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b. 18/05/1840 Oxford. d. 18/05/1920 Boscombe, Dorset.
Arthur Mayo (1840-1920) was born in Oxford on 18th May 1840, and following his education at Berkhampstead School, he joined the Royal Navy and in 1855, he sailed for India in HMS Wellesley on which he served as a midshipman. Confessing to being unaware of the existence of the Indian Navy, he joined the service on the 18th February 1857 and served for a short period of time on the steam frigate “Punjab”, ferrying the 64th Regiment of Foot from Bombay to Calcutta.
In June 1857, following the outbreak of the Mutiny, the officers and men of the “Punjab” were formed into No 4 Detachment of the Naval Brigade and sent from Calcutta to Dacca to help suppress the mutiny in East Bengal. By 22nd November 1857, they had reached Dacca. Led by Lieutenant T.E. Lewis, five officers and 85 men stormed and captured the Treasury. They then went on to the Lall Bagh, a large enclosure, where they found the mutinous sepoys were drawn up in front of the magazine with two 6-pounder guns in the centre. The Lall Bagh had a domed mosque in the centre, a hospital and other buildings. The barracks on top of a hill had been loopholed and was heavily defended by 300-400 sepoys.
The Naval Brigade charged up the hill into the barracks, and quickly broke down the door and rushed inside. They managed to kill a number of the sepoys and captured the barracks. The sailors then charged down the hill and chased the other sepoys who had fled. In the last charge, Midshipman Mayo placed himself 20 yards in front of his men and led the charge with a great cheer, and captured one of the 6 pounder guns.
Mayo remained in the Naval Brigade and was later mentioned in despatches for his part in an expedition into the Arbor Hills in the far north-east of India. The Adi tribe had been causing trouble with their raiding and a small expedition was sent in February 1859. In the capture of a native stockade, Mayo received a wound in his hand from a poisoned arrow and was invalided home.
Lieutenant Lewis praised Mayo’s conduct at Dacca and as a result was awarded the Victoria Cross (citation, 25th February 1862), which he received by registered post in 1862. Over the next three years, Mayo attended Magdalene Hall, Oxford, and graduated with a BA on 18th June 1865. The following year Mayo was ordained Deacon at Salisbury for the Bishop of Exeter and served as assistant curate at Plymouth for about 20 months, but on 5th November 1867 he joined the Catholic Church and lived successfully in Torquay and Malta. In 1901, Arthur moved to live with his youngest sister Margaret in Bournemouth. He then became an active member of the Corpus Christi Church in Boscombe for the last 19 years of his life, before he died on 18th May 1920, aged 80. He was buried in East Cemetery, Boscombe. His medal’s location is unknown, though for a long period of time it was believed that Margaret had sold his medal to the Bombay Museum in 1932. Following some extensive research in 2011, this was proved to be false.
LOCATION OF MEDAL: MEDAL LOCATION UNKNOWN.
BURIAL PLACE: EAST CEMETERY, BOSCOMBE, BOURNEMOUTH, DORSET.
SECTION K-4, GRAVE 207.
Arthur Mayo VC
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Research biscuit
Without talking, no value is produced is a curatorial collaboration conceived by Kylie Johnson and Sarah Jones. Without talking, supports open-ended, reflective and speculative creative practices through a program of discourse, provocation, exchange and exhibition.
The model, following in the footsteps of the ‘gallery as practice’ privileges the characteristics of art making and therefore the qualities of the artists’ studio, in which patrons play a range of important roles. Patronage describes a support system of artists, art enthusiasts, curators, writers and creative thinkers whose support comes in multiple forms; be it intellectual, practical and/or financial. Patrons are the artists, audiences, collectors and philanthropists that are drawn together through the work of Without talking, to form an intimate and diverse artistic community. This curatorial collaboration aims at sustainability of practice for artists, curators and galleries through a unique curatorial commissioning structure.
Working closely with artists and their individual ways of making has implications that shape the way that art activity and art objects are perceived. Without talking, facilitates discourse, critique, thinking, making and acquiring with the patron’s perception in mind. Focusing on generative and courteous communication, we operate equally as a making, conversation and exhibition space.
Without talking, no value is produced works for ongoing collaboration, convergence and challenge with a focus on intimacy and knowledge production for all of its users.
Kylie Johnson –Director– has a de-materialised art practice - very rarely resulting in the production of art objects – most often concentrated within curatorship towards developing long-term supportive relationships with artists. She uses curatorship as a means of enabling and shaping the social relationships through which art is generated. Kylie has had a long-standing interest in developing a model of ‘gallery as practice’ and in 2017 she was awarded an Arts Tasmania Professional Development Fellowship for research into innovative contemporary art organisation models. Research occurred at Matt’s Gallery and other progressive art spaces in London.
She received her MFA from the University of Tasmania in Hobart during which time she also studied at the Glasgow School of Art, Scotland. Kylie was part of the team that set-up the Hobart Artist Run Initiative, Inflight (now Constance) and has contributed to various art advisory committees and panels in Australia.
Kylie has worked at Artspace in Sydney and is now at Contemporary Art Tasmania (CAT) in Hobart. She has facilitated the Shotgun program at CAT since its inception in 2010 and worked with project partners Detached Cultural Organisation and the Museum of Old and New Art (Mona) to deliver targeted support and opportunity to Tasmanian artists through industry access, critical engagement and the provision of new work.
Sarah Jones —Director— is a curator, writer and artist. She has worked for several contemporary artists and arts organizations in Tasmania, Slovakia and Berlin. Sarah’s research-based practice explores text and exhibition as a medium, through which critical theory performs as the material of practice. She is currently examining the ways in which publishing can be redefined through the embodied exhibition event.
Sarah received her BFA from the University of Tasmania and her MFA from the Dutch Art Institute (DAI), The Netherlands. Sarah is a current PhD candidate with the University of New South Wales, School of Art and Design. She was the art coordinator for the Glenorchy Art and Sculpture Park (GASP), Tasmania, working with New York based artist Natalie Jeremijenko on the commissioning of Amphibious Architecture, 2016.
Sarah has returned to Hobart from a period of international research at: Banska St A NICA, Slovakia; The Meetfactory, Czech Republic; and ACC Galerie, Germany. Whilst abroad she was invited to present her research to the Associate PhD Research Collective at the DAI, and at University for the Creative Arts, Canterbury, UK for the symposium, Work and Art: How Artists Make a Living. In 2012 she was the recipient of the Alcorso Foundation Italian Arts Residency for which she worked with artists at the Bevilaqua La Masa Foundation, Venice, Italy.
Our name, Without talking, no value is produced is a quote from Isabelle Graw’s Talk ‘Til You Drop: The Art Conversation and the Communication Imperative, published in Mousse Magazine, 38.
Built with Berta.me
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Mount Davis (Oakland)
O.co Coliseum
Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum
The Coliseum, Oakland Coliseum
O.co Coliseum logo
Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum (1966–1998, 2008–2011)
Network Associates Coliseum (1998–2004)
McAfee Coliseum (2004–2008)
Overstock.com Coliseum (May 2011)
7000 Coliseum Way
37°45′6″N 122°12′2″W / 37.75167°N 122.20056°W / 37.75167; -122.20056Coordinates: 37°45′6″N 122°12′2″W / 37.75167°N 122.20056°W / 37.75167; -122.20056
Broke ground
April 15, 1964[1]
Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Authority (City of Oakland and Alameda County)
($185 million in 2014 dollars[2])
$200 million (1995-1996 renovation)
Skidmore, Owings & Merrill
HNTB (1995-1996 renovation)
Ammann & Whitney[3]
Services engineer
Syska & Hennessy, Inc.[4]
Guy F. Atkinson Company[1]
Baseball: 35,067 (Standing room to 37,090,[5] expandable to 55,945)[6]
Football: 53,200 (expandable to 64,200)[7]
Soccer: 47,416 or 63,132 (depending on configuration)
Left Field – 330 feet (101 m)
Left-Center – 367 feet (112 m)
Center Field – 400 feet (122 m)
Right-Center – 367 feet (112 m)
Right Field – 330 feet (101 m)
Backstop – 60 feet (18 m)
Oakland Athletics (MLB) (1968–present)
Oakland Raiders (AFL / NFL) (1966–1981, 1995–present)
Oakland Invaders (USFL) (1983–1985)
Oakland Clippers (NPSL/NASL) (1967–68)
Oakland Stompers (NASL) (1978)
San Jose Earthquakes (MLS) (2008–2009)[8]
O.co Coliseum – originally known as the Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum, and commonly Oakland Coliseum – is a multi-purpose stadium, located in Oakland, California, in the Coliseum Industrial area. It is the only multi-purpose stadium left to serve as a full-time home to both a Major League Baseball team (the Oakland Athletics) and a National Football League team (the Oakland Raiders) in the United States. The Coliseum was also home to the San Jose Earthquakes, of Major League Soccer, who used the stadium for several games during their 2008–2009 seasons. It also was the host of some games of the 2009 CONCACAF Gold Cup.
The Coliseum contains 6,300 club seats (of which 2,700 are available for Athletics games) and 143 luxury suites (of which 125 are available for Athletics games), with a variable seating capacity of 35,067 for baseball, 53,200 for football, and either 47,416 or 63,132 for soccer, depending on its configuration.
The Coliseum is part of the Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum complex, which consists of the stadium and neighboring Oracle Arena.
2 Configurations
3 Stadium history
3.1 1960s
3.1.1 Planning and construction
3.1.2 Raiders and A's move in
3.7 Stadium name changes
3.8 Seating capacity
3.9 Possible replacements
4.1 Baseball
4.2 Mount Davis
4.3 The tarp
4.4 Sewage
The Coliseum features an underground design where the playing surface is actually below ground level (21 feet / 6 meters below sea level). Consequently fans entering the stadium find themselves walking on to the main concourse of the stadium at the top of the first level of seats. This, combined with the hill that was built around the stadium to create the upper concourse, means that only the third deck is visible from outside the park. This gives the Coliseum the illusion of being a short stadium from the outside.
In its baseball configuration, the Coliseum has the most foul territory of any major league ballpark in America. This is especially the case along the foul lines. Thus, many balls that would reach the seats in other ballparks are caught for outs at the Coliseum. The distance to the backstop was initially 90 feet (27 m), but was reduced to 60 feet (18 m) in 1969.
From 1968 through 1981 and in 1995, two football configurations were used at the stadium. During Raider preseason games and all regular season games played while the baseball season was still going on, the field was set up from home plate to center field (east/west). Seats that were down the foul lines for baseball games became the sideline seats for football games, which started up to 120 feet away from the field (most football-only stadiums have sideline seats that start around 60 feet away). Once the A's season ended, the orientation was switched to north/south, i.e. the football field ran from the left field line to the right field line, seats were moved from behind first and third base to create corners for the end zone to fit into (these seats were then placed to fill in the space that was normally behind home plate and near the foul poles for baseball games). Temporary football bleachers were then added in front of the baseball bleachers to form the sideline on the east (visitors') side, and the baseball bleachers were not sold. Raider season ticket holders would thus have two season ticket locations in different parts of the stadium that roughly corresponded to the same location in relation to the field.
Since the construction of Mount Davis in 1996, the field has run north-south throughout the season.
Stadium history
Planning and construction
Business and political leaders in Oakland had long been in competition with its neighbor, San Francisco, as well as other cities in the West, and were also trying for Oakland and its suburbs (the greater East Bay) to be seen nationally as a viable metropolitan area with its own identity and reputation, distinct and separate from that of San Francisco. Professional sports was seen as a primary way for the East Bay to gain such recognition. As a result, the desire for a major-league caliber stadium in the city of Oakland intensified during the 1950s and 1960s.
By 1960, a non-profit corporation was formed to oversee the financing and development of the facility (rather than city or county government issuing taxpayer-backed bonds for construction). Local real estate developer Robert T. Nahas headed this group (which included other prominent East Bay business leaders such as former US Senator William Knowland and Edgar F. Kaiser), which later became the governing board of the Coliseum upon completion. It was Nahas' idea that the Coliseum be privately financed with ownership transferring to the city and county upon retirement of the construction financing.[9]
Robert T. Nahas served twenty years as President of the Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum Board. On the death of Nahas, the San Francisco Chronicle's Rick DelVecchio quoted Jack Maltester, a former San Leandro mayor and Coliseum board member, "If not for Bob Nahas, there would be no Coliseum, it's really that simple." Nahas had to be a diplomat dealing with the egos of (Raiders owner) Al Davis, (Athletics owner) Charles O. Finley and (Golden State Warriors owner) Franklin Mieuli.
Preliminary architectural plans were unveiled in November 1960, and the following month a site was chosen west of the Elmhurst district of East Oakland alongside the then-recently completed Nimitz Freeway. A downtown site adjacent to Lake Merritt and the Oakland Auditorium (which itself, many years later, would be renamed the Henry J. Kaiser Convention Center) was also originally considered.[9] The Port of Oakland played a key role in the East Oakland site selection; The Port swapped 157 acres (64 ha) at the head of San Leandro Bay to the East Bay Regional Park District, in exchange for 105 acres (42 ha) of park land across the freeway, which the Port in turn donated to the City of Oakland as the site for the Coliseum sports complex.[10]
The Oakland Raiders of the American Football League moved to Frank Youell Field, a makeshift stadium near downtown Oakland, in 1962, and the Coliseum was already being heralded in the local media as the Raiders' future permanent home. Baseball was also a major factor in the planning of the Coliseum. As early as 1961, the American League publicly indicated that it wished to include Oakland in its West Coast expansion plans. In 1963, American League president Joe Cronin suggested that Coliseum officials model some aspects of the new ballpark after then-new Dodger Stadium, which impressed him,[11] though these expansion plans seemed to fade by the middle of the decade.
After approval from the city of Oakland as well as Alameda County by 1962, $25 million in financing was arranged. Plans were drawn for a stadium, an indoor arena and an exhibition hall in between them. The architect of record was the San Francisco office of Skidmore, Owings & Merrill and the general contractor was Guy F. Atkinson Company. Preliminary site preparation began in the summer of 1961. Construction began in the spring of 1962. The construction schedule was delayed for two years due to various legal issues and cost overruns; the original design of the Coliseum had to be modified slightly in order to stay on budget.[12] (For details on the indoor arena, now known as Oracle Arena, refer to that facility's article.)
In 1965, it was rumored that the Cleveland Indians might leave Cleveland for a West Coast city (such as Oakland), but the Indians ended up remaining in Cleveland. Charlie Finley, owner of the Kansas City A's, unhappy in Kansas City, impressed by Oakland's new stadium and personally convinced to consider Oakland by Nahas,[13] eventually got permission after several unsuccessful attempts and amid considerable controversy, to relocate his American League franchise to the stadium for the 1968 season (for details on the controversy, see the separate articles for the A's and the Kansas City Royals, the expansion franchise created to replace the A's in Kansas City).
Raiders and A's move in
The Raiders played their first game at the stadium on September 18, 1966. In 1968, the Kansas City Athletics became the Oakland Athletics and began play at the new stadium. The Athletics' first game was played on April 17, 1968. The stadium complex cost $25.5 million to build and rests on 120 acres (49 ha) of land. On April 17, 1968, Boog Powell hit the first major league home run in the history of the Coliseum.[14] On May 8 of that year, Catfish Hunter pitched the ninth perfect game in Major League history at the Coliseum.[15]
From 1970-72 the stadium hosted three college football benefit games featuring Bay Area schools versus historically black colleges.
Hosted the 1971 East–West Shrine Game on January 2, 1971.
In 1972, the Athletics won their first of three straight World Series championships and their first since their years in Philadelphia.
Commencing in 1973, the stadium hosted an annual Days on the Green concert series, presented by Bill Graham and his company Bill Graham Presents, which continued on into the early 1990s.
Marvin Gaye made his official return to live performing and touring at the Coliseum on January 4, 1974 and the Coliseum was the basis for his one-million selling live album, Marvin Gaye Live! At the time, music industry executives cited the tour as a "heralded event" as Gaye made a comeback to live touring nearly four years after the death of his late singing partner Tammi Terrell.
Led Zeppelin played what turned out to be their final North American concerts with twin shows during their 1977 North American Tour. After their first show on July 23, members of Led Zeppelin's entourage were arrested after a member of promoter Bill Graham's staff was physically assaulted during the performance.
Parliament-Funkadelic recorded half the album Live: P-Funk Earth Tour at the Oakland Coliseum in January of 1977. The album was released in April of that year.
The awkwardness of the baseball-football conversion, as well as the low seating capacity (around 54,000 for football) and that the prime seating on the east side consisted of temporary bleachers led the Raiders to explore other stadium options. One such option was Memorial Stadium on the UC Berkeley campus. Several preseason games were played there in the early 1970s along with one regular season game in 1973 (a 12-7 victory over the Miami Dolphins during September while the A's regular season was going on). However, in response to traffic and parking issues associated with these games (while Cal games drew a large number of students who live on or near campus and walk to the games, Raiders games attracted fans from a larger geographic area who were used to tailgating at the Coliseum and were more likely to drive to games), the City of Berkeley passed a Professional Sports Events License Tax in which the city collected 10% of all gate receipts, making the staging of professional games inside the city cost-prohibitive. The Raiders were granted an injunction from the city collecting the tax, arguing that the tax was a regulatory measure rather than a revenue measure, and was therefore an improper regulation on land held in trust by the Regents of the University of California. However, the grant of the injunction was reversed by the California Court of Appeals, who found it to be a revenue measure, despite the fact that the city had made the measure immediately effective "due to danger to the public peace, health, and safety of the City of Berkeley as a result of the holding of professional sports events there."[16]
The stadium was not well maintained for most of the late 1970s. Its condition was most noticeable during baseball season, when crowds for A's games twice numbered fewer than 1,000. On April 17, 1979, only 653 fans attended the game versus the Seattle Mariners.[17] During this time, it was popularly known as the "Oakland Mausoleum."
In 1980, the Raiders won Super Bowl XV. Two years later, the Raiders moved to Los Angeles, leaving the A's as the only remaining tenants of Oakland Coliseum. Only days later, Finley sold the A's to Marvin Davis, who planned to move the A's to Denver. However, city and county officials were not about to lose Oakland's status as a major-league city in its own right, and refused to let the A's out of their lease. Finley was forced to sell the team to the owners of San Francisco-based Levi Strauss & Co.. After the 1986 Major League Baseball season, the original scoreboards were replaced. A new American Sign and Indicator scoreboard and message center was installed behind the left-field bleachers, while the original right-field scoreboard was replaced with a manually-operated out-of-town scoreboard. Between the centerfield flagpoles, a new DiamondVision videoscreen was installed.
The 1987 Major League Baseball All-Star Game was held at the stadium. From 1988-1990, the venue saw three more World Series. In 1989, the Athletics won their fourth Series since moving to Oakland, sweeping the San Francisco Giants in the earthquake-interrupted "Battle of the Bay" Series.
The stadium played host to Amnesty International's Human Rights Now! Benefit Concert on September 23, 1988. The show was headlined by Sting and Peter Gabriel and also featured Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band, Tracy Chapman, Youssou N'Dour, Roy Orbison and Joan Baez.
In the 1990s, several major concerts were held, but these were not "Days on the Green", by definition, because they occurred at night.
Richard Marx shot the Video for Take This Heart on the Baseball field of the Coliseum.
Metallica and Guns N' Roses brought the Guns N' Roses/Metallica Stadium Tour to the coliseum on September 24, 1992, with Body Count as their opening act.
The stadium was the location for the 1994 Disney movie Angels in the Outfield. Although Angel Stadium of Anaheim (known as Anaheim Stadium at the time) was where the Angels actually played, it was damaged in the 1994 Southern California earthquake. Anaheim Stadium was used for views from the outside and aerial views, while the Coliseum was used for interior shots.
In July 1995, the Raiders agreed to return to Oakland provided that Oakland Coliseum underwent renovations. In November 1995, those renovations commenced and continued through the next summer until the beginning of the 1996 football season (more info below). The new layout also had the somewhat peculiar effect of creating an inward jog in the outfield fence, in left-center and right-center. There are now three distance markers instead of one, at various points of the power alleys, as indicated in the dimensions grid. The Raiders return also heralded the creation of the "Black Hole," a highly recognizable group of fans who occupy one end zone seating during football games.
Along with the since-demolished Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium, the stadium features the unusual configuration of laying the football field on a line from first to third base rather than laying it from home plate to center field, or parallel to one of the foul lines, as with most multipurpose facilities. Thus, a seat behind home plate for baseball is behind the 50-yard line for football. With the Miami Marlins opening their own ballpark in 2012, the stadium became the last remaining venue in the United States that hosts both a Major League Baseball and a National Football League team.
On April 2, 2006, the broadcast booth was renamed in honor of the late Bill King, a legendary Bay Area sportscaster who was the play-by-play voice of the A's, Raiders and Warriors for 44 years.
On September 8, 2006, the stadium played host to The Gigantour, featuring performances by Megadeth, Lamb of God, Opeth, Arch Enemy, Overkill, Into Eternity, Sanctity and The SmashUp.[18]
In November 2007, the San Jose Earthquakes, of MLS, announced they would be playing their "big draw" games, such as those featuring David Beckham and the Los Angeles Galaxy, at the stadium. Regular draw games are being played at Buck Shaw Stadium, in Santa Clara.[19]
Midway through the decade, the stadium established a "no re-entry" policy. Each ticket can only be used once, after which a second ticket must be purchased in order to re-enter the Coliseum.
On May 9, 2010, almost 42 years to the day of Catfish Hunter's perfect game, Dallas Braden pitched the 19th perfect game in Major League history at the Coliseum. A commemorative graphic was placed on the baseball outfield wall next to Rickey Henderson's retired number on May 17, their next home game.
U2 performed during their 360° Tour on June 7, 2011, with Lenny Kravitz and Moonalice as their opening acts. The show was originally scheduled to take place on June 16, 2010, but was postponed, due to Bono's emergency back surgery. As an emergency replacement, The Crunchees filled in at the last minute.
Stadium name changes
Logo from 2004–2008
Logo from 2008–11
Logo from April to June 2011
For more than its first three decades (1966–1998) the stadium was known as Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum.[20]
In September 1997, UMAX Technologies agreed to acquire the naming rights to the stadium. However, following a dispute, a court decision reinstated the Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum name. In 1998, Network Associates agreed to pay $5.8 million over five years for the naming rights and the stadium became known as Network Associates Coliseum, or, alternately in marketing and media usage as, "the Net."[21]
In 2003, Network Associates renewed the contract for an additional five years at a cost of $6 million. In mid-2004, Network Associates was renamed McAfee, restoring its name from before its 1997 merger with Network General, and the stadium was renamed McAfee Coliseum accordingly.
In 2008, McAfee was offered a renewal of the naming contract, but it was declined. On September 19, 2008, the name reverted to the pre-1997 name of Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum. The stadium retained its original name until April 27, 2011, when it was renamed Overstock.com Coliseum via a 6 year, 1.2 million dollar naming rights deal with online retailer Overstock.com.
On June 6, 2011, the Coliseum was renamed O.co Coliseum, after Overstock.com's marketing name.[22] However, due to a contract dispute with the Athletics regarding the Overstock/O.co naming rights deal, the A's continue to refer to the stadium as the Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum in all official team communications and on team websites.[23]
Possible replacements
Main article: Cisco Field
On August 12, 2005, the A's new owner Lewis Wolff made the A's first official proposal for a new ballpark in Oakland to the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Authority. The new stadium would have been located across 66th Avenue from the Coliseum in what is currently an industrial area north of the Coliseum. The park would have held 35,000 fans, making it the smallest park in the major leagues. Plans for the Oakland location fell through in early 2006 when several of the owners of the land proposed for the new ballpark made known their wish to not sell.
Throughout 2006, the Athletics continued to search for a ballpark site within their designated territory of Alameda County. Late in 2006, rumors began to circulate regarding a 143-acre (58 ha) parcel of land in Fremont, California being the new site. These rumors were confirmed by the Fremont city council on November 8 of that year. Wolff met with the council that day to present his plan to move the A's to Fremont into a soon to be built ballpark named Cisco Field. Wolff and Cisco Systems conducted a press conference at the San Jose-based headquarters of Cisco Systems on November 14, 2006 to confirm the deal, and showcase some details of the future plan. However, on February 24, 2009, after delays and increased public opposition, the Athletics officially ended their search for a stadium site in Fremont.[24] Speculation was raised as to whether or not the Athletics franchise would remain in Northern California in the long term as a result of the termination of the Cisco Field plan.
The Coliseum in 1981 before construction of the Mount Davis structure (top) and Mt. Davis during baseball season in 2006, with tarp-covered upper deck (middle); the structure during football season. (bottom)
In 2010, two building sites have become leading candidates for a new Athletics' home: a site in downtown San Jose located near SAP Center (home of the NHL's San Jose Sharks) and a proposed stadium near Jack London Square in Oakland at a site referred to as Victory Court.[25]
Under any such replacement proposals, the Oakland Raiders would presumably continue to play football in the Coliseum, although there have been recent proposals for the Raiders to play at Levi's Stadium, the future home of the San Francisco 49ers in Santa Clara as well as rumors regarding the Raiders' possible return to Los Angeles.[26][27][28]
Recently, the Oakland Raiders have proposed a 50,000 seat stadium in the same spot of their current stadium. It would cost $800 million, with $300 million coming from the Raiders, $200 million coming from the NFL's Stadium loan program, and the final $300 million coming from the city. [29]
This article's Criticism or Controversy section may compromise the article's neutral point of view of the subject. Please integrate the section's contents into the article as a whole, or rewrite the material. (July 2013)
In recent years, the Coliseum has been criticized as being one of the "worst stadiums in baseball".[30] Problems cited include the large amount of foul territory and the addition of Mount Davis. The former allows for more foul-outs while the latter has been criticized for "ruining" the ambience of the original configuration.
The playing field at the Coliseum is 22 feet below sea level and the pitcher's mound is 10 inches above the playing field, making the pitcher stand slightly taller than the other teammates at 21 feet below sea level.
Mount Davis
One feature of the 1996 expansion was the addition of over 10,000 seats in the upper deck that now spans the outfield in the baseball configuration. The effect of these new stands, comprising sections 335–355, was to completely enclose the stadium, eliminating the view of the Oakland hills that had been the stadium's backdrop for 30 years. The stands are very narrow and steeply pitched, bringing the back row of its uppermost tier to a height rarely seen in modern stadiums. Due to the stands' height and the loss of the Oakland hills view, A's fans have derisively nicknamed the structure "Mount Davis," in mockery of late Raiders owner Al Davis.
It has been criticized as an area which has made the O.co Coliseum look ever more like a football stadium, and not at all one for baseball.[31] From 1997 through 2004, the A's left the section open, but it was rarely filled except for fireworks nights and the postseason. The A's did not count the area in the listed capacity for baseball; hence, even though the "official" baseball capacity was 43,662 (48,219 with standing room), the "actual" capacity was 55,945[6] (approximately 60,000 with standing room).
The tarp
In 2006, the Athletics covered the entire third deck with a tarp, reducing capacity to 34,077—the smallest capacity in the majors. For the 2008 season, Sections 316–318 of the 3rd deck behind home plate were re-opened as the A's introduced their own "All-You-Can-Eat" ("AYCE") seating area, similar to the right field bleachers at Dodger Stadium. This has increased the Coliseum's capacity for baseball to 35,067.[32] For the 2009 season, seats were $35 and only sold on a single game basis; All-You-Can-Eat seating was offered for every game in 2008, but for 2009 the section was only open for weekend games (Friday-Sunday) & all games against the New York Yankees, Boston Red Sox, and San Francisco Giants. For 2010, the A's discontinued All-You-Can-Eat, instead rebranding the area as the "Value Deck". Prices for these seats have decreased to a starting price of $12 and are sold for every game (individual game prices vary due to the implementation of Dynamic Pricing as of 2012). To help compensate for the loss of AYCE, the A's have introduced Jumbo-Tickets that have stored stadium credit for food & merchandise ($10 on Plaza Club tickets & $6 for Value Deck tickets).[33]
Even if the game is otherwise sold out, the A's will not sell any seats in the area that remains covered except if they make the World Series. The A's say that closing off the upper deck will create a "more intimate environment" for baseball This has drawn criticism from fans, the Oakland City Council, and sports marketing analysts baffled at owner Lew Wolff's decision, with some stating that this is cover for a possible move to San Jose (see Cisco Field). There are 20,878 seats covered up by the tarp which would otherwise be usable for baseball.[6] However, in the 2013 American League Division Series, the tarp was removed over the seats behind home plate (although not Mount Davis) and the attendance for the first game of the ALDS was 48,401, the highest since 2004.[34]
On February 2013, the Oakland Raiders announced that they would cover 11,000 seats in the Mount Davis section with a tarp to avoid blackouts. This reduces capacity to 53,250, by far the smallest in the NFL (no other stadium seats fewer than 61,000). Under NFL rules, the tarps have to stay in place throughout the season, even if the Raiders make the playoffs.[35]
On June 16, 2013 following the game against the Seattle Mariners, the Coliseum experienced a severe sewage backup. This led to pipes leaking out puddles of sewage into the showers, offices, visitor training room and storage areas on the clubhouse level of the stadium, all of which are 3 feet below sea level. After the game, the A's and Mariners were forced to share the Oakland Raiders locker room, located on the stadium's second floor. According to Coliseum officials, the stadium's aging plumbing system was overtaxed after a six-game homestand that drew close to baseball capacity crowds totaling 171,756 fans. [36]
According to numerous reports, sewage problems are very common at the stadium. For instance, on one occasion the Angels complained about E. coli in the visiting team's training room after a backup. The plumbing is so old that backups occur even when no events are taking place there.[37] For instance, Wolff wanted to go to dinner on June 12, 2013 (while the A's were on the road) at one of the Coliseum's restaurants, only to find out that food service had been halted due to a sewage leak in the kitchen.[38]
National Football League portal
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Stadium site on oaklandathletics.com
County Coliseum_coliseum.htm Visit to Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum
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Bill Clark Returns Home after Occupation Duty in Postwar Berlin
The date of Bill’s departure from Berlin cannot be known with absolute certainty. His Honorable Discharge states an ASR Score of 92 points on September 2, 1945. The history of the 82nd PMC provides specific dates for the departure of its men from Berlin. Those with high enough ASR Scores left in groups beginning September 7:
“On September 7, 1945, six men with points above ninety, who had signed over, and one person who unfortunately missed the original shipment home because of being in the hospital, now departed for return to the U.S. Since First Sergeant Legg was included in this group, Tech Sergeant Butenhoff was now made acting First Sergeant”. Source: Author Unknown, “82nd Airborne Division: 82nd Parachute Maintenance Company” Section 1 Unit History, Date unknown, p. 15
It is unlikely that Bill was one of these men. Six of them had “signed over” meaning they had been transferred from the 17th Airborne Division to the 82nd Airborne Division. That clearly had not happened to him. He was not the man who missed the original shipment, since he did not qualify at the time to return home with the men of 85 points or above. As told in a previous post, “The Postwar Points Discharge Plan”, Bill took a “shot on points” (a lottery which if a man won, increased his ASR Score sufficiently to allow his early discharge) late in his stay in Berlin. He liked Berlin so much that he delayed the “points shot” and when he took it, he won.
More groups of men left Berlin in the first half of October:
“On October 10th, one man departed from the Company for his return home. The next day, six enlisted men and two commissioned officers departed for the return trip home also. Included in this group was acting First Sergeant Butenhoff, so now Tech Sergeant Moen was give (sic) the responsibility of being First Sergeant. Following these, were five more men and one officer leaving on the 13th of October 1945.” Source: Author Unknown, “82nd Airborne Division: 82nd Parachute Maintenance Company” Section 1 Unit History, Date unknown, p. 16
These were the last groups of men to leave the 82nd PMC before the 82nd Airborne Division was relieved of occupation duty in Berlin on November 19, 1945. So it is most probable that Bill was one of the groups beginning their journey home on either October 10, 11, or 13, 1945. This timeframe fits with the date of his departure from Europe, stated on his Honorable Discharge, of November 1, 1945. These dates also fit with the written account of his journey home given in an interview with his friend, Herd Bennett:
“From Berlin [after he won the ‘shot on points’] he went by train back to Frankfurt, Germany and from there to Antwerp, Belgium. From Antwerp he was sent back to the United States and arrived in New York City in November of 1945. From New York City, Bill was ordered to Indian Town Gap, Pennsylvania and in November of 1945 he was there discharged. He took a train to… Cincinnati Train Terminal where he caught a bus to Hamilton, Ohio. In Hamilton, he went to his aunt’s house and she drove him to his boyhood farm home on Dixon Rd… Bill states that he wanted to surprise his parents with his return from W.W.II, and he was successful.” Source: Herd L. Bennett, Attorney at Law, “Military Biography of William A. Clark” January 26, 2000 p. 22
When he left Bill was accompanied by at least a few other 82nd troopers whom had been discharged in the same timeframe. At the port of Antwerp, they boarded their transport to the US, most likely a liberty ship, on November 1, 1945. Bill had with him a German Luger pistol which he had carried since he took it in Sicily from a German officer killed in the pill box battle of July 9/10 two years and four months before on that dark night of his first combat jump. He said rumor had it that once the ship docked in New York, MPs onboard were under orders to search paratrooper duffle bags, and confiscate any German firearms. Men found with German guns were to be charged and arrested. The rumor had enough scare in it that Bill said he and the other troopers he was travelling with threw their Lugers into the ocean before the ship docked. When they disembarked from the vessel to his extreme dismay he discovered that the rumor was false. No searches of any bags took place. The men were simply herded off the ship as quickly as possible.
The exact date of Bill’s arrival in New York City was 11 November, 1945 making the duration of his transatlantic voyage 11 days.
Bill’s brother Henry arrived back to the US exactly one month later on December 11, 1945. Like Bill, he too was discharged at Indiantown Gap, Pennsylvania. Henry wrote in his book that it was a process taking three full days beginning on the morning of December 13 before ending in the late afternoon of the 15th. Source: Clark, H. “The War I Never Fought: ‘Memoirs of a Rear Rank Rudy’” 2001 p. 119.
Henry must have had virtually the same discharge experience as Bill did. Indeed, Bill’s separation is dated November 15, 1945 (see Photo 1 below) which assuming he arrived at Indiantown Gap on the morning of November 13 (as Henry did one month later), he would have been discharged three days later in the late afternoon on November 15.
Photo 1: Bill’s Identification Card for enlistment in the Army Reserve Corps Dated November 15, 1945. Approximately 24 hours after this card was issued, Bill arrived home. Source: Author’s Collection
In Henry’s case on December 16, the next morning after his discharge, he boarded a bus to Harrisburg, Pennsylvania where he caught a train to Richmond, Indiana. From there he hired a taxi arriving home at about 4:00 AM on December 17. Source: Clark, H. “The War I Never Fought: ‘Memoirs of a Rear Rank Rudy’” 2001 p. 119.
As we shall see shortly, the US Army had sent Bill on his way with at least equal efficiency. He rode on a train to Cincinnati, Ohio, as per his interview with Herd Bennett cited above, on the morning of November 16. Later that same day he caught a bus to Hamilton, Ohio where his aunt drove him home arriving that evening.
It is known that Bill arrived in the evening and that his mother and father stayed up for two days talking with him. For his parents to stay up for two days must have meant that he arrived on a Friday night. Bill’s father was employed full time as a machinist at the nearby Airtemp factory. He left for work at 5:00 AM and arrived home at 6:00 PM each evening. The only days of the week he could have spent 48 hours on anything outside of work was Saturday thru Sunday.
Therefore, Bill must have arrived home the evening of Friday, November 16, 1945, most likely after 6:00 PM.
The family was very surprised to see Bill the night he came home. He was spotted outside past the front living room window and no one could believe their eyes. They knew he was coming soon, but not when. Exactly one month and a few hours later, Henry arrived home. Everyone was so overjoyed to be together again.
Bill brought home a big green duffle bag almost bursting with all sorts of memorabilia. It was a treasure trove of German military attire, medals, books, silverware, coins, bank notes, knives etc. Over the ensuing years most of its contents have been lost, given away, or thrown out. Very little of it remains today.
Photo 2: Bill’s 82nd Airborne coat hangs from the door knob of the family farm barn. Left is an unknown tube shaped object. Front left is an 88 mm shell casing. The WWI helmet belonged to Bill’s father Henry Clark Sr. The duffle bag belonged to Bill. His name and serial number are visible. Circa 1978 Source: Author’s Collection
Photo 3: A 5 Reichsmark bank note, dated 1942. The Nazi emblem of an eagle clasping a swastika in its talons is still visible in the lower left. A Hitler youth is illustrated on the right. Perhaps already battered and torn when it came into Bill’s hands, this is one of the few artifacts from his duffle bag with the fortune to survive to the present day. Source: Author’s Collection
Photo 4: Reverse side of the 5 Reichsmark bank note apparently displays a church with a farm worker on the left and a carpenter on the right. Source: Author’s Collection
Photo 5: This 2 Rentenmark bank note dated 1937 has survived the ravages of time in quite good condition. The Rentenmark was issued to battle hyperinflation, rampant in Germany after WWI. The first issue of the currency occurred in 1923 and the last in 1937 – the date of this particular note. Source: Author’s Collection
Photo 6: Reverse side of the 2 Rentenmark bank note. Source: Author’s Collection
Photo 7: One of Bill’s 82nd Airborne “All American” AA shoulder patches. There are eight of them remaining. Most are heavily soiled like this one with ground in dirt. It was customary for paratroopers to remove their shoulder patches as a keepsake after a battle was over as soon as they received a new uniform. Source: Author’s Collection
Photo 8: Another of Bill’s 82nd Airborne shoulder patches. This one is perfectly clean. Source: Author’s Collection
Photo 9: The complete 82nd shoulder patche with the word “Airborne” positioned above the AA insignia, exactly as it appeared on Bill’s Ike jacket. Source: Author’s Collection
Photo 10: One of Bill’s original Parachutist patches worn on his garrison cap. It was replaced by the patch superimposing a glider over a parachute on one patch, much to the annoyance of the early qualified paratroopers who disapproved of the change. Source: Author’s Collection
Adjustment to Civilian Life
After Bill’s initial joy at returning home in one piece, the economic privations of the postwar period began to set in. The road to recovery looked like it was to be long and drawn out. For a time and to varying degrees the wartime rationing of food, shoes and gasoline continued. Living on the farm insured the Clark’s had plentiful food including chickens, milk, eggs, and vegetables. Fabric for home sewing was unavailable. Everything that could be was recycled and repurposed.
Bill’s brother Henry reflected on the lack of economic goods:
“I tried on one of my suits and it still fit. My brother [Bill] told me that I would be wearing the O.D.s (olive drab) for a while, he was right. Everything was in short supply for a while. Buying a car was out of the question, however my brother and I had bought a car before the war and it was still in fairly good shape. Gas now was no problem”. Source: Clark, H. “The War I Never Fought: WWII Memoirs of a ‘Rear Rank Rudy’”, 2000 p. 119.
Photo 11: At Right Bill’s father Henry Clark Sr.; left Bill’s youngest brother James Clark; Middle Bill’s older brother Henry Clark Jr., dressed in his Army Air Corps uniform, Circa December, 1945. Source: Author’s Collection
The brothers reluctantly wore their uniforms for a time. However, there was one item of military attire which Bill favored and that was his pair of paratrooper jump boots. They were of such good quality and so smart looking that he wore them for years until they finally succumbed to wear and tear. Until clothing eventually became more widely available, Bill used his sewing skills from his time as a parachute rigger to fashion several good shirts for himself out of the cotton sacks used to deliver chicken feed. Surprisingly, the cotton being of garment quality was quite smooth and the sacks large enough to make man sized shirts with seams in the right places. Source: Interview with Bill’s Sister Doris, 2006
Wage and price controls were still in effect in1949 and housing was unavailable because nothing was built during the war. Returning soldiers married quickly and were in desperate need of housing. They bought land and started building their homes by constructing the basement first. They covered it with a roof and lived in it until they were able to acquire more building materials which could take years and in some cases never happened. Source: Ibid.
Veterans had great difficulty finding jobs with the economy wide shift from war materiel to peacetime products and services and a large pool of skilled factory labor left over from the war years. Combat veterans, for the most part did not have the skills required of manufacturing, nor those of service industries.
One 505 PIR veteran wrote of these problems on recalling his exit interview from the Army at the Indiantown Gap Separation Center:
“The interviewing officer was supposed to write my military occupations on some form or other so my prospective employer would know my skills. ‘So, what did you do during the war?’ he asked. I explained that I had held positions of squad leader, platoon sergeant, and platoon leader in combat in the parachute infantry. ‘Yes, but what did you really do in the war?’ he replied.
I was getting a little upset. The guy was a captain and I was a second lieutenant. I said, ‘what do you mean? We fought the war.’ Then he said, ‘Yeah, but what skills did you learn?’ Now I was really agitated. ‘You don’t have to put anything on that form,’ I said, ‘because there’s not much need in civilian life for how to throw a grenade, push a bayonet into someone, shoot people, tear down a machine gun and reassemble it, or for combat leadership skills. I don’t know how to relate these things to civilian experience’. Source: Wurst S., & Wurst G. “Descending from the Clouds: A Memoir of Combat in the 505 Parachute Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne Division” 2004, p. 256.
Because of their lack of civilian job skills, and the trauma they continued to suffer, a number of veterans were unable to make the transition back to civilian society. Some became drifters and vagrants, while others only partially made the adjustment. These men paid one of the highest prices for surviving the war and even today the fates of a number of them are unknown.
Obviously Bill was traumatized by what he had endured. His suffering never went away. On top of that, he was torn between the excitement of a life of war and the more sedate life of a civilian. He had to unlearn all of the psychological coping mechanisms needed to embrace the horror and terror of armed conflict and relearn those needed for a life of peace. It was an arduous process which took years and was never fully completed. During the early period after his return he had been in contact with several other veterans from his unit. They wrote letters to one another once back in the States with the singular purpose of organizing themselves to re-enlist the Airborne. It is clear from these letters there were times when the temptation to permanently break away from civilian society proved almost too strong.
One letter from fellow 82nd PMC rigger, William Cody, is telling of their troubles:
Hi Stab, [Bill’s nickname given to him by the men in his Company]
How goes it. Got your letter last night when I went home from work. Yep, it’s true. I am working for a change. What a job. I don’t do a thing all day. But boy the walking I do is enough for six men. I bet I cover about 30 miles a day.
Now about that letter you didn’t get from me telling you to come on up [from Ohio to Massachusetts]. I wrote it but never did mail it. I found it a few days ago and burnt it. Now if you want to wait a month or more we will go back to the army then. Right now I have to work to get some cash…
In the mean time you can look for Pee Wee [fellow 505 PIR rigger Henry Lewis - an enormously respected and popular figure in the 82nd Airborne Division in WWII]. I sure would like to have him with us. How about it. If we had Pee Wee with us every thing would be fine. Then the “big 3” would be together once more. If you see him tell him I said to get on the ball an drop me a line telling me whether he is going with us or not. And he had better say he is…
Bill (Eagle)
From the perspective of employment, Bill was one of the lucky veterans. He went to work at the Aetna Paper Company. The company had kept his job open for him during the war and even paid his Christmas bonus each year he was away. Bill stayed with the company until his retirement 40 years later.
Photo 12: Bill on right receiving his award for 30 years of service as an employee at the St. Regis Paper Company (Previously the Aetna Paper Company and later the Howard Paper Company). Source: Author’s Collection
The company eventually went out of business and later succumbed to vandalism and arson. It was demolished in 2010. Follow this Flickr link for pictures of it before being torn down https://m.flickr.com/#/photos/49506449@N08/sets/72157624916054683/.
Photo 13: Bill’s certificate recognizing his 30 years of service to the company. He retired 10 years later after 40 years of employment. Source: Author’s Collection
Bill was active on the margins 0f the 82nd Airborne veteran’s society for a few years after his discharge, but that didn’t last long and neither did his desire to re-enlist in the Airborne. He decided to sever all ties with his former friends and the 82nd Airborne in general as part of his effort to move ahead with his life. In doing so he had the strong support of his parents and later the unwavering devotion of his wife, Isabel. Of particular note was his father and WWI veteran, in whom over the years he confided a great deal about the war. He also maintained a close relationship with his cousin Bill Rogers, a fellow WWII paratrooper, who had fought with the 101st Airborne Division from Normandy until the end of the war. Late in life, these two were known to visit one another often; regularly taking six mile walks together almost every evening. In these people, at different stages, Bill had the support network to make the adjustment back to civilian life. In himself, he found the courage needed to lead a solid postwar life. He successfully held down his job, married, and raised a family.
On at least two occasions Bill went back to tour many of the places he had been stationed including North Africa, Ireland, England, France, Netherlands, Belgium and even Germany.
Nevertheless, the war had left deep wounds in his psyche which lasted all of his life. A quote from his sister sums it up quite well:
“Another free time activity [of paratroopers] was sharpening their knives to a razor edge. He [Bill] described how to creep up on an enemy and kill him silently and how to break a bottle on a bar and use the neck for a weapon. When anyone pulled a knife on you if he aimed in the direction of stomach or heart with the sharp side of the blade pointing up he showed that he was an experienced knife fighter. Any other stance was not threatening and could be defended. This information was just what I needed to know to cultivate nightmares. One could easily be overcome with grief when you look at this young man whom you have known all your life and realize what he had to learn to survive, then reverse the process to live in civilian society. You have to respect the courage on both ends of that kind of life.” Source: Bill’s Sister Doris, 2005
In 2001 my father and I made a trip to see Bill in his Ohio rest home, and had the good fortune to gain a rare insight into Bill’s past through his “Ike jacket”. The jacket’s official designation was “Wool Field Jacket, M-1944”. Troops also referred to it as the ETO (European Theater of Operations) jacket, but it was more popular to call it by General Eisenhower’s nickname.
Whenever we would visit Bill, he always liked to take trips over to the farm house outside of Eaton Ohio, about 2 hours’ drive away. During this trip our plane arrived at Columbus Ohio airport at about 4:00 PM, giving us the evening to prepare before visiting Bill first thing the next morning. Dad took advantage of the time by driving out and checking on the farm house. One of the things he did was to position Bill’s Ike jacket, so that he would be sure to notice it as we walked through the house the next day.
On the morning of this visit, we got up early, had breakfast, picked up Bill and drove off towards Preble County from Bill’s rest home in Dayton, Ohio. As we made our way, Bill talked fondly of farming, tractors and life in Preble County. He got excited as we approached the farm.
When we got out of the car the first thing he wanted to do was to check in on the farm house. We entered through the back door opening into the kitchen. As we walked into the dining room, Bill saw his WWII Ike Jacket hanging on a chair next to the old dining table. A look of surprise came over his face accompanied by a warm smile as if he was unexpectedly reunited with an old friend. Bill hurried over to the jacket and affectionately caressed its coarse wool. His breathing began to quicken. His demeanor sharpened and the years appeared to drain away. It was as though he was once again the young man to whom the jacket belonged. The light in the dining room was diffuse and faint making his cool blue eyes reflect the deeper blue behind the 82nd Airborne’s AA insignia on the jacket’s shoulder patch. While he gazed upon his jacket I became transfixed and all at once it seemed that these were the only two colors in the dim room. With a faraway look in his eyes and in a distant voice he humbly murmured:
“Mmm… I guess I was useful to someone at one time or another”.
William Abner Clark October 5, 1922 - February 13, 2008
Posted by Jeff Clark at 3:36 PM
scott McRobie August 23, 2017 at 2:33 AM
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The 82nd Airborne Division’s Occupation of Berlin ...
Bill Clark Returns Home after Occupation Duty in P...
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Tesser Ryan Blog
Kings County Supreme Court Finds that New York is not an Inconvenient Forum for Personal Injury Suit Arising out of a Florida Accident
By Lewis Tesser, Partner, and Timothy Nolen, Associate
A recent case from Kings County Supreme Court has held that it would not be a substantial burden on a national retailer, a “financial ‘goliath’ defendant,” to defend a suit in New York arising out of a personal injury in Florida. The litigation involved issues of personal injury law, jurisdiction and civil practice.
The case, Danza v. Costco Wholesale Corp., 2011 N.Y. Misc. LEXIS 4154 (Sup. Ct. Kings County, August 24, 2011), involved a New York resident who slipped and fell at a Costco in North Miami, Florida. The plaintiff then sued Costco in Brooklyn. Rejecting the defendant’s motion to dismiss for forum non conveniens (inconvenient forum), the Court noted that Costco was a major retailer with many stores in New York, including Brooklyn. Because the plaintiff was a New York resident, had chosen New York as the venue to litigate the case and because New York courts could apply Florida law, the Court determined that the defendant had not met its burden of showing that New York was an inconvenient forum.
The attorneys at Tesser, Ryan & Rochman, LLP have years of experience handling all aspects of civil litigation. Whether the client is an individual or a major corporation, our attorneys can recognize issues of jurisdiction and address them in our clients’ interests.
choice of law, civil litigation, civil practice, costco, Danza v. Costco Wholesale Corp., Florida law, forum non conveniens, inconvenient forum, jurisdiction, personal injury law, Tesser Ryan & Rochman, venue
May an Employee be Terminated for Certified Use of Marijuana?
Lewis Tesser is a senior partner in the New York law firm of Tesser, Ryan & Rochman, LLP, concentrating his practice in litigation and mediation, representing licensed professionals and professional practices, administrative law and commercial law. Lew Tesser is Vice-President of the New York County Lawyers’ Association and Director of its Ethics Institute. Prior to private practice, Mr. Tesser was an Assistant United States Attorney in the Eastern District of New York. In that capacity, he represented various agencies of the United States government in litigation in the United States District Court and United States Court of Appeals. Mr. Tesser also served as a Judge Advocate in the United States Army where he prosecuted and defended criminal cases and was the chief legal advisor to the Commanding General of the U.S. Army War College, Carlisle, Pennsylvania. He also has served as an Arbitrator for the American Arbitration Association, New York City Civil Court, a Judge for the Environmental Control Board of the City of New York and a lecturer for various Bar Associations and New York area law schools. Mr. Tesser, who was admitted to practice in 1971, is a 1970 Honors graduate from the National Law Center, George Washington University, a Masters graduate from the Wharton Business School, University of Pennsylvania (l974) and a graduate of the Harvard Law School Program of Instruction for Lawyers. He is a past President of Congregation Sons of Israel, Nyack, NY. Publications and Speaking Engagements Editor-In-Chief, “The New York Rules of Professional Conduct Annotated”, Oxford University Press, New York, 2010. A complete list of Mr. Tesser’s speaking engagements and publications is available if you would like to learn more about Mr. Tesser’s work. Representative Cases In Re Zhang, 376 Fed. Appx. 104 (2d Cir. 2010) Continental Casualty Co. v. JBS Construct. Mgmt., 2010 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 85467 (S.D.N.Y. 2010)
Tesser, Ryan, & Rochman Blog
At Tesser, Ryan, & Rochman we are committed to keeping current, former, and future clients up to date. Here on our blog we will have news regarding our firm, as well as business analysis, various cases, case studies, and legal findings for the benefit of our clients.
Administrative Law Arbitration Blog Business Law Civil Litigation Contract Law Corporate Law Criminal Law Current Events General Law Matters Legal Representation Mediation News Article Professional Discipline Professional Journals Professionals Tesser Ryan News
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Broadway » THE LION KING
Feel the joy. Feel the thrill. Feel alive... at The Lion King.
Experience the stunning artistry, the unforgettable music and the exhilarating choreography of this musical theater phenomenon—one of the most awe-inspiring productions ever brought to life on stage. A remarkable tale of hope and adventure, The Lion King has found its way into the hearts of millions. As The New York Times says, “There is simply nothing else like it.”
Winner of six Tony Awards® including Best Musical, Disney’s The Lion King showcases the talents of one of the most acclaimed creative teams on Broadway. Tony Award-winning director Julie Taymor reimagines the popular story using some of the theater’s most extraordinary stagecraft. The Lion King also features the exceptional work of Tony Award-winning choreographer Garth Fagan and a magnificent score crafted by the Tony Award-winning songwriting team of Elton John and Tim Rice.
Now is the time to join the circle of life at The Lion King, The Award-Winning Best Musical, playing on Broadway eight times a week at the Minskoff Theatre.
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Spy return to RAF museum
Birmingham Press / 20 October, 2015
Popular spy plane tours set to return.
Due to the popularity of the summer Nimrod tours, the Royal Air Force Museum Cosford is re-introducing tours on selected dates in October and November. Tours on board the aircraft proved so popular with aviation fans that the Museum wants to repeat the offer, offering a limited number of tours for those who missed out first time round.
Visitors during October half term and the Conservation Centre Open Week in November will have the opportunity to climb on board the Hawker Siddeley Nimrod R.1 XV249 and learn about its intelligence gathering role in the Royal Air Force. Intimate tours for groups of up to six people last approximately 15 minutes and visitors will learn about the history of the aircraft, hear about the crews on board and view some of its sophisticated surveillance equipment up close. Plus, tour guides will be on hand to answer any questions.
Find out why this aircraft and its missions were so secret that even the existence of 51 Squadron who operated it wasn’t mentioned in official documents until 1992, after the end of the Cold War. Learn why, of the twenty six mission specialists on board, up to eight of them were language specialists and how the equipment on board allowed them to pass tactical, minute by minute information to allied aircraft during a raid.
The aircraft’s capabilities were such that even flying through friendly and allied nation airspace required diplomatic clearance. Mixed with a few light hearted stories of the crew on board the Nimrod, these fascinating tours led by Museum staff will have visitors wondering what really goes on in the skies above us.
RAF Museum Public Relations Executive Michelle Morgans said: “We ran Nimrod tours during an initial trial period in July and following really positive feedback from visitors we extended them throughout the summer. The demand to have access on board our aircraft is always high and almost every tour sold out. Those who missed out in the summer have been asking when the Nimrod will re-open so we have added new dates, giving visitors two more opportunities this year to enjoy an intimate tour of one of our most sophisticated aircraft.”
The Nimrod flew in both the Maritime patrol and electronic intelligence gathering role. Maritime surveillance, anti-submarine operations and intelligence gathering have been key tasks for the Royal Air Force for much of its long history. When the Nimrod was finally retired from service in 2011, the type had operated with distinction for over forty years in all these roles, and more.
Nimrod R.1 XV249 is one of only four R.1’s from a total of 46 Nimrod’s delivered to the RAF. The R.1 was an electronic-intelligence gathering variant, three of which originally entered service with the RAF in 1971. They carried up to 29 crew members and were involved in several major conflicts in the latter part of the 20th and early 21st centuries.
When an original R.1 aircraft was lost following an accident in 1997, XV249 was selected as a replacement and, after conversion, served with No 51 Squadron from RAF Waddington. The aircraft amassed over 18,000 flying hours during its service life and took part in operation Ellamy over Libya in 2011, thus remaining operational until its withdrawal from squadron service on 28 June 2011.
Nimrod Tours are available daily throughout October half term week (24th October–1st November) and during the Conservation Centre Open Week (9th-14th November) 2015. Tickets cost £5 per person and tours last 15 minutes (max 6 people per tour). As the number of people per tour is limited, organisers are advising any interested visitors to pre-book their time-slot now via the Museum’s website www.rafmuseum.org/cosford. All children must be accompanied by an adult and tours are not recommended for children under the age of five.
For further information please call the Museum on 01902 376200. The museum is open daily from 10am and entry is free.
20 October, 2015 in Museums. Tags: RAF Museum Cosford
Up, up and away
Iconic WW2 bomber to star at Cosford
Virtual Man and other tales
← Keeping it in the family
Birmingham artist community supports anti-torture charity →
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Posted on May 30, 2018 Author Categories 2018 (Volume 21)
Dear Subscribers:
I hope everyone had a great Memorial Day and took some time to remember and thank those who sacrificed so that we could have the pleasure of a great start to summer weekend. Poured down on the Jersey Shore but we are still hopeful for an awesome summer. We had a great time at the IMUA annual meeting in Arizona. It was fun to see so many of you. Shout out to all of the award winners – well deserved accolades to all.
Things are quieting down as we head into summer so the report is fairly short, although the courts were quite prolific this month.
We report:
LARGE TRUCK AND BUS CRASH FACTS 2016. The FMCSA released its crash facts for 2016, showing that crashes were on the rise for 2016. There is a wealth of data in the report showing the wide variety of reasons for the crashes. Interestingly, 38% of truck accidents involved another vehicle entering into the truck’s lane. The report indicates that more than 60% of fatal accidents occurred in rural areas. The most common time frame for fatal truck-involved crashes was between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m., accounting for one-third of crashes. Nearly two thirds of truck-involved fatal crashes occurred during the daytime hours of 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. You can view a copy of the report here.
TRANSPORTATION IS A DANGEROUS JOB. The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reports a rise in work-related deaths in 2016. Transportation incidents lead the way with 2,083 transportation related deaths. The full table is below.
Event or exposure
Transportation incidents 2,054 2,083
Slips, trips, and falls 800 849
Contact with objects and equipment 722 761
Violence/other injuries by persons/animals 703 866
Exposure to harmful substances/environments 424 518
Fires and explosions 121 88
CARGO THEFT. Sensitech reports that there were 115 cargo thefts in the United States in the first quarter with an average loss value per incident of $117,283. Unsecured parking areas were the prime target, with truckloads the primary focus. The most common type of product stolen was electronics, making up 24% of all thefts. California saw 37% of all cargo thefts, making it the top state for incidents. Nearly a third of the thefts there were electronics and about 20% were home and garden products. Illinois became the second leading state for thefts, accounting for 13% of the total, a rise of 140% over the first quarter a year ago. Electronics made up 40% of thefts in the state.
ELECTRONIC LOGGING DEVICES. There is movement under way to seek to remove the requirement that small truckers (under 10 units) and ag haulers be ELD complaint. We will see where that goes. In the meantime we have been asked a number of times for the current stats on ELD violations since the violations started counting. Special thanks to our wonderful Aliza Berger who can come up with numbers quicker than I can ask the question. (any questions on the list – email her at aberger@cabadvantage.com) She passed along this list:
Violation Code
Number of Citations
Violation Description
395.22H1 1330 Driver failing to maintain ELD users manual
395.24C2III 506 Driver failed to manually add shipping document number
395.24C2II 271 Driver failed to manually add the trailer number
395.22H3 704 Driver failed to maintain instruction sheet for ELD malfuntion reporting requirements
395.22H2 1392 Driver failing to maintain ELD instruction sheet
395.34A1 381 Failing to note malfunction that requires use of paper log
395.24C1III 1 Driver failed to add file comment per safety officers request
395.32B 63 Driver failed to assume or decline unassigned driving time
395.22G 891 Portable ELD not mounted in a fixed position and visible to driver
395.24C1I 77 Driver failed to make annotations when applicable
395.24D 1178 ELD cannot transfer ELD records electronically
395.30B1 278 Driver failed to certify the accuracy of the information gathered by the ELD
395.30C 60 Failing to follow the prompts from the ELD when editing/adding missing information
395.24C2I 29 Driver failed to manually add CMV power unit number
395.20B 98 The ELDs display screen cannot be viewed outside of the commercial motor vehicle.
395.28 7 Driver failed to select/deselect or annotate a special driving category or exempt status
395.11G 16 Failing to provide supporting documents in the drivers possession upon request
395.8A-ELD 1606 ELD – No record of duty status (ELD Required)
ATRI COSTS OF OPERATIONS.
For our trucker subscribers the ATRI is seeking data for the annual update to its Operational Costs of Trucking report. Among the for-hire fleet metrics being requested by ATRI are driver pay, fuel costs, insurance premiums and lease or purchase payments. Carriers are asked to provide full-year 2017 cost per mile and/or cost per hour data. The ATRI reports that this data will provides carriers with an important high-level benchmarking tool and government agencies with real world data for transportation infrastructure investment decisions. For-hire motor carriers are encouraged to provide confidential operational cost data to ATRI by Friday, June 22, 2018. ATRI’s data collection form is available online here. Pass this along to your insureds as more data means more a better view of the industry.
There is no basis for a strict liability claim against a motor carrier for the actions of a driver which caused personal injury. The Southern District in Ohio held that a direct negligence claim against the motor carrier was also not properly pled. However when it came to the claim for punitive damages the Court held that while there was the plaintiff would be permitted to continue to assert a punitive damages claims based upon allegations of spoliation of evidence. Baker v. Swift Transportation, 2018 WL 2088006
Insurers who paid a significant claim for personal injuries arising from a truck accident were not permitted to pursue the consignee for contribution. The Middle District of Pennsylvania held that when the accident occurred on a state roadway the consignee as a matter of law, owed no duty to the traveling public to ensure that trucks entering the premises could do so safely. National Specialty Ins. Co v. Tunkhannock Auto Mart, 2018 WL 2230412
A plaintiff was not permitted to assert a claim for punitive damages for injuries suffered when the plaintiff hit an overturned tractor-trailer. The District Court in Minnesota refused to permit such a cause of action when the tractor-trailer overturned when the driver tried to avoid hitting a herd of deer. The Court held that that there was no evidence that the driver acted recklessly. Soto v. Swift Transportation, 2018 WL2193111
The question of whether a motor carrier should have anticipated a sudden stop by another vehicle and therefore been ready to stop and not hit the plaintiff’s vehicle was held to be a question of fact in the Northern District of Illinois. While the Court recognized that the motor carrier may not be negligent when sudden acts by third parties started the process, it was within the province of the jury to make a decision on the issue. Dineen v. Oiver, 2018 WL 2193196.
Maryland has agreed that when a trucking company agrees that it is vicariously liable for the driver of its vehicle there can be no claim for negligent entrustment, hiring, trailing and supervision. The District Court acknowledged that Maryland was the leader in this rule. Day v. Stevens, 2018 WL 2064735
The Court dismissed a complaint, without prejudice, brought against a motor carrier, its insurer, the claims manager and the adjuster alleging false designation under Pennsylvania law as well as violation of the unfair trade practices. The District Court in Pennsylvania held that the plaintiff failed to allege how violation of the designation act by the insurer proximately caused the accident. The Court also held that the plaintiff failed to pled fact to place itself with the auspices of the unfair trade practices act. New Legion Company v. Thandi, 2018 WL 2121523
While a claim of negligent entrustment will generally not stand when the motor carrier has conceded vicarious liability for the actions of the driver, the Middle District of Pennsylvania held that it was premature to dismiss the cause of action before discovery was completed. Hill v. Graen 2018 WL 2151317
The warehouse that stored and loaded a shipment of cargo was granted summary judgment on a claim seeking damages caused when the cargo came unsecured and caused an accident. The Court of Appeals in Indiana held that when the warehouseman had no involvement in securing the cargo it was not reasonably foreseeable that they would owe a duty to the injured plaintiffs. Staggs v. ADS Logistics, 2018 WL 2187806
Allegations of prior bad acts, based upon inspection violations, were allowed to stay in the complaint in the Middle District of North Carolina. The defendant sought to strike the allegations on the basis that prior violations did not support a claim for inadequate driver qualifications, training or monitoring. The court held that it was too soon in the litigation and the allegations should stay. Graciano v. Blue Sky Logistics, 2017 WL 2187806
Over in the District Court in Louisiana the Court rejected a plaintiff’s request for a new trial when the plaintiff was unhappy with the small verdict for injuries suffered in a truck accident. The court rejected plaintiff’s claim that the jury compromised when they gave damages for future medical but not future pain and suffering. The court also refused to grant a new trial when the “new evidence” was something plaintiff should have had before trial, if she had exercised due diligence to get it. Wright v. National Interstate Insurance Co., 2018 WL 2017567
Under a ruling in New York, a plaintiff does not have to establish freedom from fault in order to obtain summary judgment on the defendant’s liability, however the District Court in New York held that the plaintiff’s comparative fault in failing to see the truck coming into her lane was still a question of fact. Defendant was afforded the opportunity to present its facts before the jury. Marseille v. National Freight, Inc., 2018 WL 2041387
The Western District of North Carolina granted a motor carrier’s request for relief from a judgement entered against it. Apparently counsel had made some errors in sending an offer of judgment which allowed a plaintiff to accept two offers, doubling his recovery. While the Court held that plaintiff was technically correct on the acceptance it was inequitable to allow double recovery when it was clearly intended to be one offer. Jones v. Higgins, 2018 WL 2138542
The Missouri Court of Appeals upheld a multi-million dollar verdict against a trucking company for the actions of a driver which resulted in injury to the plaintiff, including a claim for punitive damages. The Court held that the jury did not have a prearranged plan for determining the damages. Ross v. Jeschke AG Services, 2018 WL 2011524
The District Court in Connecticut remanded an action commenced against a a trucking company whose driver moved a tractor causing a dock worker to fall and be injured. When the evidence was clear that the damages were below $75000 the matter belonged back in state court. Bell v. Doe, 2018 WL 2016855
Dismissal for spoliation of evidence is a harsh remedy. However the Court of Appeals in Tennessee dismissed a claim by a driver against the trucking company he was hauling for. The driver claimed that the equipment provided by the trucking company was defective. However as the plaintiff turned the equipment over to its insurer, who salvaged the equipment the court held that the defendant was substantially prejudiced and unable to investigate or defend against the suit. Gardner v. R&J Express, 2018 WL 2095248
A trucking company’s efforts to transfer a case to another jurisdiction on the basis that the initial forum was more favorable to cyclists, one of which it was alleged to have injured, failed in the District Court in Minnesota. The Court held that the defendant failed to sustain its burden to support a transfer. Roumeliotis v. JB Hunt, 2018 WL 1990030
The Southern District in Alabama held that a motor carrier was entitled to summary judgment on claims of negligence and wantonness in failing to run a safe trucking company where there was no proof that the failure to train the driver on the FMCSRs regarding driver fatigue and restricting the use of hand-held devices was a proximate cause of the accident. The Court held that there was nothing before the court which indicated that the driver was unaware of the regulations. Driskell v. Kenny Enters., LLC, 2018 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 85743
You may recall a decision last year in which the court held that a claim against a motor carrier for personal injuries was preempted by the Carmack Amendment. The court continued addressing this case this month when the Eastern District of Pennsylvania held that FAAAA preempts a negligence claim against the broker, but not against the shipper, for alleged improper loading. The court did, however, allow a breach of contract claim against the broker, concluding that the consignee was a third party beneficiary of the contract between the broker and the motor carrier. This is an important decision to be considered by those insuring truck brokers. Krauss v. Iris USA, 2018 WL 2063839
The Western District in Virginia held that claims against a volunteer fire company for negligence arising from an accident with the ambulance were barred under the doctrine of sovereign immunity. Since there was no reasonable basis for a claim for gross negligence the case was dismissed. Davis v. Bryson, 2018 WL 1955825
The Court of Appeals in Georgia dismissed a direct action against a motor carrier’s excess insurer. The court held that the “direct action statute” O.C.G.A. § 40-1-112, does not authorize actions against an motor carrier’s excess insurer. RLI Insurance Co. v. Duncan, 2018 Ga. App. LEXIS 294
A plaintiff was permitted to assert a claim for punitive damages based upon a truck driver’s post-accident conduct. The District Court in New Mexico allowed a plaintiff to amend a complaint to assert that claim, concluding that it was a matter for discovery and was not an exercise in futility. May v. Tex. Lobo Trucking Co., 2018 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 83447
A motor carrier’s efforts to protect itself with a liability waiver signed by truck passengers failed in the Western District of Tennessee. The court held that the waiver signed by the passenger, the driver’s wife, may not be valid and lacked consideration. The fact that both the husband and wife showed signs of drug use at the time of the accident did not preclude potentially recovery for the wife’s estate. The plaintiff was allowed to proceed with the suit Amalu v. Stevens Transp., Inc.2018 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 78763
The Court of Appeals in California considered the dispute between two insurers over the obligation to defend and indemnify a trucking company. Only one insurer stepped up and defended the trucking company and sought reimbursement from the other insurer. The court held that the first insurer could not pursue the assigned causes of action because the insureds suffered no actionable damages when the insurer paid the claim. The Court did hold that the second insurer had a duty to defend and indemnify and remanded the case for a proper evaluation of the apportionment of the defense costs. Cal. Capital Ins. Co. v. Scottsdale Indem. Ins. Co.2018 Cal. App. Unpub. LEXIS 3400
The Northern District in Illinois held that a breach of contract claim against a broker for a cargo loss was not preempted by FAAAA. The Court held that there were sufficient facts to support a claim against the broker for failing to retain a responsible motor carrier to transport the shipment. The shipment was rejected at destination when the band was not on the shipment at delivery. Georgia Nut Company v. C.H. Robinson, 2018 WL 2009499
The District Court in California allowed for the entry of a default judgment against a motor carrier under the terms of the Carmack Amendment. The court held that the plaintiff was entitled to full damages, and prejudgment interest. Heritage Intl v. SMBAT Enterprises, 2018 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 84277
The 9 month claim filing requirement continues to be a viable defense for a motor carrier. The 11th Circuit Court of Appeals held that a plaintiff was unable to sustain a claim against the carrier when she failed to timely file a claim pursuant to the requirements of the tariff. Skanes v. Fed Ex., United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit, 2018 U.S. App. LEXIS 12638
While plaintiff failed to properly allege a claim under the Carmack Amendment the Court in the Northern District of West Virginia held that the proper remedy was to permit the plaintiff to amend the complaint. The plaintiff was not, however, permitted to continue an action against the motor carrier’s agent. Dzingeleski v. Allied Van Lines, Inc. 2018 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 83249
Arbitration clauses in transportation agreements are enforceable. The District Court in New Jersey held that the plaintiff’s complaint for cargo damages under the Carmack Amendment should be dismissed when the contract required that the parties arbitrate the issues. Alfa Adhesives v. A. Duie Pyle Inc., 2018 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 85511
The District Court in Arizona held that a broker’s motion to dismiss a complaint on the basis that it had settled with one of the parties in the transportation and constituted an accord and satisfaction was premature. The court held that as there was no evidence as to whether the settling party was acting as the plaintiff’s agent the motion was premature. Hartford Fire Ins. Co. v. 3DL Design Incorporation. 2018 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 87849
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania upheld the denial of worker’s compensation benefits to a truck driver who was injured when he was washing his truck. The Court accepted the employer’s evidence that taking vehicles home was not permitted, concluding that the driver was acting outside the scope of employment when he was injured. Baker v. Worker’s Compensation Board, 2018 WL 1997103
Providing worker’s compensation through a third party Professional Employee Organization does not cause the trucking company to lose the benefit of claiming that the exclusive remedy rule applies to injuries suffered by the driver The Supreme Court of Montana dismissed a claim against the trucking company. Ramsbacher v. Jim Palmer Trucking, 2018 WL 2111891
Drivers who were fatally injured with they went inside containers which were not properly washed were precluded from recovering from the chemical company who contracted with the trucking company to wash the tanks and transport the chemicals. The Court of Appeals in Kentucky held that that the defendant was an “up-the-ladder contractor” who was entitled to the exclusive remedy protection afforded by the Kentucky Workers’ Compensation Act. Estate of Young v. ISP Chems., LLC, 2018 Ky. App. Unpub. LEXIS 324
Truck Verdicts.
Texas – Werner Enterprises was hit with a verdict of 89.6 million arising from a truck accident in 2014. The plaintiff’s vehicle crossed over into the trucker’s lane of traffic. Werner intends to appeal and we will follow this case and report as we hear more.
Previous Previous post: Jeffrey Baker, Petitioner v. Workers’ Compensation Appeal Board (Meiborg, Inc. and Gallagher Bassett Services, Inc.), Respondents
Next Next post: Morris v. Zurich American Ins. Co, 2018 WL 3025528
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Learn About The Chuters
The Chuters are a veterans centric parachute demonstration team that provides patriotic themed precision aerial parachute demonstrations across the globe.
KEITH WALTER
Keith Walter is a retired US Army Officer who spent his career jumping out of planes. Now retired, he continues to jump, serving as Chief of Operations for “The Chuters.” Keith has more than 5500 jumps, has competed in skydiving competitions at the State and National Levels, and is a multi-rated skydiving instructor. However, his passion is performing for the crowd, and he specializes in providing precision aerial demonstrations at events around the world. Very personable, Keith loves to talk, so come on up and say “Hi!”
YVETTE WALTER
Yvette Walter is the President and Owner of The Chuters. A career Army Wife, Yvette has a Bachelors Degree in Commercial Art, and makes designer jewelry, custom paintings and specialized freefall and ground photography. Yvette has 2100 jumps. She is a certified Skydiving Coach, a PRO rates skydiver, and has competed at the State and National level in Formation Skydiving. She has performed for the public in the United States and abroad; performing as a jumper. photographer and member of the ground support team. She relishes the public interaction, and never misses an opportunity to sign autographs or take pictures!
Bill Walsh is a two-‐time Emmy Award-‐winning television personality and has spent over twenty years in television news and entertainment. As a producer, Walsh has been awarded five national Telly Awards for his work on various programs, from news to reality. Bill served as a member of the elite United States Special Operations Command Para-‐Commandos with the rank of lieutenant colonel in United States Air Force Reserve until 2017. As a military member he served in both Iraq and Afghanistan, among many other locations around the world. He has been awarded the Defense Meritorious Service Medal, two Air Force Meritorious Service Medals, the Air Force Commendation Medal, the Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal, the Air Force Achievement Medal, and the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, among others.
Walsh holds a Master’s Degree in military operational art and science and national security studies from the United States Air Force Air University and a Bachelor of Science degree from Emerson College in Boston, Massachusetts. Bill is also the author of two suspense novels and will release a third later this year. Originally from Rhode Island, Walsh now makes his home near Charleston, South Carolina, with his wife, Janet, and their two children, Frank and Amy.
PATRICK FORTUNE
Patrick retired from the U.S. Air Force in 2004 after 20 years of service. He's been deployed on five of the seven continents on a wide range of exercises and causes. He started skydiving back on May 2nd, 1998 when he found out he was being assigned to an “Airborne” unit. NOTE: Skydiving and Airborne are totally different.
Since that time, He's made 2200 plus jumps and has accomplished not only fun jumps but a few world records to include being part of the largest Parachutists Over Phorty Society (POPS) formation (130 jumpers). He was also part of the largest two point POPS formation (108 jumpers), as well as part of a new world record 3 point 111 way.
His second love is animals. He works with three different rescue groups finding homes for animals (normally dogs) that other people either give up or don’t want. He enjoys talking about both skydiving and animals.
KEITH HANLEY
Keith is a retired Army officer with multiple special operations assignments and deployments during a 23 year career. He made his first jumps over 30 years ago and since then he has performed as a jumpmaster, instructor, coach, demonstrator, and competitor. He also performed on several military parachute demonstration teams while in the service and he now has over 2800 jumps. His current skydiving passions are to participate in challenging freefall maneuvers with other jumpers, conduct demonstration jumps as part of the The Chuters, and share his excitement for life and the sport with others.
RON BROOKS
Ron Brooks is a US Army Reserve, Command Sergeant Major assigned to Atlantic Training Division, 75th Training Command and former active duty United States Marine with several overseas deployments. Ron started skydiving in 2008 and has made over 1100 jumps to date. A member of the United States Parachute Association, Ron currently holds Coach and Pro/Demo ratings. Spending winters in Florida and summers in Maine, Ron calls Skydive City, Zephyrhills, FL and Skydive New England, Lebanon, ME his “Home” drop zones. Besides skydiving, Ron devotes a lot of time training with his Border Collie “Xe” for K-9 agility trials. Ron joined the Chuters in 2015.
BILL BICKNER
Bill Bickner is an avid skydiver and has been so for more than 20 years. He has more than 3500 jumps and holds numerous local, state, national and world records for different skydiving formations. He is a four way, eight way, ten way and sixteen way formation skydiving competitor, with his most recent competition at the 2016 US Parachute Association National Championships. He has been featured in the Parachutist Magazine and was selected for the Ches Judy Safety Award for promoting safe parachuting. He's a people person; so come say HI!
KEN ATES
Ken Ates is an active duty US Army Special Forces Officer with more than 10 combat and training overseas deployments all over the world. Ken has spent his current 27 years of service parachuting with the 82nd Airborne Division (with one combat jump into Panama in 1989), the 143rd Infantry (G Company, Long Range Surveillance), the 3rd Special Forces Group, the United States Army Special Operations Command Parachute Team (Black Daggers) and the US Special Operations Command "Para-Commandos." When not performing at demonstrations, Ken serves as a multi-rated parachute instructor. Ken has over 3300 jumps and is a North Carolina State record holder. Ken enjoys sharing skydiving not only with the public, but also at a one on one level with those wanting to learn about skydiving. Ken's spends his free time running half marathons, paddle boarding around Tampa Bay, riding his Harley and reading classic literature.
KENT PARO
Kent Paro is a retired Navy SEAL Captain with 31 years of service and multiple combat and training deployments all over the world. Kent began jumping in 1989 when he received initial military freefall training while assigned to SEAL Team THREE. He continued jumping in Guam and Spain when he was assigned to Naval Special Warfare Units ONE and TEN. Kent jumped in Virginia Beach while assigned to Naval Special Warfare Group TWO and while he commanded both SEAL Team TEN and Special Boat Team TWENTY. He also got to jump in Germany and Normandy while assigned as the Commanding Officer at Naval Special Warfare Unit TWO.
Kent was a SOCOM Para-Commando for many years prior to his retirement and performed many nationally televised parachute demonstrations. Kent is a tandem instructor and a coach, and has just under 800 jumps. He enjoys sharing the thrill of parachuting with the public, and loves making new friends. Kent keeps busy with his teenage daughters and their sports interests, and enjoys jogging and reading (not classic literature like Ken 8s). He’s the friendliest guy you’ll ever meet and he’s a Navy SEAL, who doesn’t want to meet and talk with a Navy SEAL? Come say “Hey!”
KAT HUFF
Kat Huff is an avid fun jumper. As a Medical Physicist by day and mom to young children, her passion for skydiving has had to take a back seat. Kat has over 2000 jumps. She has competed at the Collegiate and State levels in Formation Skydiving and holds a World Record for the Largest All Female Formation Skydive in 2002.
She even attempted to try out for Survivor, the long running television show, as a flying Wonder Woman. This launched a wild desire to convince as many fellow skydivers as she could to take to the skies in Super Hero costumes! Kat loves to answer question about the physics of freefall and any other skydiving related questions, so feel free to ask!
KEVIN KLEIN
Kevin R. Klein is the Director of the Colorado Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management and Governor Polis’ Homeland Security Advisor. Klein has been involved in public safety for over 30 years. He started his career as a firefighter/paramedic and rose through the ranks to eventually hold the position of Fire Chief. Klein left his position as Fire Chief to pursue a graduate degree at Harvard University. After receiving his graduate degree, Klein began a career in consulting for international, state and local public safety agencies. In 2006, he was appointed Director of the Division of Fire Safety. In 2011 he was appointed Director of the Colorado Division of Homeland Security, where he became a statutory peace officer. In 2012, the state emergency management responsibilities were added to his portfolio.
Kevin has been skydiving for over 25 years and has more than 2000 jumps and is a USPA D License holder. He has been a member of The Chuters since 2018.
April 2019 - Brian Bill 4th Annual Golf Tournament, TPC Tampa
March 2019 - General Joe Votel and CSM Thetford Retirement Party at
Seascapes Beach, MacDill Air Force Base
May 2018 - Morten Anderson's Special Teams for Special Operations
Golf Tournament - Atlanta GA
Nov 2018 - Black Dagger Military Hunt Club Fun Shoot, Sarasota, FL
April 2018 - Boca West Children's Foundation Golf Tournament in Boca West FL
November 2017 - Black Dagger Military Hunt Club Fun Shoot, Sarasota, FL
May 2017 - Grand Bahamas Air Show
May 2017 - Westchase Golf Course - Tampa, FL Brian Bill Charity Golf Tournament
March 2017 - San Jose, Costa Rica Motocross Race in Estadio Nacional de Costa Rica
February 2017 - Florida Fun Shoot
December 2016 - Hosting a US Parachute Association "PRO" Skydiving Rating Course for Jumpers with more than 200 jumps at Skydive City in Zephyrhills FL
November 2016 - Hillsborough County Sheriff's Range - Lithia FL for the Black Dagger Military Hunt Club's Wounded Warrior Top Shot Competition
October 2016 - Tampa Palms Golf Course in NW Tampa for the Claybaker D.U.S.T.O.F.F Charity Golf Tournament
April 2016 - Gold Star Teens at Operation Blackbeard
April 2016 - Bahamas Air Show
February 2016 - Black Dagger Military
Hunt Club Fun Shoot, Sarasota, FL
November 2015 - Black Daggers Military Hunt
Club Wounded Warrior Military
Top Shot Competition, Lithia, FL
November 2014 - 3rd Annual
Military Heroes Top Shot Competition
November 2014 - TAMCO
Foundation Charity Golf Outing
August 2014 - PRO Camp - Skydive City, FL
WHERE WE'RE HEADED
For the most up-to-date info and photos, please check out our Facebook page!
June 2019 - The Beaches of Normandy for the 75th Anniversary of D-Day
August 2019 - Camping World Stadium's College Football Kick-off
October 2019 - The FIS Patriot Golf Tournament, Innisbrook
October 2019 - Tullahoma Tennessee Community Event
November 2019 - Black Dagger Military Hunt Club, Inc's Military Top Shot Event
December 2019 - Carol Martin's 75th Birthday Party, Clearwater FL
The Chuters are a parachuting demonstration team dedicated to providing awe-inspiring, patriotic themed professional parachute demonstrations. We also provide parachuting instruction to the public & specialize in aerial photography, particularly as it relates to parachuting.
To request the Chuters or to get more information, contact us at Info@TheChuters.com.
Our charges are generally non-negotiable, but we do make some concessions for charity and veteran events. Our standard fees are:
Demos - $2,000 per day plus expenses
AFF Instruction - $300 per day plus expenses
Tandem Instruction - $225 per jump
Wind Tunnel Instruction - $300 per day plus expenses
Copyright 2019 - YTW Enterprises, Inc. d/b/a The Chuters - a Florida company
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Shh, There's A Cabbie Listening
Xinhua reports that Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr visited Syria and, following a meeting with Syria's President Bashar al-Assad, Al-Assad declared "his country's full support to the formation of the Iraqi national unity government as soon as possible". As soon as possible?
March 7th, Iraq concluded Parliamentary elections. Three months and two days later, still no government. 163 seats are needed to form the executive government (prime minister and council of ministers). When no single slate wins 163 seats (or possibly higher -- 163 is the number today but the Parliament added seats this election and, in four more years, they may add more which could increase the number of seats needed to form the executive government), power-sharing coalitions must be formed with other slates, parties and/or individual candidates. (Eight Parliament seats were awarded, for example, to minority candidates who represent various religious minorities in Iraq.) Ayad Allawi is the head of Iraqiya which won 91 seats in the Parliament making it the biggest seat holder. Second place went to State Of Law which Nouri al-Maliki, the current prime minister, heads. They won 89 seats. Nouri made a big show of lodging complaints and issuing allegations to distract and delay the certification of the initial results while he formed a power-sharing coalition with third place winner Iraqi National Alliance -- this coalition still does not give them 163 seats. They are claiming they have the right to form the government. It's four months and five days and, in 2005, Iraq took four months and seven days to pick a prime minister. Today makes it four months and ten days without any government being established.
Meanwhile Nizar Latif (UAE's National Newspaper) notes that Baghdad security is branching out into new areas in order to spy:
Now, it appears, the country's intelligence services have realised how much information can be gathered just by sitting in the driving seat of a cab – with the result, according to Baghdad's cabbies, that undercover security agents have gone into the minicab trade and are stealing away all their customers.
"There’s no doubt it's the secret police," said Amer al Husseini, a 29 year-old driver working in the Kadhimiyah neighbourhood. "All of a sudden you'll see lots of new taxis in Kadhimiyah and none of us know any of the drivers. That's how you can be sure it's the security looking for information about some terrorist group.
"They go around, picking up passengers and trying to find out what's going on. It's might be good for the secret police but it's bad for us real taxi drivers because they take all the business."
Accountability is the topic Ian Cobain (Guardian) reports on, noting that the British judicial system granted approval for an evaluation as to whether or not a public inquiry of Iraqi abuse at the hands of the British military.
Turning to violence today, Reuters reports 1 intelligence officer shot dead in Mosul, 1 person kidnapped in Mosul, 1 corpse (17-year-old female) discovered in Mosul, a Tuz Khurmato car bombing which claimed 2 lives and left one person injured and, dropping back to Friday, a Mosul roadside bombing which wounded three people and another which injured one Iraqi soldier.
We'll close with the following from A.N.S.W.E.R.:
Petraeus promotes civil war in Afghanistan
Statement from Brian Becker, National Coordinator of the ANSWER Coalition
Badly losing the war in Afghanistan, Gen. David Petraeus has decided to promote a violent civil war in Afghan villages.
That is the true intent of the new so-called Local Defense Initiatives that Petraeus forced down the throat of Afghanistan’s puppet president Hamid Karzai. The new plan is a variant of the Community Defense Initiative that Gen. Stanley McChrystal tried to impose on Afghanistan after Obama selected him to lead the expanded war effort in 2009.
The Petraeus strategy calls for putting 10,000 job-hungry Afghan villagers on the Pentagon payroll. They will be given money and guns so that they can form militias and shoot and kill other members of their village who are asserted to be either pro-Taliban or opposed to the U.S./NATO occupation.
The new strategy further underscores the criminal role of the Pentagon generals. Petraeus is consciously fomenting civil war and ethnic rivalry just as he did in Iraq. Gen. James Mattis, Petraeus’ new boss at Central Command, when speaking to a crowd in San Diego in 2005 about his experience in Afghanistan, said “it's a hell of a lot of fun to shoot 'em."
President Obama and his military team recognize that it is less damaging at home, where there is almost no support for this endless occupation, to foment civil war in Afghanistan and pay desperate Afghans to slaughter each other as a means of reducing U.S. casualties.
U.S. taxpayers who are experiencing devastating cuts in state and local budgets, layoffs of municipal workers, soaring tuition hikes in public colleges—all because of budget shortfalls—will see billions of their tax dollars go to fund the occupation of Afghanistan and pay the salaries of poor Afghans so that they can shoot other poor Afghans. This is a classic divide-and-conquer tactic used historically by all colonial powers to break up a united resistance by the people whose lands they occupy.
The Obama administration and its generals are borrowing a page from Nixon and Kissinger’s murderous “Vietnamization” plan, which became the announced policy in 1969. Since there was a rising tide of anti-war sentiment at home, Nixon and the Pentagon wanted the Vietnamese to kill each other in greater numbers as a way of diminishing U.S. war dead.
Millions of Vietnamese died during the war, as did 58,000 U.S. service members. The U.S. strategy succeeded in creating an ocean of human suffering, but it failed to alter the outcome. The Vietnamese, like the Afghan people, were unwilling to live under foreign occupation.
ANSWER Coalition organizers and volunteers have in recent months been working around the country to support the growing numbers of soldiers, marines, veterans and military families who are speaking out against the war in Afghanistan. We are reaching more and more active duty service members and recently returned veterans who know that this colonial-type war is based on lies by the politicians and the Pentagon Brass. The ANSWER Coalition affiliate March Forward! is reaching out to soldiers, marines and veterans.
We urge you to support this work by checking out March Forward’s Ten point program and signing up for email updates at www.MarchForward.org.
the national newspaper
nizar latif
Feds still chasing after WikiLeaks
Monday April 5th, WikiLeaks released US military video of a July 12, 2007 assault in Iraq. 12 people were killed in the assault including two Reuters journalists Namie Noor-Eldeen and Saeed Chmagh. Monday June 7th, the US military announced that they had arrested Bradley Manning and he stood accused of being the leaker of the video. Philip Shenon (Daily Beast) reported last month that the US government is attempting to track down WikiLeaks' Julian Assange. Last week, the military charged Manning. Leila Fadel (Washington Post) reported he had been charged -- "two charges under the Uniform Code of Military Justice. The first encompasses four counts of violating Army regulations by transferring classified information to his personal computer between November and May and adding unauthorized software to a classified computer system. The second comprises eight counts of violating federal laws governing the handling of classified information." Manning has been convicted enough and has made no public statements -- despite any claims otherwise, he has made no public statements.
Richard Galant, Mike Mount and Alan Silverleib (CNN) report Julian Assange, appearing in Oxford yesterday at the TED Global conference, stated that WikiLeaks is receiving even more material from whistle blowers. He called Bradley Manning "a political prisoner being held in the nation of Kuwait, effectively keeping him away from the press and effective legal representation." WikiLeaks has not identified Manning or anyone as the source of the video footage or as the source of any other information.
Meanwhile Declan McCullagh (CNET) reports that five federal agents swarmed a Manhattan hackers' conference yesterday in search of Assange who was expected to appear today.
In other news Charles Abbott and Peter Cooney (Reuters) report that the MEK has landed a legal victory in the US where the US DC Court of Appeals found Friday that the MEK (People's Muhahedin Organization of Iraqn) was not given "a fair chance to overturn the listing" as a terrorist group. Over 3,000 MEK members currently reside at Camp Ashraf in Iraq.
The following community sites updated last night and today:
THIS JUST IN! VACATIONING IN THE 'GULF'!
Remember The Maine, Barry
More bad polls for Barack
Perspectives and hopes
The Divorce Ranch
Soup and Slurp -- not in my Kitchen
The fall of Cockburn
ugly katha pollitt spews more stupidity
Katha Pollitt: Forever Fat Ass
Murders' Row
Let's deal with community issues arising. Isaiah plans to do a comic tomorrow. The only thing that might change that is Third's writing session going crazy. On that, I want to scream. A friend's asked that we address -- Ava and I -- an attack on Lindsay Lohan and I'm fine with that. Lindsay's under attack. And she's being attacked by Queen Bitchy which necessitates that we also stop being nice to Joan Rivers. A number of people will laugh at that assertion but Ava and I caught Joan's little anti-Muslim tirade and chose to ignore it because our plates were full and Joan's so pathetic as it is. Now, we'll instead explore it at Third (with link for you to listen yourselves). It's awful, it's disgusting and it's amazing that it took place -- IN PUBLIC -- at the same time the assault on Helen Thomas did and it didn't raise an eyebrow. So that's two things we've been asked for by friends and that's fine. Now a friend at CNN is asking that we take on idiot Rachel Maddow, so we'll be doing that as well. Poor Rachel, caught in yet another lie. She is a world class liar. And she must want to be known as such because she does it repeatedly and she does it badly. Somewhere in all of that, we'll attempt to tackle NPR and there's also a TV piece to write. That's what Ava and I will be working on. It'll take forever. I don't know what everyone else is going ot be working on, I don't know how long those other pieces will take. I say that because if this writing edition goes on too long, Isaiah may not do a comic and I've outlined here what Ava and I are working on so take it up with Jim if there's no comic.
And we'll close with this from the Senate Democratic Policy Committee:
Democrats Are On Your Side: Reforming Wall Street and Protecting Consumers
Years without accountability for Wall Street and big banks brought us the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression, the loss of 8 million jobs, failed businesses, a drop in housing prices, and significant losses in personal savings. Senate Democrats worked to restore responsibility and accountability in our financial system with the Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. The bill will put in place the reforms necessary to grow the economy and create jobs – giving Americans confidence that there is a system in place that works for and protects them.
Despite the overwhelming call for reform by the American people, Senate Republicans spent weeks obstructing progress on the bill in an effort to protect special interests and banks. They attempted to water down this vital legislation on behalf of CEOs and credit card companies. Democrats refused to take no for an answer, believing that hard-working American families deserve strong protections from the predatory practices of Wall Street. That is why Democrats persevered in the fight for the passage of Wall Street reform legislation.
Highlights of the Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act
Consumer Protections with Authority and Independence : The bill creates a new independent watchdog, housed at the Federal Reserve, with the authority to ensure American consumers get the clear, accurate information they need to shop for mortgages, credit cards, and other financial products, and protects them from hidden fees, abusive terms, and deceptive practices.
Ending Too Big to Fail Bailouts: The bill ends the possibility that taxpayers will be asked to write a check to bail out financial firms that threaten the economy by: creating a safe way to liquidate failed financial firms; imposing tough new capital and leverage requirements that make it undesirable to get too big; updating the Fed’s authority to allow system-wide support but no longer prop up individual firms; and establishing rigorous standards and supervision to protect the economy and American consumers, investors and businesses.
Advance Warning System: The bill creates a council to identify and address systemic risks posed by large, complex companies, products, and activities before they threaten the stability of the economy.
Transparency & Accountability for Exotic Instruments: The bill eliminates loopholes that allow risky and abusive practices to go on unnoticed and unregulated -- including loopholes for over-the-counter derivatives, asset-backed securities, hedge funds, mortgage brokers and payday lenders.
Executive Compensation and Corporate Governance: The bill provides shareholders with a say on pay and corporate affairs with a non-binding vote on executive compensation and golden parachutes.
Protecting Investors: The bill provides tough new rules for transparency and accountability for credit rating agencies to protect investors and businesses.
Enforcing Regulations on the Books: The bill strengthens oversight and empower regulators to aggressively pursue financial fraud, conflicts of interest and manipulation of the system that benefits special interests at the expense of American families and businesses.
DPC Fact Sheet | Democrats Are On Your Side: Reforming Wall Street and Protecting Consumers
richard galant
mike mount
alan silverleib
declan mccullagh
charles abbott
peter cooney
Friday, July 16, 2010. Chaos and violence continue, the political stalemate continues, a US conference to end the war is on the horizon, corpses are again found in Baghdad (is it 2007 all over again?), and more.
David Vine: Counterinsurgency, just quickly, because it features in the title, it features in the title of the book that we're going to disccus today The Counter-Counterinsurgency Manual: Notes on Demilitarizing American Society. Counterinsurgency, just quickly, is a term that dates to about 1960, the Vietnam era, came to mean the elimination of an uprising against the govenrment. Although the tactics of course are much older. Dating centuries, most likely the United States so-called "Indian Wars," the occupation of the Philipines and certainly the tactics employed by the people inside the British and French empire.
David Vines is with the American Anthropological Association and he was speaking as moderator of the December 5, 2009 discusion by Network of Concern Anthropologists in Philadelphia for the AAA's annual meeting.
You won't hear these voices on NPR very often (David Price was on The Diane Rehm Show addressing this topic -- see the October 11, 2007 snapshot for an excerpt of the October 10th broadcast of Diane's show). You will, however, hear the 'insight' of David Kilcullen on Morning Edition and you won't hear it or him questioned. Is Morning Edition unaware of what took place in Philadelphia last year?
From the December 3rd snapshot:
The American Anthropological Association's annual meeting started yesterday in Philadelphia and continues through Sunday. Today the association's Commission on the Engagement of Anthropology with the US Security and Intelligence Communities issued their [PDF format] "Final Report on The Army's Human Terrain System Proof of Concept Program." The 74-page report is a blow to War Criminals and their cheerleaders who have long thought that the social science could be abused or that the social sciences were psuedo sciences. It was in December 2006 when Dumb Ass George Packer raved over Dumb Ass Montgomery McFate and her highly imaginative and fictional retelling of both her childhood and her current work which Packer identified as "Pentagon consultant" working on Cultural Operations Research Human Terrain. Packer was jizzing in his shorts and not even warnings from other anthropologists ("I do not want to get anybody killed") could sway him.
In May the US House of Representatives made an unusual move. Noah Shachtman (Wired) reported in May that the House Armed Service Committtee announced it would be limiting funding for the program.
If you click here, you will be taken to the AAA website and to a podcast (where I grabbed David Vine's statement from) of the Network of Concern Anthropologists' symposium featuring Roberto Gonzalez, David Price, Andrew Bickford, Gregory Feldman, Dylan Kerrigan, Cahterine Besteman, Catherine Lutz and Nancy Scheper-Hughes.
Counterinsurgency is war on a native people. In its current usage by the US government, anthropologists are embedded with the military in Afghanistan and Iraq and they give the guise of "social science," the appearance of it. The cover to allow what really are War Crimes to take place. It turns social scientists into spies, spying on a native people so they can run back and fine tune the US policies and goals of war and occupation. It is not social science by any means. At its most basic, social science, when studying a people, requires informed consent. Counterinsurgency dismisses it. Those interviewed do not know who is interviewing them. They often think it's the military (because the 'social scientists' are dressed in military garb) and that they have no choice but to answer the questions. That is not informed consent.
Information is not gathered to illuminate the human condition, it's gathered to advance military goals. That is not social science, it's so far beyond a bastardization of social science that it is, in fact, a War Crime.
When he thinks no one is watching, David Kilcullen can be very illuminating and drop all pretense that he's attempting to help anyone other than a military. Speaking this month to Byron Sibree (New Zealand Herald), Kilcullen described counterinsurgency as "a form of what the French call counter-warfare which kind of morphs in response to whatever we're dealing with." Michael Hastings' article on Gen Stanley McCrystal was about McCrystal's objections to counter-insurgency (portrayed in the article as McCrystal thinking they were a waste of resources). McCrystal is now out as the US' top commander in Afghanistan. Gen David Petraeus is now the top US commander in Afghanistan. Petraeus is a close friend of Kilcullen's (he even attend Kilcullen's wedding -- no word on whether he was the ring-bearer or flower girl). And all the War Criminals hang out together. The civilian side (which Kilcullen is on now, having left the Australian military) is represented by War Whores such as Samantha Power and Sarah Sewall -- America's very own Josef Mengele and Kurt Lischka. If you're late to the party, Ava and I covered the group in 2007 when two little War Criminals -- Sarah Sewer and Monty McFate -- went on Charlie Rose -- that's the episode where Sarah Sewer brags she can get Barack to say whatever she wants. Where were you brave journalists of the left? Oh, that's right. You were all up Barack's crack or else playing the quiet game. And if you're trying to lose weight, click here and see the War Criminals Monty McFate, Sarah Sewer and Michele Flournoy (I'm sure Susan Brownmiller could analyze that photo at great length). It may be days before you regain your appetite. These women are liars and include Samantha Power who is a blood thirsty War Hawk who blurbed the counterinsurgency manual Sarah and Monty 'wrote.' (Monty's academic 'writing' appears doomed to the same fate as her juvenile 'writing' -- massive charges of plagiarism. For those late to the party, I knew Monty McFate when she was an ugly, little girl and, if nothing else, her life has demonstrated that the old wives tale of "Ugly in the cradle, pretty at the table" was wrong. Sometimes it really is ugly in the cradle and ugly at the table.) You can also click here for Noam Chomsky's thoughts on the War Criminals (Monthly Review, 2008). Though women often lead on this (at least publicly -- and Ms. magazine and Feminist Majority Foundation were stupid enough to promote these War Hawks in a so-called 'feminist' confrence), Michael Ignatieff and many other men are also part of it. (One-time journalist Thomas E. Ricks, John Nagl and many others.) One of the few journalists to tackle counterinsurgency is Kelley B. Vlahos (Antiwar.com). Most recently (June 15th), she took on the counterinsurgency 'brains' big Center for a New American Security conference:
But a year later, "victory" in Afghanistan is more elusive than ever and the "COINdinistas" are either disappearing to other realms of pop doctrine or standing around defensively, trying to backtrack and redefine tactics to accommodate the negative reality on the ground. So, as last year's event mimicked the preening confidence of a new sheriff in town, this year it amounted to a lot of whistling past the graveyard.
Whistling past the graveyard seems to be the only way to describe the sense that no one really wanted to talk about the 800-pound gorilla in the room: how their venerated COIN formula -- you know, the one that would have worked in Vietnam if spineless bureaucrats and long-haired hippies hadn't gotten in the way -- is actually playing out in Afghanistan today.
This was the largest congregation of the uniformed and civilian defense policy establishment all year. CNAS (pronounced see-nass) had been writing non-stop about Afghanistan in some capacity since its inception in 2007 -- including a recent study by fellow Andrew Exum, "Leverage: Designing a Political Campaign for Afghanistan." The fact that on June 10, the morning of the conference, one of the major front-page headlines in the Washington Post blared "Commanders Fear Time Is Running Out in Marja" should have been the perfect launching point for a stimulating discussion.
Instead, you had panel after panel nibbling around the edges and a keynote speech that managed, gratingly, to avoid talking about current operations altogether. Indirectly, the day provided a few tiny glimpses into how the COIN community and all of its defense industry hangers-on are feeling about the state of things. And it is not good. Unfortunately for them, the lack of public candor just added to the growing sense of doom.
Good. And good for Kelley for continuing to call out the counterinsurgency 'gurus' at a time when most others take a pass and in spite of the fact that Thomas E. Ricks launches personal and sexist attacks on her for doing so.
In Iraq, the Sahwa movement was part of the counterinsurgency effort. The main part, according to Petraeus (who is now trying to replicate it in Afghanistan even though for two years now it's been noted that it probably can't be done in Afghanistan). Sunni fighters (and, according to Petraeus' April 2008 Congressional testimony, some Shi'ites) were put on the American tax payer's dime. A little over 90,000 of them were paid not to attack US miltary equipment or military personnel. It was like paying a school bully off not to beat you up in the playground. And how did it work out? Shor-term it may have helped somewhat. (The large refugee crisis did more to end the bloody ethnic cleansing than paying off Sahwa -- by Petraues' own testimony and that of then-US Ambassador Ryan Crocker -- Sahwa was only paid to stop targeting the US.) But there was never a diplomatic push (which the Sahwa and the escalation -- "surge" -- were sold on) and what we really see today is that the Sahwa is not, has not and will not be integrated into Iraqi society as long as Nouri al-Maliki is prime minister.
And how long might that be? Trend News Agency reports Iraq's Sunni Vice President Tariq al-Hashimi's adviser Khalil Azraa is stating the US has not done enough to resolve the political stalemate in Iraq and quotes him stating, "The U.S. can exert political pressure on the formation of the government, because it is responsible for building democracy in Iraq." Tariq al-Hashimi is a member of Iraqiya, in fact, he is, after Ayad Allawi, probably the most prominent member of Iraqiya (especially post-purge by Ahmed Chalabi and Ali al-Lami).
March 7th, Iraq concluded Parliamentary elections. Three months and two days later, still no government. 163 seats are needed to form the executive government (prime minister and council of ministers). When no single slate wins 163 seats (or possibly higher -- 163 is the number today but the Parliament added seats this election and, in four more years, they may add more which could increase the number of seats needed to form the executive government), power-sharing coalitions must be formed with other slates, parties and/or individual candidates. (Eight Parliament seats were awarded, for example, to minority candidates who represent various religious minorities in Iraq.) Ayad Allawi is the head of Iraqiya which won 91 seats in the Parliament making it the biggest seat holder. Second place went to State Of Law which Nouri al-Maliki, the current prime minister, heads. They won 89 seats. Nouri made a big show of lodging complaints and issuing allegations to distract and delay the certification of the initial results while he formed a power-sharing coalition with third place winner Iraqi National Alliance -- this coalition still does not give them 163 seats. They are claiming they have the right to form the government. It's four months and five days and, in 2005, Iraq took four months and seven days to pick a prime minister. Today makes it four months and nine days without any government being established. Salah Hemeid (Al-Ahram Weekly) notes the lengthy delay:
With many Iraqis describing this new postponement as unconstitutional, there are widespread fears that the ongoing political crisis over who will lead the country will now escalate further.
The parliament had previously convened on 13 June, the country's constitution stating that the president should be selected within 30 days of its convocation. The possibility of further delay raises the question of whether inaction is flouting a constitution that many Iraqis believe has already been violated by politicians.
Iraqi voters went to the polls on 7 March to elect a new 325-member parliament, but an indecisive result, and bickering over who should be the country's next prime minister, has delayed the formation of a new government and plunged the country into political stalemate.
Under the country's constitution the Iraqi parliament should have convened 15 days after the results were announced in order to elect a speaker, and a new president should have been elected within 30 days of the parliament's first session. The president should then have nominated the new prime minister, who should have submitted his cabinet within 30 days for ratification.
According to an understanding that emerged after Iraq's first post-Saddam elections in 2005, a Shia Arab would be prime minister, a Kurd president, and a Sunni Arab speaker of the parliament. This quota system also covers top jobs, such as ambassadors and senior government and army posts, and the country's Shias and Kurds have been insisting on the quota system despite strong Sunni opposition.
Tim Arango (New York Times) reports 29 dead in Sulaimaniya hotel fire. Gabriel Gatehouse (BBC News -- link has text and video) reports forty were also injured and that some of the dead "died jumping from their windows to escape the flames". Zhang Xiang (Xinhua) reports the death toll is up to 43 and "many of the dead were from Bangladesh, Phillipine and Thailand, said the [local police] source, adding four Americans were among the dead." Zhang Xiang then noted that the death toll had been lowered yet again. Al Jazeera notes that the death toll flucuates based on the governmental source and quotes their correspondent Rawya Rageh stating, "There is still confusion over the exact death toll -- but we know that the dead include Americans, Europeans, Koreans, Bangladeshis, Arab nationals and various other nationalities." Caroline Alexander (Bloomberg News) reports that the KRG e-mailed an official death toll of 28 with twenty-two wounded. UK Today News notes that the fire took at least seven hours for fire fighters to put it out.
Mohammed Tawfeeq (CNN) reports, "Jabbar Yawer, spokesman of the local security forces, told CNN that three Asians who work for a local cell phone company were among those killed." ABS-CBN reports that a female, Filipina engineer was among the dead according to the Phillppine Embassy in Iraq. The Inquirer notes that two Filipinos were wounded in the fire. AFP reports 4 US citizens were among the dead. Sam Dagher (New York Times) notes "two babies and a pregnant woman" were also killed in the fire and states that the Kurdistan hotel was "lacking basic safety precautions such as smoke detectors and fire extinguishers". BBC News offers a photo essay on the fire.
In other violence . . .
Sahar Issa (McClatchy Newspapers) reports a Baghdad roadside bombing injured four people, another claimed 3 lives, a Baghdad motorcyle bombing claimed 2 lives and left ten people wounded, a Baghdad roadside bombing wounded two more people, and, dropping back to Thursday, a Tikrit car bobming claimed six live and left fourteen people wounded.
Sahar Issa (McClatchy Newspapers) reports 1 teacher was shot dead last night in Baquba and that the teacher had been a Sawha.
Sahar Issa (McClatchy Newspapers) reports 2 corpses were discovered yesterday in Baghdad
Meanwhile Turkey is forming new relationships to tackle the PKK (a Kurdish group which is in a battle for self-autonomy and resorts to violence leading it to be labeled a terrorist organization by many governments including Turkey, the US and Iraq). As noted in yesterday's snapshot, they want to pull together a 'professional military' with neighbors Syria and Iran (even floating the thought of that sent panic through the US White House) to combat the PKK. Xinhua notes (link has text and video) that Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip "Erdogan said Turkey had mobilized all resources to fight terrorism, and was holding talks with executives of the European Union (EU), Iraq, Iran, Syria, Russia and the United States. Erdogan also said around 150 mini unmanned aircraft, manufactured by local resources, were joining the fight against terrorism, adding that a ceremony would be held later on Friday to launch the first local-manufactured unmanned aircraft."
On this week's Law & Disorder (began airing on WBAI Monday and on other stations around the country throughout the week), Michael Smith spoke with Jim Lafferty about the July 23 through 25 end the wars conference in Albany. Lafferty recommended two websites, we'll note National Assembly (because I don't think the other web address was correct, I may be wrong) and their explanation of the conference:
The purpose of this conference is to bring together antiwar and social justice activists from across the country to discuss and decide what we can do together to end the wars, occupations, bombing attacks, threats and interventions that are taking place in the Middle East and beyond, which the U.S. government is conducting and promoting. Attend and voice your opinion on where the antiwar movement is today and where we go from here.
In these deeply troubled times, Washington's two wars and occupations rage on, resulting in an ever increasing number of dead and wounded; more and more civilians killed in drone bombing attacks; misery, deprivation, dislocation and shattered lives for millions; and a suicide rate for U.S. service members soaring to unprecedented heights. At the same time, trillions are spent on these seemingly endless Pentagon conflicts waged in pursuit of profits and global domination while trillions more are lost by working people in the value of their homes, in the loss of their jobs, pensions and health care, and in cuts for public services and vitally needed social programs.
That was a brief segment. A longer one was with a discussion with Clifton Hicks.
Michael Smith: Why did you go? Did you think that Iraq had something to do with 9-11?
Clifton Hicks: Yeah, I sure did. Yeah. I didn't -- you know, I didn't think about it. Looking back, it's hard to sort out the thoughts that were going through my mind or the lack of thoughts that were going through my mind. But I definitely -- I was just a typical, Whitekid or just a typical kid in general. And I saw Arabic people, Muslim people, and sort of figured that they were all in cahoots and that they were all out to get us kind of thing really.
Michael Smith: Newspaper reports or TV reports that led you to believe? Because it was quite conscious on the part of the Bush-Cheney administration to mislead people into thinking that Iraq had something to do with 9-11. Was it the mass media that influenced you?
Clifton Hicks: There - there was probably an influence from mass media. I listened to a lot of AM radio, a lot of daytime, right wing radio. Both my parents and my two sisters and my whole family is a bunch of -- they're all sort of very open-minded, liberal, nice folks. And I was, I was real rebellious and black sheep as a kid and I was real, real heavily right wing and conservative in a lot of ways -- or so I thought.
For background on Hicks, from the June 11, 2007 snapshot:
Clifton Hicks is now discharged and some may remember his story from Peter Laufer's Mission Rejected: U.S. Soldiers Who Say No to Iraq. In the book Laufer recounts how Hicks father posted one his son's letters home (from Iraq) online and the military's response was "a Field Grade Article 15" (p. 185) which Hicks learned after his woke him up one morning kicking his cot and, pay attention easily shocked Heather Hollingsworth-types, cursing at him. "They were going to throw me in jail for treason." After he was demoted to private and fined $800, Hicks applied for CO status. Hicks told Laufer, "If I don't get it? I have other avenues of approach to get home. I've told them I am not going back to Iraq" and would rather go to prison but "[i]t won't come to that, though, because I think I'm too smart for that to happen to me. Civil disobedience is an option -- just refuse to put the uniform on. Maybe a hunger strike. There's all kinds of things you can do. It's looking like they'll approve it. But if they don't, I have Plan B, Plan C, all the way up to desertion" (p. 187). Laufer's chapter on Hicks ends with Hicks being told he will receive CO status and a discharge.
Back to the interview.
Michael Smith: How did your attitude change? Not just about the war but about the Iraqi people?
Clifton Hicks: Yeah, when I first got there, I had this whole opinion that -- I was toeing the party line just like everybody was. We didn't think we were going to be there long and actually my biggest disappointment was that I had missed the invasion. I'd felt like the war was over, I'd missed it and we'd won and I was just going to do just like police duty basically -- which is mostly what I did. I felt like a liberator, like I had helped these folks out and wanted to continue helping them. And really I've always been a pretty good kid, even back then, and I had pretty positive feelings about it and I was very nice to people and very polite and all that I could but it started to wear on me and then my buddies had already been there for six months before I got there. They were pretty nasty set. I mean, these were great guys, wonderful every one of them but they had got pretty nasty being over there.
Michael Smith: Nasty not to each other but nasty to the civilians whose country they were occupying.
Clifton Hicks: Yeah. Well. Just, you know, and there's a reason for that. Guys get nasty because their friends get killed and you realize that you really can't trust anybody and that nobody wants you to be there but you're stuck there and you're sort of like the grit between the sole of the boot and the ground. I mean, you're just getting ground up in the middle of it. It's them or you in many, many cases. And so the way that you get over that is by becoming a very callous, young man. And so I wasn't like that when I first got there but, after a few months, it wore on me. I saw a couple of people get killed and stuff and nasty things happen and I just got to where I just hated, hated every last one of them to death.
Lastly, political prisoner Lynne Stewart last week. Today on Democracy Now!, Juan Gonzalez and Amy Goodman and Petra Bartosiewicz discuss yesterday's travesty of justice.
PETRA BARTOSIEWICZ: Well, there are a lot of extraordinary things about this case. The appellate court was very harsh in its language and in its instruction to the district judge who initially heard the case. And they called the sentence "breathtakingly low," which, you know, the judge could have done anything. He didn't have to increase the sentence, but he would have really had to justify very carefully what he was doing, because if the government could have come back with another appeal and said, "We want this reviewed again," there might be other legal options, as well, on the appellate side. So it seemed inevitable that some increase would happen. The question was how much?
What is really amazing about this case is that it has spanned now three presidents and five attorneys general. It has gone on for year after year after year. And at the heart of the charges against Lynne is that she violated special administrative measures, and she spoke about that in the comments she made earlier, this morning in the clip we heard. But what is not really talked about a lot is that was a pre-9/11 offense that has occured in a post-9/11 world, and it makes a huge difference in terms of the context in which this has all played out, because at the time that the SAMs were imposed in 1996, Rahman was one of the first individuals who had these SAMs applied to him. It was a very new legal tool. It was evolving. There were several versions of the SAMs that came out. It's interesting to note that Patrick Fitzgerald, the assistant US attorney who was in charge of that process, when Lynne initially violated the SAMs, his reaction was not to seek an indictment. It was simply to give her a call and say, "Hey, you violated the SAMs. You're not going to be able to see your client anymore," which is kind of what she was expecting. And it's true, she was gaming the system to a certain degree. I think that there are a lot of judgment calls that maybe -- certainly she -- I'm sure she regrets at this point and that were probably the wrong decision to make at the time. But she was not barred from seeing him -- well, she was for a while. And then she re-signed a new version of the SAMs, so --
AMY GOODMAN: The special administrative measures.
PETRA BARTOSIEWICZ: Yeah, the special administrative measures, which essentially are a series of security requirements. They're designed kind of to prevent the defendant from communicating with the outside world. That was what she violated, in a sense. But they have other aspects to them which essentially keep defendants in total isolation, which is one of the reasons that she breached the agreement, because she saw how isolated he was.
And click here for Petra's column on Lynne published before the judge ruled yesterday. Also see Ruth's "No justice" and Marcia's "Lynne" from last night. At World Can't Wait, Elaine Brower reports:
I sat in the elaborate overflow room, with all of Lynne's supporters. She pleaded for the court's mercy by presenting her statement to the judge. In it, she declared that she no longer had a relationship with her grandson, who could not visit her any longer in the horrible prison. She said she felt alone, and withdrawn. Only when her friends and family came to visit for one hour a week did she rejuvenate for a short period, but then would retreat back into somberness and sadness.
At one point she choked up when saying that if the court decided to sentence her to anytime longer than the original 28 months, it would be a like imposing the "death sentence". She reiterated that many times, in so many different ways. She threw herself at the "mercy" of the judge.
Then the US Attorney stood up and for 30 minutes recounted the details of the entire trial, repeating hundreds of times "we were attacked on 9/11", and "Ms. Stewart gave comfort to Islamic terrorists." These references were the cornerstone of the prosecution's argument, and he couldn't say it enough. In every way, he connected Lynn with the terrorist "murder groups", and in reality tried to paint her as a terrorist. He said "the government trusted her as a lawyer, and she shouldn't have been trusted." He referred endless times to the DVD of her press conference prior to her remand to prison in 2009, and referenced her statements that she had "no remorse."
Lucky for me I was in an overflow room. I commented, loudly, how I hoped this guy would get the pox, and I wasn't alone. People booed, and said he better not come into their neighborhoods. How could he sleep at night? I would be embarrassed to be in his shoes. Is there no dignity?
TV notes. On PBS' Washington Week, Dan Baltz (Washington Post), Eamon Javers (CNBC), Doyle McManus (Los Angeles Times) and Martha Raddatz (ABC News) join Gwen around the table. Gwen now has a weekly column at Washington Week and the current one is "Entering the 'Twitterverse'." This week, Bonnie Erbe will sit down with Karen Czarnecki, Avis Jones-DeWeever, Nicole Kurokawa and Patricia Sosa on the latest broadcast of PBS' To The Contrary to discuss the week's events. And at the website each week, there's an extra just for the web from the previous week's show and this week's online bonus is a discussion onf 'Facebook fanatics.' Need To Know is PBS' new program covering current events. This week's hour long broadcast (Fridays on most PBS stations -- but check local listings) will feature "Congressional Oversight Panel chairwoman Elizabeth Warren on the possibility that a national commercial real-estate foreclosure crisis may occur, and the creation of the Consumer Financial Protection Agency." And turning to broadcast TV, Sunday CBS' 60 Minutes offers:
Golf Company
Scott Pelley spends time with a U.S. Marine company battling the enemy in Helmand Province, sent there as part of President Obama's troop buildup in Afghanistan. | Watch Video
In a rare interview, the Spanish starlet opens up about her life, career and childhood. Charlie Rose reports.
Guiding Light
Morley Safer interviews the actors and writers behind broadcasting's longest running drama, "Guiding Light," as they celebrate the soap opera's incredible run and discuss its cancellation after 72 years. | Watch Video
60 Minutes, Sunday, July 18, at 7 p.m. ET/PT.
kelley b. vlahos
trend news agency
tim arango
gabriel gatehouse
zhang xiang
rawya rageh
mohammed tawfeeq
sahar issa
law and disorder
heidi boghosian
juan gonzalez
petra bartosiewicz
The political stalemate continues
Trend News Agency reports Iraq's Sunni Vice President Tariq al-Hashimi's adviser Khalil Azraa is stating the US has not done enough to resolve the political stalemate in Iraq and quotes him stating, "The U.S. can exert political pressure on the formation of the government, because it is responsible for building democracy in Iraq." Tariq al-Hashimi is a member of Iraqiya, in fact, he is, after Ayad Allawi, probably the most prominent member of Iraqiya (especially post-purge by Ahmed Chalabi and Ali al-Lami).
March 7th, Iraq concluded Parliamentary elections. Three months and two days later, still no government. 163 seats are needed to form the executive government (prime minister and council of ministers). When no single slate wins 163 seats (or possibly higher -- 163 is the number today but the Parliament added seats this election and, in four more years, they may add more which could increase the number of seats needed to form the executive government), power-sharing coalitions must be formed with other slates, parties and/or individual candidates. (Eight Parliament seats were awarded, for example, to minority candidates who represent various religious minorities in Iraq.) Ayad Allawi is the head of Iraqiya which won 91 seats in the Parliament making it the biggest seat holder. Second place went to State Of Law which Nouri al-Maliki, the current prime minister, heads. They won 89 seats. Nouri made a big show of lodging complaints and issuing allegations to distract and delay the certification of the initial results while he formed a power-sharing coalition with third place winner Iraqi National Alliance -- this coalition still does not give them 163 seats. They are claiming they have the right to form the government. It's four months and five days and, in 2005, Iraq took four months and seven days to pick a prime minister. Today makes it four months and nine days without any government being established.
Sami Moubayed (Asia Times) offers this take on the stalemate:
Two weeks ago, the media went into high alert when Maliki and Allawi met to sort out their differences - their second meeting since March. It amounted to nothing. Hassan Sneid, a member of parliament (MP) from Maliki's team, said that no deal had been reached and that the importance of the meeting "had been exaggerated" by observers.
An MP for Allawi's list, Maysoun al-Damaluji, added, "The meeting did not discuss details about presidency or ministerial posts." Many began asking: "If division of power and a solution were not on the two men's agenda on June 29, then what exactly did Allawi and Maliki talk about in Baghdad?"
One possible scenario is that Maliki used the meeting with Allawi to scare his Shi'ite allies into accepting him as prime minister. Otherwise, he seemed to be saying, "I will turn my back on you and form a cabinet with him." The two men combined, after all, would share a bloc of 180 deputies, giving them the needed majority to form a cabinet. One solution would be to make Maliki prime minister and appoint Allawi as his deputy, or vice-versa.
The real meeting, therefore, should have been between Maliki and leaders of the INA, to see whether what united them as a Shi'ite bloc was stronger than what divided them as individual politicians.
As all parties bicker among themselves, the US is preparing to cut its troops in Iraq to 50,000 by the end of this summer - a major reduction from the 165,000 in 2007.
Tim Arango (New York Times) reports 29 dead in Sulaimaniya hotel fire. Gabriel Gatehouse (BBC News -- link has text and video) reports forty were also injured and that some of the dead "died jumping from their windows to escape the flames". Zhang Xiang (Xinhua) reports the death toll is up to 43 and "many of the dead were from Bangladesh, Phillipine and Thailand, said the [local police] source, adding four Americans were among the dead." Al Jazeera notes that the death toll flucuates based on the governmental source and quotes their correspondent Rawya Rageh stating, "There is still confusion over the exact death toll -- but we know that the dead include Americans, Europeans, Koreans, Bangladeshis, Arab nationals and various other nationalities."
Tim King (Salem-News) offers a photo essay on Afghanistan.
Radio. Today on The Diane Rehm Show (airs on most NPR stations and streams live online beginning at 10:00 am EST), Diane is joined the first hour (domestic OPINION roundup -- columnists are not reporters) by Matthew Continetti (Weekly Standard), E.J. Dionne (Washington Post), Dayo Olopade (Daily Beast). For the second hour (international), she's joined by Nadia Bilbassy (MBC TV), Youchi Dreazen (National Journal) and David Ignatius (Washington Post).
We'll close with this from Never Forgive Never Forget's "Democrat Obama Attempts to Murder Elderly Atty Stewart with 10 year Sentence" (Indy Bay Media):
Are you still registered Democrat? On July 15, 2010, in the same courthouse where the Rosenbergs were sentenced to death on false charges and Morton Sobell sentenced to what became 19 years in prison on equally false charges all framed by Democrat Harry Truman , 70 year old people's lawyer with serious health problems, Lynne Stewart was resentenced by fascist Judge Koetel, at the behest of Democrats Obama & Holder, his attorney general, to 10 years in prison, a virtual death sentence for a 70 year old on the false claim that she is a "terrorist," when in fact it is the American government that is the world's terrorist, with no equal. Lynne Stewart did not commit any crime whatsoever. As she says, this is an attempt to silence people's lawyers, just like Nazi Germany did.
Political prisoner Lynne Stewart is among the topics on Democracy Now! today. Juan Gonzalez and Amy Goodman and Petra Bartosiewicz discuss yesterday's travesty of justice. And click here for Petra's column on Lynne published before the judge ruled yesterday.
the asia times
salem-news
When you need a translator to read the US news
I guess these days we need a translator in America when reading journalism written in English. Lost in translation is the only explanation for some of the ludicrous claims being passed off as facts by numerous outlets.
The headline to Ned Parker's Los Angeles Times piece was "U.S. hands over last prison to Iraqi control" and Parker himself writes, "The U.S. military handed over its last prison facility, Camp Cropper, to the Iraqi government Thursday in a ceremony that all but ends America's role as a keeper of Iraqi detainees." The Washington Post headlines Leila Fadel's article: "Some worry about abuse as U.S. hands over final detention center to Iraq." Fadel opens with, "A U.S. general on Thursday handed an oversize key to Iraq's justice minister and relinquished control of the nation's last American-run detention center." The Christian Science Monitor headlines Jane Arraf's piece "As US Hands over last prison in Iraq, a glimpse at how detainees lived." Arraf's article opens with, "The US closed one of the most controversial chapters of the Iraq war today when it transferred control of its last remaining prison to the Iraqi government." We could provide other examples but those are three of the strongest reporters covering Iraq (today or at any point in the war).
Reading them, what's the take away? The US is no longer in the prison business in Iraq. The US is done. It's over. That's what the articles tell you, that's what the articles sells you. (Arraf's opening hedges due to word choice but most may miss that.)
Matthew D. LaPlante (Salt Lake Tribune) reports on US citizen Shawqi Omar who was tried June 24th and convicted of "a simple immigration violation." Shawqi Omar had been imprisoned by the US in Iraq since 2004. In fact, that's the section we need to quote:
The U.S. military, which has held Omar without charge since his arrest in 2004, said this week it intends to continue to hold about 200 "dangerous" prisoners -- and it has not said whether Omar will be among them.
Iraq took over responsibility for about 1,300 prisoners at Camp Bucca, where thousands of Iraqi citizens have served time after being arrested by the U.S. military during the seven-year war.
American officials have long promised that they would hand Omar over to the Iraqi government as soon as it asked for him -- and would even release him if the Iraqis passed on prosecution altogether. But the U.S. military also said this week that it would keep 200 prisoners in a separate part of the prison known as Compound 5.
Compound 5? We'll come back to it. But this isn't turning over a prison and getting out of the business of running prisons. This is more smoke and mirrors. The US in Iraq remains in the prison business. They'll admit to keeping 200 prisoners. In Compound 5.
Compound 5 was rather infamous earlier in the Iraq War and was run by the US and part of Camp Bucca. Bucca closed in 2009. So where's Compound 5?
Paragraph ten of Parker's report notes Compound 5: "The U.S. military will continue to operate a wing called Compound 5 with 200 detainees, including eight members of Hussein's government."
If I turn over my house to you, if I'm done with it and telling you "It's yours," I'm not saying, "Oh, but I'm going to continue on in the east wing of the house." The US isn't out of the prison business in Iraq and Camp Cropper has not been turned over to Iraqi control. The US remains in the prison business and has only turned over a segment of Camp Cropper to Iraqi control.
Joan Wile is also the author of Grandmothers Against the War: Getting Off Our Fannies and Standing Up for Peace. This is her "GRAY PANTHERS OPPOSE REP. BOEHNER'S PROPOSAL TO RAISE AGE OF SOCIAL SECURITY RECIPIENTS: Advocate Lifting Taxable Income Cap and Reducing War Spending Instead:"
GRAY PANTHERS OPPOSE REP. BOEHNER'S PROPOSAL
TO RAISE AGE OF SOCIAL SECURITY RECIPIENTS:
Advocate Lifting Taxable Income Cap and Reducing War Spending Instead
On June 29, House Republican Leader John Boehner made news with his statement that the age for persons eligible for Social Security benefits should be raised from 65 to 70. "If you have substantial non-Social Security income while you're retired, why are we paying you at a time when we're broke?" the Congressman said.
Susan Murany, Executive Director of the Gray Panthers, states that her organization opposes such a move. "Instead of taking money from people who need it and raising the eligibility for Social Security benefits to age 70 to balance the budget on the backs of Social Security recipients – people who need it the most – changes could be made by eliminating the annual cap on taxable income, currently $106,800, and raise that cap so that wealthier people are paying more to Social Security," she suggests. According to Ezra Klein at washingtonpost.com, June 2010, “Completely eliminating the cap without increasing benefits actually creates a long-term surplus, and eliminating the cap while increasing benefits comes close.”
And although House Republican Leader Boehner feels that Americans have “substantial non-Social Security income in retirement”, the data proves him wrong. According to Dean Baker and David Rosnick from the Monthly Review, “Since the vast majority of near-retirees will rely on Social Security for the vast majority of their income in retirement, cuts in Social Security imply large cuts in income for a population that is already not especially wealthy. (Median household income for people over age 65 is less than $30,000.)” According to the Social Security Administration in the year 2000, 40 percent of retirement income comes from Social Security with women especially dependent on Social Security.
Social Security Trustees assure that 100% of Social Security benefits can be paid up through the year 2041. The Congressional Budget Office projects that full benefits can be paid through 2049. The “baby boomers” (1946-1964) will have passed through Social Security by then and so will not increase the number of beneficiaries. Further provision was made for this foreseen increase of beneficiaries by the Greenspan Committee in 1983. Much has been made over the argument that a decreasing number of covered workers will be expected to support an increasing number of Social Security beneficiaries. However, the Social Security Administration (see: www.ssa.gov/history/ratios) reports that the worker/beneficiary ratio actually rose from a ratio of 3.2 in 1975 to that of 3.3 in 2006. Today, more women are in the workforce and worker productivity and wages have both risen.
Murany notes that the money that does come from Social Security goes back into the economy immediately because it is used to pay rent, buy food, provide transportation and other essentials of daily life and points out that Social Security has lower administrative costs than private pension and retirement plans.
The American people have overwhelmingly supported Social Security through taxation. It actually buffers costs to State and Local governments for support of retired and disabled persons. The Gray Panthers clearly oppose any and all efforts to reduce the effectiveness and reliability of the Program. In the past few months, the Gray Panthers have led actions and have demanded the truth be spoken about Social Security. Our members have given notice to their legislators that they are NOT to Balance the Bailout’s (or the Wars) on Their Backs.
The Gray Panthers see a definite connection between funding social programs for Americans (including Social Security) and the massive costs of fighting two wars. "Leaving Iraq completely and setting a firm date to get out of Afghanistan would save billions of dollars," observes Judy Lear, National Gray Panthers Chair. "We want the U.S. to stop building bases in other countries, and we want it to reduce our nuclear weapons and not replace them with other weapons of mass destruction. These measures would be cost effective and do a lot toward protecting Social Security benefits."
These proposals are in direct opposition to what Boehner laid out as the Republican world-view. In a remarkable interview with the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, Boehner explicitly called for cutting Social Security in order to pay for the war in Afghanistan . "Ensuring there's enough money to pay for the war will require reforming the country's entitlement system," Boehner said.
In a Statement on War to President Obama, the Gray Panthers declare:
"The Gray Panthers oppose war and advocate for a just, peaceful resolution of conflicts. We hope that you will seek to pursue peaceful alternatives to the war in Afghanistan and a re-building for the country by strengthening international cooperation with the United Nations. A de-escalation of troops would not only save lives, but would give our enemies less of a reason to fight. Afghanistan demands a political solution, not an escalation of violence. We are fighting a war we cannot win and request that our resources be used for job creation in the U.S. and on social needs here and in Afghanistan ."
Gray Panthers is in fact a multi-generational group and as such, Social Security is of vital importance to all their membership, including its young members. In that context, it should be pointed out that Social Security benefits are not only available for retirees but also for spouses and children of deceased family members, people with disabilities, and spouses and children of people with disabilities.
Joan Wile was among the people showing support for political prisoner Lynne Stewart last week. Today on Democracy Now!, Juan Gonzalez and Amy Goodman and Petra Bartosiewicz discuss yesterday's travesty of justice. And click here for Petra's column on Lynne published before the judge ruled yesterday.
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The Erbil Agreement and look who's coming over the border
Al Mada reports that MP Sabah al-Saadi called on Nouri al-Maliki to reveal his on stance regarding US military troops staying beyond 2011 and he called for Nouri to release an evaluation of Iraq's security system currently. Noting the "lack of readiness on the part of the security forces to maintain the country," al-Saadi wonders "what did the government do for the last three years?" It is implied that any faliures would fall at Nouri's footsteps because he was prime minister when the SOFA was signed and it would appear -- either through "negligence" or a desire to keep US forces -- Nouri has not been up for the job. Al Mada also reports that KRG President Massoud Barzani is attempting to return everyone to the Erbil Agreement (which ended the nine month plus political stalemate) and, most importantly, introduce a proposal calling for the security ministries being pulled from Nouri. On the topic of the Erbil Agreement, Aswat al-Iraq reports, "President Jalal Talabani and the head of al-Iraqiya Bloc Iyad Allawi have discussed the implementation of the Arbil agreement, a presidential statement noted." Alsumaria TV adds, "In a statement to Alsumarianews, Al Iraqiya spokeswoman Maysoun Al Damlouji accused Prime Minister Nuri Al Maliki of aiming to take over the defense, interior and national security ministries and of refusing to engage Al Iraqiya in the ministries. Maliki’s statements over the strategic policy council are a proof of his denial to national partnership and his aim to establish a dictatorship, Al Damlouji argued."
Meanwhile Aswat al-Iraq reports, "A senior Kurdish border forces personnel said today that Iranian military vehicles penetrated into Iraqi territory in the Kurdistan region at a distance of three kilometers inside the region." Yes, it was just last month that Jalal Talabani, Kurd and president of Iraq, showed up in Tehran for a safety meeting and gave a speech decrying the residents of Camp Ashraf as terrorists and promising Iraq was addressing the issue. In his speech, he never said one word about the PKK which occupies northern Iraq and launches attacks on Turkey or the PJAK which are Kurds who launch attacks on Iran. Reza (Kurdish Aspect) weighs in:
Despite repetitive cautions by both Kurdish Regional Government and Baghdad, Iran has not only not dissuaded from resuming its illegitimate aerial strikes, but also dispatched ten thousands members of its Armed Revolutionary Guards deep into Kurdish territory in North of Iraq, according to a report aired by the Iraqi al-Rafedain Television.
Iranian terrorist regime recently hurled baseless allegations against Kurdish Government President Massood Barzani, stating that his administration has granted 300,000 hectares of land to the members of PJAK (Party of Free Life of Kurdistan), a Kurdish political party struggling for Kurdish Human Rights, Freedom and Democracy in Iran, without the knowledge of the central government in Baghdad.
Having been authorized to operate in Kurdistan for years, by now Iranian consulate agents must have collected sufficient intelligence realizing that for any purchase, sale or resale of real state, proper verified Iraqi documentations must be presented to the court to register such properties. Therefore, such groundless accusations are mere pretexts to distort the facts. The fact is Iranian military is conducting recon and maneuvering operations in Iraqi Kurdistan, something that can destabilize Iraq and imperil the lives of US troops.
Turning to some of today's violence, Reuters notes a Mosul roadside bombing left five Iraqi soldiers injured, 1 Iraqi soldier was shot dead in Mosul and, later in the day, another Iraqi soldier was shot dead in Mousl, Mosul assailants shot and wounded a bystander, a Mosul roadside bombing injured one Iraqi solider, a Baghdad car bombing claimed 2 lives and left nine people injured, a Baghdad roadside bombing injured two people, a Kerbala sticky bombing claimed 3 lives, a Bahgdad sticky bombing left two people injured and 3 people were injured in a Baghdad shooting. Aswat al-Iraq adds, "The number of victims from the three explosions that took place in Karbala Province over the past 24 hours have reached 113 killed or injured." (13 are said to be dead, 100 wounded), a Baghdad bombing injured 6 people and "Eight rockets were targeted today, Saturday, against Btaira military airport to the northwest of Amara, security sources in Missan province announced here."
And we'll close with this from Gareth Porter's "What Is Sadr's Game on Future US Troop Presence" (IPS via Dissident Voice):
The big question looming over U.S.-Iraqi negotiations on a U.S. military presence after 2011 is what game Shi’a leader Moqtada al-Sadr is playing on the issue.
U.S. officials regard Sadr as still resisting the U.S. military presence illegally and are demanding that Sadr call off his Promised Day Brigades completely.
But Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki’s main point of contact with Sadr says Sadr is playing a double game and does not intend to obstruct the negotiations on a deal for the stationing of 10,000 or more U.S. troops from 2012 onward.
Sadr made a crucial move over the weekend toward accepting such an agreement between the Barack Obama administration and the Maliki government, according to a senior Iraqi intelligence official in the International Liaison Office (ILO). The ILO is an arm of Iraqi military intelligence that is run by a former East German intelligence official who was Sadr’s political adviser during the height of the U.S. war against the Sadrists in 2007-08.
Sadr agreed in an unpublicised direct exchange of views with Maliki that he would not exploit a request by Maliki to President Obama to station U.S. troops in Iraq beyond this year by attacking Maliki politically or threatening his government, the senior Iraqi intelligence official told IPS.
alsumaria tv
4 US soldiers killed in Iraq already this month
Yesterday another US soldier died in Iraq making four for the month and 19 in the last six weeks. Nicholas Newby is one of the fallen. Alecia Warren (Coeur d'Alene Press) reports on his miltiary procession yesterday: "More than 200 packed the sidewalk fronting Lake City High School on Friday afternoon to honor the funeral procession for Newby, a fallen National Guard soldier and Coeur d'Alene son. Children waved signs while teenagers, only a few years of life decisions away from Newby's 20, craned their necks to catch a glimpse. A collective hush fell on the crowd as hundreds of motorcycles, all seated with veterans, led in Newby's family." Alison Boggs (Spokesman-Review) adds, "They started showing up more than two hours before the military procession escorted Newby’s remains to a downtown funeral home. They ranged in age from babies to a World War II veteran. By the time the procession passed the street outside Lake City High School, Newby's alma mater, it was a tunnel of American flags, signs with good wishes, and veterans saluting." She notes that Nicholas Newby and Nathan Beyers were both killed in the same July 7th bombing. Robyn Nance (KXLY4 -- link has text and video) reports of Nathan Beyers return, "Men and women from the National Guard stood stoically as a flag draped over the remains of Sergeant Beyers was presented to his family who held hands as they walked to his casket. [. . .] Beyers leaves behind a wife and a young daughter who was born on veterans day last year." Bonners Ferry Herald notes, "In the same attack, a third Idaho soldier, staff sergeant Jason Rzepa, suffered a serious leg injury and was evacuated to Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany."
DoD has not yet announced the name of Friday's fallen; however, WRAL reports it was 21-year-old Lucas Elliott. Patti Elliott, his mother, states, "On 9/11, we were sitting there watching everything unfold and Lucas turned to us and said, 'I'm going to be a soldier'." Ed Elliott, his father, states, "All I can say is I'm going to miss my hunting and fishing buddy." And Trisha Elliott, his wife, says, "I'm not sue how he did it, but he confinvced me to marry him and I don't regret it."
From the fallen to the War Criminals, Robert Moran (Philadelphia Inquirer) reports Justin W. Lee (ex-president of Dynamics International) entered a quilty plea Friday on the charge of "bribing military officials in exchange for government contracts related to combat operations". The total amount of his bribes are said to be over $1.2 million. Moran notes, "His father, George H. Lee Jr., the former chairman and chief executive officer of Lee Dynamics, was also indicted but remains at large."
The Justice Dept issued the following on Friday:
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASEFriday, July 15, 2011Former President of Lee Dynamics International Pleads Guilty to Conspiracy and Bribery Related to Department of Defense Contracts in Iraq
WASHINGTON – The former president of Lee Dynamics International, a defense contractor providing services to the U.S. military in Iraq, pleaded guilty today to an indictment charging him with a scheme to bribe military officials in order to obtain government contracts, announced Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Criminal Division.
Justin W. Lee, 33, a resident of Philadelphia, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Joel H. Slomsky in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania to one count of conspiracy to commit bribery and four counts of bribery. Lee and his father, George H. Lee Jr., were charged in an indictment unsealed on May 27, 2011, in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.
Justin Lee admitted that he conspired with his father and others to bribe military contracting officers in order to obtain government contracts to support U.S. combat operations in Iraq. According to court documents, Justin Lee provided things of value, including cash, airline tickets, meals, hotel stays, spa visits and jobs, which were valued at a total of more than $1.2 million, to public officials in return for official acts which helped him obtain lucrative Department of Defense contracts. The contracts included multi-million dollar contracts for the storage of weapons at various warehouses in Iraq as well as bottled water.
“For Justin Lee and others, bribery was a way of doing business,” said Assistant Attorney General Breuer. “He offered military officials vacations to Thailand and Europe, Rolex watches, cash, and even employment with their company, all in order to secure lucrative defense contracts. Private contractors will not be allowed to win business by stacking the deck against the competition and, as this investigation shows, the military officials who participate in such fraudulent schemes will also be held to account.”
“Justin Lee’s guilty plea is a prime example of the teamwork amongst Special Agents of the Major Procurement Fraud Unit (MPFU), US Army Criminal Investigation Command (CID), our law enforcement partner agencies, and with the DOJ attorneys that comprised the former Kuwait Fraud Task Force,” said James K. Podolak, director of Army CID’s MPFU. “Charged with protecting the Army’s interests with respect to contract fraud and corruption, in a global environment, the MPFU stands ready with Special Agents strategically assigned throughout the U.S. and abroad to bring these criminals to justice.”
“This plea illustrates that it does not matter where they reside, work, or travel, the Defense Criminal Investigative Service will not stop pursuing those individuals who steal funds from the Department of Defense and U.S. Taxpayers” said Robert Craig, Special Agent in Charge for the Defense Criminal Investigative Service, Mid-Atlantic Field Office.
“I am pleased that Justin Lee pleaded guilty to the bribery charges filed against him for the abusive and illegal contracting schemes he engineered as a private contractor in Iraq,” said Stuart W. Bowen Jr., Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction. “I commend my SIGIR agents and our partners for persevering in this complex case, which is part of perhaps the largest fraud conspiracy yet uncovered in the reconstruction program.”
Four of the military contracting officials with whom Justin Lee conspired have pleaded guilty: John Cockerham Jr., Markus McClain, Kevin A. Davis and Levonda Selph.
Justin Lee faces up to 15 years in prison for each count of bribery, as well as a fine of $250,000 or three times the value of the bribe for each count. He also faces up to five years in prison for the conspiracy count as well as a fine of $250,000.
George Lee, the former chairman and chief executive officer of Lee Dynamics International, remains at large. An indictment is merely a charge and a defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty.
The case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorney Richard B. Evans of the Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section and Trial Attorneys Mark W. Pletcher and Emily W. Allen of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section. Substantial assistance has been provided by the Criminal Division’s Office of International Affairs and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. The case is being investigated by the Army Criminal Investigations Division, the Defense Criminal Investigative Service, the Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction, the FBI, the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement of the Department of Homeland Security and the Internal Revenue Service.
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And we'll close with this from The Bat Segnundo Show:
Rethinking Radio, Cultivating Conversation
Edie Meidav
What is a California novel in the 21st century? Can an author or a reader get a handle on California if she doesn't live there? These are some of the many questions that we discuss with Edie Meidav, who returns to our program to discuss her new novel, Lola, California. (Link to show.)
Why is the Academy Award-winning filmmaker of Man on Wire so defensive? The man has good reasons. In this brisk 20 minute talk, James Marsh discusses the moral implications of documentary, how a filmmaker earns trust from his subjects, and whether a visual medium has the obligation to respect history. (Link to show.)
Dana Spiotta Roundtable!
Artistic integrity, the music world, Ada Lovelace, Thomas Kinkade, Susan Sontag's "Regarding the Torture of Others." These are just some of the topics covered in the first installment of a mammoth roundtable discussion of Dana Spiotta's Stone Arabia. (Link to first installment.)
Dana Spiotta Roundtable Discussion
This morning, our sister site, Reluctant Habits, launched the first installment of a 25,000 word discussion on Dana Spiotta's new novel, Stone Arabia. Over the next week, these five installments will include special appearances from novelists, journalists, essayists, and other fine readers. You can follow the discussion here. Please feel free to join in!
Spiotta In Conversation Live!
Additionally, Ms. Spiotta will be in conversation with Our Correspondent at McNally Jackson (52 Prince Street, New York, NY) on July 20, 2011 at 7:00 PM. If you liked Jennifer Egan's A Visit from the Goon Squad and our roundtable discussion intrigues you, you won't want to miss this.
Project Nim and Edie Meidav
We also recently released two new shows. There's a conversation with Academy Award-winning documentary filmmaker James Marsh about Project Nim, the ethics of science, and whether filmmakers have an obligation toi respect history. And don't miss our 45-minute talk with Edie Meidav, on the occasion of her new novel Lola, California. The Meidav show covers everything from Wordsworth to Flaubert, and a good deal in between.
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Friday, July 15, 2011. Chaos and violence continue, the US military announces another death, peaceful protesters are again arrested, Human Rights Watch expresses concern over a 'speech' proposal in Iraq, and more.
Yesterday on Flashpoints (KPFA, Pacifica), guest host Kevin Pina spoke with Mahdi Darius Nazemroaya who has left Canada to report from Libya on the illegal war. Excerpt.
Mahdi Nazemroaya: I want to point out that the rebels never got to the gates of Tripoli. I've looked at some of the reports and some of these news wires which usually use kilometers, the metric system, are using miles now to describe the rebels advances because when you use miles, the distance seems less. Like I see the wording they're playing. And they're using distance to let's say to a city near Tripoli. But anyway, they've not gotten to the gates of Tripoli. They've been claiming other cities have fallen like Sabha and Fezzan or near their environs and the journalists have been taken there. And I actually watch some of these reports from Tripoli because BBC English and BBC Arabic is still here, France's Arabic service is still here. You can watch these things here. And a lot of the journalists making these reports, I happen to see on a daily basis or almost on a daily basis. when I have to go the Rixos Al Nasr which is now the Swiss Inn, it's changed ownership. But this is propaganda, it's war propaganda. And these journalists that are making these reports are either embedded journalists or they're just as bad, the ones in Tripoli that are making these reports. I'd like to point out with regards to Russia, a statement's been made and it originally came from the Russian envoy to Africa, he's now the Russian envoy to Libya. [. . .] And this Russian official is saying Col Gaddafi has a suicide plan for Tripol which is nonsense. He said he met with the Libyan prime minister and Col Gaddafi has a suicide plan. What he's basically disseminating is Washington's propaganda and that's a shame [. . .] There's no suicide plan for Tripoli. Anybody that will come to Tripoli will see that the people here back Col Gaddafi, they back his government and he doesn't need a suicide plan unless they mean that there's going to be a massive bombing here and they want to blame it on Col Gaddafi, which they could do. I would not rule out a massive bombing to try to make Tripoli surrender. And then they'd try to blame the victim. That's what they usually do, the aggressors blame the victim. Reality's turned on its head.
There's another element that Mahdi Nazemroaya might consider. Whether it's Waco or Iraq, claims that the 'crazy' has or will kill their own people have repeatedly been used by the US to justify an aggressive invasion which the government has repeatedly presented as an action they were forced into. Meaning, the talk of a suicide plan may be laying the groundwork for Barack Obama to say, "I know I said we wouldn't have force on the ground, but the Libyan people needed us."
Kevin Pina: And that is the voice of Mahdi Nazemroaya coming to us direct from Tripoli, Libya. You're listening to Flashpoints on Pacifica Radio. Well indeed they have said that Gaddafi has plans to bomb Tripoli, level it to the ground should the rebels threaten to take over it. It's really good that you clarified that. Now they've also claimed that the rebels have reclaimed Qawalish which after Gaddafi forces had taken it and there's back and forth right now between Libyan rebels and Gaddafi forces. What do you know right know about what's actually going on on the ground militarily around the areas around Tripoli?
Mahdi Nazemroaya: They have not advanced here. I'm letting you know. They're going to take the foreign journalists to see that.place. Since I've been here, they've taken them to a couple of places, like I said earlier, they've taken to some of these urband centers that they claim have fallent to let them see with their own eyes and report to the rest of the world: This is not true. This is a full media war, it's a psychological war. And they are doing this to make it look like they're winning. Does anybody remember what they were saying about Baghdad? "The tanks are there. The tanks are there." And it took awhile for the tanks to get there . They got there [finally] but they weren't there. And it's not true. They're just saying -- They're just trying to make false propoganda fake victories were there are a lof of losses. The rebels -- There's a stalemate. In fact, they're being pushed back in a lot of places. And since we're on the subject, today is La Fete Nationale of France, the national day of France which is Bastille Day. Nothing was mentioned about Libya in France. They didn't say anything. In fact, I was told that the parade arrangeements were changed. Today was the national day and they were going to make the military the centerpiece but they made the the fire fighers in France the centerpiece. They expected an easy victory and they didn't get it and now nothing is being mentioned about Libya. They're not mentioning anything about Libya and at the same time, the Secretary General of NATO has said that only one person's died, we haven't killed anyone. There's a blackout now about Libya. They're not mentioning much about Libya. And the speech today that was given in France with Sarkozy and not once was Libyan mentioned. They are not mention Libya and the French news did not mention Libya because they are feeling the heat, . Many people in France are opposing the war and in Europe. And I hope in the United States these numbers are rising against the war. And in Canada.
Mahdi Nazemroaya will be back on Flashpoints Tuesday. Flashpoints airs Monday through Friday from five p.m. to six p.m. PST on KPFA (and other stations) ,
ABC News Radio reports, "An American service member was killed Friday in Iraq, bringing the number of those who have been killed or have died in that country to four for the month of July." This makes for 19 US service members killed in the Iraq War in six weeks, 15 last month, 4 so far this month.
As they continue dying, the governments of Iraq and the US continue to explore keeping the US military in Iraq for many years to come. Alsumaria TV reports, "In a statement to Al Iraqiya, Al Maliki noted that Iraq needs to keep a number of US trainers to train Iraqi Forces on newly purchased air, land and naval weapons. The extension of US Forces term in Iraq necessitates a new agreement that should be voted upon by two thirds of Parliament lawmakers, Al Maliki said noting that this is difficult to be attained." Nayla Razzouk (Bloomberg News) notes:
"Iraq needs the Americans for training on the sea, air and ground and sea weapons," he said in an interview with state- sponsored Iraqiya television. "This does not need the approval of parliament," he said.
Nouri is correct, he does not need the approval of Parliament -- we pointed that out in yesterday's snapshot. In part, he doesn't need it because he's made it precedent that he doesn't need it (by renewing the UN mandate at the end of 2006 without the approval of Parliament -- UN mandate that covered the occupation of Iraq -- and again at the end of 2007). Even if he was legally required to have their approval, Nouri's never concerned himself much with legality which is another reason the Iraqi peoples' voice in the 2010 elections should have been honored (which would have meant that loser Nouri not continue as prime minister). UPI reports that Dawa doesn't want US forces to remain in Iraq and they make a point to note that Dawa is Nouri's political party. It is. And it takes its orders from Nouri. Earlier this year, Dawa was full of talk of how they just might expell Nouri. They had every reason to. And yet they didn't. They have no power and they know it. They bask in the refracted light of whatever power Nouri manages to steal. Dawa just knew that Parliamentary elections would mean their true ascension. But Nouri didn't utilize them. Instead he put together a political slate (State of Law). Everytime Dawa could have stood, they chose to crawl or roll over and expose their belly in submission. To pretend that what a weak political party wants has any bearing on this issue is insane.
Dawa sent Haider al-Abadi out to make a statement. He's the political party's statement. Have we forgotten that Nouri has his own spokesperson? Or that he's designated who can and cannot speak for the government? Hint, Haider al-Abadi didn't make the list. The thing about taking a thug and grooming him into a tyrant is that you feed the ego over and over and there's no sense of connection or debt owed. Dawa waited too late to step forward and all they are now is angry child having a tantrum in a store.
Iraq was oh so briefly spoken of on the second hour of The Diane Rehm Show (NPR) today and only because US Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta had visited. By the way, when Diane can't remember on air (as she couldn't at the start of the hour) the outlet that her frequent guest Nadia Biblassy is with, it's really time for someone to step in and say, "Diane, go out before it gets really embarrassing." That little mini-struggle for recall of a basic fact and one that had been reviewed immediately prior to going on air? It's a sign of things to come.
Diane Rehm: All right. Let's talk about the visit of our new Secretary of Defense, Leon, pardon me, Panetta to Iraq. Tell us about it, Nadia.
Nadia Bilbassy: Well, basically this is the first visit. He's going there to nudge the Iraqi government to come up with a yes or no answer as whether they wanted the U.S. forces to stay in Iraq. As you know, this agreement that signed by President Bush and Prime Minister Maliki will expire in December 31st. And it's called the status of forces agreement, known as SOFA. So basically, he's saying, in a very blunt language, like, you have to tell us. Damn it, as he said. He used very colorful language, in complete opposite of the soft spoken former secretary of defense Robert Gates. And they understand the complexity of the situation. The Iraqi government, lead by Maliki has a coalition, shaky coalition, of the Dawa party, of the Sadrist groups, of the Kurdish nationalists. So it's a group together that they have to decide whether they want to keep U.S. forces or not. Now, on the street, I think, the concept is very unpopular. They, basically, were reinforced what they believed, that the invasion of Iraq was to get hold of Iraq's vast oil revenues and to establish a military base in the heart of the Middle East in Iraq. I will -- my guess will be that they will come up with some kind of agreement by the end of the year. But probably, regardless of how many troops will be left, whether it's 10,000 or 15,000, they still need to protect one of the biggest embassy -- U.S. Embassy's in the world, which is in Baghdad. It has 5,000 personnel, intelligence, civil servants, et cetera. So they will have some kind of forces, but also it's a message to Iran that we're not going to abandon the country. It's not going to be your playing field, it's actually -- the U.S. was going to be -- have some kind of presence in Iran.
Diane Rehm: Nadia Bilbassy of Middle East Broadcast Center. Short break, we'll be right back.
And that's all Diane could manage on Iraq. Which is why fewer and fewer military families bother to listen to her show anymore. And, no, she didn't think to note that a US soldier had died today in Iraq. On the subject of Panetta, Al Mada reports rebel rouser Moqtada al-Sadr, has issued another statement, this one directed to US Secretary of Defense and declaring that "we" will turn Iraq into a graveyard for the US. "We"? Moqtada's going to be handling drone attacks from Iran? "We"? It's exactly his inability to stand up and do as he instructs that's eroded so much confidence in Moqtada among his one-time followers.
In 2008, Moqtada's stock was almost this low. Bush, Robert Gates and Condi Rice made a huge mistake in egging on Nouri (who didn't need all that much egging) to go after Sadr's militias. This allowed Moqtada to issue statements --as he always does -- but for the statements to have more meaning than they usually did. Suddenly, in the face of an attack by US and Iraqi forces, his rantings seemed heroic and his stature rose. If the US government wants to fight Moqtada for all eternity, they'll do something stupid like the Bush administration did. If they want to neutralize him, they'll treat him with derision and indifference. If they were really smart, they'd expose a few of the sweetheart deals Moqtada received under the previous admistration (Bush administration). His stock is lower than it's ever been and his credibility can be further undermined. But if they insist upon launching or encouraging Nouri to launch a wave of attacks against his militias, they will allow Moqtada to again become 'voice of the beseiged.'
Besieged describes the Iraqi people. James Denselow (New Statesman) observes:
Yet the shockwaves of the revolutions are being felt in Iraq. Last week, CNN reported Iraqi forces beating and detaining at least seven protestors as hundreds of angry demonstrators gathered on Friday in central Baghdad. Since early February, tens of thousands of protesters have participated in demonstrations every Friday across Iraq. Maliki, like his embattled western neighbour Assad, has approached the demonstrations with his own variety of carrots and sticks. He cut his $350,000 salary in half, plans to reduce the government to 25 ministerial positions by merging the ministries that perform overlapping functions, and has sought to make a constitutional change to ensure a two-term limit to the office of prime minister. What is more, following the initial protests, the Iraqi government announced that they would be cancelling the planned purchase of 18 US-made F-16 fighter planes, instead allocating the money to improving food rationing for the poor.
The sticks meanwhile include standard acts of violence, as well as drafting legislation that Human Rights Watch believes criminalises free speech and Iraqis' right to demonstrate. The authorities have tried to bar street protests and confine them (unsuccessfully) to football stadiums. Meanwhile, several incidents of the security forces attacking and killing protestors have been reported, including a bloody encounter on the 25th of February where 12 people were killed and over 100 injured.
The US appears largely unconcerned by the spread of protests to Iraq, with its focus on ensuring its strategic posture in the country. This cedes space in the battle for legitimacy being waged, mostly through proxy, by the Iranians. The actions of Muqtada al-Sadr in the face of an extension of the US presence will be particularly scrutinised. His group controls 39 seats in the gridlocked 325-member parliament. Last April, Sadr issued a statement promising that "if the Americans don't leave Iraq on time, we will increase the resistance and restart the activities of the Mahdi Army". However it is hard to evaluate the cohesiveness of the once-feared Mahdi Army. The Asaib al-Haq and Promised Day Brigade splinter groups are evidence of Sadr's difficulty in maintaining political control. Indeed, in recent weeks, he appears to have backtracked somewhat from bombastic threats against the US, although what exactly he will do remains an unknown.
It's Friday, there are protests going on in Iraq. Revolution of Iraq reports on the demonstrations noting that police cordoned off protesters in Falluja while, in Baghdad, police made a point to search mobile phones "to provoke protesters" and that two protesters were arrested. Protesters were also arrested in Sulaymaniya For
Revolution of Iraq' Rami Hayali filmed the Baghdad protest. Aswat al-Iraq reports, "Hundreds of Iraqis demonstrated today in Tahrir Square, including government official, to-be-deported flats owners, unemployed persons and NGO activists. NGO activist told Aswat al-Iraq said that the demonstrators demanded eradication of corruption, unemployment and provision of services." Nouri's crackdown on protesters takes place not only in the streets but also behind closed doors. Dan Murphy (Christian Science Monitor) notes:
Yesterday, Human Rights Watch (HRW) reported that Iraq is also seeking to restrict speech. While the laws enacted when the US was running the country were unusually liberal for the region, Iraqi politicians have steadily whittled them back into a more authoritarian shape since they took control.
Iraq? HRW says it has a copy of a draft law on freedom of expression that gives the government the power to prevent political protests "in the public interest," a restriction so vague and broad that it would give a sitting government a theoretical veto on all protests. "This law will undermine Iraqis' right to demonstrate and express themselves freely," Human Rights Watch's Joe Stork said. "Rather than creating restrictive laws, the government needs to stop attacks on critics by security forces and their proxies."
Not all the attacks come from Nouri. In northern Iraq, the Kurdistan Regional Government, Swrkew Zahd Mahmoud is both a martyr to many and an inspiraction for further struggle. Scott Peterson (Christian Science Monitor) reports on the family of the 16-year-old who was killed by Kurdish police while peacefully protesting.
Qaradaxi became an organizer soon after protests kicked off in mid-February, and through sheer weight of presence tried to quell the violence that finally left 10 dead. Photographs show him in the thick of the street fight, trying to convince Kurdish riot police to stop shooting or throwing stones.
As an overhead fan keeps the 100-plus-degree heat at bay, at home, Qaradaxi pulls out discs with video footage that show Kurdish security forces firing with pistols at crowds on the same day – and in the same place – that Swrkew was killed. His son appears in some frames.
Qaradaxi was beaten at times, and tear-gassed to the point of writhing on the ground and choking. But he still went back to speak in the square at the podium – before security forces burned it in mid-April – to "show people that violence does work for us, to motivate people and give them hope."
Who doesn't get targeted in Nouri's Iraq? Other than Nouri himself, very few. Iraq's LGBT community has been attacked, Iraqi Jews, Iraqi Palestinians, residents of Camp Ashraf, Iraqi women, it's a long, long list. Asia News zooms in on Iraqi Christians:
The year 2010 was the worst year to date for the Christian community in Iraq, it has been revealed by the organization for human rights in Iraq, Hammurabi. Many Christians were forced to leave the country in fear of killings and violence of all kinds. The death toll among Christians over the past seven years, according to Hammurabi exceeds 822 people. 629 of them were murdered for being part of the Christian minority. Others were involved in 126 attacks of various kinds and many others have been victims of military operations undertaken by U.S. and Iraqi forces. 13% of victims are women. Among the Christian victims of 2010 there are 33 children, 25 elderly and 14 religious. In 2010 Hammurabi recorded 92 cases of Christians killed and 47 wounded, 68 in Baghdad, 23 in Mosul and one in Erbil.
The director of Hammurabi, named after the Code of Hammurabi, one of the oldest known collections of laws in human history, William Warda, said that constant monitoring and documentation show that all the Christian Churches in Iraq - Chaldeans, Assyrians, Syrians, Armenians - have suffered heavy losses in the number of their faithful, all over the country. The decline is particularly strong in Baghdad and Mosul, where Christians are concentrated in greater numbers. Warda said that in one year there were more than 90 Christians killed and 280 wounded, and two churches have been the target of attacks in Baghdad. According to UNICEF, between 2008 and 2010 more than 900 children have been killed in Iraq, and 3200 injured. Children represent the 8 .1% of the victims of attacks in Iraq, where there are an increasing number of attacks against schools and educators.
Turning to some of today's reported violence, Reuters notes a Kerbala car bombing claimed 5 lives and left fifteen people injured, a Samarra roadside bombing left one Iraqi solider injured, a Baghdad sticky bombing injured a police officer, a Kerbala car bombing which claimed 2 lives and left four more people injured, a Baghdad roadside bombing claimed 1 life and left three more people injured and a Mosul sticky bombing wounded two people.
Yesterday's snapshot noted the first panel of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee's hearing on mental health, Mike offered an overview of the entire hearing in "The Senate Veterans Affairs Committee hearing," Ava focused on Senator Scott Brown in the first panel with "Scott Brown asks if it is a staffing issue (Ava)" (at Trina's site) and I covered Senator Richard Burr at Kat's site with "Burr: I'd heard it before, I just hadn't heard it from you." because she was in Hawaii and not at the hearing. The Chair of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee is Senator Patty Murray and her office issued the following:
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: Murray Press Office
Thursday, July 14, 2011 (202) 224-2834
VETERANS: Senator Murray Chairs Hearing on Gaps in Mental Health Care
Murray hears about long waiting lines and red tape from veterans who have attempted suicide, face chronic PTSD and depression
Hearing comes as VA says that 202,000 Iraq and Afghanistan veterans have been seen for potential PTSD at VA facilities through March 31, 2011
WATCH hearing now.
(Washington, D.C.) – Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray, Chairman of the Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee, held a hearing to discuss access to mental health care services, including waiting times and staffing levels, outreach to veterans, the linking of mental health care to primary care, suicide prevention and problems identified by the VA Inspector General in mental health care.
"In the face of thousands of veterans committing suicide every year, and many more struggling to deal with various mental health issues, it is critically important that we do everything we can to make mental health care more accessible, timely, and impactful," said Senator Murray. "Any veteran who needs mental health services must be able to get that care rapidly, and as close to home as possible. Through its suicide hotline, VA has reached many veterans who might have otherwise taken their own lives. Each life saved is a tremendous victory, and we should celebrate those with VA. But we also have to recognize that these are veterans who reached out to VA. We want to hear about how VA is reaching out to veterans, and how easy or hard it is for veterans to access the care they earned through their service to this country."
At the hearing, Senator Murray heard from Daniel Williams, an Iraq veteran who described how an IED explosion during his 2003/2004 deployment to Iraq led to traumatic brain injury (TBI) and post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) injuries. Williams told the committee how those experiences then led to a suicide attempt in 2004 that was broken up by his wife and local police. He also discussed how his PTSD was received by fellow soldiers, his concerns over the stigma attached to the mental wounds of war, and his frustrations with the mental health care administered by the VA.
The Senator also heard testimony from Andrea Sawyer, wife and caregiver of Loyd Sawyer, who, after being deployed in Iraq, shared similar stories of frustration, including a failed suicide attempt. These two servicemembers, even after attempting their own lives, were met with red tape, wait times for initial appointments at the VA, and additional frustrations in seeking the mental health care they so desperately needed.
The hearing comes on the heels of a number of reports about gaps in mental health care. Two reports released by the IG showed unacceptably high patient wait times and long wait lists and an unacceptable number of veterans who are not contacted by VA between the time they were accepted and the beginning of the program. These reports also revealed that staffing levels for mental health works fell short of VA guidelines.
The GAO also published a recent report on sexual assault complaints in VA mental health units that found many of these assaults were not reported to senior VA officials or the Inspector General. VA clinicians also expressed concern about referring women vets to inpatient mental health units because they didn't think the facilities had adequate safety measures in place to protect these women. And two weeks ago GAO issued a report that found the Defense Centers of Excellence for Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury can't adequately account for tens of millions of dollars it spent to improve treatments for the invisible wounds of war.
The full text of witness testimonies can be viewed here.
The full text of Senator Murray's opening statement appears below.
"Welcome to today's hearing to examine how we can close the gaps in mental health care for our nation's veterans. We all know that going to war has a profound impact on those who serve. And after more than eight years of war, in which many of our troops have been called up for deployments again and again, it is very clear that the fighting overseas has taken a tremendous toll that will be with us for years to come.
"More than one-third of veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan who have enrolled in VA care have post-traumatic stress disorder. An average of 18 veterans kill themselves every day. In fact, the difficult truth is that somewhere in this country, while we hold this hearing, it is likely that a veteran will take his or her own life.
"Last week, the President reversed a longstanding policy and started writing condolence letters to the family members of servicemembers who commit suicide in combat zones. This decision is one more acknowledgment of the very serious psychological wounds that have been created by the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and an effort to reduce the stigma around the invisible wounds of war. But clearly much more needs to be done.
"In the face of thousands of veterans committing suicide every year, and many more struggling to deal with various mental health issues, it is critically important that we do everything we can to make mental health care more: accessible, timely, and impactful. In fact, according to data VA released yesterday, more than 202,000 Iraq and Afghanistan veterans have been seen for potential PTSD at VA facilities through March 31, 2011. This is an increase of 10,000 veterans from the last quarterly report. Any veteran who needs mental health services must be able to get that care rapidly, and as close to home as possible.
"Over the years, VA has made great strides in improving mental health services for veterans. But there are still many gaps.
"As many of you know, just this past May, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals issued an opinion that called attention too many of these gaps in mental health care for veterans. And while that ruling has gotten the lion's share of attention, it is one of far too many warning signs.
"Today, we will hear from the Inspector General about ongoing problems with delays in receiving health care for those veterans suffering from the invisible wounds of war, like PTSD.
"In one report, published just this week by the IG, several mental health clinics at the Atlanta VA were found to have unacceptably high patient wait times. The report shows that facility managers were aware of long wait lists for mental health care but were slow to respond to the problem. The report also called into question the adequacy of VA's performance measurements for mental health access times across the entire system.
"As the IG noted, the VA only tracks the time it takes for new patients to get their first appointment. This means that since the VA is not tracking the timeliness of second, third, and additional appointments, facilities can artificially inflate their compliance with mental health access times. This is simply unacceptable and must change.
"In another report on veterans in residential mental health care the IG found that an unacceptable number of veterans were not contacted by VA between the time they were accepted and the beginning of the program, and that staffing levels for mental health workers fell short of VA guidelines.
"GAO has also recently published a report on sexual assault complaints in VA mental health units that found many of these assaults were not reported to senior VA officials or the Inspector General. VA clinicians also expressed concern about referring women vets to inpatient mental health units because they didn't think the facilities had adequate safety measures in place to protect these women.
"And just two weeks ago GAO issued a report that found the Defense Centers of Excellence for Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury can't adequately account for tens of millions of dollars it spent to improve treatments for the invisible wounds of war.
"Taken together, these reports show very clearly that there is significant work to do to improve mental health care outreach and treatment.
"One way to fill in these gaps, to overcome the stigma associated with mental health care, and to eliminate wait times is to provide primary and mental health care at the same visit.
"In the hearing today, we will hear from Providence Health and Services, which was recently recognized as one of the five most integrated health systems in the country, about how they have integrated mental health services into their medical home.
"I believe we need to look to Providence and those VA programs that work for guidance on making real progress.
"Through its suicide hotline, VA has reached many veterans who might have otherwise taken their own lives. Each life saved is a tremendous victory, and we should celebrate those with VA. But we also have to recognize that these are veterans who reached out to VA.
"We want to hear about how VA is reaching out to veterans, and how easy or hard it is for veterans to access the care they earned through their service to this country. As we will hear today, despite VA's best efforts, veterans continue to experience problems when they reach out to the VA for mental health care.
"I have heard from veterans who have walked in to VA clinics and asked to be seen by a mental health provider, only to be told to call a 1-800 number. I have heard from VA doctors, who have told me VA does not have enough staff to take care of the mental health needs of veterans.
"And I have heard from veterans' families, who have seen first-hand what effects untreated mental illness can have on the family. We are here today to see that this ends. I am looking forward to hearing from all of our witnesses today.
"I hope it helps us to better understand these issues, and to address them so that our veterans can receive the timely, quality care they earned through their service.
"I will now turn to Ranking Member Burr for his opening statement."
revolution of iraq
nayla razzouk
the new statesman
james denselow
Protests and Nouri insists Iraq needs US military help
It's Friday, there are protests going on in Iraq. Revolution of Iraq reports on the demonstrations noting that police cordoned off protesters in Falluja while, in Baghdad, police made a point to search mobile phones "to provoke protesters" and that two protesters were arrested.
Screen snap is from Revolution of Iraq's video of today's Baghdad protest filmed by Rami Hayali. Aswat al-Iraq reports, "Hundreds of Iraqis demonstrated today in Tahrir Square, including government official, to-be-deported flats owners, unemployed persons and NGO activists. NGO activist told Aswat al-Iraq said that the demonstrators demanded eradication of corruption, unemployment and provision of services."
Meanwhile Alsumaria TV reports, "In a statement to Al Iraqiya, Al Maliki noted that Iraq needs to keep a number of US trainers to train Iraqi Forces on newly purchased air, land and naval weapons. The extension of US Forces term in Iraq necessitates a new agreement that should be voted upon by two thirds of Parliament lawmakers, Al Maliki said noting that this is difficult to be attained." Nayla Razzouk (Bloomberg News) notes:
Nouri is correct, he does not need the approval of Parliament -- we pointed that out in yesterday's snapshot. In part, he doesn't need it because he's made it precedent that he doesn't need it (by renewing the UN mandate at the end of 2006 without the approval of Parliament -- UN mandate that covered the occupation of Iraq -- and again at the end of 2007). Even if he was legally required to have their approval, Nouri's never concerned himself much with legality which is another reason the Iraqi peoples' voice in the 2010 elections should have been honored (which would have meant that loser Nouri not continue as prime minister). James Denselow (New Statesman) observes:
And Al Mada reports Iraq's First Lady, Moqtada al-Sadr, has issued another statement, this one directed to US Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta and declaring that "we" will turn Iraq into a graveyard for the US. "We"? Moqtada's going to be handling drone attacks from Iran? "We"? It's exactly his inability to stand up and do as he instructs that's eroded so much confidence in Moqtada among his one-time followers.
And Ned Parker (Los Angeles Times) has a story that may have you thinking, "I read this before, right?" That's because he's again documenting a serious and continuing problem -- one Nouri forever claims has been addressed but it hasn't. Ned Parker's work on this topic has been brave and exhaustive. It's really past time that some honors started coming his way for his work. Excerpt of the opening:
Elite units controlled by Prime Minister Nouri Maliki's military office are ignoring members of parliament and the government's own directive by operating a clandestine jail in Baghdad's Green Zone where prisoners routinely face torture to extract confessions, Iraqi officials say.
Iraqi legislators and security officials have been joined by the International Committee of the Red Cross in expressing concern about the facility, called Camp Honor. In a confidential letter to the prime minister, the Red Cross requested immediate access to the jail and added that there could be three more connected to it where detainees also are being mistreated.
Iraq's Justice Ministry ordered Camp Honor shut down in March after parliament's human rights committee toured the center and said it had uncovered evidence of torture. The Human Rights Ministry denied Wednesday that it was still in operation. But several Iraqi officials familiar with the site said that anywhere from 60 to 120 people have been held there since it was ordered closed.
Losing your job because your husband's a wounded veteran
(Washington, D.C.) – Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray, Chairman of the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee, held a hearing to discuss access to mental health care services, including waiting times and staffing levels, outreach to veterans, the linking of mental health care to primary care, suicide prevention and problems identified by the VA Inspector General in mental health care.
“In the face of thousands of veterans committing suicide every year, and many more struggling to deal with various mental health issues, it is critically important that we do everything we can to make mental health care more accessible, timely, and impactful,” said Senator Murray. “Any veteran who needs mental health services must be able to get that care rapidly, and as close to home as possible. Through its suicide hotline, VA has reached many veterans who might have otherwise taken their own lives. Each life saved is a tremendous victory, and we should celebrate those with VA. But we also have to recognize that these are veterans who reached out to VA. We want to hear about how VA is reaching out to veterans, and how easy or hard it is for veterans to access the care they earned through their service to this country.”
The GAO also published a recent report on sexual assault complaints in VA mental health units that found many of these assaults were not reported to senior VA officials or the Inspector General. VA clinicians also expressed concern about referring women vets to inpatient mental health units because they didn’t think the facilities had adequate safety measures in place to protect these women. And two weeks ago GAO issued a report that found the Defense Centers of Excellence for Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury can’t adequately account for tens of millions of dollars it spent to improve treatments for the invisible wounds of war.
The full text of Senator Murray’s opening statement appears below.
“Welcome to today’s hearing to examine how we can close the gaps in mental health care for our nation’s veterans. We all know that going to war has a profound impact on those who serve. And after more than eight years of war, in which many of our troops have been called up for deployments again and again, it is very clear that the fighting overseas has taken a tremendous toll that will be with us for years to come.
“More than one-third of veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan who have enrolled in VA care have post-traumatic stress disorder. An average of 18 veterans kill themselves every day. In fact, the difficult truth is that somewhere in this country, while we hold this hearing, it is likely that a veteran will take his or her own life.
“Last week, the President reversed a longstanding policy and started writing condolence letters to the family members of servicemembers who commit suicide in combat zones. This decision is one more acknowledgment of the very serious psychological wounds that have been created by the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and an effort to reduce the stigma around the invisible wounds of war. But clearly much more needs to be done.
“In the face of thousands of veterans committing suicide every year, and many more struggling to deal with various mental health issues, it is critically important that we do everything we can to make mental health care more: accessible, timely, and impactful. In fact, according to data VA released yesterday, more than 202,000 Iraq and Afghanistan veterans have been seen for potential PTSD at VA facilities through March 31, 2011. This is an increase of 10,000 veterans from the last quarterly report. Any veteran who needs mental health services must be able to get that care rapidly, and as close to home as possible.
“Over the years, VA has made great strides in improving mental health services for veterans. But there are still many gaps.
“As many of you know, just this past May, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals issued an opinion that called attention too many of these gaps in mental health care for veterans. And while that ruling has gotten the lion’s share of attention, it is one of far too many warning signs.
“Today, we will hear from the Inspector General about ongoing problems with delays in receiving health care for those veterans suffering from the invisible wounds of war, like PTSD.
“In one report, published just this week by the IG, several mental health clinics at the Atlanta VA were found to have unacceptably high patient wait times. The report shows that facility managers were aware of long wait lists for mental health care but were slow to respond to the problem. The report also called into question the adequacy of VA’s performance measurements for mental health access times across the entire system.
“As the IG noted, the VA only tracks the time it takes for new patients to get their first appointment. This means that since the VA is not tracking the timeliness of second, third, and additional appointments, facilities can artificially inflate their compliance with mental health access times. This is simply unacceptable and must change.
“In another report on veterans in residential mental health care the IG found that an unacceptable number of veterans were not contacted by VA between the time they were accepted and the beginning of the program, and that staffing levels for mental health workers fell short of VA guidelines.
“GAO has also recently published a report on sexual assault complaints in VA mental health units that found many of these assaults were not reported to senior VA officials or the Inspector General. VA clinicians also expressed concern about referring women vets to inpatient mental health units because they didn’t think the facilities had adequate safety measures in place to protect these women.
“And just two weeks ago GAO issued a report that found the Defense Centers of Excellence for Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury can’t adequately account for tens of millions of dollars it spent to improve treatments for the invisible wounds of war.
“Taken together, these reports show very clearly that there is significant work to do to improve mental health care outreach and treatment.
“One way to fill in these gaps, to overcome the stigma associated with mental health care, and to eliminate wait times is to provide primary and mental health care at the same visit.
“In the hearing today, we will hear from Providence Health and Services, which was recently recognized as one of the five most integrated health systems in the country, about how they have integrated mental health services into their medical home.
“I believe we need to look to Providence and those VA programs that work for guidance on making real progress.
“Through its suicide hotline, VA has reached many veterans who might have otherwise taken their own lives. Each life saved is a tremendous victory, and we should celebrate those with VA. But we also have to recognize that these are veterans who reached out to VA.
“We want to hear about how VA is reaching out to veterans, and how easy or hard it is for veterans to access the care they earned through their service to this country. As we will hear today, despite VA’s best efforts, veterans continue to experience problems when they reach out to the VA for mental health care.
“I have heard from veterans who have walked in to VA clinics and asked to be seen by a mental health provider, only to be told to call a 1-800 number. I have heard from VA doctors, who have told me VA does not have enough staff to take care of the mental health needs of veterans.
“And I have heard from veterans’ families, who have seen first-hand what effects untreated mental illness can have on the family. We are here today to see that this ends. I am looking forward to hearing from all of our witnesses today.
“I hope it helps us to better understand these issues, and to address them so that our veterans can receive the timely, quality care they earned through their service.
“I will now turn to Ranking Member Burr for his opening statement.”
It was an important hearing and it did garner some press attention. Brett Coughlin's "Iraq vet, rescued from suicide, tells of VA gaps" (POLITICO) reports on the hearing and notes:
Murray told POLITICO that Williams’s testimony was “heartbreaking” and sent a clear message to the VA: The department “needs to get out of its comfort zone when it comes to PTSD and to address this because of the real concerns, internally, that they are not meeting the needs of our veterans. I hope this hearing sent that message loud and clear.”
It's good to see POLITICO report on a hearing where the issue matters as opposed to just covering the hearing that's 'important' because some high profile government official is testifying. Stars and Stripes usually offers something but today relies on summarizing POLITICO. And there's an e-mail about their summary asking if Carol Williams is Daniel Williams' ex-wife or wife? In his verbal opening statements, when he talked about being in the bathroom with the gun barrel in his mouth, he stated his "ex-wife" called the police. I don't know if that was an error. Often people do make errors when they're speaking and when he was sharing his suicide attempt, his voice shook, his speech slowed down and I recall him stopping to take a breath. That was his verbal opening statements. In his written opening statement (his prepared remarks), he referred to her as his wife throughout, never using "ex-wife." In his oral response to questions, he repeatedly referred to her as his wife. My guess was that he misspoke when he said "ex-wife" -- and he only said it once in the entire hearing -- and did so because he was discussing a very traumatic event (the VA would not provide the help he needed and he'd reached what he felt was an end point and was attempting to kill himself). And by the way, Iraq War veteran Daniel Williams now works with NAMI which is the National Alliance on Mental Illness and a resource for those needing help in finding out information, finding a support group and more. NAMI has released Daniel Williams' prepared remarks (written testimony submitted to the Committee before the start of the hearing) as a news release and outlets, such as the Sacremento Bee, are carrying it, drawing further attention to the hearing. Steve Vogel files a report for the Washington Post which is also being carried by other papers.
The reports from POLITICO and the Post are strong ones. They leave out one big detail. So if some outlet is thinking, "Well I wished we'd covered it but it's over and nothing left to say," they could emphasize and follow up on that. Andrea Sawyer is married to Iraq War veteran Loyd Sawyer. She is the caregiver of her husband who has a 100% disability rating by the VA. She testified about how she had to leave her job to care for her husband and this did get noted in the reports.
What is not getting noted is the leaving of the job. The impression is that she made a decision and that was that. That's not reality.
Near the end of Chair Patty Murray's questioning of the first panel, Andrea Sawyer testified:
We've kind of been ostracized from the community. I left my job teaching. I had great scores, you know for the be-all-to-end-all test at the end of the year that all teachers are judged by whether we say they are or not, great scores. But I had missed a lot of work. It was my fourth year, my tenure year, and it was Loyd's first year after he was retired. We were spending a lot of time at the VA which meant I was spending a lot of time out of the classroom and the principal came to me and told me I had to choose between getting my husband better and teaching. So I left. So, no, the community does not understand.
If you asked Andrea Sawyer, she'd tell you she made the decision needed and doesn't regret it. But she shouldn't have had to have made that decision and I do think most people would like to know what the school was and who the principal was who went to a woman whose husband had just been medically retired by the military and given a disability rating of 100% and told her that her time managing her husband's care was just too much for the school to absorb. To me, that's as appalling as the illegal practice of refusing to giving a returning veteran back their job.
I'd further add that the students in her class were not being 'robbed' of an education when she was out and they had a substitute. They were instead getting to witness what sacrifice is about. There's a lot of grand talk about sacrifice when the cameras are around and the flags are waving. But her students knew when she was out that she was out due to her husband's care. That's not a minor lesson to learn. To draw more attention to that detail of the testimony, we'll use it for the title of this entry.
The following community sites -- plus Random Notes, War News Radio, Antiwar.com and the Guardian -- updated last night and this morning:
THIS JUST IN! NOW THEY TELL US!
Now they tell us he was lying 3 years ago
He can't be trusted
Burr: I'd heard it before, I just hadn't heard it from you.
The Senate Veterans Affairs Committee hearing
the scare tactics
I don't heart Huckabee
Plan your TV schedule
India: No Leads on Mumbai Attacks
Random Thoughts from Random Places
In This Debt Ceiling Nonsense,
War News Radio
War News Radio Headlines 110715
An unguided missile: MI6's view of Alastair Campbell is revealed
Okay, community notes. I said last night that this would be late and it is. In addition, it's taking forever to do the morning entries because Jim's right here combing through my dreams in the hopes of finding material for Third. Yesterday evening/night (it's all a blur) when we got home (California), Ava and I were greeted with Jim's announcement that this weekend we'd do the summer read at Third and were then told, "Try to dream some story ideas." The summer read is an annual thing at Third. Dona will tell you that one of the theme issues they studied in a journalism class in 2004 was a Rolling Stone "summer read" from the eighties that included short stories by Stephen King, Jackie Collins and others. (It also included the kickoff of Bonfire of the Vanities which first appeared serialized over many, many months in Rolling Stone and was then polished into a book or what passed for one.) As a result of that issue, Third decided they would do a summer read edition each summer and this is either the sixth or seventh (Jim says seventh) annual summer read. There will be the TV piece and the editorial. The rest will be creative writing -- or as much creative as we can muster (and I feel my own well is dry). Why this week? Jim's argument is that the week offered little new news. Everything was more or less a repeat of last week -- meaning the debt talks continued, this continued, that continued, etc. Forget 'creativity,' I'll judge the edition a success if we can avoid sameness. (For example, avoid every piece being told from the same perspective -- be it first person or whatever -- or every piece being on the nose and telegraphing every damn point, etc.) But that will be Sunday, probably very late Sunday, and that's the heads up Jim promised those who had been e-mailing, "When's this year's summer edition?"
brett coughlin
steve vogel
The Erbil Agreement and look who's coming over the...
Protests and Nouri insists Iraq needs US military ...
Losing your job because your husband's a wounded v...
The lies of the New York Times, the lies of Jezebe...
Nouri telling US to stay (Tim Arangon, NYT)
Panetta, non-withdrawal and more
A deal for probation, a house foreclosed
That non-withdrawal withdrawal
The fallen and the failed state
Does the White House already have a working memo w...
The fallen and the fake anti-war voice whose daugh...
Oops, did you hear the one about Moqtada . . .
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David Cameron: Building a Fortress Cannot Deliver Security for Israel
by David Cameron
British Prime Minister David Cameron. Photo: World Economic Forum.
The following letter from British Prime Minister David Cameron was received by former New York mayor Ed Koch Tuesday in response to his letter which challenged the Prime Minister over his views on Israeli development in Judea and Samaria. Koch included a copy of his earlier op-ed on the subject.
LONDON SW1A 2AA.
THE PRIME MINISTER 15 January 2013
Dear Mr. Koch:
Thank you for getting in touch and for sending me a copy of your recent article, about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Let me reassure you that the UK, is and will remain a firm friend of Israel. I share your deep concern about the recent inflammatory statements made by Hamas leaders, including Khaled Mesha’al on 7 December, denying Israel’s right to exist. The UK also utterly and unreservedly condemns the recent call for a third intifada and a suicide campaign by a Hamas official. Incitements to violence and terror are unacceptable. We therefore welcome President Abbas’ public rejection of these statements and acceptance of the State of Israel within 1967 borders.
We firmly believe that the people of Israel have a right to live peacefully and free from terror. But we also believe that the only sustainable way to achieve this is through a negotiated two-state solution. As friends of Israel, it is important we do whatever we can tto reach that ultimate objective: two states, living side by side, in peace. We ask Israel to stop building settlements because they are illegal under international law, an obstacle to peace and make a two-state solution, with Jerusalem as a shared capital, harder to achieve. They are, ultimately, not in Israel’s long-term interests. Simply building a fortress without a negotiated agreement with the Palestinians cannot deliver lasting security for Israel.
I do not share your analysis regarding the recent Palestinian UN General Assembly resolution. The UK’s position on this resolution was determined by the guiding principle of ensuring a rapid return to negotiations. Given this, we had asked Palestinian President Abbas not to move a resolution at the
UN General Assembly in November. In the period prior to the vote, we engaged intensively to seek a commitment from the Palestinian leadership to return immediately to negotiations without preconditions and that they would not pursue immediate action in UN agencies and the International Criminal Court. In the absence of these assurances, the UK abstained on the vote.
We must now look forward. This year is an important one for peace in the Middle East. The UK will work urgently with the United States, our other international partners and with the Israelis and Palestinians to drive the peace progress forward before the window for a two-state solution closes forever.
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Allied Mission Group
Agile Engineering & Development
Cloud & Infrastructure Services
Technical Advisory & Consulting
Mission Partners & Clients
John F. Walsh III
Chairman, President, & Managing Director
next Generation Technology Executive
Start-Ups, Turn-Arounds, Global Growth
Board Experience
American Chamber of Commerce Denmark, SAIC, Computer Science Corporation, Republic of Lithuania and Board Advisor to multiple small companies
JOHN WALSH III has 28 years of technology leadership experience, nine of which while living overseas in Europe and Asia. He has spent half of his career in the commercial and international public sector and half in the U.S. federal, state, and local government sector. He has led businesses at a scale of $2B and teams over 10,000 in size delivering services in over 100 countries. A leader of change, John’s technical depth and leadership style deliver results.
John is the CEO of Red Summit Global, a privately held firm specializing in governance, digitization, and optimization for companies and governments. John was previously the Senior Vice President of Information Technology Solutions, a $2B market segment at SAIC. Prior to SAIC, he was an executive at CSRA/GDIT in Homeland Security. At the Newberry Group, a privately held cyber security managed services company, he led two acquisitions and their growth strategy. During his 17 years at CSC John led the P&L for both commercial and government markets including Aerospace, Defense, Insurance, Banking, Transportation, Technology, Retail, Chemicals, Pharma, Energy, and Healthcare.
John has led R&D, solution development, partnering, sales, and delivery of a large portfolio of technology solutions. Technologies included active defensive / offensive cyber security operations, cloud integration / brokerage services, next generation application modernization, software defined infrastructure, custom software development for mission critical systems, and next generation end user computing. John led the integration of data analytics, machine learning, and artificial intelligence into all aspects of optimized delivery of IT solutions. Under John’s leadership, his teams have closed over $12B in complex enterprise solutions sales to thousands of clients. Prior to joining private industry, John began his career in the civil service for the U.S. Government in a variety of leadership roles in C4ISR, information warfare, the Global Positioning System, missile systems engineering, flight testing, and industrial engineering analysis. John holds an MBA from Pepperdine University, Master of Science in Electrical Engineering from San Diego State University, Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from UCLA, and is an executive leadership program graduate at Cornell University. John has held a TS/SCI level clearance in multiple compartments since the mid-90’s.
Douglas Cheek
President, TSC Consulting LLC
proven Technology Executive
8224 Ingersol Road,
As President of TSC Consulting LLC, Doug Cheek is focused on providing Executive Independent Consulting to providers of IT Services to Federal, State and Local and Commercial C-Suite leaders who are looking for straight-forward advise on increasing growth, customer service, efficiencies and specific deep analysis and recommendations regarding Service Delivery and execution strategies.
Before retiring from CSRA and starting TSC Consulting LLC, Doug was the Chief Performance Officer for the Homeland Security Group at CSRA. He was accountable to the Executive VP for defining appropriate organizational performance metrics, tracking performance as well as communicating the results and collaborating with key stakeholders to drive increased performance results within the organization. As CPO, he brought an organization-wide view of performance and assesses the results of various lines of business to improve organizational performance.
Prior to assuming that role Mr. Cheek has held multiple leadership positions including his last assignment as Vice President for Infrastructure Services which represented $1B business unit within CSC North America Public Sector which included the Integrated Technology Center in Bossier City, LA. As a key leader in many positions of increasing responsibility, he was responsible for enterprise-wide strategic planning, process improvement, profit and loss, facilities management, strategic partnering, operational activities, and training support that spanned multi-million dollar global market segments. Those activities encompassed direct supervision of and participation in the development, implementation, and oversight of major information technology (IT) and system integration solutions encompassing major successes in Homeland Defense/Security, Department of Justice and FBI Modernization, and other similar very high priority national and international Department of Defense (DOD), Federal Civil, and public and private sector challenges. His personal and professional accomplishments span more than four decades beginning in 1977 when he began 10 years of service as an US Marine in the Command and Control field. Mr. Cheek has also had other key leadership IT positions within Honeywell, Columbia Research Corporation, Northrop Grumman, GTE Information Systems, DynCorp, and CSC.
Allied Mission Group LLC
Mission: Success
Headquartered in Loudoun VA, Allied Mission Group LLC is a SBA HUBZone, ISO 9001:2015, ISO/IEC 20000-1:2011 & ISO/IEC 27001:2013 certified small business that provides mission and technology solutions to the public and private sector clients.
Allied Mission Group, 722 E Market Street, STE 102-CH1, Leesburg, VA 20176, USA(571) 344-0888info@alliedmission.com
© 2019 Allied Mission Group | All Rights Reserved
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The Birmingham-based Arrhythmia Quartet was founded in 2010, at the initiative of Daniel Szasz, Concertmaster of the Alabama Symphony Orchestra. All members of the quartet are natives of Romania and Moldova, graduates of Music Conservatories from Bucharest, Cluj and Kishinev, and now reside in Alabama and Tennessee. The ensemble's mission is to promote both standard classical and more unusual repertoire. One of the quartet's latest major project was a collaboration with Latin Grammy award winner bandoneonist Raul Jaurena on a CD recording of tangos, that was released in 2016 on Soundbrush Records. During the years, the quartet performed at festivals and on concert tours in Europe and U.S.
The members of the quartet are also very involved in supporting Music4Romania, a non-profit organization that helps children in schools and orphanages in Romania while promoting Romanian and American music around the world. Arrhythmia also proudly offers educational concerts tailored specifically for schools and youth organizations, as well as recitals, masterclasses and other events. Please contact us for bookings and more information.
Daniel Szasz, violin 1
Active as a concert soloist, chamber musician, and recitalist, Daniel Szasz has been the concertmaster of the Alabama Symphony Orchestra since 1997. A versatile musician, interested in performing both standard and less familiar repertoire, Mr. Szasz has been consistently praised for his “expressive, rich and warm sound” as well as for his “strong, confident, and assertive playing.” His performances have been described as “breathtaking” and “exquisite” and have generated great enthusiasm among his audiences and in the press.
Born in Romania, in the Transylvanian city of Sibiu, Mr. Szasz began playing the violin at age six under the supervision of his father, a former principal trumpet player with the Sibiu State Philharmonic Orchestra. At the age of eight he played his first solo recital, and at thirteen he performed his first concerto with a professional orchestra. His teachers in Romania included Mihai Wunderlich, Victoria Nicolae, and his mentor, violinist Andras Agoston. While a student at the Gheorghe Dima Music Academy in Cluj, at only nineteen, Mr. Szasz landed a position with one of the top orchestras in Romania, the Cluj State Philharmonic Orchestra, with which he toured Europe extensively, recorded, and performed as a soloist on many occasions. Following studies with Alberto Lysy at the prestigious International Menuhin Music Academy in Gstaad, Switzerland, Szasz moved to the U.S. and continued his violin studies with Vasile Beluska, Yair Kless, Gerald Jarvis, and Patrick Rafferty. He also studied chamber music with members of the Franz Schubert Quartet, Audubon Quartet, and Fine Arts Quartet.
Mr. Szasz has won numerous awards in national competitions in Romania as well as international competitions in Italy and the U.S., including the “Public Prize” at the prestigious Vittorio Gui International Chamber Music Competition in Florence, Italy, playing with his wife, pianist Alina Voicu. Over the years, Mr. Szasz participated in several music festivals, including the Graz Music Festival in Austria; the Sopron Music Festival in Hungary; and the Blossom, Chautauqua, and New Hampshire Music Festivals in the U.S. In the summer of 2006, Mr. Szasz won the position of concertmaster for the Lake Placid Sinfonietta, an annual summer music festival orchestra in Lake Placid, New York. Some of Mr. Szasz's most notable collaborations over the years included solo appearances and chamber concerts with violinists Jaime Laredo, Andras Agoston; pianist Yakov Kasman; cellist Alban Gerhardt; mandolinist Chris Thile, and bandoneonist Raul Jaurena.
In 2004, in collaboration with the Sibiu Philharmonic Orchestra, Mr. Szasz initiated the establishment of the “Romanian-American Music Days” in Sibiu, Romania, an annual summer music festival that promotes American music and supports active professional interactions between Romanian and American musicians. Since 2011, Mr. Szasz has also become extremely involved with Music4Romania (www.music4romania.org), a non-profit organization aimed to help orphanages and schools in Romania while promoting Romanian music and culture in the U.S. and internationally.
Mr. Szasz performs on a rare 1755 Italian violin crafted by Bartolomeo Calvarolla.
Serghei Tanas, violin 2
Violinist Serghei Tanas was born in Kishinev, Moldova, where he started his violin studies at the age of seven. In 1985, Mr. Tanas continued his studies at the State Conservatory in Kishinev, under the guidance of Nicolai Opritza. In 1986, he won a position with the Kishinev Philharmonic Chamber Orchestra, and in 1992 he became the concertmaster of the orchestra. Mr. Tanas also performed as soloist with the Kishinev Chamber Orchestra and toured with them throughout Europe, Israel, and the U.S. In 1996, Mr. Tanas became a member of the Orquesta Sinfonica de Galicia, in La Coruna, Spain, and then moved to the U.S. where he freelanced in New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania. During this time, he studied violin with Dmitry Levin, a member of the Philadelphia Orchestra. Since 1998, Mr. Tanas lives in Birmingham, Alabama and is a member of the Alabama Symphony Orchestra.
Simona Rusu, viola
Simona Rusu, a Romanian-born violist, started her musical training at the age of eight, first playing the violin, then later switching to viola. While a student at the “Gheorghe Dima” Music Conservatory in Cluj, Romania, she won a position with the Transylvania Philharmonic Orchestra in Cluj. After graduating from the Conservatory in 1991, Mrs. Rusu joined the National Radio-Television Chamber Orchestra and the Athenaeum Chamber Orchestra in Bucharest, touring extensively throughout Europe. In 1994, Mrs. Rusu moved to the U.S. to continue her viola studies with Hong-Mei Xiao, at Bowling Green State University, in Ohio. After receiving her Master Degree from BGSU, she continued her Doctorate studies at the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa. While a doctoral student, in 1997, she won a position with the Alabama Symphony Orchestra in Birmingham, Alabama. In 2005, Mrs. Rusu moved to Nashville, Tennessee, where she now lives with her husband Radu and their daughter Alexandra. Mrs. Rusu performs as a freelancer with the Nashville Symphony Orchestra as well as with other orchestras in the area. She also records frequently with the Nashville String Machine.
Ariana Arcu, cello
Ariana Arcu began her cello studies at the age of seven in Cluj, Romania. Mrs. Arcu studied at the “George Enescu” Music Conservatory in Bucharest, Romania and earned her Master and Doctoral degrees in the U.S., from the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa. Mrs. Arcu has appeared in numerous solo and chamber music recitals and was featured several times as a soloist with orchestras in Romania and the U.S. In 2000, she was invited to be a guest-recording artist on The Scorpions’ album Acoustica and toured with them in South Korea, Singapore, Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia, India, and throughout Europe. Currently, Mrs. Arcu holds the assistant principal cello position with the Huntsville Symphony Orchestra and is a member of the faculty at the University of North Alabama, Alabama A&M, and Oakwood University.
PROGRAM SAMPLES
ARRHYTHMIA QUARTET
Arrhythmia Quartet
ARRHYTHMIA QUARTET
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Hannes Richter February 14, 2007
The awardee with Ambassador Eva Nowotny
Ingrid Richardson-McKinnon
On May 2, Ms. Ingrid Richardson-McKinnon, Legal Attaché at the Austrian Embassy, received the "Decoration of Honor in Silver" from Federal President Heinz Fischer. The decoration was awarded by the Austrian Ambassador to the United States, Eva Nowotny.
Ms. Richardson has been with the Austrian Embassy in Washington, D.C. since 1973 and she has been honored for her outstanding work in resolving legal issues, matters of privileges and immunities, and the problems of social security and restitution. Ms. Richardson-McKinnon stated that her work, particularly with restitution matters, is challenging because it deals with a very traumatic period in the lives of the applicants. "The reward, however, is great and worth the effort," she said. Ambassador Nowotny agreed that in all of her work "Ms. Richardson-McKinnon puts a human face on the Austrian Embassy."
Ms. Richardson-McKinnon is a quintessential cosmopolitan. After a period of study in London, she worked in the private sector in Paris. Following a brief assignment in her native Vienna where she served as a translator of publications from English into German, she moved to Milan. Three years later, she accepted a position as Administrative Officer at the Austrian Embassy in Khartoum, Sudan, where she served for six years. When Ms. Richardson moved to Washington, D.C., in 1973, she thought the assignment would be of short duration. The Embassy wishes to thank her for having extended her stay.
The awardee Franz Muschitz in front of a portrait of Emperor Franz I. of Austria
Franz Muschitz
On March 9, Mr. Franz Muschitz was awarded the "Decoration of Merit in Gold of the Republic of Austria" by Federal President Heinz Fischer. The Austrian Ambassador to the U.S., Eva Nowotny, presented the award during a reception at her residence. Mr. Muschitz has been with the Office of the Defense, Military, Naval and Air Attaché at the Austrian Embassy since 2001.
While working overseas in peacekeeping operations and embassies, Mr. Muschitz was actively involved with the German School Boards Abroad: first as President in Moscow, then as Deputy in Beijing. In Washington, D.C., he has also served as President of the Board and has committed his time to a series of reform projects. These projects are designed to create a better educational environment for Austrian, Swiss and German children.
In his acceptance speech, Mr. Muschitz explained the reason for his personal dedication to the German School. "During my deployments with the United Nations, I have witnessed how people have gone from wealth to utter poverty literally overnight. One can lose material wealth, but a good education can never be lost. In Austria or Germany, one can choose between a variety of schools, but for those living abroad there is only one German school. That school must be careful ly nurtured and cared for in order to offer and maintain an education of the highest quality."
Masters in Command
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Byrne Robotics > The John Byrne Forum << Prev Page 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 100 101 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111 112 113 114 115 116 117 118 119 120 121 122 123 124 125 126 127 128 129 130 131 132 133 134 135 136 137 138 139 140 141 142 143 144 145 146 147 148 149 150 151 152 153 154 155 156 157 158 159 160 161 162 163 164 165 166 167 168 169 170 171 172 173 174 175 176 177 178 179 180 181 182 183 184 185 186 187 188 189 190 191 192 193 194 195 196 197 198 199 200 201 202 203 204 205 206 207 208 209 210 211 212 213 214 215 216 217 218 219 220 221 222 223 224 225 226 227 228 229 230 231 232 233 of 233 Next >>
Topic: What are you reading now?
Matthew Chartrand
Posted: 07 January 2011 at 7:29pm | IP Logged | 1 post reply
My recently read list:
Crota by Owl Goingback. How can you not read a thriller by an author with that name. It turned out to be a fast and scary little thriller.
Stiff by Mary Roach. More than you ever really want to know about what happens to dead bodies.(thanks JB).
Blood Oath by Christopher Farnsworth. This ones about a vampire under an oath to serve the President of the US since Andrew Johnson. Another fast and fun little book.
Demon Haunted World by Carl Sagen. Man do I miss Carl Sagen.
Death from the Skies by Dr. Phil Plait. This one is about the various and messy ways the Earth might meet its demise.
Steve Ogden
"The Monster Show" by David J. Skal
"The Man In the High Castle" by Philip K. Dick
"Lafayette" by Harlow Giles Unger
Just started The Golden Compass, by a guy whose name I'm blanking on but I'm too lazy to check (Phil Pullman, maybe?).
Matt, I have also read Public Enemies. Enjoyed it very much. Enjoying the heck out of The Big Rich. A good read.
THE MAKING OF THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK. It's every bit as good as the first one.
Steve Adelson
"A Game of Brawl", Bill Felber. An account of the 1897 pennant race between the Baltimore Orioles and the Boston Beaneaters.
The Beaneaters are today's Atlanta Braves. The 19th century Orioles were an NL team that folded after the 1899 season.
Thad Studebaker
Just last night I finished "Transfer of Power" by Vince Flynn. I read his latest Mitch Rapp book, "American Assassin", during the holidays and decided to read the series from the start. "The Third Option" is next on the nightstand.
Tom French
Got a bunch of books at Xmas, jumped in with FINISHING THE HAT, by Stephen Sondheim -- a collection of lyrics, notes, reflections, thoughts, gossip and passion for musical theatre.
Reading Sondheim's words and tone reminds me of the way Byrne speaks -- they share a love of their particular genres and are disheartened (and in some ways, bitter) about the state of their industries today. Both are craftsmen and masters of their art. Both are well-spoken and intelligent.
There were moments -- if I hadn't been reading about LYRICS -- that i would've sworn that I was reading one of Byrne's short essays.
Highly recommended (even if you're not a Sondheim freak, as I am!)
Al Cook
The news today, oh boy.
Marcel Chenier
Posted: 08 January 2011 at 7:34pm | IP Logged | 10 post reply
"Pride and Prejudice and Zombies" by Jane Austin and Seth Grahame-Smith.
Yes, zombies! It's a re-imagining of the classic "Pride and Prejudice" with your favourite brain-eaters thrown in. I dare say that it's deliciously hilarious!
Edited by Marcel Chenier on 08 January 2011 at 7:36pm
Thomas Moudry
Marcel,
Pride and Prejudice and Zombies absolutely cracked me up! So, so funny!
Posted: 08 January 2011 at 10:40pm | IP Logged | 12 post reply
Just finished:
WALLY'S WORLD - The brilliant life and tragic death of Wally Wood, the
world's second-best comic book artist
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Profitable Mobile App Development
What’s New Trending in Android App Development?
By Donald on 11-28-2017 in Computers and Technology, Internet and Businesses Online, Mobile Computing, Web Development
There are around 2 million mobile apps in the App Store and 2.2 million apps on Play Store and some alarming statistics show that only 25% of the downloaded apps are used once in six months.
Too many, too right, too lost
To highlight the irony of the numerous applications available in the various app stores, an advertising campaign created a slogan – “there’s an app for that”. There was a phase until quite recently where the productivity and popularity of any platform was defined by the number of mobile applications available in its market place. This had led Microsoft’s marketing strategy to attract more number of mobile app design for its Windows Phone platform so that it could quickly hit the 1 million mark! BlackBerry lost out on the race due to its hesitation to blend in with the crowd and though it made a valiant attempt to salvage the situation by making its immensely popular BlackBerry Messenger available on the Android and iOS platforms, the application lost its charm in the face of the humungous crowd following of WhatsApp.
The App Fatigue Factor
The problem with any new phenomenon is that people go overboard, so for every 50 new applications that are launched on the app store, may be one will be successful. By May 2015, over 54,000 applications were submitted for release on iOS App Store. However, not all applications have features or functionalities that entice the user’s interest. Smart devices are also becoming sophisticated with integrated technologies such as NFC, high resolution front and back cameras, smart device integration among other things. So, consumer expectation is also undergoing a great deal of sophistication and it is imperative for mobile applications to adapt to these rising expectations.
For instance, iOS 10 will come with HomeKit, which opens a wide avenue for home-based iBeacon applications for manoeuvring the various household electronics appliances. As in case all products, only an application that adds value to the user’s life survives the brutal competition. A good quality app, with a fresh perspective and new features will do well and gain traction. Value may be entertainment, novelty, creates a need where there wasn’t one, gives logical use of new technologies among other things. Industry experts, mobile app developers and app development companies reiterate that app quality and value remains the primary factor for success. Any new app that does not surpass the threshold is bound to fail.
Adequate and Appropriate Features
Irrespective of how many features an application may have, only a handful are used regularly, while some are not used at all. A lot of features simply cause information-overload, or what may be better termed as ‘white noise’. Just the way people treat commercials on television as break to complete some chore; the unused feature has the same status where it is viewed as an aspect of the application that can be ignored. A smart way to treat features and attract user interest through them would be to release it as part of an upgrade.
Especially in the case of social media apps, industry experts believe that app developers must analyse what is critical and re-examine effective usage of mobile device before integrating new features. One start-up, HI-FI, has launched an application that is studying app fatigue and analysing social media let-down trend. The app will help identify unnecessary features and aggregate information to help users set up their own custom menus based on their interests. This will help users save time with easy-to-use interface. The app will play the role of a universal remote control, as per the makers’ claims and has already attracted many takers in the market.
Where does profitability lie?
Mobile app development continues to remain a profitable avenue because the future will be governed by applications and mobility. The cost of mobile application development was in a range of $37,913 and $171,450. However, this amount has drastically reduced to US$ 150 in North America and lowest is US$26 for a developer from India. Besides the competition, even the evolving technologies have helped in drastically altering the cost of development. Cross-platform app development platforms such as PhoneGap, AngularJS and Ionic have facilitated further reduction in app development time and costs.
Profitability lies not only in reduced costs of production but also in the number of people adopting smartphones. Just now Games remains the most popular category, but ecommerce and enterprise solutions are also profiting heavily from mobile applications.
Mobile strategy is a core aspect of business marketing strategy of leading business and SMEs as it is recognized as central to reaching target customers with the most concise messages from the route where they can be accessed easily and at a personal level. So, for a long term to come, mobile app development will remain a profitable avenue.
The Internet boom has brought us to the stage where we’re experiencing a mobile application boom. And as any technology goes, Internet, mobiles, and mobile applications – none of these can survive without a continuous progression into something new, extraordinary, i.e. something that nudges it forward.With the need to create more and more advanced custom apps, the subsequent need to hire Android app developers who have an eye for what’s in-trend and also brilliant has increased as well.Click over here app design Ireland.
While these developers are doing an awesome job of it, let us take a look at what is catching their eye as some of the most promising trends in Android app development today:
Wearable has changed our lives today. Just when we thought that making portable technology would be amazing, wearable took portability of technology, and therefore Android app development to new heights. Whether it’s healthcare brands, or more popularly sports and fitness brands around us – wearable with various sensors have come to be really common.
And then there are apps that support such devices. These apps are designed in a way that their algorithm works in tandem with the wearable device, giving you the outcome or the information that you were looking for, directly on your mobile screen. Android app developers are therefore almost always keen to work with such technology.
Beacon Technology
One of the more amazing uses of what was initially available only for the iOS devices, Beacon Technology is now being created by almost every Android App Development Company out there. It’s a recent trend that is gaining its footing quite impressively in the whole scheme of Android app development.
One of the most recognized features of this technology is being able to easily track a location and its multi-functionality. Some of the best-found uses for Beacon technology have been, detecting any sort of danger, in hotels instead of the traditional hotel room keys, to upgrade customer connections at airports by some airline companies, detecting a temperature of a particular place, and even by some of the biggest players in the retail industry.
Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality
Such is the hype of AR and VR today, that people are looking to specially hire Android app developers, in turn making mobile app technology reach for even greater heights. The hype though, we can never say, is for nothing. Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality have really been a cornerstone of the technology as we use today.
With VR, you can create a whole new kind of reality for the end users. It’s a cutting edge technology that lets a person feel a situation just like real life, through their hearing and vision being stimulated. It’s being heavily used in fields like movies (to make 3D movies), games, entertainment, flight simulators for pilots, and so on. AR, on the other hand, stimulates the sense of hearing, feeling, and smelling in a person, making them a bit confused on what’s real and what’s not.
Android app development, therefore, has found a use for AR in various fields, like games, video making, and even medical field to help treat PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) or conduct remote surgeries, and such.
Instant Apps
We also have instant apps developed by the Android app developers at Google. Haven’t you ever needed an app for only a short time amount of time till you get a specific thing done, and then the app keeps sitting there and eating your phone memory for no reason at all.With this instant app technology, you will be able to download just a part of the app that you need, instead of the whole application, with just one simple click. It will be similar to how the whole website doesn’t get loaded; only a web page does, at a time.
In-App Payments
We are moving towards becoming a cashless society. And when every website today also indulges itself in getting its mobile app made, how can Android app developers around us not think of in-app payments? E-commerce and apps go hand-in-hand today and therefore online payments are an extremely important part of Android app development process.
Plus, with Google’s new Android Pay, the sellers and buyers both will be benefitted. Especially the security feature of this app is being considered better than most, and therefore a big advantage is being seen as users saving their personal details including credit/debit card details without any apprehension.Android app development has never been about just the tried and tested methods or ideas; it’s always been about innovation, uniqueness, and regular updating of the present apps. And like every year, this year too has managed to see the Android technology advance to new and higher levels, satisfying easily the broadest clientele across the globe.
Most of the people who are planning to come up with their iOS Application development company usually think that they will immediately start earning twice as much for half the work which they use to do their regular jobs. Some folks do get lucky, but not everyone has that kind of luck. Before you enter the entrepreneurial world, it will be good that chalk out a solid business plan and a proper understanding of how the mobile app development industry works.
Given below are the few tips which will help you establish your mobile app development business:
Sign up as a developer: Let’s begin with basics i.e. gaining access to the Android and iOS app stores. As Google and Apple are one of the biggest players in the market, it is essential that you first sign up on these two stores. Once you completed the app, you need to submit it to these two app stores and each company will review your app before making it official on their store. The review process involves a check of app quality, interface, etc. And make sure you’re not embedding any malware or spam in the app.More tips here app design.
Once your app is accepted by the app store, your app will be officially listed in their store, and you will get 70% of the selling price, and rest of the amount will be kept by the app stores. In order to get into the game, you to sign up for Apple’s iOS developer program which costs $99/year and for Android you need to register for Developer Console which has a one-time fees of $25.
Additional hats to wear: Having your own business means more flexibility with your time, but it also brings various other responsibilities which you have to handle efficiently. For instance, if you have started your business on sole proprietorship basis then you have to deal with different things like app testing, designing, interacting with clients, marketing and even have to handle the legal matters related to app ownership & contracts.
If you have a good budget, then you can Hire an iOS app developer who will design, developer and test the app on your behalf so that you can properly handle the marketing and legal tasks. Besides this, you can also start your business on the partnership basis and can take full advantage of pooled capital resources and manpower.
Build your app: If you have a small budget and have a good programming or coding knowledge, then you can write the app by yourself. Given below are four tools that will help you in building a feature-rich app:
Appery.io- A bit complicated for beginners, this tool packs an excellent integration of data services with apps. Appery.io comes with a free plan that allows maximum three pages and one user. And at the initial stage, three pages are enough, to begin.
Good Barber- This tool comes with a 30-day free trial package and after that, you choose their premium plan starting from $16/month. What makes this tool stand apart from others is its design elements, Google Font Integration and plenty of icons to choose from. Besides this, you can also find several online tutorials and webinars related to this tool.
Appy Pie: You can enjoy this tools free services if you let them run ads in your app else you can upgrade to ad-free plan which starts from $7/month. Appy Pie comes with pre-set app categories like restaurant, banking, radio, photo-sharing, etc. Apart from that, they also offer the wide range of features by which you can add different functionalities like GPS location, push notifications, and much more.
Game-Salad: If you are planning to create a mobile game then this tool is perfect for you. Most of the Android application development services provider have this tool. The free version of this tool consists of ads, but there’s a $299 version which removes ads completely and makes in-app purchases available. If you want to earn money via in-app purchases, then this tool will help you add this feature in your game.
Test, Test & Retest: Before you submit your app to the app store, it will be good that you check your app correctly. This is something which you cannot do it on your own; you can ask your friends to run the beta version of your app and tell them to provide you with the proper details of any issues, lags or bugs they detected while using the app.
Besides this, you can also roll out the early versions of your app that consists of limited features. By this, you will get a real-time response related to the functionality and user-interface of your app. You can also Hire Android app developers who will test the app on your behalf.
Submit your app to the app stores: After testing and re-testing your app, it’s finally the time you submit yours to the respective app stores. Once you have submitted your app, it will be reviewed by the developers working for the app store. An average time taken to review an app is 13 days. If your app excels in the app store’s quality tests, then they will list your app on their store, and you will receive a welcome mail related to the acceptance of your app.
Marketing your app: To increase the number of downloads and active installs it is essential that you promote your app using different marketing channels. You can start from word of mouth promotion by asking your friends and family members to download and use the app. Beside this, you can also deploy social media advertising techniques and list your app on various pages that will help your app reach international audiences.
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What is CREM
Partners' Club
From Monday to Friday, 9.30am to 12.30pm
and 2 pm to 9 pm
Closed on Saturday and Sunday
CREM has aimed to unite certain actors of sectors that support its missions and share its vision in order to engage together in an approach of quality and professionalism alongside the members of the association, in order to assure members the guarantee of an efficient service and a high level of delivery in all areas of club activities.
In order to achieve this, CREM has created a « Partners' Club ». This Partners' Club comprises of actors who share our values of tradition, quality, elegance and a certain « Art de vivre ».
The role of the Partners' Club is to accompany and support CREM in its daily activities and to offer the partner businesses the opportunity to get to know the members of the association and to form personal contacts with them.
Founded in 1933, Air France is the number one French airline and a leading global player in its three main areas of activity: passenger transport, cargo transport and aircraft maintenance. From its hubs at Paris-Orly and Paris-Charles de Gaulle airports, the airline operates flights to 195 destinations and 91 countries.
The Air France Group and CREM signed a partnership agreement in order to offer members a multitude of advantages. These include specific offers in first class, business and economy, organisation of exclusive events in the world of travel or cultural events, gifts and VIP treatment in order to make our Members' journey even more pleasant.
Discover more about our partner: www.airfrance.fr
Barclays was established in Monaco in 1922. It was the first foreign wealth management firm to open its doors in Monaco’s Golden Square and is now one of the most respected financial institutions in the principality. From Monaco, they draw on the full skills and knowledge of Barclays Group, which traces its origins to 1690 and is renowned for financial stability, international experience and innovative services. As a Private Bank they bring the breadth and scale of what they do as a banking group to their individual clients, channelling this know-how and reaching out across their network to unlock broader capabilities. Barclays challenges the expected, presenting fresh ideas, opportunities and perspectives in a way that is entirely relevant to you.
Discover more about our partner: privatebank.barclays.com
The Taittinger family has managed the Champagne House for nearly a century. Its aim has always been the pursuit of excellence.The vitality and reach of the Taittinger brand is based on the values of those who embody it today. These values are inherited from those who created the Champagne House. Over three generations, a number of people have left their mark on the history, spirit and style of Taittinger and, beyond that, on the image of Champagne itself.
CREM has signed a partnership with Champagne Taittinger, one of the biggest independent Champagne Houses and has therefore become the official champagne of the club. Further priviledges and advantages accompany this exclusive offer.
Discover more about our partner: www.taittinger.com
Legal Mention
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Notable Alumni!!
no·ta·ble \‘nō-tə-bəl, adjective:
A: Worthy Of Note, B: Remarkable, C: Distinguished, D: Prominent
POST-HIGH SCHOOL:
1.Entertainment
Andre Romelle Young a/k/a: Dr. Dre c/o '83 (Record Producer, Professional Rapper, Entrepreneur, and Actor: Andre a/k/a: Dr. Dre, is the founder and current CEO of Aftermath Entertainment and Beats Electronics. Dre was previously the co-owner and artist of Death Row Records. He has produced albums for and overseen the careers of many rappers, including Snoop Dogg, Eminem, Knoc-turn'al, Xzibit, 50 Cent, The Game and more recently Kendrick Lamar. He is credited as a key figure in the popularization of West Coast G-funk, a style of rap music characterized as synthesizer-based with slow, heavy beats. In 2016, Dr. Dre was ranked as the richest figure in the American hip hop scene by Forbes with a net worth of $710 million.)
David Marvin Blake a/k/a: D.J. Quik c/o '88 (Professional Rapper/Hip Hop Artist: David a/k/a: Quik, was chiefly inspired by funk and soul artists, such as Roger Troutman (who even taught him the use of the talkbox, which became a trademark for Quik's sound throughout his career) and George Clinton. Out of respect for his beloved friend, Roger Troutman, he retired the talkbox. David's love for music began at 2, as his mother had an extensive record collection. By age 12 he was already playing instruments, and by the age of 21, he was a platinum-selling artist.)
Alfanette "Alfie" Silas-Durio c/o '74 (Professional Singer: Alfie Silas is a top notch session singer, along with being a competent artist in her own right.)
Alonzo Eric Williams "Lonzo" c/o '75 (Record Executive: Known across the world as Lonzo “The World Class Grand Master” of the World Class Wreckin Cru, which landed such hits as “Dr. Dre's Surgery”, “Cabbage Patch” and the Hip Hop classic “Turn Out the Lights”. Lonzo is the Founder of the Hip Hop Hall of Fame and Edutainment Center, creator of the World Class Wreckin Cru and also known as the “Godfather of West Coast Rap”. During his more than twenty-five plus years in the music industry, Lonzo has helped to structure the futures of some of today's hottest talents such as Dr. Dre, Battlecat, DJ Rectangle and Ice Cube to mention a few. Alonzo also authored the book N.ot W.ithout A.lonzo the book is the prequel to Straight Outta Compton the most successful biopic of all time. This story takes you through the untold story of Alonzo "Lonzo" Williams the God father of West Coast hip hop, as he paved the way for superstars Dr. Dre, Ice Cube and Easy E. This book details the true story like no other book or the movie. A must read for any true hip hop fan. The story is told first hand by Lonzo the man who lived the story.)
Tammie Gibson c/o '76 (Professional Singer: Tammie, has recorded with Stevie Wonder, Michael Jackson, Quincy Jones, Madonna, Larry Graham, Elton John & the Temptations just to name a few!!)
Geary L. Faggette c/o '71 (Professional Musician: Music Teacher, Director & Musician for Andre Crouch, Madonna, Movie & Film Scores.)
Cynthia Sewart-Simons c/o '75 (Professional Singer: Cynthia,vocal ministry paved the way for her to appear in such movies as Blessed & Cursed - 2010, The Gospel - 2005, The Parkers - 2004, Show Time Cable Series Soul Food - 2004, to name a few. She has performed on stage with Stevie Wonder, Fred Hammond, Donnie McClurkin, The Jackson Southernairs, Rev. James Cleveland, BeBe & CeCe Winans, Shirley Caesar, Walter Hawkins, Edwin Hawkins, Vanessa Bell- Armstrong, The Winans, Martha Munizzi, and the list goes on. She also toured with The Bob Hope Celebrity Showcase performing before thousands of men and women serving in the United States Army.)
Ronald Bruner Sr. c/o '74 (Professional Musician Drummer: Ronald, has recorded & performed with everyone from the Temptations, Diana Ross, Gary Bartz, Billy Mitchell, Vicky Winans, Chapter 8, The Supremes, Freda Payne, Helen Baylor, Jody Watley, Johnny Gill, The Mighty Clouds of Joy, Hanna Barbara Cartoons, Howard Hewitt, Gladys Knight, Randy Crawford, The L. A. Ballet, Syreeta Wright, Chameleon, Della Reese, J*Davey & Disney!!)
Voncielle Faggett c/o '73 (Professional Singer)
Rodney Friend c/o '75 (Professional "Gospel" Songwriter, Singer & Musician: Rodney has worked with and written for artist such as Nicholas, Vernessa Mitchell, Natalie Cole, Sandy Patti, Darryl Coley, Darren Rhodes and Crystal Lewis & is a 3 time Grammy Nominee!!)
Phillip Charles c/o '76 (Professional Musician: Guitarist)
David Foreman c/o '82 (Professional Musician Guitarist: David has played for Brandy Norwood, Will Smith, Bruno Mars, DJ Quik, Ginuwine, Yolanda Adams, LL Cool J, Boyz II Men, Snoop Dogg, Deborah Cox just to name a few. He produce, engineer, compose, write and play multiple instruments including bass guitar & has worldwide published and distributed music.)
Lawrence McKinney c/o '79 (Professional Musician Bass Guitarist: Lawrence, played for the Coasters 1981 thru 89 then played for the Younghearts!!)
Keith R. Lundy Sr. c/o '62 (Retired, Motion Picture Camera Operator: Keith, was the first Black set painter in Hollywood!!)
Kendrick Lamar Duckworth c/o '05 (Professional Rapper/Hip Hop Artist: He is a member of Black Hippy along with Jay Rock, Ab-Soul and Schoolboy Q. In 2009 he released an EP titled The Kendrick Lamar EP, a highly acclaimed mixtape in 2010 titled O(verly) D(edicated) and released his third professional solo project Section.80 on July 2nd, 2011. In August 2011, Lamar was onstage with Snoop Dogg, Dr. Dre and The Game, the three of them crowned him the "New King of the West Coast". In October 2011, Dr. Dre announced the signing of Kendrick Lamar to his label Aftermath Entertainment, and working with his protege Slim The Mobster!!)
2.Sports
Lonnie Smith c/o '74 (Pro Baseball Player "Outfielder": Lonnie is the only player to be a member of three different World Series winning teams (the Phillies, Cardinals, and Royals) within a single decade, and he did this in a six-year period.)
Floyd Hodge c/o '77 (Pro Football Player "Wide Receiver": Floyd made his professional debut in the NFL in 1982 with the Atlanta Falcons. He played for the Atlanta Falcons for his entire 3 year career)
Jeanette Bolden c/o '78 (Olympian Athlete Competed mainly in the 100 meters: Jeanette competed for the United States in the 1984 Summer Olympics held in Los Angeles, U.S. in the 4 x 100 meters where she won the gold medal with her team mates 100 meter silver medalist Alice Brown, Chandra Cheeseborough and Olympic 100m champion Evelyn Ashford. She also placed 4th in the 100 meters in a time of 11.25 seconds, & is currently head track and field coach for UCLA's woman's program, in 2008 she served as the United States Olympic Woman's Head Coach)
Roy White c/o '61 (Pro Baseball Player "Outfielder": Roy, played his entire career for the New York Yankees between 1965 and 1979. White, a switch hitter, was named to two All Star teams (1969, 1970). He led the American League in Runs Scored in 1976 and in Walks in 1972. He played on two World Series champions, in 1977 and 1978 and a third AL pennant winner in 1976.)
Don Wilson c/o '63 (Pro Baseball Player "Pitcher": Don, was recruited by the Astros in 1966, where he played until 1974. Wilson was known as one of the hardest throwers in the National League. On June 18, 1967, Wilson no-hit the Atlanta Braves 2-0 at the Astrodome, the no-hitter was the first ever pitched either in a domed stadium or on artificial turf, along the way he struck out 15 batters, including Hank Aaron for the final out. In 1968, Wilson set the Astros club record for single-game strikeouts with 18 against the Dodgers. In 1971 Wilson made the National League All-Star Team & earn Astros MVP honors, Wilson's last game was a two-hit, 5-0 shutout against the Braves on September 28, 1974.)
Carl "Reggie" Smith c/o '63 (Pro Baseball Player "Outfielder": Carl "Reggie", Coach and front office executive. During a 17-year big league career "1966-1982", Smith appeared in 1,987 games, hit 314 home runs and batted .287. He was a switch-hitter who threw right-handed. In his prime, he had one of the strongest throwing arms of any outfielder in the big leagues. Smith played at least 70 games in 13 different seasons, and in every one of those 13 seasons, his team had a winning record. He won the International League batting title in 1966 with a .320 average while playing for the Toronto Maple Leafs. He was called up to the major leagues the next season and played for the Boston Red Sox "-73", St. Louis Cardinals "1974-76", Los Angeles Dodgers "1976-81" and San Francisco Giants "1982". Smith appeared in four World Series, including during his rookie 1967 season for the Red Sox, and three "1977, 1978 and 1981" for the Dodgers. He hit three home runs in the 1977 series.)
Charles Dumas c/o '55 (Olympian Athlete High Jumper: Charles, a 1956 Olympic champion, and the first person to clear 7 ft. While attending Compton College Dumas, made his memorable jump on June 29, 1956, in the US Olympic Trials in Los Angeles, breaking a barrier previously thought unbreakable. That jump not only ensured him of a place in the American Olympic team, but also made him the top favorite for the gold medal at the 1956 Summer Olympics. In Melbourne, he did not disappoint, and grabbed the title in a new Olympic Record. Next, he enrolled at the University of Southern California, winning the NCAA track and field title with the university team in 1958. In 1960, Dumas competed in his second Olympics, but a knee injury prevented him from winning a second medal, finishing 6th.)
Arron Afflalo c/o '03 (Pro Basketball Player "Shooting Guard": Arron, is noted for being the first player recruited by UCLA coach Ben Howland to play for Howland at UCLA, Arron, helped lead Centennial High School to a California Division-III title in 2003-2004, his senior year of high school, started 29 games the next season for the UCLA Bruins as a freshman, averaging 10.8 points per game and playing the role of a defensive stopper. On June 28, 2007, he was drafted with the 27th overall pick in the NBA Draft by the Detroit Pistons. On July 13, 2009, he was traded along with Walter Sharpe to the Denver Nuggets in exchange for a second round pick in the 2011 NBA Draft. On November 10, 2009, he was inserted into the Denver Nuggets starting lineup. On January 25, 2010, he made six three-point baskets against the Charlotte Bobcats, setting a new career high in three-point baskets made in one game. On February 10, 2011 Afflalo made a 20-foot jump shot at the buzzer over Shawn Marion as Denver beat Dallas 121-120. The Nuggets trailed by as many as 13 in the 4th and were down 119-110 with under 2 minutes to play before pulling off a miraculous upset victory. Afflalo had 19 points in the fourth quarter alone to almost single-handedly power Denver to the win.)
3.Law/Business/Education
Dion Teague c/o '75 (Dean of Students)
Joyce Madry-Johnson c/o '75 (Community College Dean of Career Education)
Reginald 'Reggie" Sirls c/o '76 (Principal : Morningside High School)
Yvette Mayhorn-Harps c/o '78 (Principal)
Timothy Mason c/o '75 (University Professor)
Douglas Melson c/o '76 (Attorney at Law)
Natalie Roberts c/o '75 (Attorney at Law)
Aaron Bryant c/o '88 (Business Executive CEO at Aaron P Bryant Enterprises, Inc: Aaron, grew his small business into a multi-million dollar company since he left the Army as a Special Operations soldier called, Airborne Rangers "he is a combat veteran" back in '98. Then he became a Sheriff for about 2 years but left due to his military injury; before starting his own business in 2001 by doing government contracting and private consulting. His corporation owns at least 4 other major businesses and non-profits - while also volunteering as a high school golf coach in his 'spare time'. Currently Bryant, is working on his book as his marketing firm is ready to coordinate his public appearances regarding his business expertise.)
Jacqueline "Jacquet" Williams c/o '63 (Formed the Black Flight Attendants of America "BFAOA": BFAOA, a nonprofit organization promoting careers in the aviation industry. BFAOA, started with about 50 flight attendants in Los Angeles, and now they have more than 300 members in nine chapters. The group’s mission statement comes from a speech by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in which he talked about leading a committed life. Jacqueline "Jacquet" Williams made a commitment to give back to her community by helping kids realize their potential. “Kids in south central Los Angeles sit on their front porch and watch the planes take off and land at LAX,” she says. “So I talk to kids about careers in aviation and show them the possibilities of traveling the world.”)
Mickey Cureton c/o '67 (Former Dean of Students, Assistant Principal & Principal: Lynwood High School)
Jerlilia L. Ryan c/o '75 (Business Executive CEO at Independent Real Estate Brokerage Co.- Jerlilia L. Ryan Realty). Before starting her Realty company Jerlilia was a Contract Specialist For a Large Aeronautic Company. (PGTC) for 2 Years, a Owner/Operator Of Small Fashion Accessory Store, (Savior Faire), for 4 Years, a President/CEO Of a Industrial Supply Co. (J.R. Industrial Supply) for 8 Years, Publisher/Owner Of a Small Fashion Magazine, (Vivid Profile) for 3 Years, a Buyer For the Department Of The Navy, (NSC) for 10 Years. Currently Jerlilia, is working on her Law Degree.
Jose F. Bright c/o '78 (Attorney at Law) Loyola Marymount University, Loyola Law school, Lives in South Africa, Started K1-K12 school in South Africa
4.Health Care
Phoebe Macon c/o '75 (Health Educator/Project Coordinator: Phoebe started the "Prevention Connection" Salon/Pharmacy Outreach Project for the L.A. County Public Health Programs (STD Program). The Project is still going strong. It is in its 20th Year now.
Enrico Melson c/o '73 (MD Medical Doctor, MPH, FACPM, DAAPM, MHT, MBE: Dr. EnRico Melson was a National Merit/ California Physicians Scholar at Harvard University, receiving his A.B. in Public Health, (self-designed) in 1977)
Teresa McNair c/o '75 (MD Medical Doctor)
Anthony Duncan c/o '76 (DDS Dentist)
Steven Green c/o '74 (MD Medical Doctor)
5.Politics
Omar Bradley c/o '76 (Mayor Of Compton CA. 1993-2001, Compton City Councilman 1st District 1991-1993)
6.Motivational Speakers
Linda Hodo c/o '79 (Educator-Writer/Publisher/Motivational Speaker: Linda, has served as an educational administrator for over 23 years in the public and private school system. She’s a graduate of Laverne University where she earned her doctorate in Educational Leadership in 1998. Prior to attending Laverne, she obtained her Master degree in Curriculum from California State Dominquez Hills and a Bachelors degree in Liberal Studies from Azusa Pacific University in 1993. Her knowledge and expertise has paved the way for her to speak locally and nationally regarding educational and spiritual topics. She is currently on her promoting her published books, Only In My Dreams and Dreaming/ Sonando.)
7.Journalists (Broadcast and Print)/Photo Journalists/Authors
Howard L. Bingham c/o '57 (Photographer: After initially failing a photography course, he was hired by a local newspaper and there he met the young Cassius Clay (later to become Muhammad Ali). The two built up an instant rapport and many years later, Bingham went on to create arguably the definitive book of photographs of Ali, Muhammad Ali: A Thirty-Year Journey. Bingham was the first black photographer to work on a Hollywood Camera Guild crew. His photographs have been published in magazines and periodicals including: Life, Look, Time, Newsweek, Sports Illustrated, People, Ebony and others. He was selected as a photographer for the 1990 project Songs of My People.)
Ronald "Ron" Robinson c/o '67 (Reporter: CNN Headline News.)
8.Law Enforcement/Armed Forces
Oceal Green-Victory c/o '75 (Commander: Los Angeles County Sheriff's Dept.)
Sidney Spear c/o '75 (Pilot Instructor/Training Development: United Airlines: Sidney, joined the Air Force in 1976, Retired in 1996. Flight Engineer on C-141 and KC-10 with over 7,000 hours of flight time. Sidney, has been in 2 conflicts, Panama & the first Gulf War & also met 2 Presidents, Reagan & the first Bush, he's also been on every continent in the world. In 1977 Sidney, joined United Airlines in Denver as a Pilot Instructor and later as a Training Developer, he's currently traveling between Denver and Chicago doing training development.)
Tyrone Johnson c/o '75 (In 1987 Tyrone, enlisted in the Army National Guard then later enlisted in the regular ARMY and became a career soldier. His primary specialty was as a track and wheel vehicle mechanic then later in the years of 9/11, Tyrone soon found himself being deployed to war, Four Iraq campaigns and One Kosovo campaign. Tyrone is now retired and presently resides in Fountain, Colorado.)
NOTABLE HIGH SCHOOL ACHIEVEMENTS:
1.Academics: Arrows, C.S.F. (California Scholarship Federation) & Etc.
2.A.S.B. (Associated Student Body)
Mickey Cureton c/o '67 (Football Player "Halfback": Mickey Cureton Named Player Of The Year In CIF "AAAA" Play For 2nd Year.)
4.Homecoming
5.Senior Personalities
If you know of any Centennial High Alumnus who should be added to this list, send the person's name, graduate year, and what he/she is noteworthy for to: centennialhighalumni@hotmail.com
Your comments on the Notable Alumni are Welcome!
Click Here to leave a comment!
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Interview: Prof Charles Egbu - ‘Mental wealth is key to changing construction’
21 June 2019 | By Will Mann
It’s time for industry leadership on mental health, which affects all aspects of construction from boardroom to site, argues new CIOB president professor Charles Egbu. He spoke to Will Mann about his plans for his presidential term.
Mental health and wellbeing will be one of the key themes of Professor Charles Egbu’s term as president of the Chartered Institute of Building (CIOB), which begins this month.
The pro-vice chancellor at the University of East London (UEL) sees the issue as a “golden thread” – coining a term used by Dame Judith Hackitt – which runs right through the industry, affecting decision-making from the boardroom through to site, and in turn impacting on skills, quality, health and safety, sustainability and profitability.
“Construction can be stressful, but other industries could say the same,” Egbu reasons. “If you work in medicine, for example, the implications of not doing your job properly are very severe. But medical professionals are not ashamed to say they are stressed, unable to work properly and rest.
“Whereas in construction, there is this macho culture, where people don’t accept they are unwell, unable to do a job, and may need help. And so the job doesn’t get done properly, and the consequences of that may be seen immediately – through accidents on site – or not till further down the line.
“Leadership has a role here. It is time for industry leaders to challenge some aspects of this macho culture in construction, especially when it impacts negatively on the wellbeing of our workers, the quality of what we deliver, the safety of the people who occupy the buildings we construct and ultimately the bottom line too.
Charles Egbu: CV
Appointed pro-vice chancellor (education and experience) at University of East London in May 2019.
Dean at School of Built Environment and Architecture, London South Bank University, and professor of project management and strategic management in construction, 2014 to 2019.
Professor of project management and strategic management in construction, University of Salford, 1998 to 2007. Also served as associate head of research and innovation.
Doctorate in construction project management from the University of Salford.
First degree (first class honours) in quantity surveying, Leeds Polytechnic.
Over 15 books and 300 research publications to his credit. Supervised over 20 PhD students and examined over 100 PhDs internationally. Has received more than £25m in research funding in his areas of research interests in the built environment.
Admitted to the Worshipful Company of Constructors in May 2017 and received the Freedom of the City of London in 2017.
“Construction, unlike other industries, seemingly doesn’t appreciate that mental health equals wealth. When you are well, you make better decisions and make more money.”
Wellbeing and output
There’s a strong link, Egbu notes, between worker wellbeing and the quality of their output – which has been a key CIOB policy issue since 2016 and is likely to remain so for the foreseeable future.
“How often is poor workmanship due to workers being stressed?” he asks. “It’s absolutely right that the CIOB is spotlighting quality, even more so following Dame Judith Hackitt’s recommendations. It permeates everything we do as an industry – design, materials, workmanship – but also decision-making and management processes.
“Do managers always gather enough information to make the right decision, take time to look at the alternative options, consult with other members of team? Too often the process just uses cost as the basis of decision-making. What about overall added value?
“But the bigger cost comes when poor quality decision-making leads to bad work-manship, rework and extra expense.”
Egbu’s concern is that the focus on quality tends to come and go in cycles. “It’s now centre stage because of the Edinburgh school collapse and Grenfell, but I worry that it will slip off the agenda in five years or so,” he says.
“It needs to be embedded in all kinds of training and education, including vocational training. UEL, like a number of universities with courses in construction management and construction-related areas, is accredited by the CIOB, and as part of that, our built environment curriculum should be infused with quality.”
Egbu joined UEL in May 2019, and sits on the university executive board, the latest move in a distinguished built environment career that includes spells at other respected academic institutions, University College London (UCL), University of Salford, Glasgow Caledonian University and London South Bank University.
Through his work, the professor sees at close quarters how the built environment sector is changing – a more globalised industry, rapid uptake of digital technology, a millennial generation with different attitudes to their predecessors.
“There is a more international dimension to construction,” Egbu says. “The Global Construction 2030 study forecasts construction output will grow by 85% by 2030, with three countries – China, US and India – accounting for 57% of all growth.
It’s staggering.
“And these countries are looking at artificial intelligence, machine engineering, automation, digital, offsite manufacturing – to help them build faster, smarter, more cheaply, with higher quality.
“With that mind, if you are planning the education of a construction manager – wouldn’t you want them to have an international outlook? Whatever happens with Brexit, the UK psyche has to look outward to the wider world – improving our skill base, winning work. We won’t do that by being myopic and inward looking.”
“Whatever happens with Brexit, the UK psyche has to look outward to the wider world – improving our skill base, winning work. We won’t do that by being myopic and inward looking.”
UEL opened its cutting-edge London Centre for Digital Design and Manufacturing last year, which is central to teaching students about “Industry 4.0” – the fourth industrial revolution. From September 2019,
all of the university’s programmes will have a module that addresses Industry 4.0 readiness, says Egbu.
“Students will become familiar with connected enterprise and technologies to develop intelligent processes – automated, flexible and self-learning,” he enthuses. “This also includes connecting production facilities with technologies such as the internet of
things and big data analytics – and identifying a role for those technologies whatever industry they choose to go into.
“So, if we can give our up-and-coming construction managers these skills and competencies – that is how they will add value in our industry.”
He believes the millennial generations have the “thirst for knowledge” to learn about these technologies, and an internationalist outlook.
“It’s up to construction and the CIOB to capture that thirst and encourage them to forge links elsewhere in the world,” Egbu says. “This generation will likely have more than one career, so they will make high demands from industries they work in. Construction, which is still struggling with a skills shortage, should bear that in mind.”
Health gain and learning gain
Egbu also believes the millennials are more aware of mental health. “They want employers who will be sensible about worker wellbeing,” he says.
UEL is walking the walk on “mental wealth”, as Egbu puts it, introducing a “health gain” module this September 2019, worth 20 credits, which all students will take. He says UEL believes that health gain is a pre-condition of “learning gain”, and of institutional success.
“We are saying this is a precursor to success, in any industry,” Egbu adds. “Mental illness costs the UK £94bn a year, according to the OECD, a huge figure.
“The message is clear: if companies don’t look after their people, it costs more money in the long run. But the reverse is also true, companies with high levels of worker wellbeing are more profitable. So mental wealth is, arguably, key to changing construction.”
Charles Egbu on…
“Quality is sometimes seen as an add-on, which it’s not. There should be zero tolerance of poor quality, with checks and balances all the way through – the culture that manufacturing has in Japan.
…Fair payment
“I used to be a site QS over 20 years ago, and the culture during my time on site was to delay payments and frustrate subcontractors so they wouldn’t come back for their money. I hope that doesn’t exist now, but I worry there are still unfair payment issues. This affects subcontractors’ cashflow, productivity, quality...”
…Globalisation and project governance
“Projects are growing in size, cost and complexity, drawing together people from all over the world. Some cultures might say, ‘Why waste money on PPE and site welfare facilities?’ Some might look at bribery and corruption differently. So how do we govern such projects, adding value, but keeping workers safe and maintaining high levels of professionalism and ethical behaviour?”
“The World Economic Forum predicts more than 60% of the world will be living in cities by 2030. The impact of this is one of my key research areas. How do you make cities more resilient? What will the strain on infrastructure be? How will this impact health and wellbeing? These are questions construction must answer.”
…BAMEs in construction
“Only 3.4% of UK construction managers are BAMEs, compared to 11.3% of all construction employees. So, there are still barriers for BAMEs [black, Asian and minority ethnic people] in the industry. We need to provide leadership to change this, so that workers from ethnic minorities have a sense of belonging and want to contribute. Maximising diversity of all kinds contributes to innovation, creativity and productivity gains, and helps address skills shortages.”
Introducing a quality culture within a company the same way as the introduction of a health and safety culture can help in many ways as it show employees and clients alike that not only do the inspectors care about standards but every member of the team cares
Mark Green, 2 July 2019
Any company that didn't care about giving their customer what they need and what they're paying for shouldn't be surprised if business dries up. Caring about quality is therefore of existential importance for any business.
John Chipman, 4 July 2019
Latest articles in Insight
BIM consultants and their role in digital transformation
Understanding envelope quality requirements on Passivhaus projects
Chartered women members show the way in the Middle East
Taking control of envelope quality
‘Gender roles are still prevalent in construction’
View all articles in Insight
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Relay For Life 2019 campaign kicks off with theme ‘Made In Michigan’
A group of Crawford-Oscoda County Relay For Life organizers and volunteers banded together on Saturday, Feb. 23, to “Channel The Flannel” to kickoff its annual campaign to help battle cancer.
The kickoff was held in the dining area at the Michelson Memorial United Methodist Church.
Ali Halfyard is the new event leader for Relay For Life of Crawford-Oscoda County. She is taking over coordinating and organizing the campaign from Nancy Goodyear, the employee and occupational health manager at Munson Healthcare Grayling Hospital.
“No one else stepped up to do it, and I didn’t want to see Relay just disappear out of Crawford County,” Halfyard said.
Halfyard comes into the role with a mix of emotions, being excited and nervous to take on the task. Her goal is to bring more community support, participation, and volunteers to support Relay For Life.
“We’re just trying to get more involvement,” she said.
Relay For Life of Crawford-Oscoda County will be held on Saturday, June 22, in the Grayling City Park. The event will be held from 1 p.m. to 11 p.m. with registration taking place at noon.
The theme this is “Made In Michigan.”
“Michigan Proud – that’s what we want to bring together is Michigan helping Michigan,” Halfyard said.
The theme for the Relay For Life kickoff was “Channel the Flannel” to recognize Arauco, AJD Forest Products, Weyerhaeuser, and Georgia-Pacific for the contributions wood manufacturers make in the community as well as their employees.
“We just want to bring a lot of awareness to the companies that manufacture wood and it’s a woodsy area,” Halfyard said.
The kickoff featured a coney dog bar as part of the tribute to Michigan. The American Coney Island was founded in 1917 by Constantine “Gust” Keros, who immigrated to Detroit from Greece in 1903.
The meal was rounded out with Better Made Chips, which was founded in Detroit in 1930, and Faygo, which was launched in the Motor City in 1907.
Abby Kovas, of Mio, is a member of the Families Against Cancer team. She volunteers for Relay for Life to support her grandmother, Donna Kovas, who has been cancer free for four years after dealing with lung cancer.
“It’s been a bumpy ride, and there has been a lot of harsh things going on, but she’s fought through it,” Abby said.
Abby said she remains involved with Relay for Life to raise awareness regarding cancer and to learn more to help others.
“It means a lot to me because I can help my grandma out more and I can be her caregiver for many more years,” she said.
Ed Brosky, of Grayling, served with the U.S. Army in the infantry during the Vietnam War in 1969-1970. He led a squad that searched out enemy forces.
“They would drop us in an area and would have to go and try to find them,” Brosky said.
Years after the war, Brosky was diagnosed with prostate cancer due to exposure to Agent Orange, an herbicide and defoliant chemical used in the jungles of Vietnam to eliminate cover for the enemy.
“I kept an eye on it, but it was really non-aggressive,” Brosky said.
In the winter of 2017, Brosky underwent surgery to deal with the cancer.
“Finally, it came to a point where I had to have it taken out,” Brosky said.
He is still on a three-year regiment to monitor any signs of cancer and to maintain his wellbeing.
“I go to my doctor every six months to get checked out, and so far so good,” Brosky said. “It is what it is. You have to deal with it. I feel lucky that they got it all, at least for right now.”
Brosky’s wife, Marianne, was diagnosed with colon cancer in June of 2018.
“I went through the winter with all my treatments,” she said.
Marianne’s family has a history with cancer.
“I come from a family of 10, and we’ve already lost three to cancer,” she said.
Marianne’s sister, Mary Murray, who lives in Texas, is also a cancer survivor.
“She had surgery, and hers was found early and they were able to get it really quick,” Marianne said.
Wayne Nelson, of Grayling, is a member of the Families Against Cancer Relay For Life team. He has had three bouts with kidney cancer, and is slated to have another surgery on March 13.
Nelson has been involved with Relay for Life since 2001, to honor his sister, Edna Dostal, who succumbed to cancer at an early age.
“What got me interested in Relay For Life, I lost a sister. She was 28-years-old in 1962. I helped my brother in-law drive to Rochester, Minnesota to the Mayo Clinic to help out,” Nelson said. “I remember very frankly the doctor said we won’t see you anymore. That is all we can do for you. A week later, she passed, and that is why I have been a cancer supporter.”
Bonnie Townsend and Janis Smith, of Grayling, were both on hand at the kickoff to support those battling cancer and to honor family members who have dealt with the disease.
“I had a cousin that didn’t make it,” Townsend said. “It means a lot to me, because I’m here for her, too, Townsend said.
Sandra Westover, a breast cancer survivor from Frederic, was at the kickoff to sign people up for the American Cancer Society’s Cancer Action Network. The organization raises money to fund cancer prevention, cancer research, and provide quality of life program for cancer patients.
Westover specifically highlighted legislation being spearheaded by Rep. Daire Rendon, R-Lake City, that would allow Michigan residents to use oral therapy – taking a pill – to receive their chemotherapy. She said the new treatment would bring more comfort to patients.
Rendon, who is a cancer survivor, is pursuing the legislation because Michigan is one of seven states in the nation that does not allow cancer patients to be treated through oral therapy.
Westover noted the American Cancer Society’s Cancer Action Network main priority is to keep legislation regarding cancer at the forefront in the minds of state and federal lawmakers.
“We’ve come too far with this research to let that slide,” she said.
Jessica Christensen, from Higgins Lake, is the event coordinator for Bark For A Cure, a Relay For Life event held in the Grayling City Park in October for cancer survivors and their dogs.
Christensen got involved with Relay For Life through her mother, Linda, who lives Sheridan, Michigan, and is 30-year cancer survivor
“I did a lot of Relay For Life back at home with her, and so now that I’m up north, I wanted to continue with my contributions up here,” she said.
Christensen recently signed up to be a volunteer driver for the Road to Recovery, which gives cancer patients rides to doctor’s appointments and chemotherapy treatments.
“If it wasn’t for people being able to drive, they wouldn’t have a way to get to their doctor’s appointments or to their chemotherapy,” Christensen said. “ It’s kind of heartwarming knowing you’re having that kind of participation in their journey with cancer treatment. It’s means a lot to me to able to do that because there is such an important need for it.”
Halfyard said the goal for Relay for Life this year is $25,000 as organizers strive to build up community support and recruit more volunteers. She added that Relay For Life has relaxed some of its restrictions on fundraisers.
“This year, they made it so you can pretty much do anything,” Halfyard said. “If it brings you joy, we want to see that turn that into a fundraiser to help people.”
Halfyard pointed out that if a volunteer raised $100, that will go to Road to Recovery Ride. It can also pay for stays in the Hope Lodge in Grand Rapids, where cancer patients can receive overnight accommodations while being treated by specialists in West Michigan.
Marianne Brosky urged cancer supporters to learn more about the Hope Lodge.
“I can say that anybody, if they’re in the Grand Rapids area, to go and see the Hope Lodge, because it is amazing,” she said.
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Hamish Hamilton 7 February 2008 h/b
‘Hello, I’m Oliver Tate, the protagonist. I’m likely to use words like protagonist and, moments later, words like twonk. My ambitions are as follows: to find out why my father sometimes stays in bed for days at a time; to find out why my mother’s getting surfing lessons – and probably more – from a hippy-looking twonk; and to lose my virginity before it becomes legal – in just over a year. I am monitoring my parents’ intimacy via the dimmer switch in their bedroom. My parents have not had sex in two months which, my research suggests, points towards impending marital breakdown. There are other, lesser characters in the book: Jordana, who is my love interest, despite her eczema; Zoe, whose only real schoolfriend is a dinner lady. I feel sorry for Zoe which, in turn, makes me feel better about my own life. Then there’s my friend Chips, an outstanding bully. This book might not change my life. But there is no telling how you will react.’
Joe Dunthorne was born and brought up in Swansea. His poetry has been featured on Channel 4 and Radio 3 and he has performed at festivals including Hay-on-Wye and Latitude. Now twenty-five, Joe lives in London. Submarine is his first novel.
“This is a brilliant first novel, by a young man of ferocious comic talent – Oliver is the finest teenage narrator since Adrian Mole.” The Times
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Contact the Communities, Sport and Recreation on 03 6232 7133 or Service Tasmania on 1300 135 513.
Mary Murdoch Crisp
Mary Murdoch Crisp was born in Hobart on 30 April 1924. She has lived in the Coal River Valley all her life and is widely recognised for her extensive community involvement.
Mary was educated at home, Cambridge Primary School and Fahan School, becoming President of the Fahan Old Scholars Association in the 1960s. She began her voluntary work early in life, joining the Junior Red Cross in 1934, an association she has continued to the present day.
As a member of the Red Cross during WWII, Mary was a member of the ladies’ groups that provided support, hospitality, entertainment and catering for soldiers in various camps in the Coal River Valley. She has been a volunteer of the Richmond Branch of the Red Cross since 1940 and has been President of the branch since 1976. Mary was President of the Southern Regional Council twice and a member of the State Divisional Council for approximately 24 years. Mary’s service to the Red Cross has been recognised through a number of presentations, including the Red Cross Long Service Award to mark 70 years service, a Certificate of Appreciation from the Mayor of Clarence City Council in recognition of her outstanding service and the Distinguished Service Medal in 1999.
Mary’s service to her community has included years of leadership and service to the Richmond Hall and Reserves Committee, the National Trust Ladies’ Committee, the Richmond Agricultural Show, Meals on Wheels and the South East Nursing and Home Care Association.
Mary has also been recognised for her contribution to the Sorell Rotary Club, receiving the Paul Harris Fellowship in 1988 for her contribution to the local community. Her extensive volunteering contribution to her community was recognised in 2001 when the Clarence City Council presented her with a Centenary of Federation Local Hero Award.
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#1,085. The Manipulator (1971)
Directed By: Yabo Yablonsky
Starring: Mickey Rooney, Luana Anders, Keenan Wynn
Trivia: This film was also released as B.J. Presents
Most DVD collectors are familiar with Mill Creek Entertainment, a company that regularly releases bargain-priced box sets featuring a variety of public domain films. I’ve purchased a few of these sets over the years, some with as many as 50 movies in them (like Nightmare Worlds and Pure Terror). Naturally, the picture quality isn’t the best (most look downright awful), but, hey, when you’re getting 50 movies for $10, you can't expect HD-level playback, right?
During this challenge of mine, I’ve dipped into one or two of these sets, and have to say that. so far, I liked what I've seen (Drums in the Deep South, an underrated picture about the U.S. Civil War, was part of Mill Creek’s Combat Classics). The Mill Creek collection I’ve returned to most often is their Drive-In Movie Classics, which features 50 different films, mostly horror and exploitation, from all around the world. Absolution is in this set, as is Day of the Panther and In Hot Pursuit, three movies I definitely enjoyed. Of course, that’s only three out of 50. How many of the remaining 47 are hidden gems, just waiting to be discovered?
I probably won’t get around to watching all 47 anytime soon, but over the course of the next five days, I’ll be checking out a quintet of films from this set, the first of which is an oddity from 1971 titled The Manipulator, starring Mickey Rooney as a former Hollywood make-up artist who has completely lost his mind.
For years now, B.J. Lang (Rooney ) has been living in a forgotten sound stage on a studio back lot, a place filled with costumes, props, and equipment left over from Hollywood’s heyday. But he’s not alone; he’s kidnapped a struggling actress he repeatedly refers to as “Carlotta” (Luana Anders), who he’s strapped to a wheelchair, forcing her to take part in the various “productions” he stages. In fact, Lang’s about to make his masterpiece, a movie adaptation of Cyrano De Bergerac, in which he himself will play the title role.
The Manipulator is a bizarre film that dives headfirst into some very strange territory. First off, the two main characters are clearly insane. Lang spends large chunks of time talking to himself, pretending that he’s chatting with old associates, and at one point interacts with a naked elderly couple (figments of his imagination), all the while droning on about his past accomplishments. I would never have pictured Mickey Rooney in a role like this, but he does a fantastic job, convincingly portraying a man whose psyche has been shattered.
Equally as good is Luana Anders as Carlotta, whose insanity is a by-product of her never-ending situation. She, too, has hallucinations (most of which involve her escaping) and continually calls to Lang, as if she’s afraid he’s left her alone to die. Both Rooney and Anders are strong in their respective roles, pulling off the amazing feat of carrying an entire motion picture by themselves.
At times, The Manipulator feels a little stage bound, and is dialogue heavy, yet Rooney and Anders keep things moving at a brisk pace. Their performances, coupled with director Yablonsky’s sharp camera angles and jarring cuts, transform The Manipulator into one very disturbing motion picture.
Chanell D Gautreaux said...
Wow. This film sounds both amazing and disturbing.
James Robert Smith said...
Mickey Rooney was absolutely insanely talented. His various financial straits left him a sad character in real life after his box office start faded, but it did not diminish the level of his talent. The guys was phenomenal. Although he worked almost constantly, so much of the things he did in the way of movies and TV dropped out of sight as soon as they were completed.
Thanks for posting this. I had never so much as heard of it and I'll try to find a copy.
When my wife and I take our travel trailer into far away campgrounds deep in National Forests we often buy those bargain basement DVDs with a dozen or more old films on them. Surprisingly, we have found that almost all of the movies are at least watchable, and some of them are excellent.
#1,081. Baadasssss Cinema (2002)
#1,082. Herschell Gordon Lewis: The Godfather of G...
#1,083. Vicky Cristina Barcelona (2008)
#1,084. American Mary (2012)
#1,086. The Legend of Bigfoot (1976)
#1,087. Rituals (1977)
#1,088. Snowbeast (1977)
#1,089. Prisoners of the Lost Universe (1983)
#1,090. Vincent (1982)
#1,091. Harlow (1965)
#1,092. Seven Psychopaths (2012)
#1,093. They Call Me Trinity (1970)
#1,094. Goldfinger (1964)
#1,095. Evil Dead (2013)
#1,096. House Hunting (2013)
#1,097. Superman and the Mole-Men (1951)
#1,098. How Green Was My Valley (1941)
#1,099. The 50 Worst Movies Ever Made (2004)
#1,100. The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (1948)
#1,101. 42nd Street Forever: Volume 1 (2005)
#1,102. Beetlejuice (1988)
#1,103. The Jungle Book (1967)
#1,104. Beneath the Planet of the Apes (1970)
#1,105. Resident Evil: Apocalypse (2004)
#1,106. Night and Fog (1955)
#1,107. Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1978)
#1,108. The Incredible Hulk (2008)
#1,109. Seven Up! (1964)
#1,110. Frenzy (1972)
#1,111. The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of t...
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Directed By: Anthony Mann
Starring: Sophia Loren, Stephen Boyd, Alec Guinness
Tag line: "Spectacle! Passions! Savagery!"
Trivia: Alec Guinness admitted that he never saw more than twenty minutes of the completed film
Having already produced such epics as El Cid, King of Kings and 55 Days at Peking, Samuel Bronston next turned his attention to ancient Rome, and his 1964 film The Fall of the Roman Empire is a grand, sweeping, monster of a movie, with enormous set pieces, thousands of extras, and action scenes galore.
The year is 180 A.D. Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius (Alec Guinness) is in the north, leading his armies against a fierce band of Germanic invaders. Old and in poor health, Marcus knows his days are numbered, and that it is time for him to name his successor. But instead of selecting his son Commodus (Christopher Plummer) to follow him, Marcus chooses Livius (Stephen Boyd), his most trusted General, to be the next Roman Emperor.
Livius, who is close friends with Commodus, has no interest in ruling such a vast empire. Though urged to accept by Lucilla (Sophia Loren) - his lover and Marcus’s only daughter - Livius instead steps aside, allowing Commodus to succeed his father (who is poisoned and dies before he can sign the official document naming Livius his heir).
But while Marcus Aurelius was a man of peace, his son Commodus, who spends the majority of his free time training with gladiators, rules the empire with an iron fist, doubling all taxes and promising to deal harshly with anyone who opposes him. Realizing that his friend has become a tyrant, Livius, with the help of Marcus Aurelius’ former advisor Timonides (James Mason), defies Commodus by showing mercy to the Germanic tribes of Ballomar (John Ireland), who were recently defeated in battle. Angered by his actions, Commodus banishes Livius, only to recall him a short while later when the Eastern provinces rise up against Rome.
Will Livius do as Commodus asks and crush the rebellion, or will he instead join forces with Lucilla, who wants nothing more than to see her brother deposed?
Does any of this sound familiar? It should, because Ridley Scott’s 2000 Best Picture winner Gladiator is set in this exact time period, and features many of the same characters (oddly enough, Richard Harris refused the role of Commodus in this 1964 film, only to play the young Emperor’s father, Marcus Aurelius, in Gladiator).
Being something of a history buff, I’ve always enjoyed The Fall of the Roman Empire (sure, it’s not 100% historically accurate, but what movie is?). The opening sequences, in which Marcus Aurelius and the Roman forces fight the Germanic tribes in the snow-covered North, are wonderfully realized (you can just about feel the chill hit your skin whenever the wind howls), and the various battle scenes scattered throughout are as exciting as they are impressive (especially the Battle of the Four Armies that occurs late in the movie). The real spectacle, though, is the immense Roman Forum, which, if some sources are to be believed, was the single largest set ever constructed up to that time (it measured 1312 x 754 feet, or 400 x 230 meters).
As for the performances, most are exceptional; the only one that rubs me the wrong way is Stephen Boyd’s portrayal of Livius. He’s certainly not terrible in the role, and based on his turn as the villainous Messala in Ben-Hur he obviously had a knack for playing larger-then-life figures. In The Fall of the Roman Empire, however, Boyd comes across as flat, and the early love scenes between him and Loren’s Lucilla have zero energy (though the chemistry between the two does improve as the movie progresses).
Again, Boyd doesn’t hurt the film, but it’s best moments (aside from the battles) are those that feature either Alec Guinness or Christopher Plummer, both of whom are in top form (Guinness is especially strong as the aging Marcus Aurelius, and when his character dies we’re as convinced as the Romans themselves are that a great man has been lost).
Much like 1963’s Cleopatra, The Fall of the Roman Empire was a late entry in the historical epics genre, and while the movie itself was a box office bomb (rumor has it producer Samuel Bronston had to declare bankruptcy as a result of this film), it’s still a massively entertaining motion picture, and stands as a shining example of Hollywood at its decadent best.
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Canada, US & Mexico joint bid wins right to host tournament
(EBC; June 13, 2018) - The 2026 World Cup will be held in the United States, Canada and Mexico after their joint bid beat Morocco's proposal to host it.
The 'United 2026' bid was selected by Fifa member nations, winning 134 votes compared to 65 for Morocco.
The 2026 tournament will be the biggest World Cup ever held - with 48 teams playing 80 matches over 34 days.
"Football is the only victor. We are all united in football," US Soccer president Carlos Cordeiro said.
"Thank you so, so much for this incredible honour. Thank you for entrusting us with this privilege."
Of the 211 Fifa member nations, 200 cast a vote at the 68th Fifa Congress in Moscow on Wednesday, with the winning bid needing a majority of 104.
Canada, Mexico, Morocco and the US were exempt, while Ghana was absent after the country's government said it had disbanded its football association amid allegations of "widespread" corruption.
Three US territories - Guam, the US Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico - were among the other member nations to not vote.
Both Mexico (1970 and 1986) and the United States (1994) have previously hosted World Cups.
Canada staged the Women's World Cup in 2015.
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The importance of Katsikas wet meadows for the conservation of endangered wetland avifauna of the Lake Pamvotis
This paper examines the use of Katsikas wet meadows by waterbirds, during the periods of winter/spring 2010-2011 and winter/spring 2012-2013. Katsikas is an area located in the southern part of Lake Pamvotis near Ioannina, a city in Northwestern Greece. The purpose of our research was to examine the importance of this habitat for the presence of the endangered avifauna of Lake Pamvotis. We collected data during two periods of systematic observation and we further combined the findings with previously unpublished data. Systematic surveys were conducted every 7 days, in a six-month period (December 14th to June 19th), with full coverage of the study area. Additionally, once a month on the same date every year, we mapped the extent of flooded wet meadows in that area. 77 waterbird species have been recorder in Lake Pamvotis, while 76,62% of them were also located in Katsikas wet meadows. Among the 22 endangered bird species (Greek Red Data Book, 2009) of Lake Pamvotis, a subset of 16 species (80%) were also recorded in Katsikas wet meadows. Similarly, 21 (75%) of the 28 species of the lake, included in Annex I of Birds Directive 2009/147/EC, were recorded in the study area. Differences in the extent of flooded wet meadows, during the two study periods, in combination with the respective reductions they brought on the species’ number, showed that flooded areas are important for the maintenance of significant populations of endangered species, during winter and up to the end of the spring migration period. Our results support the urgency of habitat restoration for waterbird in Lake Pamvotis Special Protected Area, as part of the proposed Katsikas Wetland Park.
Authors:Ν. Boukas-Anestis1, Α.D. Galani1, Κ. Stara2 and R. Tsiakiris3
1 Hellenic Ornithological Society, Themistokleous 80, GR-10681, Athens, email: bionickbukas@hotmail.com 2 University of Ioannina, Department of Biological Applications and Technology, University campus, GR- 45110, Ioannina 3 Forestry Service of Ioannina, Μ. Kotopouli 62, GR-45455, Ioannina
Keywords:Wetland Park, habitat restoration, Special Protected Area (SPA)
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The science of improving your work life
Caroline Webb, author of How to Have a Good Day and CEO of Sevenshift, on what you can do to have a more fulfilling work life
By Chris Russell
Updated: Sep 12, 2016 05:46:13 PM IST
Whether you’re working at your dream job or you’ve been plotting your escape for months, chances are that you’ve experienced your fair share of days that simply can’t end soon enough. From snarky colleagues to grim commutes, the possibilities for our working day taking a wrong turn are seemingly endless, and what’s more obvious remedies aren’t always in sight. Thankfully then, Caroline Webb, CEO of Sevenshift, an advisory firm focused on performance in the workplace, and a senior advisor to McKinsey, has put together a guide for improving our work life with her new book How to Have a Good Day.
Drawing upon extensive research in the fields of neuroscience, behavioral economics and psychology, Webb draws out key lessons on how we can make our work smarter, productive and ultimately more satisfying. In this interview, she introduces CKGSB Knowledge to some of the main takeaways. Excerpts:
Q. In the book there is an emphasis on priorities and focus. How does the science indicate that those things are so important?
A. Well the importance of being deliberate, let’s say, about our priorities and our goals comes from the way that our brain processes information. The truth is that our conscious brain can only process a portion of reality around us at any one time, which is kind of hard to accept, because subconsciously we’re filtering out most of what’s going on around us, and we don’t really like to think of ourselves as not being objective observers of the world. But what the brain decides to consciously prioritize and make sure we notice are things that resonate with what is already top of mind for us, and you can see where this is going. It means that if you’ve decided that something is a priority, you are way more likely to see it and to notice it than if it isn’t. So let me give you an example. There’s a classic study which is done with a bunch of radiologists who are looking through a pile of lung scans and there was a gorilla printed on the last one and the vast majority of them, 83% of them, didn’t see the gorilla even though eye-tracking devices showed they’d looked directly at it and even though the gorilla was huge compared with the average lung nodule, the sort of thing that they were looking for. And the reason is it wasn’t their priority. If we go into a meeting looking for a fight, we’ll probably get it. If we go in looking for collaboration, we’ll probably get that. It’s really remarkable how the facts can appear to change once we’ve decided what our priorities are.
Caroline Webb Author of How to Have a Good Day
Q. You talk about the interaction between the mind and the body and the way that these aren’t isolated kind of things. What are the physical or health considerations when it comes to us having a good day?
A. There are reasons you want to look after your body for health reasons, but we kind of know that. I think the bit we’re much less aware of is the fact that the way you treat your body has an immediate effect on the quality of the thinking that you do and the way that you feel emotionally. You immediately boost your focus and your mood by, say, doing 10-20 minutes of moderate activity. And I think if people understood that there’s an immediate payoff to thinking about breaks that you’re taking and the exercise that you’re getting and the downtime that you’re giving yourself, I think people would see it quite differently, they’d see it much less as time out and much more as time invested.
Q. How can we best manage our workflow throughout the day so we have, as you say, a bit of downtime?
A. Unlike a lot of people I don’t say there’s only one time of day that you should do any particular type of task—I think it’s about self-awareness and starting to notice when you’re at your best and giving that time to your most important task. Beyond that, I think there is some general advice that everybody can take.
First of all, single tasking. If you do one thing at a time you’ll get things done much more quickly and much more brilliantly than if you multitask, and all the evidence is really clear on this—the conscious brain can only do one thing at a time, so if you try and mix things up so that you’re checking your email while you’re trying to write something or trying to talk to someone then you are essentially asking your brain to keep switching back and forth and of course that’s inefficient. So going offline while you’re doing your most important task for the day and just really focusing on that one thing means that you get it done more quickly. And it’s not easy initially if you’re used to being online all the time. I think that people starting at five or 10 minutes of being offline, it’s not too small to start there.
I think the other general thing I would say is the importance of strategic downtime. All the research suggests that the quality of your decisions and choices declines the longer it is since you’ve had a break. That’s pretty stark. So the idea of taking breaks being for wimps, it’s just not true if you care about the quality of your work. So being tactical about when can I get a little kind of five minute break between meetings, can I end meetings slightly early, can I plan more breathing room that allows me to reflect on? These moments of reflection and rest have been shown to be as important for our brains ability to process as the more obvious uptime.
Q. You talk about the discover-defense axis (how we are subconsciously on the lookout for threats and rewards) and how even small slights can put us into this place where we’re less productive, we’re less smart and so on. In a modern-day office environment, feedback, evaluation and criticism are so important. So how should these things be handled by those who are giving out this criticism? Are there any considerations for those who are receiving it? And on the flipside are there any considerations for how we should be handling praise too?
A. You’re absolutely right that critical feedback is almost perfectly designed to put a brain on the defensive and when someone’s brain is on the defensive they’re not able to think as clearly because the brain is devoting some effort to that defensive response, whether it’s fight, flight or freeze. And in the modern workplace fight, flight or freeze does not look like someone actually punching you [laughs]; it’s much more subtle. Someone can be on the defensive and all you’re aware of is that they’re maybe seizing up a little bit or they’re not thinking straight about what you’re saying, and obviously then what happens is the change that you’re hoping for doesn’t manifest itself. So, absolutely right to think about how can you give feedback in a way that doesn’t put people on the defensive, and there are actually three brain-friendly feedback techniques that I talk about, and one of them for example is to be really, really explicit and clear and fulsome and specific about the things that you like about what they’re doing so that the framing is: “What I really like about this is… specific thing, specific thing, specific thing, what would make me like it even more is….”
There are two things going on here. One is that people talk about the ‘praise sandwich’ and the fact that it’s a good idea to say something positive before you say something negative, but the problem with that classic approach is that it only solves a fraction of the problem. We’re all geared to be more sensitive to threats than to rewards. So you have to be aware that one piece of negative feedback will drown out positive feedback unless you make sure that the positive feedback is as believable and credible as it can be. And the way to do that, and this is the second thing to note, is that the brain much prefers concrete examples to generalities. So if you hear someone say, “You’re great, you’re great, now here are five things that I think you could do differently….” It’s obvious when I say it like that, but the truth is that is often the way that feedback is delivered. You think, “Well, I’m generally saying you’re amazing, so surely that should be enough”, but no, what you remember are the specifics, the stories, the examples. And so that’s why the format of what I really like about ‘specific, specific, specific, and then what would make me like it even more’ is it’s just a really good way of keeping people off the defensive, while telling them exactly what they need to hear, so it’s not a soft option.
Q. Obviously the title of the book is How to Have a Good Day, but if, for whatever reason, we’re having a bad one, how can we react to that?
A. I actually split [the part of the book on resilience] into three. The first one is staying cool in the moment. You’re in the meeting and it’s going badly, how do you stay calm? But then there’s also after the fact, how do you move on? Because they’re almost like two different skills. Then there is sort of an even longer-term skill, which is just recognizing all the things we were touching on before, which is that the way you treat your body helps your emotional resilience over time. So there are a few different dimensions of resilience and handling a bad day.
One thing that I find super helpful when you’re in the middle of a situation that isn’t feeling great is to use the distancing technique, and that’s where you put yourself in a different perspective and you look at the situation from the different options. You can look at the situation from the perspective of someone who might be a stranger passing by—what would they see? I personally like the distance of saying, “What am I going to think about this looking back in a year’s time?” I have a client who really likes the idea of saying, “What would my best self say about this?” There’s a CEO I was coaching who likes saying, “If someone else was CEO of this company, what would I advise them?” All of these distancing techniques have been shown to reduce the level of defensiveness, the activation of threat defense system in our brains.
There’s another killer technique, which is called reappraisal, which is where if it’s a kind of recurring thing that’s going on or is something dragging on and is just something you’re finding it hard to move on from, it’s really helpful to use this technique of reappraisal, which is essentially telling yourself a different story about what could be going on. The way it works is that you first home in on what the facts are and strip it of interpretation. Instead of saying, for example, “My boss never pays me any attention”—that’s a generalization, it’s also a tiny bit emotional even though it sounds fairly sensible—what you do know for sure is that perhaps that’s something more like “My boss didn’t invite me to speak at this week’s team meeting”. In fact what you actually know given the brain’s filtering and the fact that reality is subjective is “I don’t remember my boss asking me to speak at the team meeting”. So the first step is getting clear on the facts, and then you say, “Okay, what could be an explanation of that?” And it almost doesn’t matter if you believe the stories that you make up, it’s helpful of course that you come up with explanations that could be reasonable, but just simply saying, “Maybe my boss thinks that I’ve had plenty of exposure and is trying to give a chance to someone else.” You don’t have to believe it, but the very fact of starting to contemplate other explanations than “I’m being ignored and this is awful” has been shown to really not only improve your resilience to specific situations going on wrong now, but actually boost your resilience longer term to something that goes wrong later.
Q. From a boss’s perspective, what role could they have in making sure that their employees are having a good day?
A. I’m really hoping that people who are in management and leadership positions read the book and see how all of these techniques can be built into their leadership style. We talked about the importance of setting clear intentions, the power of setting clear intentions. If you’re very clear on what matters and therefore where you want to put your attention, then you’re basically going to experience things differently.
Another thing is being aware of the fact that even a difficult task can be enough to put people on the defensive and therefore have them not thinking as clearly as they might. Thinking about framing tasks using something I call positive task framing, which is where you say, “Okay, what’s the ideal situation? How do we move towards it?” You’ll get better thinking out of your colleagues if you do that than always focusing on the negatives and the problems that need to be solved. You still think about the problems that need to be solved, but by framing them positively by thinking about what’s the ideal.
So you can help people experience reality differently [laughs], you can help them think more clearly—we’ve already talked about giving feedback and helping them develop in a way that’s going to be easier to hear the messages and to act on them. And I think there’s actually an example that I use in the section on resilience, which is a CEO dealing with a really massive screw up at his company and using all of the techniques that he uses on himself for resilience in a group setting to help people get through this difficult crisis, so for example saying, “When have we handled crises like this in the past really well and what does that tell us now? And when we look back on this in five years time, what do we want to say about how we handled this?” All of these things can be done with colleagues, not just in your own head.
Q. When it comes to team relationships, what are the most important considerations?
A. In the book I talk a lot about techniques that you can use. Obviously again I’m talking about them again in a one-to-one setting a lot of the time, but they can be used in group settings too.
One of them is the power of actually showing curiosity about other people, which is so blindingly obvious and yet most conversations at work are really one of a couple different types. They are very factual conversations—“When is this due?” “It’s due on Friday”—or it’s a sort of oiling the wheels, superficial kind of conversation—“How was your weekend?” “Fine, how was yours?”—or it’s let’s have a conversation which is like a game of tennis where I’m really just kind of getting ready to return the ball and I’m not really listening to what you’re saying—pausing to reload, I call it. It’s actually quite rare in a work context to really show curiosity about where someone else is coming from and to just listen.
Another thing that I’ve seen work really well is there’s a neuroscience concept called ‘in-group’, which is where people who are perceived to be like us in some way are treated by the brain quite differently to people who are perceived to be not like us, and people who are perceived to be outside our in-group are actually processed as a threat first and foremost until there’s some sense of ‘we have something in common’. So the bad news is that we’re quite tribal, the good news is that we’re actually able to feel like someone’s on our team with actually very, very little—it’s been shown that merely assigning people randomly to a team will actually create a sense of camaraderie that means that they will immediately treat people in that totally random team more positively than someone who is just randomly assigned to a different team over the other side of the room. So it doesn’t take much to look for those points of commonality, and that’s why we sometimes talk about the weather, that’s why we sometimes talk about sports. These moments of small talk are actually very important social interactions that create a sense of being on the same team and that’s one of the reasons why leaders who really emphasize a shared goal and shared visions tend to get more out of their teams. If they’re not treating each other like a threat, if everybody feels as if they’re on the same team truly, then you get better behavior out of everybody.
The other thing in that chapter which is interesting and useful in a team setting is reciprocity, and by that I mean sharing something of yourself. And it doesn’t have to be personal stuff, it can actually be things that [team members] are doing at work and things that they’re worried about and things that they need help with. The more that you can encourage that kind of free-flow of discussion so that people feel that they’re opening up to each other, the more that you create a sense of trust within the team.
Q. To what extent does the advice depend on the nature of your workplace or where this is being applied?
A. Everything that’s in the book I have pruned to be the stuff that works across cultures and across settings. I’ve had a chance to work with clients in so many different countries and see so many different types of organization and it’s been fantastic because it does then allow me to be quite confident in saying this is stuff I’ve seen work in all sorts of different settings. It was one of my filters for what went in the book: Is this speaking to something that’s really truly universal? And that’s one of the reasons why, again going back to something I said earlier on, I don’t make assertions about you should never check email in the morning, because I don’t like making assertions about what people should or shouldn’t do unless I feel that it is really a general principle that they can then decide to apply in their own way and in their own lives and that’s generally my approach.
[This article has been reproduced with permission from CKGSB Knowledge, the online research journal of the Cheung Kong Graduate School of Business (CKGSB), China's leading independent business school. For more articles on China business strategy, please visit CKGSB Knowledge.]
Caroline Webb
Sevenshift
How to Have a Good Day
Smart is beautiful for Forbes India's Hidden Gems
Home design startup Livspace raises Rs 100 crore in new round of funding
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Cotterill Farm Cottages
Buxton, Derbyshire
Five four star stone cottages on a non-working farm, in a glorious location over looking dales and rolling countryside in the heart of the White Peak area of the Peak District. They have been given the fairly unusual Gold Award for �excellence, particularly with regard to service�
Three cottages are for four persons, one is for three persons -this is all on the ground floor and particulary suited for the less agile - and the other is an equally large cottage but only sleeping two. Although consistently graded 4 Star, the owners constantly strive to improve standards in all cottages, with continouous improvements in each one. The cottages have exposed beams and stone-work. They are 300 yards up our private drive and form part of a courtyard facing outwards over the surrounding fields and dales to give excellent views and some degree of privacy. In front of these cottages is a large grassed and garden area. There is ample area for off-road parking. The two person cottage has a galleried bedroom overlooking the large living room, in the centre of which is a log burner standing on a stone plinth acting as a focal point It also has a five piece suite in the classy bathroom. All but one of the cottages has two tvs in each cottage.
In each cottages there are nine(!) highly organised information folders, partly written by the owners themselves who are lovers of the Peak. Guests have heaped praise on this source of information which ensure that even those who have stayed with us numerous times still find plenty new to do. Events lists are supplied in advance between May and September. Housekeeping and attention to detail is regarded by the owners, who strive to encourage return visits, as being of paramount importance as is their concern is to ensure guests have an excellent holiday.
From �270 in January (with discounts of �40 for two person occupancy of the four person cottages, i.e. from �230 net) to �500 for four persons in the first three weeks of the school summer holidays. Rentals include heating electricity linen and wifi and i
There are two wild flowers meadows on the owners land, one of which borders a nature reserve through which a footpath leads after just over a mile to the Rive Dove (at Wolfscote Dale). One mile downstream is Dovedale. The cottages are located off a quiet country lane between the highly popular village of Hartington and its smaller, quieter neighbour, Biggin. Both villages have pubs serving full meals cafes and a church. There is also an excellent restaurants about a mile away. Biggin has a lovely Hall where excellent cream teas are sold.
Numerous footpaths surround the land on which the cottages stand, offering unrivalled walking in the best part of the White Peak. The highly popular Tissington Trail, which runs for 17 miles, is used by walkers, cyclists and horse riders, and is less than 1 mile from us. Two further trails, (both of similar distance), are within 3 miles. These three tracks are ideal for family cycling, as is the network of quiet minor roads, which can be accessed at numerous points along the trails.
Buxton , Matlock, Bakewell, Ashbourne, Leek and Chatsworth House are all about 11 miles away on the edge of the Peak District at different points on the compass, confirming the owners claim to be very much in the heart of the White Peak area of the Peak District. (The White Peak is the area of rolling countryside, dales, streams and rivers limestone villages and dry-stone walls, which give the area so much character) Alton Towers is under 30 minutes drive away.
Liffs Rd
Biggin-by-Hartington
SK170DJ
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Greatreporter
Is the end of the newspaper near?
Anti-GBM disease: A model for autoimmune kidney diseases
Presswire, 29 October 2018
The renewed interest in anti-GBM disease is spurred by the detection of autoantibodies in other forms of glomerulonephritis and has led to an exciting development in studies on pathogenesis as well as diagnosis and management. The newly published review [1] by Professor Mårten Segelmark, gives a comprehensive update on Anti-GBM disease subgroups, pathogenesis and therapies. “A must-read for all nephrologist”, explains Professor Denis Fouque, editor-in-chief of Nephrology Dialysis and Transplantation (NDT), the journal in which the review was published.
For many years anti-GBM disease was thought to be the only kind of glomerulonephritis driven by autoantibodies. Now it has become evident that autoantibodies also play an important part in ANCA-associated nephritis, membranous nephropathy and IgA-nephritis. This has renewed the interest in anti-GBM as a model for autoimmune kidney diseases. The discovery of the B-cell epitopes led to the development of rapid immunoassays for the detection of circulating anti-GBM. This has enabled early diagnosis, which has had an impact on the prognosis.
A large percentage of patients with anti-GBM disease also have myeloperoxidase-ANCA (MPO-ANCA). As a group, double-positive patients are older, and they have more prodromal symptoms. This opens up a window of opportunity for early diagnosis, but it is questionable if double-positive patients have a better overall renal prognosis. The clinically most important aspect of double positivity is the increased relapse risk, making maintenance immunosuppressive therapy warranted for double-positive patients.
There are also several reports of overlap between membranous nephropathy and anti-GBM disease. Such patients usually have nephrotic-range proteinuria in combination with crescentic glomerulonephritis. It has been suggested that membranous nephropathy might trigger an autoimmune response against the cryptic anti-GBM epitopes. However, there are no cases described with simultaneous anti-PLA2R antibodies and antibodies to type IV collagen. An alternative explanation is that some anti-GBM antibodies preferentially deposit on the subepithelial side of the GBM, thereby mimicking the immune complexes seen in membranous nephropathy.
Cyclophosphamide is today the standard therapy to stop the autoantibody production. Historical data indicate that cyclophosphamide substantially shortens the time circulating antibodies are present. This reduces the risk of flares with nephritis and pulmonary haemorrhage, and enables renal transplantation at an earlier time point. In ANCA-associated vasculitis it has been shown that targeting B-cells with rituximab leads to a more rapid decline of circulating antibodies. There are reports of the use of rituximab in anti-GBM disease, but no head-to-head comparison.
Plasma exchange is used to lower levels of circulating autoantibodies. However, each session only removes about one third of the IgG in the body. Thus it takes several days to reach non-toxic levels. Immunoadsorption techniques have been employed as an alternative. This leads to a more rapid decline of the antibodies, but it is not clear in how many patients this would make a difference in outcome.
“In conclusion, the detection of autoantibodies in other forms of glomerulonephritis, renewed the scientific interest in anti-GBM disease, which now serves as a model in the research of autoimmune kidney diseases”, explains Segelmark. Professor Denis Fouque, editor-in chief of Nephrology Dialysis and Transplantation (NDT) adds: “The review is a `must read´ for all nephrologist!”
[1] Segelmark M et al. Anti-GBM disease – an update on subgroups, pathogenesis and therapies. Nephrol Dial Transplant 2018;https://doi.org/10.1093/ndt/gfy3
With more than 7500 members, the ERA-EDTA ("European Renal Association – European Dialysis and Transplant Association") is one of the biggest nephrology associations worldwide and one of the most important and prestigious European Medical Associations. It supports basic and clinical research in the fields of clinical nephrology, dialysis, renal transplantation and related subjects. It also supports a number of studies as well as research groups and has founded a special "Fellowship Programme" for young investigators as well as grant programmes. In order to involve young nephrologists in all its activities, ERA-EDTA has created the "Young Nephrologists’ Platform" (YNP), a very active committee whose board includes members who are 40 years old or younger. In addition, it has established various
working groups to promote the collaboration of nephrologists with other medical disciplines (e.g. cardiology, immunology). Furthermore, a "European Renal Best Practice" (ERBP) advisory board was established by the ERA-EDTA to draw up and publish guidelines and position statements. Another important goal of the ERA-EDTA is education: The series of CME courses combined with the annual congress offer an attractive scientific programme to cover the need for continuous medical education for doctors working in the fields of nephrology, dialysis and transplantation. The association’s journals, NDT (Nephrology, Dialysis, Transplantation) and CKJ (Clinical Kidney Journal), are currently the leading nephrology journals in Europe; furthermore NDT-Educational is the Society’s online educational journal , with free access for all users, as well as being a very important and useful feature of the NDT-Educational “Literature Review”. The ERA-EDTA Registry is a large epidemiologic database comparing countries by assessing nephrology practices throughout Europe. ENP, the European Nephrology Portal, is the latest new initiative of ERA-EDTA, where all those interested in the activities of the Society can find everything that is happening, all in one place. Finally, ERA-EDTA is a member of the European Kidney Health Alliance (EKHA), a consortium of patients, nurses and foundations relating to renal issues that actively interacts with the European Parliament. For more information, please visit www.era-edta.org
ERA-EDTA and the Japanese Society of Nephrology build on firm foundations to improve treatment for kidney patients
ERA-EDTA is the first medical association that invests in ‘greener’ healthcare!
Traditional Indian medicines can cause membranous nephropathy (MN)
The forgotten side of CKD: kidney disease triggers cognitive impairment, even in early stages
© 2019 Greatreporter.com, a subsidiary of Presswire, Ltd.
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Joint-UN Programme On Education In South Sudan
"Largest joint-United Nations programme on education to reach tens of thousands of children in South Sudan"
Reported by UN
AWEIL, South Sudan, 26 March 2019 – Tens of thousands of school children in some of South Sudan’s most food insecure areas will benefit from a new European Union (EU) funded education programme launched today, 26 March 2019. The contribution, worth €24.4 million, will provide hot daily meals to 75,000 school children, help train some 1,600 teachers, equip learners with educational supplies and provide psychosocial support services for 40,000 children who are currently enrolled in schools and those out of school.
"The European Union believes in the right to quality and inclusive education for all. School children are the bright future of South Sudan," said Dr. Sinead Walsh, Ambassador of the EU to South Sudan. "For these children that we assist, we hope that learning will help them to overcome inequalities, poverty, and deprivation of fundamental rights. Education is the key to long-term peace and we will continue to work with our partners, the Ministry of General Education and Instruction, UNICEF and WFP, teachers, parents and communities to realise our dream of quality education for all in South Sudan.”
The partnership, the largest of its kind in the education sector in South Sudan jointly implemented by UNICEF and the World Food Programme, runs until January 2021 and will be rolled out in 150 schools across the four former states of Northern Bahr el Ghazal, Western Bahr el Ghazal, Warrap and Eastern Equatoria.
“For children to develop their full potential and continue learning, access to safe and protective learning environments is crucial, and this is what the programme will do,” said UNICEF South Sudan Representative, Mohamed Ag Ayoya. “The daily school meals enable the children to focus on their learning and grow into healthy learners- enhancing educational outcomes. This combination of essential services provided to the children will be an important contribution to more resilient and peaceful communities.”
The joint activities, built on UNICEF’s expertise in education and nutrition, as well as WFP’s experience in providing school meals, its presence in hard-to-reach areas and logistical capacity, will also help participating schools establish school gardens, where children can learn good farming practices, while supplementing their school meals with fresh produce.
“Every day, countless children across the country turn up for school on an empty stomach,” said Ronald Sibanda, WFP’s Acting Country Director in South Sudan. “Many simply do not go, as their families need them to help with the cattle, in the fields or around the house. For all of them, food at school every day makes the difference. It means better nutrition and health, but also increased access to and achievement in education as well as a strong incentive for parents not only to send children to school but also to keep them there.”
The joint education and school feeding programme will:
Improve access to quality learning opportunities for 75,000 boys and girls (6-18-year-old) in safe and protective environments in the four former states;
Provide in-service training and mentorship to 1,600 teachers and early childhood facilitators;
Provide psychosocial support to 40,000 conflict-affected children and adolescents;
Improve the nutrition status of primary learners in the four targeted areas with daily school meals throughout the academic year; and
Train school management committee staff on food handling and management.
See full press release posted in Press Releases on this website.
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Diarthrosis Joints (Diarthrodial or Synovial)
» Ground Up Strength Categories » Glossary: Terms and Definitions » Diarthrosis Joints (Diarthrodial or Synovial)
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Diarthrosis, Diarthrodial, or Synovial Joints: Diarthrosis is a joint classification used when considering joint function (degree of movement). These are joints which are freely moveable, meaning they allow a great deal of movement, such as the elbows, knees, and shoulders. In contrast, joints which allow only a slight degree of movement are called amphiarthrodial and those which allow no movement are called synarthrodial.
Recommended Resource: Structure and Function of the Musculoskeletal System by James Watkins.
When considering joint structure, synovial joints are formed by bones connected by ligaments and separated by a joint capsule. The space between the joints is filled by a joint capsule with a lubricating synovial fluid. Synovial joints allow a great deal of movement and are the same kind of joints as diarthrosis joints. The reason they are named differently is because each name is based on a different method of classifying joints, either by function or structure. The term diarthrodial is also very common, used, so that "a diarthrodial joint" means the same thing as a "diarthrosis joint." These are also sometimes called diarthrotic joints. These joints provide a low friction environment that can withstand a great amount of wear and tear.
Diarthrodial or synovial joints are the main joints about which movements occur, which includes the majority of joints in the body. These are either uniaxial, biaxial, or multiaxial joints. They are further divided into six groups, according to the type of movement that occurs in them, which is allowed by their structure. The basic types are gliding (plane; arthrodial), hinge (ginglymus), pivot (screw; trochoidal), condyloid, saddle, and ball and socket. Each of these types has a different degree of movement.
In diarthrosis or synovial joints, the ends of the bones are covered with a thin layer of hyaline cartilage and no cartilaginous tissue connects the bones together, so they are free to move in relation to one another. The bones are indirectly connected by a joint capsule that covers and encloses the joint. This joint capsule is formed by fibrous material and this capsule enclose the joint cavity, the inner surface of which is lined with synovial material.
Diarthroses, Diarthrotic or Synovial Joint
Image by Madhero88 via Wikipedia
Types of Diarthrotic or Synovial Joints
These are the general types but it is important to realize that no joint is a perfect representation of any of these types. Joints are classified by which type they most closely resemble.
Gliding: (plane, irregular, arthrodial) The articulating surfaces are small and nearly flat or only slightly curved. The movement of the joint is a planar movement of sliding or twisting. Examples are the joints between various bones of the wrist and ankle such as the intercarpal joints of the wrist or the intertarsals of the ankle. Another example is the acromioclavicular joint of the shoulder girdle.
Adapted from image by Rice University
Hinge: (ginglymus) Surface of one bone is convex cylinder which articulates with the shallow concave trough-like facet of another. Movement is a uni-axial hinge-like motion carried out in one plane only. This is basically flexion, and its reverse, extension. Examples are the elbow, knee, ankle, and the interphalangeal joints of the fingers.
Pivot: (screw, trochoidal or trochoid) The cylindrical surface, of one bone articulates with a ring of bone and fibrous tissue on another to produce a rotation movement about a longitudinal axis. An example is the joint between the proximal (elbow) end of the radius and ulna bones of the forearm, which must rotate around one another, producing supination or pronation. Also, the articulation of the atlas and axis, the first two cervical vertebra of the neck, called the atlantoaxial joint, is another example which rotates the head to the right or left.
Condylod (ellipsoid, ovoid): A condyle, which is oval or egg-shaped, at the end of one bone articulates with the matching oval cavity of another bone. These condyloaid or ellipsoid joints are bi-axial and produce a variety of movements in different planes such as flexion, extension, abduction, adduction, circumduction or a combination, but incapable of producing rotation. The radiocarpal joint of the wrist and metacarpophalangeal and metatarsophalangeal joints of the fingers and toes are examples. Also, the occipitoatlantal joint, which is the joint between the head and the first cervical vertebra, the atlas.
Sellar: (saddle) In a sellar joint, both articulating surfaces have concave and convex surfaces and the surface of one fits into the complementary surface of another, much like two saddles turned 90 degrees to each other and fit together. To illustrate this cup your hands and place them together so that one hand is turned at a right angle to the other. Now slide your hands back and forth by moving the fingers forward. This is how a saddle joint works, more or less, and you can see that it allows a great deal of movement. These joints allow flexion, extension, abduction, adduction, and circumduction. An example is the carpometacarpal joint of the thumb.
Ball and Socket: (enarthrodial, spheroidial, cotyloidial) Head of one bone is ball-shaped and this fits into the cup-shaped socket of another bone. These tri-axial joints produce movement in all planes and also roation. Ball and socket joints are the most freely moveable joints in the body, allowing flexion, extension, abduction, adduction, and internal and external rotation. The shoulder and hip joints are ball and socket joints.
This page created 03 Oct 2011 20:48
Last updated 18 Apr 2017 20:07
anatomybiomechanics__diarth-joint-adjointskinesiology
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GEORGIA YOUTH ACADEMY FOUNDATION
About our Foundation
The purpose of the Georgia Youth ChalleNGe Academy Foundation, a non-profit 501(c)(3), is to advocate for and support the three National Guard Youth ChalleNGe Programs in Georgia, located at Fort Gordon, Fort Stewart and Milledgeville. The Foundation provides scholarship programs to help graduates continue their education in college, vocational programs and career training. The Foundation gives youth who drop out of secondary school a second chance to improve their life skills, education and employability, creating the next generation of skilled workforce in Georgia.
WHAT IS YOUTH CHALLENGE
The Georgia National Guard Youth ChalleNGe Program is the premiere residential alternative education provider; developing and producing academically and socially competitive young adults who believe they can achieve their dreams.
% NATIONAL DROPOUT RATE
% EARN Their GED/High School Diploma
% UNEMPLOYMENT RATE FOR HIGH SCHOOL DROPOUTS
% OF HIGH SCHOOL DROPOUTS WISH THEY WERE GIVEN A SECOND CHANCE
WHAT IS GEORGIA CHALLENGE
"Latest news section"
The 26th Anniversary of the Georgia Youth Challenge Foundation Gala was held March 20, 2019 at the Georgia Freight Depot in Atlanta. Georgia’s Governor and First Lady Brian Kemp showed their support and Senator Johnny Isakson and Senator David Perdue received the 2019 Challenge Champion Awards. Among other special guests included MG Thomas Carden, Adjutant[…]
Great gathering today with Gwinnett State Court Judge Emily J. Brantley and her staff to present a $200 donation to the GA National Guard Family Readiness Group volunteers from the Lawrenceville Armory, Mary Chevalier and Shawn Truelove. The Lawrenceville unit is currently deployed in Afghanistan. Also attending was Tina Coria, Chairman of the GA National[…]
Please click HERE to view the SR 424 honoring the anniversary of the National Guard Youth Challenge Program that passed the Senate on Tuesday, November 27, 2018.
The successful program provides free alternative education and structured discipline for at-risk youth WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) and David Perdue (R-GA) are praising the Senate passage of their bipartisan resolution (S.Res.424) honoring the 25th anniversary of the National Guard Youth Challenge Program (NGYCP). NGYCP is celebrating 25 years of providing free[…]
First Lady Sandra Deal receives ChalleNGe Champion Award
The National Guard Youth ChalleNGe Program (NGYCP) addresses the growing dropout crisis and its impact on our nation’s youth, economy and national security. This one-of-a-kind and nationally successful program assists adolescents who drop out of school with the opportunity to improve their life skills, their education and their employability. Therefore, NGYCP is creating our next[…]
Coy Ashford Short, 83, passed away on September 7, 2018 in Savannah, Georgia after an extended illness. He was born on May 7, 1935 in Moultrie, Georgia. He graduated from Avondale High School in Avondale Estates, Georgia in 1954. He went on to attend West Georgia College and graduated from Emory University with a business[…]
Schools Ease the ChalleNGe of Georgia’s At-Risk Youth
By Benita M. Dodd Dr. Roger Lotson (left) looks on as his cadets at the Georgia Youth ChalleNGe Academy at Fort Stewart, near Savannah, share their experiences with visitors. Eighty percent of Georgia’s students graduate from high school. What happens to the one in five who don’t? Michael Boggs, now a Georgia Supreme Court Justice,[…]
GA Youth ChalleNGe Program’s Civic Leader Tour
On May 19, some 50 civic leaders from metro Atlanta witnessed the action of the motto first hand. The group boarded a Georgia National Guard C-130 at Dobbins Air Reserve Base for an hour long flight to Savannah followed by a bus ride to Fort Stewart. Click HERE for the full article in the Marietta[…]
2018 ChalleNGe Champion Coy A. Short
Chairman Tina Coria recently had the pleasure of awarding Chairman Emeritus Coy Short with the 2018 ChalleNGe Champion plaque for his leadership, dedication and service to the Georgia Youth CalleNGe Academy. As they reminisced on the past, Short was honored to receive the plaque and gave well wishes for continued success for the Foundation.
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Shannons Legends of Motorsport to Debut on 7MATE in July
Motorsport fans of all ages will be taken on a ride down memory lane in the new ‘Shannons Legends Of Motorsport’ television series, which will debut on 7mate in July.
And fans of Heritage Touring Cars – which features the Legends of Bathurst of the Group C and A eras that covered the 1970s, 80s and 90s – will be well catered for.
The series of 12, one-hour episodes will debut on Saturday July 19 and celebrate the rich motorsport content that sits in the Seven Sport archives from the Bathurst 1000, Australian Touring Car Championship, AMSCAR Series and much, much more.
Shannons Legends Of Motorsport couples this extensive motorsport library from the 1960s, 70s, 80s and 90s with the hero cars of the period and the legends that drove them.
Aaron Noonan will co-host the series alongside the driving force behind its creation – and long-time Seven Sport motorsport figure – Neil Crompton.
Former Seven motorsport commentator and founding editor of Australian Muscle Car Magazine, Mark Oastler, will also be a reporter on the new series with a particular focus on some of the famous muscle cars made famous over the last five decades of Australian motorsport.
The trio will speak to some of the biggest names in Australian racing history and rewind the clock to recall some of the most famous races, cars and eras.
The programs will feature plenty of famous vision as well as a range of material not seen since it aired or long forgotten and extracted from deep within the Seven tape archives.
It’s clear that interest in the history and heritage of Australian motorsport has never been greater and Shannons Legends Of Motorsport is set to be an instant hit with racing fans across the country.
All 12 programs will be filmed in front of a live audience with filming blocks over upcoming weeks to be conducted at Bowden’s Own Collection in Queensland, the National Motor Racing Museum at Mount Panorama, Bathurst and Shannons Auctions in Melbourne.
Free tickets were recently made available for audiences via the Shannons Club – they were all snapped up within minutes!
Iconic drivers including Peter Brock, Jim Richards, Larry Perkins, Dick Johnson, Allan Grice and Mark Skaife will be featured during the series while legendary races, eras, manufacturers, teams and cars will also be put in the spotlight.
The first episode of Shannons Legends of Motorsport will air on Saturday July 19 on 7mate and feature four-time Bathurst winner Allan Moffat with the remaining 11 programs to air through to the end of 2014.
Keep checking back regularly to the V8 Sleuth website and Facebook page (www.facebook.com/v8sleuth) for details on episodes ahead of their airing and more details relating to Shannons Legends Of Motorsport.
Tags: Australian Touring Car Championship
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India By State - West Bengal - Business Opportunities
Because of its location, West Bengal offers definite advantage as the traditional domestic market in eastern India, the Northeast and the land-locked countries of Nepal and Bhutan, which are easily accessible. The state is also an entry point to markets in Southeast Asia, via the north eastern states. Kolkata, which is a metropolitan city, has a comparatively lower cost of operating a business as compared to the other cities such as New Delhi, Bangalore, Chennai, Hyderabad and Mumbai.
West Bengal has abundant natural resources of minerals and suitable agro-climatic conditions for agriculture, horticulture and fisheries. West Bengal also has a prosperous hinterland of some mineral rich states like Jharkhand, Bihar and Orissa.
The state is home to a number of renowned educational institutions and higher learning centres. There are 18 universities in the state along with sizeable research institutes.
West Bengal is the second-largest tea growing state in India, after Assam, and accounts for around 24 per cent of the total tea produced in India. As of 2007, 115,095 hectares of land was under tea cultivation.
The total annual production of tea was 226.8 million kg (mkg), as of 2008. Tea gardens in the state are located in Darjeeling and Jalpaiguri, the two northern districts of West Bengal. Darjeeling tea has a Geographical Indicator (GI).
Petroleum and Petrochemicals
West Bengal accounts for around 4 per cent of the country's production of petroleum products and 13 per cent of polymer production.
Haldia Petrochemicals Limited is one of India's largest integrated petrochemical complexes. Mitsubishi Chemicals and Corporation, Japan's major chemical firm has invested in a Purified Terepthalic Acid (PTA) plant at Haldia at an estimated cost of US$ 355 million.
West Bengal is one of the leading exporters of finished leather goods, accounting for almost 15.7 per cent of the country's leather exports. As of 2008, the state has around 538 manufacturing units producing leather goods.
West Bengal Leather Industrial Development Corporation provides market facilities for the leather products manufactured by small-scale industries located in the state.
The Government of West Bengal has set up an integrated leather complex on the eastern fringe of Kolkata and spread over 1,100 acres.
West Bengal Leather Industrial Development Corporation provides market facilities for the leather products manufactured by small-scale industries located in the state. The Government of West Bengal has set up an integrated leather complex on the eastern fringe of Kolkata and spread over 1,100 acres.
Around 500 IT and ITeS companies are operating in the state, employing more than 60,000 professionals. In 2007, the total export earnings of IT companies located in Software Technology Parks of India (STPI)was US$ 754.5 million.
The IT and ITeS sector is projected to contribute 15-20 per cent to the state's economy by 2010. West Bengal has 14 IT parks. A 16-acre SEZ by Tata Consultancy Services has been granted formal approval and is expected to be operational by 2011.
The Raniganj coal belt accounts for over 30,147 million metric tonnes of quality coal. Reserves of coal bed methane (CBM); an alternative source of natural gas, in West Bengal is estimated as 1.64 million cu. ft.
Rock phosphates deposits are found in Beldhi, Chirugoraand Kutniregions of Purulia districts. Deposits of granite and kaolinite are found in Purulia, Bankura and the Birbhum districts. Good quality peg metallic-quartz is available at Mirmi in the Purulia district, deposits of basalt-trap rocks used for preparing road metals are available in the Birbhum district.
Auto Mobiles and Components
The automobile industry in West Bengal is dominated by original equipment manufacturers (OEM). The auto-components industry comprises units manufacturing a range of products from simple nuts and bolts to complex items such as shafts, radiators and axles.
Hindustan Motors is a leading player in West Bengal. The company is engaged in the manufacturing of passenger cars (Ambassador and Contessa) and multi utility vehicles (Trekker, Porter and Pushpak) in the state. The company is developing 314 acres of land near its Uttarpara plant to set up a township with a residential complex, an IT park and an auto-ancillary park.
West Bengal has many attributes that favour development of biotechnology industry. It has rich natural resources based on a diversity of flora and fauna. A wide variety of commercial crops are cultivated which can be improved by biotechnology interventions. Examples of such interventions are application of bio-fertilisers for soil fertility, bio-pesticides for environment friendly integrated pest management, genetic modification to produce golden rice, tissue culture for horticulture, floriculture and medicinal plants.
LResearch institutes such as Bose Institute, Indian Institute of Chemical Biology, Indian Association for the Cultivation of Science, National Institute of Cholera and Enteric Diseases, Jadavpur University and Indian Institute of Technology, Kharaghpur are engaged in high quality research in various areas of biotechnology.
A 30 acre biotechnology park is being set up at Baruipur, Kolkata to be known as Kolkata Biotech Park. The park is a joint venture with the University of Calcutta and Strategic Global Management (India) Private Limited.
Tata Tea is the largest brand of tea in India. It acquired the UK-based Tetley Group in 2000. The company has five major brands in the Indian market, viz., Tata Tea, Tetley, Kannan Devan, Chakra Gold and Gemini. It has its headquarters and six tea estates in West Bengal.
Mcleod Russel
Mcleod Russel produces around 80 million kg of tea every year from tea estates in Assam, West Bengal and Vietnam, employing 80,000 people. The company has its registered office in Kolkata.
The six tea estates in Jalpaiguri district produce 6.5 million kg of tea, annually.
Bagaria Group
The Bagaria Group has operations in steel product manufacturing, tea estates and wind farms, with a group turnover of about US$ 110 million. The group has three tea estates in West Bengal.
The Gyabaree and Millikthong tea estate is one of the biggest tea estates in Darjeeling with an annual production of 280,000 kg. There are two other tea estates in Phuguri and Orange Valley in Darjeeling with a combined production of 300,000 kg.
T&I Global Limited (TIGL)
TIGL is among the leading manufacturers and exporters of tea processing machinery in the world, headquartered in Kolkata. It is a government recognised export house, with a global market share of over 40 per cent. The company has a full-fledged manufacturing unit at Kolkata.
TIGL has set up a 1,000 acre Mainak Hills Tea Estate and Green Tea factory in North Bengal. Mainak is currently producing over 800,000 kg of tea per annum.
Duncan Tea Limited
Duncans Tea Limited, headquartered in Kolkata, is a part of the diversified Duncan-Goenka Group, established in 1859. The company has 13 tea estates, located in the Doors, Terai and Darjeeling.
The company markets tea under the brands -Runglee Rungliot, Double Diamond, Super, Shakthi, Sargam, No1, Kings Cup and Aag.
Diana Tea Company Limited
Diana Tea is a tea-producing company, which was promoted by Late Radheshyam Singhania in 1976. The company is among top five producers of tea in the Dooars region.
It has four tea garden viz., namely Baintgoorie tea estate, Good hope tea estate, Ambari tea estate and Diana tea estate, all located in Jalpaiguri. The total capacity of the company is 5 million kg of tea per annum.
The company has entered the packed tea segment to be sold throughout North India through its distributor network. It has also entered the dipping-tea bag segment and has installed vending machines in corporate houses of Kolkata.
IOCL is India's largest company by sales, with a turnover of US$ 62 billion in 2008-09. It is the 18th-largest petroleum company in the world.
It owns and operates 10 of India's 19 refineries, as of 2008-09, the company had a refining capacity of 60.2 MTPA (1.3 million barrels per day). It has a refinery at Haldia, with an installed capacity of 6 MTPA.
IOCL has invested US$ 623.7 million for improvement of diesel quality and distillate yield (hydrocracker) at Haldia, and for capacity expansion of the refinery from 6 MTPA to 7.5 MTPA, the project was commissioned in December 2009. IOCL has signed a memorandum of agreement (MoA) with the WBIDC for setting up a chemical hub in Haldia, at an investment of around US$ 3.2 billion.
Halidia Petrochemical Limited (HPL)
HPL is a modern, naphtha-based petrochemical complex located at Haldia, 125 km from Kolkata. It is a joint venture project of the government of West Bengal with The ChatterjeeGroup, the TATA group and IOC as major stakeholders.
It has a total capacity of 520,000 tonnes per annum of ethylene. The company is expanding capacity by about 30 per cent, which will take ethylene production capacity to 670 kilo tonnes per annum (KTPA) from the current level of 520 KTPA.
Khadim's
The Khadim group has a significant presence in the footwear segment, especially in the east and south of India. It has a manufacturing unit at Kasba Industrial Estate, Kolkata.
The company has multi-brand retail outlets in 21 states and has more than 470 exclusive retail outlets across the country. Its sales stood at US$ 49.4 million in 2007-08.
Bata India Limited
Bata India Limited, incorporated in Kolkata, is the largest shoe manufacturer in India. The company has35 per cent share of the organised footwear market and its retail footprint spans more than 1,250 stores, it sells over 45 million pairs, annually.
Bata has a manufacturing unit in West Bengal. The company plans to open 240 stores in a span of three years, with an investment of US$ 87 million.
Steel Authority of India (SAIL)
SAIL is the leading steel maker in India, with a turnover of US$ 1.1 billion in 2007-08.
Indian Iron & Steel Company (IISCO), which was a 100 per cent subsidiary of SAIL, has been amalgamated with the parent company. The company has an integrated steel plant in Durgapur.
Jai Balaji Group
Jai Balaji Group is among the leading manufacturers of steel in eastern India, it is headquartered in Kolkata.
The company has integrated steel production facilities in nine manufacturing units, spread across the states of West Bengal, (three plants), Chhattisgarh, Orissa and Jharkhand. The company is setting up a 5 million tonne steel plant in West Bengal's Purulia district.
Bhushan Power and Steel Limited
Bhushan Power and Steel is a fully integrated 1.5 MTPA steel making company, with a turnover of US$ 950 million in 2008. The company has seven plants, in Chandigarh, Derabassi, Kolkata and Orissa.
The company is planning to set up a 2 MTPA capacity integrated steel plant with a captive power plant in Burdwan district of West Bengal. It has also planned a 6 MTPA plant in Asansol, West Bengal. The first phase is scheduled to have a 3 MTPA and a 1,000-MW power plant.
Genpact is a global remote processing operations company that services clients across the world with its IT-enabled services. It has an 80,000 sq ft facility in Kolkata and another new facility is being constructed on a three acre area at Salt Lake, which would employ up to 1,500 people.
It has also signed to acquire 700,000 sq ft at InfoSpace, an IT/ITeS SEZ developed by Unitech Hitech Structures, which will house 7,000 professionals. The company has approached the West Bengal government to set up an IT-SEZ in Kolkata with an investment of over US$ 22.2 million.
Cognizant Technology Solutions (CTS)
Cognizant Technology Solutions is a global e-business and application development company. Cognizant, Kolkata services several large clients from the banking, hospitality (restaurant), healthcare, financial, airline and information-driven sectors of the global market.
It has signed a memorandum of understanding with Calcutta University, wherein the university will provide management and software training to a batch of 400 professionals hired by Cognizant, Kolkata. The company is investing around US$ 46 million to expand its facility at Kolkata.
Incorporated in 1976, HCL is a leading global technology and IT enterprise with annual revenues of US$ 5 billion. The company's operations span across 26 countries. It has delivery facilities in the US, UK, Finland, Poland, Puerto Rico, Brazil, China, Malaysia, Singapore, Australia, Czech and India. In India, the company has offices in 170 cities and 500 points of presence reaching 4,000 towns. In West Bengal, HCL has two offices in Salt Lake City, Kolkata.
IBM is a leading global IT services and solution provider with offices across the world, including India.
IBM has been present in India since 1992. The company's Indian operation offers software, storage, systems and servers, semiconductors, etc. Since inception, IBM India has expanded its operations considerably with regional headquarters in Bangalore and offices in 14 cities including a global delivery centre in Kolkata.
Siemens Information Systems Limited (SISL)
SISL is a leading systems integrator and total solutions provider offering high-end consultancy in areas such as healthcare, telecommunications, manufacturing, utilities, public sector and government.
The company's services include enterprise solutions, management consulting, security solutions and operation related services. Its registered office is located at Mumbai, the company also has one office at Kolkata
ITC InfoTech
ITC Infotech, a global IT services company, is a fully-owned subsidiary of ITC Limited, the US$ 5 billion diversified conglomerate. Headquartered in Bangalore with wholly-owned subsidiaries in UK and USA, ITC InfoTech provides comprehensive solutions through development centres, offices, and delivery centres in North America, Europe and Asia Pacific, in addition to two delivery hubs in Bangalore and Kolkata.
West Bengal is one of the country's leading exporters of finished leather goods. In 2008-09, the state accounted for around 15.7 per cent of the country's exports of leather and leather products.
West Bengal is also the country's leading exporter of flowers. The state accounted for around 70 per cent of India's dried flower exports in 2008. Flower exports of the state amounted to US$ 14 million in 2008-09 (April to February), as against US$ 10 million in 2007-08.
The state has the country's largest brackish-water resources for shrimp farming and has been a leading exporter of shrimps from India, which is the largest exporter of shrimps in the world. West Bengal is also a leading tea exporter.
More Information on West Bengal
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Assisting Ex-Offenders in Re-Entry Kit
This kit pulls together the best resources for assisting ex-offenders in making it on the outside, reducing their chances of recidivism.
If you work with ex-offenders, you know the difficulties they face in making a successful transition to the world of work. This kit pulls together the best resources for assisting ex-offenders in making it on the outside, reducing their chances of recidivism.
Widely used in correctional institutions and educational programs across the country. Make sure you're well stocked with multiple copies of these outstanding resources. Can purchase separately. SPECIAL: $328.95 for all 27 books.
7 Habits of Highly Effective People ($17.00)
9 to 5 Beats Ten to Life ($20.00)
99 Days and a Get Up ($9.95)
300 Best Jobs Without a Four-Year Degree ($20.95)
Angry Men ($14.95)
Angry Women ($14.95)
Best Resumes and Letters for Ex-Offenders ($19.95)
Denial Is Not a River in Egypt ($13.95)
Discover What You're Best At ($15.99)
The Ex-Offender’s New Job Finding and Survival Guide ($19.95)
I Don't Know What I Want, But I Know It's Not This ($16.00)
Job Interview Tips for People With Not-So-Hot Backgrounds ($14.95)
Job Smarts: 13 Steps to Job Success ($21.95)
Life Without a Crutch ($7.95)
Man, I Need a Job ($7.95)
No One is Unemployable ($29.95)
No One Will Hire Me! ($15.95)
Putting the Bars Behind You Survival Guides (9 books, $77.95)
Savvy Interviewing ($10.95)
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Lilly Library Collections
Guide to the Collections
Lilly Library Home » Guide to the Collections » Medicine & science
J. K. Lilly, Jr. was a major collector of important books in the history of science and medicine and it is to his efforts that the Lilly Library is indebted for many of its treasures in both fields. His medical books contain such monumental works as the great De Humani corporis fabrica of Vesalius (1543) and William Harvey's description of human blood circulation, De Motu cordis, (1628) as well as first and early editions of Hippocrates, Malpighi, Pare, Hunter, Jenner, Laennec, Bigelow and Fleming among others. This aspect of the Library's collection is well documented in William R. LeFanu's Notable Medical Books in the Lilly Library, Indiana University published in 1976. Numbered among the scientific landmarks in Mr. Lilly's gift were original editions of works by Pliny, Euclid, Copernicus, Kepler, Napier, Galileo, Boyle, Newton, Priestley, Lavoisier, Ampere, Faraday, Pasteur, and Curie to name but a few.
Among works documenting great moments in medical history, the Library holds the first printing of Fracastoro's poem on Syphilis (1530); Ramazzini on occupational diseases and Tagliacozzi on plastic surgery (1700 and 1597); Withering's discussion of the the medical uses of digitalis in his An Account of the Foxglove (1785); and Jenner's Inquiry into the Causes and Effects of the Variolae Vaccinae (1798).
The largest single addition to the books Mr. Lilly accumulated came in the collection of Ian Fleming, creator of James Bond, Agent "007." Whereas Mr. Lilly's interests were mainly in pure science, the six hundred-odd books from Mr. Fleming's library include many on applied science and technology. With the acquisition of the Ian Fleming collection, the Lilly Library considerably enriched its holdings in these scientific fields.
The Library continues to collect actively both in medicine and science. Resources in the former were increased substantially by the gift of Dr. Edgar F. Kiser's medical collection; the gift of the papers of Nobel Prize winning geneticist Hermann J. Muller and of Tracy M. Sonneborn, both longtime faculty members at Indiana University, provided the foundation for a growing collection in genetics; and the Vaclav Hlavaty papers, which contain a long correspondence between Hlavaty and Albert Einstein concerning the mathematical proofs for Einstein's theories, added to the Library's holdings in mathematics.
Related exhibition catalogues include:
Exhibition of Original Printings of Some Milestones of Science from Pliny (1469) to Banting (1922)
II. Medicine: An Exhibition of Books Relating to Medicine and Surgery from the Collection formed by J. K. Lilly [ online version available ]
X. Biology. An Exhibition at the Lilly Library in honor of the meetings of The American Institute of Biological Sciences and The American Physiological Society
XL. Newton and the Scientific Revolution
LI. Rethinking the World: Discovery and Science in the Renaissance
LII. J. K. Lilly, Jr., Bibliophile
To purchase exhibition catalogues, see information on the Lilly Library's Publications. To search the Library's catalog and other finding aids, see the Collections page.
Top: Plate from Gasparo Tagliacozzi's De Curtorum Chirurgra perinsitionem, Libri Duo [Venice, 1597].
Medicine : an exhibition of books relating to medicine and surgery from the collection formed by J.K. Lilly [exhibition catalogue]
The Ian Fleming Collection of 19th-20th Century Source Material Concerning Western Civilization together with the Originals of the James Bond-007 Tales [exhibition catalogue]
Muller mss.
Sonneborn mss.
Hlavaty mss. II
Libraries Privacy Policy
The Lilly Library, 1200 East Seventh Street, Bloomington, Indiana, 47405-5500 Tel. 812-855-2452 Fax. 812-855-3143
Comments: Use our online form or email liblilly [at] indiana.edu
The Trustees of Indiana University | Copyright Complaints
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Home » Business » Shell sees Jordan winning from natural gas, renewables combination
Shell sees Jordan winning from natural gas, renewables combination
By JT - Sep 24,2014 - Last updated at Sep 24,2014
AMMAN — Gas plus renewables like solar and wind power could be a winning combination for Jordan and other countries in the region, according to a press statement received Wednesday from Shell EP International.
The press release highlighted the input of Mounir Bouaziz, Shell’s vice president of commercial and country chairman for Dubai and the Northern Emirates, during his participation in the Powering the Middle East Summit 2014, which was held in Amman last week.
Bouaziz spoke about the value natural gas can bring to the region’s energy mix as a means to help countries like Jordan, which are heavily dependent on imported fuel, diversify their energy mix and reduce CO2 emissions in the long term.
"Despite ongoing progress on developing its oil shale resources that are currently being explored by the Jordan Oil Shale Company
(JOSCO), in the short and medium term, Jordan is expected to import liquefied natural gas as a bridge fuel to satisfy growing energy needs," the press release quoted him as saying.
JOSCO is a wholly owned subsidiary of Royal Dutch Shell that invests in exploring and evaluating the commercial potential of Jordanian oil shale using the latest advances in technology to produce the assets that would otherwise remain dormant.
According to the World Energy Council, Jordan currently imports over 90 per cent of its energy requirements while it is estimated to hold the 8th largest oil shale resources in the world.
By 2020 the country expects to meet 33 per cent of its energy needs from natural gas, while reducing reliance on imports to 61 per cent according to Jordan’s 2007 national energy strategy.
“Natural gas is the fastest and most affordable route for many countries to meet their energy needs, including Jordan,” Bouaziz indicated.
International Energy Agency (IEA) estimates that with a rapidly growing world population, increasing prosperity and improved access to reliable electricity, the global demand for energy is expected to increase by 80 per cent by 2050.
Jordan, faces similar challenges with growing energy demands on the one hand and rapidly increasing power demand on the other, driven primarily by increasing industrialisation and a growing population.
Beyond the cost and speed at which natural gas plants can be set up; the Environmental Protection Agency states that natural gas is the cleanest burning fossil fuel. Meaning that when combusted, natural gas releases very small amounts of sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides, virtually no ash or particulate matter, and lower levels of carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide and other reactive hydrocarbons.
According to the US energy information administration, carbon-related emissions dropped by 3.8 per cent from 2011 to 2012 as the US increased its dependence on natural gas, displacing coal in power generation.
“If paired with renewables like solar and wind power, gas also offers a reliable source of backup power when the sun isn’t shining or the wind isn’t blowing,” said Bouaziz.
“Increasing natural gas within the energy mix could drastically slash greenhouse gas emissions — a very real consideration for all the nations of the world. Although there’s no ‘silver bullet’ solution, gas plus renewables could be a winning combination for Jordan and other nations in the region,” he added in the press statement.
Ultimately, considerable investments need to be made in the power sector globally including in the areas of energy efficiency, the development of renewable energies and power generation. The IEA estimates that over the next 20 years, a cumulative investment of $16.4 trillion is needed across the power sector with an annual average of $740 billion per year.
Bouaziz concluded: “Each country in the region faces different challenges that will dictate their individual approaches. Governments, policy makers and regulators will make energy choices based on a number of factors: ensuring security, reliability and flexibility of energy supply. Ultimately, countries like Jordan will be developing an energy system that allows their economies to be globally and regionally competitive, and create jobs while making responsible choices on climate change and greenhouse gas emissions.”
93 per cent of Jordan’s electricity generated by natural gas
AMMAN — Imported natural gas contributes to the production of 93 per cent of the electricity generated in the Kingdom, while the share of re
Liquefied gas terminal to boost energy sector
The liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal in Aqaba will give a boost to Jordan's energy sector, a senior official said Monday.
EBRD loan to finance replacement of ‘obsolete’ Al Hussein Thermal Power Station
AMMAN — The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) said on Wednesday it is helping to address energy security and climate c
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Concordia's Journal of Religion and Culture
Current CFP
JRC Style Guide
22 JRC 2011
25 Then and Now
26 Sexed Religion
27 Religion, Ideology and Violence
Call for Submissions Vol 29 – Monsters and Villains
Judas. Lilith. Haman. Satan…
Monsters and villains have populated human imagination since time immemorial. Some have been the stuff of myths and legends, involving fantastic tales of heroism and valor; others, the tools societies have used to conceptualize and categorize otherness. While such categorizations are invariably fluid and subject to interpretation, they have nevertheless come to embody concerns, insecurities about the self, and fears of the unknown that cross historical and cultural contexts.
The Journal of Religion and Culture (JRC) is seeking papers that delve into “Monsters and the Monstrous.” Monsters, here, can be defined literally or more broadly as the other, subalterns, marginal, or deviants. We are seeking articles that reveal, analyze and challenge how “monsters,” “villains,” the “grotesque” and “monstrous” are delineated, demarcated and fabricated, how such concepts relate to notions of transgression, and what they suggest about human corporeality and non-binary identities.
For our upcoming 29th edition, we invite submissions that especially consider the following:
Papers that examine how “monsters” are constructed and what are the social, political, and historical ramifications of these definitions.
Papers that examine how monsters and villains are depicted in cultural imagination (such as through literature and popular culture), and how these depictions vary across cultures and historical contexts.
Papers that unearth lost or forgotten monsters, beast and villains lurking at the periphery of ancient texts, folklore and storytelling and what they tell us about the societies writing them.
Papers that examine the short thrift of villainy and provide alternate readings of evil, treachery, and the ne’er-do-wells who typify the antithesis of moral orders. Who are the villains we love to hate and hate to love and why?
The use of varying theoretical tools are welcome, including but not limited to discourse analysis, literary approaches, as well as theories from the fields of gender studies, race and cultural studies, disability theory, postcolonial studies, performance, and ritual studies. Explorations of diverse methodological approaches, historical periods, traditions and geographic locations are strongly encouraged. We are interested in research that breaks the boundaries and exhibits a novel approach, methodology and/or interpretation.
We accept currently unpublished articles (which contain original scholarship) and book reviews of recent publications pertaining to our topic. Papers can focus on any tradition, time period or particular issue pertaining to monsters and the monstrous.
The due date for submissions is December 15th, 2018. Papers are to be submitted using the online submission form. Be sure to read the guidelines; papers that fail to adhere to the submission guidelines may be rejected.
Posted on November 16, 2018 Categories NewsLeave a comment on Call for Submissions Vol 29 – Monsters and Villains
Key Terms in Material Religion – Review
Key Terms in Material Religion. Edited by S. Brent Plate. Chennai: Bloomsbury Academic, 2015. 304 pages. $45.27CDN (Paperback).
In recent years, it has become increasingly difficult – if not altogether impossible – to discuss most topics in the study of religion without also calling attention to their “material” dimension. Even the most ardent textual critic is inevitably drawn into discussions of the medium, the pages of the manuscript, the loose leaflets adorned with ancient writing, and even the method of their preservation. Religion is, after all, hardly something “out there” to be philosophized or kept at arm’s length, but something to be felt with our hands, seen with our eyes, and moved by our bodies. Ninian Smart would doubtlessly be glad to see how far we have travelled.
The 2015 Bloomsbury publication Key Terms in Material Religion, edited by S. Brent Plate, is a fitting testament to the increasing interest and value which the material approach affords the study of religion. Working off an earlier publication, this volume offers an expanded list of 37 “Key Words” which Plate has assembled, each supported by a short essay composed by some of the leading scholars in today’s field. The editor’s mission in amassing this volume is that it would be modular and flexible enough to be used in the classroom for students of varying levels. Nevertheless, the multitude of confident voices assembled for this undertaking means that even hardened scholars will likely find something of note between these pages.
Concerning these pages, I feel it obligatory to add a few remarks about this volume’s print and binding as some careful thought has gone into the process. Crisp black letters written in a comfortable Helvetica font (which, hardly by chance, is a font that enters into one of the later chapter’s discussions) adorn glossy pages. High-resolution coloured images front every chapter and set the tone for the essay that follows. Overall, one can say that the printing and binding make this volume a remarkably sensual and pleasantly tactile reading experience (this review copy even smelled of factory fresh pages). Such meticulous work from a project editor cannot be entirely coincidental.
Content-wise, apart from one notable typographical error involving the repetition of a phrase (see second paragraph in “Gender”, page 104), the volume is well-edited. Though the editor himself observes in his introduction that some topics were left out (as will always be the case with edited volumes), this collection nevertheless feels complete in the way that few edited volumes manage to achieve. While there are areas which feel underdeveloped or missing (perhaps a more in-depth chapter on costume or clothing to supplement the current one on “Dress”), the end result is hardly a feeling of loss or missed opportunities. Rather, the chapter selection we do have is rich, varied yet encompassing, and insightful from start to finish.
Of the 37 terms, essential sensory topics such as “Taste”, “Touch”, “Smell” and “Sound” (with sight being addressed under the label of “Vision”) are all covered, along with other prominent keywords such as “Food”, “Body”, and “Space”. There are also a number of perhaps unexpected entries, revolving around less-often-used terms of focus, such as “City” and “Movement”, and even some terms which are telling of the modern world in which we live, including “Digital”, “Technology” and “Brain-Mind”.
While none of the terms selected for this volume come across as inessential, not all chapters are presented to us evenly. Bruno Latour’s sarcasm and cynicism are always much appreciated by this reviewer, yet the laissez-faire approach to his critiques and storytelling (of which we find ample in his chapter “Fetish-factish”) might be confusing – or at worst, off-putting – to the casual reader or undergraduate student. Certain chapters such as Rich Freeman’s “Taste”, while making an engaging read for a graduate student, may also obfuscate the intended audience. Nevertheless, there are more stand-out chapters than not in this volume. Notably, the chapter on “Aesthetics” by Inken Pohl and the chapter on “Gender” by Deborah Whitehead struck this reviewer as surprisingly insightful and innovative in their approach at tackling these topics.
The strength of such individual chapters would have been overshadowed had the collection not come together as a whole or if each section felt detached from the other. Fortunately, it is in the reading of such a large volume where one becomes intimately aware of just how much overlap there is in the terminology of our field. Robert Orsi’s chapter on “Belief” overlaps with discussions of medium, materials, icons and even gender; the context of Whitehead’s chapter on “Gender”, focusing on certain details from the Victorian and Edwardian spiritualist movements, could not have been possible without the inclusion of a discussion of medium and presence; and so on with the majority of our chapters.
Perhaps that is where the greatest strength of this volume lies: in its inter-subjectivity and cross-disciplinary overview of materiality. Only when all these terms are brought together and ostensibly separated into their own categorized chapters do we really see how tenuous and porous the lines between these elements, terms and ideas really are. Ultimately, in case there was any lingering doubt at the onset of this review, this volume affirms that material religion isn’t a separate sub-study of religious studies any more than religion is entirely separate from anthropology, history, gender studies or the other social sciences. It is indeed refreshing to encounter a volume which bears these considerations in stride.
Alexander Nachaj
Posted on January 24, 2018 Categories Book ReviewsLeave a comment on Key Terms in Material Religion – Review
Volume 27 has arrived!
We just received the shipment of Volume 27 (combined numbers 1&2). A little later than we were expecting (holiday season caused some delays), but right before the end of the year at least!
Copies are available for all our contributors (authors, readers, reviewers). We’ll be trying to get in touch with those of you who aren’t in Montreal. Once we have all our mailing addresses, we’ll send out copies in January.
Posted on December 15, 2017 Categories NewsLeave a comment on Volume 27 has arrived!
Volume 27 update
Both editions of Volume 27 are now available online in PDF format.
We’re still waiting on our printing to get the hard copies back to us. Hopefully they aren’t too swamped with the usual Holiday rush. If things go well, we should be receiving our print editions by the second week of December.
Posted on November 23, 2017 Categories NewsLeave a comment on Volume 27 update
JRC Vol 28 Now Open for Submissions
For the 28th edition, the Journal of Religion and Culture (JRC) is seeking articles on the topic of Activism and Social Change (A&SC) in the fields of Religion and Culture.
We are looking for articles that examine or critique the involvement, interaction and dynamics of religion and/or culture with activism, human rights, reproductive rights, postcolonial movements, indigenous rights, and other social movements, either in the present or the past. We are specially seeking articles that explore the social implications of these interactions, and the consequences of religiously motivated activism on communities and/or individuals.
The use of different theoretical tools are welcome, including but not limited to discourse analysis, gender theory, race theory, disability theory, postcolonial theory, performance theory, ritual theory, and literary approaches. We are seeking submissions from all relevant fields (religion, theology, philosophy, anthropology, history, etc.). Explorations of diverse methodological approaches, historical periods, traditions and geographic locations are strongly encouraged. We are interested in research that breaks the boundaries and exhibits novel approach, methodology and/or interpretation.
We accept currently unpublished articles (which contain original scholarship) and book reviews of recent publications pertaining to our topic. Papers can focus on any tradition, time period or particular issue surrounding activism and social change. Some submission ideas we’re particularly interested in, include:
Case studies on particular instances of A&SC
Legal and Political Reforms• Contemporary discourses on A&SC
The role of myths and narratives
The place and function of Cosmology and Soteriological
The role of media in A&SC
Impact of Resistance and its discourse to A&SC
Artistic expressions and its impact during moment of crisis
The due date for submissions is December 1st, 2017. Papers will be evaluated according to the order in which they are received. Papers are to be submitted using the online submission form at www.jrc-concordia.ca/submit. Be sure to read the guidelines; incorrect submissions may be rejected for editorial reasons.
Posted on September 28, 2017 November 2, 2017 Categories NewsLeave a comment on JRC Vol 28 Now Open for Submissions
Christian Metal: History, Ideology, Scene – Review
Christian Metal: History, Ideology, Scene. Marcus Moberg. New York: Bloomsbury Academic Press, 2015. 200 pages. $20.45CDN (Kindle); $36.76CDN (Paperback).
Marcus Moberg’s Christian Metal examines an aspect of contemporary Christianity that, according to Moberg, has received a negligible amount of academic attention (p. 33). The primary goal of this book is to discuss in a systematic fashion a “marginal” form of Christian expression that has emerged out of the heavy metal scene and has become a small transnational, evangelical phenomenon (pp. 1-2). Moberg first situates Christian metal within the world of metal music and offers the reader a brief history of the music scene. This is a necessary step not only for the reader but it probably also reflects Moberg’s own process of acclimatizing to a music scene which he is not well acquainted with. One complication of the book is that Moberg is not a native to the world of metal music. Nevertheless, his academic instinct sees him through this initial stage as he proceeds to synthesize the work of a number of heavy metal scholars. On the plus side, he provides a sampling of the work of heavy metal scholars which can serve as a guide to someone who wishes to begin researching topics that are connected to metal music.
An interesting question which Moberg explores is if a metal concert can facilitate a religious experience. He considers some functionalist arguments which argue in favour of the possibility of having a religious experience at a metal concert (p. 21). According to Moberg, popular music does possess the ability to allow an individual to transcend everyday life, and yet he denies that Christian metal can accomplish this feat due to the proximity of the “transcendent” to the “transgressive” (pp. 68-73). Moberg claims that Christian music as a rule is concerned with “policing popular music’s transgressive potential” (p. 72). He admits that extreme Christian metal that imitates the musical styles of black metal and death metal offers the possibility for listeners to lose themselves in the music. Nevertheless, he insists that Christian metal possesses an inbuilt safety mechanism which prevents any risky boundary crossing (pp. 72-73). The weakness in Moberg’s analysis is that he relies too much on philosophical musings and seems to even ignore his own fieldwork. For instance, Moberg asserts that in interviews he has conducted with Finnish musicians, they often claim to have had experiences of the Holy Spirit during live performances (p. 78). His belief that there is a limit to the degree to which a person can experience transcendence at a Christian metal concert thus could benefit from further research and debate.
Moberg presents some interesting insights into how Christian metal is a means by which Christians who are likewise metal enthusiasts can engage in an alternative way of practicing their faith (p. 80). This phenomenon can perhaps be thought of as the casting of Christianity into a metal matrix. The outcome is actually quite interesting. For example, Christian metal-heads employ war tropes which are common to metal music in their lyrical content about spiritual warfare and apocalyptic scenes (p. 54). Moreover, the rebelliousness of metal music is adopted by Christian metal-heads who claim to be rebelling against the supposed immorality of modern Western society and culture (p. 48). The image of young Christian rebels sporting heavy metal attire is certainly fascinating. The way in which Christians can rally against the status quo through metal highlights Christianity’s ability to transform a countercultural and potentially anti-Christian music scene to suit its own purposes.
Moberg also discusses how many Christian metal musicians wish to evangelize to a larger metal audience (p. 136). Musicians who intend to proselytize among “secular” metal-heads state that attempts to convert people through metal is an effective means of reaching an audience that would mock traditional techniques of Christian conversion (p. 136). Despite this claim that metal is an effective method of converting non-Christians, Moberg mentions that the “secular” metal community has largely rejected Christian metal. He suspects that this might be due to the “deeply ingrained individualistic ethos of secular metal culture” (p. 148). Apparently, despite the originality of their approach to evangelization, the message of Christian metal musicians might be falling on deaf ears. Unfortunately, Moberg does not offer a great deal of primary evidence which can shed light on the dynamics of these interactions between “secular” metal-heads and Christian metal musicians and fans. He presents both sides of the argument, abstaining from critical engagement or further comment. Accounts of the actual attempts at evangelization and the interactions between both Christian and non-Christian metal fans has been left largely unexamined by Moberg and is certainly worth investigating.
The ingrained individualism of “secular” metal is quite different from the uniformity of the international Christian metal scene which Moberg continually highlights throughout his book. Moberg states that his research shows that Christian metal musicians are prone to musical disagreements but rarely if ever experience conflict about the core Christian message of their music. Moreover, denominational differences do not seem to present any points of disagreement as far as belief is concerned (p. 132). Christian metal not only leans towards doctrinal uniformity but it is also apparently unaffected and independent of the “increasingly global, evangelical popular culture industry” (p. 118). In this sense, it is truly a fringe group within the realm of Christianity. According to Moberg, the Christian metal community is not tied down by outside evangelical influences and likewise experiences a high degree of unity (p. 118). If his conclusions are correct, the Christian metal scene presents an interesting opportunity to study a modern, alternative form of Christianity, which belongs to a larger metal community that often rejects Christian metal-heads. Moberg’s Christian Metal is an important opening into the world of Christian metal music, which has helped pave the way for what can potentially be a more extensive and thorough avenue of research into alternative forms of contemporary Christianity.
Stefanos Singelakis
Posted on September 28, 2017 Categories Book ReviewsLeave a comment on Christian Metal: History, Ideology, Scene – Review
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Edward Andrew Waryas, Jr.
Edward A. Waryas, Jr. has served on the Board since June 2013 and is a distinguished industry leader in the maritime sector. He retired from his position as Vice President-Marine Business Development for Lloyd’s Register North America, Inc. at the end of 2014. Mr. Waryas is President of Windward Maritime LLC and during the 1990’s was the President of the Clay Marketing and Public Relation’s marine division as well as Director, Business Development for Newport News Shipbuilding and Vice President of the Tenneco Foreign Sales Corporation. Prior to this, Mr. Waryas served as a U.S. Coast Guard licensed engineer and while at Mobil, was Chairman of the bow-loading coordination committee that developed the offshore loading system for the Statfjord Field off the coast of Norway. Mr. Waryas has a degree in Marine Engineering, from the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy and a Master of Master of Science in Transportation Management. Mr. Waryas is Chairman of the Conflicts Committee and a member of the Audit Committee.
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POSCO runs job training for 5,500 people
Participants of POSCO's artificial intelligence academy monitors a deep learning model at Pohang University of Science and Technology, on Oct. 19. / Courtesy of POSCO
By Nam Hyun-woo
POSCO will operate three job training programs for the next five years, to provide field experience to 5,500 jobseekers and those who want to start their own business, the steel giant said Thursday.
In addition, the company said those who finished the program with a good performance will be given jobs at POSCO and its affiliates.
For 1,000 jobseekers, POSCO will expand its existing artificial intelligence and big data academy into a three-month program. At the academy, they will learn statistics and big data analysis and will be paid 1 million won per month.
Also, the company will provide field experiences to 4,000 jobseekers by running a three-week program working with POSCO employees. POSCO said the program will be focused on providing "real working experience" which is hard to attain through educations at universities.
For 500 of those seeking to start their own business, POSCO will operate an education program on business planning, finance, investment and other capacities required for entrepreneurs. For those who passed the feasibility study after the program, the company will provide an office and investment.
"After Chairman Choi Jeong-woo took office, POSCO has been making efforts to grow with society, and the programs are in line with POSCO's new vision of 'With POSCO,'" a POSCO official said.
namhw@koreatimes.co.kr More articles by this reporter
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Jasper Johns in Context
Jasper Johns and Robert Rauschenberg are inextricably linked by art historians. Most likely Johns and Rauschenberg were lovers. We know that they lived in the same building and socialize with each other extensively, we also know that Rauschenberg made some comments about his relationship to Jasper Johns which is pretty strong evidence that they were.
They also shared the context of knowing the same performance artists, John Cage and Merce Cunningham, and they also worked together doing projects, such as window displays in New York City. Like the abstract expressionists, Willem de Kooning, Jackson Pollock, and Franz Kline, we know that Johns and Rauschenberg socialized and hung out in the New York art scene of the 1950s. Most likely being in the right place at the right time contributed largely to all the artists above. It seems very likely that Rauschenberg also helped to further Johns career by introducing him to his gallery.
Many of the artist who lived in New York during the 1950s sought to make their reputations by coming up with a new type of art or technique for making art. For example, Robert Rauschenberg, used found objects and combine them together to make his “combines” that are a kind of sculptural collage. Andy Warhol also borrowed images that he changed and printed on canvas and wooden boxes. Both Rauschenberg and Warhol were major players in the style that developed at that time called “Pop Art.” The movement of Pop Art is slightly different than what the abstract expressionists were doing because the abstract expressionists were making paintings that really didn’t have a subject. As in the case of Jackson Pollock, the act of painting was called by critics “action painting.” The process of making the art was an active process that had to do with gesture and movement and very little to do with any type of representation. Pop Art is kind of an opposite to this.
The so-called pop artists of the 1950s into the 1960s often took a strategy lifted from the DADA artists such as Hannah Hoch and Marcel Duchamp. Most notably Duchamp and Hoch would take printed images and collage them into works of art. Duchamp even took things like a urinal from a bathroom and placed it on a pedestal in a gallery. This strategy was known by Duchamp as the “ready-made,” in which you would take something from one context, such as the urinal, and by placing it in a gallery he would “recontextualize it,” which is a kind of buzzword in art history, and transform it into art by changing how it was presented. For Marcel Duchamp it was kind of a joke, however, it became a kind of gold standard in terms of how to think about art and the role of artists. The pop artists of the 1950s use this strategy of taking ready-made for preprinted things from mainstream or commercial culture and changing its meaning. Also kind of joke, but, when artists like Warhol did it with his famous painted Brillo boxes, critics described it as a criticism of American consumer culture. Essentially then pop art criticizes the art world and consumerism in the modern world of the 1950s.
In the case of Jasper Johns, several of his works reappropriate or borrow symbols from mainstream culture and are used in a way that might change the symbols meaning. For example, Johns uses targets and flags in his work. I’ll discuss how John’s use of flags and targets might be interpreted but first it’s important to understand some things about how the paintings were made and the materials used.
In most of Johns more famous works he used traditional artist’s materials from much earlier periods. In these two paintings Johns uses a type of paint called encaustic. Encaustic paint is a type of paint that was used as far back as in ancient Greece as well as during the Renaissance and Baroque periods. Encaustic is basically a medium in which pigments are added to melted wax and applied to the canvas or some other support, such as a wooden board, and when it hardens it becomes a paint layer with the particles of pigment suspended in the translucent wax.
Johns also used found stuff, especially newspaper, underneath the encaustic layers. This is kind of a combination of using Marcel Duchamp’s ready-made strategy combined with ancient or Renaissance techniques. This is important because it’s one of the things that historians have used to interpret what Jasper Johns paintings might mean. In one of the paintings, which is very close to the spirit of Robert Rauschenberg’s “combines”, Johns uses some plaster casts of faces and places them within boxes above the canvas painted with a target.
Analyzing the symbolism or meaning behind Jasper Johns works is kind of hard because he didn’t explain his work in any real depth. This is also kind of strategy that many artists use to make the viewer engaged with the work. In some ways one could view it as being a not very genuine way of making the work more interesting because it’s not clear what the work is about. There are various interpretations of why many of the artists from the 20th century would not or did not explain their work and you can look at the various theories or ideas by art critics and art historians that explain why they believe this is so. It is usually a matter of opinion rather than fact. What we do know about Jasper Johns is that he said he had a dream in which she saw a flag and the next day he decided to paint it.
The formal elements such as the use of encaustic medium in Jasper Johns paintings of the American flag has been theorized as being a type of “anachronistic” or out of time kind of element. In the same way that René Magritte used the words “this is not a pipe,” underneath an image of a pipe to create a kind of confusion or cognitive dissonance about what the painting is, for example, art historians often say about Magritte’s painting that it’s not a pipe it’s a painting of a pipe, and that’s why Magritte titled the painting “The Treachery of Images.” Henri Matisse, said something similar about one of his paintings. When Matisse was confronted by someone looking at his painting in which they said something along the lines of, “that’s not a woman!” Matisse replied, “it’s not a woman it’s a painting of a woman.”
When Jasper Johns paints the American flag it’s not an actual flag, it’s a painting of a flag. In this way, he is really representing or making us think about whether or not a painting of the flag is the same as an actual flag. It’s also possible that Jasper Johns was trying to make us think about what the American flag means to us as well and or to him. By using some old-fashioned techniques such as encaustic he’s also probably making a reference to how we think about things in terms of art history and the traditions presented by art history. I phrase these things as probabilities because we haven’t been able to really get evidence from Jasper Johns as to his intentions. Most students of art history then count on the interpretations of their professors or art critics to make sense of what the painting is supposed to mean to Jasper Johns and to the audience that viewed it.
detail of flag painting showing newspaper under the encaustic
Another element that adds to the interpretation of what Jasper Johns flag paintings mean is that underneath the encaustic are layers of newspaper from that time. Several of my professors and other art historians have suggested that Johns was deliberately including the layers of newspaper as a way to suggest the history or culture behind or underneath the flag almost as if the painting was an archaeological dig.
Given the interpretations better the most popular by critics and art historians, usually Jasper Johns flag paintings are interpreted as a type of symbol of America and the things that lurk underneath the surface of American culture. Again, this is not what Jasper Johns said this is how art critics and art historians have interpreted the flag paintings.
Extrapolating from this, the target paintings can be seen in a similar way. Since we don’t know what Jasper Johns intention was historians have suggested that Jasper Johns was a closeted gay man felt like a target. The layers of newspaper underneath the target again become a sort of archaeological dig into American culture and society and the small closets with plaster faces embedded in them could represent Jasper Johns feelings of being a targeted gay man who is in the closet. Again, these are extrapolations and interpretations suggested by others and not necessarily verified by Jasper Johns himself.
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secret series
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Katherine Soucie
m.a.tateishi
Unique Creative Process
On May 31st, I gave an artist talk at the Seymour Art Gallery on finding your unique creative process. Everyone there was extremely supportive and interested, and nobody fell asleep as my cats did when I was practising. I promised to post an outline of the talk and more importantly,links to the fantastic artists I mentioned. Anyone who attended the talk may notice a few differences, as I have added information I had written down but didn’t get a chance to mention.
When I was offered the chance to do this talk, I thought it would be a great opportunity for me to explore the topic of unique processes and how artists come upon them. I am very much a process-based artist and my theory was that your medium and your practice can stem naturally from your personality, background, and work habits.
For this talk, I interviewed four artists who are doing interesting and unique work. I had a theory that there would be a strong link between an artist’s personality or background and the art. And I hunched that each artist would have had an "aha moment "or there was a common element to them finding themselves in their work.
But I was completely wrong.
Every artist turned out to be as individual as their work.
So, what I’ve done is split up the artists into different sections and created a nifty acronym: C.R.A.F.T.
I will talk about my art and inspiration as an introduction to each letter and each artist.
C is for Continuous
Okay, I lied. There was one thing that every artist I spoke to had in common: they all work extremely hard. They manage multiple art practices, other jobs, travel, and long hours to create their art. They have been working for years on their art.
When I was at art school, I was intrigued by the different work habits of students. Some had great ideas, but no follow through. Some worked very hard, but lacked talent. But in the many years I went to Emily Carr (part-time studies towards my BFA) I only met a couple of people who were very talented and worked really hard.
You have to set up a routine of hard work. For advice on this I would recommend the book, The Creative Habit by Twyla Tharp. Early in my art career, I was lucky enough to share a studio with painter, Cheryl Fortier. By her example, I got to see how an artist has to treat painting as a real business. She came to the studio from 9-5 each weekday. She maintained career goals, a teaching practice, good colleague & client relationships, and she prioritized her art. Art was not based on flaky genius but on hard work. And she helped me to establish good studio habits, which I have maintained ever since.
So achieving good art takes continuous hard work. Not always producing good work, but producing something and trying new things. In addition, continuing education is important: visiting galleries and museums, artist studio visits, attending art talks, and even taking courses. I had a recent studio visit with Jill Pilon. Not only did I get inspired by her work, but she explained how she uses screen-printing in her work—something I’ve been wanting to try and will now incorporate.
Your practice needs to be continually evolving and refining, and the only way that can happen is from hard work.
R is for research
For my Secret series paintings at the gallery, I did a lot of research into the idea of keeping secrets, codes, spies. I used motifs like the enigma machine, lemon juice writing, codes, as well as layering in some of my own personal secrets and fears. My process of layering and revealing is perfect for the idea of secrets kept and revealed.
The idea of research was inspired by the interview I did with Katherine Soucie. She is an artist who is creative, dynamic, and socially-conscious. You can see her art practice here and her fashion line here. The founding principle of Katherine’s practice is Zero Waste. When she was attending the textile program at Cap College, she was wandering the dollar store looking for materials to work with for her grad project. Nylons caught her eye: they were cheap and could be dyed. Taking the idea one step further, she contacted nylon manufacturers in Montreal and arranged to purchase the rejected nylons that they would normally throw out. They all begin white and she dyes and screen-prints them. They become the raw materials for her art and her clothing. One new offshoot is that textile artist Michelle Sirois Silver is now buying the colourful scraps too small for Katherine to use, and creating new art with them. So the cycle of recycling continues.
When I spoke to Katherine in the fall, she told me she was spending a lot of time in the Vancouver public library. Her inspiration was gypsies and she developed this year’s Gypsy Aristocrat line. Research is a necessity for fashion designers who must produce several new collections each year. And doing research can benefit any artist who is looking for inspiration for their work.
A is for Authentic
If you are a person like me, who has a tendency towards perfectionism and self-criticism, you may worry about whether you personally can succeed as an artist. I began painting when I was 40, so I wonder if my art would be more successful if I had started earlier. The art world is relentless in its focus on aesthetics and youth, and the hype of finding the next big thing. Or maybe it’s a personality issue, people capable of spending many hours alone in the studio may find it hard to be gregarious enough to promote their work. Any artist believes they have some flaw which prevents them from
But we can only be what we are. I am Japanese, middle-aged, and shy in groups of strangers. I am the opposite of a cool emerging artist. But being who I am got me the opportunity to do an amazing show at the
Japanese Canadian National Museum. And being my age means that I had friends who could afford to buy my art when I first started out. I am trying hard to be authentic to who I am, and let my art reflect that without apology.
One artist I found to be completely authentic to who he is and what he thinks is Brendan Tang. He is an artist who is intellectual and political, but with a sense of humour and great self-awareness.
Brendan’s own background is a cultural mix like many Canadians. He was born in Ireland, but has Trinidadian, Chinese, and Canadian cultural influences. Despite a non-artistic background, he excelled at art when he was young, and you can see his drawing skills in his work. In his Manga Ormulu series, we see a complete cultural mix: Chinese pottery, European pottery, Japanese manga, speculative fiction, geek worlds. To me, the work is very accessible, but talking to Brendan he emphasized the deeper meaning behind the work. It is a re-appropriation of Chinese pottery stolen by European craftsmen. But to me, the accessibility is key, you have work that people can appreciate at many levels of meaning from basic enjoyment to political consciousness.
F is for Forté
If authenticity is about knowing yourself, forté is knowing what you can do—your strengths and weaknesses. My strength is colour. I love using bright colour and pure tints, and I think I’m good at balancing them.
The artist who represents forté for me is Reece Terris. As an artist I found him to be determined and modest with an incredible spatial awareness. As a child, he enjoyed taking things apart and putting them back together. His father was around to help if there was a piece missing afterwards. He began working in construction at 16, and ended up travelling the world, supporting himself with construction work in places like Australia. After 15 years of working, he began attending art school at the Simon Fraser University downtown campus. The freedom and support of school meant that he could integrate his construction skills seamlessly into his art practice.
His graduation project was entitled American Standard. He completely renovated the men’s washroom at SFU to create a wall of fountains, made from urinals. It was a riff on Duchamp, but also a spectacularly beautiful feat of engineering. Not shown is all the work he had to do to put the bathroom back into functioning order.
Reece is perhaps best known in Vancouver for his Ought Apartment, a tower of rooms from different decades. His work is not sculptural as much as an intervention on a specific site. He sees the potential for adding art to places because that is almost in his DNA.
T is for Tragedy
In 2008, I was preparing for my first solo show at a commercial gallery when my mother suffered a severe stroke. As an only child, I was thrust into hospital visits, medical consultations, and looking after her affairs. I was operating at only half-awareness that week, and I called the gallery owner to tell her what had happened. I assumed that she would understand that I couldn’t produce the work. But after she offered her sympathies, she said, “Mary Anne, you’re not going to let me down, are you?” “Um, no,” I agreed. I was in a complete daze.
So my routine for the following weeks was to go to the studio early and paint. Break to go to the hospital and later to the rehab facility. Back to the studio. All I did was paint and cry. My heroic husband took over a lot of the household duties. And I did finish a whole range of bright and surprisingly cheery paintings in time for the opening. But I think that painting was the best thing I could have done when I wasn’t with my mother. It was an escape for me and it had become enough of a routine that I could do without conscious thought.
Peter Combe is the only artist I didn’t interview directly for this speech. I went to hear him speak and I chatted with him briefly at his opening in Vancouver. However, I went to hear his artist talk which was a history of his career. As a boy growing up in B.C., he was interested in mathematics which later translated into his work. He travelled and began his art career in Europe. He was doing surreal collages when he had an accident that injured his wrist so badly that he was no longer able to use scissors for his collages.
While casting around for some new artistic expression, he was inspired by the fish scale pattern on the inside of an envelope to begin painting with paint chips cut into circles. He began with abstractions, but is known now for his portraits. While the works look almost computerized and pixelated, they are done by hand. Peter has found a lot of success with his new works and is represented by galleries internationally.
Returning to Reece Terris, for the Ought Apartment project, he collected materials from job sites for years and stored them in an old barn in the Fraser Valley. Then snow on the roof of the barn caused it to collapse with all his materials aside. It was a defining moment, as to abandon everything would have bankrupted him. But Reece got a group of friends together and they managed to salvage and store everything in a new location. The project eventually came together beautifully in the Vancouver Art Gallery.
Anyone faces tragedies and setbacks in life. But it’s all too easy for artists to turn away and think that perhaps things were not to be. The perseverance to continue in art is harder, but for most artists they have no other option. They want to make art, regardless of any difficulties.
I would like to thank the Seymour Art Gallery, specifically Sarah Cavanaugh and Vanessa Black, for the opportunity to put together this talk and for their help in preparing it. I want to thank Peter Combe for agreeing to share his images. Most of all, I want to thank Katherine Soucie, Brendan Tang, and Reece Terris, for being so generous with their time and experiences. They inspired me to share more of myself than I normally would.
Good luck to everyone in pursuing their unique creative processes.
Tagged: Brendan Tang, Cheryl Fortier, Jill Pilon, Katherine Soucie, Michelle Sirois-Silver, Peter Combe, Reece Terris, Seymour Art Gallery, creative process, creativity
280 - 975 Vernon Dr, Vancouver, BC, V6A 3P2, Canada778-834-7905mat@matart.ca
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Typhoon Koppu makes landfall in the Philippines, displacing at least 16,000
October 19, 2015, 9:41:01 CEST | Wikinews
A satellite image of Typhoon Koppu, as of October 17. (Image: United States Naval Research Laboratory.)
Typhoon Koppu, known additionally as Lando, made landfall in the northern Philippines on Sunday, killing at least two and displacing at least 16,000 people.
A satellite image of Typhoon Koppu, as of October 17.
Image: United States Naval Research Laboratory.
The deadly storm caused a concrete wall in a home in Subic, Zambales to topple over, killing a 62-year-old woman and injuring her husband. A 14-year-old teenager was killed after being fatally pinned down in Manila by a tree which got knocked over. The same fallen tree injured four others, including a three-year-old toddler. The tree additionally damaged three nearby houses.
The injured people were sent to the East Avenue Medical Centre for treatment.
A map showing the typhoon's path.
Image: User:Meow, data from NOAA.
The typhoon made landfall in the town of Casiguran, a town with a population of 25,000 in the province of Aurora. Subsequently it ripped roofs off of houses, uprooted trees, and knocked down power lines. Nine provinces were left without electricity. Flash floods and landslides heavily damaged roads, and as a result 25 roads were made impassable.
The army attempted to clear routes leading to Casiguran, according to the state-owned Philippines News Agency. Nigel Lontoc, an employee of the Office of Civil Defense said that some residents were trapped on rooftops in the province of Nueva Ecija. Troops were sent to that location as a part of a rescue operation.
The typhoon weakened as it moved over land, and weather improved in some regions. Officials urged residents to be cautious since Koppu may still cause landslides and flash floods.
Alexander Pama, Executive Director of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council, said that they were asking their countrymen "not to become complacent."
The typhoon is expected to move slowly over the Philippines, causing large amounts of rainfall.
This year, Koppu is the twelfth typhoon to hit the Philippines, where around 20 typhoons make landfall per year.
Bob Henson, weather blogger from Weather Underground, said that the Philippines is considered to be "the most vulnerable large nation on earth for tropical cyclones."
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Antonio Carlos Jobim: Samba de Uma Nota Só (Ella Fitzgerald and Joe Pass)
I don't watch American Idol, unless I happen to be in the room when my wife has it on. To avoid being needlessly antagonistic, I will keep my personal opinion of the show succinct:
I feel they do a good job at recognizing and developing disposable art. Performers are praised for things like stage presence and obviously on their ability to sing on pitch, but I feel too much emphasis is placed on appearance and presentation and not nearly enough on substance.
Apparently, I'm not alone.
Mr. Harry Connick, Jr. was apparently a "mentor" judge, and had the opportunity to offer advice on some jazz standards that were pulled from the Great American Songbook, something of which I have heard he is well-read. As of writing, I have not seen the particular episode in question. I've found various online dissertations on the matter, many of which are conflicting. Some people criticize that Mr. Connick, Jr. was arrogant and rude to the other judges in pushing his opinion. Others claim that he was right in presenting educationally sound musical ideas in a medium that has been long void of such thought. I have my bias, I'll leave that to Facebook flame wars and (other) arm-chair pundits to decide.
Here's the first article I read.
The big takeaway from this (and it's true regardless of whether you feel Connick was out of line), is that the people on the American Idol stage usually possess little or no true musical education.
The point he continually made was that the vocalists on stage were singing songs that they didn't understand. Songs are designed to communicate a message. Some tell a story about burning down Georgia. Others talk about falling in love, or worse, love lost. Some are sympathetic, others tend to be bellicose. Mr. Connick's qualm was when the disposable art interacted with the indispensable art of which he is bred. The runs and the trills and other vocal gymnastics fit with modern music. It's germane with pop. It's just like watching a firework show, bigger is better. But it doesn't have staying power. If you've seen one firework show, you've seen them all. You can take it or leave it.
Or remove your face with it.
Now, these "idols" do work hard, they do try hard and they put forth a great deal of effort into what they apparently love to do. However, the system is flawed. I've met too many people who claim that they can't sing or they can't play an instrument. No one can...initially. Harry Connick, Jr. had to have been (at one point in his life) an annoying child who when introduced to a piano would invariably begin pounding on random keys to make noise.
The first difference is he didn't stop. The second is someone handed him music.
Someone probably molded his banging into cogent order. It took time. He's 45, so there's potentially decades of effort right there. Therefore he is unique, because for some reason many people have decided that they can't sing or play unless someone of musical authority grants them the privilege. I'm here today to tell you that it's not true!
Will a few people become multinational pop stars? Yes. Will the vast majority of mankind fail to become a household name beyond their circle of friends? Yes. Should you sing or play anyway? Yes.
Will you ever be this cool? No.
I think for Mr. Connick, Jr., the biggest problem came when the vocal gymnastics didn't align with the somber message of the tune. When you're sad, when your world is crashing in on you, most people don't feel like doing gymnastics. A huge part of post-Classical music is connecting with those inner human emotions. When you sacrifice the art in sake of a fireworks show, you prove your ignorance. And deep down I feel it was that pervasive ignorance that Mr. Connick was hoping to right. Just like any good teacher.
So it is in that same vein I bring you something of that era gone by and hope to share some musical education with you as well. The chosen piece today is the "One Note Samba" by Antonio Carlos Jobim (1927-1994). Jobim was a Brazilian composer who with saxophonist Stan Getz (1927-1991) became a driving force in introducing the Bossa Nova style to the world with their hit "The Girl from Ipanema". If you've been on hold with the bank before, chances are you've heard it.
No Ma'am, we're musicians.
Now, Jobim is not the only centerpiece of today's lesson, we are looking at a specific rendition of the "One Note Samba". We now turn to Ella Fitzgerald (1917-1996) and Joe Pass (1929-1994). There exists 6 albums featuring collaboration between these two titans of the 20th century. Interestingly enough, the recordings were released from 1973 through 1986, close to the autumn years of both musicians. Pass had become famous for reinventing improvisation on the guitar by incorporating his apparent wealth of music theory knowledge and using creative harmonic patterns by fingering picking instead of using the more prevalent guitar pick. To me it sounds like he can emulate an entire rhythm section with his Gibson ES-175. Ella Fitzgerald had such a command of the voice, with a range exceeding 3 octaves and the ability to improvise freely with a vocal quality that was almost horn-like. She earned the moniker, the "First Lady of Soul" and defended the title readily through 60 years of professional performance.
There is some music that no matter how many times we've heard it, you can always want more. For me, listening to Pass and Fitzgerald play the One Note Samba can never be enough. There are lyrics to this piece (originally in Portuguese):
This is just a little samba
Built upon a single note
Other notes are bound to follow
But the root is still that note
Now this new one is the consequence
Of the one we've just been through
As I'm bound to be the unavoidable
consequence of you
There's so many people who can
talk and talk and talk
And just say nothing
Or nearly nothing
I have used up all the scale I know
And at the end I've come to nothing
So I came back to my first note
As I must come back to you
I will pour into that one note
All the love I feel for you
Anyone who wants the whole show
Re mi fa sol la si do
He will find himself with no show
Better play the note you know
For some reason, the majority of recordings I've found of this duo performing has Ella abandoning the words in lieu of singing the melody in scat. For those who may not know, scat vocals are nonsense syllables that emulate improvisation by instrument with the voice. Different syllables are used to mimic horns and create a wide array of articulation and tone. Ella was one of the best.
In the end, I don't really know why I love hearing these two perform this song. I guess I find it amazing for someone to say so much without really saying anything at all.
Homework: Write about a time you communicated with someone without talking.
http://torus.math.uiuc.edu
http://www.brazzil.com/
http://www.nextavenue.org/
Labels: Jazz , Modern
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After Las Vegas Attack, Jason Aldean Cancels 3 Upcoming Tour Dates & Issues a New Statement
by Jim Casey | @TheJimCasey | October 3, 2017
On Oct. 1, a “lone wolf” gunman opened fire during Jason Aldean’s set at the Route 91 Harvest Festival in Las Vegas, killing 59 people and injuring more than 500. As you can imagine, it’s been an emotional couple of days for Jason.
Today (Oct. 3), Jason released a statement through his PR team, canceling three upcoming dates on his They Don’t Know Tour: Los Angeles (Oct. 6), San Diego (Oct. 7) and Anaheim (Oct. 8).
The tour will resume on Oct. 12 in Tulsa, Okla. Refunds are available at the point of purchase.
Jason’s full statement is below.
As a result of what happened in Las Vegas this week, we have decided to cancel this coming weekend’s shows. I feel like out of respect for the victims, their families and our fans, it is the right thing to do. It has been an emotional time for everyone involved this week, so we plan to take some time to mourn the ones we have lost and be close with our family and friends. Our plan is to resume the tour the following week in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Our first time back onstage will be a very tough and emotional thing for us, but we will all get through it together and honor the people we lost by doing the only thing we know how to do – play our songs for them. I hope everyone understands why we can’t play this weekend and I’m sorry if anyone is disappointed.
I want to say thank you for the outpouring of love from my friends and fans we have received over the last couple days. You guys have no idea how much you have helped get us through this tough time.
Thank You and God Bless.
photo courtesy of JPA/AFF-USA
written by Jim Casey | @TheJimCasey | published October 3, 2017 6:46 PM
category: NCD News | related posts: Jason Aldean
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Dross to Gold and Vice Versa
07. December 2018 · 1 comment · Categories: Ain't That America?, Air Force, Devil Dogs, Eat, Drink and be Merry, Politics, War, Working In A Salt Mine...
I was skimming through the various stories about the late President Bush the First this week, especially one about how he and Barbara were so considerate of and beloved by the Security Service agents who guarded them. It was kind of sweet, the account of a peckish agent going through the White House kitchen in the wee hours, looking for the cookies that he knew that the stewards of the kitchen had baked for the next day … and being joined by Bush the First, in ransacking the kitchen in search of the elusive cookies. That Bush the First and Barbara were loved and respected by the agents whose mission I can attest to at second hand. One of the Air Force security service NCOs I served with in Korea had just come off an assignment at the White House protection detachment. He adored Barbara, BTW – to hear him tell it, he was one of her favorite agents. She called him “Timmy”, which was kind of cute, as he was one of these six-foot-something guys and built like a concrete traffic bollard; probably Barbara was the only one aside from his mother who called him by that name.
The Bushes – the first and second – made a point of staying in Washington over Christmas Eve, so that their staff and security teams could spend Christmas with their families. Think on that – as I have. More than times I have to count, I spent holidays on duty – many of them having to listen to news and feature stories about how the day was a time to celebrate with family and loved ones, enjoying a lavish meal and relaxing; this when I was alone at midnight in a dark building, ripping teletype copy off the machine, re-shelving records in the library, and wondering if I would have time to eat a ham sandwich while I typed up spots for the reader book with one hand. That the Bushes held off on traveling out of town in order that their staffs could have a nice Christmas at home with their families, instead of jetting off for two or three weeks over the holidays, bag, baggage, staff and security to … someplace else; that was considerate, above and beyond.
I saw this as an acknowledgement that other people, especially those lower on the power totem pole – their private lives, their families and all, had purpose and value, to which decent folk in a position of power, ought to acknowledge. It was very old-school of the senior Bushes; and quite a contrast to the Obamas, who went swanning off to Hawaii for their Christmas holidays, and having a meet-n-greet for Marines and their families on Christmas morning. I suppose that the Marines and their families may have been flattered and thrilled to be so honored … but still. Christmas morning, having to be on hand hours before, the active duty troops likely having been up to all hours ensuring that everything was ship-shape. Spouses and small children taken from their family time and space on a holiday morning. My daughter still wonders how many of those appearing in the pictures taken of those various events were “volentold” : Their presence was required. For the photo-op. On Christmas morning.
I suppose that some of those present would have been OK, would have been there; because, President of the USA! Personal appearance, deigning to appear among the working stiffs, at the pointy end of the spear … but still. Christmas morning. Military – but can’t there be private time with the family carved out? So, I felt kind of sorry for the troops and their families, put on the spot during what should have been private, family, at-home time.
That led tangentially to another thought – about how certain politicians and activists, who make a big show about how much they care for humanity, or the downtrodden minorities, or women – or whomever – are in their personal sphere rude and abusive to their families, employees, or even just those casually encountered. Ted Kennedy, after all – was the darling of Establishment Feminists. In real life he was a drunken an abusive pig towards say, ordinary working-class women like waitresses. Yet someone like Mitt Romney – who likely hasn’t been impolite to a woman of any class in his entire adult life – had the same Feminists raining scorn and outright hatred down upon him. Even though these very same Establishment Feminists have been insisting for decades that the personal is political. How very fortunate that those who talk a good talk and garner credit for having the correct opinions and political stances in the abstract seem to be allowed all kinds of latitude in their real-life conduct … while those who are the epitome of grace and good manners in personal conduct are damned as racists and misogynist haters for not toeing the politically-correct line. Are we, at this late date, effectively calling out any of these hypocrites? Discuss as you will.
Racial Meditation
11. March 2018 · 1 comment · Categories: Ain't That America?, Air Force, Fun With Islam, Military, Politics
For me, the very first – although not the most momentous disappointment in the accumulated collection racked up throughout the Obama administration – was the realization that there would be no line drawn under the old bug-bear of racism with regard to those of us – as a friend of mine during my assignment to Greenland in the early 1980s put it – with the year-round dark tan. Yes, said friend was black, Afro-American, a person of color, or whatever the approved term is these days. (You kids, get off my lawn! Oh … I don’t have a lawn.) My friend was a totally middle-class young woman, the daughter of professionals, who like me, had grown up without ever personally observing much in-your-face unmistakable racial antagonism or prejudice. It was merely something that had happened to other people, a fair number of decades ago; at worst howlingly illegal, at best, rude. We were in the habit of walking together every Saturday, around the end of the Sondrestrom AB runway to the Danish side of the base, there to enjoy a cup of tea and a pastry in the SAS air terminal cafeteria.
North of the Arctic Circle, you take your diversions where you can find them; in this case, the air terminal cafeteria was A) away from the base, and B) actually had rather good food, since it was entirely run by Danes; masters of pastry and good solid comfort food. One Saturday, the cafeteria was empty save for a large party at another table, who stared at the pair of us in a manner most disconcerting. It freaked both of us out, as soon as we noticed. Had we each suddenly grown another head? Were we trailing toilet paper stuck to our mukluks? It wasn’t an American uniform – both of us were clad in the customary Sondy winter mufti, of jeans and plaid shirts, with the addition of dull-green issue parkas and mukluks – why were they staring at us? Finally, I ventured – “Is it because you’re black and I’m white, and they’re from South Africa or something, where it’s illegal to sit at the same table?”
She agreed that it must be something like that; it must have been the only explanation, and we returned to enjoying our tea and pastries, marveling at how things had changed so much for the better, from the times of violent civil rights demonstrations twenty years before.
At that point – and especially in the military – systemic racial prejudice appeared to be something from the bad old days. It was so far off the table, it wasn’t even in the same room. No one turned so much as a hair over a commander, supervisor, NCOIC being of another race, and if racial prejudice were a factor in the dating and marriage scene, it was one of the best-kept secrets since the Enigma coding device. So, twenty-some years after that tea-time in the airport terminal, I had some thin and comforting hope that the election of B. Obama to the highest office in the land would at the least put a dagger in the heart of the myth of the USA being Teh Most Racist Nation Evah! – even if he delivered on nothing else of note. And this, even after the “G*d Damn America” sermon stylings of the Reverend Jeremiah Wright came to light among the conservative side of the blogosphere. I’m at heart an optimist … surely the chances of a light-weight Chicago machine pol, with not much going for him other than a mellifluous voice (when reading from a teleprompter) and a slightly unusual personal background couldn’t do all that much damage … could he?
Ten years later, that answer is along the lines of ‘oh, hell, yes!’ Between the crazed indifference to the actual facts of the various ‘police on black thug’ shootings on the part of BLM (and the statistics on crime by black vs white perps generally), the curious rise of the ‘knock-out game’, an anti-Semitic race-mongering sleaze-ball opportunist like Al Sharpton achieving a comfortable sinecure and apparent social respect among Dems as a media commenter, American institutions of higher learning piously condemning ‘whiteness’, an earnest and involved group of citizens like the Tea Party partisans being routinely condemned by the establishment news and entertainment media as racist … all that is bad enough. But now it seems that Nation of Islam honcho, Louis Farrakhan – vicious, anti-Semitic, poisonously-hateful of whites in general, and all-around nut-bar – was on closer acquaintance with our former President than previously thought. Yes, presidents and rising pols need to rub elbows with those from whom a normal private citizen would otherwise run screaming, or at least murmuring polite apologies as they edge towards the door – but what are we to make of this? Trump is expected to apologize endlessly for having attracted the support of David Duke – but the support of a malignant hater like Calypso Louie is just – oh, well, one of those political things?
Sharpton, at least, gives off the vibe of being a particular sort of crass racial opportunist (aside from the anti-Semitic thing). Stoking racial animosity been berry, berry good to him over the years – but Louis Farrakhan? He comes off as a fanatic, and of a dangerous sort. Discuss, if you can bear it.
Dust in the Wind
18. October 2016 · Comments Off · Categories: Ain't That America?, Air Force, General, Home Front, Military
I saw the hungry armies of the men who had no work
I saw the silver ship fly to her doom
I watched the world at war and witnessed brave men go berserk
And saw that death was both the bride and groom
I watched Bikini atoll turn from coral into dust
At Dealy Plaza worlds came to an end
And swirling winds of time blew as the Soviet went bust
And life is born in stars as some contend
The swirling winds have always blown around man’s aimless trials
And will continue blowing ‘til the stars
Wink out in just a few short eons as the goddess whiles
Away the time in counting kings and tsars
Who think that they control the winds that swirl around their heads
Believing they are mighty as the sword
Not knowing that in blink of eye they’re taken to their beds
The swirling winds of time are oft ignored
Until, like we, the winds becalm and we stand face to face
With zephyrs and Spring breezes at our back
Propelling us toward what it seems is finish of the race
The winds we have but time is what we lack –
Walt Erickson, the poet laureate of Belmont Club, on this particular discussion thread.
So, tempus fugit and all that … dust in the wind, as the pop group Kansas used to sing. That number always reminds me vividly of a certain time and place, a memory which is strictly personal and has no bearing on this post, really … save for reminding me in an oblique way, that as of this month twenty years past, I went on terminal leave from the USAF. As of the end of this year, I have been retired from the military for as many years as I was in it. I can’t claim that I have traveled as far in this last two decades as I did in the two before that … after all, when I went to my high school reunion in 1982, I won the award for having come the farthest to attend the reunion. That was the year I was stationed in Greenland at the time, and the reunion was coincident to my middle-of-tour leave. The two decades past included travel to California to visit family, to Brownsville on client business, to Washington DC/Arlington for a milblogger convention, to Houston once and innumerable road trips to the Hill Country on book business. Dust in the wind, my friends – dust in the wind.
01. August 2016 · Comments Off · Categories: Air Force, Allied Treachery, Fun With Islam, Military, War
The base at Hellenikon was often under siege and sometimes physically so; before, during and after I was stationed there in the early 1980s; regularly once a year when the local national employees went on strike, and blockaded the front gate, and now and again by anti-US and anti-NATO protesters. Although there was a Greek Air Force installation right next to the American base, there was no passage between the two, unlike the base at Zaragoza, where Spanish and American personnel had pretty much free passage between their respective halves of the facility. In the case of striking workers, or hostile protestors at the main – and only entrance – those of us inside the base were stuck there, while those outside were also cut off. Only one year did it become a problem lasting more than a single day – but it was an inconvenience for us all, and particularly frightening for family members.
And I was remembering all of that, this weekend, reading about how Incirlik Air Base – which also used to be called Adana Air Base – was cut off for about a day this weekend, after having commercial power cut off for nearly a week by Turkish civil authorities, in the wake of an attempted coup against a president who strong-armed himself into office by side-stepping the established rules. Because of the deteriorating situation in Turkey, all family members were ordered out at the end of March, 2016; a NEO evacuation, as it used to be and still is termed, for Non-combatant Evacuation Operation. (I used to have to keep current paperwork for an escort for my daughter, in the case of one of these; she would travel with various friends who would deposit her eventually with my parents, while I would stay behind.) Months before, the military quietly stopped facilitating accompanied tours to Incirlik. Currently, according to the bases’ own website, there are about 1,400 American military personnel serving there, with another 400 civilian employees. The dependent schools, teen center, child care center – all are closed; presumably the various employees of same are either evacuated themselves, or enjoying a nice vacation.
Incirlik’s mission and that of the 39th Air Base Wing is, according to the bases’ website, “to help protect U.S. and NATO interests in the Southern Region by providing a responsive staging and operational air base ready to project integrated, forward-based air power.” Part of this mission also includes a store of nuclear weapons. The base website is naturally, non-committal about this aspect of their mission. Even if there aren’t any such weapons in the bomb dump at Incirlik, likely there are all kinds of interesting munitions and weapons. Which is all very good and well – but Turkey’s President Erdogan has been loudly accusing the US – and the former USAF commander of Incirlik – of plotting and assisting with the failed coup. The commander of the Turkish Air Force assets at Incirlik is reported to have asked the US for asylum, which was refused; the man is now under arrest, as part of the purge of Erdogan’s political enemies. I have read here and there that those American military assigned to the base are confined to the base itself; considering Erdogan’s incendiary accusations, probably a wise move.
As for what now – like Will Rogers of blessed memory, all I know is what I read in the newspaper, or on-line at various sites. But the nightmare visioning that woke me up several times this weekend was of a full-on mob attack on Incirlik’s American sector, on the order of the Benghazi consulate writ large, and with even more weapons and determination … and with the tacit encouragement of Erdogan’s government and Islamist allies.
So much for being a NATO ally. And since our State Department did very little in the case of the Benghazi attack, save for blaming it all afterwards on a mysterious video that hardly anyone had heard of … can one count on the DoD being all that proactive in the event of a serious attack on Incirlik AB? Discuss.
12. April 2016 · Comments Off · Categories: Air Force, Domestic, Home Front, Local
Curious indeed, to reflect that by the end of this year, I will have been out of the Air Force for as long as I was in it – but the time does fly when you are having fun. But twenty years in the Big Blue Machine does leave marks, as well as an exquisite sense of how the military really operates in real time, among the lower-ranking levels, close to the ground. This isn’t a sense readily developed from reading, although I suppose someone with wide experience, a strong sense of empathy and close personal associations with veterans can develop it by proxy.
This around-about way of explaining how all this last weekend, my daughter and I were wondering about a murder-suicide at Lackland AFB on Friday morning. A trainee airman had fatally shot his squadron commander, and then killed himself. Of course, it all came out in dribbles over the weekend; the trainee was an E-6, aged 41 and a student in the pararescue course … and had also resigned from the FBI as a special agent. Everything about this was curious, even unlikely; the Air Force para-rescue specialty is one of the most physically-demanding jobs the Air Force has. It’s comparable to the SEALS, and Army Special Forces, in that many are called, few chosen, and even fewer still graduate.
And an instant promotion to E-5 or E-6, Blondie and I agreed, must mean this man must had been prior service; Marine or Army Ranger, in order to waltz in without going through Air Force basic. But to have dropped from the FBI to enlist … curioser and curioser, Blondie and I agreed – and until today, there was nothing really reported which explained any of this … until I found a story from the L.A. Times. A reporter had actually looked at the anomalies, and reported thusly:
Bellino joined the Army after graduating from high school in 1992, training first as an Army Ranger at Ft. Stewart, Ga., then as a Green Beret at Ft. Bragg, N.C., according to his attorney, Daniel Conway. In 2002, he left the Army and joined the Army National Guard, serving with a special forces unit based in Ohio, according to Conway and military records. During his time in the Army and National Guard, Bellino served multiple tours in Afghanistan, Iraq, Kosovo and Kuwait …From 2004 to 2007, Bellino also worked as a civilian contractor with a private security firm, the lawyer said. In 2011, Bellino left the military, went to work as an FBI special agent in the New York office but resigned after less than two years, according to an FBI statement. He then tried to reenlist in the Army or join the Navy, but eventually settled on the Air Force because it involved the least amount of red tape…
To recapitulate; ten years in the Army, then the Army National Guard for nine years, to include three years as a civilian contractor, then a mere two years as an FBI agent … and back to military service, as a trainee among people half his age. I’d venture a speculation that this extremely checkered career is an indication of certain personality traits; traits that made him a very bad team player and a huge problem for commanders and NCOs, all the way along. I’d also speculate that he looked good at first look, every time … but eventually the problem traits surfaced, and it was just less trouble for all involved to let him move on. Discuss.
Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines
23. April 2014 · Comments Off · Categories: Air Force, Fun and Games, History, Technology, That's Entertainment!, Wild Blue Yonder
Just for fun, and because I am thrashing out a review of The Birdmen, for Amazon Vine – a song from a movie about the early days of aviation, which became a British hit…
15. December 2013 · Comments Off · Categories: Air Force, Military, Technology
Curiosity led me to look up the history of the Armed Forces Radio and Television Service – from which I parted company about two and a half years before I retired from the military. I found a couple of names I recalled – a guy who was a baby airman when I knew him, now a master-sergeant and instructor at the military broadcaster training school, which amused the hell out of me. Well, someone has to do that – just that I had never seen him as having that potential at all. Frankly, I’m still surprised there still is an Armed Forces Radio and Television, what with the international reach of satellite radio and TV these days. For all of me, the military information mission could be folded up and inserted as needed as public service announcements and segments into regular commercial satellite radio and television programs beamed overseas.
Oh, I had fun for a time with various assignments in my career field, and didn’t bring down any particular discredit on the various outlets I was assigned to, unlike some that I could mention, but the bald truth of it is that it was a dying career field, and moreover, one which had an unenviable reputation for chewing people up and spitting them out. Add in the fact that you were guaranteed to spend long stretches overseas or in remote locations, and any assignments back in CONUS were guaranteed to be very, very short ones … it was only natural that the appeal of working in a in that field would wear thin after a while. I looked around one day, when I had about fifteen years total active federal military service, and realized that every station manager I had ever worked for had cracked up in some spectacular manner, either physically or emotionally. There was the one who tried to commit suicide – twice – the one who barely survived the heart attack and the quadruple bypass which ensued, the one who had to work several outside jobs to keep up with the alimony and child support for all of his ex-wives, a handful who were serious alcoholics, the one who tried to stiff the US government with a false claim on his travel voucher … it went on, and on.
Reflecting on this dismaying tendency, I concluded that it was because of a particular kind of stress inherent in having a management position of the kind that broadcasters did. There was an enormous amount of responsibility, but no hands-on effective control. That, so I was told in several professional development courses that took over the years, was guaranteed to produce a high level of stress. One had to see that certain tasks were performed – there were so many hours of live programming produced by the staff, so many spots and readers, that so many hours of television programming were aired – but the means of ensuring that it all happened were all severely limited. One had to operate within the constraints imposed by the supply chain, the transport chain, the station’s individual technological capabilities, peculiarities of the host nation (some of which – notably Greece – were flat-out insane), the personnel system, plain old human nature, and the fact that most stations were tiny tenant units on a larger base. Throw in the demands of a distant headquarters – whose demands were quite often contradictory when they weren’t nonsensical … a good few years of this would begin to tell on the most able, dedicated NCO.
I didn’t see any of these stressors during my breaks from broadcasting, when I worked in the PA shop, or in the military video production service. I saw excellent managers, high morale, an achievable mission, support from higher HQ and realistic expectations of personnel. I got my very-best performance ratings and service citations during those stretches – which to me merely emphasized the dysfunction in the broadcaster organization. I’d have cross-trained in a heart-beat, if I could have, but the high panjandrums of military broadcasting didn’t allow it; you couldn’t even get out to be a recruiter or a DI, which is usually an all-paid-expenses escape with the blessings of your personnel manager. So, I got out of it the only way possible – by bailing at 20 years and never looking back. So did another NCO that I knew – the finest all around broadcaster, manager and leader that I ever worked with; good at everything, which was rather rare (most people had a strong suit of technical skill, administrative wizardry, or leadership, or a combination of any two) – he didn’t make any higher rank than I did. He went into local politics – he’s a city councilman in Plano, Texas these days. I scribble historical fiction. We both got something out of being military broadcasters for a while, but sometimes I do wonder if any other career field would have done better for us.
Counting the Blessings
07. August 2013 · Comments Off · Categories: AARRRMY TRAINING SIR!!!, Air Force, Fun and Games, Good God, Rant
Among the blessing that is about biggest in my inventory of them – aside from finishing out my final military tour in Texas, which I didn’t much like at the time, since it was third on my list of choices. Dammit, the personnel who dictated broadcaster assignments were supposed to turn themselves inside out, giving retiring broadcasting personnel their first choice of a final assignment location since they could then do things like buy a house and work up local connections to facilitate the post-retirement second career which the customary long stretches of overseas/remote duty tours usually didn’t allow an opportunity to do. It turned out for the best, although I certainly didn’t see it so at the time. The main thing is that not only am I now glad that I am retired and long past being recalled to active duty (like they couldn’t get enough military broadcaster talent that they have to recall a slightly overweight lady of certain age) but I am glad that Blondie is also long past recall. And that she didn’t sign up for Reserve duty, either.
There, I said it. I am glad both of us are no longer on active duty; and I am also glad that the handful of friends that I kept in touch with post-retirement are retired. The hints and portents which have emerged from the military machine over the last year or so do not give cause for assurance; a portion of the tippy-top echelons in the service being forced by convenient circumstance to retire at the top of their game is, I think the most obvious harbinger. God knows how many other of lesser rank, or long-experienced NCOs are also seeing the writing on the wall and walking away. Certainly note won’t be made in individual cases. Military operations in Afghanistan appear to be going about as well as every other historical foreign military operation ever did – and I should like to point out here and now that I never really expected much else, even back in 2003. Keep the money flowing, and a couple of units of Special Forces to thump the obvious Talibunnies when they got too obstreperous, secure Kabul and some of the other population centers, and generally administer to the theater with a very light hand. Let the indigenes sort out their own salvation and keep them from damaging anyone else. Of course, our current administration, not known for any other political and international savvy than it needs to keep the Chicago political machine functioning, thought otherwise. Now there is a steady trickle of metal coffins coming back, to practically no notice in the news media than that in the hometowns of the deceased. (Anyone know if the current president has a private meeting with every family/next of kin to those killed in combat? The usual search engines are … unproductive of answers in this regard.)
Then of course, there is the one-two punch of allowing openly gay personnel to serve also openly and with every prospect of the same benefits and courtesies as the heterosexual, and the ever-green question of permitting women in direct, full-frontal infantry-style combat specialties. Both of these moves by the current administration were immensely popular among that portion of the civilian population which didn’t actually have to deal with realities on the ground as experienced by serving military. Believe me when I tell you this – it’s a great deal more complicated than it appears when discussed in the faculty lounge. Really-oh, truly-oh.
Allow a slightly overweight and defiantly non-combat-specialty retired career AF NCO to provide enlightenment. Firstly, at the grunt-level, my own service and specialty didn’t give a rip about what you did with your significant other in bed, as long as you weren’t doing it in the road, or on the base commander’s front lawn. No, really – we didn’t care all that much. Just – don’t demand rapturous approval of your life-style, which from my own personal observation and the best figures available, only involves about 2-3% of the general population. No, really – a dismayingly large proportion of the public thinks that a quarter to a third of the population are gay, but that’s because they are only so LOUD about it. I don’t know which percentage of that 2-3% are confrontational to the point of hysteria about demanding that the rest of us line up and clap like a gaggle of performing seals – but I suspect there are actually not many, and very few in the active and serving military.
No – some deep dark secret-revealing here; I am about 96% certain that the true reason that the military didn’t go out and embrace the rainbow agenda is that administratively, they barely had a lock on heterosexual harassment; mostly of males doing it to females, but now and again the other way around. It was about as much as they could do to keep the heteros from jumping each other and using upper rank to exploit the lower. The last thing that anyone in authority wanted to see was even more sexual harassment cases on their personal docket – or because the military is still a preponderantly male preserve – to see it turn into something like a state prison, only with snappy uniforms for all, not just the prison guards. A lot of military life is lived in confined quarters, and with a severely authoritarian structure in place. The scope for abuse of the lower-ranking is incredibly wide. Again – turning a large structure inside out and upside down for the benefit of a microscopically small but vocally outsized minority – only a community activist and former college lecturer could think it a good idea, or that there wouldn’t be problems down the line – including morale problems. More about the morale problems later.
As for women-in-combat; back in my day the Air Force was pretty ecumenical about it all. Because it was … the Air Force. Technical and brainy and all that stuff; no very great degree of upper body strength required for most of the AF specialties. After the Vietnam War (say from about the early 1980s), the only Air Force specialty confined to strictly XY Americans in good health and medical fitness for military service was that of para-rescue specialists, and if memory serves, of advance AC controllers and spotters. One required a great deal of upper body strength and a tolerance for dealing with dead bodies in variable states of decay, and the other with Special Forces-degree skills at humping a heavy pack through the brush while avoiding or dealing with hostiles who didn’t have your best interests at heart. Other wise, most of the Air Force military specialties could be performed as easily by women as men. Not so your basic grunt rifleman, although there have been women – especially Marine women who had the basic fitness, were taught the skills and could very well cope with incidental combat when it came their way. But full-time, all the time and round the clock for indefinite periods of time … er – no. This is not to downplay the courage and skills of women who have served as such in the most recent round of wars, especially those who performed heroically when the hot lead was flying; but they are a small percentage and self-selected. In the long run, about all that we can count on is that training standards will be loosened to accommodate women, the guys will resent the hell out of them, and very likely women will die … to prove a point upheld by academics and politicians who will never in a blue moon come anywhere closer to the military than a base open house.
I am also hearing rumblings regarding balancing the rights of atheists with regard to Christians in the military, and frankly I am a little perplexed at that. Looking backwards at my own career, it didn’t seem to me as if believing and practicing Christians of whatever denomination were a big enough percentage of the force to give anyone who wasn’t any kind of heartburn, even overseas. Anecdote is not data – but those of us in the habit of attending weekly services, or going as far as regular Bible study were pretty much in a minority, considered against the non-observant. Making a habit of proselytizing your peers was considered bad form – and frowned on, for one of higher rank to proselytizing those in lower ranks. I did know a couple of atheists or people who claimed to be, and there was one young man whom it was whispered, belonged to a Wiccan coven – which was no sweat off mine, since it meant that he had a social life after all. I suspect that it is the attitude of believing Christians with regard to gays that is driving the sudden upsurge of hostility to the openly devout.
These four things – the purge of the upper ranks, dropping of don’t ask-don’t tell, women in combat specialties, Afghanistan – are all affecting morale in the services, to one degree or another. Morale, in an individual or in a unit of any size, is a delicate thing; hard to build and easily destroyed. I’ve been in units which had good morale and a sense of mission, a leadership cadre whom we trusted and in turn trusted us. I’ve also been in units which didn’t have good morale, where we scraped by from day to day just hoping to escape being made a scapegoat for a leadership-created disaster. At those units, I counted the days until I rotated out. I expect there are a fair number of serving NCOs and officers now doing the same.
(cross-posted at chicagoboyz.net)
The Life of Celia
04. May 2012 · Comments Off · Categories: Ain't That America?, Air Force, Domestic, Fun and Games, General Nonsense, sarcasm, Working In A Salt Mine..., World · Tags: obama campaign, The life of Julia
(With apologies to the Obama perpetual re-election campaign. Other people have had a go at this concept – I think The Life of Brian is one of the funniest, but I wanted to have a go at this myself. )
3 Years Old – Under President Eisenhower, Celia stays home with her younger brother, as her full-time work-at-home Mom helps her get ready for school by reading aloud to her, supervising her playtime and providing a secure home environment. She will join thousands of students across the country who will start kindergarten ready to learn and succeed.
17 Years Old – Under President Nixon, Celia takes the SAT and is on track to begin applying for college … which college program includes two years at a local junior college capped by two years at a state university – a public university system that the taxes paid by Celia’s parents over the years have subsidized. The public high school which Celia attends is in a working-class suburb, but offers academically enriched courses for those students who qualify for them.
The Duck of Death Quacking Up at Last?
21. March 2011 · Comments Off · Categories: Ain't That America?, Air Force, Fun and Games, Fun With Islam, General, sarcasm, World
Yeah, I know – juvenile humor at best, but somehow that’s about the only reasonable response you can make to a walking, talking comic-opera cartoon villain like Moammar Khadaffy. Or Quadaffi, or what the hell – Khadaffy-Duck. I mean, the clothes, the sprocket-hung uniforms, the transparent megalomania, the fembot body-guards, the rip-off of Mao’s Little Red Book . . . and was he the inspiration for the villain in Jewel of the Nile? And then you remember the serious stuff: the airplanes and discos bombed, the terrorists like the IRA generously funded – the politicians and intellectuals paid to be his respectable front, the plight of those foreign doctors and nurses who were accused of deliberately infecting patients with AIDS, the death of a British policewoman in front of the Libyan embassy in London (who was shot from within the embassy), and the brutalization of his own people . . . no, Quadaffy-Duck was every bit as malevolent as Saddam Hussein; his pretensions and dress-sense was just a little more risible. Otherwise, just a matter of degree, and frankly, I can’t think of a nicer person to have a J-DAM coming down the chimney with his name on it, no matter how the heck you spell it. I did so hope that he would wind up like Mussolini (his corpse hanging from a gas-station – which would be ironic in the extreme) or stood up in front of a wall like Ceausescu; the thing being that it would be Libyans themselves performing the necessary chore of taking out the flamboyantly-clad trash. Ah, well; however the job gets done.
Anyway – as you can guess, I’ll be breaking out the popcorn and celebrating the immanent demise of the Duck of Death; it’s been long overdue, no matter who or what is responsible for seeing that he achieves room temperature. However . . . the infamous however, well-freighted with irony . . . I do have a few small concerns, chief among them being – who and what are the anti-Khadaffy Libyans, exactly? When all the dust settles, and someone who is not the Duck of Death or of his ilk and kin is in charge . . . who will that person be, and will they be an improvement?
Secondly; what next? Are we just clearing out the Duck’s flyable assets so that a no-fly zone may be installed? How long will the no-fly zone be in effect – as long as the no-fly zone over Iraq, which protected the Kurds? Months, weeks, days? Of the allied nations assisting in this, who will have the resources to continue that long? Should it be necessary to put boots on the ground . . . whose boots will they be, and what exactly will be the assigned duties of those boots?
And the irony of Obama doing just about what Bush was damned up one side and down the other for doing, with regard to another middle-eastern oil-rich nation ruled by a brutally iron-fisted autocrat with a penchant for seeing his own face everywhere? Rich, I tell you – as in two scoops of Ben and Jerry’s Chunky Monkey. Watching half of Obama’s backers turn themselves into pretzels trying to explain how one of these things is so not like the other, and the other half going into gibbering hysterics realizing that it is . . . it’s turning out to be quite a giggle for me. Enough reason for anther round of popcorn, anyway.
And finally – you know, they told me if I voted for McCain/Palin, that there would never-ending war in the Middle East – and damn if it doesn’t look like it.
14. March 2011 · Comments Off · Categories: Ain't That America?, Air Force, General, Wild Blue Yonder
From an email by a member of a Yahoo discussion group for FEN broadcasters – dated Sunday
About one hour ago or 12 noon Misawa time I had the privilege of watching the USAF Misawa trucks and buses convoy out the main gate on their way to the local coastal areas to provide relief assistance. A half dozen buses filled with local military and USA teams that landed here. Also a dozen 60 foot flatbeds loaded with supplies and equipment. Local townsfolk came out to the curbside to wave and bow. A very heartwarming display indeed.
The northern coastal areas near Misawa AB were hit hard by the tsunami as was Hachinohe though not much was mentioned by the media.
Misawa has just announced the all clear for tsunami. Aftershocks are all but absent now. Power is back on after 36 hours without. Base has limited power. Japan has a lot to do now to clean up and get started again. This has been one really bad week. We grieve for those not far from here.
Info can be had at Facebook under “AFN Misawa” or by visiting the Stars and Stripes online newspaper.
Bill Bunch
Misawa, Japan
Shaker of Worlds
11. March 2011 · Comments Off · Categories: Air Force, General, Good God, Memoir, Military
I was stationed for four years at Misawa AB, in the very north of Japan, from early 1977 until the very end of 1980. It’s a very rural part of Japan, relatively speaking; very cold in the winter. Misawa was a pretty smallish city, as Japan goes, about seven or eight miles from the coast; the countryside around is as flat as a pancake, and not terribly far above sea-level. There was a nice little mountain range to the north, within a short drive; very scenically wooded. Up to the mountains to see Lake Towada, over the mountains to Mutsu Bay; it was a very pleasant place to spend four years: Misawa’s mission then was as a security service base; a support system for a huge monitoring complex called the Elephant Cage, or just “the Hill.” Which was maybe thirty feet above sea level, which was enough to constitute a considerable height in that part of Japan.
The next big city to the south of Misawa City though – that would be Hachinohe; which was known for a peculiar style of carved and painted wooden horse sculpture. In the late 19th century and into the 20th, Hachinohe was horse-country, and the original Imperial Army establishment at Misawa had been a cavalry post. The next big city to the south after Hachinohe is Sendai – closest to the epicenter of the latest earthquake. It looks from the news headlines that a whole train full of passengers is now missing, from near Sendai. I visited Hachinohe once, maybe Sendai, too. Coming back from leave Stateside, I traveled by train from Tokyo to Misawa, coming home from leave, so I must have passed through there at least once.
There were constant small earthquakes, all during my time there; most usually just a small rattle and shake, rather like being inside a small frame building with a heavy truck rumbling past outside. In fact, sometimes it was hard to tell of it was an earthquake, or a heavy truck, the physical sensation was so similar. If we hadn’t heard a truck, then it was an earthquake. Slightly more emphatic earthquakes shifted furniture, sometimes . . . and at the old AFRTS radio/TV station where I worked, our usual indicator that it was a serious shake would be rolls of teletype paper falling off the shelves of the tall metal bookshelves where they were stored. If the paper rolls began toppling from the shelves, it was time to vacate the building. Which isn’t the recommended practice, generally – but in this particular case, there was an extenuating circumstance. That would be that the base water-tower sat about 100 feet away from the station, a creaky wooden water-tower standing on spindly 90 foot tall wooden supports. If there was ever a shake hard enough to collapse those spindly frame supports, there were good odds that however-many gallons of water in that tower would pour onto a rattle-trap frame building stuffed full of powered-up electronic equipment. So – mad dash by all staff, when stuff started rocking hard enough to fall from shelves.
Being from California, and having been through some small quakes and the big Sylmar shake in 1971 – I could be fairly blasé about the whole Pacific Rim of Fire/seismically active thing. Many of the other members of the unit weren’t – not at first. But with little ones, all the time – they’d get pretty blasé after a couple of months. But every once in a while, there would be much bigger one, which would grab everyone’s attention; once it was a pair of tremors on a Tuesday evening, almost exactly an hour apart; that was a quake which collapsed a department store in Hachinohe, or Sendai. Another time, a girl was briefly trapped in her barracks room, because her dresser slid across and blocked the door. Another shock caught one barracks resident in the middle of a shower; she shot straight out of the bathroom, down the corridor and out of the building, stark naked.
The one thing that struck me about the big quakes was that there really was a noise to them; an absolutely horrific noise. The one thing that I can easily compare it to is to imagine standing on the platform of a railway station, when a long fast train roars straight through the station without stopping. That’s what it sounds like – a long, rumbling and roaring sound; of course, part of this noise is the sound of things falling. In the Sylmar quake, I remember hearing the sounds of the sash-springs in the window-frames rattling like mad. And unlike all those movies of earthquakes – people don’t run and scream much. Most usually, they are getting underneath something, and trying to make themselves small, maybe shouting to someone in the same room or in the same building to do the same – but no running and screaming like a banshee.
This quake off the coast of Japan was several times the magnitude, and the pictures and video emerging are horrific. 8.8 on the Richter scale is something almost impossible to imagine – and to be compounded by tsunamis sweeping in from the sea, and the debris catching on fire – that just adds to the horror.
Korea Meditation, Revisited
24. November 2010 · Comments Off · Categories: Air Force, Fun and Games, General, History, Memoir, Military, N. Korea
In the early 1990s, I did a tour in Korea; a year at Yongsan Garrison, working at HQ-AFKN, barely a stone’s throw from where my father had spent a couple of weeks at Camp Coiner in 1953. Camp Coiner was where new troops were processed for assignments in-country, and it was still a self-contained miniature garrison with a dining hall, movie theater, club, PX and chapel. Processing new arrivals takes only a day or two these days. When I was there, Camp Coiner housed soldiers assigned to Yongsan in a series of Quonset huts that had been covered in such a thick layer of foam insulation that they looked like nothing so much as a row of enormous Twinkies.
Camp Coiner to my father was a bunch of canvas tents in a field of mud, surrounded by deep rings of barbed wire and a deeper ring of hungry refugees, watching them intently. It quite took away one’s appetite, said my father, to have people watching you eat every bite of your C-rations; and it’s not as if C-rations were a gourmet treat to start with. The soldiers were forbidden to give away their food, but my father said a lot of them did anyway, tossing cans stealthily over the wire. Seoul was a wrecked place fifty years ago. While I was there at AKFN that year, I edited an interview which the late Col. David Hackworth had done for AFKN, where he described how he himself had first visited the place, retreating across the only bridge over the Han River. Nothing but rubble, and rats nibbling at corpses in the gutters, the only live people being his squad and the Chinese snipers shooting at them. What Colonel Hackworth and veterans like my father saw in the 1950ies and what they see when they visit Seoul now leaves them rubbing their eyes in astonishment.
I had the incredible good fortune to be put in the way of doing a lot of voice-over narration jobs while I was at Yongsan, as well as a regular part-time job copy-editing the English language simulcast of the regular Korea Broadcasting System evening TV newscast. Most evenings or Saturdays after I finished my day job, I was taking the subway or a bus to a production studio somewhere (a taxi if I was feeling extravagant), and reading an English-language script on practically anything that someone felt would go over really well if they did a version in English.Amonger other things, I did a script about the manufacture of soju (which put me off ever drinking the stuff), an assortment of company puff-pieces, some fiendishly complicated English lesson tapes, a kid’s storybook, unless they have re-done the whole thing since, I am the English-language version of the recorded information for Kimpo Airport. I was a skilled and experienced production technician, working with other skilled audio technicians, away from the post. I developed friendships with the people I worked with in the KBS newsroom, who laughed at me because I had never gone to any of the tourist things in Seoul. I had, I explained, gone close to them, or had seen them from the outside on my way to a job; just like a native does.
Modern Seoul is a sprawling city of high-rise buildings, eight-lane highways, a splendid subway system, a golden glass tower 63 stories tall close by one of the fifteen or twenty bridges spanning the Han, and the Namsan tower glittering like a Christmas tree topper on a green hilly island in the middle of the city. In the evening, coming back from KBS on the bus, I could smell the bakery smell of vanilla cake from a commercial bakery close by. Sometimes at KBS we talked about the North, wondering if the discipline of an invading army of North Koreans would last past the first big grocery store, or electronics shop. When the old Supreme Leader died, I sat in the newsroom and watched half an hour of newscast cobbled out of the same fifteen minutes of stock video of the North, plus new footage of the bereft Northerners mourning ostentatiously. It seemed to me the KBS technicians were horrified and embarrassed by the elaborate demonstration of grief; I and they could only wonder what sort of coercion could force such undignified displays from people.
I liked working in Seoul, I liked what Koreans have built in fifty years, these tough jolly people on the south side of the DMZ. Cosmopolitan and professional, possibly as a nation the sharpest-dressed people on the face of the earth, every salaryman or woman turned out fit to be on the cover of GQ; as different from their cousins and second cousins north of the DMZ and still be on the same planet.
OSer Don Rich poined out in a post yesterday that the North Koreans regularly perform what he called the Korean Motherland Unity Game of Repeated Chicken – every six months to two years, there is some kind of saber-rattling game, a bit of public theater intended to remind everyone that they are there and bellicose. The old-time Korea hands that I knew over there, as well as my Korean friends were relatively blase about it all, for several reasons. One of them was that – well, mostly it was a bit of theater; it would die down in a week or so. Another being that for all the sprockets and medals hung on Nork generals – they really haven’t fought a serious war, balls-to-the-wall-and-all-guns-blazing war since 1953. There’s been a lot of evolution since then. But – lest the South Koreans get too over-confident about calling the North Korean bluff; the city of Seoul is well within range of Nork artillery, and quite a lot of it, too. Which is a very good reason to keep a cool head. And the other great argument for the status quo being maintained – is that if the DMZ magically evaporated and the Koreas were united once again, the South would be carrying the burden of the North … pitiful, starving, traumatised and hermetically isolated for sixty years, a country-sized concentration camp with all the brutality and horror that implies. The North has been in such bad shape for so long that teenage refugees from there are actually physically stunted, in comparison to their Southern cousins. So – while everyone gives lip service to reunification, in actuality, not so much.
But this week the Norks opened fire, shelling civilian areas on Yeonpyeong Island – an action which will be a little harder to brush off on the part of the South, Japan, and the United States. That ratchets up the Korean Motherland Unity Game of Repeated Chicken to a whole new level. So – who acts first? At this point, any guess is as good as any other.
More of What I Saw at the Milblogger Conference
15. April 2010 · Comments Off · Categories: Ain't That America?, Air Force, General, Military, Veteran's Affairs
Milblogging – alas, I have had to explain that concept to a number of my purely civilian contacts over the last few weeks. Just a plain old military blogger. A blogger on active duty, a veteran, a family member or someone just interested in aspects of the military life, all of whom are blogging about their experiences and life in the military, around the military, or as the military touches on their life. To mainstream America, since the end of the draft, this is terra incognita. If all one knows about the life military is what can be gleaned from current movies, television and popular culture, then there might just as well be dragons out there over the edge in DOD land. Another language, of slang and shorthand, of instantly understood references, certain subtle habits of manners and bearing, the quiet display of badges, rings, patches, souvenir coins or tattoos – all of which serve as tells to other residents (or past residents) of DOD land. Most pure civilians usually miss the ‘tells’ – which is why fake veterans will fool them practically all the time.
So, I have been a milblogger since 16 August, 2002, which is the Dark Ages of blogging, practically. I was invited to join this blog when it was still called Sgt. Stryker’s Daily Brief, at a time when there was a sudden and increased national interest in the military experience during the ramp-up to the Iraq War. SSDB was one of only a handful of milblogs carried on the Instapundit blog-roll. I had just barely discovered this newfangled internet thingy, I had a background in public affairs, wanted an outlet for my own writing . . . and my daughter was a Marine, heading towards a deployment in Kuwait and eventually, Iraq in the spring and summer of 2003. Comparing notes at the Milblog Conference, I discovered that the date of my first blog-post predated everyone elses’ by at least six months.
That entry is included, for your benefit, as a historical document –
Sgt. Mom’s Ancient Tech Story:
So the new colonel commanding was getting a tour of the AFRTS station, from the Station Manager. The colonel looks through the soundproofed glass window into the radio studio, and there is the on-duty DJ, stripped to his underwear, sitting cross-legged on the turntable*, going round and round and round. The colonel, slightly-bug-eyed, turns to the Station Manager and demands
“What the %#@&&& is he doing?
The Station Manager shrugs and says,
“Thirty-three and a third.” **
(footnotes appended for those under the age of 30ish)
* Probably a heavy, 16″ Gates turntable. They were used to play “records” also called ETs, or Electrical Transcriptions, which in the days when the only body parts being pierced were ears, were 16 or 14 inches across.
** Revolutions per minute. 16-inch records were played at 78 RPMs, 14-inch records (which replaced them) at 33 1/3
Yeah, I’ve gone a long way since then, although the audience laughed their hummm-hums off, when I re-told it at the conference. A good few didn’t even need the footnotes – but don’t let that lead you to assume that all attending were old fogies . . . I met a trio of earnest young college students, two veterans and one heading military-wards. A bit of an interview to follow about them, over the next two days. (Look, am I a public utility? I produce good bloggy ice-cream when I can!) There was also this young lady present, who is not only extraordinarily pleasant and patriotic, but possesses a charmingly retro aesthetic sense – as well as a sense of duty. (No, I never minded girlie pinups – as long as I could admire the equivalent and aesthetically pleasing male form . . .)
But enough of the wander down blogging-memory lane, more observations of the 5th Annual Milblogger Conference. It is the very first one which I have attended, which made for a curious experience. I have ‘known’ some of the other bloggers nearly as long as I’ve blogged and consider them as friends and fellow veterans, but this was the first time I ever met them face to face. I tend to think of them first as they named themselves with their original nom du blog – Greyhawk, Blackfive, Baldilocks – rather than their given names. Most of the early milbloggers chose to do so, not wanting to put absolutely everything out there.
Another curiosity – I’d guess that a little under a half of the conference attendees were women: fair number of veterans, or DOD civilian employees, some from various military-oriented charitable organizations, or military spouses. There were present, though, a fair number of active-duty men with the high-and tight haircut – that which makes them look as if they had shaved their heads entirely, and then parked a small, short-furred rodent on top. On the first panel of the conference – a selection of early bloggers, three of us were Air Force or AF veterans (Baldi, me, and Greyhawk – all NCOs), one Army veteran – Blackfive, and one Marine officer – “Taco”. (His last name is Bell.) This distribution drew some comment from the audience: I have no explanation for this. Another very early blogger was a Reserve Navy officer, Lt. Smash. My purely amateur and scientific wild-ass guess about this distribution is something along the lines of the Air Force and the Navy being more technically oriented, and drawing in a more middle-class and educated recruit. Another curiosity is that four of us have written or edited books, and “Taco” is planning to write one as soon as he retires and can uncork his best stories. Eh – one of my best-received one-liners: blogging is a gateway drug. (Did I mention that I do have a mad compulsion to entertain and inform? Laugher from an audience – manna to the starving!) More to follow, including how I had the neck ask a blunt question of a 4-star and to tell Garry Trudeau about the newspaper clipping that has been on the front of my refrigerator for almost eight years now – I promise. Real life and bills to pay will interfere. Really.
17. January 2010 · Comments Off · Categories: Ain't That America?, Air Force, Domestic, Eat, Drink and be Merry, General, Home Front, Military, World
I’ve been invited to be on one of the panels at the 5th Annual MilBlog Conference, in Arlington, Virginia, April 9th and 10th – and Blondie and I are intending to drive, since she will be on spring break! (Route tentatively planned as Dallas-Memphis-Knoxville-Harrisonburg)
Any other milbloggers from the San Antonio or Ft. Hood area also going to the Milblog Conference? Anyone in Arkansas, Tennessee or Virgina want us to stop and visit along the way? Recommend some good eats, or something interesting to see?
RIP Chief Master Sergeant Paul Wesley Airey, First CMSgt of the Air Force
12. March 2009 · Comments Off · Categories: Air Force
Wow, have I been out of touch, I used to hear about this kind of stuff the same day.
I got to hear him speak once, long ago when he was touring with then Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force Parish. He always seemed taller and bigger than everyone around him. He LOVED our Air Force.
Rest well Chief. Thanks for leading the way.
Air Force Aims to ‘Rewrite Laws of Cyberspace’
03. November 2008 · Comments Off · Categories: Air Force, Technology
Via Drudge, The Wired Blog is Reporting:
The Air Force is fed up with a seemingly endless barrage of attacks on its computer networks from stealthy adversaries whose motives and even locations are unclear. So now the service is looking to restore its advantage on the virtual battlefield by doing nothing less than the rewriting the “laws of cyberspace.”
It’s more than a little ironic that the U.S. military, which had so much to do with the creation and early development of internet, finds itself at its mercy. But as the American armed forces become increasingly reliant on its communications networks, even small, obscure holes in the defense grid are seen as having catastrophic potential.
Read the whole thing.�
Let’s see, you’ve spent the past 10 years getting rid of your programmers, networking folks and applications experts, and�then turning your networks over to civilian contractors, some of whom were literally learning how to help-desk while on the job, and now you’re surprised that the security ain’t what it could be?� I know at least 20 people off the top of my head that the Air Force “right-sized” out that are exactly the kind of folks needed to fix these kinds of problems.� Some of them screamed until they were blue in the face that, “We’re doin’ it wrong!”�
I’m sitting here doing the “I f***ing told you so!” dance.
Touching History
31. October 2008 · Comments Off · Categories: Air Force, Domestic, General, History, Military, Old West, Wild Blue Yonder, Working In A Salt Mine..., World
My� is it Friday already? The end of October, with tomorrow being the Dia de los Muertos� or as we plain Anglos call it, the eve of All Saint�s Day. Time does have when you�re having fun. And I am having fun this week. My hours at the Corporate Call Center just up the road were slashed to the bone this week, allegedly to accommodate their slow time of the year. Perhaps I�ll get them back in November, perhaps not. It�s a job that I am privately most unenthusiastic about, although you�d never know it to hear me answer the incoming calls with brisk and chipper enthusiasm. I would not mind very much actually � I�d miss the money but not much else, as I the local publisher that I am doing work for has actually begun to pay me on a regular basis and shoot interesting little jobs my way.
The two most recent are transcribing old documents � one not all that old, since there is a Star Wars reference in it, but the other might have some actual historical interest, being a pocket year-diary from 1887, bound in crumbling red leather. The owner of it plans to sell, and wants an accurate transcription � or at least, as accurate a transcription of the contents as is humanly possible. The reason he is willing to pay someone to do it � is because the diary-keeper wrote in occasionally illegible ink, couldn�t spell for s**t, had an uncertain grasp of the principals governing the use of capital letters and appears to have been completely uninterested in using punctuation. On the plus side, each entry is only about one run-on sentence long, and three-quarters of those entries are variants on �spent the four Noon at Ranch/town �. No news � fair and cloudy to day�
It�s the other entries that are mildly fascinating, for the diary-keeper seems to have been a manager for a cattle ranch in the Pleasant Valley of Arizona, and on the periphery of the murderous Graham-Tewksbury feud. His apparent employer was one of the owners of the �Hashknife Outfit� � famed in West Texas lore and in the books of Zane Grey, so perhaps this is why the current owner thinks the diary is worth something to a collector. I don�t see any evidence so far that the diary-keeper did anything more than pop around like a squirrel on crack all through that year, from town to the ranch and up to various line camps, to Flagstaff for the 4th of July celebrations, seeing to his various duties, which must have ranged from the office-managerial to overseeing round-ups and short drives of cattle from the back-country to the railway (which paralleled Route 66 through Arizona.) There were a few interesting slips of paper tucked into a pocket in the back of the diary, like a bank receipt from a bank in Weatherford, Texas, long strings of figures which appear to be a tally of cattle and a scribbled recipe for some kind of remedy, featuring a lot of ingredients that today are controlled substances (belladonna? Sulphate of zinc and sugar of lead, one drachm) Still and all, as Blondie said � he was dedicated enough to actually sit down and make an entry, every day, in a whole year of days in which one day was mostly like any other, full of work and responsibility, and very little in the way of amusement, or at least amusement worth mentioning specifically. Still, an interesting peep-hole into the past, and another life, distant and yet close.
The other document is a rollicking memoir written by a WWII veteran, who spent nearly 18 months in the China-Burma-India theater, flying cargo over the notorious �Hump� � the Himalayas. At that time, there were large chunks of the land below their air route that was simply white on their maps; never explored by land or by air. This writer lost some friends to the perils of high-altitude flight among mountains that were sometimes even higher, but his exuberance and energy come through in his memoir, quite unquenched. His personality is a little more accessible than the ranch manager of 1887, and he spent a little more time noticing marvelous things like a spectacular show of St. Elmo�s fire lighting up his aircraft during a flight through a high-altitude blizzard, or the white-washed towers of a mountain monastery, perched at the top of a 6,000 foot sheer drop. He wondered about the faint lights seen at night, from tiny villages far below the aluminum wings of his aircraft, wondered if the people living in those simple houses even knew that young men had come from so very far away, to fly a perilous re-supply route over the dark land below. Did it make any difference to their lives? Maybe it did, maybe it didn�t. The flier went home, married his girl, lived a long and successful life. Among the little things to be included in the transcription of his memoir was an envelope of papers � receipts from a grand hotel in Calcutta� and a BX ration card, in which Blondie and I were amused to note that he had maxed out his beer ration for the month of September, 1943�but only purchased one bar of soap.
The history, the past, near and a little distant, in bits of yellowed paper, a year of entries bound in faded red leather or eighteen eventful and frequently nerve-wracking months racking up 800 flying hours. It�s all there, our history. We must remember where we came from, who we are � who our ancestors were, and how they built their lives and did their work. It�s not far distant, it�s more than a few tedious chapters in a history textbook written by an academic with an ideological ax to grind. Our history is real people, meeting challenges and accepting responsibility with courage, grace and humor. It�s why I write books, to try and get people in touch with that history again, to connect with our ancestors. To remember who we are, and where we came from.
(Still taking pre-orders for the Adelsverein Trilogy, here The official release is December 10, and I have lined up some signings locally – schedule is here. Also a review of Book One – The Gathering just appeared in the Nov/Dec issue of True West (dead tree version) ! It’s on page 91, for those that are interested, but alas, no links – the True West website only goes as far as… September)
AF Cyber Command “Delayed”
15. August 2008 · Comments Off · Categories: Air Force, Stupidity, Technology
According to the front page of the Air Force Cyber Command’s Website:
8/14/2008�-�Barksdale AFB, La. �–�The Air Force remains committed to providing full-spectrum cyber capabilities to include global command and control, electronic warfare and network defense. The Secretary and Chief of Staff of the Air Force have considered delaying currently planned actions on Air Force Cyber Command to allow ample time for a comprehensive assessment of all AFCYBER requirements and to synchronize the AFCYBER mission with other key Air Force initiatives. The new Air Force leaders continue to make a fresh assessment of all our efforts to provide our Nation and the joint force the full spectrum of air, space, and cyberspace capabilities.
Which makes sooooo much sense considering that the military doesn’t have a cohesive all-around cyber defense policy.� Seriously, cyber security measures can change literally from base to base.� What drives those measures?� You would think it would be a standard set of security practices applied to all and you’d be somewhat correct.� However, what you also have to take into account is that almost every base has a different contract company taking care of their network� security measures.� Those measures may be based on what the contractor is willing and able to do for the price that the military is willing to pay.� On some bases, you may have three to five different companies taking care of the various networks depending on the security level of the network.� Not only is the security level dependent on the classification of the material on the network, but it’s also dependent, again, on the capability of the contractors.
I remember getting a call when I was in NORAD/USSPACE from a flag officer and he needed me to come over and help him with one of his computers.� Since that part of the network wasn’t “owned” by NORAD/USSPACE, I literally was not allowed to help him.� I simply didn’t have permissions for that side of the network.� I� had to file a help desk ticket for him which, according to contract, allowed up to 3 business days before it was addressed.� Since he WAS a flag officer, the contractor did put a rush on it, but still.
I’ve been against the privatizing of the military’s networks since they started.� Okay, so you don’t have to pay contractors retirement benefits and all the other baggage that comes along with a military person’s life, but if you don’t write the contracts correctly, the military can wind up needing a task completed by the contractor that’s not in the contract and you can’t force them to complete that task without amending the contract which would also mean, MORE money.� That’s right, when a new task is added for any reason to a contract network admin or techie’s tasks, they may not HAVE to do it until the contract is reviewed to see if it falls under the contractor’s “scope of support.”� And because only contractors can touch the network on some bases, folks in uniform can’t complete the task either.� And since we’ve slashed the living shit out of the military’s network specialists in favor of contractors, we don’t have them to utilize anyway.
Which, if I’m being cynical, leads me to believe that someone has finally realized that having a cohesive policy across all the networks that the Air Force “controls” means that every single one of those contracts is going to have to be rewritten and I’m betting that some Senior NCO and their team has done the legwork and given General Lord and his bosses the cost analysis for those new contracts and someone with power of the purse-strings has crapped their drawers when the reality of what a workable, cohesive, policy is going to cost.
That’s if I was being cynical.� It could just mean that what we’ve got is working just fine and there’s no need for a cyber command in the first place…and I swear to you I typed that with a straight face…after three tries.
Thanks to He Who Needs No Linkage for the tip.
You want to know the funniesnt thing for me about all this?� I’ve got interviews with two contractors in the next week for jobs supporting the military’s network.� I hope the question, “What’s your opinion about privatization?” doesn’t come up and I hope to hell I’ve got the good sense to lie about it if it does.� I need a job.
01. August 2007 · Comments Off · Categories: Air Force
After 23 years of active duty, I’m now a civilian.
It’s weird, but I feel even less stress than I did yesterday.
I’m liking this retirement thing.
If I’d have known it felt this good, I would have done it last year.
Wrong Kind of Fireworks
09. July 2007 · Comments Off · Categories: Air Force, Domestic, General, Military
Baldilocks has a story up this morning about a McGuire AFB loadmaster who was killed shot over the weekend. Seems some guy drove to the 22yr old airman’s home on Wed evening (umm, that would be July 4), and shot him in the chest, then killed himself.
The airman, Jonathan Schrieken, is in critical condition at Cooper University Hospital in Camden.
He and his family need your prayers and good thoughts. For that matter, so does the family of the killer shooter.
Authorities have no idea what prompted the shooting admit the killer shooter left 2 suicide notes, but the AP articles doesn’t mention that. Authorities do not know whether the two 22-yr olds even knew each other.
UPDATE: I should have followed the links in Juliette’s post before I posted this. She got the news from LGF. LGF posted an email from a reader who knew knows the airman, and has lots more details about the killer’s shooter’s motivation, which the AP chose to leave out of their article.
[The airman] had been on leave here in Ohio and got back to his home off base and was unpacking stuff from his car when this 22 year old guy walked up to him and asked him if he lived in the house. When Jon said yes, the guy said �not any more� and shot him point blank in the chest. He tried to shoot him again, but his gun jammed. Jonathan made it into the house. The guy then shot himself. Turns out the guy left a couple of suicide notes stating how much he hated the military and he wanted to go out making a statement, so he chose to make his statement on Independence Day trying to kill a soldier.
UPDATE 2: I should never write posts before coffee. The airman is ALIVE, not dead. So the creep is a creep, not a killer.
18. June 2007 · Comments Off · Categories: Air Force, General, History, Military, Reader Mail, Wild Blue Yonder, World
Regular reader Robert D. emailed me overnight, letting me know that an ace in two wars, General Robin Olds had died over the weekend.
In my early time in service, General Olds was famous for a defiantly non-reg mustache, and for having flown with Chappie James over Vietnam, forming a duo nicknamed “Blackman and Robin”.
He was a colorful character; these days seeming like a character in a swashbuckling adventure novel, or a movie serial.
More here.
Remembering Vince
14. June 2007 · Comments Off · Categories: Air Force, Domestic, Memoir
In late August 1984, I arrived in Mountain Home, Idaho, my first permanent station with the Air Force. As a single airman, I was destined to live on-base in a dormitory. The Headquarters Squadron had two dorms – one of them housing the Dorm Manager’s office.
The Dorm Manager, a senior NCO named Vince (I’ve forgotten his last name, because we all just called him Vince), was either a Technical Sergeant (E-6 for our non-USAF readers) or a Master Sergeant (E-7 ). Swarthy-skinned, short and powerful, he was a former aircraft mechanic who’d been re-trained due to health issues.
Vince met me, talked to me, and assigned me to room with another airman who was close to my age. He thought we’d make a good match. I spent months convinced he was wrong, and then one day something clicked and my roommate and I became good friends.
Vince was smart like that. He was smart in other ways, too. There was nothing he couldn’t fix, from a broken faucet to a wounded heart. The guys would talk to him about “guy stuff,” whatever that is. But the girls could talk to him, too. He listened, and he cared.
Dorm Managers are part of the background in an Air Force dormitory. Like the building superintendent in an apartment building. Or like your parents after you’ve moved out on your own. You know they’re there, but unless there’s a problem, they’re not really in the fore-front of your consciousness. But they’re there, a steady force in the background, one more stable piece in an often unstable world, one more part of your life that won’t change.
Vince wasn’t going anywhere. This would be his job, and his base, until he retired. He had a business in town – I don’t remember if he ran an apartment building or if it was a trailer community, but there were rental units involved. I never dealt with that side of his life, and at that point in my life I was much too shy to just sit and visit with him, as if we were just regular folks. He was an NCO (or senior NCO – wish I could remember his rank), and I was an Airman. In my mind, there was a huge chasm between us, and it was enough that I was allowed to call him Vince, instead of Sgt Whoever.
As dormitory residents, we were not only responsible for keeping our rooms clean, we also shared the responsibility for keeping the dorms clean. Every so often your name would come up on the rotation list, and you would spend a week as “Bay Orderly,” or as we called it, “Bay Hoser.” For that week you belonged to Vince, doing whatever tasks he assigned. Cleaning the day rooms (TV lounges, basically), vacuuming the hallways, dusting, etc. I seem to recall that we even moved furniture, on occasion. Menial work, but necessary to the comfort and well-being of all those living in the dorms. And it was for Vince, and with Vince, so it was ok.
I was at Mountain Home for about 3 1/2 years, and Vince was part of my life for most of that time. Until one summer, and I’m ashamed to admit that I don’t even remember which summer it was, but I think it was late summer, 1986. I was spending a week in town, house-sitting for my first sergeant while he was on vacation, when the phone rang. Part of my job as house-sitter was to take all his messages, so I answered the call.
I could barely understand the voice on the other end, then I recognized our Assistant Dorm Manager. He was trying not to cry as he asked for the First Sergeant. It seems that on this unseasonably hot Idaho day, Vince had been mowing the yard at his rental community, and his heart gave out. That magnificent, caring heart, that made him such a good dorm manager for two buildings of young adults who were mostly on their own for the first time in their lives, wasn’t up to the strain of heavy yard work on a blisteringly hot summer day.
We had a Service on the base. Three or four dorm residents were asked to speak – I was Dorm Council President, so I was one of them. I don’t remember anything I said that day. I remember very little of what anyone else said that day, other than one of the other airmen saying Vince was a father-figure. I hadn’t thought of it until she said it, but she was right, for all the reasons I listed above. I blocked most of it out, willing myself to not hear, to hold it together until the end.
The service ended, the Honor Guard marched out, I shook the widow’s hand and murmured something appropriate, then ducked and ran for the nearest latrine, where I locked myself in a stall and released the tears I’d been fighting since the other airman compared him to a father.
The stability that Vince had represented disappeared with his death. We got a new Dorm Manager, and later that year, a new First Sergeant. I moved out of the dorms the next spring, and shared a small house with a co-worker until I moved on to my next duty station that December. The dorms weren’t the same without Vince.
Vince was an amazing man, who always had a smile and a kind word. I’d not thought of him in years, until I read Timmer’s post about his red-eyed airman grieving for her friend lost in Iraq. I’m glad I remembered him, even though the memory brings tears. He’s worth remembering.
Dammit
11. June 2007 · Comments Off · Categories: Air Force, Iraq: The Ugly
As I was outprocessing today I learned that one of my former Airman’s good friends was killed in Iraq this weekend.
There are just no words.
The Airman was only 19. Yeah, 18’s an adult. That’s easy to say when you’re 18. When you’re over 40…not so much.
So before I left I spent a few moments “sexually harassing” (hugging) a very red-eyed Airman that is very special to me. Practically a second daughter. I felt bad that I couldn’t stay longer and talk like we used to, but shit happened as it does when you’re trying to outprocess and I was already three hours behind schedule. I’ve never felt quite THAT crappy about leaving anyone in my life.
I still think we were right to go in given the circumstances at the time.
I can’t tell you when it happened, but at some point I began to lose confidence in our leadership. When it hit me that “I’m” leadership, I knew it was time to go.
Do me a favor?� Pray if you got that goin’ on in your life.
The Retirement Ceremony
10. June 2007 · Comments Off · Categories: Air Force
Now that Beautiful Wife, Gorgeous Daughter and Boyo are off on the road to our new home and the cleaning lady is working on the house, I have a few minutes to sit with Maximum Dawg and let you know about my retirement ceremony on Friday.
First of all, Gorgeous Daughter came to town and that was very cool.� My Mom and Sister couldn’t have cared less…until AFTER the ceremony of course when I called my Mom to let her know it went well and THEN she went off on how she didn’t know that it was that big a deal and I should have told her.� Sigh.� That’s how it works in my family.� It’s MY fault.� You think I’d have figured it out years ago, but of course…I didn’t.� It hurt for a few hours and then I just chalked it up as, “Mom’s in her 80s, she just didn’t get it and never would have no matter how much I explained it.”
On to the ceremony.� My family was escorted to their seats which went over HUGE with Boyo.� The Commander and I marched in, took our places and then one of my troops sang the National Anthem.� She’s small but she’s mighty, and she’s got a voice I never would have expected out of her.
My Commander then outlined my career and the rest of the folks that have worked for me and with me did a very cool thing.� They all dressed up in the different uniforms that I wore over the years and as the Commander went over the different parts, they stepped forward wearing the uniform I would have worn during that time period.� With the help of Beautiful Wife, they managed to all be wearing my name tags.
Then came the standard last medal, certificate of retirement from the Chief of Staff.� Certificate of Appreciation from The President, a very nice shadow box in the shape of a Master Sergeant Chevron with the flag folded at the top and my medals and patches in the lower half.
Then the folks that worked for me and with me did a very nice flag folding ceremony accompanied by a bagpiper playing “Amazing Grace.”� Awesome.
My Wife received her certificate of appreciation as well, along with the one of my troops reading the poem, “The Military Wife.”
Then it was my turn to talk and I presented Boyo with a Red Ryder BB Gun.� Yes, the same one from The Christmas Story.� Wife and Daughter received some Hawaiin Leis that I had ordered.� Wife was born on Oahu and she loved it there when we were stationed there.
Then I rambled something that I tried to make meaningful but basically messed up for about five minutes or so.� It’s okay.� There’s the speech you want to give, the speech you give, and the speech you wish you gave.
Then it was time to leave and a not well kept secret is I freaking HATE, LOATHE, DESPISE, The Air Force Song.� I’m sorry if that bugs anyone, but, “Off we go, into the wild blue yonder.” just seems the most insipid of all the services’ songs.
So…the bagpiper played “Scotland the Brave.”� We got the crowd clapping and stomping and off I marched to serve cake and punch.
Tomorrow I’ll have my last few appointments and then me and Max be following Beautiful Wife, Gorgeous Daughter, Boyo, Miko the Cat and Spirit the Cockatiel down I80 to our new lives.
It was a good send off.� I’ll remember that day for quite some time.� They did me right.
That Was Very Cool
The other IMers in the group got together and did a very cool thing during my retirement ceremony.� They dressed in the various uniform combinations that I’ve worn over the past 23 years and while the Commander described the various parts of my career, they stepped forward.� All of them managed to have my name tag on the uniforms.� And where they found old A1C and SrA stripes, I just don’t know.
I still have to outprocess on Monday and then after that, I’ll put away the uniforms and disappear West on I80 and then branch off on I84, into the sunset.
I feel like a ton of bricks has been lifted off of me.
You remember that time at the amusement park when you ate a hot dog and a pizza and a corn dog and cotton candy and finished off with a snow cone and then you thought the next indicated thing was to get on the Tilt-A-Whirl?
Yeah, that’s kind of how the few hours before your retirement ceremony feels like.
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Home > Israeli NGOs
Physicians for Human Rights-Israel Gaza Mission: No Independence, No Facts, No Evidence
See here for NGO Monitor’s Preliminary Critique of PHR-I’s “Independent Medical Fact-Finding Mission”
See here for more on Physicians for Human Rights-Israel.
On January 21, 2015, Physicians for Human Rights-Israel (PHR-I) published “Gaza, 2014: Findings of an independent medical fact-finding mission,” alleging Israeli violations of human rights and international legal norms during the 2014 Gaza War. PHR-I also set up a special website to accompany the report.
According to PHR-I’s press release, the report demonstrates “The failure of the warning mechanisms, the absence of escape routes, the collapse of the mechanism for evacuating the wounded, and the strikes against rescue teams increased the number of civilian casualties.”
However, the incomplete account in the actual publication provides absolutely no proof or evidence for these serious charges. To accurately draw such conclusions requires factual knowledge, considerable military expertise, as well as access to comprehensive data from both the Israeli army and from within Gaza, in particular during the fighting.
As detailed below, PHR-I does not possess any of this information, and the NGO is unqualified to issue its conclusions. In addition, the report does not address central issues such as the types of weapons and fighting methods used by both sides, the obstacles of asymmetric warfare, and Hamas’ systematic use of the civilian population of Gaza as human shields. Instead, PHR-I’s research contains fundamental methodological flaws; ignores Hamas violations and other evidence that does not comport with its one-sided, political agenda; and relies on a panel of eight “medical experts” (pg. 8), of which at least five have backgrounds in anti-Israel advocacy. All of this belies PHR-I’s claim that “The information and materials would be handled in a credible, objective and independent manner” (pg. 16).
PHR-I also creates a false impression of scientific and investigative rigor, presenting 200+ pages of emotive testimonies and forensic details. However, the testimonies are largely unverifiable and are irrelevant to the allegations concerning Israel; likewise, the forensics relate to the nature of the patients’ wounds, not to the main claims of Israeli wrongdoing featured in the press release and report.
PHR-I is funded by the European Commission, Sweden (via Diakonia), Germany (via Medico International and EED), the Netherlands, and Switzerland (via HEKS-EPER). In 2008-2013, the New Israel Fund (NIF) authorized grants worth $1,090,553 to PHR-I (2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013).
According to PHR-I, the following individuals and organizations provided support, “financial and otherwise,” for the report: “Marwan Diab and Rafeeq Musallam, ActiveStills/ Anne Paq, American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), Science and Human Rights Program, British Shalom-Salaam Trust (UK), Christian Aid (UK), Comboni Sisters, HEKS-EPER, (Switzerland), Manos Unidas (Spain), Medact (UK), Medico International (Germany), Dignity Institute (Denmark), Inge Genefke and Bent Sørensen Anti Torture Support Foundation (Denmark), IRCT (Denmark), Open Society Foundations” (pg. 3).
Panel of “independent medical experts”
In order to conduct this study, PHR-I “recruited 8 independent international medical experts, unaffiliated with Israeli or Palestinian parties involved in the conflict” (p.8). However, many of the fact-finding members are political activists with histories of biased anti-Israel remarks. The inclusion of individuals with this background is in violation of legal and ethical fact-finding standards, such as those outlined in the Lund-London guidelines:
Alicia Vacas – Published a letter in support of Kairos Palestine, a document written by Palestinian-Christian activists that calls for BDS and denies the Jewish historical connection to Israel. In an article she published following her visit to Gaza, she refused to call the conflict a war, but rather a “massacre” and referred to Israel’s “devilishly sophisticated and flourishing industry of death.”
Laurel Baldwin-Ragaven – In an article published in The Lancet medical journal (August 30, 2014), Baldwin and others compared Israel to an apartheid state and called “on South Africa to expel the Israeli ambassador during this current conflict.”
Jennifer Leaning – Steering Group member of the highly politicized Lancet Palestine Health Alliance. In 2009, she co-authored a piece in The Lancet, showing a photo of a damaged building described as the Al-Quds Hospital in Gaza. In fact, the picture was off an adjacent building. (The article has been removed.)
Önder Özkalipci – Coordinator and co-editor of the UN Istanbul Protocol, which alleged that Israel’s actions concerning the Mavi Marmara (2010) constituted torture. Since 2013, he is a freelance consultant to the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights and PHR-I.
Louis Reynolds – “Founding member and chair of People’s Heath Movement, South Africa” (pg. 19). People’s Heath Movement, South Africa participated in an August 2014 protest “calling for a Free Palestine.” On August 15, the international umbrella of People’s Heath Movement published a statement, “strongly condemn[ing] the brutal armed attack by the Israeli occupation military forces on Gaza Strip….these attacks have to be seen in the context of the decades?long occupation and ethnic cleansing of the territory of historic Palestine….We therefore express full solidarity with the Palestinian people, who have resisted an illegal regime of occupation and apartheid for over 60 years. We condemn the war crimes committed by Israeli forces, which must be held accountable for the sake of universal justice.”
PHR-I’s one-sided, political agenda
From the outset, the “principal mandate” of the fact-finding was expressly one-sided and selective – “to investigate the health and human rights impact of events in the Gaza Strip” (pg. 25). As such, PHR-I focused almost entirely on “allegations against Israeli strategy and tactics used in its attack on Gaza” (pg. 15), claiming that it “had no access to evidence regarding the conduct of Palestinian armed combatants within Gaza… beyond what its members were told by interviewees” (pg. 26).
A repeated theme in describing the purpose of the mission was “collecting evidence” and “documentation of evidence” – of Israeli guilt as reflected in the one-sided mandate. In fact, PHR-I “believes that the prima facie evidence it has collected and presented in this Report should be used for the purposes of legal determination of violations of international human rights and humanitarian law, whether through local or international justice mechanisms” (pg. 101). This should be seen in the context of the politicized campaigns surrounding the UN Human Rights Council “investigation” by William Schabas, as well as Palestinian Authority efforts focused on the International Criminal Court. PHR-I’s advocacy for international prosecutions of Israeli officials is in direct violation of NIF’s policy against “attempts to prosecute Israeli officials in foreign courts as an inherent principle of our dedication to Israeli democracy.”
Further highlighting the political, as opposed to legal and human rights, motivation, PHR-I official Hadas Ziv stated, “The discourse surrounding Gaza is often times limited to the question of whether there were war crimes — but as far as I’m concerned, that’s not the issue. The more important question is why do we take for granted that such things happen every two years. The report’s conclusion, in my opinion, is that you don’t need to fix this or that about the army’s actions, but that we need to prevent the next war” (emphasis added).
Evidence ignored
Reading PHR-I’s press release and summary, one would not know that Hamas hid its leadership in hospitals; stored weapons in medical buildings, schools, mosques, and private homes; used ambulances to transport combatants and weapons; conducted military operations from within civilian areas, including medical facilities, placing them in extreme danger; and stole humanitarian aid.
A careful reading of the report shows that, in fact, PHR-I had ample evidence of Hamas’ systematic exploitation of medical facilities to illegally shield combatants from Israeli counterattacks. However, this dimension, which does not comport with PHR-I’s political agenda, was not emphasized in the analysis and is missing from the summary, conclusions, and recommendations.
During one of the interviews in Shifa Hospital in Gaza, the interviewer recorded, in passing, that “this statement [was made] when a Qassam rocket took off nearby” (pp. 134-137). In other words, PHR-I was aware of, and mission members had personally witnessed, the illegal use of hospitals by Palestinian combatants to shield themselves from counterstrikes.
An official from the World Health Organization indicated similar circumstances near another hospital in Gaza: “Al Wafa Hospital was the only rehabilitation hospital in Gaza. In the course of this war, according to Mr. Daher [head of the WHO sub-office in Gaza], he believed there was an actual rocket launching site in the vicinity, but it was more than 200 meters away from the hospital” (pg. 50). (See this video for more evidence of Palestinian combatants fighting from within the facility, having built a tunnel entrance near it, as well as phone calls from the IDF confirming that it had been abandoned before striking it. None of these details appears in the PHR-I report.)
PHR-I did not consider alternative explanations for casualties such as misfired Hamas rockets, “work accidents,” secondary explosions, and Hamas summary executions. Additionally, Gaza residents who protested the war were executed, as were at least 26 Palestinians accused of “collaborating” with Israel; a number of Palestinians were killed and wounded by Hamas while waiting for food at a distribution center.
PHR-I accuses Israel of using an “indiscriminate device” in residential areas, “the barrel of a Tzefa Shirion, an Israeli mine-clearing system whose barrel is launched from a vehicle ahead of the advancing troops and contains a line (‘python’) of explosives” (pp. 35-36). Israel’s deployment of mine-clearing weapons in Gaza neighborhoods is itself evidence that Hamas had booby-trapped houses and streets, once again exploiting urban areas and turning them into legitimate targets.
“During one visit of the first FFM team to Shifa Hospital, they were introduced to a senior Hamas official who was hospitalised alone in a room in a unit that was intended for more patients.” (pg. 57, fn 112)
Although PHR-I relied extensively on allegations and supposed evidence provided by Hamas authorities in Gaza, it expressed doubt specifically about Hamas statistics that made the case against Israel less compelling: “It is difficult to estimate the exact number of severely injured among the approximately 11,000 injured survivors of the conflict. According to Dr. Muhammad Al Kashef, General Director of International Cooperation in the Department for the Ministry of Health in Gaza, about 3,000 of the most seriously injured were formally hospitalised and required some form of surgical intervention….The FFM teams were also not able to ascertain whether these numbers, which seem relatively low, were attributable to the limited capacity of the hospitals or to the actual number of severe injuries requiring surgical intervention.” (pg. 32) It is also telling that PHR-I’s skepticism was that the percentage of serious injuries was low, not that the overall number of injuries, provided by Hamas, was high.
Methodological Flaws
There are numerous methodological flaws and inherent limitations concerning the research (see pp 25-26), which cast doubt on PHR-I’s ability to draw accurate and independent conclusions.
Flaws in the “forensic” evidence
PHR-I claims to have included “four [individuals] with special expertise in the fields of forensic medicine and pathology” (pg. 8) on its panel. This was essential for creating a rhetorical façade of scientific rigor and valuable evidence.
However, a careful reading of the report demonstrates that the forensic value of the evidence therein is extremely limited.
In addition to the problems detailed below, it is important to note that PHR-I did not conduct ballistic tests on the weapons fragments and shrapnel discussed in the report (to the extent that any such evidence existed; certainly none was preserved through an acceptable chain of custody). Moreover, “Because of a lack of military expertise, the FFM was not in a position to provide a comprehensive analysis of the types of weapons used by Israeli forces” (pg. 26). It is, therefore, impossible to conclusively attribute the wounds to Israeli strikes, as opposed to deliberate or accidental attacks by Hamas against civilians in Gaza.
There was also a hint within the report of evidence tampering and manipulation – “One other allegation regarding use of flechettes was made at Khuza’a, where the second FFM team were shown flechette darts by Dr. Kamal Qdeih, a local private doctor, in his clinic. However, these were not embedded in walls but lying on the floor” (pg. 55). As noted above, this central issue was not fleshed out or researched further, nor was it reflected in the analysis and conclusions.
Interviews are not forensic evidence
The publication is replete with interviews with “survivors” and “victims” of Israeli attacks, and PHR-I uses them as “evidence” pertaining to questions of international law, including whether the strikes were “indiscriminate” and “disproportionate.”
The accounts are entirely subjective, emotive, and anecdotal. Frequently, there are claims to have identified the type of Israeli plane and/or weapon used in an attack, but in a manner that is physically unlikely if not impossible. Nonetheless, PHR-I repeats them.
“Most of the interviews were held in Arabic with the assistance of an interpreter if the interviewer was not an Arabic-speaker” (pg. 23). The identity of this interpreter (or interpreters) is not provided; as such, any connections to Hamas or other conflicts of interest cannot be determined.
It is unknown how many of the interviewees are members of Hamas or other terror groups, or were intimidated or otherwise approached by Hamas before meeting with PHR-I.
In some instances, the interviews were conducted with relatives or acquaintances of the wounded individual, further removed from an objective account of the incident in question.
“Fieldworkers of PHR-Israel, Al Mezan, PCHR, GCMHP…accompanied the FFM teams to interviews” (p.20). As noted below, these are highly politicized, anti-Israel groups, and they lack credibility; their effect on the accuracy of the interviews is unknown.
Hamas provided some, if not all, the “evidence”
The overall dependency on information from Hamas undermines the independence of the investigation and any forensic claims made in the report.
PHR-I was “granted access to relevant evidence by officials of the [Hamas] Ministry of Health, but encountered difficulties and some lack of transparency regarding the necessary procedures for access to forensic pathology materials, specifically tissue samples and X-rays, which fall under the responsibility of the Ministry of Justice.” (pg. 26)
There is ambiguity as to whether the photographs to PHR-I for use in the report were obtained from the “Shifa Hospital Forensics Department photo archive” (pg. 30) or government forensic department (“Gaza’s Forensics Department photo archive,” pg. 225). Regardless, “Authority for access to photographs, X-rays and tissue samples resides with the Ministry of Justice” (pg. 24).
All files and photographs pertaining to fatalities were provided by Hamas government officials.
It is unknown whether the physicians interviewed in the hospitals were affiliated with and/or intimidated by Hamas.
As mentioned above, it is unknown how many of the interviewees are members of Hamas or other terror groups, or were intimidated or otherwise approached by Hamas before meeting with PHR-I.
“Regarding tissue samples, a Ministry of Health official at Shifa Hospital…described the collection as haphazard and often unlinked to a particular patient….He showed the first FFM team tissue samples, some of which he said had been collected during the current armed conflict, which he said are kept in formalin (for tissue samples) or in acetone (for other material samples). The team observed that the sample containers with acetone were not sealed properly.” (pg. 24, emphasis added)
Photographs, not autopsies
All the claims about fatalities, including cause of death and the nature of the wounds, are based on “medical files” and “photographic materials from the morgue of Gaza’s main hospital, Shifa Hospital, in Gaza City.” Pointedly, “the forensic experts did not perform autopsies.” Nor were autopsies performed at the time of death, “due to religious and traditional customs prohibiting the practice” (pg. 23).
The report acknowledged “limitations of evaluating the injuries,” but deemed the photographs “authentic” (pg. 30). The basis for this estimation is not provided.
Repetition of unverifiable allegations
As noted above, PHR-I dismissed Israeli claims concerning the circumstances of civilian casualties and other mitigating factors because the investigators:
“did not have access to UNRWA facilities…They could therefore investigate neither the public health impact of displacement in these facilities, nor the allegations made by the Israeli government regarding the abuse of such facilities for military purposes – an allegation used to justify several attacks on such facilities.” (p.26)
“also had no access to evidence regarding the conduct of Palestinian armed combatants within Gaza, and the teams were not able to examine official Israeli allegations regarding misuse of civilian or medical facilities for military purposes…” (p.26)
In sharp contrast, unverified and unverifiable accusations by Palestinian representatives are quoted extensively throughout the report. Even when claims could not be verified or members of Hamas were present during the interview, PHR-I repeats inflammatory and provocative allegations despite the absence of any evidence or corroboration. This is a blatant violation of professional fact-finding standards.
“Irregular weapons”
For example, the authors of the report admit that they were unable to verify claims by Palestinian doctors regarding the use of “irregular weapons” and other “phenomena they saw as strange or inexplicable.” Although “none of the tissue samples taken in the possession of the forensic experts of the Ministry of Justice of Gaza were taken out of Gaza for further toxicological, biological or chemical examinations to confirm or refute these allegations” (pp. 53-55), nonetheless, PHR-I repeated the accusations “verbatim as described to the team” (p.54):
“A suspicion of the use of Dense Inert Metal Explosives (DIME)” – DIME are an experimental group of tungsten-based munitions, intended for “low collateral” damage blasts. There is unproven speculation that they are “highly carcinogenic and harmful to the environment.” Conspiracy theorists (such as Dr. Mads Gilbert) and other partisan sources have speculated that Israel has used them in Lebanon and Gaza, although it has never been established that Israeli even possesses DIME weaponry or that any military has ever used them. Rather, the speculation about DIME is an attempt to demonize Israel.
Allegations that “‘Computer chips’ with Sony markings embedded as shrapnel in people’s bodies.” In addition, “the team was shown remains of explosives with the Motorola logo embossed in them. It is unclear what these remains are and which patients they were associated with, and the team could not ascertain their source.” (pg. 55)
Allegations of “the possibility of a gas of unknown type being used,” “a sewage-like smell,” and “smelly smoke.”
Some of these claims border on conspiracy theories. It is shocking that supposed scientific experts would deem them credible enough to be repeated. Furthermore, including permitted weapons such as white phosphorous (which was not deployed), flechettes, and tear gas in a section on “irregular weapons” is a fundamental distortion and appears designed to mislead.
Reliance on anti-Israel political advocacy NGOs
In addition to Hamas officials, Gaza-based political advocacy NGOs played a central role in facilitating “access and meetings.”
“Access and meetings were facilitated by PHR-Israel in partnership with local Palestinian non-governmental organisations: Al Mezan, Gaza Community Mental Health Programme (GCMHP), and Palestinian Center for Human Rights (PCHR)” (p.8). These groups are all involved in delegitimization campaigns against Israel, including the lawfare attacks recommended by PHR-I, and lack medical expertise.
Reliance on these groups is further evidence of the lack of independence and objectivity of the investigators.
PHR-I was forced to rely on the Hamas government forensics department, which “is under the authority of the Ministry of Justice, and has been active in the last three or four wars. Authority for access to photographs, X-rays and tissue samples resides with the Ministry of Justice” (p.24).
Distorted legal claims
Despite drawing legal conclusions and providing interpretations of international law in its publications, PHR-I does not possess expertise in these issues.
One example is PHR-I’s accusation that Israel failed to provide “precautions to protect civilians, including the absence of effective warnings.” PHR-I even cited to the discredited Goldstone Report in an attempt to bolster its allegations that Israel’s warnings were insufficient, if not themselves violations of international law.
The fact that in some cases warnings were not 100% effective does not indicate any violation of law; there is no requirement under international law to provide 100% effective warnings. In fact, under IHL, Israel is only required to give general warnings to the extent they are feasible and only when doing so would not hamper Israel’s chance of success in military operations or compromise the element of surprise. Nevertheless, Israel’s warning procedure far exceeds the legal requirements and is more extensive than that of any other army. In many instances, Hamas directed the civilian population to disregard warnings and even directed people to return to targeted sites as human shields.
Demonization
Political Warfare
Gaza War Summer 2014
NGO Fact-finding Methodologies
NGOs in this Report
Physicians for Human Rights-Israel (PHR-I)
All NGOs
Funders in this Report
All Funders
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Tibrina Hobson/Getty
Demi Lovato Reveals Why Wiz Khalifa And Paris Hilton Star In 'Sorry Not Sorry'
So little time, so many celebrity cameos
Deepa Lakshmin deepa 08/25/2017
Demi Lovato threw quite the rager for her "Sorry Not Sorry" music video, and her party guests included several famous faces: Wiz Khalifa, Paris Hilton, and Jamie Foxx. This may seem like an unexpected group of celebrities, but nothing brings people together like neon lights, a kiddie-pool bubble bath, and a dance floor.
"I wanted random people in my video," Lovato told MTV News correspondent Gaby Wilson this week, ahead of her VMA performance on Sunday. "I wanted people to be like, what? Like, I wanted Bill Nye the Science Guy to be in it too, but I don't think he was available. Too cool for my video."
http://www.mtv.com/video-clips/9c0r5e/vma-2017-demi-lovato-on-performing-sorry-not-sorry-at-the-2017-vmas
Yep, that's right: Demi wanted to turn up with your childhood science teacher, but because she couldn't, she recruited the other celeb cameos via text messages. "I thought Paris would be, like, awesome to be the DJ," Lovato explained. "Wiz is a friend of mine — we go to the same gym — and then Jamie Foxx, I had just been over to his house for a party. And so I was like, I'd love for you to be in my video, and he is so freakin' funny, so having him in it was a blast."
The party continues this weekend in Las Vegas, where Demi will belt out "Sorry Not Sorry" before DNCE take the stage with the legendary Sir Rod Stewart for a remote performance during the 2017 MTV Video Music Awards. "Sorry Not Sorry" is up for Song of Summer, and the competition is especially fierce this year — Fifth Harmony's "Down" and Luis Fonsi's "Despacito (Remix)" with Daddy Yankee and Justin Bieber are also contenders.
But whatever happens, it's good to know you always count on Demi to host a fabulous party.
The 2017 VMAs touch down at the Forum in Inglewood, California, on Sunday, August 27 at 8 p.m. ET/PT. See the full list of nominees and vote for Best New Artist now!
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Symphony No. 4 in G major (1899-1901) [61:00]
Symphony No. 5 in C sharp minor (1901-02) [76:08]
Symphony No. 6 in A minor (1903-04) [89:09]
Philharmonia Orchestra/Lorin Maazel
rec. live, Royal Festival Hall, Southbank Centre, London, 28 April, 5 May, 19 April 2011 (Nos. 4, 5, 6 respectively)
German text and English translation (Symphony No 4) included.
SIGNUM CLASSICS SIGCD361 [4 CDs: 226:17]
Hot on the heels of the first volume of the 2011Maazel/Philharmonia Mahler cycle (review) we now have the second instalment. Again, these recordings all stem from concerts in London. My Seen and Heard colleague, Jim Pritchard, reviewed the performance of the Fourth Symphony. We don’t seem to have reviewed either of the other London events but I attended a run-out of the Fifth in Warwick (review) so the opportunity to experience Maazel’s reading of this symphony again was of special interest to me.
I had intended to make some comparisons with Maazel’s 1980s studio recording of the Fourth with the Vienna Philharmonic. However, seeing Sarah Fox’s name reminded me that just a few years ago I’d reviewed another live outing by the Philharmonia in which she took part. On that occasion Sir Charles Mackerras was on the podium. Though Maazel’s account has quite a lot going for it I much prefer Mackerras. This is a difficult symphony to bring off because a conductor has to convey a feeling of sophisticated innocence. There’s plenty of sophistication in Maazel’s approach – arguably rather too much – but too often it lacks innocence.
Though his reading of the first movement is generally good there are several occasions when Maazel indulges in point-making, usually slowing down the tempo – and losing momentum – to do so. Mackerras adopts a lighter touch and his pacing tends to be a bit more nimble. In the second movement Maazel and the Philharmonia impart a good tang to the music. Maazel is a seasoned Mahlerian and so his ear for the detail in Mahler’s writing serves him well. There’s an appropriately spiky contribution from the solo violinist (Zsolt-Tihamér Visontay?) and also some pungent playing from the horn and wind principals. However, I feel Mackerras has more of a spring to his step and, by comparison, Maazel’s interpretation lacks a bit of wit and natural flow.
Maazel’s slow movement is very good indeed and the Philharmonia offer refined playing. I find Maazel completely convincing and, after so much ravishing music, he ensures that the big climax (at 1917) is the aural equivalent of a blaze of light. Furthermore, the wind-down from that climax to the end of the movement is superbly controlled. Come the finale, however, and we find Maazel indulging in some more heavy-handed point-making. All is well until just before Sarah Fox begins the final stanza of the poem, ‘Kein Musik is ja nicht auf Erden’. The orchestral preface (from 5:28) is beguiling until Maazel slows right down just before the singer enters. From there on the pace is far too drawn out: it all sounds calculated though Miss Fox copes expertly with the elongated phrases. There’s no such artifice with Mackerras who maintains an orthodox and consistent tempo and thereby gets more natural results.
The Fifth that I attended in Warwick was given the day before what has been preserved here. I very deliberately didn’t look at my review of that concert until I’d listened to this recording and decided what I was going to say about it. I’m not surprised that the interpretations seem to have been almost identical – it would have been decidedly odd had that not been the case – but I see, with a little relief, that I felt broadly the same about the performance when I heard it on disc.
The first movement is big and weighty. Just 1:58 in we find Maazel slowing momentarily and losing some momentum to make what is, in the overall context, a fairly minor rhetorical point – happily there aren’t too many similar instances. Barbirolli, in his celebrated New Philharmonia studio recording, is similarly broad in this movement but he maintains momentum. The second movement is trenchant and strongly projected. Maazel’s reading is very powerful and once or twice he’s broader than many other conductors I’ve heard. However, the magnetism and purpose of the reading means that he ‘gets away with it’. When the chorale is reached (12:42) his approach to it is quite brisk and business-like, almost as if he intends this to be unfinished business – a tenable view – though he treats it more expansively when it’s repeated.
The big scherzo receives a moulded reading. Once again Maazel takes a rather weighty view – though not excessively so; there’s still plenty of well-channelled energy in the music-making. The unnamed principal horn player excels. The music is consistently characterised sharply and though one might quibble with some points of the interpretation it is most certainly not routine – and that’s an important point since these days this symphony is sometimes treated as something of a showpiece work. I was interested to read in Julian Joseph’s very good booklet note his description of this movement as a ‘life-affirming collective dance’. We all hear music differently, of course, and I strongly suspect that these notes were the programme notes written for and in advance of the concerts; in other words, they are not notes specially commissioned for the recording. However, despite the fact that this movement’s main key is bright D major the impression that this performance of the scherzo left with me was quite a dark one. That’s not meant as a criticism, however, merely an observation.
Maazel takes the famous Adagietto quite expansively – his performance plays for 11:16. Julian Joseph comments on the debate as to whether this movement is a lament or a love song. Perhaps, as I hear it, Maazel’s reading is slightly inclined towards the former. However, what is certain is that it’s a deeply felt performance, expressively played, and I found it very convincing. I was interested to see that I felt that in the Warwick performance the finale was held on slightly too tight a rein; this time round I’ve scribbled in my notes “highly disciplined but full of spirit – though [one has] heard it more unbuttoned.” This is not an extrovert, showy performance – and that’s good, I think – but perhaps some evidence of a more smiling countenance would have been welcome. When the apotheosis of the chorale is reached (14:39) it seems a triumph that has not been easily won and, if I read the performance right, then I think Maazel has taken an entirely tenable approach to the symphony.
I see that in my review of the Warwick concert I made a comment to the effect that there were a few features of Maazel’s interpretation that I wouldn’t wish to hear repeatedly in a recording: little did I know I would have a CD to review in due course! I think there are a few interpretative touches that cause the eyebrows to rise but overall the sheer conviction and power of what we hear carries the day. This intense interpretation isn’t the only way to play Mahler’s Fifth but it’s jolly impressive and Maazel, who has clearly thought through every detail of the score, is never routine or dull in his approach. It’s good to have this preserved.
The Sixth Symphony is split across two discs with the first movement (25:58) occupying the first disc. Maazel opts to play the Scherzo second. That’s a decision of which I approve in principle and, as we shall see, in practice Maazel’s way with the score justifies that approach in spades. In October, 2010, a few months before giving this London Sixth Maazel conducted the symphony in Amsterdam with the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra. The film of that performance was included in a Blu-Ray collection of all the Mahler symphonies that the orchestra issued and it was one of the highlights of the set, according to my colleague, Dan Morgan (review). Having heard this London performance, I can understand Dan’s enthusiasm.
Pacing the first movement can be difficult: some conductors take it too briskly while others are too slow. I think Maazel gets it just right, making this a grim and gripping march. He plays the exposition repeat – not everyone does, but they should. The so-called ‘Alma’ theme doesn’t soar as ecstatically as in some performances that I’ve heard but this is of a piece with Maazel’s conception of the movement, I suspect: I hear regret in this passage. Further on, when we reach the cowbells episode Maazel doesn’t make the music as lightly nostalgic as some; instead there’s an air of sadness or at least of melancholy. Yet again we find instances where Maazel pulls back the tempo in order to make an expressive point but overall I find his interpretation very convincing. This is a strong and weighty performance which makes us realise why at one time Mahler labelled the work ‘Tragic’. Julian Joseph refers to ‘an affirmative ending’ and I agree that’s how the close of the movement is often presented; however, on this occasion the mood seems almost to be one of savage exaltation.
Maazel now shows why the scherzo should come second, maintaining and developing the mood of the first movement. He leads a strongly characterised reading that is pointed and often sardonic. He catches too the element of bitterness in the music, Mahler’s often harsh, garish scoring is very well realised in this performance, to which Maazel and the orchestra also bring the necessary rhythmic tautness. In a trenchant performance such as this the listener then needs the relative balm of the slow movement before the emotional onslaught of the finale. Maazel’s is an expressive and nicely moulded account of the movement and the Philharmonia offers distinguished playing. The climax is intense and passionate and then the gentle ending is perfectly voiced.
The vast finale grips the listener from the outset; the opening pages are pregnant with tension. With superbly focused, incisive and powerful playing from the orchestra and a firm sense of direction and purpose from the podium this is an account of the finale that takes the listener to the edge. The recording allows us to hear a great deal of the teeming detail in the music but above all one is struck by the drama of the music. The first hammer blow (13:44) is the catalyst for a release of burning energy but the second (18:42) really pitches us towards the abyss. From 23:30 onwards the performance is particularly searing and then the doom-laden ending (from 30:30) is full of black despair, heralding the moment of annihilation at the end. This is shattering movement and here it’s done very well indeed. Thankfully, there’s no intrusive applause at the end; in fact, there’s no applause after any of these.
As I’ve indicated, there are elements in all three that are a bit heavy-handed on the conductor’s part – an issue that affects the Sixth least. However, the overall conviction and the sense that Maazel is probing these scores and not offering anything routine means that one can live with these moments in the context of the bigger picture. Oddly, I find there is a similarity between this box and its predecessor. In the first box I liked least the performance that came first (the First) and so it is here with the Fourth while it was the last symphony in the earlier box (the Third) that impressed me the most and here I’m most taken with Maazel’s reading of the Sixth.
Throughout all three symphonies the playing of the Philharmonia is razor sharp and idiomatic: they’re consistently on top form for Maazel. The recorded sound is very good as are Julian Johnson’s notes. This is shaping up as a most interesting, if variable, Mahler cycle and I look forward to the next volume very much.
Masterwork Index: Symphony 4 ~~ Symphony 5 ~~ Symphony 6
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Home | BOOKS | CATHOLIC APOLOGETICS | THE CATHOLIC CHURCH & CONVERSION
THE CATHOLIC CHURCH & CONVERSION
Item# 9781586170738
Author: G.K. Chesterton. 141p. PB
G.K. Chesterton has been described by both his admirers and even his opponents as te "apostle of common sense" and "one of the happiest, kindest, most brilliant and witty" defenders of Christianity that ever lived. From his youthful days as a free-thinking Victorian to his entry into the Catholic Church, G.K. Chesterton always seemed to be a man who loved truth, beauty and goodness, and who had a vast appreciation and gratitude for the gift of life itself, with all of its many joys as well as sorrows. Indeed, for Chesterton, the joys far out-weighed the sorrows.
In this book, Chesterton's brilliance as a writer and thinker again shines through as he explains his understanding of Catholicism and the Catholic Church, and how her appeal to reason and truth eventually won him over. For Chesterton, a man misses the point of it all unless he acts on two essentials at the heart of conversion. He describes these in his own words: "one is that he believes it to be solid objective truth, which is true whether he likes it or not; and the other is that he seeks liberation from his sins." These two reasons are why Chesterton became a Catholic, and are what he describes in his unique and colorful way in this book.
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Home | DVDs | DRAMA | ST. PHILIP NERI
Item# 900199D
DVD. Color. 3hr.25min. Italian with English and Spanish subtitles.
epic feature film on the famous "Apostle of Rome" and great friend of youth in the 16th century. One of the most popular saints of all time, St. Philip Neri was widely known for his great charity, deep prayer life, and tremendous humor. Hoping to join St. Ignatius of Loyola's new order of Jesuits and be a missionary to India, Philip was instead guided by Providence to seek out the poor and abandoned youth of Rome to catechize them in the faith and help them find a better life. He became the founder of the religious congregation, the Oratory, that worked with the youth and also labored to re-evangelize a decadent Rome.
This captivating film highlights Neri's great love for youth, his warm sense of humor, contagious joy, deep mystical spirituality, and his amazing gift for miracles. Actor Gigi Proietti gives a moving performance as St. Philip in this beautifully produced film that is directed by Giacomo Campiotti, director of the acclaimed films Bakhita: From Slave to Saint and St. Giuseppe Moscatti.
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Man caught hooning down highway at 215km/h
October 14, 2014 1:54 pm in Gold Coast by myGC
A MAN’S been caught fanging down the Hume Highway at more than 200km/h in his Holden Commodore.
Gundagai Highway Patrol were patrolling the highway at Tumblong when they spotted the grey sedan around 7.30am on Monday.
It was allegedly detected travelling at 215km/h in the 110km/h speed zone.
The driver, a 33-year-old man from the United Kingdom, was stopped by police and produced an international drivers licence.
He was issued a court attendance notice for exceeding the speed limit by more than 45km/h and his licence was suspended in NSW.
He’ll appear in Gundagai Local Court on Monday December 1.
Traffic and Highway Patrol Commander, Assistant Commissioner John Hartley, said drivers speeding put their lives at serious risk.
“Speed kills, and drivers exceeding the speed limit risk losing control in an emergency braking situation, putting themselves, passengers and other road users at grave risk,” he said.
“If speeding, your chances of having a crash increase, while the risk of being seriously injured or killed in a crash also rises.
“Traffic and Highway Patrol officers will continue to patrol for drivers taking risks and being reckless on the roads.”
http://www.mygc.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/gold-coast-news.jpg 321 845 myGC http://www.mygc.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/mygc-logo.png myGC2014-10-14 13:54:362014-10-14 13:54:36Man caught hooning down highway at 215km/h
Man charged over six hour Police chase to remain behind bars
Futuristic, fun toys to premiere at Gold Coast’s 2014 International Marin... Tonight’s fake double eviction set to rock the Big Brother house
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Home > J&J’s predicted blockbuster depression posts P2 data
J&J’s predicted blockbuster depression posts P2 data
By ben_5
Johnson & Johnson has revealed Phase 2 data for its treatment for depression, esketamine, and the results are positive - showing substantial benefit beyond standard treatment.
Johnson & Johnson has revealed Phase 2 data for its treatment for depression, esketamine, and the results are positive. The drug is an altered form of ketamine, more commonly known as a party drug, but the chemical is now being widely studied for its therapeutic potential within mental health.
Esketamine is delivered in an intranasal formulation, alongside standard oral antidepressants. J&J has big hopes for the treatment, predicting that it will become a blockbuster treatment should it see approval.
The FDA clearly deems the treatment to have potential, handing two breakthrough tags in major depressive disorder with imminent risk of suicide and for treatment-resistant depression.
The data from J&J’s latest study may well back up the hope for the treatment, as it managed to show not just efficacy but a rapid-onset of action and long-term duration.
Patients were separated into three different dose group (28 mg, 56 mg and 84 mg), which were delivered twice weekly for up to nine weeks. Response to treatments were measured on the Montgomery-Asberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS), with results showing a reduction on the score relative to dose strength – 28mg saw a reduction of 4.2, 56mg by 6.3 and 84mg by 9.0 compared to placebo.
The effects of the treatment were observed as rapidly as two hours after treatment and persisted over the eight-week follow up period without requiring additional doses. There were also fewer patients who remitted on the treatment, 12.5%, 27.3% and 40.0% relative to dose strengths previously mentioned, compared to 10% in the placebo group.
“About one third of patients with major depressive disorder do not respond to current treatment options,” said Husseini K. Manji, Global Head, Neuroscience Therapeutic Area, Janssen. “The results of this study reinforce the potential of esketamine as a treatment for patients with treatment-resistant depression and support further clinical research, providing hope for people in need. If approved by the FDA, esketamine would be one of the first new approaches to treat refractory major depressive disorder available to patients in the last 50 years.”
The common side-effects of treatment were dizziness, headache and perceptual changes/dissociative symptoms.
The treatment is currently undergoing Phase 3 clinical trials for treatment-resistant depression and for patients with major depressive disorder who are imminent risk for suicide. With such a paucity of treatment options beyond standard oral antidepressants, to the extent that ketamine is now often used off-label for patients who are resistant to current treatments.
Ben Hargreaves
by ben_5Published on 03/01/18 at 12:28pm
johnson__johnson_offices_in_madrid_spain_01.jpg [2]
Source URL: http://www.pharmafile.com/news/516163/jj-s-predicted-blockbuster-depression-posts-p2-data
[2] http://www.pharmafile.com/system/files/johnson__johnson_offices_in_madrid_spain_01_2.jpg
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Am I OK???
How do we know when we're not...OK??? We're functioning at a typical level, going to work, doing errands, communicating/socializing regularly with others, continuing to uphold our personal and familial responsibilities and obligations...that all seems fine, doesn't it? So what's the problem? Sometimes, though we are high-functioning, meaning we are doing everything we are supposed to be doing--acting "normal"--there is something wrong. And the difficult question is, how do I know when I'm OK and when I'm not?
Do you feel a sense of constant anxiety? Like a pit in your stomach that doesn't seem to ever go away? Do you feel generally unhappy? Are you projecting that unhappiness on others, like a spouse, a friend, or even your children? Do you find you are engaging in "destructive" behaviors, like over-spending, smoking, over-eating, or over-indulging in things like alcohol? Are you sleeping? If you are, is it for at least 6.5-7 hours/night? When you do sleep, is it restful or do you suffer regular nightmares or night-terrors? Do you sometimes get a tight feeling in your chest? Do you find it hard to motivate yourself to do simple, everyday tasks?
If you answered yes to at least 2 of these questions, chances are, you are not OK.
If you're not okay, don't panic. It's not a panic situation. It's a HUMAN situation. Throughout our lifetimes, there will be many "not okay" instances. The first thing to do is to identify the root of the problem. When did the signs begin to manifest? Did you experience any recent changes--it can be anything from a change of job, to a death in the family, to your child transitioning in school. We often feel guilty if we sense we're not "OK" and push that feeling aside, pretending it's not there. When life is hectic--and let's face it, when is not--we tend not to acknowledge any particular problems that may arise in an effort to prioritize life. But by not putting ourselves as a priority, we are making a very BIG mistake.
In order for us to continue truly living life, we must face our problems as they come--even if it's inconvenient. Because, what's really inconvenient is when we don't face our problems, allowing them to build. At some point, you will have such a store of problems deposited in your "problem bank" that anything can tip your proverbial scale, totally stopping life in its tracks--yours and everyone connected to you.
Even the thought of HOW to deal with such a store of issues is daunting. So where do you begin? You start with yourself. Once you've identified the root of the problem, try to remove it. If that's not possible, try using meditation, physical exercise, journaling, taking walks in a natural setting--anything to bring you back to yourself, anything to let you have time to "sort out" the problems you've been putting off.
It may not be enough, and if it isn't, seek out a counselor. Get a referral from your primary care physician for a good therapist. Interview a number of people before making your choice. Go to your scheduled appointments. Try going twice a month to start. If it helps, you can either increase or decrease appointments to your specific needs.
Having a person outside of friends, family and your professional sphere to discuss the large and small problems that tend to pop up in our busy lives is crucial to being "OK" when you've become overwhelmed or daunted or unmotivated or unhappy. Why live like that when you don't have to?
Many of us choose to live like that even when we don't have to just to keep life flowing; we don't want to interupt ourselves or the others in our life. Sometimes, we may feel ashamed, or embarrassed, or even guilty--we don't want to be selfish. When we have a problem, we want to be strong. We want to take care of it without burdening others. All noble sentiments. But imagine the courage, the nobility, in being honest not only with yourself, but with the people who are important to you? There is nothing wrong with having limits. It means you are human--nothing more, nothing less.
Whether meditation, exercise, being in nature, or writing in a journal helps you to be "OK," all that matters is that you use those self-strategies to your benefit. If it's not really making a dent, go see a therapist. It can't hurt. Most health insurance policies do pay for a certain number of visits. You may have to pay a nominal co-pay, but think about it--how much do you spend on clothing? On entertainment? On housing? Aren't YOU worth the cost of a co-pay? Take the excuses away and forgive yourself. Help yourself remove the obstacles in your life so you can continue moving forward. You ARE worth it. We all are.
Until next time, dearest readers....
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Apple is Building the Nation's Largest End User Solar Array
Apple has announced that to support its data center in Maiden, North Carolina, it is building the nation's largest end user-owned solar array.
Our new data center in Maiden, North Carolina, demonstrates our commitment to reducing the environmental impact of our facilities through energy-efficient, green building design. The facility has earned the coveted LEED Platinum certification from the U.S. Green Building Council. We know of no other data center of comparable size that has achieved this level of LEED certification. Our goal is to run the Maiden facility with high percentage renewable energy mix, and we have major projects under way to achieve this - including building the nation's largest end user-owned solar array and building the largest nonutility fuel cell installation in the United States.
The news comes via a report on Apple's environmental footprint. In October, permits issued by Catawba County show that Apple had been approved to reshape the slope of some of the 171 acres of vacant land it owns on Startown Road, opposite the data center, in preparation of building a solar farm.
Apple is Building the Nation's Largest End User So...
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Welcome to Macintosh Documentary Gets CNBC Exclusive
Welcome to Macintosh, the independent documentary highlighting Apple Inc's history and fan following, will make its exclusive North American television premiere on CNBC, First in Business Worldwide, on Monday, January 4th at 9:30PM ET. The documentary was recently made available on the iTunes movie store where it reached the top 10 in documentary sales and rentals.
Macworld Conference and Expo
"CNBC has given us the opportunity to share that message with millions of households across North America."
Apple's "Forgotten...
"Welcome to Macintosh"...
Los Angeles (PRWEB) December 28, 2009
"CNBC is the perfect home for Welcome to Macintosh" says Rob Baca, Co-Directory of the film. "We took the people and the passion felt for Apple seriously, and CNBC provides the ideal venue for informative and entertaining content to be presented."
"The goal was to make a film that you can show to anyone, even someone that has never used a computer, and have them understand why so many people love Macintosh," says Josh Rizzo, Co-Director. "CNBC has given us the opportunity to share that message with millions of households across North America."
"Make no mistake, this is film is about as independent as you can get. No studio, no bankroll, just two dedicated filmmakers and their credit cards. The result has been life changing for the both of us," Says Baca.
"We have received a lot of support from members of the Mac Community," says Rizzo. "We could not have done this without them."
In the spring of 2009 the filmmakers held a screening in San Francisco during the week of Macworld Conference and Expo during which Apple Co-founder and entrepreneur Steve Wozniak comment that "Welcome to Macintosh" was "So much on the mark... I've been involved with some other independent films and this is by far the best one I've seen."
Andy Hertzfeld, Co-creator of the Mac and Author of "Revolution in The Valley" said that "Welcome to Macintosh captures and exemplifies the unique spirit expressed in Apple's products."
Ron Wayne, Co-founder of the Apple Computer Company and Author of "Nature of Money" said "Welcome to Macintosh is an entertaining, and illuminating look at the people and events that made Apple and the Macintosh the phenomenon it is today."
Leander Kahney, Author of "Inside Steve's Brain" and "Cult of Mac" said that Welcome to Macintosh "…is an insightful look at Apple history and a ton of fun to watch!"
"Every Mac user should watch this movie." Says Guy Kawasaki, original Mac Evangelist, Author and entrepreneur.
Welcome to Macintosh has been presented in over fifty Macintosh User Groups around the world as well as an official selection in seven international film festivals including the 10th Annual Wisconsin Film Festival, the 4th Globians World and Culture Documentary Film Festival, the 1st Ann. Naperville Independent Film Fest, the Texandance International Film Festival as well as the Cleveland Ingenuity Festival.
Official Movie Website
Official Trailer (YouTube)
iTunes Store Link
DVD on Amazon
The Welcome to Macintosh website includes exclusive behind the scenes content including photos, videos, discussions.
Welcome to Macintosh is an independent motion picture and has not been authorized, sponsored, or otherwise approved by Apple Inc. Macintosh, iPod and iTunes are registered trademarks of Apple Inc.
Josh Rizzo & Rob Baca
512k Entertainment
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Posted on March 7, 2019 by webmaster
BEETHOVEN FESTIVAL CONCERT SERIES
The Festival’s 36th Season continues its series of Award-Winning Pianists with
Virtuoso Hsiang John Tu
In Concert March 15 in Park City
To purchase tickets online and for more information, visit
http://www.PCMusicFestival.com
“The artists who come to play are among the best classical solo artists of our generation,” said the late renowned solo violinist and conductor Joseph Silverstein about the Festival.
The Beethoven Festival Concert Series begins 2019 with the Festival debut of award-winning virtuoso pianist Hsiang John Tu.
The New York Times has praised the “eloquent sensitivity” in pianist Hsiang John Tu’s performance. Born in Taipei, Taiwan, he made his debut in New York at Alice Tully Hall at Lincoln Center as the winner of the prestigious Juilliard School Concerto Competition performing Chopin’s Concerto No 1. He returned to the same venue in 2013 as a soloist in Brahms’ Concerto No. 1 with the World Civic Orchestra. As a much-in-demand chamber musician, Mr. Tu has premiered new chamber works on the Summergarden Series at New York’s famed Museum of Modern Art and collaborated in sold-out performances at the Joyce Theater in NYC with the renowned modern dance company Rioult.
John Tu is currently presenting a four-recital series devoted to the complete solo piano works by Debussy, in celebration of the centennial passing of the great French master. He will be performing highlights from this tour on two concerts in Utah this month presented by the Beethoven Festival Concert Series.
Virtuoso pianist Hsiang John Tu has won prizes at the New Orleans International Piano Competition, the Iowa International Piano, the Texas Kingsville International Piano Concerto, and the American Paderewski Piano Competitions. He has also been presented in recitals by the Foundation for Chinese Performing Arts in Boston, the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in New York, and the Banff Centre in Canada, where he has done a six-month residency. As concerto soloist he has been featured artist performing with the Calgary Philharmonic, Lake George Chamber, Sioux City Symphony, Louisiana Philharmonic, Snow College, Boston University Symphonic, and the New England Conservatory Youth Philharmonic Orchestras. John Tu has given master classes at Cardiff University in Wales, University of Southern California, Penn State University, Loyola University New Orleans, Utah Valley University, and Colorado Mesa University, and he has adjudicated in the NHMTA Fall Competition, US International Music Competition (organized by Chinese Music Teachers’ Associations of Northern California), and SummerArts Competition at University of Utah. He held adjunct positions at New York University, Utah Valley University, and Snow College before his current appointment at University of New Hampshire (UNH).
After winning Taiwan’s National Youth Piano Competition as a teenager, Mr. Tu moved to the U.S. and studied with HaeSun Paik and Hung-Kuan Chen at the Walnut Hill School in Natick, MA. Mr. Tu then continued with Mr. Chen at Boston University and the University of Calgary, earning a Bachelor’s degree in piano performance and winning the Canadian Music Festival Competition. Thereafter, Mr. Tu studied at the Juilliard School with Jerome Lowenthal, earning a Master of Music degree in Piano Performance in addition to the DMA.
CONCERTS IN PARK CITY and SALT LAKE CITY
Virtuoso Pianist Hsiang John Tu will be performing this week in two concerts for the Beethoven Festival Concert Series
On Friday evening March 15th the Festival Artists in Residence will join John Tu in beautiful program of exquisite solo piano works by Debussy, the Debussy Rhapsody for Clarinet and Piano and the “Variations on a Theme from Mozart’s Magic Flute” by Beethoven for clarinet and piano, along with an announced work for clarinet, viola and piano. The Friday, March 15th concert begins at 7:30PM at the Park City Community Church. Free refreshments will be served at intermission.
In Salt Lake City, March 14th
ABOUT THE BEETHOVEN FESTIVAL CONCERT SERIES
The artists and our audience are delighted with the Festival’s added concerts has been wonderful. These added concerts make up the new Beethoven Festival Concert Series, which audiences will continue to be able to enjoy in addition to the annual Summer Festival in July and August.”
Throughout its history the BEETHOVEN FESTIVAL has been bringing outstanding solo artists together to perform in Park City and now averages over thirty-five concerts and outreach performances each season. The BEETHOVEN FESTIVAL’s summer concerts make up Utah’s oldest classical music festival. Throughout the rest of the year the Festival will be presenting the Beethoven Festival Concert Series. Some months the Beethoven’s concerts will be presented as festivals over several weeks.
Visit the Festival Website at http://www.BeethovenFestivalParkCity.org to purchase tickets in advance online for the March 15th concert or to make reservations. Tickets are also available at the door for the March 15 concert: $25 regular admission, $20 for seniors 62+. Music students 9 years and up are admitted free.
The Park City Community Church is located at 4501 Hwy 224 just behind the Park City Nursery.
The Beethoven Festival is Utah’s oldest classical music festival and is presented by the non profit Park City Chamber Music Society, one of Park City’s oldest arts organizations.
Hear and see Hsiang John Tu performances on YouTube.com
http://hsiangjohntu.com/debussy The Solo Piano Works of Debussy
https://youtu.be/NoSWgsqd8VQ Chopin Sonata No. 2
https://youtu.be/zYDOAShr35o Beethoven Sonata Op. 101
https://youtu.be/xr7roMjeON4 Chopin Barcarolle, Op. 60
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Capitol Violates Disabilities Law
Office of Compliance Evaluation Details Safety Hazards, Office Tensions
Posted Oct 17, 2012 2:33 PM
Emma Dumain
@Emma_Dumain
Grijalva Wants to Diversify Environmental Movement Steve Scalise Defends Planned Parenthood Strategy Pelosi's Victory Lap
The sidewalks surrounding all three House office buildings are overwhelmingly not in compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, a vivid example of the safety hazards and office tensions outlined in the Office of Compliance’s annual report being released today.
In its State of the Congressional Workplace report for fiscal 2011, the OOC portrays a legislative branch workforce still in need of the oversight the 17-year agency provides under the Congressional Accountability Act’s mandate.
The report also makes the case for why the OOC needs additional resources on top of its $3.8 million budget to ensure that Congressional offices and agencies are meeting basic workplace standards.
Addressing sidewalk noncompliance is just one example of what the agency might do if it had more money and manpower to inspect the Capitol complex, the OOC contends.
During the 111th Congress, the OOC evaluated pathways around the Cannon, Rayburn and Longworth House office buildings and found 154 access barriers for individuals with disabilities. Of the 30 curb ramps that help people in wheelchairs navigate between streets and sidewalks, 93 percent were not in ADA compliance.
The ADA, as it applies to Congress under the Congressional Accountability Act, requires the OOC to conduct inspections, identify violations and offer solutions for fixing problems. The Architect of the Capitol is responsible for addressing the violations.
Neither office could confirm whether these sidewalks were constructed before or after 1995, the year Congress passed the Congressional Accountability Act and bound the legislative branch to ADA standards.
However, an earlier OOC report noted that 400 curb ramps were installed from 1999 to 2001. Reports issued in 2007 and 2009 also indicated that inspectors were seeing more new barriers being installed.
In another signal that many of the violations were likely put in place more recently, the security barriers erected after 9/11 also required sidewalk work.
“The unfortunate thing about 9/11 and all security concerns is it literally crashes right into access,” said Curt Decker, executive director of the National Disability Rights Network. “And [people] are probably are not surprised that security trumps access.”
The OOC also did a random survey of restrooms in each of the House and Senate office buildings and in the Library of Congress’ James Madison Building. None were in ADA compliance.
In the report, the OOC said all these violations could have been prevented if it had more full-time inspectors to oversee the construction phases all the way through and if the AOC consistently approached the OOC for education and expertise. Taking advantage of OOC resources could even save the AOC time and money down the road, the office contends.
“There have been a number of instances where construction has been completed … [that] doesn’t comply with ADA requirements,” OOC General Counsel Peter Eveleth said. “We say, ‘You have to fix it.’ … [And] they end up having to pay twice and they may have to swallow the extra cost.”
In a written response to Roll Call, AOC spokeswoman Eva Malecki did not say why the problems persist but defended the AOC’s record of commitment to complying with the ADA: “The level of accessibility on the Capitol campus has never been higher.”
She provided 16 examples of AOC initiatives, including the installation of ADA-compliant ramps in Rayburn and Longworth and replacement of “more than 8,100 square yards of sidewalk across the Capitol campus over the past two years to enhance accessibility and safety.”
Malecki did not offer a timeline for when the AOC would address the specific concerns outlined in the OOC’s report or whether it would appeal to appropriators for the necessary funds to do so.
Six-term Rep. James Langevin (D-R.I.), the first quadriplegic to serve in Congress, said that he has been pleased with the AOC’s efforts to improve accessibility on Capitol Hill but that he’d be speaking with stakeholders to address the issues outlined in the OOC report.
“Congress should be a model in all areas of ADA compliance, and I am going to continue to work to ensure the Capitol complex meets and exceeds the goals whenever and wherever possible,” Langevin told Roll Call.
Workplace Complaints Continue
In addition to health and safety inspections, the OOC enforces discrimination-free work environments for select legislative branch agencies. The OOC report for fiscal 2011 shows that tensions persist in many of the offices it oversees.
As in the past, the most common alleged violation in fiscal 2011 related to discrimination and harassment based on race, sex, age and disability. The number was higher in fiscal 2011: 196 alleged violations. In fiscal 2010, that number was 168, and in fiscal 2009, it was 136.
Also as in previous years, complaints from agencies occurred in numbers disproportionate to those from Congressional offices. Of the 142 formal complaints filed with the OOC in fiscal 2011, just 13 originated in the House and two began in the Senate.
OOC Executive Director Tamara Chrisler told Roll Call that there were a few reasons to explain the discrepancies.
As for why the number of complaints was rising, “they could mean a lot of things,” including a lack of education and communication, she said. Budget cuts could also be a factor, where “practices and policies have to change to incorporate these cuts … and that may result in a perspective of things being unfair,” Chrisler said.
Fewer complaints from Congressional offices, Chrisler continued, could have to do with the transient nature of those jobs as compared with those in agencies.
“A Member’s office staff may accept certain things because they are only going to be there for a year or two and may not feel the need to complain,” she said. “That may not be the view of someone who has vested 20, 30 years on the job and it isn’t as easy for them to just walk away.”
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Me planting a River Gum at the River Farm on the Hawkesbury River
Social ecology is today my primary field of inquiry, research, teaching and one of my main areas of writing. It’s also become one of my forms of identifying myself professionally. I used to call myself a teacher, a community theatre educator or sometimes even a writer, but now I call myself a social ecologist. As sense of place is one of the areas of research of social ecology, I’ve also added Sydney to the title. Sydney is the place where I spend most of my time. I have chosen to live in this city of villages by the sea, with its many waterways and parks and its rich cultural life and diverse cultural communities.
In particular, I’ve chosen to live in the eastern suburbs of Sydney, with its beaches, cafes, restaurants and its various cultural communities that include activities like walking by the sea, swimming, surfing, yoga, meditation, Kirtan, going to cinemas, theatres, and involving diverse cultures like Anglo/Celtic Australian, Brazilian, Israeli, Jewish, Russian, Kiwi and Maori to name just a few. It is bordered by Centennial Park, where I’m sitting at present and writing this blog on my laptop, with a cup of tea beside me. This is also the part of the Sydney I grew up in, since the age of 6. It’s where I went to school and attended my initial tertiary studies. It’s the land of the Cadigal Clan of the Eora Nation. With Aboriginal carvings at the end of my street, I feel quite connected to the First Nation people of this area.
Centennial Park Cafe Table
So what is social ecology? This is a question I’m often asked in response to my identifying myself as one. Well, superficially it involves an understanding of the social world in which we live, which is generally covered by the field of sociology, which I studied at university as part of my arts degree. It also involves the personal and the study of psychology and body work as well as spirituality, which influence us as individuals and the way we think, feel, perceive and socialise in the place where we live, work and play. I studied Psychology as part of my engineering degree and later did Re-evaluation Co-counselling, Process Oriented Psychology, and a variety of personal growth workshops, as well as bodywork like yoga, Tai Chi and physical theatre.
Social ecology clearly involves the ecology, or the environmental context within which the social, personal and spiritual dimensions exist and function. This can include the built environment, like the streets and buildings, like my home in Bondi, or other humanly created structures or the more natural environment like the ocean, beaches, parks, pockets of bushland or my front and back yards and street garden. I say more natural because in cities these too are often humanly modified with roads, walkways, car parks, playgrounds, playing fields, picnic and toilet facilities, cafes and other structures.
One of the fundamental principles in ecology is The Systems View of Life, which happens to be the title of the very inspiring book I’m reading at present, by Fritjof Capra and Pier Luigi Luisi (2014, Cambridge Press). Systems theory argues that everything is connected to everything. It’s an integral part of many indigenous cultures, like Aboriginal culture that considers the Earth as our Mother, as well as Eastern cultures like Buddhism, Hinduism and Taoism. One of the most beautiful images of this is the Buddhist idea of the Net of Indra. This is a jewelled net in which every jewel reflects every other jewel in the net. To Buddhists, it describes the way we are all interconnected in the words of Joanna Macy, or we are in a dynamic state of interbeing in the words of the Vietnamese Zen Master and peace activist, Thich Nhat Hanh. So if any jewel in the net is changed it affects all the other jewels.
Capra and Luisi (2014) claim that the ‘tension between mechanism and holism has been a recurring theme throughout the history of Western Science.’ And that ‘in the twentieth-century science, the holistic perspective became known as “systemic” and the way of thinking it implies as “systems theory”,’ (p. 63). This new way of thinking in the West grew out of the study of biology and ecology, a term ‘coined by the German biologist Ernst Haeckel (1834-1919), who defined it as “the science of relations between the organism and the surrounding outer world”,’ (cited in Capra & Luisi, 2014, p. 66).
While I’d read about systems theory in Gregory Bateson’s (1972) classic book, Steps to an Ecology of Mind, back in the 70s it was through Joanna Macy’s workshops and Thich Nhat Hanh’s retreats, as well as reading their books in the 80s that I really began to understand the ideas of systems theory. I suspect that one of the reasons for this difficulty I had in understanding systems theory was that I’d been so well educated in the Western Scientific tradition of the Cartesian-Newtonian Mechanistic worldview as a chemical engineer. Consequently, I first had to unlearn this way of thinking, into which I had also been so strongly conditioned in both my school education as well as my social upbringing. The latter focused on the individual in competition with other individuals, as part of a British colonial culture in the South Asia Pacific region, which promoted the idea of survival of the fittest. It was this factor, it was argued that gave the British colonists the right to invade this land now called Australia and dominate its people, under the pretext of what they called ‘civilisation.’
In my school lessons in the 50s on Australian Aboriginal history, I was told this was a process of peaceful settlement, with the implication that Aboriginal people on the whole, were grateful to have been offered this opportunity of being part of British civilisation. Needless to say as an adult I discovered this was far from the case. This was reinforced by direct contact with Aboriginal people and their profound culture, as well as by my studies in anthropology.
Indeed the first film I made as part of a Film and Television Production course at Swinburne Institute of Technology in Melbourne was about Aboriginal people living at La Perouse in the early 70s. I now consider this as one of my early inquiries into social ecology. I knew about these people living in third world conditions at the edge of this highly prosperous modern city like Sydney, but I had no idea who they really were or even why they were there. The idea of the film was to begin a process of inquiry into these people and their place in the modern city that I called my home. The process of making this film and meeting the people, especially the children, began a process of deep questioning about the world that I’d been brought up in as an educated middle-class man living in the eastern suburbs of Sydney. How come I had this privileged position as a child of Jewish refugees from war torn Europe while the people, on whose land I was living were so marginalised?
However a second question arose for me from meeting the children and experiencing their playful spirited way of being, which was in sharp contrast to the children that I knew from middle class backgrounds that seemed so subdued by comparison. This question was further reinforced by spending some 3 and ½ years teaching at an innercity school where between 60 to 80% of its population were Aboriginal, with some 10 to 20% Pacific Islander. This question also arose in my travels when I had an experience in a park in Singapore, when Karen and I were caught in a sudden tropical downpour and took shelter in a pavilion along with a bunch of kids. As soon as they saw me with a camera they began to perform the most amazing acrobatics, which I was able to photograph. In the experience in both La Perouse and Singapore, I felt the children still had their living spirit in a way that the children I knew in middle-class societies were generally so much more subdued. What were we doing to our children?
This question has been well answered for me in recent times by the work of Ken Robinson, by his books and particularly his TED video called ‘Do Schools Kill Creativity?’ Like the spirit of our children, it seems our so-called civilised middle class upbringing also kills creativity, as our children grow into adults. For me spirit, nature and creativity are all linked. Our modern so-called civilised world manages to kill all three!
The work of Jacob Levy Moreno, the psychiatrist who invented psychodrama in the Vienna of the 1920s, confirms this finding. His understanding of psychodrama was that it was a form of spontaneity training. He considered spontaneity to result from the Elan Vital, or the Lifeforce that the French philosopher Henri Bergson argued was at the very basis of all life in his important book Creative Evolution. Bergson was dismissed by the positivist scientific movement at the time, who were deeply challenged by this idea that they called ‘vitalism’, and were still maintaining the Cartesian-Newtonian clockwork paradigm. However, Moreno took Bergson’s work seriously. One of his contemporaries Wilhelm Reich, who like Moreno was also initially a disciple of Sigmund Freud, called this Lifeforce ‘Orgone energy’ which pervaded the Universe and was linked to our experience of orgasm. Needless to say Reich’s work was also rejected by the mainstream scientific world at the time. Today I would argue that Reich, Bergson and Moreno were affirming the presence of what we have come to understand as Prana in Yoga, Chi in Tai Chi or Ki in Aikido.
This brings me back to my story and how I became a social ecologist. Another major factor in my journey was reading an early book of Fritjof Capra (1975) called The Tao of Physics. At that stage in the mid to late 70s, I was a lapsed chemical engineer, studying drama, French, acting, sociology and embarking on the study and practice of Yoga, Tai Chi and Zen meditation. I was working in theatre and bookshops to support myself financially and involved in various fringe theatre and writing projects. Reading Capra’s book proved a major turning point, which was actually the title of the next book of his I later read. In The Tao of Physics, Capra showed the connection between eastern philosophy and the new physics. At the time I was deeply disillusioned with the study of western science that had so dominated my early life.
I grew up with the myth in the 50s and 60s that science was going to save the world. While I studied the theory at university, this appeared to be a valid myth, but once I entered the practice in the world of industry I observed something completely different. There I saw a science that was exploiting the natural world, both by the cavalier way it was using nature as a ‘raw material’ and by the lack of any serious consideration at the time of the pollution that the scientific processes like those in the chemical industry were causing.
The clear evidence for this, is that Botany Bay is the most polluted water way in Australia, and that was partly due to the ICIANZ chemical factory where I was working in the late 60s, while Sydney Harbour still has dioxins in the water due to the Union Carbide factory where I was working as a cadet chemical engineer in the early 60s. As an idealistic young graduate, I was deeply affected by what I observed in the industry and with the unconscious way my colleagues and managers dealt with this very serious situation. In the late 60s while working at ICIANZ I had a serious industrial accident where I inhaled toxic gasses that sent me to hospital for a week, during which I began to seriously question my life path.
In the light of this experience, Capra’s (1975) book began to explain many things that had never quite made sense in my study of physics and mathematics to third year university level as part of my engineering studies. Along with my experience of Drama, Yoga, Zen, Tai Chi and the humanities in general, I was beginning to heal the deep division in myself between the arts and the sciences that the writer C. P Snow[1] addressed in the 50s, namely the war between the arts and the sciences in western culture.
Then in the 80s I began to read the work of Murray Bookchin and Gregory Bateson. Bookchin[2] invented the term social ecology and wrote about how the ecological problems we are having today, arose out of the hierarchical social structures in the industrial world that is destroying nature through its domination. His work later led to the development of an Institute of Social Ecology in Vermont[3], which is celebrating its 40th birthday this year. Bateson’s (1972) book, Steps to an Ecology of Mind, was my first introduction to systems theory, especially in the life sciences, which Capra’s[4] (1982) book The Turning Point also addressed with regard to the health sciences.
Then in the 1985 I connected to Joanna Macy’s[5] work of Despair and Empowerment through my involvement with the Buddhist Peace Fellowship and some Buddhist intentional communities in Northern NSW. The following year I went to the USA via Hawaii, where Karen and I did an end of year Zen Sesshin at the Diamond Sangha with Robert Aitken Roshi, our Zen teacher. While there, I also checked out the East West Centre at the University of Hawaii, as a possible place to do a PhD, as I had just completed my masters in Theatre Studies in Sydney at UNSW. I was interested in the eastern influence on western theatre at the time. After the retreat, we went to the mainland where I picked up a catalogue to the California Institute of Integral Studies (CIIS) in San Francisco. This is the place to do my PhD I thought, as I wanted to integrate the artist and the scientist in me as much as the eastern and western influences on my life and the Australian world I was living in. My mystic was also beginning to emerge at this time.
As it happened when we returned to Oz life took over and I began to develop my Drama Yoga workshop process, which led to the Quaker non-violence training in the Alternatives to Violence Project (AVP). Around this time in 1987, our daughter Amica decided to join my partner Karen and I, so I needed to work more to support her. At the time I was working as a drama, ESL, EFL and ESOL[6], in schools, community centres, TAFE and finally for the Adult Migrant English Services (AMES), where I also worked with recently arrived youth on a program that included Aboriginal studies. I began to be involved in training of youth workers through the Community Centre for Welfare Training (CCWT) on experiential non-violence processes, creative anger processes, cross cultural work and creative anti-racism programs. I presented widely – at TESOL conferences on using drama to learn language and at conferences on youth, community work and popular culture, on cross-cultural work, on Aboriginality and on anti-racism[7].
Through this work in education and training I reconnected with a friend from my UNSW drama studies days, Dawn Griggs[8], who had also become an English teacher in the EFL field and who wanted to start a group to address non-denominational spiritualty with teachers in schools and educators in general. This became the Spirit of Learning group, which presented weekend forums tri-annually for several years around Sydney and in regional areas. Later it became the topic of her research masters in Social Ecology. I was one of her subjects in her research. Then a second woman named Dawn in the group, who was a lecturer in Early Childhood education and involved in Tai Chi practice and Jean Houston’s work. She attended one of my CCWT workshops at Penrith. She was then doing her PhD in Social Ecology and suggested that I could do one there too.
In my life the Universe generally speaks to me in ‘threes.’ With the demise of AMES due to the racism of the Howard government in the mid 90s, I attended a Whole Town Anti-Racism meeting at UTS, in the buildings that ironically had once been an AMES centre. It turned out that Shoshana, the anti-racism officer at UTS, who had created and presented the meeting was a Social Ecology student of Judy Pinn, who I knew from my Zen days. Her partner happened to be Stuart Hill, the founding Professor of Social Ecology at UWS (see his website for more information on Stuart Hill and Social Ecology: http://www.stuartbhill.com) . He gave me a great big Stuart hug, called me brother and so I asked about the possibility of doing a PhD at UWS in my anti-racism through drama education work. He was very positive about the idea and the 3 seeds of my PhD in social ecology were now planted and it was only a matter of time before I enrolled in my PhD in the late 90s.
During this time we had the most amazing post-graduate social ecology residentials, where I really felt at home. It was like finding my tribe. My initial supervisor David Wright[9] in social ecology was also an expert in drama education. Initially, my second supervisor was Judy Pinn, but she retired from the school so then my second supervisor became Brenda Dobia, a psychologist and Yoga teacher researching the Goddess Shakti with a group of women. David Russell, a Jungian therapist and researcher, who taught Cultural Psychology, was another person who assisted my entry to the school after a conversation I had with Susan Benson at a Tara retreat in the Megalong Valley. David Russell was teaching with Brendan, who I knew from my Yoga classes with John Cooper and who I met at the Woodford Folk Festival. He too had told me I should look into social ecology studies. Then Claire Jankelson, who I met at my first residential, Susan Benson and I formed a PhD support group that really did support our research processes over the many years of our PhD[10] studies.
The connections go on and on, as is the nature of social networks. David Russell was also involved in establishing the SLAM conferences at UWS and I attended the second one along with Dawn Griggs and Ian Mills, who had been her supervisor in social ecology and therefore knew me through her research. We presented a workshop called The Spirit of Learning: Creativity, Intuition and the In-Between. It was as mind-blowing for me as the workshop I first presented at the Spirit of Learning Forum back in 1992, which I called Towards a Sustainable World View. This semester at UWS at Bankstown I’m coordinating a unit called Education for Sustainability [11]. This is a unit Brenda normally teaches.
Social Ecology Students at the Riverfarm on the Hawkesbury
The connections go on and on, so to come to a conclusion as to this blog that is about why this blog is called Social Ecology Sydney, I will just mention 2 of my conference presentations, both of which are have led to posts on this site. The most recent was at a Sustainability Symposium at UWS Hawkesbury in July this year at which I presented the paper on Integral Consciousness and Spiritual Ecology through Generative Learning together with my colleague and previous student, Nicola Lambert. The previous year Nicola and Philip Jackson, another of my master’s students in social ecology, presented at the Social Ecology Symposium, also at UWS Hawkesbury. This was a workshop on Integral Consciousness and the work of Jean Gebser, whose classic work The Ever-Present Origins, is mentioned several times on this blog. We all felt very honoured that both Graeme Byrd and Richard Bawden attended our workshop at the symposium on the lawn under a grove of trees and next to telecommunication tower. These two men were both involved in the early years of social ecology at what was then the Hawkesbury Agricultural College and later became part of UWS.
It is this story that hopefully answers the question for the readers of my blog as to why I named it: Social Ecology Sydney.
The River Farm at UWS Hawkesbury
[1] See entry to Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Two_Cultures
[2] See website: http://www.social-ecology.org/author/murray-bookchin/
[3] See website: http://www.social-ecology.org
[4] see: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fritjof_Capra
[5] see website: http://www.joannamacy.net
[6] ESL = English as a Second Language, used in schools in NSW; EFL = English as a Foreign Language, involves teaching overseas students; ESOL = English to Speakers of Other Languages, used in adult education of migrants and refugees.
[ 7] See my chapter on this theme: Migration, Aboriginality and Acculturation, p. 275, in Williams, L., Roberts, R., & McIntosh, A., 2012, Radical Human Ecology, Intercultural and Indigenous Approaches, Surrey, UK: Ashgate
[8] Griggs, D., 2003, Spirit of Learning, Blairgowrie, Vic.: Jubilation
[9] See the social ecology text: Social Ecology, Applying Ecological Understanding to our Lives and our Planet, Edited by David Wright, Catherine Camden-Pratt and Stuart Hill (2011). My chapter is 26, a drama ecology of culture, p. 251.
[10] My PhD is available electronically at UWS library: http://researchdirect.uws.edu.au/islandora/object/uws:2373
[11] This is primarily an education unit for primary and secondary pre-service teachers at UWS http://www.uws.edu.au/education/soe/courses/social_ecology_program
5 thoughts on “Blog Title”
Brilliant blog Ben! Loved reading your Social Ecology story, and wonderfully enriched description of Social Ecology. I’m so glad you have decided to call yourself a Social Ecologist as this covers the diversity of you – your gifts, talents, experiences and evolution. Lyn x
Ben-Zion Weiss says:
Thanks Lyn for your positive feedback! You too are a social ecologist, whether you call yourself one or not.
Aviva Sheb'a says:
Thank you, Ben, for every word of this blog. It speaks to me in deep and gentle tones.
kate clarkson says:
dear ben!! Hi!! LOVE YOUR BLOG…… so amazing to read your beautiful journey and happy that i know a little bit of it first hand ( drama yoga!) …. I also work closely with ellen dunn in the women’s circus down here and she is a social ecologist by actual academic study as well as by inclination… ( and just being a human as you point out above!) lots of love to you and karen and amica! ……
ummm I want to ask you for a bit of mentoring at this moment….for two things….. 1. have received a request to take some drama to a primary school in south west sydney to help with racism… i believe in particular negative attitudes to muslim students. I have accessed the cooling conflicts materials… and planning over the next 6 weeks ( gulp!) to teach a group of IEC and ex IEC students basics of peace/ anti-racism/anti-bullying and enhanced forum theatre and let them peer-teach a group at the primary school Have been given one day cover to plan… but the rest is up to me… ( while still teaching full time)… so wondering if you have could let me know where i could find some actual lesson plans in this area to bounce off for my first session this wednesday after school!!
2. ( also … I am a Soka Gakkai buddhist now— and very interested in thinking of how i could fashion a teaching scholarship application ( gives you money to travel/study and leave to go…and you have to bring something back that can be disseminated and help all schools) around combining creativity ( i run many drama/music projects at my IEC/whole school so this is my area of specialisation) and peace issues…if you have any ideas …. i would greatly appreciate it… of course just reading your blog gives me many… but would truly appreciate ideas…xx
Interesting to be looking up Dances of Universal Peace and find the ‘Ben’. Just to let you know, as ex-UWS Social Ecology, I have also begun a couple of blogspots… http://forloveofgaia.blogspot.com.au/ (thoughts) and http://sacredperformancenetworkaus.blogspot.com.au/ for which I was searching what Dances of Universal Peace Sydney were up to.
I will read your blog at leisure, and give it time to add a relevant comment.
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White Light/White Heat
Recorded in France at the Château d'Hérouville, Pin Ups (RCA) is a 1973 covers album by David Bowie. It was his last studio album with the bulk of 'The Spiders From Mars', his backing band throughout his Ziggy Stardust phase. A version of The Velvet Underground's "White Light/White Heat" was recorded during the sessions. It was never released; Bowie donated the backing track to Mick Ronson for his 1975 album Play Don't Worry. The woman on the cover with Bowie
is 1960s supermodel Twiggy
Neat Neat Neat
Captain Easychord
Sister Feelings Call
Viva Last Blues
In Visible Silence
You Are What You Is
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Streaming Forum Preview: Privacy vs. Profit—Who Cares About Big Data?
Consumers say they want personalised recommendations to help them make sense of their entertainment choices. But how far can operators and content publishers go in harvesting customer data without crossing the line?
By Eric Schumacher-Rasmussen
A big part of the business promise inherent in online video lies in its unprecedented capacity for targeting and personalisation. Of course, the only way that online video providers can target users and deliver "just for you" recommendations is by the collection of customer data, a proposition that went from being novel and cool to being slightly creepy when the UK and U.S. public became aware of just how extensively it was being tracked by government agencies following the revelations about PRISM published in The Guardian just before last year's Streaming Forum. How far are publishers willing to go in pursuing customisation and personalisation, and how much are consumers willing to allow the harvesting of everything from their demographics to their buying habits in pursuit of getting the perfect recommendation for a movie to watch on a Friday night?
Those issues are at the heart of "Privacy vs. Profit: Who Cares About Big Data?," what's sure to be a provocative panel discussion at this year's Streaming Forum in London next month. Tom Weiss, CEO of Genius Digital will moderate the panel, and he'll be joined by Jamie Mackinlay, commercial director of PayWizard, Andy Nobbs, CMO of Civolution, and James Routley, CEO of The Filter. All four companies are working on delivering the right content or advertising to right consumers, and therefore are at the heart of a delicate balancing act.
"We'll we talking about privacy and how operators should be using their consumers' personal data to improve their service offerings, from recommendation engines to call centres and direct marketing," says Weiss. "In a post-Snowden world the mass collection of data can result in significant consumer pushback, and we'll be debating the balance that needs to be taken between infringing in personal privacy and understanding your consumer well enough to engage with them in a modern day fashion."
The days of a "one-size-fits-all" approach to delivering content and advertising are over, Weiss says.
"With online video services moving into the mainstream, it's becoming more and more important to engage correctly with consumers in order acquire the right content to attract customers, retain them as customers, and market new services to increase the audience further," Weiss says. "Without understanding who the consumer is, what they do, and what they want, operators are shooting in the dark and will be overtaken by more data savvy competitors."
The issues at stake are crucial to any content publisher or operator who wants to move their business forward without incurring the wrath of customers who are more worried than ever about who has access to their personal data.
"Attendees should care if they want to use data to improve their services but are worried about the privacy implications," Weiss says. "No one wants to be headline news for the wrong reasonsm but everyone wants to engage better with their consumer base."
The 2014 Streaming Forum will be held at the Park Plaza Victoria in London on 24-25 June. "Privacy vs. Profit: Who Cares About Big Data" will be at 11:45 a.m. on Wednesday, 25 June.
Featured News: OTT Subscribers Are Quick to Depart, Nearly Half Plan to Cancel
Many people will get a connected TV or set-top box this month, leading them to over-the-top video services, but new customers often don't stick around.
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The Man behind the Music
Wray Armstrong, International Programming Director, Tianjin Cultural Centre Grand Theatre
Tianjin Plus is proud of having the opportunity to interview Mr. Wray Armstrong to get an insight into this incredibly talented individual’s life and work. Wray, who is currently the International Programming Director at Tianjin Cultural Centre Grand Theatre (TCCGT), has had an incredible career on the international music scene. His list of achievements to date is outstanding. He has been involved in a number of big events in China and around the world. Some of his key positions to this date include:
1978-1991: Artistic Administrator-> Managing Director in Toronto Symphony Orchestra.
1991-1999: Head of European office of ICM Artists, London UK.
1999-2008: Director of the Conductor and Instrumentalists Division of IMG Artists.
2011- present: Global Consultant for Czech Philharmonic Orchestra.
How long have you been involved in artist representation?
I started in 1976, in Ottawa, Canada. I later went to work as Artistic Manager for Toronto Symphony Orchestra- which is like Programming Manager. Then for 5 years I was the Managing Director. I moved to London in 1991 and that was when I became deeply involved in artist management.
What made you decide to take this post at Tianjin Culture Centre Grand Theatre? Tell us a little about the TCCGT.
I moved to China 3 years ago and initially worked independently. I was recommended to the team at TCCGT as an expert for international projects. The opportunity was fantastic- I remember feeling like a ‘kid in a candy store’ because this grand theatre has everything I could want to work with. There are so many theatres in the West that would be envious of its facilities!
The TCCGT has been open to the public since April. How is business right now?
I think it’s fantastic. It’s incredible that it was constructed so quickly given the complexity involved in assembling the TCCGT’s equipment. Our crew needed to train fast and work around the clock. The concert hall is doing well. In some ways it is like the concert hall in Vienna. It’s perfectly designed in terms of size and layout so it’s very promising as venue. The two other halls are also very well designed and they allow for flexibility in performances, teaching and activities.
How does TCCGT compare to other grand theatres in China?
Firstly, the biggest difference is that, except the National Grand Theatre in Beijing, nowhere else has absolutely everything like we have here. The Shanghai Grand Theatre, for example, is a multipurpose opera house- maybe with one extra theatre. Guangzhou just built an opera house but it is just an opera house. Compared to everywhere in China- ours is the best! I don’t know anywhere in the world, not just in China, which has this kind of cultural centre of the city all in one place. The government and planners have been very smart here.
What are the differences between Tianjin’s public interest and that of other cities in China?
Except for Beijing, Shanghai and, to some extent, Guangzhou, there hasn’t been this kind of audience development in other cities. The advantage we have in Tianjin is that there are 40 institutions of higher learning- each with a sizeable student and academic population. They are our first target audience for classical music. I was very impressed by the President of Nankai University. During a recent meeting, he said that although Nankai doesn’t have a music department, they have a choir and an orchestra. The university offers students the opportunity to pursue these interests, in conjunction with their studies, because it wants to encourage the development of well rounded people; not just scientists or engineers. I suspect that this city has a particularly strong educational focus which may mean that we have an advantage over other cities.
What are your main goals for the future both on a personal level and as International Programming Director of TCCGT?
As a personal goal, health is the most important. I like being active so I will be trying to do this as much as possible. In my professional life, I want to bring the best of everything to Tianjin. We need to look at the whole, broad spectrum of entertainment. This extends to cross-over artists and pop artists; we can bring everything into the theatre here. My goal is to get the very best from all over the world to this centre. It is also important to remember that there are a lot of great performers in China- let’s bring everybody here. The second goal is to develop the audience. The best concert halls in the world are sad places if they are empty.
What do you think about the future of the classical music industry in China?
China’s classical music market is bound to keep growing. This city is the first to initiate this type of programming. There are very few places doing a planned, full season of events. As more and more programmers come onto the scene, circuits will develop and this will be great for the industry as a whole.
Mr. Qian Cheng, President of TCCGT has been said that “the world is blind, people are only seeking money”. To what extent do you agree with that?
Well, I don’t disagree with the quote. People are very ambitious for money right now. What would be marvellous is if we can add to their ambitions and money becomes part of the full circle of satisfaction in life rather than their sole purpose.
What would you say are your biggest achievements in life?
That’s a tough question. When I worked for the Toronto Symphony, we did an enormous education programme and developed the orchestra there. I am very proud of that. As an artist manager, I have taken acts and conductors when they were ‘babies’ and helped them through their careers to get to the top. That was very satisfying. I love being a pioneer and I would very much like to be that here in the Tianjin music scene.
What are some upcoming performances at the TCCGT this year?
We have something for everyone. We are bringing the Chinese Mama Mia, which was made last year in Beijing. For the families we also have Peter Pan. That will be a particularly good performance because our theatre is very well equipped for the flying scenes. Everybody loves the idea of flying. So that’s for the lighter entertainment. This summer we will be doing Gateway to Music. We will start with the BBC National Orchestra of Wales for the July concert . That starts in early July and continues until September- with over 45 performances. When that finishes we have the Autumn Orchestra Festival. We are also planning the opera right now. So overall it should be an exciting few months at the TCCGT!
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A high-level programming language, started by Larry Wall in 1987 and developed as an open source project. It has an eclectic heritage, deriving from the ubiquitous C programming language and to a lesser extent from sed, awk, various Unix shell languages, Lisp, and at least a dozen other tools and languages. Originally developed for Unix, it is now available for many platforms. PERL's elaborate support for regular expression matching and substitution has made it the language of choice for tasks involving string manipulation, whether for text or binary data. It is particularly popular for writing CGI scripts. The language's highly flexible syntax and concise regular expression operators, make densely written PERL code indecipherable to the uninitiated. The syntax is, however, really quite simple and powerful and, once the basics have been mastered, a joy to write.
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Smoking|Obesity|Hot Topics Index
Inequity in palliative care services highlighted by government committee
Home › Health
Wednesday, 10 April, 2019 - 12:38
The Australian and New Zealand Society of Palliative Medicine (ANZSPM) welcomes yesterday’s report of the New Zealand Parliament’s Justice Committee on the End of Life Choice Bill and the Committee’s decision that it was unable to agree that the Bill be passed.
ANZSPM agrees with the Committee’s finding that the Bill is not workable in its present state and maintains the view that the Bill represents an unacceptable risk to members of the community and medical practitioners in New Zealand.
ANZSPM Aotearoa Committee Chair, Dr Rachel Wiseman said that the report affirmed concerns about inadequacies in the current system for end of life care that must be addressed by the government as a priority. Highlighting the report’s reference to an acknowledgement by the Ministry of Health of shortfalls in palliative care nationally, and in particular inequity in access to palliative care, Dr Wiseman said:
"Whilst palliative care provision in New Zealand is highly regarded internationally, the sector is facing significant challenges around inequities in services across the country, particularly in rural and remote regions. Adequate, reliable funding that does not rely on the fundraising efforts of individual hospices is essential to address these inequities.
"We are concerned that the debate on this Bill has already diverted attention and resources away from those critical issues of equity of access and the quality of care and support available to all New Zealanders with a life limiting illness."
ANZSPM put forward in its submission to the Committee that the solution to suffering and loss of dignity as one approaches the dying phase lies in improving care. Dr Wiseman said:
"We agree that a short-term goal is to better understand what palliative care is needed nationally, but more direct action could be taken immediately to invest in workforce and resource challenges that are already known within the sector. ANZSPM is ready to work with the Ministry and other key organisations in the palliative care sector to help develop workable solutions to address these challenges and we would welcome closer involvement on these issues."
Northland DHB disappointed retailers still selling tobacco to minors
Northland aiming for a bigger Latch On
Retailers sell cigarettes to minors in Hamilton
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Interview with DJ Kormac
Gavin O’Driscoll speaks to DJ Kormac of Trinity Ball headliner Kormac’s Big Band about why he chose to expand his DJ performance into a live band, getting started in the industry and collaborating with Irvine Welsh.
Q: Although individually you’re a DJ, you team up with a band when you play live. What prompted that and do you write their music as well?
A: Generally my band is kind of the best way I can represent what is essentially a one man studio project, it’s just the best way I can hope to make it a really engaging live show. The band was born out of necessity and to replicate what was on the record because when I started recording I was using samples and tiny bits that I’d find. Then I’d have a little sample of a barbershop quartet and I’d be like “right, fuck it I need a barber shop quartet”. It was really just a labour of love and to see what crazy shit I could get away with! Very much trying to do things that other people weren’t doing and just to go with the gut on it. A lot of it was just driving back from gigs and saying “wouldn’t it be cool if we did this? Let’s just try it”, it’s all don’t ask, don’t get, so I was just making calls. It was born out of that and yet I do write a lot of the lines for the band. But you do have to become a bit more collaborative. It’s been a big joy for me. I’ll send them mixes before anyone else because I trust them and their opinion.
Q: You can hear influences of bands like The Avalanches in your music, are you a fan?
I’m a huge Avalanches fan. I only really started re-listening to that record when I was finishing ’Doorsteps’ because I hadn’t listened to it in years. It’s just an amazing record, I didn’t like it when I first heard it but there’s just so much depth to it. It’s fantastic, all that sort of disco-end of things I really like.
Q: What was it like working with Irvine Welsh?
It was a really big pleasure, it’s one of the nicest things I’ve done in music, certainly one of the most unexpected! We have one mutual friend and we were just talking and saying wouldn’t it be interesting to get X, Y, and Z on the record. What I didn’t want to do was do the obvious thing and just throw a load of money at rappers in the States so what I really set out to do was to do something a bit different and to work with different people and inspire new ideas and just do something a bit cool really!
Q: You’ve been travelling the world with the band, how has the reception been?
Every country is different, everyone reacts different. Some countries are different, some engage with music differently, some are better than others.I was in Italy the other day and it was amazing – they reminded me of an Irish crowd.
Q: You’ve been nominated for awards like the Meteor Choice amongst singer-songwriters, what do you categorise yourself as?
I consider myself a songwriter but it just sounds completely different, I just use different tools. I try and play different to other people and sound different to myself on different records – that’s the plan anyway!
Q: Plans for future?
Just announced a show in The Academy, Saturday the 23rd of May, then the usual Summer run of festivals then busy with new music! We’re going to have some new music to talk about soon.
Q: Advice for young DJs?
A: Stick to your guns. Doing warm up sets for DJs is really good training. You learn a lot there, you learn how not to hold back but how to manipulate a crowd without necessarily just hammering it out which is a subtle skill to have. Spend loads of time just practicing and really getting to know your music, and work on how you present yourself. A lot of times you wouldn’t notice a DJ changeover. I like to leave a little bit of silence before I play, maybe just 30 seconds. There’s nothing wrong with a little showmanship, look at the crowd, engage with the crowd.
Q: Any interesting facts?
A: I actually went to Trinity, did the Music and Media Technologies Masters there and I did some stuff in the Printing House and I’m also a massive chocolate milk fan.
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What are social media marketing services
Social media marketing is a completely new, but vital part of online marketing that has taken off in the last few years. A brief definition of it is the process of increasing traffic to your site or gaining attention online though social media sites. These types of sites are ones that rely on human interaction to work, such as Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. Social media marketing service important that differ in the way they work such as Twitter gives you 140 characters max to say something or through a video or picture, whereas Facebook also you unlimited characters and the chance to add many photos at a time, join events or share updates.
Is a social media marketing service important?
Social media marketing is very important to enhance and support social media marketing service important efforts as once a page of a site or a link is found by social media users, it can then go ‘viral’ pointing many links back to the website which in turn is seen as a sign of popularity to the search genies and giving a boost in rankings to the said site. Taking a look at the big three, as mentioned above Facebook, Twitter and YouTube we can have a look how each of these social media sites helps your marketing efforts. Using Facebook is probably the easiest and most common social media site that people have heard of. Although Twitter has millions of users, many people only use Twitter to follow celebrities or directly for their business. The average Joe won’t always be found on Twitter, whereas with Facebook as it’s all about you, then a lot of people use it. Both small and large businesses rely on Facebook to help promote offers they have at the time, as well as using it to post photos and videos. It’s also a great was to get people to interact as users can share updates from businesses, meaning that social media marketing is made all that much easier. Having a page of Facebook is the way to go for businesses and encouraging people to like it through incentives such as competitions and prizes means that people are willing to tell others about your page, and then subsequently about your business. Twitter as mentioned above is not as all consuming as Facebook because of the type of people using it, but if you are using Twitter to interact and make relationships and network then it is even more effective than Twitter. This is because people don’t have to trawl through a page to see what you are about. What you say and do is limited to the 140 characters so you have to be clear and concise in your actions and words, therefore making it easier to impress people (or annoy them!) Twitter takes some hard work where social media marketing is concerned as you have to build up a flowing before you can even start to influence flowers and getting that following is the start of the battle….
Next ArticleSimple Steps to Organize a Successful Charity Fundraising Event.
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Court refuses to reinstate Mahinda Rajapaksa as SLFP President!
30th September 2017 Karu LATEST UPDATES, SPECIAL NEWS, SRI LANKA NEWS, Uncategorized 0
Colombo District Judge Sujeewa Nissanka yesterday dismissed a petition which sought an order from the court to reinstate Mahinda Rajapaksa who lost the election as the President of the SLFP.
The judge dismissed the petition upholding that the
District Court does not have the jurisdiction to make such orders against the Election Commissioner.
The judge also said that the petitioners had not named the present President of the party as a defendant of the petition
Further said the President was immune by the Constitution, consequently the petition was dismissed.
The judge made this observation while making his order on the petition filed by the former Chairman of the Boralesgamuwa Urban Council Anura Priyashantha and another SLFP activist M.A.D Asanka Nandana Srinath of No. t93l2A.
The petitioners had filed this petition before former Colombo District Judge N.U. Gunawardena stated that as per the Constitution of the SLFP, the party leadership can only be led by a person who wins the presidential election, having contested from the SLFP ticket.
The petitioners contended that the current SLFP leader Maithripala Sirisena does not have the authority to hold office as the party leader since he did not contest the last presidential election from the SLFP ticket.
The petitioners pleaded that the party’s current leader cannot hold the leadership based on the party constitution and that it should be held by former President Rajapaksa.
However, two of the defendants to the petition, the SLFP and Anura Priyadharshana Yapa, had moved court to dismiss the petition at the first instance without even taking it up for hearing as it was bad in law.
They cited former SLFP Secretary Yapa and the Election Commissioner as defendants in the case. They allege that Yapa had sent a letter to the Election Commissioner on or about 16 January 2015 over the appointment of a President to the SLFP.
The petitioners contend that there was no need for the Secretary to send the purported letter to the Commissioner of Elections as the question of appointing a President to the party did not arise at the time.
The petitioners complain that the Executive Committee of the party without holding a proper committee meeting had come to the decision to make new appointments to the SLFP Presidentship.
Therefore the petitioners allege that the party secretary without holding a proper executive committee meeting had arbitrarily made the appointment.
The petitioners claim that the SLFP candidate for the 2014 Presidential Election was Mahinda Rajapaksa and for this reason to reinstate Rajapaksa as the SLFP President.
Discrimination in Sri Lanka? by a Sinhalese
President Sirisena for the Noble Peace Prize, 2017
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Difference between revisions of "Color Graphics Adapter"
* [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Color_Graphics_Adapter en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Color_Graphics_Adapter] - Wikipedia.
* [http://www.shikadi.net/moddingwiki/Raw_CGA_Data shikadi.net/moddingwiki/Raw_CGA_Data] - Modding Wiki.
* [https://trixter.oldskool.org/2015/04/07/8088-mph-we-break-all-your-emulators trixter.oldskool.org/2015/04/07/8088-mph-we-break-all-your-emulators] - 8088 MPH CGA demo.
[[Category: Computers]]
[[Category: Computer Hardware]]
An IBM CGA card.
The Color Graphics Adapter (CGA) is a piece of hardware which gives IBM personal computers limited color graphics capabilities. It was designed and developed by IBM and first sold in 1981, but competing companies quickly reverse-engineered it and sold clones. It was superseded in 1984 by the Enhanced Graphics Adapter (EGA) which added superior color graphic capabilities.
CGA supports two text modes with 4-bit color, and three graphics modes: 160x100 at 4-bit color, 320x200 at 2-bit color, and 640x200 at 1-bit color. Also, CGA graphics could be sent to an NTSC television. Although the poor color handling of the NTSC signal caused artifacting, this could be manipulated to allow hundreds of colors beyond CGA specifications.
By the time I got into computers, EGA was already standard, and VGA graphics had just been introduced, so the games that used CGA looked pretty dated, and I wasn't very interested in them. However, there were some that were just so fun, I saw past the poor color quality.
I did a little bit of programming with CGA graphics in Quick BASIC where it was screen 2, but I mostly preferred the superior screens 7, 12, and 13.
All games that used 2-bit Color
These are games that I think made good use of CGA graphics:
4x4 Off-Road Racing
King's Quest III: To Heir Is Human
Space Quest I: The Sarien Encounter
Space Quest II: Volhaul's Revenge
Where In the U.S.A. Is Carmen Sandiego?
You Have to Win the Game (Simulated)
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Color_Graphics_Adapter - Wikipedia.
shikadi.net/moddingwiki/Raw_CGA_Data - Modding Wiki.
trixter.oldskool.org/2015/04/07/8088-mph-we-break-all-your-emulators - 8088 MPH CGA demo.
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Photo: Alex Wang
Land Rover X40 in Shanghai
Catamaran sails through the heart of one of China's biggest cities
Monday April 13th 2015, Author: James Boyd, Location: China
The Land Rover Extreme 40 became the first professional racing yacht to sail down Shanghai's Huangpu River, one of the busiest waterways in the world. Sailing through the heart of Shanghai’s financial district, the 40ft cat jostled for space alongside cargo ships, tankers and passenger ferries to mark Land Rover China’s sponsorship of the Shanghai International Boat Show.
Race Director of the Extreme Sailing Series, Phil Lawrence, kept a watchful eye over the on-water proceedings and said: “The DNA of the Extreme Sailing Series is to race in the centre of iconic cities around the world and Shanghai perfectly fits the bill for such an event. Most of the venues we use for the Extreme Sailing Series are very challenging. Here in Shanghai we are in the centre of a busy city, we have a very commercial waterway with hundreds of boats passing every day, but OC Sport, Land Rover and the hundreds of thousands of Chinese public walking along the Bund today have all been really excited to see it here on the Huangpu River. It’s been an incredible event.”
Mark Hall, Land Rover Brand Executive Vice President added, “The Shanghai International Boat Show is the perfect platform to demonstrate Land Rover’s commitment to sailing. We are extremely proud to see our Extreme 40 sailing on the iconic Bund or Huangpu River - the first time this boat, or any like it has ever done so. Our shared values of adventure, composure and strength of mind are reflected in this endeavour and in Land Rover’s 'Above and Beyond' philosophy, which has been at the heart of everything we do for the past 67 years.”
Sailing an Extreme 40 through the heart of one of China's biggest cities also heralds the start of the Extreme Sailing Series, partnered by Land Rover, due to take place in China’s ‘Olympic Sailing City’, Qingdao, over 30 April - 3 May.
Extreme 40
Ian Roman Photography
Categories include: Safety equipment, Weather routing / forecasting, Coaching , Fittings and hardware
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LYONS SCHOOLS TO MAKE $550,000 IN CUTS TO MAKE BUDGET WORK; SUPERINTENDENT SAYS HE’S READY TO RETIRE
By John Addyman
johnaddyman@waynecountylife.com
LYONS (Mar 23 11) – Schools Superintendent Rick Amundsen gave the Lyons school board what it wanted last night – a budget proposal that absorbed the $1.2 million gap between revenue and expenditures.
To close the gap, he recommended cuts totaling $707,000 -- including 9.5 teaching positions – and using $500,000 from fund reserves, and raising the tax levy 1.7 percent.
And then he told the board he was ready to retire.
The board deliberated and asked Amundsen for a softer landing – instead of cutting $700,000, to slice $550,000 instead.
Amundsen said this afternoon he will meet with his administrative team to decide what items and which positions will be put back into the budget in time for the board’s April 12 vote to adopt it.
“After I presented the budget, the board president spoke up and the rest of the board agreed on $550,000 in cuts – that seems to be the comfort level,” Amundsen said. “We hope to stay as far away from cutting programs for kids as possible.”
In his presentation to the board, Amundsen highlighted that over the last two years, the district has lost $1.66 million in state aid. Between the loss of state aid revenue and expenses rising year-to-year, the Lyons budget gap stood at $1.739 million.
The superintendent showed that a tax levy increase of 40% would take care of that deficit, as would reducing 43 staff members. Or, the district could pull money out of its reserve funds. The board wants to do a bit of all three.
Amundsen first advocated a 1.7% tax increase – the precise average of tax increases over the six years he has been superintendent. He went through the moves the district has made in the last three years to reduce expenses – including the slicing of 20.3 full-time positions, 6.8 of those teachers. He said Lyons had reduced costs in supplies, allowed fewer field trips, charged for driver’s ed, cut the number of athletic contests and supply amounts, done more transportation sharing, increased meal prices, eliminated non-BOCES staff development and reduced summer curriculum-writing workshops.
This year’s budget is $18.7 million; the district proposes a $19.1 million layout for 2011-12. Expected is $17.9 million in revenue, including $500,000 in end-of-year fund balance and the proceeds from the tax increase – leaving a $1.2 million deficit.
Amundsen brought back a budget with $707,000 taken out of it – essentially an $18.4 million budget. But to get there, Lyons was faced with losing half again as many teachers as had been let go in the prior three years – four elementary teachers, 1.5 middle/high school teachers, two positions in Reading, Gifted and Electronic Information Processing, and four half-time positions in Art, Music, Library and Phys Ed.
There were other cuts in Amundsen’s new budget – the district would pull out of its gym-use relationship with the Lyons Community Center, saving $35,000; reductions in athletics ($15,000) and extra-curricular activities ($15,000); the loss of mileage reimbursement for the Foster Grandparents program (a $3,000 savings); driver’s ed would go ($3,000); the four late school bus runs would disappear ($18,000); elementary and middle school summer school ($6,000 to $8,000 savings), four weekdays of nurse practitioner services rather than five ($2,500); opening the fitness room later or charging a higher fee ($2,500); not filling the position of a retiring staff member ($30,000).
What the board decided on was a budget with a $550,000 level of cuts (an $18.6 million budget). A planned $160,000 bus-purchase line item will either be added to that amount or raised as a separate item on the budget ballot.
The superintendent could not say what will emerge as the final cuts until after his administrators have met and crunched numbers with Assistant Superintendent for Business Mike Pangallo. That final plan will go to the school board.
As for his own future, Amundsen, 56, said he informed the board of his intent to retire. “I have not decided when. I am of retirement age. If they support it, I would be willing to step aside once they find a successor for me. So, in the not-too-distant future, I’ll be put out to pasture.
“It takes a long time to get a superintendent search together, to do the interviews, negotiate a contract. I wanted to give the board plenty of time so they can thoughtfully proceed. This is a very stressful fiscal time. They did appreciate that I’ve given them plenty of lead time.”
Amundsen said he has “so many things I can do, lots of opportunities for other things to do. I’m looking forward to the next stage of my life. Lyons has been a great spot for me to be the superintendent. I’m very fortunate. I’ve been very blessed.”
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Fellow Artists
Wayne R. Card
42 Card Road
Wantage, NJ 07461-2842
WayneRCard@gmail.com
Wayne Card is a self-taught artist and collector who works with wood, clay, twigs, cement, stone, and old recycled items. He is a native of Sussex County, growing up on a small farm in Beemerville just down the road from where he lives today. He has always enjoyed woodworking as a hobby but, upon retiring from Jersey Central Power and Light Co. after 38 years as an electrical lineman, he wanted to focus on more artistic and creative works. He relies heavily in his art on the use of recycled materials and objects that most people would see as worthless. Nothing goes to waste around his house! For many years he has been creating hiking and walking sticks that are currently on display and for sale in the Peter’s Valley Craft Store in Layton, N.J.
Waynes' art has taken many forms and has evolved over the years. Starting with woodworking, walking sticks and stone, he quickly progressed to unique designer birdhouses, garden gates, privacy screens, artsy outhouses and garden sheds and, ultimately, the very house he lives in and the studio he works in have themselves become works of art. The medium of the moment seems to be clay. He has always had a love for clay for its enormous amount of flexibility. To date, none of the medium has required firing but the thought of Raku has caught his interest. He recently completed the construction of a small kiln at his daughters home in Ada, MI as a prototype for one on the grounds here. He loves the depiction of the human face as in his collection of tribal art you will see around his studio. Wayne has always loved stone as well, as evidenced by the many stone sculptures and walls strewn around the grounds. If you have stone, he can work with it.
Wayne has always said that what you do while you’re working is what you’ll do after you retire. Although retired from his career, he remains busier than ever and enjoys designing and creating artistic works with a special knack for that old time look. As a juried craftsman and show exhibitor, he has a great appreciation for handwork and creativity. Each one of his works is a unique, one of a kind creation. The studio and grounds are open for a tour with just a phone call. You will not see another like it.
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Moulton, Trahan Partner on Combined Sewer Overflow Alert Bill—STOP CSO Act
Jun 27, 2019 05:07AM
Representatives Lori Trahan and Seth Moulton
SALEM, Mass. – Representatives Seth Moulton (D-MA) and Lori Trahan (D-MA) introduced the Sewage Treatment Overflow Prevention through Community Sanitation Outreach (STOP CSO) Act of 2019, or The STOP CSO Act.
The STOP CSO Act would require local governments to alert residents within 4 hours if stormwater overwhelms sewage plants and carries sewage into rivers and watersheds. The bill also allows state and local governments use grant funding to create the alert system.
“The only place where the people of Massachusetts should have to think about dirty water is at TD Garden and Fenway Park,” Moulton said. “Washington’s failure to address the nation’s outdated infrastructure means more than just awful commutes--it threatens people’s health and our economy. Until our leaders find the willingness to work together, they should at least create alert systems so we know when hundreds of millions of gallons of sewage are flowing into our region’s rivers.”
Congresswoman Trahan said: “The Merrimack River is a vital resource, supplying drinking water and other economic benefits to hundreds of thousands of people across the region. That is why the current state of contamination is so concerning. There’s no question that the federal government has an obligation to help municipalities like Lowell, Lawrence, Haverhill, and Manchester make urgently needed upgrades to their sewer infrastructure to help prevent this sort of pollution, which is why I have a bill to do just that. But we can’t wait, we must take precautions to alert residents when contaminants are released into the river possibly jeopardizing their health and wellbeing. That is why I am proud to join with Rep. Moulton to create a fast and reliable warning system to keep the public aware of risks they may be facing.”
Combined sewer overflow occurs in cities and towns with archaic wastewater infrastructure systems. In those systems, everything that goes down the drain in houses and on streets flows into one network of pipes with industrial wastewater. The pipes carry the water to awastewater treatment plant, where the water is cleaned and then drained into local waters. But, during heavy rains, storm water overwhelms the processing system, and a combination of untreated sewage and stormwater is released into local rivers.
According to estimates from the Merrimack River Watershed Council, six urban treatment plants dumped 770 million gallons of untreated sewage into the Merrimack River last year. That’s a major problem because 600,000 Bay Staters rely on the river as a source of drinking water. As climate change brings more severe storms, the number is expected to grow.
When an overflow happens, federal law requires municipalities operating wastewater plants to inform the Environmental Protection Agency and state officials within four hours. Congress does not currently require public notification.
According to WBUR, 14 states require their local governments to notify the public when a discharge happens. The lack of uniformed notifications is an acute problem in bodies of water that form the border between two states. The Merrimack River, for example, splits Massachusetts and New Hampshire where state and local laws vary widely.
The STOP CSO Act would require public notifications to occur within four hours of an overflow event anywhere in the country.
Moulton and Trahan wrote the bill in collaboration with leaders at the state and local level who are also pushing for action on combined sewer overflow issues.
Newburyport Mayor Donna Holaday said: “As we experience greater levels of precipitation, this has a direct impact on the CSOs occurring along the Merrimack River with greater amounts of sewage being discharged into the river. As an end user on this river, I am very concerned about the health, environmental and economic impacts to the City ofNewburyport and other river communities. Several bills have been filed with our State legislature to address timely notification but CSOs are significant in NH and federal legislation is also important here to advance notification. I am grateful Congressman Moulton has filed this important bill to advance notification following CSOs to river communities from NH through MA.”
MA State Senate Minority Leader Bruce Tarr (R – Gloucester) said: “The discharge of pollution is a serious event made even more so when it is dumped directly into one of New England’s largest public drinking water sources. The public should have access to information about sewage into these waterways so that they can avoid exposure to contaminants which could pose serious health risks.”
MA State Senator Diana DiZoglio (D-Methuen) said: “The issue of combined sewer overflows is a hazardous problem impacting communities all along the Merrimack River. While we at the state level have a role in working to determine the most sustainable, effective solutions on addressing CSOs, it is imperative that our federal partners work closely alongside us if we are going to see meaningful progress. I am grateful to the federal delegation for their focus on CSOs and look forward to joining them and residents across the Merrimack Valley as we approach this pressing issue.”
MA State Representative James Kelcourse (R-Amesbury) said: “The millions of gallons of raw sewage released into the river is a major concern for residents in the Merrimack Valley. Due to the regional nature of this issue it is important that we collaborate with our local, state and federal officials to work towards a solution.”
This is the second in a pair of bills on which Moulton and Trahan have partnered. Earlier this year, Rep. Trahan introduced the Stop Sewage Overflow Act with Rep. Moulton as an original sponsor. The bill would expand and improve the EPA’s Stormwater Reuse Municipal Grant program. The program awards federal grants to states and municipalities for the planning, design, and construction for combined sewer overflows, sanitary sewer overflows, orstormwater management.
Public Safety, Town Hall, Business politics Congressman Seth Moulton (D-MA) Lori Trahan Sewage overflow STOP CSO Act
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Laurence Llewellyn-Bowen
By Matt Elton, 29 June 2009 - 3:13pm
Discuss in the Forum" target="_blank">Discuss in the forum
Unseen Footage
The interior designer and presenter's quest to explain his affinity with the sea leads him through generations of seafarers
Laurence has always felt a close connection to the sea and is keen to discover how far back his seafaring roots go. He begins by looking at the life of his maternal grandfather, merchant sea captain Ronald Wilks, who signed up for the Navy at the tender age of 17.
He is surprised to discover that Ronald’s ship was sunk by an early German U-boat during the First World War. A report investigating the sinking reveals the perilous route his ship, Kohistan, took through the Mediterranean in November 1917. The passage was so dangerous that Merchant ships travelled in convoys guarded by the Royal Navy.
At the Imperial War Museum Laurence finds a personal account written by the commander of Ronald’s Royal Navy escort. Shockingly, it reveals that one of the ships protecting his grandfather’s convoy was captained by a drunk. “This is someone who was there really spilling the beans,” says Laurence.
To find out whether the sinking could have been avoided, Laurence travels to Germany’s federal military archive. The war diary for the submarine that sank Kohistan reveals the dramatic details of the devastating attack. Incredibly, the crew survived, but Laurence is left in no doubt that the “convoy was absolutely no match for this extraordinary predator. [It] must have been a really, really scary experience.” Ronald survived another world war, totting up 43 years at sea before retiring to Newport with his wife, Phyllis.
A Trickey character
Turning to his landlubbing Edwards line, Laurence then explores the claims of Phyllis’s great aunt, Kitty Edwards, an impoverished seamstress. She believed that her great grandfather was a rich Somerset landowner, or ‘squire’, named George Yeo, and that he had wrongly disinherited her family in favour of a mysterious ‘Mr Frickey’.
Manorial records reveal Kitty was right on the first count – in 1812 ‘grandfather Yeo’ owned huge swathes of land in Somerset. A grand tombstone at the family’s parish church takes Laurence’s tree back another generation and proves that the Yeos were not only rich, but influential. Shiplett Court, the ancestral home, offers another lead and a spelling correction – the alleged villain of the family was one Robert Trickey, builder and landowner, and Kitty’s uncle by marriage.
A will from 1873 solves the mystery once and for all. The family fortune was distributed equally among the children and Trickey bought Shiplett Court at auction. “So they’re not being sidelined at all,” says Laurence. “Let’s give [Kitty] the benefit of the doubt and say that she got the wrong end of the stick and was waving it around rather vigorously.”
Satisfied that all was ship-shape for the Edwards clan, Laurence then turns to the life of another seafaring ancestor, his great-great grandfather Roger Twist. Documents reveal that he was just 11 years old when he first set sail, and by 1866 he had risen to the rank of sea captain. However, Laurence is shocked to discover that his ancestor falsified his naval records to cover up a desertion. It seems Roger gave way to temptation when he landed in Melbourne at the height of the great gold rush.
Failing to find the riches he had hoped for, it seems Roger swiftly returned to the sea and his career as a master mariner continued to flourish. This decision, says Laurence, has left him with a powerful emotional legacy. “When I’m by the sea I find it a very familiar but really quite romantic experience,” he says. “I’ve got salt in my DNA.”
Laurence Llewellyn-Bowen news
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Wisconsin Athletic Hall of Fame: Harlan B. "Biddy" Rogers
© Photographed August 14, 2016
Presented 1962 by the City Bank of Portage Portage, Wisconsin
Wisconsin Athletic Hall of Fame
Milwaukee, Milwaukee County, Wisconsin
43° 2.55′ N, 87° 54.967′ W
HARLAN B. "BIDDY" ROGERS
He starred in football, baseball and basketball at Wisconsin, 1905-1909. Winner of nine "W" letters in these major sports. An ideal team leader, he captained the varsity in basketball, 1907-1908 and in football in 1908. Born, December 9, 1886 at Portage, Wisconsin. Elected 1961.
The marker is located at the Wisconsin Athletic Hall of Fame at the UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena, and is accessible from southbound North 4th Street, between West State Street (to the north) and West Kilbourn Avenue (to the south), at or near 400 West Kilbourn Avenue, Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53203.
Inductees honored at this site are members of the Wisconsin Athletic Hall of Fame (established 1951). The Wisconsin Athletic Walk of Fame is a joint property of Wisconsin Sports Development Corporation and Wisconsin Center District.
Click here for an Alphabetical List of Inductees to the Wisconsin Athletic Hall of Fame.
Use the "Wisconsin Athletic Hall of Fame" label below to view all markers at this location; there are more than 100.
The marker is located at the Wisconsin Athletic Hall of Fame.
The Wisconsin Athletic Hall of Fame is located at the
UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena.
The Wisconsin Athletic Hall of Fame is located on the east side
of the UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
Labels: Milwaukee 53203, Milwaukee County Wisconsin Historical Markers, Wisconsin Athletic Hall of Fame
Location: 400 W Kilbourn Ave, Milwaukee, WI 53203, USA
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“I don’t think enough is done,” Fleck says. “This little girl was wearing sweatshirts with her school’s name on them, you have the danger of being doxxed, people finding out where you are.” Thankfully, Fleck feels the ASMR community look out for each other. “It’s just a little difficult because other than reaching out to get YouTube to do something, we’re kind of powerless.”
There are two ways that people can experience ASMR. You can experience it through simple meditation or just thinking about a scene or sound that pleases you. Or you can experience it through watching a video or listening to a recording. As for the mechanisms at work behind ASMR, nobody is quite sure why some people react the way that they do. It could be that the videos remind you of your childhood (perhaps, for example, you watched your mom do the same action as a kid, so it’s comforting) or that the simple sounds lull you into a relaxed state. Ready to give ASMR a try? Find some videos on the YouTube channel for GentleWhispering, ASMR University, and ASMRlab.
She uploads once a week to her channel and every week of the month is a different style video. She does true crime ASMR, tapping and scratching, videos where she reads and ones where she opens up about her life. "People enjoy more whenever it’s just me sitting there talking and like eating, and I get to just be myself and people enjoy it, that's pretty cool,” she said.
Up to this point myself and quite a number of people I know just use ASMR to fill these gaps in our life as a quick and easy means to do so. Very similar reason a lot of people go on to the internet for stuff (socialization programs and phones a lot of the time trigger “feel good hormones” to go off). But now that I seem to get some sort of response I will prob just try tapping video’s while I am reading before I go to sleep to see if it triggers. Thanks for the advice.
Autonomous Sensory Meridian Response, or ASMR, is a curious phenomenon. Those who experience it often characterise it as a tingling sensation in the back of the head or neck, or another part of the body, in response to some sort of sensory stimulus. That stimulus could be anything, but over the past few years, a subculture has developed around YouTube videos, and their growing popularity was the focus of a video posted on the Guardian this last week. It’s well worth a watch, but I couldn’t help but feel it would have been a bit more interesting if there had been some scientific background in it. The trouble is, there isn’t actually much research on ASMR out there.
“We found that people who experience ASMR showed significant reductions in their heart rates compared to non-ASMR participants,” Poerio explains, “These reductions are comparable to other stress-reduction techniques such as mindfulness and music therapy.” Poerio says this finding is crucial because reduced heart rates prove people who enjoy ASMR are not sexually aroused.
ASMR seems to need an emotional component to it, and Winter says that’s not accidental. “Some things may remind you of your mother or being a kid,” he says. “I’d guess that it’s no accident that a lot of the videos of someone whispering feature an attractive woman, which make you think of your mom whispering to you when you went to sleep.” Those memories the videos evoke are likely comforting, and can shift people into a more relaxed state that then helps them fall asleep, he says.
As awareness of the ASMR phenomenon has gone more mainstream in recent years thanks to the internet, videos and entire channels dedicated to ASMR began to appear on YouTube, which is how I discovered the experience I had with my uncle had a name. It’s through these videos that both people who have had ASMR episodes in the past and tinglehead wannabes hope to replicate the experience.
The burgeoning Internet phenomenon was so new, it didn’t even have a name. It was so strange and hard to describe that many people felt creepy trying. It resided at the outer edge of respectability: a growing collection of YouTube videos featuring people doing quiet, methodical activities like whispering, turning magazine pages and tapping their fingers. Some viewers reported that these videos could elicit the most pleasurable sensations: a tingling feeling at the scalp and spine, coupled with euphoria and an almost trance-like relaxation.
I just discovered I was capable of triggering tingles on purpose this past month, after it popped into my head one day to seek out a video of a cat grooming itself (my trigger) to see if I could purposely trigger that weird relaxing feeling that I had experienced occasionally growing up, but had never really fully thought about. So that was pleasant. Then oddly enough a week ago I attempted to articulate this experience to a friend at a party (not knowing the term ASMR – nor even aware that it was a known thing, I simply described it as this peaceful, totally non-sexual, relaxed feeling I get from watching cats grooming themselves). Against all odds, this friend said, “oh, you’re probably experiencing ASMR – you should look it up.” Needless to say – it’s nice to find that indeed there’s an entire community of people online that have the same capability. Thought I’d share my experience and ask a couple questions.
I would spend all Friday, Saturday drawing outlines with my 3 best friends, discussing art, colour and symmetry for hours, then spend all Saturday night bombing trains, painting together would activate it intensely, in the dark, spooky and exhilarating all at the same time, while four kids spent their weekends silently breaking the law to paint Top-to-Bottom Wholecars just for art’s sake)
On June 3 2018, Makenna Kelly, a 13-year old from Fort Collins, Colorado, uploaded the video that propelled her to internet stardom. Entitled “Eating Raw Honeycomb – EXTREMELY Sticky Mouth Sounds”, it featured the teen chewing fistfuls of pure honeycomb directly in front of a microphone for 16 minutes. In the following months, it was viewed 12 million times. By October, Kelly had reached one million YouTube subscribers.
Of course, Kelly — who was named one of Teen Vogue’s “21 under 21” in November 2018 — is not the only star in the ASMR internet community. The current largest ASMR artist, or “ASMRtist”, on YouTube, Taylor Darling, aka ASMR Darling, has two million subscribers and earns an estimated $1,000 a day in advertising revenue. Global megabrands such as IKEA, Sony, McDonald’s and Toyota have now all created ASMR-inspired adverts, and in October 2018, platinum rapper Cardi B made an ASMR video that went on to be viewed nearly 10,000,000 times. It’s no longer surprising that 75 per cent of children want to be YouTubers, but these kids don’t want to be the next beauty-blogging Zoella or game-streaming PewDiePie. They want to be the next brain-tingling ASMR Darling.
What is ASMR? For a trend so wildly popular, you probably haven’t heard of it. ASMR stands for Autonomous Sensory Meridian Response, and it’s a strange recent phenomenon. We all find certain sounds mentally and physically stimulating—some things send a shiver down our spines, create a sensation in the back of our heads. ASMR is a type of sensory stimulus that helps you to relax! In fact, there’s an entire section of Youtube videos and sound creation that is meant to help people feel good.
The video was designed for people who experience “ASMR”. Short for “autonomous sensory meridian response”, ASMR is a euphoric feeling certain people get from specific auditory stimuli. Those who experience it have different triggers – such as whispering, chewing or tapping – and also experience different bodily responses; some feel tingles, others become incredibly relaxed.
I've been aware of the ASMR feeling since about always, but I really thought it was something everyone got. As common as breathing, so it never occurred to me to speak about it until recently when I gave my sister a few links that made me feel these triggers and she felt nothing or was even greatly annoyed... then I came across reading about it and realized, not all people get it. (They're totally missing it, I like it a lot!)
ASMR, which stands for autonomous sensory meridian response, is still a relatively new creation. It describes a feeling of euphoric tingling and relaxation that can come over someone when he or she watches certain videos or hears certain sounds. What kind of visual or audio clips can create such a lovely feeling? It might surprise you, but the videos are of people doing incredibly simple, quiet, calming tasks, such as folding towels, brushing their hair, or flipping magazine pages. You might hear someone’s voice speaking in the background of the video, but not always. The audio clips often consist of voices whispering nice things (like "You are appreciated"), or contain the sound of tapping, scratching, or rain.
But the phenomenon has nonetheless burst into the mainstream, thanks to mounting media coverage and a few high-profile references: “Saturday Night Live” alum Molly Shannon gushed to Conan O’Brien about her “head orgasms,” induced by the methodical touch of airport security pat-downs; novelist Andrea Seigel shared her experience with ASMR on the radio program “This American Life” last year; the “Dr. Oz” show has featured ASMR videos as a way to ease insomnia.
I’m slightly late to the asmr party – only just found out about it – and am still in disbelief.. Like a lot of people on here I’ve had it since childhood and thought I was the only person in the world who had it! Most intensely with dentists (talking to their assistants), school nurse inspections and air hostess safety demonstrations – the obvious ones let’s say – but also to a lesser degree with nature documentaries from the 1970s (British Columbia Forest documentaries) and the Open University (in the UK) course module videos, also from the 70s. Both of which featured fairly spaced out electronic music and softly spoken boffins..
Over at Shenandoah University in Winchester, Va., Craig Richard, a professor of biopharmaceutical sciences, runs the clearinghouse website ASMR University, where he interviews people who’ve studied the phenomenon and blogs about ASMR in the news. Richard himself reports experiencing ASMR; nevertheless, he says scientific skepticism is warranted until more studies are published. To that end, Richard and two other researchers, Allen and a graduate student, have been conducting an online survey that he says so far includes 20,000 people across over 100 countries, almost all of them “tingleheads.”
ASMR can vary from person to person because it’s all about perception, licensed clinical psychologist John Mayer, Ph.D., author of Family Fit: Find Your Balance in Life, tells SELF. “We all perceive experience in a different way even though it is the same experience,” he explains. For example, while one person may find the sound of someone typing comforting (if, say, they had a parent who worked on a computer at home), others may associate the sound with office work and become more stressed when they hear it.
But given its popularity, why has the psychological research community neglected the sensation until now? There could be lots of reasons. For one, it’s an inherently personal, private experience, and perhaps one that hasn’t traditionally lent itself to cropping up in conversation all that often. That, coupled with the fact that it’s a difficult sensation to explain to someone who doesn’t experience it, may go some way to explaining why there wasn’t even a term to describe it until 2010. “Before the online community existed, I’ve heard many people who experience ASMR say they thought they were the only ones that experienced it,” says Barratt. “I think the lack of evidence that ASMR was experienced by such a huge group of people may be why it was overlooked, or written off as an oddly described version of frisson (‘goosebumps’), in the past,” she adds.
These reports have precipitated comparison between ASMR and synesthesia – a condition characterised by the excitation of one sensory modality by stimuli that normally exclusively stimulates another, as when the hearing of a specific sound induces the visualization of a distinct color, a type of synesthesia called chromesthesia. Thereby, people with other types of synesthesia report for example 'seeing sounds' in the case of auditory-visual synesthesia, or 'tasting words' in the case of lexical-gustatory synesthesia.[42][43][44][45][46]
Barratt and Davis don’t see their study as a complete story; rather, it’s a foot in the door for researchers interested in studying the phenomenon. “We hope our work will provide a platform for more sophisticated work in the future, but we saw it as a starting point,” explains Davis. The next step, ideally, is to start trying to pin down the physiological basis of the sensation.
I have had ASMR for as long as I can remember, but had no idea it was actually a recognised thing! I only get mine from for example; someone looking through my makeup bag, or using something of mine, anything that is gentle and concentrated (if that makes sense) I watch ASMR videos which are makeup tutorials or spa role plays – they are amazing for relaxation and sleep.
The term ASMR was coined by a woman named Jennifer Allen in 2010. It was around that time that she ran across a group of people on a steadyhealth.com forum who described a sensation she herself had experienced, but which no one seemed to understand well. Frustrated by the lack of community organization on that forum, she created a Facebook group called Autonomous Sensory Meridian Response Group. The group name was one that she believed captured the key characteristics of what’s now known as ASMR. She wanted to create a community that would bring together people who had also been experiencing this sensation. She consciously created a term that she felt people would be comfortable using: one that sounded objective, clinical, and impersonal. Soon after, a worldwide community began to take shape.
The French word 'frisson' signifies a brief sensation usually reported as pleasurable and often expressed as an overwhelming emotional response to stimuli, such as a piece of music. Frisson often occurs simultaneously with piloerection, colloquially known as 'goosebumps', by which tiny muscles called arrector pili contract, causing body hair, particularly that on the limbs and back of the neck, to erect or 'stand on end'.[54][55][56][57]
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« Mother of all white flight to hit NY schools and De Blasio pretends he had nothing to do with it | Desperately seeking perfection »
And now Lopez-Obrador goes after the cartels
Since President Calderón put the Mexican Army in the streets in 2007, Mexico has been in an undeclared war with the cartels.
President Calderón and President Bush agreed to The Merida Plan, an effort to provide Mexico with military equipment and technology to track down cartel leaders. The good news is that many cartel leaders were eliminated. The bad news is that Mexico's army was not prepared for sustained combat or guerrilla-type tactics.
According to a journalist friend in Mexico, funerals of Mexican soldiers killed in this war are now common in towns across the nation. He believes that the government keeps the funerals quiet to avoid discussion of the human toll of the conflict. He also told me that the casualties are similar to Afghanistan, but I've never been able to confirm that.
President Peña-Nieto changed in 2013 from a focus on the army and decided to create a better police force. It worked to a point, but the cartels are still around. It takes many years to develop a good police force, especially in a country that never cared a lot about the professionalism of its police officers.
President López-Obrador has changed the strategy again and is going after the cartels' finances, according to news reports:
Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador is taking aim at the finances of the powerful Jalisco cartel in what a top anti-money laundering official said was an opening salvo in the fight to stop criminal gangs from flourishing with impunity[.]
It's a good idea, but will it really discourage the formation of other cartels?
The U.S. and Mexico need to work together on reducing the consumption of illegal drugs up here. It's in both countries' interest. You can't send billions of dollars south without encouraging more cartels. You kill or destroy this or that group, and then another pops up. Too much money is driving the business south of the border.
Mexico needs to come to terms with the porous nature of the U.S.-Mexico border. Most of us focus on the northbound drug traffic, or the illegal aliens. The real threat to Mexico is the southbound traffic in cash and weapons. These "dólares" and high-powered machine guns are making it difficult for the Mexican army to win this conflict.
We wish the new president well, but sitting down with President Trump about the porous nature of the border should be a priority.
For years, the Mexican political class had the attitude that the cartels are simply feeding our appetite for drugs. That's true, but they are also messing up Mexico's political and legal system, driving up violence to unsustainable rates: homicides up 18% over 2017 by mid-2018.
PS: You can listen to my show (Canto Talk) and follow me on Twitter.
Photo credit: Wikimedia Commons.
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How the Turkish Armed Forces Is Being Reshaped
Uncategorized June 4, 2017 July 29, 2017
“The truth is on the march and nothing will stop it”
“La vérité est en marche et rien ne l’arrêtera” Émile Zola
An intellectual and objective analysis of “self / staged / failed” military coup realized in Turkey in July 15, 2016 caused hundreds of deaths, thousands of wounded people. We will analyze before, during and after the coup trying to reveal truths that will shed light on the unanswered questions about what has been happening since July 15, 2016.
Since July 15, 2016, more than 10 thousands military officers that even includes officers martyred before the military coup (generals to NCO) and more than 16 thousands military cadets (high schools to military academies) have been sacked in addition to purge in civilian institutions. Here is the numbers of the purge in Turkey since July 15, 2016.
Image: Carlos Latuff
There are so many questions. We have come to ask those questions.
Uncategorized September 28, 2018
TURKEY’S DRIFT TO UNCHARTED WATERS
Adrift amid the recent currency crisis, Turkey sails into uncharted waters. The current financial turmoil furnishes a glaring example of the vicious circle. The more authoritarian Erdogan’s regime gets, the further away the country drifts apart from Europe, the U.S., and NATO. As it sails away from the safe ports of the rule of law, democracy, and freedoms, the conditions of journey become more alarming. Let’s start with a brief look into the Turkish currency turmoil and then see how an analogous case takes place within the Turkish Military.
It does not take a genius to predict that Turkey will search for outside money to finance its annual external financing requirement of about $218bn–according to the recent FT report–in the face of plummeting currency. If the West is not an option, the East would be an alternative. In the late July of this year, The Treasury and Finance Minister Berat Albayrak, Erdogan’s son-in-law, announced that Chinese financial institutions would provide a $3.6 billion loan package. The case resembles the situation in Pakistan, which borrowed a considerable loan from China and tried to pay back by borrowing from the IMF, a strategy which seems unlikely to be received well by the Fund. A same dead end might wait for Turkey. Even a worse scenario might be Sri Lanka’s path through which a sovereign country had to renounce one of its strategic ports to China for quite some time. Some scholars call this situation, China’s “debt trap.” Turkey already announced that China would build the third nuclear plant in the country, which signals a similar path to the one Sri Lanka took when that country decided that China would have established a port. This turns into a vicious circle: once a state moves away, reversing the course back to the democratic world becomes increasingly difficult.
When one digs deep into the changes taking place within the critical institutions in Turkey, a tumultuous destiny for the county surfaces up. For instance, Turkey’s economic trajectory reverberates in its Military. In June 2014, Erdogan politically intervened and forced the release all the suspects and culprits of the Sledgehammer plot from the prison. The intervention coincided with his decision to part his way with the Gulen movement following the corruption scandal that involved Erdogan’s cronies and close circle. Moreover, Erdogan dismissed the Kurdish peace process, a.k.a a democratic solution to the issues related to Kurds, which was started by him and perpetuated until September 2014. He designed the process to garner support from the Kurdish population for transforming the constitutional system into an executive presidency. After Erdogan forged an alliance with the Sledgehammer culprits and relied on far-nationalist votes in the presidential election, he started a full-scale war against Kurds both domestically and abroad.
In March 2015, Erdogan and his supporters in the Judiciary acquitted all Balyoz suspects after the appointed prosecutor’s arguments of fake evidence in the file. Erdogan’s intervention in the Balyoz case was related to his efforts to forge a coalition with the ultra-nationalists, also known as Perincek group. Perincek’s statements at a press conference in Iran, over massive purges in the Military, is a confession of the arbitrary dismissals: “Turkey goes through a surgical operation. NATO’s tumor is being removed from the country’s body through mass arrests and dismissals in the Military.” Foreign Policy magazine describes Perincek’s group as the ‘Eurasianist clique’ and argues that an April 2003 cable, released by WikiLeaks from the U.S. Embassy in Ankara referred the Eurasianists as a group of officers within Turkish Military “who have long sought an alternative to the U.S. and are considering closer relations with Russia.” The same cable also reported the existence of a rival group ‘Atlanticists’ in the Military and portrayed them the ones “who believe Turkey’s strategic interests lie in its ties with the U.S. and NATO.”
Erdogan’s recent intervention in the military promotion system is striking. The Supreme Military Council (SMC; in Turkish: Yüksek Askerî Şûra – YAŞ), which for decades acted as a committee of top civilian and military officials, convenes to decide on crucial military issues including promotions and layoffs. In the wake of the country’s transition to an executive presidency, Mr. Erdogan has issued presidential decrees which consolidated his control over the Military through the SMC. He appointed his son-in-law Berat Albayrak, the Treasury, and Finance Minister, along with the Minister of Education and the Vice President(s) as the new members of the SMC. The reorganization allowed Erdogan to award an extra star to any general irrespective of the required experience or standards. Although he advocates the new SMC as a firm step to “increase democratic control over the Military,” what happens practically is “Erdoganization.”
The SMC convention takes place two times a year once in December and once in early August. The August convention is more significant as the council determines promotions and dismissals in the senior ranks of the military. The August 2018 SMC took place in the Presidential Palace under the new presidential system. Nine generals were promoted to higher levels, 41 colonels became generals and admirals, while 12 generals retired. The Commander of the Second Army Ismail Metin Temel is a prominent example of the politicization in the Military. Temel was recently publicized for his enthusiastic applaud for the political comments of Erdogan on his rival Muharrem Ince during the Presidential election campaign. Vice Admiral Ozbal’s promotion to a higher rank and his appointment as the Chief of the Navy is another example of politicization. Four admirals, who were superior to him in rank and experience, were retired to facilitate Ozbal’s steep ascension to the peak of the Navy. His rivals, Admirals Veysel Kosele, Serdar Dulger, Hasan Usaklioglu, and Sukru Korlu, were known for their pro-democracy and pro-NATO sentiments.
Another major takeaway of the August SMC meeting was the arbitrary promotions of the officers who are known for their Eurasianist and anti-NATO sentiments. Several years ago, these officers had been prosecuted and sentenced to varying prison terms for their involvement in the Operation Sledgehammer (Turkish: Balyoz Harekati) plot against Erdogan. Several promoted generals and admirals are known for their infamous roles in torturing the military suspects of the coup attempt. These torture culprits would eventually land to NATO positions bringing their shameful human rights records.
Another notable group cherished in the early August SMC comprised the officers known for their far-nationalist stances. Umit Dundar for example, who was assigned as the chief of Army, was an accomplice in Erdogan’s July 2016 coup plot. Besides Dundar, many far-nationalists officers took Mr. Erdogan’s side during the controversial coup attempt. Dundar is also known for his close relations with the leader of the Nationalist Movement Party (NMP; in Turkish: Milliyetci Hareket Partisi – MHP) Devlet Bahceli. Bahceli has allied with Erdogan after the July 15 Self-coup.
A common denominator which brings Eurasianists with far-nationalists in the Military is their aversion to the promotion of liberal democracy in Turkey. Both groups detest the Kurds and hate granting them democratic liberties. Erdogan seems to be well aware of the Eurasianists’ and far-nationalist partners’ sensitivities and behaves accordingly. Both Perincek-led Eurasianist group and far-right nationalists reject the so-called ‘subordination’ to the West via NATO and advocate leading Central Asian Turkic nations with a Eurasionist vision. They advocate partnering with Russia, China, and Iran to confront NATO, EU and the U.S.
Erdogan tries running the gamut acting as the country’s second founding father after Ataturk. He has a lot to lose if the power slips off his hands. Erdogan’s decision to purchase S-400 missiles from Russia indicates how his ideological departure may end up in radical choices. The economic and military turmoils speed up the country’s divorce from the West, NATO, EU and the U.S. If a divorce happens, no one knows when a reunion might be possible. As long as Erdogan keeps his grip on Turkey, such an event would be doomed to stay as a mirage.
Uncategorized July 15, 2018 July 15, 2018
The Coup in Turkey: Background and Facts
It would be unrealistic to call the events of 15 July 2016 as a genuine coup attempt. They fit best to the definition of a Self-Coup. Erdogan’s partners in the Government and the bureaucracy were ready well before the events broke out. Their goal was to set up bloody confrontations and increase the death toll. The suspicious acts of the chief of the Turkish Military General Hulusi Akar and the Army, Navy, Air Force and Gendarmerie service chiefs suggest that they had earlier agreed with Erdogan on staging a fake coup. A press release by the Turkish Military stated that the dissented personnel amounted to 8,651, mostly mobilized in Istanbul and Ankara. Almost half of them were cadets and conscripts. However, the crackdown was devastating. Mass arrests throughout the country begun immediately. Thousands of judges and prosecutors, including two members of the Supreme Court, were the first in line.
Erdogan’s partners in the Military provided him with a golden opportunity to consolidate a dictatorial regime and redesign the country. A few days later, Erdogan declared the State of Emergency and announced a series of Government dictated laws. The authorities of the police and the judiciary expanded tremendously. The State of Emergency provided Erdogan unconstrained power to suppress his opponents, extend his rule, and change the country’s democracy into tyranny. Erdogan’s regime jailed more journalists than all the other nations of the world. His Government sacked 151,967 government employees, detained 138,579 citizens, and arrested 78,687. 5,822 academicians and 4,463 judges and prosecutors were among the purged. The Military lost almost 30,000 military officials, 17,000 military cadets and nearly two-thirds of its cadre of generals and admirals. Approximately 90% of the career officers were expelled from the Military.
Keeping the hope in Turkey is hard. However, the authors of this study are hopeful. They firmly believe that a promising future for Turkey is possible and not so far. They trust the wisdom of their people. They are sure that this wisdom will eventually recall the respect for freedoms, the firm commitment to the rule of law and the more than a century-long strive for a genuine democracy.
To access the full report
The coup in Turkey – background and facts – July 2018
Dropbox Link:
https://www.dropbox.com/s/kkmzvjszhinp36g/The%20coup%20in%20Turkey%20-%20background%20and%20facts%20-%20July%202018.pdf?dl=0
Uncategorized July 2, 2018 July 2, 2018
Coup against Turkish Navy
The documentary prepared by journalist Ece Sevim sheds lights on the events happened in Navy during the staged coup on July 15, 2016. Shortly after journalist Ece Sevim prepared and aired this documentary, she was taken into custody. She is imprisoned and stays in a cell without any real accusation. The documentary questions the facts of July 15 and real perpetrators of the coup.
Google DriveLink
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1aowhKUyWNfEHyYKoNATniv0kQnghx2dY/view?usp=sharing
Uncategorized March 19, 2018
The real reason behind the purge!
Head of Vatan party Dogu Perincek said that the real reason behind the purge of military officers is separating Turkey from the NATO in a press conference in Iran. The video is provided below with the subtitles.
Uncategorized September 30, 2017 September 30, 2017
How will Turkey and the US government relations evolve?
Since the coup on July 15th, AKP government has been developing strong ties with Russia, Iran, and Syrian government. It is even claimed that Erdogan and Bashar Assad met in Astana, Kazakhstan moderated by Russia, September 12, 2017 [1]. The Turkish government and military officials have often been visiting both Russia and Iran, recently. Moreover, Erdogan has been accusing the US and Europe plotting the military coup in domestic politics for a year. The recent developments show that the relationship between Erdogan government and the US is very volatile. There are several examples to shed light on that claim. Also, there are important questions that can draw the picture of the relationship in the near future.
Rebel groups supported by the US and Turkey are Sunni whereas, Iran and Syria are Shite. If Turkey changes his side from the Us to Iran and Russia, how would these Sunni groups be affected? What will they do? Would they only leave Syria or spread out to the world and pose a terror threat?
For the recent years, the US government actively support Kurdish forces. Can Erdogan use his allied rebel groups in Syria to fight against Kurds?
Furthermore, there are recent developments that can divert the trajectory of the relationship between Turkey and the US:
Consequences of the staged coup on July 15th and the purge of the secular intellectuals
Increasing influence of pro-Russian and pro-Iran groups in government
Case of Reza Zarrab and Zafer Caglayan (former minister of economy) case for bypassing US sanctions on Iran [2]
Case of Erdogan’s security guards (two of them arrested and issued warrant for 12 security guards) [3]
Purchase of Boeing aircraft by Turkey that will cost $11B
Speculation of that Turkey buy S-400 missiles from Russia
Detaining foreign journalist, pastors or human activist in custody
Leakage of US troops base locations in Syria
Firstly, I will primarily talk about the leakage of the map of base locations of us forces in Syria in this article. The news was published by Erdogan’s state media called Anatolian Agency on July 17, 2017 [4]. The Anatolian agency released/ leaked the US soldiers base-locations map in Syria. The release of this critical information, either accidentally or deliberately, was not a proper action to be expected from an ally. The reporter claimed that it is not the officials who provided him the location of the bases, but he found out them, which does not seem to an excuse for a state-paid news reporter. That said, one of the strongest possibility is that the map was leaked from someone who wants to put Turkey against the US and possibly force Turkey to change its side in Syria. Then, the question is who or which groups might want this switch in Syria?
Some groups want to put Turkey against the US and possibly force Turkey to change its side in Syria. Then, the question is who or which groups might want this switch in Syria?
Since the beginning of the turmoil in Syria, Turkish government acted in tandem with the US stance. However, certain groups in Turkey, including pro-Iran, radical political Islamists, and pro-Russians, want to get Turkish soldiers to pit against the US troops in the field. Erdogan has been using rebel groups in Syria as proxy forces to shape his domestic politics (Erdogan’s goal). That said, there might be at least two reasons for the recent leakage of the base locations:
Since the US is very sensitive about its soldiers, Erdogan aimed to use this as leverage against the US.
By doing so, he provided his proxy rebel groups more space to securely move so they would be aware where the US soldiers are
Even though Erdogan prefers anti-western speech and rhetoric in domestic politics, he is well-aware of the need for the West/USA for political and military reasons. Thus, he has been eliminating and silencing the opposition by accusing them of their alliance with the West.
On the other hand, as he strives to get along with the West, he also tries to force them to continue their alliance with Erdogan. He has been using some leverages against the West, such as threatening Europe with sending refuges or exporting terrorist. He has already detained some of the foreign journalists, human right activists, and even pastors.
Additionally, Erdogan knows that he does not have the power to punish USA soldiers. Maybe he can sometimes try armed power on Kurds, but he will not fight against the USA. Especially, after purged all selected and well-educated officers/ generals/ admirals/ diplomats/ bureaucrats. He knows he is not powerful. Turkish Air Force was having very well trained and educated pilots before the coup attempt. But after the purge, now TAF requesting master teacher pilots from Pakistan for training!
Erdogan is not the only actor in Turkey now. Especially after the purge of Western-minded elites, pro-Russian ultra-nationalists led by Dogu Perincek are increasing their influence in Turkish politics.
Our conclusion is: Iran or Russia is motivating these groups to engage with the US soldiers despite Erdogan. The mass purge of pro-western officers and generals from military will give pro-Russians and pro-Iranians, who are more influential by the power gap, the opportunity to take Turkey from the Western axis. Then, there will not be any option/ power to get relations well with the USA for Turkey anymore.
It is possible to think that, in a close circle of Erdogan, some pro-Iran advisors and pro-Russian/anti-western generals/admirals have excellent relations with Iran and Russia. For example, Special Forces Commander LTG Zekai Aksakalı is known to have good relations with pro-Russian. As a sign of these good relations, Turkey seems or bluff the US to buy S-400 and getting more engaged with Iran.
What can be a reaction / should have been:
Although Erdogan may seem to be a real puppet, he is a selfish actor, which makes him a person with no values. Apart from balancing the powers inside Turkey, he is trying to reconcile the West with Russia. Consequently, Russia’s influence is increasing in the region. If the West does not want to lose a partner like Turkey; USA and Western Powers should:
Express support for democracy, separation of powers, checks and balances, justice and human rights in Turkey
Separation of Erdogan from Turkey; otherwise any attack on Erdogan would consolidate AKP supporters
Erdogan is perfectly managing the public perception in a way that the US had planned the coup attempt of July 15th, 2016. However, the gaps and the controversies in his argument are being revealed in the court trials. However, the media, which is either supporting or bandwagoning with him, does not declare the full text of the court statements of so-called ‘coup plotters.’ So, the US and the West should insist on international observers to participate in the trials of the coup attempt. Besides, the US and West should stand out for publicly open courts for the coup attempt.
[1] http://www.diken.com.tr/erdogan-esadla-gorusme-iddiasini-yalanladi-rusya-topa-girmedi/
[2] https://www.ft.com/content/1bd0e546-93a2-11e7-bdfa-eda243196c2c
[3] https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/public-safety/dc-police-issue-warrant-for-12-turkish-security-personnel-involved-in-embassy-brawl/2017/06/15/4472fae6-51be-11e7-b064-828ba60fbb98_story.html?utm_term=.57595e71ea64
[4] http://aa.com.tr/tr/dunya/suriyede-10-noktada-pkk-pydye-abd-destegi/863161
Filed under: iran, russia, Syria, USA
Who did give the orders in the night of military coup?
Original copy of the order
The content of the order, above, claimed given by Col. Osman Kardal at Armed Forces Command Operation Center (SKKHM) is translated below:
From: General Staff (GENKUR)
To: MAGG 5101
KGK: WAA
Subject: Preparation Notice and Dispatch of the Units
Due to emergency in country-wide, Turkish Armed Forces with its all units, organizations and Headquarters are going to carry out all duty given, provide and maintain the security, and take the all necessary measurements without hesitation.
Hereby; all units, organizations, and Headquarters:
Complete its preparations as soon as possible
Be ready to execute the orders given by General Staff
Hereby, primarily:
1th Gendarmerie Commando Brigade /Cakirsogut and available unit of Special Forces Command are going to move to Ankara, at once.
To carry out the dispatch immediately, Force Commands of both two units’ commanders and other corps have been given proper authority of coordination
Col. Osman Kardal stated in his testimony that he did not give that order.
“Some people framed me up using my name and office to write this message. This message was sent from a different place out of Armed Forces Command Operation Center using my name.”
According to this document and testimony of Col. Osman Kardal:
Units did not know the attempt of the military coup
Special Forces unit were called with order. General Semih Terzi came to Ankara to follow the order.
SADAT’s 15th of July Document and Its Evaluation
In our country (Turkey), the basis of problems of human rights, democracy, and the rule of law root from distancing off the values such as honesty and transparency, using shortcuts, stargazing, favoritism, moral inconsistency and using both national and religious values and tradition in personal benefits. These actions lead to sacrifice anything to one’s favor. The very same problems prepared the ground for the monumental collapse of the Ottoman Empire. The problems inherited from the Ottoman Empire stood as the biggest challenges during the establishment of the Republic of Turkey. These problems were the greatest handicaps on the way to building a modern civilization. The culprits of these problems share insincerity, dishonesty, intolerance to others, envying all that is “the other”, with a wholesale understanding, hatred against voices other than theirs, condemning others instead of criticizing themselves, giving up their values and discourse of yesterday when an opportunistic way, justifying the ends by the means, using anything that is dear to the nation like Islam, national history and Ataturk to the very end in a Machiavallist sense, regardless of their labels like right-wing/ left-wing/ socialist/ fascist/ nationalist/ religious, regardless of their political, religious, or ethnic identities.
This mentality surfaced in the pogrom of 6-7 September 1955, preparing ground for the conflicts between left and right, Alevites and Sunnis before 12th September 1980 coup, underground organizations, DHKP-C, PKK, Hizbullah, counterinsurgency, Yesil, Susurluk gang and nowadays Erdogan and AKP having their backs, and even intertwined all illegal constructions, including SADAT, are being faced. A part of society is, unfortunately, supporting SADAT and similar criminal organizations because of the moral collapse. The document prepared by SADAT for July 15 claims shows that the company has been dragged by the problems mentioned above.
SADAT or another corporation, regardless of the owner of the corporation and whoever supports it, as long as the company doesn’t violate the laws of our country, doesn’t give up being open to the inspection of its activities and doesn’t hurt the fundamental rights of any individual and the interests of the country, criticizing of the firm is out of question. However, a company that doesn’t obey those fundamental rules of law, regardless of the owner whether it is set up by a retired general and its crew or introduces himself as a rescuer of Islamic World or declares that he’ll be the remedy of the significant problems of Turkey and Muslim community, it cannot escape from being criticized, being tried in a court when the law is back in Turkey and even answering to the whole world in front of the international tribunals in the future.
In the document prepared by SADAT, instead of giving satisfactory and clear answers to the serious and tangible suspicions about the corporation that have been brought up to the agenda for the last 5 years, people who claim the allegations are accused, plenty of logos, picture and slogan have been used, Erdogan and his government have been advertised with “inside the activities” approach. The overall document was prepared with a focus to win tenders and leave word with the government. It seems more like a political party brochure.
One must be conscienceless not to see the behaviors incompatible with human dignity, the systematic, extensive, known-by-everybody and massive amount of torture that have not been ever seen in our country’s history, the cleaning out process of Turkish Armed Forces (TAF), the wasting thousands of TAF personnel arbitrarily who haven’t been involved in any way into the scene, the filling thousands of innocent people into the jail, the high pressure that Erdogan put onto the judgement, the ugliness he reveals to manage the jurisdiction for the sake of his benefit. SADAT wrote its document as if the country is in the shape of perfect justice. By doing so, it folds up the suspicions on its activities and relationships. In fact, the following questions to SADAT would reveal the whole truth clearly:
Instead of in Turkey, can such a secret, dark, shady and unsupervised corporation be established in a democratic country where people are educated and conscious, the leaders are dedicated to protecting human rights and freedom, the law, and justice -instead of arbitrariness- own the country? Assuming it is established, can it live such long?
INVESTIGATION ON SNIPERS ISSUE
Those who prepared the SADAT document formed their documents with accusations based on prediction and slander, while they are stating that they were exposed to charges based on forecast and slander.
Page 7: “Probably, if the coup had succeeded, the crimes of coup plotters would be calumniated to SADAT Corporation, and real criminals would be acquitted.”
Page 10: “They addresses many accusations to SADAT with several lies and slanders to hide the blood on their hands from the night of July 15 and, at the same time, kill two birds with one stone.”
Page 13: “The aim is to perplex people by obscuring their crimes related to the 34 people, including two police officers, killed by the shootings with heavy machine guns and infantry rifles over the tanks on the bridge, yet more than so, to form a basis for the steps against to Turkey with creating wrong perception in the West.”
Page 14-15: “Although more than one year passed since July 15, 2016, even today a black spot still appears at the same point as we cross the bridge. I wonder if they forgot the sniper at there!!!”
Page 14: “…There is a picture got from a television channel (A Haber), which is a part of this black propaganda.”
SADAT, instead of saying “Our members for sure did not use a gun on July 15”, claimed that “There were no snipers on July 15”, which will be reminded them while being judged in the future. SADAT only tried to refuse the claim of snipers on Bosphorus Bridge, while there are sound and severe pieces of evidence about the existence of snipers in different places in Istanbul like Bosphorus Bridge, Stock Exchange Building, Ataturk Airport. The news about the snipers was kept on the agenda, and the interviews with the witnesses were done by the channels which are pro-Erdogan. The accusing statement about A Haber in SADAT‘s document perplex people more. Why does pro-Erdogan channel A Haber organize a smear campaign against SADAT? If this information in A Haber is not right, on which subjects did, A Haber do guidance news and organize smear campaign?
In the document of SADAT, instead of saying, “Even today, a silhouette is being seen in the same place,” it would carry more conviction if a photograph of the silhouette was shown. By the way, while several people testified that a sniper was present on the leg of the Bosphorus Bridge, also there are some AKP supporters who declared that the other sniper deployed on the hill in the vicinity. The witnesses, who revealed that gunmen shot innocent people and killed the civilians on July 15, are AKP supporters or their relatives who went out on that night to support Erdogan. These individuals and their families come under fire and were injured on the Bosphorus Bridge, at nearby the Istanbul Stock Exchange Building and Ataturk Airport. The SADAT needs to respond to the claims of those AKP supporters who are the victims of July 15th, before anyone’s accusations.
“..neither soldiers nor military officers, they were two people in the police uniform who were targeting the innocent people and opening fire towards them continuously”
Top-left, a young man, who is a pro-Erdogan, declares by swearing that neither soldiers nor military officers, they were two people in the police uniform who were targeting the innocent people and opening fire towards them continuously[1]. Top-right, another witness on the Bosphorus Bridge is stating that snipers were even opening fire towards individuals who were trying to help injured innocents and even to Ambulances[2]. Bottom, some eyewitnesses on the Bosphorus Bridge are stating that the individual who shot and killed innocent people was a sniper and they could not see him/her as he hides[3].
Nihal Olçok is expressing how her husband, Erol Olçok and his son Abdullah Tayyip Olçok were killed by a sniper in a planned manner[4].
“…the person who shot and killed people from the top of the Istanbul Stock Exchange Building was a sniper.”
“…people who shot my wife and were definitely snipers”
On the left, Müslüm Ergin, who was injured during the events of that night, declares that the person who shot and killed people from the top of the Istanbul Stock Exchange Building was a sniper[5]. On the right, Ali Usta, who was also injured in the events, is stating that people who shot my wife and were definitely snipers. He is also expressing that the trajectory of the bullet which hits his arm apparently proves that[6].
On the left, Muteber Ayabak is declaring that her son, Mahir Ayabak (in the middle), who went out to support Erdoğan on the night of July 15, was killed by snipers hide in a black minibus. A black minibus shown on the right was used to smuggle a person in Ankara on December 21st, 2016.
Autopsy and Ballistic Reviews
“Make public what you have in hand. Why don’t you share transparently?”
The topic Erdogan and his partisans fear most are how and by whom the people died on 15th of July. The only word to Erdogan and his partisans about the autopsy and ballistic reviews should be following: “Make public what you have in hand. Why don’t you share transparently?” For example, at that night, on Bosphorus Bridge, the two of the people who killed by sniper are Erol Olcok and his son, Abdullah Tayyip Olcok. Erol Olcok was Erdogan’s comrade and his election campaigns coordinator. Olcok and his son were in the very first protestor group that walks to the bridge when the events have just started. Olcok’s wife, Nihal Olcok, has declared in a TV program very clearly that her husband and son have been killed by a sniper who knows them and pointed his gun at them on purpose. Below, autopsy reports of two 15th of July victims, Erol and Abdullah Tayyip Olcok, and their evaluation are added. By the way, it is already mentioned above that there are witnesses who claim that there were people opened fire to the public not only from the Bridge but also from hills nearby the Bridge.
EROL OLÇOK’S AUTOPSY REPORT
ABDULLAH TAYYİP OLÇOK’S AUTOPSY REPORT
SNIPER on the BRIDGE (The other gunman opened fire towards the public deployed at hills covered by trees on the Asia side)
Review Results of Erol and Tayyip Olcok Autopsy Reports
· According to the reports, the shot was NOT held from a short distance.
· Bullet entry and exit points are specified in details.
· Erol and Tayyip Olcok have been shot with ONE bullet each.
· Since it is stated that Erol Olcok was trying to convince soldiers, he must have been very close to them.
· The shot has been held with a 7.62mm bullet from a high 30-40 degrees elevation point.
· The place of a sniper at the Bridge tower and the trajectory of the bullet support the Olcok’s wife claims that her husband was killed by a sniper.
[1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FiOJoaR-l4Y (time at the footage 06:50)
[2] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j2NWTvGrls0 (time at the footage 00:47)
[3] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dz0kziyTlZo (time at the footage 01:11)
[4] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wh1Zz-lLmMk (time at the footage 43:11)
[5] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VnEvLRRfk4E (time at the footage 01:00)
[6] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QHr9GT4LeYA (time at the footage 01:50)
Post-Current August 11, 2017 August 15, 2017
The AKP government declared state of emergency for three months right after the 15th July 2016 coup attempt that Erdogan described as “a gift from God” and as a violation of Constitution has repeatedly extended it so far. By this state of emergency, he has been ruling Turkey with the decrees without any control of Supreme Court and Parliament. Despite having no right, by abusing these decrees the Government has purged overwhelming numbers, around 150,000 public officials including %80 of entire serving generals and admirals along with %90 of staff officers who have secular and democratic worldviews, care about human rights and consider being in good terms with Western countries and NATO.
The structure of the Turkish Armed Forces has been permanently changed by a decree. The Commands of Army, Navy and Air Forces, which had been under the command of General Staff, to the Ministry of National Defense and thus turned the General Staff into a consultant and symbolic position, which undermined the command control in the army, disrupted the ability of planning and coordination, and paralyzed the bedrock of the Armed Forces. Beside these regulations, in an attempt to eradicate its democratic and secular base established by Ataturk, the structure and modus operandi of Supreme Military Counsil (Yüksek Askeri Şura-YAŞ) also has been changed. YAŞ determines promotions, appointments and retirements of generals and high-ranking staff officers in Turkish Armed Forces, as well as for dismissal of military personnel from the army and extension of service for some high-ranking staff officers. Now, it overwhelmingly consists of Ministers instead four-star Generals.
On the other hand, Erdogan has given the authorization to inject his political Islamic thoughts into the military. If one examines the outcomes of two supreme military councils after July 15, 2016, it can be seen how politics infiltrate into the military as well as decision on promotions, appointments and retirements of military staff. Those are made according to their loyalties to Erdogan and Perincek, head of ultra-nationalist Political Vatan Party, instead of competencies.
to read about SADAT
In 2016 YAŞ, Erdogan and his political party AKP handed over critical positions in the chain of command to ultra nationalist military staff by the help of the group linked to Perincek and defendants of Ergenekon and Balyoz cases while , many generals and admirals were silently forced to resign before the YAS to hide Erdogan’s dismissal score.
As for the 2017 YAŞ decisions; an oddness is seen at first glance Despite the already vacant positions in the high level of generals, only 6 generals and admirals have been promoted to higher ranks, while 14 Generals and Admirals in the ranks of Major, Lieutenant, and Four Star/Admiral General have been retired from the command echelon which is crippling the command and control even more. In fact, this strangeness can be explained by the fact that these positions were kept for the supporters of Erdogan and Perinçek in the Armed Forces, who are in lower ranks and are not on the promotion line yet. By retirees and limited number of promotions, possible future rivals of pro-Erdogan and pro-Perincek were eliminated. After July 15, 2016, mostly pro-Western generals and admirals, who were not jailed and remained in the Army without being discharged, have been purged with the last Council.
When the last two YAŞ decisions are examined, we can see that they try to reach the same aim using a different tactic. With the last Council, it seems that Erdogan keeps looking after his ‘Gang Allies’ whichever might be. The only criteria for promotion is either being linked to one of the gang allies (SADAT, nationalist gangs in the line of Sedat Peker, Sledgehammer-Ergenekon Structure, ultra-nationalist, pro-Russian Perincek Structure/Gang) or being totally unqualified or unskilled. The smallest tendency towards democratic values or NATO, the US, the EU camp is a criterion of inadmissibility in promotion.
In a nutshell; the common characteristics of the newly promoted group is their being detached from NATO, the US and the EU, and even blaming them as the reason for every negative development in the country. It is crystal clear that the promoted pro-Erdogan opportunists and political Islamists will be easily controlled by the ultra-nationalist wing generals because, they were chosen from the unqualified weak candidates among their peers and for the upcoming promotions they will not be qualified to be rivals to the ultra-nationalists. At the end of the day, armed forces will be controlled by ultra-nationalists (Sledgehammer-Ergenekon and Perincek structure).
Filed under: supreme military council, transformation of the Turkish military
Uncategorized July 20, 2017 August 15, 2017
We have prepared a document to shed light on the chain of events related to 15 July 2016 military coup in Turkey.
To access the English version of the report please click on the following link: A_Search_for_Truth
Filed under: 15 july military coup events, 15 temmuz darbesi, a search for truth, Gerceğin peşinde
Sleeping Nations
Unconscious nations are doomed to either perish or wake up as enslaved!
M. Kemal Ataturk
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Hollywood Vampires Releases New Single "Who's Laughing Now"
posted by Andrew Magnotta @AndrewMagnotta - Apr 18, 2019
Hollywood Vampires have finally unveiled a new song from the band's forthcoming sophomore album.
The album has been in the works for over a year while core members Alice Cooper, Joe Perry and Johnny Depp juggled multiple projects in 2018.
The bass guitar-driven lead single, "Who's Laughing Now" features both vocals by both Cooper and Depp, the latter of whom took the lead on the album's lyrics. The new album, Rise, is due out June 21.
You can watch the band's official lyric video above!
Cooper explained last summer, when Hollywood Vampires did the bulk of its recording for Rise, that one of the most exciting things for him about the new album was letting Depp take the conceptual reigns. The Godfather of Shock Rock praised the actor for pouring his soul into the new batch of songs.
Being that Cooper is accustomed to driving the creative aspects of his own band, he added that it was a nice change to worry only about his own performance.
"I come in and do a littler surgery on the lyrics," Cooper explained at the time. "But it's interested for me to be singing about Johnny's angst."
The single comes as the band prepares for a short run of live concerts in mid-May.
Get the live dates here.
Hollywood Vampires are unlikely to be busy on the road in 2019.
Cooper will be touring with his own band from June through mid-October. Get those tour dates here.
Perry is busy celebrating the 50th anniversary of Aerosmith with a residency in Las Vegas and at a handful of other MGM properties in the U.S. Get Aerosmith's live dates here.
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Selective Omissions, or, What Laura Ingalls Wilder left out of LITTLE HOUSE
In 2001, I began some in-depth research on Laura Ingalls Wilder and Little House on the Prairie. I came across an article about a speech she gave on October 16, 1937, at a book fair in a Detroit department store. Her speech was published forty years later (September, 1978) in the Saturday Evening Post. I read the speech and was astonished at what she said. Moreover, I was astonished that none of the material I'd read to that point (and since) has commented on that speech... She said:
Every story in this novel, all the circumstances, each incident are true. All I have told is true, but it is not the whole truth. There were some stories I wanted to tell but would not be responsible for putting in a book for children, even though I knew them as a child.
And here is an extended excerpt. I'm adding bold text to set off the portions of the speech I want you to pay particular attention to:
There was the story of the Bender family that belonged in the third volume, Little House on the Prairie. The Benders lived halfway between it and Independence, Kansas. We stopped there, on our way in to the Little House, while Pa watered the horses and brought us all a drink from the well near the door of the house. I saw Kate Bender standing in the doorway. We did not go in because we could not afford to stop at a tavern.
On his trip to Independence to sell his furs, Pa stopped again for water, but did not go in for the same reason as before.
There were Kate Bender and two men, her brothers, in the family and their tavern was the only place for travelers to stop on the road south from Independence. People disappeared on that road. Leaving Independence and going south they were never heard of again. It was thought they were killed by Indians but no bodies were ever found.
Then it was noticed that the Benders’ garden was always freshly plowed but never planted. People wondered. And then a man came from the east looking for his brother, who was missing.
He made up a party in Independence and they followed the road south, but when they came to the Bender place there was no one there. There were signs of hurried departure and they searched the place.
The front room was divided by a calico curtain against which the dining table stood. On the curtain back of the table were stains about as high as the head of a man when seated. Behind the curtain was a trap door in the floor and beside it lay a heavy hammer.
In the cellar underneath was the body of a man whose head had been crushed by the hammer. It appeared that he had been seated at the table back to the curtain and had been struck from behind it. A grave was partly dug in the garden with a shovel close by. The posse searched the garden and dug up human bones and bodies. One body was that of a little girl who had been buried alive with her murdered parents. The garden was truly a grave-yard kept plowed so it would show no signs. The night of the day the bodies were found a neighbor rode up to our house and talked earnestly with Pa. Pa took his rifle down from its place over the door and said to Ma, “The vigilantes are called out.” Then he saddled a horse and rode away with the neighbor. It was late the next day when he came back and he never told us where he had been. For several years there was more or less a hunt for the Benders and reports that they had been seen here or there. At such times Pa always said in a strange tone of finality, “They will never be found.” They were never found and later I formed my own conclusions why.
You will agree it is not a fit story for a children’s book. But it shows there were other dangers on the frontier besides wild Indians.
Some context for why that speech is--to me--astonishing. In Little House on the Prairie, Wilder presents Indians as frightening and menacing. Through Mrs. Scott, she tells us about an Indian massacre. Three times, Wilder's characters say "the only good Indian is a dead Indian." And what about the terrifying tone at the end of Little House on the Prairie, when Pa stays up all night and the entire family listens to Indians "howling" for several nights in a row?
According to Wilder, it is "fit" for children to read about "wild Indians" but it is not "fit" for them to read about serial killers who are white, nor is it "fit" for children to read that Pa killed someone in order to protect his family from harm.
Wilder's speech was reprinted in 1988 in A Little House Sampler, edited by William T. Anderson. A Little House Sampler is cited in eleven other books (according to Amazon), and yet, nobody commented on the Bender's, or Wilder's decision not to include that story.
Think about that omission and what it means. I invite your comments, and please take a minute to read about racism in the Little House books (links below).
Update, July 5, 2008
A librarian in Kansas wrote to point me to info on the Benders, who are quite well known as serial killers. She writes:
The Bloody Benders, as they were called, represent one of Kansas' most enduring mysteries. They appeared to be a family of well-organized killers who robbed and killed unsuspecting travelers who ventured into their home/inn for a meal and whose bodies dropped through a trap door in the floor under the chair in which they were seated. Here is further information from our state historical society: Bender Knife.
There is a museum in Cherryvale, KS, which has items from the Bender home and a wreath of human hair from their victims, as well as a roadside marker near Labette, KS: The Bloody Benders.
And, another person has written, pointing me to a graphic novel called A Treasury of Victorian Murder: The Saga of the Bloody Benders.
Posts about racism in Little House on the Prairie series
Labels: Little House on the Prairie
Red Wire Magazine
Another must-get I learned about as a result of my visit to the University of Arizona last week is Red Wire Magazine. Here's info from their "About Us" page:
Redwire Native Youth Media Society is a media and arts organization dedicated to Native youth expression.
Redwire Magazine published its first issue in April 1997 with the support of the Native Youth Movement (a grassroots Native youth group) and the Environmental Youth Alliance. Today Redwire distributes 11,000 copies across Canada, four times a year. Redwire is the first-ever Native youth run magazine in Canada, and is committed to operating with Native youth staff, writers, artists and publishers.
Redwire's mandate is to provide Native youth with an uncensored forum for discussion, in order to help youth find their own voice. Redwire is by, for and about Native youth; all content, editorial decisions and associated media projects are initiated and led by youth, inspiring creativity, motivation and action.
A subscription is $20/year for four issues. Each issue includes articles, art, poetry, news, letters, and reviews. The June 2007 issue has a piece called "Canadian Colonialism: The Three Bears and the Locks" by David Fullerton-Owl, of the Sagamok Anishinawbek First Nation. Here's the opening paragraphs:
The Three Bears lived in the woods, as had their ancestors from time immemorial. There was a Mama bear, a Papa bear and a wee little baby bear. Since it was a beautiful sunny morning, the bear family decided to fish and pick some berries for an afternoon picnic. Fishing and berry picking, a traditional means of survival, required the bears to travel some distance. It so happened that the bears were up for a nice long walk.
Papa bear lifted wee little baby bear on his shoulders, but Mama bear wanted baby bear to learn self-reliance; wee little baby bear crawled down and off they went.
The woods were filled with all types of animals. Something was not right, though, and the raven decided to fly high above the thick trees to see for herself. The raven quickly observed that intruders had entered the forest. A burly man carried a large suitcase in one hand, with a sharp axe in the other. Behind him walked a petite woman and a little girl with gold hair. These people were sent on a mission, known to others as the Locks family.
The note preceding the story says "The fictional account below is a commentary on the present Caledonia land dispute and the age old tale of Goldilocks, her encroachment on foreign territory, and the overarching theme of intruders invading traditional territory. "
The Caledonia land dispute is known in Native circles, but is the sort of thing that doesn't get much coverage in mainstream press. And, when it does, there's bias against the Native people involved. It is, in short, a struggle for land.
Like Red Ink, Red Wire provides you with Native voices. And like Red Ink, I think Red Wire ought to be on your library shelves.
Ofelia Zepeda's OCEAN POWER
While I was in Tucson last week for the American Indian Language Development Institute, I listened to Ofelia Zepeda read some of her poems. She was a guest speaker in Angie Hoffman's class on children's literature. Dr. Zepeda read from her book, Ocean Power.
She read "Pulling Down the Clouds" and at this line...
With dreams of distant noise disturbing his sleep,
the smell of dirt, wet, for the first time in what seems like months
... my thoughts turned to being home, at Nambe, smelling the dirt when it rains. It is a bit hard to explain, and no doubt many of you will find it odd, but... The smell and the taste are one and the same. That smell made (and makes) me want to eat that wet dirt. It's a smell like none anywhere else. It's not like a food smell, or a plant smell, or an animal smell. It's unique. Some of our Puebloan homes have mud plaster on interior walls. Splash a little water on that mud plaster, and you get that smell. My mom and dad like to tell of how, when we'd visit my sa?yaa (grandmother in Tewa), after we'd leave, she would find three wet circles in one of her rooms, where me and my two sisters would have had a go at the walls, licking them like lollipops.
Zepeda's book has many poems in it that high school and college teachers can use in the classroom. Here's one of the poems. (Note: The small width on Blogger's program means line breaks don't fall quite right. I know that is a problem. Line breaks matter in poems. To make sure they fall correctly, I'm using a smaller font for the poem. I apologize for its size.)
Deer Dance Exhibition
Question: Can you tell us what he is wearing?
Well the hooves represent the deer's hooves.
the red scarf represents the flowers from which he ate.
the shawl is for the skin.
The cocoons make the sound of the deer walking on leaves and grass.
Question: What is that he is beating on?
It's a gourd drum. The drum represents the heartbeat of the deer.
When the drum beats, it brings the deer to life.
We believe the water the drum sits in is holy. It is life.
Go ahead, touch it.
Bless yourself with it.
It is holy. You are safe now.
Question: How does the boy become a dancer?
He just knows. His mother said he had dreams when he was just a little boy.
You know how that happens. He just had it in him.
Then he started working with older men who taught him how to dance.
He has made many sacrifices for his dancing even for just a young boy.
The people concur, "Yes, you can see it in his face."
Question: What do they do with the money we throw them?
Oh, they just split it among the singers and dancer.
They will probably take the boy to McDonald's for a burger and fries.
Then men will probably have a cold one.
It's hot today, you know.
Ofelia Zepeda is a member of the Tohono O'odham tribe in Arizona. As we sat together, we talked about tribal names. The Tohono O'odham people are among the first, if not the first, to successfully change what they are known as. They were formerly known as Papago.
Zepeda is a professor of Linguistics at the University of Arizona. She wrote the first grammar of the Tohono O'odham language, A Papago Grammar. In 1999, she won a MacArthur Foundation genius grant. In Ocean Power, many of the poems have both, English and Tohono O'odham in them. Ocean Power is available from Oyate.
Labels: poetry, recommended
Terrific essays about Meyer's character "Jacob" in TWILIGHT
A post to YALSA about people of color in fantasy led me to a livejournal post about Jacob, the Quileute character in Stephenie Meyer's Twilight saga.
Saskaia (the author of the essay) is finished with the first three books (I'm partway thru the second one, having set it aside to read and work on Landman's Apache: Girl Warrior. By the way, it would be so cool if the powers-that-be over at Candlewick would say "STOP THE PRESSES!" and cancel the release of Landman's book in the U.S.).
In this 'slice' of a larger essay, saskaia (the author doesn't capitalize the first s) considers the plausibility of Jacob. Here's an excerpt:
While Jacob is surely overwhelmed with being a teen werewolf attending the tribal high school while patrolling Quileute land in all of his free time, I can scarcely believe that he and the other Quileute characters never attend powwows or social dances - not one is ever mentioned. It's disconcerting to anyone familiar with Native culture in the United States, especially reservation culture where powwows and social dances still serve as the major arena for socialization.
Saskaia has an engaging style of writing. I enjoyed reading her critique and am with her as she says
I am all for deviation for the typical character archetype but this is where I am thrown from the story, out the window and into my street. I can buy that Jacob thinks himself in love with Bella, but where are Jacob's experiences so he can freely choose Bella? Where are the other Native women?
Saskaia has a link in her essay that I'm placing here, too: Stephenie Meyer's use of Quileute Characters. This is her first post about the saga, wherein she talks about herself (she is Native) and says
While Jacob was written to be mostly age-appropriate, I think she did fall into uber-sexy warrior territory after his first phasing as a werewolf...
Do take a few minutes to read saskaia's critiques. They are terrific!
[Update, 12:54 CST, June 30, 2008---Saskaia's got quite a following! My sitemeter stats show lot of hits from livejournal. Welcome to my site!]
If you want to read more on the ways that the Quileute's are portrayed in the series, look over to the right side of this page. Scroll up or down till you see the section labeled TWILIGHT SAGA. There you'll see several links to posts about the series.
Labels: not recommended, twilight
Selective Omissions, or, What Laura Ingalls Wilder...
Terrific essays about Meyer's character "Jacob" in...
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A critical look at O'Dell's ISLAND OF THE BLUE DOLPHINS
Update on Sep 24, 2018: I (Debbie), shared this post on Twitter yesterday, because I was critiquing a young adult novel in which the author cited Island of the Blue Dolphins as a significant book from her childhood. Dr. Eve Tuck read my tweet, this post, and responded. Dr. Tuck is Aleut, and is an Education professor who has served as editor of NCTE's English Journal. See her article, Decolonization is not a metaphor, and her books, listed at her website. With her permission, I am adding her response to my tweet and article. They are at the bottom of this post.
"A Critical Look at O'Dell's Island of the Blue Dolphins"
Debbie Reese (published here on June 16, 2016)
Scott O'Dell's Island of the Blue Dolphins is set on San Nicolas Island, a small island off the coast of Santa Barbara California. In the Author’s Note at the back of the book, O’Dell writes that “[t]he girl Robinson Crusoe whose story I have attempted to re-create actually lived alone upon this island from 1835 to 1853, and is known to history as The Lost Woman of San Nicolas” (p. 187). Because nobody could understand her language, her given name is not known. Named Juana Maria by the Mission priest who took her in at Santa Barbara Mission, she died six weeks after her rescue. To anthropologists, the people of the island are known as Nicoleños.
In his story, O’Dell changes Juana Maria’s status to a twelve-year old girl named Karana. As the story opens, Karana and her little brother Romo are digging roots when a ship arrives. On board is a Russian captain named Orlov who has come with forty of his (Aleut) men to hunt sea otter. Based on past experiences, Chief Chowig (Karana’s father) and Orlov have a tense discussion about what the Ghalas-at will receive in return for the otters that will be taken from the waters that abut the island. Months later when Orlov readies to leave without holding up his end of the bargain, a fight breaks out. Most of the men of Ghalas-at, including Chowig, are killed. Two years later, the survivors are rescued. After the rescue ship leaves the cove, Karana realizes Romo is not on board. She jumps ship to stay with him and wait for another rescue ship. Soon after, wild dogs kill Romo, and Karana is alone until her rescue.
Her years on the island make survival a central theme of the story. During that time, she builds several shelters, makes weapons that only men are supposed to make (according to tribal traditions), finds food, fights wild dogs, befriends a large dog that she thinks came to the island with the Russian ship and then when he dies, tames a wild dog that she thinks was fathered by the large dog. She survives an earthquake, a tsunami, and several harsh winter storms.
At the close of the story, she is leaving the island. Based on the text, she has been there at least four years. On page 162, the text reads that two years have passed since the Aleuts had been on the island. At that point, Karana stopped counting the passage of time. One spring, there is an earthquake. As she makes a new shelter, she sees a ship and at first, she hides from the two men who come ashore. She decides she wants to be with people again, and rushes down to the cove but the canoe is gone. Two years pass and a ship returns. This time, she doesn’t hide. When the ship leaves, she is on board with her dog and two caged birds.
A few words about Scott O’Dell
Born in Los Angeles, California in 1898, O’Dell died in 1989. He spent the first thirty years of his adult life working in Hollywood as a cameraman and writer. In 1920, a California newspaper misprinted Odell Gabriel Scott’s name as Scott O’Dell. Liking the misprint, Scott legally changed his name and from then on, was known as Scott O’Dell. In 1947, he became the book editor for the Los Angeles Daily News (Payment, 2006).
In addition to his writing, O’Dell spent time with his father on his orange grove ranch, where he visited ranches of Spanish families of the Pomona Valley and listened to their stories of the past. This led him to write three novels for adults, and a history of California.
In 1957, O’Dell published Country of the Sun: Southern California, An Informal History and Guide. Therein, he references Helen Hunt Jackson’s articles, published in 1882 in Century Magazine, about the mistreatment of the Cupeno Indians of California. He also references her novel, Ramona, published in 1884, saying her novel “had about the same impact as Uncle Tom’s Cabin. Overnight, the country was aroused to the plight of the Southern California Indian” (p. 52). Country of the Sun includes two pages about “The Lost Woman of San Nicolas Island”.
O’Dell developed the story into a book-length manuscript and showed it to Maud Lovelace (author of the Betsy-Tacy books). She persuaded him “that it was a book for children, and a very good one” (Scott O’Dell, n.d.). Lovelace penned the biography for O’Dell when he won the Newbery Medal for Island of the Blue Dolphins. She concludes the biography with “Scott O’Dell’s life brought him naturally a knowledge of Indians, dogs, and the ocean; and he was born with an inability to keep from writing. So he gave us the moving legend of Karana” (p. 108).
In his acceptance speech, O’Dell referenced animal cruelty and forgiveness as themes that are present in his book. He also spoke at length of Antonio Garra, a Cupeno Indian man who, just before he was executed under bogus charges, said “I ask your pardon for all my offenses, and I pardon you in return” (O’Dell, p. 103). O’Dell went on to say that this man, of a peaceful tribe, is unknown to the world because he was peaceful rather than “like Geronimo” (p. 103). Karana, he said, belonged to a tribe like Garra’s. He concluded his speech saying that Karana, before her people were killed, lived in a world where “everything lived only to be exploited” but that she “made the change from that world” to “a new and more meaningful world” because she learned that “we each must be an island secure unto ourselves” where we “transgress our limits” in a “reverence for all life” (p. 104).
Acclaim and Critiques of Island of the Blue Dolphins
Island of the Blue Dolphins received glowing reviews and went on to win the Newbery Award. It was made into a movie in 1964 and has since been made into audio recordings several times. The National Council of Teachers of English listed it on its “Books for You” in 1972, 1976, and 1988. In 1976, the Children’s Literature Association named it one of the ten best American children’s books of the past 200 years (O’Dell, 1990). It is the subject of numerous amateur videos on YouTube and there are volumes of lesson plans written for teachers. Over the years, the cover has changed several times. As of this writing, it has 734 customer reviews on Amazon.com. Thirty-three readers gave it one star, while over 600 gave it four or five stars.
In 1990, Island of the Blue Dolphins was republished, with illustrations rendered by Ted Lewin, and an introduction by Zena Sutherland. A fiftieth anniversary edition was published in 2010, with a new introduction by Lois Lowry. She showers O’Dell’s novel with praise, noting that he “masterfully” brings the reader onto the island (O’Dell, 2010). In 2010, School Library Journal blogger Elizabeth Bird listed it as one of the Top 100 Children’s Novels (Reese, 2010). In 2010, the book was listed in second place on Amazon’s list of “Bestsellers in Children’s Native American Books” (Reese, 2010).
In the academic literature, Maher (1992) writes that Island of the Blue Dolphins is a “counterwestern” that gives “voice to the oppressed, to those who lost their lands and their cultures” (p. 216). Tarr (1997) disagrees with that assessment, asserting that the reader’s uncritical familiarity with stereotypical depictions of American Indians is the reason it has fared so well. Moreover, Tarr (2002) writes that the stoic characterization of Karana and her manner of speaking without contractions are stereotypical Hollywood Indian depictions rather than one that might be called authentic. Placing the novel in a social and historical context gives depth to Tarr’s statement and also explains why it is so popular.
Island of the Blue Dolphins in a Social and Historical Context
In the years preceding the publication of Island of the Blue Dolphins, America was enjoying the heyday of Hollywood Westerns that depicted savage Indians who terrorized settlers and captured their women, and heroic White men who courted Indian maidens and bemoaned the way Indians were treated by Whites. John Ford’s Stagecoach (1939) follows a stagecoach of travelers who must be mindful of Indian attacks. Broken Arrow (1950) featured Jimmy Stewart as a man in love with an Apache girl and who, out of love and sympathy, tries to help make peace between the Apaches and the U.S. troops. In The Searchers (1956), John Wayne plays the role of a man on the search for a White girl who had been abducted by Indians.
Some of the research that went into Country of the Sun reappears in Island. Presumably, O’Dell conducted his research during the 1950s. That decade was a devastating time for several American Indian nations, a time during which their identity as sovereign nations was again under government attack. It is useful to review how they came to be known as sovereign nations.
From the moments of their arrival on the continent now called North America, Europeans encountered well-ordered nations or tribes of Indigenous peoples, each with its own territories and forms of governance. Recognition of that nationhood is evident in the treaties European heads of state made with their counterparts amongst the 500+ sovereign Indigenous nations (Deloria and DeMallie, 1999). In the treaties, lands were ceded to the United States in return for federally provided health care, housing, and education. As time passed, various entities wanted to nullify the treaties, thereby discontinuing federal funding to tribes and making available lands held by tribes. Desire for land, coupled with the rampant corruption within the Bureau of Indian Affairs that had federal oversight for the tribes, led Congress to terminate its nation-to-nation relationship with the tribes through a policy outlined in House Concurrent Resolution 108 (Wilkinson and Biggs, 1977) that led to several public laws enacted by Congress, including the California Rancheria Termination Act (Public Law 85-671). Through the Termination period (1953-1962), over one hundred bands, communities, and rancherias (California Mission Indians) in California were terminated (Nies, 1996). Given his care to include mistreatment of California Indians in the 1800s, it is curious that O’Dell does not reference any of the Terminations in Country of the Sun.
Emma Hardacre’s Lone Woman of San Nicolas Island
As noted, Island of the Blue Dolphins is based on the life of Juana Maria. At the time of his research, the resources he had available to him about Juana Maria were newspaper accounts and articles about her. Emma Hardacre’s “The Lone Woman of San Nicolas Island” was first published in Scribner’s Monthly in 1880, and then again in 1950 and 1973. Hardacre begins by noting that Robinson Crusoe is a work of fiction, whereas the story of the Lone Woman of San Nicolas Island was true. In Santa Barbara, people spoke less and less about the “widow, between twenty and thirty years of age” who leapt from the ship to be with her child who had accidentally been left behind (p. 75).
Years later, a Mission priest named Father Gonzales commissioned Thomas Jeffries to go to San Nicolas to see if she was still alive. Jeffries (p. 277):
found the remains of a curious hut, made of whales’ ribs planted in a circle, and so adjusted as to form the proper curve of a wigwam-shaped shelter. This he judged to have been formerly either the residence of the chief or a place of worship where sacrifices were offered. He had picked up several ollas, or vessels of stone, and one particularly handsome cup of clouded green serpentine.
More interesting to Jeffries was the abundance of sea otter. Soon after his return to the mainland, he returned to the island with George Nidiver and a crew of Indians on an otter hunt. For six weeks, they hunted seal and otter. Leaving the island, a sailor said he thought he saw a human figure calling to them, but the figure vanished.
On their third trip to hunt at the island, Nidiver saw a footprint and exclaimed that the woman was alive. The next day, Nidiver found a basket that contained “bone needles, thread made of sinews, shell fishhooks, ornaments, and a partially completed robe of birds’ plumage, made of small squares neatly matched and sewed together” (p. 279). In their search of the inland, they found “several circular, roofless inclosures [sic], made of woven brush. Near these shelters were poles, with dried meat hanging from elevated crosspieces” (p. 279). Not finding the woman, they determined the footprint was older than they thought, and some thought that she was probably dead. Fishing continued for several weeks. Nidiver believed she might be alive and hiding and decided to look until he found her or her remains.
A search was organized. They found the whale bone house, where “rushes were skillfully interlaced in the rib framework; an olla and old basket were near the door.” (p. 279). Climbing over slippery rocks, they found fresh footprints and followed them up a cliff. Brown, a fisherman, saw the woman in an enclosure and approached her. A pack of dogs growled at him but ran away when she uttered a cry that silenced them. She did not see Brown approaching. Hardacre reports that “the complexion of the woman was much fairer than the ordinary Indian, her personal appearance pleasing, features regular, her hair, thick and brown, falling about her shoulders in a tangled mat” (p. 280). She was anxiously watching the men below her dwelling. Brown signaled to the men that he had found her and that they should approach. When he spoke to her, she ran a few steps, then (p. 280):
instantly controlling herself, stood still, and addressed him in an unknown tongue. She seemed to be between forty and fifty years of age, in fine physical condition, erect, with a well-shaped neck and arms and unwrinkled face. She was dressed in a tunic-shaped garment made of birds’ plumage, low in the neck, sleeveless, and reaching to the ankle.
She greeted the other men and then set about preparing a meal for them that consisted of roasted roots. Through gestures, they communicated that she was to go with them. She understood immediately and put her things in pack baskets.
On board their ship, Brown wanted to preserve her feather dress, and so made her a petticoat of ticking. He gave her a man’s cotton shirt and a neckerchief. She watched Brown closely as he sewed, and showed him how she used her bone needle to puncture the cloth and then put thread through the perforations. Through gestures, she told Brown of her years on the island, how she made fire “by rapidly rubbing a pointed stick along the groove of a flat stick until a spark was struck” and that she was careful not to let it go out, covering her home fire with ashes to preserve it. She ate fish, seals’ blubber, roots, and shellfish, and she used bird skins for clothing. Her main dwelling was a large cave on the north end of the island.
On arrival in Santa Barbara, people flocked to Nidiver’s home to see her. Through gestures, she told Nidiver’s wife that dogs had eaten her baby and how she grieved its loss. She also communicated her dread of being alone, her years of hope for rescue, and at last, resignation at being alone. Nidiver was unable to find anyone amongst the Indians in the Missions who could understand her language. They learned some of her words: “A hide she called to-co (to-kay); a man, nache (nah-chey); the sky, te-gua (tay-gwah); the body, pinche (pin-oo-chey)” (p. 283). She was so gentle and modest that some believed she was not an Indian, but “a person of distinction cast away by shipwreck” (p. 283). She got weaker and weaker and when she was near death, Nidiver’s wife asked Father Sanchez to baptize her. He did so, giving her the name Juana Maria. She was buried in a walled cemetery and the mission fathers “sent her feather robes to Rome. They were made of the satiny plumage of the green cormorant, the feathers pointing downward, and so skillfully matched as to seem one continuous sheen of changeful luster” (p. 284).
The academic resources on the people of San Nicolas Island were scant at that time that O’Dell wrote Island of the Blue Dolphins. Archeological studies post-1960 have generated a richer body of materials. Pre-1960, O’Dell likely drew from resources he used when writing his history of California. These included Kroeber’s handbook. He reports that her speech (language) was “thoroughly unintelligible” to Chumash Indians in the area and to Indians from Santa Catalina Island as well (p. 634). Most dwellings, Kroeber wrote, “were reared on a frame of whale ribs and jaws, either covered with sea-lion hides or wattled with brush or rushes” (p. 634). Dugout canoes “may have been burned from drift logs” (p. 634). Seals, water birds, fish, and mollusks were the primary source of food, supplemented by roots. He concludes with “whether the toloache cult or the image form of mourning anniversary had reached the island must remain in abeyance; and as to society, there is total ignorance. Ghalas-at has been given as the name of the island. This is perhaps the native or the Chumash pronunciation of Gabrielino Haras-nga” (p. 635.)
O’Dell may have read a study published in an archeological journal in 1953. Meighan and Eberhart’s study stated that “ethnographically, almost nothing is known of the tribe” and that there was a “virtual absence of trade goods, in particular glass beads” (p. 109). They reference the possessions of the woman as follows: “a well made sinew rope 25 feet long and one-half inch in diameter, thought to have been used in snaring sleeping seals” and, “sinew fishing line; bone and abalone shell fishhooks; bone needles; bone knives, and a knife made of a piece of iron hoop stuck in a rough wooden handle” (p. 112). Items found on the island include mats and skirt fragments made of eel grass, grass skirts, woven bags, woven baskets, stone knives with wooden handles, a stone drill with a wooden handle, wooden knife handles, a wooden ladle, an arrow shaft, a wooden dark foreshaft with bone bars, a drill with wooden shaft and stone point, harpoon points, a great many mortars and pestles, steatite dishes and bowls, stone beads and pendants, bird and sea-lion claws used as pendants, stone ground spoons and ladles . Meighan and Eberhart report four Nicoleno words: “tokay (hide), nahchey (man), taygway (sky), and pinoochey (body). Bird bones were used to make beads, whistles, awls, and fishhooks. Fish and shellfish were the primary source of food, including abalone, rock scallops, mussels, limpets, and sea urchins.
Clearly, these two key sources say little was known about the people of Ghalas-at and the woman at the heart of O’Dell’s novel. And yet, he was able to write a novel of 186 pages. With this survey of the source material of that time, I turn to a close read of specific passages from the story.
A Close Read of Island of the Blue Dolphins
In the following table, the left column contains a selection of material from the story. In the right column are notes specific to the information in the left column. Some of the passages are not addressed in the Discussion following the table; they are retained in the table for further research.
“I remember the day the Aleut ship came to our island” (p. 9)
“I” is Karana. On page 12, O’Dell tells us the name of the island: Ghalas-at. The Aleut’s are an Indigenous people from what came to be known as Alaska. During the time of the novel (1835), the Aleuts were enslaved by Russians and forced to hunt sea otters (Pullar, 1996).
Karana describes Romo, her 6-year old brother: “He was small for one who had lived so many suns and moons” (p. 9)
Writers often use the cliché “many moons ago” when writing from an Indian point of view. Though it is obvious that people who do not speak English would have words in their language for sun or moon or the passage of time, the “many moons ago” idiom, inserted into the mind/mouth of any Native character obscures the diversity of language.
When Romo sees the Aleut ship, he describes it as “a small cloud” (p. 10).
In Country of the Sun, O’Dell recounts a Cahuilla legend, “The Lost Spanish Galleon” (p. 147) that begins with Cahuilla men seeing a Spanish galleon and thinking it was a cloud.
As Orlov comes ashore, “Half the men from our village stood at the water’s edge. The rest were concealed among the rocks at the foot of the trail, ready to attack the intruders should they prove unfriendly” (p. 12).
In Country of the Sun, when the Spanish galleon is sighted, O’Dell writes “The Cahuillas hid themselves behind rocks along the shore” and their chief “cautioned his people to remain hidden” (p. 148).
When Captain Orlov comes ashore and begins negotiations with Karana’s father who is chief of the people at Ghalas-at, Karana is surprised that her father gives Orlov his seldom used and secret “real” name (Chowig) because “if people use your secret name it becomes worn out and loses its magic” (p. 13).
Look for: Names and their power.
“Karana” is the protagonists’ secret name. Her common name is “Won-a-pa-lei” which means “The Girl with the Long Black Hair” (p. 13).
The translation does not make sense, given the likelihood that all the girls would have long black hair.
The Aleuts come ashore, and Karana sees “a tall man with a yellow beard” (p. 12).
In Country of the Sun, Yuma Indians and a “bearded” Spanish captain come ashore (p. 148).
The night Orlov arrives, her father “warned everyone in the village of Ghalas-at against visiting the camp. “The Aleuts come from a country far to the north,” he said. “Their ways are not ours nor is their language” (p. 17).
From O’Dell’s Country of the Sun: The night the Spanish came ashore, “Darkness fell and the Cahuillas went silently back to their village and held council far into the night. The older men, who had heard tales of Spanish greed and ferocity, were in favor of abandoning the village and taking the women and children into the mountains. But the younger men, proud of their heritage as warriors and jealous of it, prevailed” (p. 148). They lay plans for an attack.
Each night, people in the tribe “counted the dead otter and thought of the beads and other things that each pelt meant” (p. 23).
Karana does not like the slaughter of the otters she regards as friends she would have fun watching as they played. “It was more fun than the thought of beads to wear around my neck” (p. 23).
This is O’Dell’s first mention of beads. Presumably, the negotiations that took place when Orlov landed included beads but this was not specified.
In Country of the Sun: The next morning, the Spanish gave each of the Indians “a handful of beaded trinkets” (p. 149).
The beads story works because it plays on the idea that Indians are not smart enough to know that their land and resources aren’t worth more than beads. Williams’ analysis of Dutch, Manhattan, beads is excellent.
Karana’s father sends young men “to the beach to build a canoe from a log which had drifted in from the sea” (p. 24).
Kroeber: Canoes “may have been burned from drift logs” (p. 634).
Orlov and his men prepare to leave without paying for the otter pelts. Chowig speaks to Orlov, who signals his men to bring a black chest to the island: “Captain Orlov raised the lid and pulled out several necklaces. There was little light in the sky, yet the beads sparkled as he turned them this way and that” (p. 27)
The archeological record (Kroeber/Meighan & Eberhart) does not list sparkly beads recovered on San Nicolas Island.
Items Karana has in a basket she carries onto the rescue ship: “three fine needles of whalebone, an awl for making holes, a good stone knife for scarping hides, two cooking pots, and a small box made from a shell with many earrings in it” (p. 42).
References to these items are in the historical record.
Karana’s sister, Ulape, “had two boxes of earrings, for she was vainer than I, and when she put them into her basket, she drew a thin mark with blue clay across her nose and cheekbones. The mark meant that she was unmarried” (p. 42).
An assumption that Karana and her people had the same ideas of beauty (vanity) that O’Dell did.
After she leaps off the boat and is back on shore, “The only thing that made me angry was that my beautiful skirt of yucca fibers, which I had worked on so long and carefully, was ruined” (p. 47).
An assumption that Karana and her people held the same ideas of beauty that O’Dell did.
Romo declares that, as son of Chowig, he is now Chief of Ghalas-at. Karana replies that before he can be the chief, he must become a man: “As is the custom, therefore, I will have to whip you with a switch of nettles and then tie you to a red ant hill” (p. 51).
O’Dell’s likely source for this is Kroeber’s Handbook of the Indians of California, Volume 2. On page 672, he describes “The Ant Ordeal” that may have been part of the “Toloache Initiation” of Luiseno boys: “The boys were laid on ant hills, or put into a hole containing ants. More of the insects were shaken over them from baskets in which they had been gathered. The sting or bite of the large ant smarts intensely, and the ordeal was a severe one, and rather doubtfully ameliorated when at the conclusion the ants were whipped from the body by nettles.”
Romo has “a strong of sea-elephant teeth which someone had left behind” (p. 50).
Meighan references sea-lion claws used as pendants.
Karana needs weapons: “The laws of Ghalas-at forbade the making of weapons by women of the tribe, so I went out to search for any that might have been left behind” (p. 58.)
Thinking the chest Orlov left may have an iron spearhead, Karana digs up the chest and finds it “filled with beads and bracelets and earrings of many colors” (p. 59). There are no spearheads in the chest.
Reference to beads draws on “primitive” (stupid) Indians who sold Manhattan for beads.
Karana “wondered what would happen to me if I went against the law of our tribe which forbade the making of weapons by women—if I did not think of it at all and made those things which I must have to protect myself” (p. 61).
Future research on weaponry.
“There was a legend among our people that the island had once been covered with tall trees. This was a long time ago, at the beginning of the world when Tumaiyowit and Mukat ruled. The two gods quarreled about many things. Tumaiyowit wished people to die. Mukat did not. Tumaiyowit angrily went down, down to another world under this world, taking his belongs with him, so people die because of him” (p. 82).
This story, from the Cupeno Indians, appears in Country of the Sun in “Revolt in the Mountains” as follows: “One of the most dramatic and current [myths of creation], as recounted by Salvador Cuevas, a Luiseno, has the world and everything in it created by the gods Tumaiyowit and Mukat. The gods quarreled and argued about their respective ages. They disagreed about many things. Tumaiyowit wished people to die. Mukat did not. Tumaiyowit went down, down to another world under this world, takig his belongings with him, so people die because he did” (p. 47). It is also in Kroeber’s Handbook, on page 692.
Karana uses several words that she says are in her language:
“Won-a-pa-lei” means “the girl with the long black hair” (p. 13)
“sai-sai” is a kind of fish (p. 85)
“rontu” means fox eyes (p. 105)
“zalwit” means pelican (p. 107)
“naip” means fish (p. 107)
“gnapan” is a thick leaved plant (p. 115)
“Mon-a-nee” means “Girl with the Large Eyes” (p. 160)
“Rontu-Aru” means “son of Rontu” (p. 169)
None of these words are in Kroeber or Hardacre.
O’Dell had little to go on in creating the worldview of Karana and her people. To flesh out the story, he inserted his prior research on other California tribes, inserting their ways into the Nicoleno tribe, as though one peoples’ way of being was interchangeable with another. O’Dell wrote Island of the Blue Dolphins prior to the development of multicultural literature and the attention to specificity, so it may be appropriate not to judge him too harshly for doing it. He also drew from popular stereotypes and clichés of American Indians, including the stories in which American Indians traded their land for a string of beads. An American embrace of stereotypes and clichés led to—and guaranteed—the success of the novel.
Island of the Blue Dolphins is a lot like most books and media about American Indians that give the audience the kind of Indians that America loves to love (Shanley, 1997). O’Dell gave us both: the savage ones (the Aleuts), and the gentle ones (Karana’s people). In a spirit of generosity, it is possible to justify why his story met with such success but how do we justify an embrace of it in the present time, when we know so much more about accuracy and authenticity of representation? And why do even our leading scholars fail to step away from the book? For example, in her introduction to the illustrated version, Zena Sutherland conflated the story of Juana Maria with the fictional story of Karana. She incorrectly refers to the Lost Woman as Karana, instead of Juana Maria. She says that she was twelve years old (Juana Maria was a mother, not a child), and that Karana’s brother died on the island (Juana Maria’s child died). The real person is lost in the embrace of the fiction character, Karana. Is sentiment in the way?
There is a fascination, a nostalgia, and a yearning for the romantic Indian and all that “Indian” means to people who think the best life anyone could have is one of the Indian of yesteryear, living in the pristine wilderness, where the weight of the world is not on your shoulders, where you can breath clean air, and drink clean water.
This nostalgia also captures the imaginings of the perfect childhood, but neither one is—or was—real. As such, Island of the Blue Dolphins is a perfect example of a book at the center of the canon of sentiment (Stevenson, 1997). Indeed, the canon of sentiment “exists to preserve—to preserve the childhood of those adults who create that canon and to preserve the affection those adults feel for the books within it” (p. 113). A good many adults imagine the childhood O'Dell described and the survival that Karana experienced. We like to think we could survive, too, and a story like this one lets us see how that could happen.
Nonetheless, the story is lacking in its accuracy and suitability for informing children about American Indians. Will there come a time when there is a critical mass of gatekeepers rejecting works like this? I hope so. Sentiment is no excuse for ignorance.
Deloria, V. and DeMallie, R. J. Documents of American Indian Diplomacy. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press.
Hardacre, Emma. (1971). The Lone Woman of San Nicolas Island. The California Indians: Source Book, edited by R. F. Heizer and M. A. Whipple. Berkeley: University of California Press, 272-281.
Kroeber, A.L. (1925). Handbook of the Indians of California. Washington DC: U.S. Government Printing Office.
Lovelace, M. H. (1961). Scott O’Dell: Biographical note. The Horn Book Magazine, 37,
Maher, S. N. (1992). Encountering others: The meeting of cultures in Scott O’Dell’s Island of the Blue Dolphins and Sing Down the Moon. Children’s Literature in Education, 23(4), 215-227.
Meighan, C.W. and Eberhart, H. (1953). Archaeological resources of San Nicolas Island, California. American Antiquity, 19(2), 109-125.
Nies, J. (1996). Native American History. New York: Ballantine Books.
O’Dell, S. (1957). Country of the Sun: Southern California, An Informal History and Guide. New York: Thomas E. Crowell Company.
O’Dell, S. (1961). Acceptance paper. The Horn Book Magazine, 37, 99-104.
O’Dell, S. (1978). Island of the Blue Dolphins. Trumpet Club Edition. New York: Dell Publishing Co.
O’Dell, S. (1990). Island of the Blue Dolphins. With illustrations by Ted Lewin. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company.
Payment, S. (2006). Scott O’Dell. New York: Rosen Pub. Group.
Reese, D. (2010). Bestsellers in Children’s Native American Books.
Pullar, G. L. (1996). Alutiiq. Native America in the Twentieth Century: An Encyclopedia. New York: Garland Publishing, Inc. Edited by Mary B. Davis.
Reese, D. (2010). Portrayals of American Indians in SLJ’s 2010 “Top 100 Children’s Novels”
Scott O’Dell (n.d.). More about Scott.
Shanley, K. W. (1997). The Indians America loves to love and read: American Indian identity and cultural appropriation. American Indian Quarterly, 21(4), 675-702.
Stevenson, D. (1997). Sentiment and significance: The impossibility of recovery in the children’s literature canon or, the drowning of The Water-babies. The Lion and the Unicorn, 21(1), 112.
Tarr, C. A. (1997). An unintentional system of gaps: A phenomenological reading of Scott O’Dell’s Island of the Blue Dolphins. Children’s Literature in Education, 28(2), 61-71.
Tarr, C. A. (2002). Apologizing for Scott O’Dell: Too little, too late. Children’s Literature, 30, 199-204.
Wesselhoeft, C. (2010). Scott O’Dell, ‘Blue Dolphins’ author, tells why he writes for children. Retrieved from http://adiosnirvana.com/?p=480
Wilkinson, C.F. and Biggs, E.R. (1977). The evolution of the termination policy. American Indian Law Review 5(1), 139-184.
Update, June 17, 2016: Bridgid Shannon, a colleague in children's literature, pointed me to the Lone Woman and Last Indians Digital Archives, a page maintained by the National Park Service. Do take a look! Lots of terrific info from a team led by Sara L. Schwebel.
Update, June 19, 2016: Lauren Peters, a fellow member of the American Indian Library Association, sent me her review of Island of the Blue Dolphins. She posted it in 2013: Defending the Aleuts in Island of the Blue Dolphins.
Update, September 24, 2018: Professor Eve Tuck's response to this article consists of a series of tweets. Her thread started at 8:07 AM on September 23, 2018.
I appreciate the thorough analysis that @debreese has done here. As an Aleut person, I can say that the inaccuracies depiction of Aleut people in this book meant that non-Indigenous people said a lot of painful and ignorant things to me, especially as a kid.
I was a kid growing up in a white rural town in Pennsylvania, and usually ours was the only Native family in the community. I attended a school that had multiple copies of this book in classrooms, the library. I remember there even being a door display of this book.
So I grew up in a white community that only knew of Aleuts (Unangan) from this book.
I was taunted for it. I was asked by children and teachers to explain why Aleuts were “so mean.” And no matter what I said about my family, especially my grandmother, it wasn’t believed.
The book was believed over my real-life knowledge of Aleut people.
Fictionalizing an Indigenous community to make them the violent device of your plot line is a totally settler thing to do. O’Dell had no business writing a word “about” our people.
The book says nothing about us. Like Gerald Vizenor’s analysis of the figure of the ‘indian,’ it says more about the violent preoccupations of the settler, and says nothing about Unangan.
The last thing that I will say is that when I think about colonial violence that Aleut people were *actually* experiencing in their/our homelands in the time period that the book was set, it makes me doubly angry about the falsehoods depicted in this book.
But that would never be a best seller.
Labels: Eve Tuck, Island of the Blue Dolphins, not recommended, Scott O'Dell
Brie said...
Have you seen the "Lone Woman and Last Indians Digital Archive" edited by Sara Schwebel? It went live in 2016 and features over 450 resources related to the Lone Woman of San Nicolas Island that may be of interest.
http://tundra.csd.sc.edu/lonewoman/literary
Thanks! I wrote that paper in 2014, I think. I'm going to add a link to the body of the post.
Yapha Mason said...
Thank you for this in-depth look at Island of the Blue Dolphins. I am using it to start a discussion with the 4th grade teachers about removing it from our curriculum. One of the things that they pointed out was that the book is sold in the gift shop at the Chumash Museum. I wasn't sure how to answer that and I would love to get your thoughts. Thank you. (Here is the link to the gift shop: http://www.chumashindianmuseum.com/museum-shop.html )
Sam Jonson said...
You know, Juana Maria's language was indeed found to be related (and not too distantly) to Cahuilla, Luiseño, and Cupeño. But keeping the names (and myths) of the Nicoleño gods exactly the same as those of the Luiseño gods is just as bad as ignoring the fact that the Germanic god called Oðin in Old Norse is called Woden (as in Wednesday) in Old English. Same with Þor and Þunor, respectively. Please, writers, try to think critically, and not just involving stereotypes. Do some linguistic research as well, so you can try and speculate what sound changes might happen in branching languages.
Sunday, May 28, 2017 at 5:21:00 PM CDT
Karen Gorss said...
@Yapha Mason, have you contacted the Chumash Museum about this question? I found this address on their web site: info@chumashmuseum.org
How did your discussion go with the 4th grade teachers? As the parent of a 2nd grader and a 9th grader, I deeply appreciate the work of school librarians and all other educators.
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A New Way to Deal With Green Oligarchs
By Jackson Scott| 2019-05-14T18:43:13-07:00 May 14th, 2019|
As it stands today, more than half of the Democratic candidates for president support the Green New Deal, a “deeply ambitious” plan that backers say would bring America to “net-zero” carbon pollution by the middle of the century.
While the Green New Deal is framed as a selfless effort to save the planet, it is really just another political hustle. One need look no further than at the monied interests behind the bill to see that Democratic donors get the goldmine and the rest of the country gets the shaft.
The billionaire class happens to support the idea because it also happens to speculate in the market for renewable energy.
Take Tom Steyer, a left-wing billionaire who poured nearly $100 million into the Democratic campaigns of 2016. As the founder of Farallon Capital and a former coal investor, Steyer is now looking to protect his investments in clean energy—even as he crows about saving the planet and mobilizing the country’s resources to stop climate change.
When speaking to reporters last month, Steyer made it clear that “there’s no way we’d support somebody who wasn’t absolutely crystal clear and credible on climate. If they’re not a climate warrior, we’re not for them. Period. Period, the end.”
And like clockwork, just as Washington Governor Jay Inslee made climate change the single issue of his fledgling campaign, Steyer pounced to provide immediate financial support from his SuperPAC.
The list of billionaires does not end with Steyer. Nathaniel Simons, founder of the Meritage investment group who is heavily invested in “net-zero” real estate, is also a top donor to environmental causes promoted by the Democratic Party.
But affirming before God and man the benefits of green energy are not just a run-of-the-mill sacrament to our country’s billionaires. For some members of the professional class, it is also a highly lucrative jobs program.
Green energy legislation is a prime case of corporate cronyism—where trillions of dollars in taxpayer money will be moved to the tech sector, the wind and solar industry, and other well-connected lobbies for the purpose of producing clean energy tools and zero-carbon technologies.
Wherever green energy legislation is passed, the activists, media tycoons, researchers, and academics working in the green-industrial complex are sure to escape unemployment.
And just as the Green New Deal would benefit much of the professional class, the impact of the bill on America’s middle class will be equally devastating. The plan as envisioned by Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) and her democratic-socialist friends would affect the way normal Americans produce energy, farm land, raise cattle, construct homes, drive automobiles, and manufacture products—things city-dwelling liberals will likely never do in their lives.
According to a Heritage Foundation forecast, the Green New Deal would:
Decrease employment by 1.4 million jobs
Bring on a total income loss of more than $40,000 for a family of four
Increase the average electricity bill by 12-14 percent
In other words, green energy harms working-class families. They are the ones who spend a much higher percentage of their household income on energy for their homes and would be unable to afford green energy vehicles.
If you want to see how green energy policies would impact the working- and middle classes of America, look no further than Australia. In the Land Down Under, you see a development in their Labor Party that is similar to the affliction now consuming America’s party of limousine liberals.
“The Labor Party and its putative green allies have been transformed into an instrument of the bureaucracy and ‘progressive’ gentry, well-positioned to flourish in a hyper-regulated state,” wrote Joel Kotkin at City Journal.
As for Australia’s middle class, Kotkin notes, the number of households “earning between three-quarters and double the average income—has been dropping by more than a percentage point per decade since the 1980s.”
Australian elites, meanwhile, have little stake in the domestic forms of production which center on Australia’s natural resources. They continue to profit “from the flow of natural resources to East Asia, through tax policies or financing deals, or by pushing climate-change mitigation programs . . .”
Could not the same be said of the professional classes of America and the new political tensions with the country’s “deplorables” working in the coal industry and in fossil fuels?
What Kotkin hints at, but does not fully develop in this piece, is how this new party divide goes far beyond economics—a commitment to green energy penetrates the social fabric of a country by making family life more difficult.
All across America, even in places like New York City, the Green New Deal would increase land use regulation and drives up the costs of housing. In some cities, especially high-cost places like New York and San Francisco, small families making less than $100,000 a year would be priced out completely.
The professional classes, meanwhile, will continue to afford a traditional conception of the American dream, while embracing policies that unwind it for the less fortunate. Having a family, a four-bedroom home, and a couple of cars would be a luxury available only to a privileged few. Everyone else, lawmakers suggest, should get used to multi-family homes and use public transportation.
For anyone who does not have a stake in building this green utopia, there is a remedy: we must continue to drive the class wedge in American politics between labor and the elites, while expanding the issue to encompass middle-class interests, which include access to things considered (until recently anyway) mainstays of American middle class life.
Just as those who traditionally vote for the Labor Party in Australia have found no place in the Labor/Green alliance, the coalition of GOP voters that continues to emerge in the United States has no stake in a green energy future. Preserving the portfolios of liberal and leftist billionaires is unlikely to be a winning issue in our democratic republic.
The good news is that the appeal to working-class voters for Republicans may not stop with the white working class. Minority groups, too, may soon ask themselves how they benefit from green energy policies.
Last year, for instance, when former U.S. Representative Joe Crowley (D-N.Y.) lost to Green New Deal champion Ocasio-Cortez, many commentators saw his defeat as a sign that a new, “diverse,” wave of voters, enthusiastic for green energy, were ready to take the country by storm.
What few mention, however, is that Crowley beat Cortez among African American voters at a rate of more than two-to-one. Further, contrary to the identity-politics narrative, an Irish guy named Joe managed to split the Hispanic vote with Ocasio-Cortez almost right down the middle.
Green energy legislation, and the urban activists who represent it, are really nothing more than a wave of Millennials moving in to gentrify the district. That is, the “AOC vote” is mostly childless, white, university-educated liberals, whose tony parents will pay their energy bills no matter how high the costs may soar.
Demonstrating how liberal Democrats have become a class-conscious party, with the Green New Deal as their instrument, may be the best way to siphon off the traditional Democratic base against the professional class. We may soon have a healthy majority, united in scorn against the new green oligarchs.
Photo Credit: Alex Wong/Getty Images
About the Author: Jackson Scott
Jackson Scott is a young conservative writer who lives and works in the Northwest.
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BREXIT: UK/US Agree New Open Skies Deal
by Tomos Howells
LONDON — A new open skies agreement has been inked today by UK Transport Secretary, Chris Grayling, and the United States. The announcement has come just days after the British Government has taken its final proposed BREXIT deal to the House of Commons for it to be voted on.
The new deal guarantees that, even in the event of a no-deal BREXIT, traffic between the US and the UK will not be restricted.
London-Heathrow Terminal 5
The UK Government says that the new agreement projects an estimate of £50 billion in trading relationship between the two countries, which both parties are obviously keen to see continue to grow.
Grayling noted how the UK and the United States “have a special relationship, which has helped shape the modern world and there is no better example of this than aviation.”
“Our transatlantic flights have helped to bring our countries even closer together, strengthening our ties and boosting our economies,” he added.
In addition to this trading relationship, the news also means that airports such as London-Heathrow (LHR) and Gatwick (LGW), as well as northern powerhouse Manchester Airport (MAN) will be able to continue to hold its positions as key European hubs for transatlantic operations.
Six Virgin Atlantic Boeing 747s at Orlando Airport.
Today’s announcement has been welcomed by many airlines and airports, most notably British Airways, Virgin Atlantic, and Manchester Airport, all of which have tremendous amounts of UK/US operations at hand.
International Airlines Group (IAG) CEO, Willie Walsh, released a statement on this announcement. “It’s critical that Britain maintains full access to international aviation markets so it can continue to develop its global trading links. This agreement is a significantly positive development which we welcome,” he said.
“The agreement, which closely follows the Model US Open Skies Agreement, facilitates strong competition and is clearly pro-consumer. The US is a major destination for British businesses and tourists, while the UK welcomes many American visitors to its shores,” Walsh added.
LONDON, UK: British Airways’ first Boeing 787 Dreamliner arrives at London Heathrow on 27 June 2013 (Picture by Jeff Garrish/British Airways)
This announcement definitely brings much-needed relief to many businesses and holidaymakers, who will now be able to have the peace of mind that travel will continue undisturbed between the two countries for the foreseeable future.
Virgin Atlantic’s CEO, Craig Kreeger, said that he is thrilled that the UK and US governments have reached an agreement, “which will enable our customers to continue traveling as normal between the UK and US post-BREXIT.”
“We would like to thank the Department for Transport, Department of Transportation and Department of State for their diligence and hard work in finalizing this agreement far in advance of the March 2019 deadline, which will provide much-needed reassurance for both business and leisure travelers.”
Likewise, Tim Hawkins, chief strategy officer of Manchester Airports Group, commented, “The government’s new aviation deal with the US government is hugely positive for passengers and businesses flying on US routes from our airports – because it gives clear reassurance on flights post-BREXIT and provides an ‘open-skies’ agreement that will encourage competition and choice in the long term.”
While the UK prepares to leave the EU, today’s news will be the first of many big announcements of how the UK will hold itself on to the international aviation stage.
BrexitBritish AirwaysLondon GatwickLondon HeathrowManchester AirportVirgin Atlantic
Tomos Howells
Farnborough: Uganda National Airlines Signs for 4 CRJ900s
Asiana to Offer LAX-SAN Bus Service
US DOT Evaluating Future of Delta’s Seattle/Tokyo Haneda Slots
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Tag Archives: shuffleboard
June 2, 2013 · 11:46
Almanac – June 02
1692 – Bridget Bishop was the first person to go to trial in the Salem witch trials in Salem, Massachusetts.
She wasaccused of bewitching five young women, Abigail Williams, Ann Putnam, Jr., Mercy Lewis, Mary Walcott, and Elizabeth Hubbard, but she may also have been accused because she owned one or more taverns, played shuffleboard, dressed in provocative clothing, and was outspoken.
She was hanged on June 10 1692.
1740 – Marquis de Sade born. French aristocrat, revolutionary politician, philosopher and writer, famous for his libertine sexuality.
His works include novels, short stories, plays, dialogues and political tracts; in his lifetime some were published under his own name, while others appeared anonymously and Sade denied being their author.
He is best known for his erotic works, which combined philosophical discourse with pornography, depicting sexual fantasies with an emphasis on violence, criminality and blasphemy against the Catholic Church.
He was a proponent of extreme freedom, unrestrained by morality, religion or law. The words “sadism” and “sadist” are derived from his name.
2008 – Bo Diddley died. American R&B vocalist, guitarist, songwriter (usually as Ellas McDaniel), and rock and roll pioneer.
He was known as The Originator because of his key role in the transition from the blues to rock, influencing a host of acts, including Buddy Holly, Jimi Hendrix, The Rolling Stones, Pink Floyd, The Velvet Underground, The Who, The Yardbirds, Eric Clapton, Elvis Presley, and The Beatles, among others.
He introduced more insistent, driving rhythms and a hard-edged electric guitar sound on a wide-ranging catalog of songs, along with African rhythms and a signature beat (a simple five-accent clave rhythm) that remains a cornerstone of rock and pop.
Filed under Almanac
Tagged as 1692, 1740, 2008, Abigail Williams, african rhythms, American, Ann Putnam, blasphemy, Bo Diddley, Bridget Bishop, Buddy Holly, Catholic church, criminality, dialogues, driving rhythms, electric guitar, electric guitar sound, Elizabeth Hubbard, Ellas McDaniel, Elvis Presley, Eric Clapton, erotic works, extreme freedom, French aristocrat, guitarist, hard-edged, http www youtube, Jimi Hendrix, Jr, libertine sexuality, Marquis de Sade, Mary Walcott, Massachusetts, Mercy Lewis, novels, philosopher, philosophical discourse, Pink Floyd, pioneer, plays, political tracts, pornography, provocative clothing, R&B, revolutionary politician, rock and roll, roll pioneer, sadism, sadist, Salem, salem massachusetts, salem witch trials, Sex, sexual fantasies, short stories, shuffleboard, Songwriter, The beatles, The Originator, The Rolling Stones, The Velvet Underground, The Who, The Yardbirds, violence., vocalist., witch trials in salem, writer
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Home Healthcare GE Healthcare & Vanderbilt Collaborate on AI-Powered Precision Medicine
GE Healthcare & Vanderbilt Collaborate on AI-Powered Precision Medicine
Last Modified Date - January 8, 2019
Currently, advances relating to cancer care like immunotherapy are promising considerable success in treatment even though they pose greater risks and unforeseen results.
Vanderbilt University Medical Center and GE Healthcare are collaborating to create artificial intelligence (AI) apps with the ability to examine anonymized data belonging to the patient in a bid to assist physicians in determining better treatments.
Through retroactively assessing imaging, proteomic, cellular, genomic, tumor, and demographic data drawn from anonymized patient data, the AI applications are expected to help clinicians in deciding the ideal form of treatment for both future and current patients.
“This partnership is a great example of the increasing convergence of the tools, technologies and data used by therapy innovators and healthcare providers,” said Kieran Murphy, the president and chief executive officer of GE Healthcare, in a statement.
Since immunotherapies are costly and boast the ability to trigger damage in case the inappropriate therapy is picked, they are still linked with increased costs and mortalities.
Making well-informed choices regarding the possible effectiveness of a particular treatment will allow physicians to cut costs and provide more outcomes, specifically for patients.
Artificial intelligence (AI)-powered clinical decision and analysis support like this are expected to spearhead an increased adoption of a given course of precision cancer treatment through accurately forecasting how a patient would respond to a particular therapy.
Artificial intelligence (AI) is currently being used in making sense out of under-analyzed health records.
The insights it is capable of gathering by going through a huge set of patient records can assist in not only informing personalized healthcare but also in leading health systems in better understanding how various treatment options operate.
Even though the potential of precision health records is considerable, such data is still held in silos.
With more collaborations forming around the provision of AI-driven clinical support and retroactive analysis of medical data, physicians are anticipated to make improved decisions that are supported by an array of newly-accessed records.
“Immunotherapy offers tremendous promise but given the current unpredictability of some patients’ reactions to treatments, it is also associated with increased morbidity and cost.
This partnership provides the opportunity to leverage strengths of both of our organizations to further personalize cancer care by creating new tools that allow clinicians to more accurately predict how patients will respond to a specific therapy,” said Dr. Jeff Balser, president and chief executive officer of Vanderbilt University Medical Center.
To assist in automatically categorizing drug particle shapes, a research team at Pfizer is currently experimenting with a life sciences deep learning platform, Vyasa. Pharmaceutical...
10 Big Pharmas Partner to Use AI in Drug Discovery
Ten big pharmaceutical entities, including GSK, AstraZeneca, and Johnson & Johnson, have ventured into their first partnership aimed at training their machine-learning algorithms for...
AstraZeneca Partners with BenevolentAI for Drug Discovery
Recently, AstraZeneca announced a partnership with BenevolentAI to utilize artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning in discovering potential new drugs for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis...
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The Milk Carton Kids
Sun · June 23, 2019
"All the Things That I Did and All the Things That I Didn't Do" is the new album from The Milk Carton Kids on ANTI- Records. The project marks the first time that acoustic duo Joey Ryan and Kenneth Pattengale have brought a band into the studio with them. "We wanted to do something new," Pattengale says. "We had been going around the country yet another time to do the duo show, going to the places we'd been before. There arose some sort of need for change." "Musically we knew we were going to make the record with a bigger sonic palette," says Ryan. "It was liberating to know we wouldn't have to be able to carry every song with just our two guitars." Life has changed dramatically for The Milk Carton Kids since their last studio album in 2015. Pattengale has moved to, and is now producing records in Nashville. Ryan is now the father of two children and works as a producer on "Live from Here with Chris Thile," the reboot of "A Prairie Home Companion."
American indie folk duo from Eagle Rock, California, USA.
Group based in Brooklyn, New York.
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In possible last gasp for iPad mini, Apple increases capacity to 128GB for $399
Tuesday, March 21, 2017, 06:43 am PT (09:43 am ET)
In a move potentially intended to push buyers to the budget-priced $329 iPad, Apple on Tuesday gave a minor update to the iPad mini 4, discontinuing 32-gigabyte models in favor of a single 128-gigabyte storage option with a hefty $399 entry price.
A Wi-Fi-only version costs $399, while adding cellular raises the price to $529. The amounts are identical to what Apple was previously charging for less storage.
Apple has otherwise left the tablets unchanged, including the same silver, gold, and space gray color options, as well as the aging A8 processor.
The company appears to be steering people towards its new 9.7-inch budget iPad, which goes on sale March 24 with a faster A9 processor. That product is available for as little as $329, albeit with only 32 gigabytes. Bumping storage to 128 gigabytes raises the cost to at least $429.
Apple has generally neglected the iPad mini line in recent years, perhaps most infamously with the Mini 3, which was essentially a Mini 2 with Touch ID, new storage tiers, and a gold color option.
The iPad mini 4 was originally released in Sept. 2015, and did make some more substantial upgrades including an A8 processor, 802.11ac Wi-Fi, an extra gigabyte of RAM, and a thinner body. It was still much less powerful than the 12.9-inch iPad Pro launched around the same time, which for example had an A9X chip.
New Apple 9.7-inch iPad thicker than iPad Air 2, returns to iPad Air dimensions
Last day! The Big AppleCare Sale: Save $50 to $130 on standalone AppleCare plans with no tax in 48 states
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Item 931 - AIG Africa Infrastructure March 2004
AIG Africa Infrastructure March 2004
Transcription of speech made by Mr Mandela
(18 July 1918-5 December 2013)
Nelson Mandela Centre of Memory
Migrated from the Nelson Mandela Speeches Database (Sep-2018).
Reception dinner before AIG Board Meeting
It is a great honour to once more return to this country and city that was the venue for our, South Africa’s, admission to the Organisation of African Unity. It was my great privilege then to come to this ancient site of Carthage and to reflect upon the Roman desire to destroy this African city and on our subsequent quest, centuries later, to work towards the regeneration of the African continent.
When we spoke here then, shortly after the democratic transition in our own country, the talk of the regeneration of Africa was greeted with some scepticism and a great measure of cynicism.
We reminded the cynics and sceptics that not so long before then they were equally sceptical and cynical about South Africa ever being able to solve its seemingly inextricable problems and conflicts. They were all predicting with great certainty and confidence that we had no alternative other than sliding further down into the abyss of racial war and the ultimate destruction.
We have a long way to go in our country before we can proclaim that we have achieved our objectives. Poverty and its attendant phenomena of suffering and deprivation are still too much with us before we can claim victories over the legacies of oppression and discrimination.
Yet, it would be denying the achievements of our people and of their heroic struggles if we were not to acknowledge how marvellously they and their country have managed in the short space of a decade to lay the foundations of a fundamentally different country, society and polity.
We now live in a constitutional state based on the protection and promotion of basic human rights, a state in which the protection of human dignity stands supreme, and in which the constitution guards over such fundamental values as equality, non-racialism, non-sexism and the rights of all citizens.
The same, we believe, can be said of our continent with regard to the progress it has made in this decade towards advancing democracy, rule of law and respect for human rights. Much, much more needs to be done; but the road from autocracy towards democracy has irrevocably been taken by the nations of our continent.
The leaders of the continent have decisively taken responsibility for the future of the continent and its peoples. Nothing signals it more clearly than the New Partnership for African Development (NEPAD). Africa understands its dependence on others in this essentially inter-dependent new global world. It is, however, no longer a mere begging dependant; it insists upon taking primary responsibility for its regeneration.
Our talk then here on the ruins of Carthage of a rebirth of Africa, is proving to be bearing fruit. Hence my special delight to be returning here. And to welcome all to this dinner preceding the AIG Africa Infrastructure Board meeting.
The regeneration of Africa is real. It is to be seen in conflict resolution initiatives on the continent. It is to be seen in the spread of democratic states on the continent. It is to be seen in the steady recovery of economies on the continent.
It needs to be matched ever more and more by investment into the continent and the increase of trade with the continent. Africa needs to see, more and more, the fruits of a globalised world of free trade and commerce.
I have no doubt that those present here tonight will be ambassadors for such investment and trade, all of it in service of the equal development of a world that recognizes its interdependence.
I have spoken to my family and advisors, signalling my desire to scale down on my activities, in fact to retire from them as far as that is possible. I have the gift of exceptional good health at the age of 85, approaching 86. They have persuaded me that I owe it to myself, my family and my friends to use the years of remaining good health to enjoy some of the leisure and pleasures of association that I promised them and myself.
I shall therefore seek to disengage while I am still in a position to follow affairs in the world and to offer such advice and assistance as I can.
That is a long-winded way to ask this organization to grant an old man leave to retire while he is still able to do so in good health and good spirit. And do so as one who will always remain a friend, and one who was honoured to serve you.
Best wishes, and may you and our continent prosper and go from strength to strength.
North America » Tunisia
Acquisition method: From hard drive ; Source: Nelson Mandela Foundation Prof J Gerwel. Accessioned on 15/10/2007 by Razia Saleh; Adam Kaloides
Mandela, Nelson Rolihlahla (Creator)
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The Sydney Morning Herald, 8 januari 1917
Appeal for Armenians
Mr. M.A.R. Davis, hon. treasurer of the Armenian Fund, writes:— "No one can fail to be touched by the piteous condition to which Armenia has been reduced. Nothing more nor less has been aimed at than the extermination of a Christian nation, accompanied by every outrage and torture which the minds of savage and unbridled rage and lust could invent. In the last issue of "Ararat," the Armenian official organ, there are enough horrors to sicken the stoutest heart. Among them one learns that there are 25,000 little children of one year and upwards who are left without one relation to whom they can turn for help."
To relieve in a small way the dire necessities of this unhappy nation, a committee has been formed and a depot opened at the Y.W.C.A. Thee Railway Commissioners will give free carriage to goods addressed to the depot, 163 Castlereagh-Street, Sydney."
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Anwar and Zaid”Significant Announcements..?”
Natasha received a message from her former colleague telling her that “Tomorrow there might see some fireworks in PKR. Anwar will address a rally while Zaid will have a PC. Article will be up later.”
WILL IT BE SOMETHING SIGNIFICANT?
We reposts the article for the benefit of all:-
PKR de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim is scheduled to hold a rally at the Shah Alam City Council (MBSA) auditorium tomorrow where he is expected to speak on the latest developments in the party.
According to one of his aides, Anwar (right) is expected to touch on the need to close ranks, on the eve of the final round of voting by party divisions.
“The party has undergone a lot of criticism. I believe he will address this and the need for the party to strengthen itself,” said the aide.
Last week, PKR vice-president Azmin Ali announced that Anwar will be delivering a “special address” at tomorrow’s event to explain the latest developments within the party.
The party has been in a state of disquiet and assaulted by public criticism over the tussle for the party deputy presidency, involving Azmin, Mustaffa Kamil Ayub and Zaid Ibrahim.
Even before accepting nominations, Zaid has been accusing party leaders of conspiring against him and being a victim of their smear campaign.
After two weekends of polling Zaid was just a tad behind Azmin but declared his withdrawal from the contest because of widespread “malpractise and electoral fraud”, without formally writing in on the decision.
He also placed the blame for the situation on Anwar and Azmin and urged them to step down.
Zaid to explain resignation from PKR
Anwar had mostly stayed away from the fray until today, when he insinuated that Zaid had failed to serve the party despite the amount of special privileges heaped on him as a new member.
Zaid’s (left) theatrics have attracted strong criticism against the PKR which has repeatedly denied malpractices in the elections while urging detractors to back their allegations with proof.
Meanwhile, Zaid is scheduled to hold a press conference tomorrow at 10.30am at his residence to explain his decision to quit PKR.
Over the next few weeks, he is expected to hold a series of private meetings with supporters across the country.
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Shelter Cymru
Wales's people and homes charity. More...
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Wales's people and homes charity.
Shelter Cymru describes itself as Wales's people and homes charity. Its vision is that a decent, secure home is a fundamental right and essential to the health and well-being of communities.
Shelter Cymru provides independent, specialist advice, advocacy and legal support for anyone with housing problems. In 2012 the charity's advisers helped nearly 17,000 people from across Wales, helping to prevent homelessness in 90 per cent of cases where it was threatened.
Through research, policy and campaigning activities, Shelter Cymru works to improve housing and homelessness legislation and services. Its education service aims to prevent homelessness by working with young people and providing detailed teaching and learning resources for schools and youth workers.
While Shelter Cymru works closely with its sister charity, Shelter, in England and Scotland, it is a completely independent charity focused entirely on the needs of people in Wales.
Name Shelter Cymru
Type Charity
Headquarters Wales
Charity number 515902
Year formed 1981
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Ananta Centre
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Ideas India
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Developments in Pakistan
The government presented its budget for the financial year 2019-20 in the Parliament on June 12 in the midst of a precarious economic situation. From the conditions of the staff level agreement signed between the IMF and Pakistan in May, it was clear that the budget would entail belt tightening all around and bring hardship to the common people. With an eye on such impending measures, the Pakistan army, which corners a large part of the…
Developments in Afghanistan
Peace and Reconciliation moves
The US Special Representative, Zalmay Khalilzad embarked upon a trip to various countries, including Afghanistan, Pakistan, Germany, Belgium and the UAE, at the beginning of June in the run up to the seventh round of his talks with the Taliban due to begin in Qatar later in the month. In his Eid message, Mullah Haibatullah Akhundzada, head of the Afghan Taliban said that no one should expect them to end Jihad or…
Overview - July 2019
• Economy and Budget
• Judiciary
• Opposition unity
• New DG ISI appointed
• FATF censures Pakistan again
• Pakistan-India
• Pakistan-US
• PM Imran Khan at the SCO summit
Afghanistan:
• Peace and Reconciliation moves
• President Ghani visits Pakistan
• President Ghani at the SCO summit
July 15,…
A new round of talks between the Taliban and the US started in Qatar on May 1. At the commencement of talks, the Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said that it was absolutely vital that two key points of the agenda- full withdrawal of foreign forces from Afghanistan and preventing Afghanistan from harming others be finalized, thereby confirming that the Taliban focus remained on withdrawal of foreign forces.…
Overview - June 2019
• Terrorism
• PTM in the crosshairs of the Pakistan army
• Opposition parties
• Senior army officers convicted of espionage
• IMF bailout
• Mega CPEC projects inaugurated
• Pakistan-Iran
• Extension of President Ghani’s term…
An explosion triggered by a suicide bomber on May 8 close to an Elite Force van, stationed near the Sufi shrine Data Darbar at Lahore for its security, killed 11 persons, including security personnel and injured many more. The shrine has been witness to terror attacks earlier also. A few days later, on May 12, the Pearl Continental hotel at Quetta came under a terror attack. Security forces managed to save the hotel guests, but four hotel employees and a…
The US Special Representative Khalilzad held consultations with the Afghan government in Kabul at the beginning of April. After his meetings, he tweeted on April 1, “We discussed the urgency of making progress on intra-Afghan dialogue.” Speaking to Radio Liberty, he said, “There is a chance that the Afghans may not reach an agreement including the Taliban and the non-Taliban, then preparations will also be needed for the…
Overview - May 2019
• Cabinet reshuffle- Finance Minister resigns
• Terror attacks
• State targets Pashtun Tahafuz Movement
• Pakistan-India relations
• Pakistan-China relations
• Pakistan-Iran relations
• Peace and Reconciliation
• Taliban announce spring offensive…
Economic turmoil continues
In its World Economic Outlook, the IMF has projected that in the absence of further adjustment policies, growth in Pakistan would remain subdued at about 2.5% till 2024, with continued external and fiscal imbalances weighing on confidence. It forecast Pakistan’s growth rate at 2.9% and 2.8% for the current and next fiscal years respectively as against World Bank’s forecast of 3.6% and 2.7% respectively for the two years. The Fund…
Economic uncertainty continues
Taking note of deterioration in Pakistan’s economic outlook and external position, Standard & Poor Global Ratings lowered Pakistan’s sovereign credit rating from “B” to “B-“. The agency cited diminished growth prospects as well as elevated external and fiscal stresses. However, it maintained the rating outlook at “stable” in the expectation that Pakistan would secure sufficient funding to meet its external financing…
In a sign of divisions within Afghanistan, a number of Afghan leaders, including former President Karzai participated in a Russia-engineered meeting in Moscow with the Taliban in early February, which was organized by the “Council of the Afghan Diaspora in Russia” and was dubbed as political drama by the Afghan foreign ministry. It would be recalled that the Taliban have strongly resisted the American demand for a dialogue with the…
Overview - April 2019
• Pakistan at the Financial Action Task Force
• No consensus on continuation of military courts
• Pakistan India relations worsen
• Pakistan-Saudi Arabia
• SIGAR report on…
Pulwama terror attack and its aftermath
The Indo-Pak relationship that has remained in free fall over the last few years reached a crisis point when in one of the worst terror attacks on February 14, at least 40 CRPF personnel were killed and many injured in the Pulwama district of Jammu and Kashmir. A vehicle laden with explosives rammed into one of the buses in a CRPF convoy that was carrying troops from Jammu to Srinagar. Pakistan…
Assessment of the Pulwama Aftermath
India received widespread support of the international community in the condemnation of the Pulwama attack, with some influential countries calling upon Pakistan to take action against terror groups. Barring the Chinese call to respect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all countries and a proforma condemnation of the Balakot strike by the OIC Contact Group, Pakistan received no…
Supreme Court extends its jurisdiction to “Gilgit-Baltistan”
Delivering a judgment on January 17 on a set of petitions challenging the Gilgit-Baltistan Order, 2018 and Gilgit-Baltistan Empowerment…
Peace and Reconciliation efforts
The US Special Representative, Zalmay Khalilzad continued his hectic diplomacy in the region. Following the December meeting between him and the Taliban at Abu Dhabi, in which the representatives of Saudi Arabia, UAE and Pakistan had also participated, it was expected that the next one would be held in Saudi Arabia in January. However, it did not take place. A subsequent proposal to hold the meeting…
Overview - February 2019
• Status of “Gilgit-Baltistan”
• Blasphemy Law- acquittal upheld
• Proposed extension of term of military courts
• Indo-Pak relations
Afghanistan: Peace and Reconciliation
• Presidential election
• Results of Parliamentary election
• India and Afghanistan
Accountability Process
An accountability court pronounced its judgment on December 24 in the two pending corruption cases against the former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, who had been out on bail from his imprisonment in yet another case decided in July, 2018. He was convicted and sentenced to seven years imprisonment in the Al-Azizia Steel Mills case, but acquitted in the Flagship Investments case and was lodged at Lahore’s Kot Lakhpat jail to…
New date for Presidential Election
Afghanistan’s Independent Election Commission (IEC) announced at the end of December that the Presidential election, scheduled to be held on April 20, 2019, would instead take place on July 20, 2019. A statement issued by the Presidency said that the IEC had decided the new date after consultation with all stakeholders and “in view of technical problems and to avoid past mistakes..” It further stated that the…
Overview - January 2019
• ‘Accountability’ bandwagon continues to roll
• Economic concerns mount
• 8th meeting of the CPEC Joint Cooperation Committee held in Beijing
• Army warns Pashtun Tahafuz Movement
• President Trump writes to PM Imran Khan for help with Afghan peace
Presidential Election delayed
• New Ministers for Defence and Interior appointed
• Government announces…
Email me when there are new items –
Ambassador Sharat Sabharwal
Former Indian Ambassador to Pakistan and Uzbekistan and Distinguished Fellow, Ananta Centre
Mr Sharat Sabharwal joined the Indian Foreign Service in 1975. After serving in various positions in the Permanent Mission of India to the UN in Geneva and the Indian Missions in Madagascar, France and Mauritius, he was Director/Joint Secretary in the Ministry of External Affairs in New Delhi from 1990 to 1995. The positions held by him subsequently have been Deputy High Commissioner of India in Pakistan (1995-99), Deputy Permanent Representative of India to the UN in Geneva (1999-2002), Ambassador of India to Uzbekistan (2002-2005) and Additional Secretary/Special Secretary in the Ministry of External Affairs (September 2005-March 2009).
Mr. Sabharwal was High Commissioner of India to Pakistan from April 2009 to June 2013.
He was appointed Central Information Commissioner in November, 2013 and served in this position till September, 2017.
Mr. Sabharwal has been Deputy leader/member of the Indian delegations to the UN General Assembly, the erstwhile UN Commission on Human Rights, International Labour Conference and World Health Assembly. He was also the Deputy Leader of the Indian delegation to the International Conference of the Red Cross and Red Crescent held in Geneva in October 1999 and member of the Indian delegation to the World Conference against Racism, held in Durban in September 2001.
Mr. Sabharwal holds a post graduate degree in Political Science. He speaks English and French besides Hindi, Urdu and Punjabi.
Mr. Sabharwal has been an author at the Indian Express, The Hindu, India Today, The Tribune and The Wire.
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News Source WBAL
Person Struck and Killed by Amtrak Train in Northeast Baltimore
Baltimore City Firefighters are on the scene of an incident involving a person struck and killed by an Amtrak train in Northeast Baltimore.
Baltimore City Firefighters are on the scene of an incident involving a person struck and killed by an Amtrak train in Northeast Baltimore (Illustrative)
The incident occurred on the tracks east of the I-895 overpass and just north of the Johns Hopkins Bayview campus just before 11 a.m. on Thursday.
Because of the activity on the tracks, all Amtrak and MARC Penn line train traffic has been stopped in both directions near the scene.
The circumstances surrounding the incident are under investigation.
It's unclear when rail traffic will me moving again.
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Watch Airport Staff Perform Queen’s ‘I Want to Break Free’
Staff at England’s Heathrow Airport took part in a choreographed performance of the Queen classic “I Want to Break Free” to mark what would have been Freddie Mercury’s 72nd birthday this week.
It's also been around 50 years since the late singer worked as a baggage handler at the complex.
The video was made with the assistance of British Airways and involved the staff working with TV choreographer Lyndon Lloyd for more than two weeks. It was presented as part of the “Freddie for a Day” celebrations. It follows the performance of a medley of Queen tracks by the Ohio State Marching Band at a college football game last weekend, which guitarist Brian May described as “truly amazing.”
You can watch the airport video below.
Earlier this week, Queen confirmed the release of the soundtrack album for the upcoming biopic Bohemian Rhapsody. The album will include previously unreleased recordings from their legendary Live Aid performance in 1985, as well as new parts recorded for classic songs.
“We shot the most iconic performance in rock history – Queen playing at Live Aid – on day one," Rami Malek, who plays Mercury in the movie, recently told Jimmy Kimmel. "Our first shot was the four of us coming out onto Wembley Stadium stage as the members of Queen.”
He also revealed that he’d made a point of wearing his Mercury-style false teeth as much as possible, except when eating, and that he’d kept them once the film wrapped and intended to keep them forever.
Everything You Need to Know About the Queen Movie 'Bohemian Rhapsody'
Next: Queen Albums Ranked
Source: Watch Airport Staff Perform Queen’s ‘I Want to Break Free’
Filed Under: freddie mercury, queen
Categories: Jacktube, Music News
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/ David Pescovitz / 10:22 am Mon Oct 16, 2017
Scientists detect incredible collision of neutron stars
Astronomers have detected the collision of a pair of dead stars, called a kilonova, that caused a cosmic ripple of gravitational waves around 130 million years ago. It turns out these kinds of massive explosions forged most of the gold, silver, and other heavy elements in our universe. From Nadia Drake's story in National Geographic:
First theorized by Albert Einstein in 1916, gravitational waves are kinks or distortions in the fabric of spacetime caused by extremely violent cosmic events. Until now, all confirmed detections involved a deadly dance between two black holes, which leave no visible signature on the sky.
But with this latest event, teams using about a hundred instruments at roughly 70 observatories were able to track down and watch the cataclysm in multiple wavelengths of light, allowing astronomers to scrutinize the source of these cosmic ripples for the first time.
“We saw a totally new phenomenon that has never before been seen by humans,” says Andy Howell of the University of California, Santa Barbara. “It’s an amazing thing that may not be duplicated in our lifetimes.”
Unlike colliding black holes, shredded neutron stars expel metallic, radioactive debris that can be seen by telescopes—if you know when and where to look.
“We felt the universe shaking from two neutron stars merging together, and that told us where to go and point our telescopes,” says Howell, whose team was among several that chased down the stars tied to the gravitational wave signal.
"In a First, Gravitational Waves Linked to Neutron Star Crash" (Nat Geo)
boom / Science / Space
The new £50 notes will feature Alan Turing (whilst HMG proposes bans on Turing complete computers AND working crypto)
The Bank of England has unveiled its new £50 notes, which had been earmarked to honour a distinguished British scientist, and which will feature Alan Turing, the WWII hero who discovered many of the foundational insights to both modern computing and cryptography, and whose work with the codebreakers of Bletchley Park are widely believed to […]
Science offices throughout U.S. government closing under Trump at alarming rate
The great science purge, they’ll call it one day. Donald Trump is closing science offices throughout the federal government. ‘As of June, around 85 percent of all scientific posts in the federal government, including an official scientific advisor to the President, were left unfilled,’ write the editors of I F***ing Love Science blog in an […]
Show Your Stripes: visualizing climate change in your location by displaying 100 years of average temperatures in color bars
Ed Hawkins, a climate scientist, created Show Your Stripes as a way to easily visualize the past century's climate change: give it a location and it will render a series of stripes representing a century's worth of average annual temperatures (above: global average temperature); as Kottke notes: "The warming patterns for particular regions are not […]
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AAIPharma/CML Expands In North Carolina
AAIPharma Services Corp./Cambridge Major Laboratories (AAIPharma/CML) is investing at least $15.8 million to expand its laboratory operation and global headquarters in Wilmington, NC, creating at least 37 new jobs by 2018.
https://businessfacilities.com/2015/11/aaipharmacml-expands-north-carolina-lab-operations-and-facility-hq/
Home » Blog » Industry News » Biotech & Pharma » AAIPharma/CML Expands North Carolina Lab Operations And Facility HQ
AAIPharma/CML Expands North Carolina Lab Operations And Facility HQ
(Credit: StarNews)
AAIPharma Services Corp./Cambridge Major Laboratories (AAIPharma/CML) is expanding its laboratory operation and global headquarters in Wilmington, NC and will create at least 37 new jobs by 2018. The company will invest at least $15.8 million for lab expansion and a new headquarters over the next three years. Additional jobs and investment are anticipated through 2019.
“The company’s success and continued growth in Wilmington highlights the fact that life science businesses are flourishing in every corner of North Carolina,” said Governor Pat McCrory. “Our state plays an increasingly key role in efforts to pioneer new treatments for people around the world, and this corporate expansion keeps that momentum going.”
AAIPharma/CML has operated in Wilmington for the past 30 years. AAIPharma and Cambridge Major Laboratories joined together in 2013 to form a fully integrated custom development and manufacturing organization. Its capabilities include Active Pharmaceutical Ingredient (API) and drug product development, analytical services, manufacturing and packaging of drugs for every stage of drug development from pre-clinical through to commercial supply. The company provides a wide array of services and solutions to pharmaceutical, biotech and healthcare companies in the U.S. and Europe. AAI Pharma/CML employs approximately 400 people across North Carolina and also has facilities in South Carolina, New Jersey, Wisconsin, Missouri and The Netherlands.
“When it comes to being able to attract, cultivate and retain high-impact talent, nothing compares to North Carolina,” said North Carolina Commerce Secretary John E. Skvarla, III. “Supportive colleges and universities, business-friendly local and state government, and an enviable quality of life all make our state a top global destination for biotechnology jobs and businesses such as AAIPharma/CML.”
North Carolina’s life sciences industry accounts for $73 billion in annual economic output, second only to agriculture. The industry employs approximately 61,000 workers across more than 600 locations in the state, according to the North Carolina Biotechnology Center.
AAIPharma/CML plans to hire all levels of scientists as part of its expansion, as well as data specialists among other positions. Salaries will vary by job, but the average pay for the positions will be a minimum of $45,100 per year, plus a compensation package with health benefits. New Hanover County’s average annual income is currently $38,365.
The company’s expansion in North Carolina was made possible in part by a performance-based grant of up to $50,000 from the One North Carolina Fund.
“We are grateful for this opportunity to work with local city, state and county governments to bring more jobs to North Carolina,” said Stephan Kutzer, CEO, President and Chairman of AAIPharma/Cambridge Major Laboratories. “State funding and support will help us strengthen our global headquarters in the Wilmington area and provide additional capacity for future growth.”
The One NC Fund provides financial assistance to support efforts by local governments to create jobs and attract economic investment. Companies receive no money upfront and must meet job creation and capital investment targets to qualify for grant payments. All One NC grants require a financial commitment from county or municipal governments.
Helping helping facilitate AAIPharma/CML’s expansion along with NC Commerce and the Economic Development Partnership of North Carolina (EDPNC) is the North Carolina General Assembly, the North Carolina Department of Revenue, the North Carolina Community College System, the City of Wilmington, New Hanover County and Wilmington Business Development.
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AAIPharma/CML
North Carolina Department of Commerce)
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Britney Spears on boyfriend David Lucado: ‘I’m in love!’
Things seem to be going well for Britney Spears and her new love David Lucano.
The pop star struck up a whirlwind romance with the 27-year-old just eight months ago, but Britney says she’s already in love with her new beau, who works at a legal firm.
CLICK ON PHOTOS TO ENLARGE
"I'm in love ... I like the fact that he's very stubborn and he's stuck in his ways.," she told Entertainment Tonight.
"He's just a simple man. I adore him. He's really funny and he's really passionate. I love the fact that anything he's involved in he's passionate about and it's contagious."
Britney also revealed that her father Jamie Spears ran a background check on David, when the couple started dating after meeting through mutual friends.
"My dad's a little crazy like that," she joked.
While their romance is still in its early days the Hit Me Baby One More Time singer has said she would consider marrying and having more children "if the timing was right." The songstress already has two sons, Sean Preston, seven, and Jayden James, six, from her marriage to dancer Kevin Federline.
The Louisiana-born star struck up a romance with David two months after she announced her separation from former agent Jason Trawick in January.
Britney released a statement reading: "Jason and I have decided to call off our engagement. I will always adore him and we will remain great friends."
The sad news came just over a year after the pair announced their plans to marry. The couple proved the split is an amicable one when Jason, 41, spoke highly of his former partner and her family, saying: "As this chapter ends for us a new one begins. I love and cherish her and her boys and we will be close forever."
David Lucado
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Fed delay could spur more debt issues to fund share buybacks
David Randall
NEW YORK (Reuters) - A record year for debt-funded stock buybacks may soon become even more rewarding for shareholders.
A woman jogs past the Federal Reserve headquarters in Washington September 16, 2015. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque
The Federal Reserve’s decision to delay raising interest rates for the first time since the 2008 financial crisis will likely encourage companies to take out more debt to repurchase their own shares or issue special dividends before the end of the year, adding to the almost $1 trillion that companies were already on pace to return to investors this year, fund managers and analysts say.
That’s because, with historically low interest rates now likely to extend to at least December, companies are “now in a sort of borrowing nirvana,” said a bond strategist, who asked not to be quoted by name because he recently left one firm and has not yet officially started at his new position.
While there is no way to track debt taken out for share buy-backs alone, U.S. corporations have taken out $59.4 billion in debt this year - or about 8 percent of the total amount of U.S. corporate debt issued - to fund special dividends to shareholders, according to data from Dealogic. That is more than double the $28.4 billion issued for special dividends in 2014, which are another way that companies reward shareholders and tend to parallel buyback purchases.
Interest rates at near zero have increasingly prompted companies flush with cash to issue debt to fund share buybacks. Apple Inc, for instance, has issued $23.6 billion in debt this year despite having more than $200 billion in cash, part of its plan to buy-back up to $140 billion in shares by the end of March 2017. MetLife Inc., meanwhile, sold $1.5 billion in bonds in June to fund share buybacks, while having more than $10 billion in cash on its balance sheet.
Executives have several reasons to take out longer-term debt to reward shareholders now. A blue-chip company will likely pay about 2.2 percent interest on a 5-year bond while at the same time paying out about 3 percent in dividends a year, making it less expensive to buy shares outright, bond analysts said.
And, with pay and bonuses often tied to share performance, corporate management teams have an incentive to spend money to bolster share prices, especially in a time of slow earnings growth.
“On a short-term basis, buybacks create more demand even if the stock itself isn’t all that attractive,” said Howard Silverblatt, senior index analyst for S&P Dow Jones Indices.
SHAREHOLDER REWARDS
Already, some executives are discussing issuing debt to repurchase shares in the wake of the Fed’s decision.
“I could foresee a situation where we’re going to continue to buy back more shares over the next year or so. It could put the credit rating at risk. And I would tell you that that’s okay,” said United Technologies Corp chief executive Greg Hayes, speaking at a Morgan Stanley investor conference on Thursday. “It makes pretty good sense to buy back stock when I’m paying more in dividends than I’m paying in interest to buy it back.”
While there is no way to quantify exactly how much share buyback have helped stock performance, approximately 20 percent of the companies in the S&P 500 have “significantly” decreased share counts year over year for the past 6 quarters, Silverblatt said.
As a result of cutting the number of shares available, these companies have bolstered such metrics such as earnings per-share, helping to make companies look like they are doing better even if their absolute performance remained the same, he said.
The companies that have been buying back stock the most aggressively have not outperformed this year, however. The S&P 500 Buyback Index, which tracks the performance of the 100 stocks with the highest buyback ratios in the S&P 500 - a group that includes Coca-Cola Enterprises Inc, Cameron International Corp, and Motorola Solutions Inc - is down 6.8 percent for the year to date, a performance about 1 percentage point worse than the benchmark as a whole, according to Thomson Reuters data.
Through August, companies in the S&P 500 had authorized $598.5 billion in share buybacks, the largest on record and more than the full-year totals from 2008 to 2012, according to Robert Leiphard, an analyst at Birinyi Associates. Companies are on pace to announce $897 billion in buybacks for the full year, which would top the $863 billion authorized in 2007 as the largest of all time, he said.
AMOUNT OF DEBT
Some analysts and fund managers now expect those numbers to increase by the end of December.
“This might have reopened the window” for companies that had expected an increase in interest rates to curb their share repurchase programs, said Scott Kimball, a senior portfolio manager with Taplin, Canida and Habacht.
Companies had front-loaded their debt issuance this year to get ahead of the expected rate hike in September, said Hans Mikkelsen, head of U.S. high grade credit strategy at Bank of America Merrill Lynch Global Research.
Yet now that the Fed has added concerns about global economic weakness to its outlook, historically low rates may last into next year, he said. At the same time, bond investors will likely continue buying new issues, given the net inflows to fixed income mutual funds, he said.
“People are starting to look at that and saying that the Fed will not act for a long period of time,” he said.
Reporting by David Randall, editing by Linda Stern and John Pickering
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