Nature, Oct. 28, 2015
“Research done by me [Cynthia M. Cale] and others at the University of Indianapolis in Indiana has highlighted how unreliable this kind of evidence can be. We have found that it is relatively straightforward for an innocent person’s DNA to be inadvertently transferred to surfaces that he or she has never come into contact with. This could place people at crime scenes that they had never visited or link them to weapons they had never handled.”
Future of Getting Arrested, The Atlantic, Jan./Feb. 2015
“An even more profound change involves the personal information that will be collected immediately following an arrest. Tablets equipped with facial-recognition software have already been rolled out in San Diego; meanwhile, the FBI has launched a giant database of biometric information that includes images of people’s faces, irises, fingerprints, and palms, as well as details about tattoos, scars, and other markings. Civil-liberties groups worry that as police make use of new identification tools during routine stops—and in the process collect new kinds of biometric data, including DNA and voice samples—the FBI’s database will swell with intimate information about people who are never convicted of any crime.”
Genomics—The Future of Forensic DNA Profiling, Huffington Post, Nov. 18, 2015
“Genomics is the scientific study of the molecular instructions encoded in your cells. It maps your entire genetic structure. Till now, forensic science has focused on only identifying your cell’s nuclei signature — your inner DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) and, to a degree, your outer miDNA (mitochondrial DNA) — not your genes. The old method of forensically profiling your biological fingerprint by DNA analysis is being replaced by a computerized 3D genome recreation of your entire being.”
‘Great Pause’ Among Prosecutors as DNA Proves Fallible, NPR, Oct. 9, 2015
“Over the summer, the Texas Forensic Science Commission, which sets standards for physical evidence in state courts, came to an unsettling conclusion: There was something wrong with how state labs were analyzing DNA evidence. It seemed the labs were using an outdated protocol for calculating the probability of DNA matches in “mixtures”; that is, crime scene samples that contain genetic material from several people. It may have affected thousands of cases going back to 1999.At first, they assumed the update wouldn’t make a big difference — just a refinement of the numbers. But when a state lab reran the analysis of a DNA match from a murder case about to go to trial in Galveston, Texas, it discovered the numbers changed quite a bit. Under the old protocol, says defense lawyer Roberto Torres, DNA from the crime scene was matched to his client with a certainty of more than a million to one. That is, you’d have to go through more than a million people to find somebody else who’d match the sample. But when the lab did the analysis again with the new protocol, things looked very different.”
How DNA Evidence Incriminated an Impossible Suspect, New Republic, Oct. 26, 2015
“The ability to discern a DNA profile from a tiny amount of material is an indisputable benefit. No one wants a rapist to go undetected simply because he wore a condom, or a burglar to evade detection by wearing gloves. But with the ability to test the scantest of evidence comes a responsibility to recognize the limits on what inferences can be drawn from that evidence. It is one thing to arrive at a crime scene and test the smudges of blood on a windowpane broken by the robber; it is another to swab for any cell residue on a doorknob that was turned to get inside. The difference, of course, is that the bloody glass shard almost certainly came from the perpetrator, whereas any number of profiles might be obtained from a doorknob also touched by other people. That is because of a phenomenon about which little is known: DNA transfer.”
I’ve Just Seen a (DNA-Generated) Face, N.Y. Times, Feb. 23, 2015
“The faces here, which look a bit like video game avatars, are actually portraits drawn from DNA. Each rendering was created by plugging an individual genetic profile into a predictive tool created by Mark D. Shriver, a professor of anthropology and genetics at Penn State University. Dr. Shriver and his colleagues have studied the ways that genes influence facial development. Their software yields an image in a matter of minutes, rapidly drawing connections between genetic markers and points on the face. In less time than it takes to make a cup of coffee, a sketch emerges inferred solely from DNA.”
Judge Denies Access to Source Code for DNA Software Used in Criminal Cases, Wall St. J., Feb. 5, 2016
“A Pennsylvania judge has blocked an attempt by defense lawyers for a man charged with murder to obtain the source code of a computer program increasingly used by law enforcement authorities to untangle complex mixes of DNA found at crime scenes. Judge Jill E. Rangos said in a ruling filed late Thursday that defense lawyers for Michael Robinson, who is charged with shooting to death two men in Allegheny County, Pa., failed to show that “production of the source code is a linchpin to undermining the Commonwealth’s case” as it pertains to the DNA evidence.”
Judge Rejects Medical Examiner’s DNA Technique, N.Y.L.J., July 15, 2015, at 2
“A type of DNA testing done by the New York City’s Office of the Chief Medical Examiner for almost 10 years does not have enough acceptance in the relevant scientific community to make its findings admissible, a judge has decided. After about two and a half years of litigation, including live testimony from 11 scientists, Acting Brooklyn Supreme Court Justice Mark Dwyer decided not to admit so-called “lower copy number” or “high-sensitivity” analysis. Dwyer said that the New York Medical Examiner is the only public laboratory in the United States that employs the technique in criminal cases.”
Lawyer Accused of Conducting DNA Test on Water Bottle Without Permission Testifies in Ethics Hearing, ABA J, Jan. 13, 2016
“A North Carolina lawyer accused of taking a water bottle without permission to test for DNA testified in her ethics hearing on Tuesday. Christine Mumma, director of the North Carolina Center on Actual Innocence, said she took the water bottle by mistake, but decided to have it tested because it could be the key to exonerating her client, Joseph Sledge, the Raleigh News & Observer and WRAL report. Sledge was exonerated because of Mumma’s efforts, but the DNA test wasn’t the reason. He had spent almost 40 years in prison for a double murder. The DNA test did not find evidence to help Mumma’s client.”
Michigan Judge’s Landmark DNA Ruling Could Revolutionize CSI Work, MLive, Dec. 23, 2015
“A Michigan judge has made the nation’s first ruling on a new approach to analyzing DNA results that could revolutionize crime-scene investigation and court cases. Muskegon County 14th Circuit Chief Judge William C. Marietti issued a written opinion allowing expert testimony about a software program that claims to make sense of DNA samples previously deemed unusable. The program, known as STRmix, is based on “probabilistic genotyping” – a statistical method being used when DNA from two or more people is mixed in the same sample. Until now, the STRmix software has never been the subject of a court ruling in the United States, although similar software has in a few scattered cases. It’s not a laboratory technique – it doesn’t have to do with the lab work done on the sample itself – but a mathematical method of interpreting the data that labs produce. Supporters say it greatly strengthens the power of DNA analysis by making it possible to use data previously considered so weak it was rejected.” See also Lost Shoe Led to Landmark DNA Ruling – And Now, Nation’s 1st Guilty Verdict, MLive, Mar. 20, 2016.
New DNA Techniques Entitle Inmate to New Testing Despite Deadline, 9th Circuit Says, ABA J., July 15, 2015
“Old DNA samples that were too small for testing under old techniques can be examined using new tests, even though a three-year limit has passed, a federal appeals court has ruled. The samples are akin to “newly discovered evidence” because identification is now possible using the new tests, according to the opinion by the San Francisco-based 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. As a result, the statute of limitations governing DNA tests to establish innocence doesn’t apply. The Associated Press and Courthouse News Service covered the July 10 decision (PDF).”
Problem with Using Secret Computer Code to Put People in Jail, Fast Company, Nov. 2, 2015
“DNA evidence has been used in criminal trials for decades. But the trial was the first in New York State to include DNA evidence from a new kind of advanced software. TrueAllele Casework, as the software is called, uses algorithms to analyze DNA in very low-level samples or in complex mixtures that contain the DNA of many people. It then teases out a percentage probability that the samples are a match. Human-centered methods that U.S. crime labs had been using for years would more often report “inconclusive” results for the same DNA samples. The problem for Wakefield’s defense team—and for genetic privacy and transparency advocates—is that the proprietary software is a “black box.” They couldn’t question the program’s methods, like they could a human’s.”
Rapid DNA Devices Provide Results in Less Than Two Hours; How Are They Being Used?, ABA J, Feb. 26, 2016
“Some civil-liberties and immigration advocates are concerned, however. Civil-liberties advocates fear such tests could reveal health and other information, and could be used to construct a nationwide DNA index. Some immigration advocates say rapid DNA could reveal whether a child was conceived due to infidelity or rape, and could exclude families with children who are not biologically related.”
Reluctant Scoop: Changing Interpretations of DNA Mixtures Vex Legal System, Grits for Breakfast, Sept. 5, 2015
“DNA has often been referred to as the gold standard of forensic evidence. And when comparing a single sample to a suspect, that’s true. When DNA evidence includes mixtures of DNA from multiple sources, however, the scientific community is still figuring things out. And it takes years for new knowledge to pass down from the highest-end basic research to the work tables of practicing DNA analysts at front-line crime labs. The most recent such development: improvements in DNA science and interpretation techniques have caused practitioners to change how they calculate probabilities when it comes to singling out a defendant based on DNA mixtures (i.e., when biological evidence includes samples from more than one person). In the most extreme instance, the new method reduced a one in a billion probability that evidence matched a particular suspect to around one in 50, the Texas Forensic Science Commission’s Lynn Garcia told the Texas Criminal Justice Integrity Unit (TCJIU) on Wednesday. The issue was first publicly revealed in Texas and, to their credit, the courts and relevant agencies have been quick to confront the challenge, even if nobody quite knows yet what to do.”
Retention of DNA Profiles and Fingerprints — Europe and the U.S., Collateral Consequences Res. Ctr., Feb. 4, 2015
“Comparing the European Court of Human Rights’ (ECtHR) 2008 decision in S. and Marper v. the United Kingdom with the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2013 decision in Maryland v. King provides a window on the very different legal status of criminal records in the Europe and U.S. S. and Marper also illuminates the growing chasm between the U.K. and continental Europe when it comes to informational privacy and police records. As illustrated in prior posts, many criminal justice practices that are common in the U.S. are regarded as a serious invasion of privacy in Europe, and therefore a human rights violation. As evidenced by the caselaw discussed below, this includes the blanket and indefinite retention of DNA and fingerprint information.”
Ruling Addresses Limits on Forensic Expert Testimony, N.Y.L.J., Jan. 27, 2016, at 1
“Not every technician who analyzes DNA samples and other forensic evidence must be cross examined at the trials of suspects who are implicated by the technician’s analyzed evidence, a judge ruled. Bronx Supreme Court Justice April Newbauer denied a motion by defense lawyers arguing that “five or six” technicians for the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner (OCME) who handled the DNA sample linking their client to a 2010 rape should testify so he could exercise his Sixth Amendment right to confront them. Newbauer ruled in People v. M.F., 3760-2013, that it would be sufficient to call the technician who positively linked “M.F.” to the DNA sample from a vaginal swab taken from the rape victim to testify about OCME testing procedures and its handling of DNA materials.”
Scientists Seek Ban on Method of Editing the Human Genome, N.Y. Times, Mar. 20, 2015, at A1
“A group of leading biologists on Thursday called for a worldwide moratorium on use of a new genome-editing technique that would alter human DNA in a way that can be inherited. The biologists fear that the new technique is so effective and easy to use that some physicians may push ahead before its safety can be assessed. They also want the public to understand the ethical issues surrounding the technique, which could be used to cure genetic diseases, but also to enhance qualities like beauty or intelligence. The latter is a path that many ethicists believe should never be taken.” See also Scientists Seek Moratorium on Edits to Human Genome That Could Be Inherited, N.Y. Times, Dec. 4, 2015 at A1
Scientists Sue State Police Over ‘Pro-Prosecution’ DNA Lab, Phys.org, Feb. 19, 2016
“Three scientists who worked at the New York State Police crime lab have sued the agency, alleging administrators retaliated against them for finding flaws in processing DNA evidence and pushing for new testing that would identify past errors.”
Secondary Transfer a New Phenomenon in Touch DNA, Forensic Mag., Nov. 9, 2015
“Touch DNA can be transferred by a handshake from one person to another, then to an object like a knife or a gun. But new research has found that Touch DNA analysis can erroneously implicate a person who never even laid eyes on the weapon as the main contributor of the DNA on its handle. The startling finding, reached by University of Indianapolis scientists, means that the invisible traces we may be leaving everywhere we go – scientists don’t yet understand the minute mechanics at work – could be affecting current and future cases. But how far back the traces could affect past verdicts, and sentences, has yet to be determined. The results won’t cause a wholesale reevaluation of criminal convictions, contends Cynthia M. Cale, the lead author of the study forthcoming in the January issue of the Journal of Forensic Science.”
Stay, Immediate Appeal Sought for Attorneys Seeking Access to DNA Analysis Software, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Jan. 5, 2016
“Attorneys for a double-homicide defendant Tuesday asked an Allegheny County judge to stay the case and allow them immediately to appeal her order denying them access to prosecution information they believe is vital to their defense. Last month, Common Pleas Judge Jill E. Rangos told attorneys for Michael Robinson they could not have access to the computer “source code” — 170,000 lines of computer instructions — that drives a DNA analysis software tool called TrueAllele.”
Surprisingly Imperfect Science of DNA Testing, Marshall Project, June 24, 2015
“Because DNA is more reliable than other forensics, scientists have shrugged off suggestions that it could fall victim to the vagaries of bias. But Dror [Itiel Dror of University College London] noted that much DNA analysis involves interpretation. With interpretation comes subjectivity, and with subjectivity can come error.” See also Itiel E. Dror and Greg Hampikian, Subjectivity and Bias in Forensic DNA Mixture Interpretation, 51 Sci. and Just. 204 (2011).
Synthetic DNA Could Help Foil Problem of Fake Art, Experts Say, ABA J, Oct. 13, 2015
“A new system is being developed that could help curtail high-priced sales of art forgeries, experts say. Along with the real artist’s signature, a unique pattern of synthetic DNA would be embedded in the artwork when it is created, the New York Times explains. The bioengineered “tag” could also help reduce traffic in stolen art, since pieces could be checked for DNA signatures before they are sold. Under development by the Global Center for Innovation at the State University of New York at Albany, the fledgling system is being helped along by $2 million in ARIS Title Insurance Corporation funds. (The title company focuses on artworks.) Once available, each DNA signature tag is expected to cost around $150.”
Your DNA Can Show Up at Crime Scenes You Were Never at, Study Finds, Yahoo News (CA), Nov. 19, 2015
“Forensic DNA evidence is an invaluable tool for determining guilt and innocence in criminal investigations. Technology has reached a point where sub-microscopic samples – so-called “touch DNA” – can determine, well within a reasonable doubt, who handled what at the scene of a crime. But newer, even sharper technology may be about to call that into doubt. It is now becoming possible to detect other samples – “transfer DNA” – from people who were never at the crime scene. “Touch DNA usually refers to DNA that’s deposited by the skin onto an object if you touch it,” says Dr. Krista Latham, associate professor of biology and anthropology and the University of Indianapolis. “However, our study is suggesting that term might be misleading, because what we found is that DNA can be transferred to an object that a person did not have direct contact with.” In other words, your DNA can actually be found on objects you’ve never seen – and never, ever touched.”
Your DNA Is Everywhere. Can the Police Analyze It?, Ars Technica, Feb. 20, 2015
“Anybody who has watched a crime drama knows the trick. The cops need someone’s DNA, but they don’t have a warrant, so they invite the suspect to the station house, knowing some of the perp’s genetic material will likely be left behind. Bingo, crime solved. Next case. A human sheds as much as 100 pounds of DNA-containing material in a lifetime and about 30,000 skin cells an hour. But who owns that DNA is the latest modern-day privacy issue before the US Supreme Court. At its core, the issue focuses on whether we must live in a hermetically sealed bubble to avoid potentially having our genetic traits catalogued and analyzed by the government.”
AMERICAN LAW REPORTS
Patentability of Diagnostic Methods Concerning Human Genes, Cells, Blood, and DNA, 90 A.L.R. Fed. 2d 235 (2014)
“The Patent Act, enacted in 1790, defines the subject matter of a patent as “any useful art, manufacture, engine, machine, or device, or any improvement thereon not before known or used.” It granted the applicant the “sole and exclusive right and liberty of making, constructing, using and vending to others to be used” of his or her invention. Over time, there have been numerous modifications, amendments, and reforms to the patent law reflecting the advancement of science and inventions. One such category of inventions, which has helped evolve patent law, is biotechnology inventions related to human genes, cells, blood, or DNA. For example, in Mayo Collaborative Services v. Prometheus Laboratories, Inc., 132 S. Ct. 1289, 182 L. Ed. 2d 321, 101 U.S.P.Q.2d 1961, 90 A.L.R. Fed. 2d 685 (2012), a patent infringement case between a diagnostic laboratory and a laboratory services company, the Court held that the patents which claimed the relationships between concentrations of certain metabolites in the blood and the likelihood that a thiopurine drug dosage will prove ineffective or cause harm were not patentable under patent law as they effectively claimed the underlying laws of nature themselves, a product which was invalid subject matter under 35 U.S.C.A. S 101. This annotation collects and analyzes cases construing and applying patent law (35 U.S.C.A. SS 1 to 376) as it relates to diagnostic methods concerning human genes, cells, blood, or DNA.”
Sufficiency of Search Warrant for DNA Sample, 93 A.L.R.6th 275 (2014)
“An individual has a privacy interest in his or her bodily fluids, and an order allowing the government to procure evidence from a person’s body constitutes a search and seizure under the Fourth Amendment of the United States Constitution. Thus, a governmental taking of samples of bodily substances, such as blood, constitutes a search and seizure subject to the Fourth Amendment’s reasonableness requirement. The courts in a number of cases have addressed the sufficiency of a search warrant for a DNA sample. In State v. Jenkins, 398 S.C. 215, 727 S.E.2d 761, 93 A.L.R.6th 667 (Ct. App. 2012), for example, the court held that an affidavit in support of a search warrant for DNA of a defendant did not demonstrate that the police had probable cause to believe that the defendant raped the victim, where the affidavit did not show why the police believed that the defendant committed the crime, where the affidavit contained no indication as to where the detective obtained information in the affidavit, and where the affidavit did not contain even a conclusory assertion that the information or its source was reliable. This annotation collects and discusses all of the cases that have addressed the sufficiency of a search warrant for a DNA sample.”
Validity, Construction, and Application of State Statutes and Rules Governing Requests for Postconviction DNA Testing, 72 A.L.R.6th 227 (2012)
“DNA testing can exonerate the wrongly convicted and identify the guilty and thus has the ability to significantly improve the criminal justice system. Recognizing this, 48 states have enacted statutes allowing for postconviction DNA testing. Balancing the competing interests of unleashing the potential for producing exonerating results with the need to respect the finality of court judgments, legislatures have devised different approaches with limitations as to when and under what circumstances a defendant may obtain DNA testing. In Com. v. Wright, 14 A.3d 798, 72 A.L.R.6th 673 (Pa. 2011), the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania held that a defendant’s voluntary confession to a crime did not preclude his establishing a prima facie case under Pennsylvania’s Post Conviction DNA Testing Act, 42 Pa. Cons. Stat. Ann. SS 9541 to 9546. This annotation explores these various approaches by collecting and discussing the state and federal cases that have addressed the validity, application, and construction of state statutes and rules governing requests for postconviction DNA testing.”
DNA Evidence (N.Y. Times)
“News about DNA Evidence, including commentary and archival articles published in The New York Times.”
DNA Newsletter (N.Y.C. Legal Aid Society)
This is a weekly round-up of news stories concerning DNA and forensics nationwide.
1 See generally Laura A. Hug et al., A New View of the Tree of Life, Nature Microbiology, No. 16048 (2016).
2 See Nick Zagorski, Profile of Alec J. Jeffreys, 103 Proc. Nat’l Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 8918 (2006). See generally Double Helix: Fifty Years of DNA, Nature (2003).
3 See Ken Strutin, DNA Without Warrant: Decoding Privacy, Probable Cause and Personhood, 18 Rich. J.L. & Pub. Int. 319 (2015); Ken Strutin, Databases, E-Discovery, and Criminal Law, 15 Rich. J.L. & Tech. 6 (2009). See also Ken Strutin, DNA and the Double Helix of Constitutional Rights, N.Y.L.J., July 22, 2014, at 5; Ken Strutin, DNA, Privacy and Personhood: The Crime of Being Alive, N.Y.L.J., July 23, 2013, at 5; Ken Strutin, DNA Sampling: A Challenge to Privacy and Dignity, N.Y.L.J., May 22, 2012, at 5; Ken Strutin, Third Party Culpability DNA Evidence, N.Y.L.J., Oct. 4, 2005, at 4.
4 See generally Ken Strutin, Unwarranted DNA Sampling: The Legacy of Maryland v. King, LLRX, May 11, 2014; Ken Strutin, DNA Evidence: Brave New World, Same Old Problems, LLRX, Oct. 14, 2013; Ken Strutin, DNA Identification Evidence in Criminal Prosecutions, LLRX, Mar. 7, 2010; Ken Strutin, DNA Post-Conviction Resources, LLRX, Sept. 14, 2008.
5 See, e.g., Alexandra Natapoff, Negotiating Accuracy: DNA in the Age of Plea Bargaining in Wrongful Convictions and the DNA Revolution: Twenty-Five Years of Freeing the Innocent (CUP 2015).
6 See, e.g., Robin Bradley Kar and John Lindo, Race and the Law in the Genomic Age: A Problem for Equal Treatment Under the Law, SSRN (2015).
7 See, e.g., Notification re: FBI Allele Frequency Corrections and DNA Mixture Interpretation Issues in Texas (Tex. For. Sci. Comm’n 2015); Tracey Maclin, Government Analysis of Shed DNA Is a Search Under the Fourth Amendment, 48 Tex. Tech. L. Rev. 287 (2015).
8 See, e.g., Joe Palazzolo, Judge Denies Access to Source Code for DNA Software Used in Criminal Cases, Wall St. J., Feb. 5, 2016; Jonathan D. Silver, Stay, Immediate Appeal Sought for Attorneys Seeking Access to DNA Analysis Software, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Jan. 5, 2016. See generally Ken Strutin, Databases, E-Discovery and Criminal Law, 15 Rich. J.L. & Tech. 6 (2009); Ken Strutin, An Examination of Source Code Evidence, N.Y.L.J., Nov. 13, 2007, at 5.
9 See Adrienne N Kitchen, Genetic Privacy and Latent Crime Scene DNA of Non-Suspects: How the Law Can Protect an Individual’s Right to Genetic Privacy While Respecting the Government’s Important Interest in Combating Crime, SSRN (2015); Jason Kreag, Going Local: The Fragmentation of Genetic Surveillance, 95 B.U. L. Rev. 1491 (2015); Joseph Goldstein, Police Agencies Are Assembling Records of DNA, N.Y. Times, June 13, 2013, at A1.
10 See, e.g., Jorge R. Roig, Can DNA Be Speech?, SSRN (2014).
11 See Charles E. MacLean and Adam Lamparello, Forensic DNA Phenotyping in Criminal Investigations and Criminal Courts: Assessing and Mitigating the Dilemmas Inherent in the Science, SSRN (2015); Andrew Pollack, Building a Face, and a Case, on DNA, N.Y. Times, Feb. 24, 2015, at D1; Garry Rodgers, Genomics—The Future of Forensic DNA Profiling, Huffington Post, Nov. 18, 2015. See generally Ken Strutin, 3D Printing: The Manufactory of Knowledge, LLRX, Mar. 29, 2014.
Posted in: Criminal Law, Discovery, Legal Research
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11197
|
__label__cc
| 0.729373
| 0.270627
|
A great starting book in this area is Ralph Martin’s The Fulfillment of All Desire. He makes the case for the Catholic faith in an accessible way—relying heavily on the writings of the spiritual masters of our tradition. Another profitable path to pursue is reading biographies of Jesus Christ. They deepen our understanding of Scripture, the Mass, and develop our personal relationship with Him. Pope Benedict XVI recently wrote a three-book series entitled Jesus of Nazareth. Although it has some theological insights that might challenge a reader unschooled in theology, he has many profound reflections that would be valuable to anyone who read it. Fulton Sheen, Frank Sheed, and Romano Guardini also wrote excellent works on the life of Jesus.
Most religions have some belief in the afterlife, some more than others. I do believe that it helps to follow some kind of faith, and through these various teachings and a deeper understanding, it can assist us when it’s our time to cross over. I often use the analogy of the spokes of a wheel, in that each spoke represents a different religion or faith, and although each is independent of the other, ultimately they’re all moving in the same direction.
*New customer offer and free Guide to Psychic Readings valid for first time customers who have never made a Psychic Source purchase. Up to 3 minutes of your first paid psychic reading are free. Free minutes have no cash value and are not available to customers who have previously received a free trial of the service. Promotional offers for free psychic readings are only valid for advisors whose introductory rate is $1.00/minute and are not valid on Video psychic readings. Some exclusions apply. ©2018 Psychic Source. All rights reserved. For entertainment only. 18+
In all cases you should explain your motives clearly to the psychic, clairvoyant, spiritual guide or medium you are consulting. Spiritual readings are generally more interactive than psychic readings since they offer better insights about your inner self. A good spiritual reader will encourage users to ask questions and to question themselves so that they could experience the reading on a more personal level.
A former skeptic & private investigator, Bob Olson has been an Afterlife Investigator & Psychic Medium Researcher since 1999. In his search for evidence of the afterlife, Bob has tested hundreds of psychics, mediums & other afterlife-related practitioners. Bob is the host of AFTERLIFE TV, founder of BEST PSYCHIC DIRECTORY and BEST PSYCHIC MEDIUMS, and offers his PSYCHIC MEDIUM WORKSHOP to help psychics and mediums improve their abilities and business. Visit Bob on AFTERLIFE TV's FACEBOOK page & on TWITTER. And don't miss Bob's new book titled ANSWERS ABOUT THE AFTERLIFE.
Speaking of readings, the first thing to know is that there actually are two different types of Tarot readings: question readings and open readings. In question readings, you are addressing a specific question. Tarot is not intended to answer specific yes or no questions. Most say it also shouldn't be used to make decisions, but instead should be used as a guide to help you make the decision yourself. For this reason, the way a question is stated is very important. Tarot reader and teacher Joan Bunning gives this advice:
The fifth, and final, thing you should know before going to a psychic medium demonstration or private reading is a piece of advice my friend John says best before every one of his demonstrations, “Don’t Feed The Medium!” If the psychic medium tells you that your Uncle Charlie is present. Don’t blurt out, “Oh, my goodness, my Uncle Charlie was a police officer who lost his leg in the war and died two years ago in a car accident!” Let the psychic medium tell you these things. If you offer that information yourself, then you miss out on the excitement and validation you could gain if the psychic medium was about to tell you those details.
For example, you smell your grandmother’s perfume or your grandfather’s cigar when you are in your car or in your bedroom. At times, you may feel anxious when you walk into certain rooms and then feel better once you leave. Whatever the case may be, if there are ghosts that haven’t crossed over in your life, we will cross them into the light and help them continue on their journey.
It’s simple — because they can! People on the Other-Side want to share our lives with us. Over the years I’ve been practicing as a medium, I must have done thousands of sittings where spirits have come through to acknowledge that they were around their loved ones during difficult times, and by doing so, they were able to lend their support and strength.
At times, a spirit that hasn’t crossed over yet may linger as they have some sort of “unfinished business.” Sometimes, they linger in our homes, cars, or at work. If we sense them during your reading, we will clear them out of your home and help them on their journey by crossing them over or helping them release whatever they were holding onto. Almost all of our clients report a significant “light feeling” in the area where they felt was once dark and “spooky.”
At some point, during one’s spiritual path, a conscious effort must be made to clear out the old karmic debts that still exist within our energetic field. In addition, the awakened individual will at some point begin to understand how they have created the negative karma and will learn how to stop creating anymore. If you can fully grasp the concept that you have lived numerous times before this one and that in order for you to even be looking at spiritual guidance as an option in your life right now, you will understand that you have had to experience many negative and probably despicable acts, both as the perpetrator and the victim. We cannot know the beauty and joy of our connection to the Divine without first knowing the opposite — Purgatory/Hell. If you can accept that you were once a bad person, capable of some of the worse acts of mankind, then you can learn to accept some of the negative stages of growth that you must go through in order to clear some of your karmic debts. The best way to get through these situations is to accept that you have responsibility for creating the negative situation you are currently involved in, maybe you are not conscious of the past events that led to the karmic debt, but learn to trust in the divine principles of the Universe.
“I don’t usually get spirit messages. I just don’t. But one day I was sitting with a friend, and all of a sudden, clear as day, I knew I had to tell her that her grandmother wanted her to go home. I told her, and she said that all her grandparents were dead. She called home anyway, to make sure everything was okay, and found out that her sister had been hurt at work and was on her way to an emergency room. I have no idea why my friend’s grandmother chose me to pass this message along, and it’s never happened since.”
While the tarot is the most widely known, it’s just one type of deck used for divination; others include common playing cards and so-called oracle decks, a term encompassing all the other fortune-telling decks distinct from the traditional tarot. Etteilla eventually switched to using a traditional tarot deck, which he claimed held secret wisdom passed down from ancient Egypt. Etteilla’s premise echoed the writings of Court de Gébelin, who allegedly recognized Egyptian symbols in tarot-card illustrations. Though hieroglyphics had not yet been deciphered (the Rosetta Stone was rediscovered in 1799), many European intellectuals in the late 18th century believed the religion and writings of ancient Egypt held major insights into human existence. By linking tarot imagery to Egyptian mysticism, they gave the cards greater credibility.
The Tarocco Siciliano is the only deck to use the so-called Portuguese suit system which uses Spanish pips but intersects them like Italian pips.[13] Some of the trumps are different such as the lowest trump, Miseria (destitution). It omits the Two and Three of coins, and numerals one to four in clubs, swords and cups: it thus has 64 cards but the ace of coins is not used, being the bearer of the former stamp tax. The cards are quite small and not reversible.[9]
And here’s the thing – you may already consciously know the message or insight you receive in a Tarot reading, in which case, the reading can be a heartening confirmation of what you already know. Or, you might be completely unaware of the message until you see it reflected in the cards, in which case you are now empowered to take action based on your new awareness.
With your permission, I connect on a soulful resonance to bring forth messages and healing energy from within you and out to you for further remembering, exploration, and transformation. combining both universal wisdom and the wisdom of your soul, within soul to soul one on one communication and message, these two essences BEing as One within One Spiritual Soul Channel Reading for you. Each reading explores your Soul Life Purpose, what your soul is inviting you to remember, embrace, and treasure within this Life Experience. Using the ancient wisdom tools of Soul Mediumship, as well as intuitive guidance, I will explore with you, your spiritual destiny and the specific gifts you have chosen to experience within this Life Experience. I will also identify the cycle of energies you are embracing in this moment in direct application to your current life situation.
On 4 February 1922, Harry Price with James Seymour, Eric Dingwall and William S. Marriott had proven the spirit photographer William Hope was a fraud during tests at the British College of Psychic Science. Price wrote in his SPR report "William Hope has been found guilty of deliberately substituting his own plates for those of a sitter... It implies that the medium brings to the sitting a duplicate slide and faked plates for fraudulent purposes."[128] The medium Kathleen Goligher was investigated by the physicist Edmund Edward Fournier d'Albe. On July 22, 1921 in a séance he observed Goligher holding the table up with her foot. He also discovered that her ectoplasm was made of muslin. During a séance d'Albe observed white muslin between Goligher's feet.[129]
One frequent obstacle with spiritual reading is the question of where to start. There are so many writings of saints, magisterial documents, and enough devotional books and pamphlets to fill a library. Choosing what kind of books to read should have a multi-pronged approach, depending on each individual. I think a great way to organize it is an adaptation of St. John Paul II’s recommendations in Pastores Dabo Vobis. The encyclical was on the training of priests, and he called attention to four basic areas of formation: human, spiritual, intellectual, and pastoral. Even though most of us aren’t ordained priests, we can still apply this to our spiritual reading habits. Good spiritual reads will ideally aid us in all four of those elements—or at least focus on one or two.
The mediums ranged from 15 to 47 years of automatic writing experience, performing up to 18 psychographies per month. All were right-handed, in good mental health, and not currently using any psychiatric drugs. All reported that during the study they were able to reach their usual trance-like state during the psychography task and were in their regular state of consciousness during the control task.
'Experienced Spirit Mediums'. Experienced? What is there to demonstrate the experience? 'Medium'? I was 'painting' with morality - as I always do. Not also true for mediums - is it? 'Spirit'? What sort of 'spirit' is common to all 'mediums'? Is there a 'spirit' common to all 'mediums'? If so, what is it? For example, I'm not sure the 'spirit' of a 'medium' in Bristol would be identical to the 'spirit' of a 'medium' in, say, Liverpool. Is that, for example, what presents the controversy? But I welcome the research into 'spirit' brains. Indeed, they were psychographed.
Every spiritual lesson we meet in our lives can be found in the seventy-eight Tarot cards. And when we consult the Tarot, we’ll get shown the exact lessons we need to learn and master to live an inspired life. It’s like holding up a mirror to yourself so that you can access your subconscious mind and tap into the wisdom (and answers) that lives in us all.
"Have a little fun with friends," she told INSIDER. "Before going out one night, pull three cards with the intention of the cards giving you some forewarning about the evening. Let it be fun and easy and involve everyone! You can even ask, 'what happens if we go to this spot or this one?' Let the cards decide your night and see if they gave good advice!"
A Spiritual Reading is a session in which we connect with your energy and channel information that may come from our Spirit guides, Angels, or helper souls. We can also connect to your Akashic Record, which is comparable to the “Library of Your Soul.” It includes all of your lives – past, present, and future. We can connect and find out what your soul purpose is in this life, we can see which souls traveled with you to this life those that have accompanied you in other lives (soul mates), and we can ask if there is anything that can help you on your path to overcome and understand the lessons you chose to face in this life.
In this, his last novel, Huxley uses a lifetime of thinking about human possibilities to create an island utopia that illustrates his hopes for the future of humankind. The Indian Ocean island of Pala is a kind of paradise, created with the inherited wisdom of its two founders, a Buddhist Raja and a commonsensical Scottish physician. The goal of life on Pala is to merge with the clear light, not to accumulate possessions; the island’s philosophy is a mix of Eastern thought (particularly tantric Buddhism, which does not retreat from the world, but uses it for higher purposes), Western science (but with limited technology), unrepressed sexuality, and constant mindfulness. (The island’s fauna include mynah birds trained to say, “Attention! Attention!”) Huxley’s ideas about childrearing, psychedelic visions, and tending to the dying were far ahead of his time, and his portrait of a utopia in which those ideas are implemented will intrigue anyone who is interested in a more spiritually directed society.
Many people come through asking for forgiveness or they let me know they are taking responsibility for their actions for the hurt they may have caused here. I feel there is free will on the Other-Side and you can be with whomever you want to be. You are not forced to meet anyone that you do not want to have contact with. In all my years of experience people come through with people that they have loved in this life. Never has a spirit ever said to me that they were with someone that caused them any hurt or pain while they were here.
Physical mediumship is defined as manipulation of energies and energy systems by spirits. This type of mediumship is claimed to involve perceptible manifestations, such as loud raps and noises, voices, materialized objects, apports, materialized spirit bodies, or body parts such as hands, legs and feet. The medium is used as a source of power for such spirit manifestations. By some accounts, this was achieved by using the energy or ectoplasm released by a medium, see spirit photography.[26][27] The last physical medium to be tested by a committee from Scientific American was Mina Crandon in 1924.
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11204
|
__label__wiki
| 0.937409
| 0.937409
|
‘Princess Bride’ Cast Share 30th Anniversary Secrets
Princess Bride Cast Share 30th Anniversary Secrets
Kevin Burwick
— September 25th, 2017
On September 25th, 1987, The Princess Bride hit theaters and although it was not a box office smash upon arrival, it has become one of the most beloved cult movies in history and now the cast and crew are looking back at 30 years of the romantic fantasy adventure-comedy. Rob Reiner directed the movie off of William Goldman's adaptation from his 1973 novel, The Princess Bride, and the movie has gone on to become a cultural touchstone for generations to pass down. The stars of the movie continue to have quotes recited to them on an almost daily basis and the movie may or may not have saved someone's life.
Rob Reiner recently shared a story about the cult favorite movie saving a woman's life. Reiner recounted a story where a woman came up to him at a restaurant and shared that she had been trapped in an avalanche while skiing along with a group of other skiers. The director said that the woman knew The Princess Bride by heart and recited the movie to entertain everybody while they nearly froze to death. That's the kind of movie that The Princess Bride has become. It's practically its own cultural language.
According to Variety, after making 1984's /spinal-tap-movie-true-inspiration-christopher-guest/Spinal Tap, Reiner decided that he wanted to make The Princess Bride next. As it turns out, Reiner's enthusiasm was not shared by the studio at all. He explains.
"It was an impossible sell. The funny thing about it was that before I made Stand by Me - I had made Spinal Tap and The Sure Thing - I had a meeting with this executive at Paramount. She said, 'We love your films. What do you want to do next? I said, 'Well, you don't want to do what I want to do.' She said, 'No, that's not true. I want to do what you want to do. I said, 'No, no. You want me to do what you want to do.' She said, 'No, no. I want to do what you want to do. What is it?' I said The Princess Bride. She said, 'Well, anything but that.'"
As it turns out, Reiner wasn't the first one to discover William Goldman's novel and that the movie had been attempted to have been made at least once, but the project folded. Reiner was a man on a mission and ended up getting financial backing from All in the Family's producer, Norman Lear.
Related: Too Many Princess Bride Takes Were Ruined by Rob Reiner's Laughter
Fred Savage was only 10-years old when he was cast as the sick boy whose grandfather read him The Princess Bride. Savage recalls that he's pretty sure that his parts were the last to be filmed and that the rest of the movie had already been completed. Robin Wright who portrayed Buttercup admits that she was "petrified" before filming started, but said that everything changed when she arrived in England to film and discovered that everybody was a big "warm family." The cast sang songs together and shared meals. Wright said that the experience was amazing and that they all spent a lot of time laughing.
Chris Sarandon, who played Prince Humperdinck, talked about Andre the Giant (Fezzik} being the heart of the set and the movie. Sarandon also noted that his daughters were very excited about him working with a "giant." Andre was a world-famous professional wrestler in the 1980s and he was 7'4" and weighed 519 pounds. Wright also recalled just how warm and giving Andre was. She had this to say.
"He was so caretaking, that's what I remember. We're in the middle of the forest and we'd be standing next to each other in our costumes and it's freaking cold and wet. He put his hands on my head literally to keep me warm from shivering. His hands covered my whole head. The heat from his hand was like an electric blanket. He was just very sweet and thoughtful. He would always hand me his coat if my coat wasn't nearby. Really sweet."
Apparently, Cary Elwes (Westley) and Mandy Patinkin (Inigo Montoya) took their sword fighting very seriously and they trained with Peter Diamond and Bob Anderson who both worked on Star Wars. The duo were the top in their industry as Elwes recalls. To prepare for their roles, Elwes and Patinkin tried to watch "every sword fight ever filmed," according to Elwes. In a random turn of events, Elwes, Sarandon, and Wright claim that The Princess Bride is very popular in the Mormon community, which they believe is because of the "good values in it."
Billy Crystal was only on the set for 3 days, but he echoes the sentiment that the cast and crew were all a family. Crystal had this to say.
"Great experiences that are really about what movies, the magic of making a movie is about. Here you are working with a Bill Goldman script, a brilliant group of actors, and a bold director who would take this kind of movie on to make a simple, beautiful, funny story like this."
The Princess Bride is a cult classic that is much bigger now than it ever was 30 years ago. It's become a movie that families watch with each other as a part of tradition and a movie that just about everybody can recite many, if not all of the dialogue from. For fans that never got the chance to see the movie in the theaters, Fathom Events is holding screenings around the world on October 15th and 17th.
Topics: The Princess Bride
Writer for Movieweb since 2017. Enjoys playing Catan when not writing about superheroes and Star Wars.
Disney's Long-Awaited Princess Bride Musical Gets a New Creative Team
William Goldman, Oscar Winning Writer of Butch Cassidy & Princess Bride, Dies at 87
Fred Savage to Reprise Princess Bride Role in Deadpool 2 PG-13 Rerelease
The Princess Bride 25th Anniversary Edition Blu-ray Arrives October 2nd
Carl Be Back: Terminator Dark Fate R-Rated Sneak Peek from Comic-Con Arrives
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11208
|
__label__cc
| 0.551961
| 0.448039
|
Apply to MU
Web Logins
Desire2Learn
My Mansfield
Career Connection
One Card Web Portal
Online Course Evaluation
TutorTrac
Mobile Alert Signup
MU Bookstore
Student Life and Living
Student Living
EMS Room Reservation
eTime/PASSHE Portal
TracDat
CommonSpot CMS
Department Directories
North Hall Library
Contact MU
Mansfield University Bands
MU Home
Music Faculty
Students Resources
Bachelor of Arts in Music
Bachelor of Music in Music Education
Music Technology Minor
Opportunities for Non Music Majors
Trailblazer Brass Band
Music Alumni
Resources for Music Alumni
Contact Music
Concert Wind Ensemble
The Mansfield University Concert Wind Ensemble is a select group of approximately 48 woodwind, brass, and percussion players who perform the most outstanding wind-band literature under the direction of Director of Bands, Dr. Adam F. Brennan. One of the oldest wind ensemble's in the country, the MU Concert Wind Ensemble performs four to five times annually on and off campus. Each year in the Fall semester the ensemble tours over a three day period and also performs at regional conventions and special events. In addition, the Concert Wind Ensemble records and produces a compact disc of select literature each year. Most recently, the ensemble had two recordings deemed to be eligible for 2014 Grammy Nominations in seven categories. These included Malachi: A Celebration of a Special Life and Critical Speed: The Music of Greg Danner. Additional recordings by the ensemble include Ecstatic Vision, Concord, Music from the Endless Mountains, Strike Up the Bands, This Could be the Start of Something Big, Tenebrae (Dark Hours), Sun and Shade, and Resonance. Membership is not limited to music majors, but an audition is required. The ensemble is involved in commissioning and premiering works of fine composers such as Michael Colgrass, David Maslanka, David R. Gillingham, John Stevens, Mike Mowers, Carolyn Bremer, the ensemble's director- Adam F. Brennan, and others. Students interested in this ensemble should contact Dr. Adam F. Brennan at the start of each semester via e-mail at abrennan@mansfield.edu.
Mansfield University Jazz Ensemble
The Mansfield University Jazz Ensemble is a select group of 16-18 students under the direction of Dan Foster. This award winning band appears at major festivals, conferences and conventions. In addition, they make annual tours throughout the entire northeastern United States and in 2012 enjoyed international tour with a series of concerts and clinics in Edinburgh and London, including playing at Spice of Life, a premiere London jazz club.
Along with the Mansfieldians, they have produced three CDs with their newest, Afterglow, with guest artists Bob Sneider, guitar and Ernie Krivda, tenor sax. Krivda is featured in "Cease and Desist" by Kim Richmond, one of a number of commissions the band has made over the years.
The MU Jazz Ensemble also hosts the annual MU Jazz Festival, as well as having other guest soloists perform with the band. The list of visiting jazz artists reads like a “Who’s Who” in jazz and includes Wayne Bergeron, the Vanguard Jazz Orchestra, Tom Harrell, DIVA, Tim Hagans, Chris Potter, Denis DiBlasio, George Rabbai, Alan Broadbent, Phil Woods, Chris Vadala, Kenny Warner, the Airmen of Note, Ingrid Jensen, Bob Mintzer, Jiggs Whigham, Randy Brecker, Bill Watrous, Carl Allen, John Riley, DIVA, Ryan Kisor, Michael Davis, the Commodores, Jim Snidero, Clay Jenkins, Phil Woods and many, many others!
Added to the department in 1999, the Jazz Lab Band is comprised of music majors and non music majors who wish to further their experiences in jazz performance. This group performs on campus two to three times per year. Membership is by audition, but to afford opportunities to more students there are alternate positions available.
The Mansfield University Brass Band
The MU Brass Band, made up of 27-29 musicians, performs everything from polkas and marches to more contemporary, advanced selections on traditional British brass band instruments – cornets/flugelhorn, alto horns, baritones, euphoniums, trombones, E-flat & B-flat tubas, and percussion. The MUBB also places a focus on performing historical American brass band repertoire from the late 19th century. This ensemble provides students an excellent opportunity to perform on brass band instruments, as well as the valuable experience of performing a genre of literature that would otherwise be unavailable. The MU Brass Band joined the North American Brass Band Association in 2014, and participated in the North American Brass Band Championships for the first time in March, 2015, finishing second in the 3rd section.
The MUBB rehearses only once per week and puts on a concert at the end of each semester. The MUBB is regularly invited to perform at local community events. As well, the ensemble performs each year at the music department's "Prism" concert in the fall semester, serves as the ceremonial ensemble at December graduation exercises, and participates in the MU Conducting Symposium each spring. Membership is open to all MU students by audition
The Symphonic Band is under the direction of Dr. Nathan Rinnert, Assistant Director of Bands. This ensemble meets in the Spring semester and is open to all interested students. This 75+ member ensemble performs standard literature for symphonic bands. Auditions are held at the beginning of the semester to determine seating and part assignments. The Symphonic Band is involved in two to three concerts each Spring. Perhaps most notable of the concerts by this group is the student conductor's competition concert held in mid February. Up to six undergraduate and graduate students are chosen by audition to rehearse and conduct the Symphonic Band in preparation for this concert.
The Spirit and the Pride of Pennsylvania Marching Band
The Spirit & The Pride of Pennsylvania! Mansfield University Marching Band is under the direction of Dr. Adam F. Brennan, Director of Bands and Dr. Nathan Rinnert, Assistant Director of Bands. The Spirit & The Pride consists of approximately 200 brass, wind, percussion and auxiliary members. Membership is open to all interested undergraduate and graduate students and auditions are for seating purposes only. Any student who wishes to be part of the band will be accepted. All we ask that all members maintain a positive attitude and desire to be a contributor to the group and understand that we will seat you wherever your skill set is best suited for your success and the success of the group.
All music is written specifically for The Spirit & The Pride by Director of Bands Dr. Adam F. Brennan, and all drill is written by Assistant Director of Bands Dr. Nathan Rinnert. All band members attend a band camp prior to the start of school. Members who reside on campus are able to access their residence hall housing.
Students interested in this ensemble should contact Dr. Adam F. Brennan at the start of each semester via e-mail at abrennan@mansfield.edu. Be sure to visit the music department Student Resources Website and complete the band registration form.
31 South Academy St. Mansfield PA 16933 | 570.662.4000
Home/Title IX Information/Fraud, Waste and Abuse Hotline/ Right to Know Law/ Web Privacy/ Contact MU
Copyright © 2019 Mansfield University of Pennsylvania
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11211
|
__label__wiki
| 0.702874
| 0.702874
|
The Next Obama
November 25, 2016 by Mark Pulliam
Meet Kamala Harris, California attorney general, aspiring senator . . . and future president?
The 2016 race to replace four-term U.S. senator Barbara Boxer of California, one of Congress’s most liberal politicians, appears likely to result in the election of an even more liberal successor: state attorney general Kamala Harris. In an increasingly polyglot state that exalts appearance and symbolism over substance, the ever-stylish and multiracial Harris—she is the daughter of an Indian mother and a Jamaican-American father—finds herself in the right place at the right time. She’s enjoyed a meteoric rise in California politics—the first woman, African-American, or Asian-American elected as the state’s top law-enforcement officer. Whether the Senate will be a political stepping-stone for Harris or a final destination depends on how credibly she portrays herself as a politician with national stature. Her fans compare her with President Barack Obama; her detractors do the same.
Now 51, Harris cruised to reelection as attorney general in 2014, after eking out a close victory over Los Angeles County district attorney Steve Cooley in 2010. (Before becoming attorney general, she served two terms as district attorney of San Francisco, where she unseated popular incumbent Terence Hallinan.) The outcome of the 2010 contest, which took nearly a month to resolve, was decided by just 74,000 out of 8.8 million votes, or a margin of 0.8 percent—one of the closest statewide elections in California history. Cooley, a moderate Republican, had been the front-runner in most preelection polls, and he even declared victory on election night. But the results proved too close to call, and Harris eventually prevailed when all provisional and mail-in ballots were counted. And so a position formerly held by Republican law-and-order stalwarts such as George Deukmejian and Dan Lungren, as well as a relatively tough-on-crime liberal like Jerry Brown, fell into the hands of an outspoken opponent of capital punishment whose campaign drew almost no law-enforcement support.
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11213
|
__label__wiki
| 0.962288
| 0.962288
|
'Belching' man arrested after burping at Ryanair passengers in flight and 'falling on a small child'
The 53-year-old was met by police upon landing and arrested on suspicion of being drunk and disorderly
Cheltenham man has chunk bitten from cheek after calling a woman 'as fit as f***'
Aaron Wanklin was left needing 60 stitches after commenting on how 'fit' Michelle Byrne looked
Women answer the question: 'What about men baffles you most?'
'How they can just think about nothing?'
Ex-plumber creates best man cave ever in bunker under his garden
It contains a drum kit, a flat-screen TV and lots of Super Noodles.
Could you pass a year-long test to prove you're a man?
Think you're a man? They'll be the judge of that.
Have United got their pride back now?
The mood of concern at Manchester United, generated by the 2-0 defeat in Olympiakos three weeks ago, turned to one of catastrophe following Sunday's 3-0 home defeat to Liverpool.
Man who died at V Festival named as Timothy Brockhurst
The man who died at the V Festival site in Weston Park has been named as Timothy Brockhurst, as police said the death was not being treated as suspicious.
Man, 22, charged with murder over Jeffrey Burrows stabbing in Brighton
Joel Elliott, 22, has been charged with the murder of 40-year-old Jeffrey Burrows in Brighton.
Man, 22, dies after five-vehicle collision on ‘flood-alerted’ M5
A man has died after a five-vehicle collision involving two lorries, two vans and a car on the M5 motorway last night in an area previously put on flood alert.
Man, 60, almost killed by hospital’s swab op blunder
A cancer patient was left in agony for several months after surgeons left a 45cm (18in) swab inside his body.
Man who gave birth after being born a woman recounts baby joy
A transgender man said to be the first to give birth in Britain has spoken of his joy at having a child.
Man arrested after two bodies found in Reed Pond in Canterbury
A 54-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of murder following the discovery of the bodies of a 17-year-old ‘gentle giant’ and a man believed to be in his early 20s, found in a pond in Kent.
Man, 18, charged with murder of babysitter Catherine Wynter
An 18-year-old man has been remanded in custody charged with the murder of Catherine Wynter, the babysitter who was stabbed to death on Boxing Day.
Wales fan killed at Wembley: Man pleads guilty to manslaughter
Ian Mytton, a 41-year-old man from Redditch in Worcestershire, has pleaded guilty to the manslaughter of Wales fan Michael Dye, who was killed at Wembley stadium ahead of a game against England in September.
Man, 21, charged with murder of two women in Oxfordshire
A 21-year-old man has been charged with the murder of two women, aged 29 and 50, whose bodies were found at a house in Oxfordshire.
Man, 24, held in murder of wife and her mother in Oxfordshire
A man was being held by police last night after a mother and daughter were stabbed to death in their home.
Man, 25, shot dead in Brayfield Road, Liverpool as murder probe launched
Merseyside police have launched a murder investigation after a 25-year-old man was shot dead in Brayfield Road, Liverpool, shortly after 10pm on Tuesday night.
Man, 26, in hospital after falling off 60ft cliff at Towan Beach, Newquay
A 26-year-old man has suffered head injuries after falling approximately 60ft from a cliff above Towan Beach in Newquay, while on holiday in Cornwall.
Man, 20, dies after being knifed in neck at manor house
A man has died after being stabbed in the neck at a luxury manor house in Devon. The unnamed victim was said by neighbours to be the grandson of the owners.
Man, 34, banned from wearing bunny suit because he scares children
Police in Idaho Falls, US, have told a 34-year-old man to stop wearing a bunny suit in public after local residents complained he was frightening children.
Man lived in library for two weeks
A man lived in a New Jersey library for two weeks, but that particular chapter in his life was ended by the police.
Man, 88, held over pensioner death
An 88-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of murder following the discovery of the body of an elderly woman, police said.
Man, 32, accused over Facebook girl
A homeless man accused of kidnapping and killing a teenage girl he met on Facebook will appear before a judge for the first time.
Man, 22, admits sex with girl, 13
A Facebook user who had sex with a 13-year-old girl was told yesterday he would be jailed.
Man raped by taxi driver
A taxi driver raped a 20-year-old man after driving him to his flat.
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11215
|
__label__wiki
| 0.54398
| 0.54398
|
U.S. State Department Increases Maximum Civil Penalty Amounts
As of January 3, 2018, the maximum civil penalty amounts that may be assessed by the U.S. State Department for violations of certain laws and regulations have been adjusted upwards for inflation per the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act of 1990, as amended. What does this mean for U.S. companies? Briefly, violations of the Arms Export Control Act (AECA) and the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR), as well as the following laws and regulations enforced by the State Department in Title 22 of the Code of Federal Regulations, are now subject to increased maximum civil penalty amounts:
AECA and ITAR: The ITAR and the AECA apply to the exports, reexports, temporary imports and brokering in defense articles and defense services—they are enforced by the State Department’s Directorate of Defense Trade Controls (DDTC). The maximum civil penalty that may be assessed for violations of the ITAR was increased to $1,134,602 from $1,111,908.
Chemicals Weapons Convention Implementation Act of 1988: This law implemented into U.S. law the Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production, Stockpiling, and Use of Chemical Weapons and on Their Destruction. The maximum civil penalty amount for prohibited acts relating to inspections was increased from $36,849 to $37,601. In addition, the maximum civil penalty amounts for recordkeeping violations was also increased from $7,370 to $7,520.
Program Fraud Civil Remedies of Act of 1986 (PFCR): This law authorizes State Department agencies, with approval from the Justice Department, to take action against individuals or firms for making false claims. The maximum civil penalty amounts that may be imposed for violations of the PFCR have been increased to a range of between $11,181 and $335,443 (previously the maximum liability range was $10,957 – $328,734).
Federal Lobbying Regulations (31 USC 1352): This law prohibits recipients of federal contracts, grants and loans from using appropriated funds for lobbying the Executive or Legislative Branches of the federal government in connection with a specific contract. Any person who violates this prohibition is subject to a civil penalty. The statute also requires each person who requests or receives a federal contract, grant, cooperative agreement, loan or a federal commitment to insure or guarantee a loan, to disclose any lobbying—the failure to disclose may also lead to the imposition of a civil penalty. For first offenders, the maximum civil penalty amount was increased from $18,936 to $19,322. For other offenders, the maximum civil penalty amount was increased from a range between $19,246 and $192,322 to the range of $19,322 to $196,387.
See 83 Federal Register 234 (January 3, 2018) for complete details.
If you have any questions pertaining to these upward civil penalty adjustments, need guidance with respect to compliance with the ITAR or other U.S. export controls, or require further information on other international trade issues, please contact Melissa Proctor at Miller Proctor Law PLLC (melissa@millerproctorlaw.com).
AECA, brokering, civil penalties, CWC, defense articles, defense services, export, ITAR, reexport, State Department, temporary import
U.S. Commerce Department Launches Section 232 Investigation into Imports of Uranium
Today, the Commerce Department initiated an investigation under Section 232 of the…
U.S. Commerce Department to Increase Maximum Civil Penalty Amounts on January 15th
As announced yesterday in the Federal Register, the maximum civil penalty amounts…
A Game of Chicken or Chess: The U.S. and China Increase Import Tariffs
Last month, the Trump Administration increased tariffs on certain steel and aluminum…
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11220
|
__label__wiki
| 0.821754
| 0.821754
|
Can Palestinians play off Europe against the US as peace plan looms?
James Reinl on May 14, 2019 1 Comments
Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Ishtayeh meets with Consuls and representatives of the European Union in the West Bank city of Ramallah, April 16, 2019. (Photo by the Prime Minister's Office)
Against the gloomy backdrop of repeated diplomatic setbacks under the Trump administration, talks on Israeli settlements at the UN this month offered a brief ray of sunshine for the embattled Palestinian officials who showed up in New York.
Despite the hotly-anticipated release of a United States plan for Middle East peace that is widely tipped to favor Israelis over Palestinians, many diplomats at the UN meeting on May 9 rallied behind the goal that, one day, Palestinians should run their own country.
That aspiration — a bedrock of negotiations for decades — is being put on the back-burner by US President Donald Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, a senior White House adviser who says he does not want to get bogged down in such contentious terms as “two-state solution”.
Jonathan Allen, the deputy UN ambassador for Britain, one of Washington’s stalwart global allies, called Israeli settlement-building in the West bank “illegal” and an “obstacle to peace” that threatened the “viability of a two-state solution”.
Envoys from Belgium, Kuwait, Germany, France and elsewhere echoed these concerns at the meeting, which was organised by Indonesia to coincide with Israel’s national day and featured such prominent critics of Israel as James Zogby, president of the Arab American Institute.
Palestinian officials needed a fillip. For months, they have faced colossal setbacks under a Trump administration that has shifted the US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, declared Jerusalem the capital of Israel, and cut funding for Palestinian refugees.
Palestinian officials view Kushner’s plan, dubbed the “deal of the century”, as a sop to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that will nix their plans to create their own state in the West Bank, East Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip — all territory Israel captured in 1967.
The Palestinian UN ambassador, Riyad Mansour, said Washington was trying to bully the Palestinians into accepting an unfavorable deal that was little more than a “pretext” for Israel to extend its borders by annexing swathes of the West Bank.
The specter of annexation was raised by Netanyahu, who vowed in the final days of a re-election campaign he won on April 9 to annex Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank — a move that would kill off prospects for a viable Palestinian state.
That danger persisted, said Palestinian Foreign Minister Riyad al-Maliki. US foreign policy had been “hijacked” by a cabal of Israel apologists and the as-yet unpublished peace plan amounted to a Palestinian “surrender”, he said.
But, Maliki added, the crisis required more than supportive words from Allen and other European envoys. The European Union should ready to use “sanctions” and “boycotting” to deter any Israeli grabs of Palestinian land, Maliki told Mondoweiss.
Meanwhile, Palestinian officials are urging the EU to host a major conference on Middle East peace that would undercut the preeminent US role in the peace process. They are also calling for more European countries to recognize Palestine as a state.
Richard Gowan, UN director for the International Crisis Group, a think tank, said the Palestinians have been “relatively successful” in face-offs with Washington at UN-style confabs and that the approach is likely to gain some traction.
“The main European powers, including the UK, still back a two-state solution, and the US has found itself either in a minority or isolated on a series of votes on Jerusalem and Gaza,” Gowan told Mondoweiss.
“Whatever is in the [US peace] plan, the Palestinians can feel relatively confident that the Europeans and other US allies will not move away from the basic concept of a two-state solution.”
But there are limits to how far they will advance a Palestinian agenda, added Gowan.
“The Europeans will want to avoid any unnecessary conflict with Washington, particularly on an issue of such personal importance to President Trump and his family, and may rather delay or dodge this question than have an all-out showdown,” Gowan said.
Yara Hawari, a Palestinian academic and fellow at Al Shabaka, a pro-Palestinian think tank, was less optimistic about prospects of Western Europe acting as a counterbalance to a one-sided US peace proposal.
“Unfortunately there isn’t the political will to hold Israel accountable,” Hawari told Mondoweiss.
“This is all taking place against a shifting geopolitical backdrop in which the European Union is breaking apart, and some Eastern European countries are creating alliances with right-wing governments in Israel, Brazil and the US.”
Hawari pointed to the recent US decision to recognize Israel’s claim to sovereignty over the Golan Heights, a strategic plateau Israel captured from Syria in a 1967 war and annexed, in a move not recognized internationally.
The US broke with other world powers in March when Trump signed a decree recognizing Israeli sovereignty there — a move that infuriated Palestinians and many Arab political and religious leaders.
According to Hawari, appealing to the Europeans and the UN for fair play is pointless at a time when the rule books are being torn up.
“The US and Israel are undermining the concept of international legitimacy and international law,” Hawari told Mondoweiss. “What does it matter if, in reality, Israel is the governing power and life is under the Israeli regime?”
Kushner and Middle East peace envoy Jason Greenblatt have spent two years developing a peace proposal that they say could provide a framework for fresh talks between Israelis and Palestinians.
Their proposal, which has been delayed for a variety of reasons these past 18 months, is expected to address core political issues, such as the status of Jerusalem, and seek to boost the flailing Palestinian economy.
Speaking in Washington earlier this month, Kushner revealed new contours to his proposal, indicating that it will pull back from long-standing mentions of a two-state solution with the Palestinians and accept Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.
On Monday, NBC News published an analysis of Greenblatt’s tweets to his 29,400 followers, saying they disproportionately blasted violence by Hamas and other armed Palestinian groups but seldom criticized Netanyahu or Israeli actions.
Tensions between Washington and the Palestinians deepened again on Monday, when veteran PLO Executive Committee member Hanan Ashrawi revealed in a series of tweets that her US visa application had been rejected — despite a track record of peaceful activism in the US.
James Reinl
James Reinl is a journalist, editor and current affairs analyst. He has reported from more than 35 countries and won awards for covering wars in Sri Lanka, Congo and Somalia, Haiti’s earthquake and human rights abuses in Iran. His work has appeared on PRI's The World, Al Jazeera, Foreign Policy, Fox News, France 24, CBC, CBS News, dpa, RTÉ, The Times, The National, Monocle and APTN.
Other posts by James Reinl.
CHUCKMAN on May 15, 2019, 10:13 am
Let’s hope.
Only one thing is certain about Trump’s deal.
It will be a disaster much like everything else he has done.
It will serve only the interests of his friend Netanyahu and his own interest in collecting a huge war chest of contributions from special interest lobbyists for his 2020 campaign.
Readers may enjoy:
https://chuckmanwordsincomments.wordpress.com/2019/05/14/john-chuckman-comment-a-blistering-assessment-of-trump-a-response-to-one-of-those-hopeless-writers-who-yet-see-him-as-a-giant-being-held-back-by-pygmies-and-cowards-if-only-he-had-a-free-hand/
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11224
|
__label__wiki
| 0.820798
| 0.820798
|
Primavera Sound Reveals Their Massive 2015 Lineup
Barcelona’s Primavera Sound festival will return in May 2015, with, as usual, a ridiculously impressive and incredibly eclectic lineup of quality artists from around the globe. Here’s just a selection of the huge names who will be taking to the stage in Spain: The Black Keys, James Blake, JUNGLE, The Replacements, Sun Kil Moon, alt-J,
Music At The House Unveils Gigantic Summer Lineup
The Sydney Opera House’s 2015 Music At The House summer program is a biggie. The venue’s contemporary music program will present 20 performances between December 2014 and April 2015, with artists such as Swedish singer-songwriter Lykke Li, beat-wizard Flying Lotus, synth-pop outfit Little Dragon and the ever-controversial Sinead O’Connor set to play the building’s iconic
Chet Faker Is One Of The Most Blogged About Artists Of 2014
Tastemaking music database Hype Machine has compiled a special half-year Music Blog Zeitgeist, listing the most-blogged artists of 2014 thus far and giving music fans a hint as to who they should look out for over the coming months. One of those artists is Melbourne’s hirsute electronic impressionist, Chet Faker. Faker, whose debut album Built
Caribou and Four Tet announce co-headline shows
On the back of their being announced as part of 2011’s Playground Weekender Festival. Caribou and Four Tet have announced a series of headline shows this February. With the artists sharing a long history together, having collaborated in the past Four Tet being a part of the Caribou Vibration Ensemble, I’m hopeful the tour may
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11226
|
__label__cc
| 0.714311
| 0.285689
|
Stephen Green (SGC Media) and Linda Gordon (QMF) delve into the delicate art of music marketing for musicians / events and their teams , touching on music release cycles and strategies, national and regional tour promotion tips, social media, EPK's and much more. The webinar is aimed to help you no matter what experience you have in the music industry, you might be starting out or maybe you have been out there in the big wide world for a while - whatever stage you’re at this is for you!
Purchase your own on-demand access for only $14!
SGC Media's Stephen Green is one of the busiest publicists in the Australian music industry. Launched in 2010, SGC Media has steered campaigns for artists as diverse as Sheppard, 50 Cent, Hans Zimmer, Peter Bjorn & John, Dr G Yunupingu, The Ten Tenors, Imagine Dragons and Nirvana as well as events including the National Indigenous Music Awards, BIGSOUND, Barunga Festival and many more. A full-service music company, SGC provide radio, print, online and TV publicity at the highest levels. SGC Media is the flagship company of the SGC Media Group which also incorporates Title Track, Collision Course, Call & Response and Minor//Major. SGC Media is also the Australian representative for Play MPE and Radio Monitor. BIGSOUND (which he also programmed for 2 years).
Linda Gordon has recently been appointed as the Marketing & Communications Director for Queensland Music Festival, which combines all of her passions: music, marketing strategy and community. Prior to this, Linda successfully founded (and recently sold) the Southern Hemisphere's largest outdoor snow music festival (Snowtunes) and acts as a mentor to a number of music business professionals.
Facilitator Martine Cotton founded the much-loved music industry professional development resource, Music Industry Inside Out after wrapping up her role as Program Manager at QMusic where she managed the state-wide education program, produced the Queensland Music Awards and Little BIGSOUND, and worked on BIGSOUND. She’s been kicking around live music since she was a teen and worn many many different hats over the years, including Splendour in the Grass staffing manager, The Zoo venue manager & booker (1995 – 2000), artist manager, booking agent, festival booker, stage manager, tour promoter, tour manager, professional photographer, event manager, digital marketing manager and consultant, music industry educator, university tutor and mentor.
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11227
|
__label__wiki
| 0.772515
| 0.772515
|
Operational Art: How Clausewitz and Isserson Turn American Strategy into Tactical Action
William J. Denn | December 30, 2016
The president—after weeks of consultation with the joint chiefs, national security advisor, cabinet officials, and others—has reached a conclusion. Instability in a particular country featured increasingly in the news is a threat to vital US national interests. The danger is real that the country will become a safe haven for terrorists, and the president will announce in a televised address that the United States will deploy a force to help train the foreign country’s military and enhance its institutional capacity to defeat the insurgents. Within weeks, teams are on the ground advising local military forces on counter-insurgency operations. These actions are a direct result of the president’s declared objectives. However, the translation of the president’s objectives into military action is a complex and often difficult process. Converting these political objectives into direct, tactical action is the role of what the US Army calls “operational art.” But while strategy and tactics have been studied independently for millennia, operational art theory is a comparatively young concept. Indeed, the operational level is a surprisingly new feature in US Army doctrine, only formally emerging in the 1980s.
The US Army defines operational art as “the pursuit of strategic objectives, in whole or in part, through the arrangement of tactical actions in time, space, and purpose.” Operational art now forms a fundamental element of Army doctrine—as depicted in the simplified vignette above and practiced in real-world scenarios in all of America’s modern wars. Yet in no place within current doctrine does the US Army make explicit reference to operational art’s theoretical roots. Theory and history trace three inherent concepts within this definition: first, war as an extension of politics; second, the chaotic and unpredictable nature of war; and third, the distributive character of modern warfare. These concepts are derived from an amalgamation of past theorists, particularly the Prussian Carl von Clausewitz and Soviet commander Georgii Isserson. By understanding these theories and concepts, military planners can gain a greater appreciation for doctrine’s concept of the operational art in order to apply its theoretical underpinnings to modern military operations.
War as an Extension of Politics
The goal of military operations derived from operational art is, foremost, “the pursuit of strategic objectives,” but where does the military receive guidance as to what those objectives are? The answer may seem obvious, but the institutionalization of the political nature of war was not generally held until the widespread publication Carl von Clausewitz’s On War in the mid-nineteenth century.
Clausewitz, a Prussian army officer, observed during the French Revolution and Napoleonic Wars tremendous social and political upheaval. These changes accelerated an evolution in the relationship between the military and the government that occurred over a millennium in Europe. According to historian Charles Tilly, in medieval Europe, the military and monarchy were much the same: the king and his knights were the political powerholders. The king directly led his troops into battle; politics and warfare were innately linked. Yet, as nations and bureaucracies grew to support large national armies conducting large-scale campaigns by a professional military class (rather than the king), a gap developed between political “reason” for wars and military objectives. Clausewitz described the variance between these two elements metaphorically as two among three tendencies in his “paradoxical trinity.” Political reason and military objectives are examples of the variable relationship between the tendency of war as an instrument of policy (the realm of the government) and war as a play between chance and probability (the realm of military commanders). The gap between the two tendencies has only increased with modern war.
Prior to Clausewitz, theorists mostly wrote about the proper execution of warfare on the battlefield; but Clausewitz sought to describe what he saw as the nature of war itself—the relationship between military objectives and the political goals of the government—without which “battle” would be pointless. As Clausewitz described, “The political object is the goal, war is the means of reaching it, and means can never be considered in isolation from their purpose.” Based on this connection Clausewitz observed that “the political object—the original motive for the war—will thus determine both the military objective to be reached and the amount of effort it requires.” His logic would derive his well-known observation that war is merely the continuation of policy by other means.
When doctrine articulates that the purpose of operational art is the pursuit of strategic objectives, this concept is a derivative of Clausewitz’s theory. Political rationale determines political and strategic objectives, which in turn frame military objectives. This notion is an important concept describing the nature of war itself—a contribution to a theory of war. Clausewitz’s concept would have a tremendous influence on the Prussian and later German army. By the early twentieth century, the German army was a widely emulated model—its doctrine was absorbed by many foreign armies, including that of the United States after World War I.
The Chaotic and Unpredictable Nature of War
The second concept inherent in the definition of the operational art is that the nature of war is chaotic and unpredictable. This concept is inferred by operational art overcoming “the ambiguity and intricacies of a complex, ever-changing, and uncertain operational environment,” also a Clausewitzian concept. Clausewitz’s contemporaries, like the Swiss general Antoine-Henri Jomini, were products of the Enlightenment era. The Enlightenment was characterized as a celebration of human reason, where all phenomenon, when applied through the scientific method, could be reduced to basic principles—Newtonian physics, for example. The same scientific methodologies were applied to the study of war. Writers like Jomini advertised that their scientific analysis had discovered fundamental principles of war that, when applied correctly, could lead to victory. Clausewitz, among others, resisted this approach. The zealotry of eighteenth-century Enlightenment thinking resulted in a Counter-Enlightenment movement, particularly in Germany. Historian Azar Gat explains that this movement challenged the fundamentals of the Enlightenment’s worldview: “The world was for them not basically simple but, on the contrary, highly complex, composed of innumerable and unique elements and events, and always in a state of flux.”
Clausewitz’s On War reflects the ideas of the Counter-Enlightenment movement. Clausewitz explains, “War is the realm of uncertainty; three quarters of the factors on which action in war is based are wrapped in a fog of greater or lesser uncertainty.” Clausewitz also describes war as “the realm of chance. . . . Chance makes everything more uncertain and interferes with the whole course of events.”
In stark contrast to the ideas of Clausewitz’s contemporaries, his theory of war was deeply rooted in the complexity and unpredictability of war. Today, US Army doctrine recognizes Clausewitz’s inherent uncertainty of warfare by appreciating the importance of skill, knowledge, experience, judgment, and an agility of mind to help compensate for the chaotic and unpredictable nature of the battlefield.
The Distributive Character of Modern War
The third concept, the distributive character of modern war, reflects operational art’s approach to arranging tactical actions in time, space, and purpose. Modern war is characterized by the employment of forces in deep distributed operations. The characteristic of warfare prior to modern operations was that of a strategy of a “single point.” According to Soviet military theorist Georgii Isserson, for centuries armies marched and came together for battle in a dense mass on a single point in the theater of operations; this was the most efficient use of force during this period due to limitations of logistics and command and control. This strategy reached its apex during the Napoleonic Wars as corps maneuvered separately but concentrated together in battle.
By the US Civil War, however, modern conditions altered the logic behind a strategy of a “single point.” Concentrated armies were penalized with very high casualties due to the increased lethality of modern firepower. Inversely, modern firepower and trench defenses incentivized armies to disperse their forces. Other innovations, like the railroad and telegraph, empowered armies to conduct widely dispersed yet coordinated operations. The results of these changes resulted in a profound revolution in a general theory of warfare that elevated maneuver as the dominant aspect. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant’s 1864–1865 campaign serves as an example of this new form of warfare characterized by coordinated, distributed operations driven by large-scale maneuver. Grant’s campaign consisted of several distributed operations: in the West, Sherman drove along one axis with three armies toward Atlanta; supporting Sherman, an army under Nathaniel Banks conducted an operation from Alabama towards Atlanta; all the while Grant directed three operations against Gen. Robert E. Lee in Virginia. These five operations, aggregating their effects, robbed the Confederates of freedom of action against the North. The resulting paradigm that emerged was that forces should be employed in deep distributed operations—tactical actions coordinated in time, space, and purpose.
Soviet general Mikhail Tukhachevsky articulated the concept of distributed operations in 1923 as “a series of destructive operations conducted on logical principles and linked together by an uninterrupted pursuit may take the place of the decisive battle.” Isserson, a brigade commander and contemporary of Tukhachevsky, codified this concept into Soviet doctrine by 1936 in The Evolution of Operational Art. “Under present conditions,” he wrote, “we must refer not to a series of successive operations, but to a series of successive strategic efforts, and to a series of separate campaigns in a single war.” Coinciding with Isserson, the German army, under Gen. Hans von Seeckt, also developed its own distributed, maneuver-focused doctrine during the interwar period: Bewegungskrieg (maneuver warfare). As German doctrine highlighted, “the goal of modern strategy will be to achieve a decision with highly mobile, highly capable forces, before the masses have even begun to move.”
In both the Soviet and German cases, the linking of multiple battles through operations and campaigns to achieve strategic objectives resulted in a conceptually new level of war—the operational level. While the US Army certainly fought distributed, maneuver-centric operations during World War II, it would not adopt conceptual frameworks like the “operational level” of war into its own doctrine until the early 1980s. During the post-Vietnam era, Col. Huba Wass de Czege developed the School of Advanced Military Studies (SAMS) to study theory and large-unit operations to cultivate operational art doctrinal concepts. The result of SAMS’ studies of Clausewitz, Isserson, and historical campaigns, was a 1986 revision of US Army Field Manual 100-5: Operations that included the concepts of distributed operations at the operational level of war. These concepts continue to influence US Army operational art, especially in current doctrine like Army Doctrine Publication 3-0: Unified Land Operations.
Why Theoretical Roots Matter
In order for military planners to apply judgment in the application of the US Army’s concept of operational art, a historical and theoretical understanding of its origins is critical. In an era of newly emerging threats that are combated in rapidly changing domains, conceptualizing operational planning as a mere link in a chain of orders is a mistake. Commanders and operational planners that understand their roles in translating strategic, political objectives into tactical actions will perform better because of that context. And that context must necessarily be based on a recognition that operational art is rooted within a rich foundation of theories of both war and warfare, particularly three specific concepts: war as an extension of politics, the chaotic and unpredictable nature of war, and the distributive character of modern warfare. Knowledge of the historical lineages of these concepts gives commanders and planners a greater appreciation of operational art—an understanding of the nature of war and the battlefield logic it operates within. While the logic of operational art remains mostly unchanged since the mid-nineteenth century, understanding its historical roots is as important as ever on today’s battlefields.
Major William J. Denn is a US Army military intelligence officer and a student at the US Army’s School of Advanced Military Studies. He holds a BS from the US Military Academy, an MPP from Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government, and an MMAS from the US Army Command and General Staff College. Denn is a recipient of the General George C. Marshall Award and the General Douglas MacArthur Leadership Award. The views expressed herein are those of the author and not necessarily those of West Point, the Department of the Army, the Department of Defense, or any agency of the US government.
PreviousArt, Craft, or Science: How We Think about Military Leadership
NextWar Books Special Edition: A 2017 Reading List
Mark Albertson on December 30, 2017 at 9:32 am
The Great French War (the French Revolutionary Wars, 1792-1802, followed by the Napoleonic Wars, 1803-1815) had an unmistakable effect on modern war . . . Levee en Masse, conscription of entire populations and economies for modern war. No longer was it possible to field professional soldiers and volunteers; conscription was required in this developing era of Modern War . . . Industrialized, commercialized, corporate-type of war, spurred on by the Industrial Revolution; evolution of Capitalism; burgeoning and in some cases, virulent Nationalism, together with the rise of the modern nation state.
What is known as our Civil War or the War Between the States or as I refer to same as, The Revolt of the Planters, which in essence is what it was, to which the industrialized nature of the conflict proved a salient point. By 1864, Grant was well aware of the decided advantages enjoyed by the North, resources, production and manpower, that he could wage an economic war: Grant would tie down Lee's Army of Northern Virginia while Sherman destroyed the Southern economy. Historian Russell F. Weigley would correctly observe, that what British Bomber Command and the U.S. Eighth Army Air Force did to the economy of Nazi Germany from 25,000 feet, Grant and Sherman did on horseback eight decades earlier. Such was mated with Lincoln's political objective, the Union.
Concur with your assessment of Baron de Jomini and Clausewitz. During the era of the Industrial Revolution, focusing on the 19th century and well into the 20th, modern war, according to Clausewitz, was politics by another means. Accentuated by Mao Tse-tung in his On Guerrilla Warfare, "Military action is a method used to attain a political goal. While military affairs and political affairs are not identical, it is impossible to isolate one from the other." And, I might add, that the political goal must have conviction of the most concerted type, to which the people must be inculcated.
Yet it is really not till the European Civil War (Popularly known as World War I, the War to End All Wars or the Great War. . . Do not concur here, Sir. 1914-1918 was a European Civil War, waged for issues decidedly European; but, the war would not conclude in 1918, since the Versailles Treaty is the biggest fraud ever perpetrated on modern Man. No, the war started 1914 to 1918; resumed in 1931 when Japan invaded Manchuria, continued with the number of smaller conflicts, Italian invasion of Ethiopia, Spanish Civil War, Japan's invasion of China proper, 1937; then Hitler, with Stalin's connivance, jump started the European war with the invasion of Poland. Yet only two nations, by 1945, will prove themselves capable of waging modern, industrialized, commercialized, corporate-type of war at this stage of the 20th century, the United States and the Soviet Union. So the Great War is, 1914-1918; 1931-1945.) that industrialized war dominated large conventional conflict. A conflict which would irrevocably change America, and in due course, undermine the Republic.
Take the War Industries Board, chaired by Bernard Baruch, an attempt to collectivize the American economy for war. This ran counter to the foundations of this Nation. The right of the individual, as enshrined in our Constitution. Now begins the mating of industry and government. War waged by this nation would be changed forever, as America gravitates towards technology in warfare. Technology and an unrivaled ability to produce will reinforce a penchant towards maneuver and mobile warfare. Yet as technology evolved, so did America's vision of mobility in war. And the poster child expression here is the Atomic Bomb.
The Atomic Bomb was one of the biggest boosters for the post-World War II use of the helicopter. This was understood by General Roy S. Geiger of the Marine Corps and Army airborne soldier extraordinaire, General James Gavin. The future for moving troops was the Third Dimension. The helicopter was seen as a medium for moving troops on a nuclear battlefield; yet, it would showcase its capabilities in non-nuclear environments, Korea and Vietnam. The helicopter or modern steed of the foot slogger, provided that mobility which is virtually unfettered, as opposed to competing forms of ground transportation.
Yet, the tactical importance of the helicopter could not alter the political reality of America's wars: Korea, a stalemate; Vietnam, political defeat; Iraq, political defeat; Afghanistan, issue in doubt. There has been lacking a political and military understanding for victory in war, since 1945. The American armed forces, in the proper setting and political environment, can win war (1991 Persian Gulf War comes to mind here.). But in the current political environment, made in many respects over the decades by policy gurus in Washington, have created an environment where political objectives seem not as clearly defined, consigning this Nation to serial wars with no clear definition of success. This, of course, runs counter to Clausewitz and Mao Tse-tung. The people must be engaged in the political agenda for success in modern war . . . and right now in America, such is not the case.
Mark Albertson
Historical Research Editor, Army Aviation magazine
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11228
|
__label__cc
| 0.615532
| 0.384468
|
Adoption and Custody Rights
Adoption, Child Support, Custody
Question: Adoption and Custody Rights
My Wife and I adopted a child from Mexico. Mexico only allowed one parent to adopt and my Wife is the one who adopted. Now we are looking at getting a divorce. Do I have any parental rights to my son?
Answer: Great question. Here is how we have seen this situation play out.
Jim and Patty have been married for 10 years. They have experienced some turmoil in their relationship in the last year or so. Jim left the marital residence and is living separate from Patty for now. He moved into his own apartment down the street to give them some space. Jim hoped they could reconcile, but have not had any success. He would like to move forward with a divorce at this point.
Jim and Patty have one son together. His name is Fred. Fred is 9 years old. Patty adopted Fred from China about a year after Jim and Patty married. Unfortunately, at the time of the adoption, the law did not allow both Jim and Patty to adopt Fred. The parties decided it would be ok if Patty adopted him on her own. Jim and Patty were going to complete the adoption process for Jim after returning to the United States, but their lives were busy and they never got around to it.
Fred does not know he is adopted. He calls Patty mom and Jim dad. He does not know of any other parent in his life. Jim and Patty have wanted to keep this a secret from him, as they are worried it would cause him severe emotional problems if he knew the truth.
Jim told Patty he will be filing for a divorce. Patty was extremely upset and told Jim that he does not have any legal right to Fred. Because of this, she told Jim that he would not have any relationship with Fred moving forward. Shocked by this, Jim cannot understand how he could not see his own son again. What can Jim do? Does he have a legal right to see Fred?
Unfortunately for Jim, he made the mistake in never adopting Fred. This means that Jim does not have any legal right to Fred at this point in time. He is not an adopted parent or legal parent. Patty has every right to keep Fred from him. But, there are exceptions to this that prevent Jim from ever seeing Fred again.
Jim has a special type of standing in this case. It is called in loco parentis. This means that Jim has stood in place of a parent for Fred. Here, it is very clear that Jim stood in the place of a parent. Jim was essentially Fred’s father. Fred even believes that Jim is his biological father. Because Jim has this type of standing, he still has the right to have visitation with Fred.
There is a caveat to this situation, however. Even though Jim can have visitation with Fred, he cannot have any legal decision making authority over Fred. In order to do so, Jim would need to show the court that it would be significantly detrimental for Fred to remain with Patty. For example, if Patty was a drug user or an alcoholic or had committed a crime or an act of domestic violence, Jim would be able to make a claim for legal decision-making. Unfortunately, Patty has been a fantastic mother and there are no concerns for Fred’s safety when with her.
This means that Jim will be limited to only visitation with Fred. The other thing to keep in mind is that it is called “visitation,” not “parenting time.” This means that Jim is not allowed to dictate the upbringing of Fred. He cannot make decisions for him. Patty will have full say on those decisions. The other difficulty with being a third party, like Jim, is that he will never be able to have more time than equal time with Fred. Even equal time will be VERY difficult to obtain. The reason the court will limit his time is because if he is given more time, then he will have that opportunity to raise and make decisions for Fred when he is with him.
Jim will need to make sure that along with his Petition for Dissolution he also files a Petition for 3rd Party Visitation. If he does not, then he will not be awarded any time with his son. If the court believes it is in Fred’s best interest to spend time with Jim, the court will likely give Jim at least some visitation.
|
cc/2019-30/en_head_0049.json.gz/line11230
|
Subsets and Splits
No community queries yet
The top public SQL queries from the community will appear here once available.