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__label__cc	0.67906	0.32094	Extravaganza rocks Paris runway with $3M bra The 2016 Victoria's Secret fashion show has shaped up to be a flashy, over-the-top lingerie fashion extravaganza. Model Jasmine Tookes wearing the fantasy bra at the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show. [Photo/IC] With over 12 million dollars of costs, some 1 billion people watched the one-hour live broadcast via TV channels in 180 countries and regions. The Paris show featured such pop stars as Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars. Fifty-two super models walked the runway. This year's Fantasy bra worn by 25-year-old Jasmine Tookes is considered the piece de resistance of Victoria Secret's runway display. The bra was covered with about 9,000 gemstones including white diamonds and emeralds, and cost 3 million dollars. China commits to helping Africa implement Paris Agreement2016-11-18 08:15:35 China to help Africa implement Paris Agreement2016-11-18 10:49:37 COP22 nations reaffirm commitment to Paris accord2016-11-18 20:21:34 Huge explosion rocks Kabul, at least four dead2016-11-16 14:25:34 Los Angeles, Paris and Budapest present bids to host the 2024 Olympic Games2016-11-16 15:55:42 Chinese Vice Premier visits Paris for economic talks2016-11-15 06:47:34 Commemorative plaque unveiled in Paris2016-11-14 10:29:38	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line2964
__label__wiki	0.784825	0.784825	Back to WUSA9.com More WUSA9 Sites A Question of Substance Submitted by Evelyn Laurence, WUSA Community Blogger Friday, April 8th, 2016, 1:38pm MICHELLE XU Usually it’s the Supreme Court justices who get to ask the tough questions. But every so often, prominent public figures come to Georgetown, and undergraduates glean the rare opportunity to ask questions in return. Last Wednesday, those who attended Associate Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor’s lecture received an index card where they could write one question for Sotomayor to answer during the standard post-lecture question-and-answer session — a Gaston Hall standard that usually fosters a candid discussion and enriches university programming. In Wednesday’s case, however, the questions were screened and posed by a university official, rather than the student or event attendee who originally wanted an answer. Vigil honors mother and daughter killed allegedly over child support Submitted by WUSA9 Web Staff Saturday, February 6th, 2016, 1:21am FORT WASHINGTON, Md. (WUSA9) -- A mother and her two-year-old daughter who police say were killed over a dispute about child support payments were remembered Friday night by those who loved them. Daron Johnson, the father of the slain two-year-old, is being held without bond after police say he killed 26-year-old NeShante Davis and her daughter Chloe. Friends say Davis was just beginning to realize her dream of becoming a school teacher at Bradbury Heights Elementary, where mourners gathered to remember the friend they lost. Fellow teachers said Davis was someone they could lean on, and students remember her as someone they could count on. No bond for man accused of killing mother and two-year-old Thursday, February 4th, 2016, 9:39pm FORT WASHINGTON, Md. (WUSA9) -- The Prince George's County man who police say confessed to shooting his two-year-old daughter and her mother over an issue with child support payments has been denied bond. Six relatives of Daron Johnson spoke in court during his bond hearing Thursday, asking the judge to be lenient while holding back tears. "We will have to empower families to make different choices. This is a case we see too often where a very permanent decision is made on temporary emotions," Prince George's County State's Attorney Angela Alsobrooks said. Johnson's younger brother told WUSA9 he's shocked his brother allegedly confessed to killing Neshante Davis and her daughter Chole Davis-Green. "I love her and I'm gonna miss her. I will always love her," Walker said. Prince George's County road hit by 2014 landslide reopens Thursday, December 24th, 2015, 2:08pm FORT WASHINGTON, Md. (AP) - A Prince George's County road that ruptured following a May 2014 landslide has reopened. County Public Works and Transportation Department spokeswoman Paulette Jones announced that Piscataway Drive in Fort Washington reopened to pedestrian and vehicle traffic Tuesday. The landslide led to the evacuations of 28 homes in the waterfront community of Piscataway Hills, although many of the families later returned. Officials concluded that intense rains in April and May saturated a layer of clay inside a 65-foot-high ridge near the Potomac River, triggering the landslide that sent trees buckling, cracked the main road and ruptured water and sewer lines. The road cost about $15 million to repair, the bulk of which was paid for by the county. Police: Man arrested after officer-involved shooting in Fort Washington Wednesday, December 23rd, 2015, 7:39pm FORT WASHINGTON (WUSA9) -- A suspect has been arrested after an officer-involved shooting occurred Wednesday afternoon in Fort Washington, a Prince George's County police spokesperson confirmed. The suspect fled the scene on Clarion Ct. in Oxon Hill but has now been arrested. Police believe the shooting is a non-contact shooting that stemmed from a call for a suspicious car in the 13000 block of Clarion Court in Fort Washington. A preliminary investigation found a suspect in the car was armed and the officer discharged their weapon, police said. This is a developing story and will be updated Like this story? Like WUSA9 on Facebook. PGPD looking for 'woman in scrubs' who helped save man's life FORT WASHINGTON (WUSA9) -- When Patrol Officer Dale Sollars leaped into action to help a man seriously injured after a multi-car crash in Fort Washington, he found some unexpected help alongside him. Next to him was an unknown woman in scrubs, working with the officer to save the life of 73-year-old Jorge Mondino after he had a heart attack while driving on Route 210 in Fort Washington. Their heroics worked and Mondino will be out of the hospital soon to celebrate Christmas with his family in McLean. But Prince George's County authorities have no clue who to thank. In the chaos following the accident, officers never got the name of the woman who helped Officer Sollars perform CPR on Mondino. The only thing police know about her is that she's a physician from Garrett County. Teen arrested for Fort Washington murder Monday, December 14th, 2015, 9:37pm FORT WASHINGTON, Md. (WUSA9) -- A 17-year-old male was arrested after Prince George's County police say he killed a man who was found dead after a car crash. Draeton Hawkins of Fort Washington allegedly stabbed Keith Williams Sunday night after an argument. Williams got into a car and drove away after he was stabbed, but crashed his vehicle and died a short time later. Death of man in Md. car crash ruled a homicide Hawkins was arrested Monday not far from his home. He is being charged as an adult with first and second-degree murder. Police say Williams was a family friend of Hawkins. Region XI 2019 All White Affair American Legion Post Supernatural Faith Workshop Outreach Christian Center OCC Youth Church St. Patrick's Day Guide (7 photos) PHOTOS: 10 Dogs Looking For A Home In D.C. (10 photos) Barracks Row in Southeast DC Dubbed City Location of the Month (8 photos) PHOTOS: Cutest K-9 Of The Week (15 photos) Mitt Romney Campaigns In Va. (12 photos) D.C. School Receives $27 Million In Renovations (5 photos) PHOTOS: 15 Dining Options For Alexandria Restaurant Week (15 photos) Fort Washington Events Calendar Fort Washington Parks and Recreation Fort Washington Police Department Fort Washington Public Schools Fort Washington Weather Prince George's County Chamber of Commerce Prince George's County Homepage See More Fort Washington Coupons WUSA9.com W*USA9, 4100 Wisconsin Ave NW, Washington, DC 20016	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line2967
__label__cc	0.614192	0.385808	Roller Shutter Installers Home Security - Renovation - Home Automation - Home Monitoring Renovate - Windows - Window Coverings - Roller Shutters Recover Deleted Email Messages in Vista Windows Mail Outlook Express was, and by the time of this writing still is, the most popular email client by a huge margin. It's hard to overestimate the amount of support Outlook Express has received from third party developers. Multiple free and commercial products compete for your disk space and a place in your Start menu, including tools that backup and restore email messages, and that fix and recover corrupted mail database. Outlook Express users certainly have no lack of email recovery tools that help to recover accidentally deleted email messages. The situation has changed momentarily. With the release of Windows Vista, Outlook Express has been superseded with a new-generation email client, Windows Mail. Windows Mail stores email messages in a new format that is completely different from Outlook Express and incompatible with anything before it. Familiar mail recovery tools for Outlook Express no longer work with Windows Mail, and, as is typical, there is no method to un-delete email messages provided by Microsoft. Recovery for Windows Mail http://www.nsware.com/Windows-Mail-Recovery. htm is one of the first products on the market to support the new Windows email client. It is designed specifically to un-delete email messages in Windows Vista. Windows Vista offers increased security and strengthened protection against modern threats. New security measures typically prevent users and applications from accessing important files and modifying vital information. In order to overcome these restrictions, you would have to be logged in as an Administrator, or at least as a user with administrative rights. This may become a major inconvenience for a home user, and a total show-stopper in a corporate environment. Recovery for Windows Mail is fully aware of the new account security measures implemented in Windows Vista, and does not require you to be logged in with an administrative password. Just run Recovery for Windows Mail, and it'll do the rest - automatically! Windows Mail differs from Outlook Express in the way it stores email. Each message is stored in a separate file, complemented by meta-information that's stored in a mail database for faster indexing. Deleting email in Windows Mail simply moves messages into the "Deleted Items" folder without affecting the files. But if you remove a message from the "Deleted Items" folder, there is no easy way to un-delete that mail. Recovery for Windows Mail protects your messages from accidental deletion. It can un-delete and fully recover deleted mail even if it has been erased from the "Deleted Items" folder. Recovery for Windows Mail is fully capable of recovering deleted email in the Windows Mail client. Protect yourself and download your free evaluation version here: http://www.nsware.com/Windows-Mail-Recovery.htm . Roller Shutter Installers Articles Home Security Renovation Home Automation Home Monitoring Renovate Windows Window Coverings Roller Shutters Roller Shutter Installers Books	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line2971
__label__cc	0.677114	0.322886	Felix Reimer Explainer: All about the SRC Never heard of the SRC? No idea what it does? You’re far from alone. As campaigning and voting for this year’s SRC are underway this week, our brief explainer answers the most pressing questions about what the SRC does, why it matters and what all those fancy titles mean. Stupid question: What is the SRC? Not stupid at all! Even students who’ve been here for years don’t really know all that much about the SRC. Let’s start with the obvious: SRC stands for Student Representative Council and it’s a key pillar of student representation on campus. And what does it do? It represents all students on campus, lobbies the University, and holds DUSA and its executive accountable. Sounds pretty vague, to be honest. Yeah, I see your point, so let’s look at some of the stuff the SRC did last year. For example, its members pushed the University to make reading lists available at least two weeks before the semester starts. That’ll allow students to buy cheaper books that might take longer to be delivered. And we can get a head start on our reading for the semester! Yeah, but who do you think you’re kidding? If you enjoy the free WiFi in halls, that also started with the SRC. Can you imagine previous generations of halls residents had to put up with cables or buy a router on their own? Yes, first-world problems, but still awful. Last year’s SRC also encouraged the library to provide more power sockets for charging laptops, pushed for an earlier release of exam dates so students can get cheaper tickets for going home, and passed a resolution supporting the living wage for all University employees. Sounds pretty relevant, no? It does, but how come I never heard about any of that? The SRC usually has to rely on others to make changes. It can’t force the library to open earlier on weekends, for example – councillors can only lobby for it. Same with DUSA, where policies are set by the board. Both the university and DUSA’s executive pay attention to the SRC, though, so it has become a real voice for students. So who is on the SRC? There are 50 people from all walks of university life, as the cliché goes. You can’t vote for all of them this week – some are there because of other positions they hold – but most will need your support. Let’s start with the elected positions. I’ll try to keep it short, promise. The SRC Chairperson is the official head of the SRC, chairs its meeting and sets its agenda. The Learning and Teaching Rep deals with learning and teaching matters (duh) and feeds student comments back to the University. There are also a 1st Year Learning and Teaching Rep, a Postgraduate Rep for Learning and Teaching, and an International Students Rep for Learning and Teaching to focus on issues particularly relevant to these groups. The Services and Facilities Rep handles matters relating to DUSA and University services and facilities (like the library or eVision). There are also a 1st Year Services and Facilities Rep, aPostgrad Services and Facilities Rep, and an International Students Rep for Services and Facilities. The Environment and Sustainability Rep works with DUSA and the University for a greener campus. He or she is also actively involved with DUSA’s commitment to Fair Trade, so you can drink your coffee knowing it wasn’t picked by Guatemalan kids who are paid a penny a day. The Equality and Welfare Rep deals with equality and diversity on campus. If you’re straight or LGBT, a man or a woman, tall or small, or individual in any other way, shape or form (that’s everyone), he or she helps create a discrimination-free environment for you. The Disabilities Rep handles disability provision concerns. A huge part of his or her job is to ensure that students with disabilities have as good a time at university as everyone else, from easy access to lecture theatres to fun nights out. There are three SRC Councillors without Portfolio who deal with questions not covered by the other Reps. So if you have an issue but don’t know who to talk to, these are the people to bother! It’s sometimes easy to forget that not all students are in their late teens or early twenties. That’s where the Mature Students Rep comes in. He or she works on matters that are particularly relevant to students with more life experience than the average halls resident. Students of every school also elect a school president who gets to sit on the SRC. Ummm… What school am I even in? No idea. If you don’t know, check your student profile on eVision. You mentioned other non-elected SRC members. Well, most of them actually are elected, just in different ways. Members of DUSA’s Societies Council send two Reps, a Student Staff Rep represents DUSA’s student employees, there’s a Halls Rep for students living in University accommodation, and DUSA’s media outlets (of which we are one) select a Media Rep. The Sports Union, DUSA’s exec and the rector are also represented. All these guys are campaigning on campus and it’s super annoying. Why can’t they leave me alone? Are you one of those who never run or vote for anything and then loudly complain about everything? No? Then don’t be such a grump, man. Get some candy, enjoy democracy in action, and see which candidates offer more than a boilerplate “I want to improve your student experience.” Okay, I’m pumped to vote now! How and when can I do that? Awesome! Voting starts Thursday at 9 AM on MyDundee and closes Friday at 5 PM. The candidates will probably make sure you don’t forget, though. Standard disclosure: DUSA Media is part of DUSA. But you already knew that. AuthorFelix Reimer PostedSeptember 17, 2013 — 9:00 AM CategoriesJournalism TagsDUSA Media Next School of Nursing election result to be investigated Previous One year before indyref, Scottish parties to debate education at Dundee Uni	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line2972
__label__wiki	0.883296	0.883296	Posted on July 24, 2015 July 24, 2015 by Steven Review: Inside Out DIR: Pete Docter, Ronaldo Del Carmen • WRI: Pete Docter, Ronaldo Del Carmen • PRO: Jonas Rivera • ED: Kevin Nolting • MUS: Michael Giacchino • DES: Ralph Eggleston • CAST: Kaitlyn Dias, Amy Poehler, Phyllis Smith, Richard Kind, Bill Hader, Lewis Black, Mindy Kaling, Kyle McLachlan, Diane Lane Celebrated animation filmmaker, writer and six-time Oscar nominee Pete Docter has honed his craft for the past twenty years in quirky box office hits such as Toy Story, A Bug’s Life, Monster’s Inc. and Up. The concept for Docter’s latest collaboration with Disney•Pixar came to the director in 2009 when he became aware of clear behavioural and developmental changes in his daughter’s personality as she approached adolescence. Set inside the mind of prepubescent Riley Anderson, Inside Out explores the psychological angst aligned with the transition from childhood into teenhood from the perspective of the emotions that drive such maturity, producing an absorbingly complex and sophisticated narrative that emotively stirs both on a visceral and intellectual level. Hockey-mad Riley is happy with her carefree life in Minnesota. When her parents suddenly decide to move to San Francisco, everything changes for the young girl, provoking her emotions to spiral out of control. Aware of the suffering she endures, Riley’s five dominant emotions become activated in the Headquarters of her conscious mind, where Joy, Anger, Disgust, Fear and Sadness control how she copes with the challenging ventures in a new school and home. When Sadness, who can nullify other emotions by touching Riley’s memories and turning them to sadness, creates a new, sad core memory, Joy’s attempts to destroy it sees her inadvertently releasing Riley’s other core memories and shutting down her personality islands. As chaotic instability in Riley’s mind ensues, Joy and Sadness attempt to rescue the core memories before the other emotions can dominate her fragmented being, consigning Riley to a life of solitude, misery and sadness. Twenty years since Pixar transfigured the animation filmmaking process with trailblazing innovation in Toy Story and after the recent shaky offerings of Cars 2 and Monster’s University failed to reach the dizzy heights Pixar audiences have become accustomed to, the studio’s fifteenth feature produces an abundance of spectacularly detailed CGI effects combined with an intricately ambitious narrative, which sees Pixar not only return to top form but indeed raise the bar further within animation filmmaking itself. Pursuing an existentially complex yet compassionate narrative trajectory, Inside Out is a rousing rollercoaster of tumultuous thrills balanced by nuanced characters whose raw sensitivities execute the growing pains of childhood with depth, poignancy and intuition. Palpably psychological in tone, the film dissects the profound complexities buried deep within the conscious mind through an erudite and witty script, to make visible the internal suffering of a young girl on the brink of great change, while sedating such cerebral intensity with childlike playfulness and jaunty humour as the activated emotions experience their own hilarious inner vicissitudes. Delineating a perceptive insight into the psychology of memories through acute emotional intelligence, Inside Out takes a classic, universal coming-of-age narrative and didactically informs through an excess of high-spirited humour and ingenious visual allure. The systematic means by which emotions and memories are stored, processed and transformed by interpreting the symbiotic relationship between the human psyche and interpersonal relationships, serves to bring the often concealed emotional self within the psychology of a child to the forefront in a creatively original and intriguing manner. The film’s narrative entanglements document a child’s complex mental development as it adapts to change and does so with such emotional charge, it poses profound philosophical questions about the nature of human psychology and the necessity to engage with its more melancholic aspects, to attain emotional equilibrium. Even Riley’s most potent emotion, Joy, finds her optimism persistently challenged and the omnipresence of Sadness, equips Riley’s other conflicting emotions to deal with her unpredictability, demonstrating the necessity to wholesomely embrace a variety of emotions, in order for the self to gain an understanding of the mind and flourish. The narrative’s deep-rooted themes unfold with such intellectual ferocity and at such an accelerated rate, that the labyrinthine script at times, struggles to keep pace with its own velocity, the execution of sharpness often compromised for its phenomenal visual style, sometimes failing to control its philosophies on a completely satisfactory level. But overall, Inside Out can boast a dazzling and compelling style that meets its challenging substance with bucket loads of fun, if perhaps its mature themes may swamp a younger audience. Aware of its own unrivalled mastery within animation filmmaking, Inside Out is a highly self-reflexive, daring and thought-provoking feature, which provides a groundbreaking perspective on the narrative evolution within animation itself. The film delineates a coming-of-age trajectory, both narratively and technically, that challenges the nature of how animation films are produced and received. Adults will appreciate its wholly elaborate and painstakingly detailed production, while its sheer visual wondrousness will appeal to those whose narrative complexities may at times, overwhelm. While its depth may bewilder on occasion, its ambitious execution in transcending existing animation parameters will reposition the narrative and technical boundaries within contemporary film animation and cement Pixar Animation as the leading figurehead in animated film production. Dee O’Donoghue G (See IFCO for details) Inside Out is released 24th July 2015 Inside Out – Official Website December 14, 2015 Review: Sisters November 29, 2013 Cinema Review: Free Birds August 14, 2015 Review: Trainwreck November 10, 2014 The Skeleton Twins February 27, 2015 Focus October 27, 2015 Review: The Legend of Longwood May 8, 2015 Review: Heaven Adores You October 2, 2015 Review: 3 1/2 Minutes, 10 Bullets September 28, 2015 Review: Captive June 12, 2015 Review: Jurassic World CategoriesCinema Reviews, Reviews TagsAmy Poehler, Bill Hader, Cinema Review, Dee O’Donoghue, Diane Lane, Inside Out, Kaitlyn Dias, Kyle McLachlan, Lewis Black, Mindy Kaling, Pete Docter, Phyllis Smith, Review, Richard Kind, Ronaldo Del Carmen Previous PostPrevious Review: Eden Next PostNext Film Ireland Podcast: Episode 11 Interview with Jack Reynor, actor 'Sing Street'	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line2973
__label__wiki	0.815313	0.815313	» 2015 » April Fojusi News War rages across Syria with no side close to victory Amateur videos purport to show heavy fighting across Syria with no side close to victory. Deborah Lutterbeck reports. Britain says Iran’s still buying nuclear tech Britain has informed a United Nations sanctions panel of an active Iranian nuclear procurement network linked to two blacklisted firms, according to a confidential report by the panel seen by Reuters. Jonathan Receives Presidential Campaign Report The Nigerian President, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan, has received the report of the PDP’s 2015 Presidential Campaign. The report was submitted to him by the Director-General of the Jonathan/Sambo Campaign Organisation, Dr Ahmadu Ali, at the Presidential Villa in Abuja. The Director-General, before the presentation of the report, recalled how the organization was constituted and what they did within a short period of time. He commended the President for the action taken following the outcome of the results and then presented the two volume report which he said would provide a road map for moving the PDP forward. The President said in his reaction, “The important thing is not that PDP lost the elections, but that Nigeria as a nation has moved forward and political parties can only thrive when there is peace in the country.” The Nigerian President also told his party men that the result of the election should be taken as history, while they strategise on how to consolidate and bounce back in 2019. He called on his party men to remain loyal as those who left the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) would come back to the party when their stomach is empty out of hunger because the other party would take care of their loyalists before reaching out to those who cross carpeted. Responses also came from the Vice President, Namadi Sambo, and the Chairman PDP Board of Trustees, Chief Tony Anenih, who said that they were very proud of the President for bringing a new dimension to the electoral process in Nigeria and the peace the country is enjoying. They both stated that it was indeed time for the PDP to regroup and bounce back. The post Jonathan Receives Presidential Campaign Report appeared first on Channels Television. Israelis of Ethiopian origin protest police violence A demonstration against police brutality in Jerusalem turns violent, with police deploying water cannon to keep angry crowds away from the prime minister’s residence. Rough Cut (no reporter narration). Obiano Signs $61m Poultry Farming MoU With Lynden Farms The Anambra State Governor, Willie Obiano, has signed a $61m Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Lynden Integrated Farms Limited for the establishment of a modern poultry production and processing farm in the state. The Governor, during the occasion at the Governor’s Lodge, Amawbia in Awka, the Anambra State capital, emphasised that agriculture remains the number one pillar in his economic agenda for the state, revealing his determination to turn Anambra State into a model agricultural state. He stressed the plans to expand the agricultural landscape of the state, noting that he would want to change the trend whereby all day old chicks sold in the South are brought in from the West. Governor Obiano further expressed that he was planning towards establishing a favourable and sustainable environment for commercial agriculture to thrive in Anambra State more than any other state. The Chairman of Lynden Integrated Farms Limited led executive officers of the company to the Governor’s Lodge to seal the business contract with the state government. The Chairman, Mr Clem Nwogbo, while stating the benefits of the project, said that the project has the capacity to position Anambra State as the center of excellence in poultry farming in the south-east and south-south. He noted that this would be based on his company’s ability in developing a two-phased modern integrated poultry production and processing plan with day old chicks, and subsequently upgrading its facilities to provide high quality eggs from layers as well as fresh and frozen meat from broilers. The Chairman of Anambra State Investment Promotion and Protection Agency (ANSIPA), Mr Cyril Enwezor, gave the statistics of the equity ratio of the business which gives the investing company 90%, 6% for the state government and 4% for the host community. The company would also maintain a robust corporate social responsibility to the host community still. The proposed project …read more Kim will be no-show as Russia marks end of WWII The Kremlin says Kim Jong Un will not attend events in Moscow next week commemorating the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II. Deborah Lutterbeck reports. Heavy rains in Havana leave two dead, property damage A Cuban man says he “lost everything” in torrential rains that damaged buildings and power lines and left at least two people dead. Vanessa Johnston reports. Bullion Van Kills 22 Year Old Man In Abeokuta A 22 year old motorcycle rider has been allegedly killed by a bullion van at Oke Ilewo area of Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital. The incident reportedly caused violent reactions from some residents of the area. According to eyewitness accounts, the middle aged man, simply identified as Gbenga Okesola, was on an errand for his elder brother when he was hit and killed by the bullion van. The alleged nonchalant attitude of Policemen following the bullion van towards the deceased irked the residents who took to the streets to protest the death of the young man. Normalcy, however, returned to the scene of the accident with residents of the area going about their normal businesses after the initial violent reaction which trailed the death. The post Bullion Van Kills 22 Year Old Man In Abeokuta appeared first on Channels Television. Jeff Bezos’ rocket company test-flies suborbital spaceship Blue Origin, a startup space company owned by Amazon.com chief Jeff Bezos, launches an experimental suborbital spaceship. Rough Cut (no reporter narration). Nonos Delight Restaurant Service is ok, but can be improved Oakland Engineering Limited [email protected] 3 years ago Oakland engineering limited has moved its office to; Suite A301 soar plaza first avenue gwarimpa opposite FCMB BANK by… Halemson Beach Resort chinwe 4 years ago seems overwhelming Four Points by Sheraton Oladapo 4 years ago A true Sheraton. Staff are great and courteous. Sample Data:: Sample Data:: Maggie’s Sports Bar and Cafe	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line2980
__label__cc	0.647598	0.352402	NFL Game of the Week AFL Game of the Week AFL Power Rankings American Conference – East Division American Conference – South Division CFL Game of the Week CFL NEWS COACHING NEWS Coaching – Main Video College Game of the Week College Key Games of the Week DRAFT NEWS Defensive Playbook FBGP Network Fan Comments FBGP Radio Shows Football Gameplan Network INDOOR NEWS International Game of the Week Minor League Game of the Week National Conference – Central Division National Conference – West Division Offensive Playbook Peptalk from the Czar Below is Chris James’s 3rd ranking for the FBS. He’ll have each team ranked in descending order with their record, their next opponent, the result against the next opponent, and his expected end of season (EOS) positional movement. He has also added a synopsis for each of the top 10 teams in the rankings. Here are some things to note about the rankings: Chris’ rankings are based on games already played AND NOT future predictions A team’s record is not indicative of their position but does have a correlation Talent is not more important than production. A team with huge talent but mediocre results WILL NOT get more credit than a team with lesser talent that has looked good (Utah early on vs. Michigan St. early on) Strength of schedule is not a real thing to me since the schedule is made 2 – 4 years in advance. Instead, I look at what you did against said opponent. Ex. If you’re supposed to win a game by 42 and you’re up by 49 at the half then pull all of your players THEN only win by 35. I’m going to give you the benefit of the doubt that you would have smashed them with your starters in for the whole game Rank Team Record Opponent Result (EOS Change) 25. North Carolina 7 – 1 Duke UNC 27 – 24 (Up) 24. Navy 6 – 1 @ Memphis Memphis 44 – 35 (Even) 23. Northwestern 6 – 2 Penn State NW 23 – 20 (Even) 22. Mississippi State 6 – 2 @ Mizzou MSU 31 – 17 (Up) 21. UCLA 6 – 2 @ Oregon St UCLA 37 – 17 (Up) 20. Ole Miss 7 – 2 Arkansas Ole Miss 20 – 17 (Even) 19. Houston 8 – 0 Cincinnati Houston 45 – 38 (Up) 18. Temple 7 – 1 @ SMU Temple 34 – 21 (Even) 17. Oklahoma 7 – 1 Iowa State Oklahoma 31 – 20 (Down) 16. Florida State 7 – 1 @ Clemson Clemson 27 – 20 (Up) 15. Michigan 6 – 2 Rutgers Michigan 28 – 16 (Even) 14. Memphis 8 – 0 Navy Memphis 44 – 35 (Up) 13. Iowa 8 – 0 @ Indiana Indiana 31 – 28 (Down) 12. Utah 7 – 1 @ Washington Utah 27 – 24 (Down) 11. Oklahoma State 8 – 0 TCU TCU 52 – 42 (Down) 10. TCU 8 – 0 @ Ok State TCU 52 – 42 (Up) TCU didn’t play like a top 10 team for 6 out of the first 7 games of the season. Much of this was due to defensive losses to graduation and injuries. They finally have things going on both sides of the ball and likely win the Big 12 especially with the Seth Russell (Baylor QB) injury. The unfortunate fact is that an 11 – 1 Big 12 champ won’t be in the playoff so they better win out. 9. Stanford 7 – 1 @ Colorado Stanford 42 – 31 (Even) Stanford has been one of the hottest teams in all of FBS football since an opening weekend loss in Evanston, IL. The negative portion for them is a schedule with 3 tougher than believed games remaining (Oregon, Cal, ND). A 2 loss Pac-12 team is a quality team but they can’t/won’t play in the playoffs. 8. Notre Dame 7 – 1 @ Pitt ND 24 – 16 (Up) No team in the country benefits more from a loss than ND with their ‘close’ road loss to Clemson. A tough test this week with Pitt puts them in a great position if they can get the W. The remaining schedule is manageable with Stanford being the only test. They will get the benefit of the doubt over ANY one loss team in the country, which is why their arrow points up. 7. Michigan State 8 – 0 @ Nebraska Nebraska 31 – 30 (Down) The Spartans looked horrible at the start of the season but looked like a top 10 team with wins over Michigan & Indiana. The talent is there but they haven’t taken advantage of the competition. The likely result of the regular season is 10 – 2 which doesn’t spell championship. This week’s opponent has the most last season losses (3) in the country and is extremely dangerous. Can we say, TRAP GAME? 6. Florida 7 – 1 Vandy Florida 24 – 13 (Even) The Gators have outplayed my expectations (I had them finishing 2nd in the East behind Georgia) and are a virtual lock to win the East. They look good enough to go 11 – 1 with a win against a game FSU squad. The unfortunate problem for them is the SEC championship with 2 out of 3 possible opponents (LSU & Bama) being tough match ups. They better pray for an Ole Miss victory against LSU, which will set up a rematch in Atlanta between the Rebels and the Gators. 5. Alabama 7 – 1 LSU LSU 24 – 21 (Down) I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again…Nick Saban is the 2nd best coach in the country behind Urban Meyer. That’s also the reason for the high ranking for a team with way more flaws that the usual Bama squad. They are a quality squad BUT the perception isn’t the reality this season. Bama won’t make it to the playoffs this season because they don’t have a guy at QB to bring them there. And quietly, Nick Saban’s team has been suspect in post season games over the last few seasons. 4. Ohio State 8 – 0 Minnesota OSU 35 – 20 (Up) The Buckeyes have the best coach in the FBS and starters in key positions that returned from a championship squad. That being said, they’ve looked out of sorts the majority of this season. Maybe it’s the changes in coordinators or its disinterest with the regular season but they don’t look like the best squad in the country. This is what’s scary about this team…it’s that they haven’t hit their stride yet. They will be dangerous in the playoff if they can navigate through the rest of this season’s schedule. 3. Baylor 7 – 0 @ Kansas St Baylor 42 – 35 (Down) The initial playoff rankings were garbage in my opinion. I hate when a team’s schedule is brought into play more than how they’ve looked playing that schedule. There has been no team (including Clemson) that has looked as dominant in the first half of each game this season. Why is the first half important? It’s important because they call off the dogs in the 2nd half of games. The Iowa State game (Seth Russell was injured in that game) was the only one with a team in striking distance starting the 3rd quarter. The game would have been a blowout if the refs got a roughing call on a 3rd down right. Iowa State scored a TD on the next drive. Baylor will likely fall out of the playoff picture due to the Russell injury because the command necessary to beat OSU, TCU, & Oklahoma isn’t there for the backup. (Please note: The final score was 31 – 24 last night but my rankings and prediction was done Wednesday morning) 2. LSU 7 – 0 @ Alabama LSU 24 – 21 (Even) I’m going to get crap from people calling me a homer but the best team from top to bottom in the SEC is LSU. The issue last season and in 2011 was horrible QB play. Now, Brandon Harris is not a great QB but he gives LSU an added dimension. He makes Alabama (and other teams) keep 2 safeties high which allows Fournette to face a normal box. He also gives them an extra player to worry about as a runner…something that Mettenberger could not give them. The other X factor is a 252lbs. MLB named Kendall Beckwith, a name that will soon be known by all college football fans. This is a team with all the ingredients to contend for a championship. 1. Clemson 8 – 0 Florida State Clemson 27 – 20 (Down) My initial ranking after week 1 had Clemson as the #3 team in the country (#1 Ohio State, #2 Bama) due to the talent on the flanks and the guy under center. I will make the statement right now….Deshawn Watson is the best NFL prospect at QB in the country this season EVEN THOUGH he isn’t eligible for the draft. He is calm under pressure with above average accuracy and anticipation. They’ll get back Mike Williams before season’s end which only makes that offense more dangerous. They’re also playing well on defense which was the biggest question mark before the season started. They are in a prime position to finish the season 13 – 0 and be a participant in the playoff. The negative for them is the ‘strength of schedule’ which will move them down a few spots if there is an undefeated Big Tem champ (Ohio State or Michigan State) or an undefeated SEC champ (LSU). In all honest, Tiger fans shouldn’t give a crap about the ranking as long as they win out. Get past FSU, stay healthy, don’t have a letdown against UNC/Duke in the ACC championship and you’ll be just fine. FBGP’s FBS Top 25 – 9/9/15 The Football Gameplan FBS Top 25 is a consensus poll voted on by FBGP Analyst Chris James, Gene Clemons, Emory Hunt & Turron Davenport 1. Ohio State Buckeyes (1-0) 2. Alabama Crimson Tide (1-0) 3. Notre Dame Fighting Irish (1-0) 4. Clemson Tigers (1-0) 5. TCU Horned Frogs (1-0) 6. Georgia Bulldogs (1-0) 7. USC Trojans (1-0) 8. Oregon Ducks (1-0) 9. Baylor Bears (1-0) 10. Texas A&M Aggies (1-0) 11. UCLA Bruins (1-0) 12. Auburn Tigers (1-0) 13. Michigan State Spartans (1-0) 14. Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (1-0) 15. LSU Tigers (0-0) 16. Oklahoma Sooners (1-0) 17. Arkansas Razorbacks (1-0) 18. Ole Miss Rebels (1-0) 19. Arizona Wildcats (1-0) 20. Missouri Tigers (1-0) 21. Boise State Broncos (1-0) 22. Tennessee Volunteers (1-0) 23. BYU Cougars (1-0) 24. Northwestern Wildcats (1-0) 25. Miami Hurricanes (1-0)	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line2982
__label__cc	0.677869	0.322131	Superprestige Hoogstraten 2014 The Superprestige series neared its finale with a dramatic penultimate round in a muddy field in Hoogstraten, Belgium on Sunday. The move to a new venue this year was necessitated by the lack of facilities available at the old venue. For two years in a row, organizers had to call in tractors to extract cars from the race parking — in muddy fields — and VIPs who found themselves mired in the muck after paying a fortune for their race experience complained loudly enough to bring about change. But the new venue lacked the character of the old one. Both are flat, muddy fields, but the old venue featured some elaborate earthwork obstacles that kept things interesting. The new venue delivered a tiny, compact course in a near-swamp at the edge of Belgium’s biggest fruit wholesale market. It had more in common with small-scale amateur and masters races in Belgium than one of the world’s biggest cyclocross series. Still, the racing was difficult and the fans were enthusiastic. There weren’t too many surprises, but I doubt too many spectators went away disappointed. Sven Nys won in the elite men’s race and Nikki Harris won among the women. American Jonathan Page had another very good late-season race. Everybody finished up completely filthy. Here’s my look at the elite men’s race. Superprestige Hoogstraten - Lars van der Haar Lars van der Haar, clean and smiling at the start, faded in the sloppy mud on the course. He would not finish the race. February 10, 2014 \| Filed under Uncategorized and tagged with cyclocross, hoogstraten, photos, superprestige. Tags: cyclocross, hoogstraten, photos, superprestige	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line2988
__label__wiki	0.73796	0.73796	Pete Dye featured in PGA Championship preview Sunday Brian Biggane August 1, 2015 Brian Biggane, From the bunker, PGA Championship, PGA of America, PGA Tour. Part-time Gulfstream resident Pete Dye will mark his 15th major when the PGA Championship is played at Whistling Straits next month. (The Palm Beach Post/Allen Eyestone) Seasonal Gulfstream resident Pete Dye and frequent PGA Golf Club competitor Bob Sowards will be among those profiled when CBS Sports presents “The Road to the PGA Championship” from 2-3 p.m. Sunday. The preview will immediately precede final-round coverage of the Quicken Loans Invitational from suburban Washington, D.C. The upcoming PGA Championship will be contested Aug. 13-16 at Whistling Straits in Kohler, Wis., marking the 15th major championship being played on a Dye course. Pete and Alice Dye spend much of the year in Palm Beach County, where his projects have included Delray Dunes, Dye Preserve, Old Marsh and most recently Gulfstream Country Club. Sowards, a native of Dublin, Ohio, has played in a number of PGA Championships and frequently plays events at PGA Golf Club in Port St. Lucie. He is among six PGA Club Professionals competing who will be profiled; the others are Matt Dobyns of Lake Success, N.Y.; Brian Cairns of Walled Lake, Mich.; Jeff Olson of Delaware, Ohio; Ryan Helminen of Menasha, Wis., and Ben Polland of Manhasset, N.Y. Part-time Palm Beach Gardens resident Rory McIlroy, who hopes to defend the title he earned at Valhalla in Louisville last year, and PGA Tour veteran Steve Stricker, a Wisconsin native, will also be featured. Michael Bannon, who has worked with McIlroy for nearly two decades, and Dennis Tiziani, Stricker’s father-in-law, will be showcased as teachers and mentors. Joining Dye in speaking about Whistling Straits will be Herb Kohler, Executive Chairman of Kohler Co., who had Dye build the course, and Jim Richerson, PGA General Manager and Group Director of Golf for Kohler Co. This year will mark the third time the PGA Championship visits Whistling Straits. Both previous events ended in a playoff, with Vijay Singh edging Chris DiMarco in 2004 and Martin Kaymer beating Bubba Watson in 2010. The Ryder Cup will also be staged there in 2020. There are no comments yet. Be the first to post your thoughts. Sign in or register. Morgan Pressel guests on ‘Playing Lessons’ Monday Rory McIlroy, Tiger Woods hopeful for different reasons	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line2991
__label__wiki	0.72524	0.72524	Judith (chapter 2) (Special edition) part of: Aviva Magazin, 'writing girls' project. For more: Aviva-Berlin According to the Jewish religion, every child of a Jewish woman or converted mother, is a Jew. According to the Israeli law of return, everyone who`s a child of a Jewish or a converted mother, or was a Jew by the Nazi’s definitions, is a Jew. According to the Nuremberg Laws the Nazis classified people as Jews if they had three or four Jewish grandparents. A person with only one Jewish grandparent was a "2nd-degree Mischling" (a crossbreed, of "mixed blood"), and a person with two Jewish grandparents was a "1st-degree Mischling". My email to Ori (information from the interview with Axel): Johanna Noebel (Abramovich, Heidrich): Your grandmother, Judith`s mom and the sister of Charlotte (Axel`s mom). Johanna had three children: Judith Drumer (Abramovich), died in 1990, father: Dov Abramovich. Ruth E (Abramovich) (still alive) is in a good contact with Ori, father: Dov Abramovich.Norma H, (still alive), father: Otto Heidrich. Johanna didn`t convert to Judaism (as Axel claims). She was born in Altenburg (Germany) and met there Dov Abramovich, an unorthodox Jew, who came there to work for the "Bosch" company. They married, moved to Riga (Latvia) and had Ruth (I don`t know when she was born) and Judith (around 1934). Somewhere before 1938, Dov Abramovich and Johanna divorced, and in 1938, Dov and Ruth, the older daughter left to go to Israel. Johanna and Judith stayed in Riga until 1943. Riga was occupied by the Nazis in July 1941, while Johanna and Judith were there. Dov had already left with Ruth to go to Israel before then, in 1938. In October 25, 1941, all Jews were sent to the Riga Ghetto and on 30 November and 8/9 December, the Nazis shot and murdered’ about 27.500 Latvian Jews from the ghetto at pre-dug pits in the nearby forest of Rumbula. Ori said that in Riga, Johanna was investigated by the Gestapo. What helped her to bargain with the Gestapo over her and her daughter`s life was the story about her brother, Werner. He was killed in the beginning of the war, when the German troops came to France. Also, Judith was a 1st-degree Mischling and not a "complete Jew". But still... To be a 1st-degree Mischling was not necessarily enough to save her life from the Rumbula massacre? By doing rough calculations, Judith was around 7 in those days, did she have to keep her identity a secret? Was Dov originally from Riga? If so, then people must have known he was a Jew and so was his daughter. In 1943, they took a suitcase and the dog and ran away to Johanna`s sister, Charlotte and her son Axel in Germany, Pritzwalk. During that time, Johanna, so Axel said, hid Judith`s Jewish identity. She changed Judith`s family name from Abramovich to Noebel, her name before the marriage. Judith also took part in the BDM, a Nazi youth organisation for girls. In the new German small town, people were never suspicious concerning Judith identity. Maybe because her grandfather, Johanna`s father, was in the Nazi party, or maybe because Charlotte was the owner of (the only?) grocery store in the village. Charlotte herself knew and hid this fact from everyone else. Axel, her son, didn`t know in those days. In Pritzwalk Johanna met Otto Heidrich, a Nazi soldier. They married and had Norma. In 1946, after the war, the family left to go to Flensburg (West Germany) because their fear of the Russians (maybe especially because Otto father was a big Nazi officer) Otto, as Axel said, used to hit Judith with a belt, he said he was a bit crazy. Because of that, Dov, Judith`s dad, asked to take his daughter to him to Israel. In 1948, Judith moved to live with Dov and Ruth, her sister in Israel (the British allowed only children under 12 to join their parents in Israel. Judith was 14, but they made her look younger.) Johanna and Otto (with Norma? or before she was born?) moved to Berlin a few months before Judith left for Israel. Johanna died in Berlin in 1954, without having been in Israel even once. Judith had two children in Israel, Ori and his sister, and died in 1990 around 56 years-old, from cancer.Norma doesn’t want any connection with Axel, because of the bad way he talks about her father, Otto. Did Otto know about Judith’s Jewish identity? Did Judith come back to Germany to visit her mom? Is it possible that Judith lied to her children about her mother having converted so they could live safely in Israel as "complete" Jews? Axel said that he will be happy if you call, I told him a bit about you. He said that he tried to contact your Dad few times, but there was no connection. If you want to call him, let me know and I`ll send you his number. Ori`s replay mail to me: (my rough translation from Hebrew) MichaI, I knew there was a good reason why I asked you not to tell me the story on the phone, most of the story was unknown to me. They told me other facts and of course not the details, although I knew that the second husband was a Nazi, but not more than that. Not about the different cities, the fellowship in the Hitler youth movement etc. She didn`t tell me anything, of course. I didn`t know about the beating she had from her father, which is an abuse, or about the mother that gave up her child, which is another abuse. This information is very hard for me and I`ve been crying for some time now, maybe over my mother`s misery, that she never told to anyone, and maybe not. I had for many years suspected a deeper Nazi connection without knowing anything, but now, the story getting clearer. I actually always suspected my grandma was not Jewish, deep inside it didn`t make any sense to me, and I never believed in the stories saying she was Jewish. It doesn`t really matter to me; what matters is that I lived for 46 years in a lie. I`m waiting for Ori to come to Berlin michalfuchs.com Autobiographical illustrated story of a fox, who left her home in the wild and moved to Berlin. And then moved again to Halle.. *Please, forgive my English, I'm just a little fox. The Shepherds Jerusalem & the farm Herbst / Fall / סתיו Undergo Self Definition My portfolio webstie Aviva Magazin project French radio station interview fuchs	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line2993
__label__cc	0.675503	0.324497	Yada Yahweh Forum » Topics » Islam in Scripture » POD Letters 8 Pages123>» POD Letters #1 Posted : Thursday, August 7, 2008 1:44:38 AM(UTC) Yada has sent me a number of e-mails sent to him via the POD site. I thought I would post them here under this thread. This is an exchange between an anonymous Muslim and Yada: On Sun, Jul 27, 2008 at 2:49 PM, "B" wrote: > I dont understand why is all that venom towards muslim ! > Each person who lived, live and will live on this earth will be > questioned on the day of judgment. And if someone have his hands full > of someone's else blood, he will be punished no doubt about it. > So if all muslims are so satanic they will be brought in ffront of The > God and they will be judged for all their wrong doing, So if all > muslims are so satanic why don't you let them know the right path .. > the right well doing in place of spreading hatred. > What I know, if you want to save a person, you do not shout at him, > but rather make him understand slowly and gently. > And you try tell the world that's God send you :) !! > May Allah offer you Hidaya ! Yada's response: Dear Muslim, There absolutely is no venom towards Muslims in Prophet of Doom--Islam's Terrorist Dogma in Muhammad's Own Words. In fact the book was written as a gift to Muslims, and is dedicated to them. Further, there is no racial, gender, age, social-economic, or geographic bias, much less hatred anywhere in Prophet of Doom. Therefore your premise is inappropriate. The only personal hatred in the book is directed at Muhammad and his companions. They were revolting by any rational or moral definition. They were rapists, pedophiles, incestuous, thieves, mass murderers, slave traders, war mongers, and vicious terrorists according to the five oldest and most reliable Islamic sources. I think it is important that Muslims are told what their oldest sources say Muhammad and his companions were like. No moral, rational, or sane individual, properly informed would put their faith in such a repulsive man or his dark spirit. According to the Qur'an and Hadith, Muslims who kill for Allah will be rewarded with multiple virgins in paradise. Since we know that is not true, the Qur'an, Allah, and Islam are not true. I did not say that "all Muslims were satanic;" in fact, I didn't accuse any Muslims of being demonic other than Muhammad. And that's because he said that a demon was attached to him, that he had been possessed, and that he spoke on behalf of Satan. I also say that Allah was modeled after Satan because based upon his scriptures, it is obvious. Muslims are typically the least gentile people in the world. In fact, 95% of all terrorist acts worldwide are perpetrated by Muslims. Allah tells Muslims to fight and kill non Muslims using all weapons of war until the whole world is Islamic. So as a Muslim, speaking in defense of Islam, you have to be completely hypocritical to suggest a slow and gentle approach to understanding. Prophet of Doom is 1,000 pages long, so it is plenty slow and deliberate in making its case. The vast majority of the pertinent and non repetitive content of Islam's five oldest sources is arranged chronologically, set into context, and methodically presented for your consideration. As for me hating what I found, that is the only moral and rational response to the overwhelming majority of Islamic scripture. I hate rape, incest, pedophilia, polygamy, sexism, gross immorality, religious deceptions, slavery, thievery, mass murder, oppression, and terrorism, and thus I'm judgmental about these things when they come from Muhammad's lips and hands. I have done my best to expose and condemn Islam based upon what the oldest Islamic sources say about Muhammad's deeds and words. I didn't cherry pick the worst passages, but instead cited 80% of the relevant material. I did this to leave Muslims and non Muslims without excuse. The information is available, and properly documented. What you do with this gift is up to you. As for trying to tell the world about God, I've invested the past three years to writing Yada Yahweh--A Conversation With God. It is a 1500 page amplified translation and commentary on Yahweh's oldest extant prophetic Scriptures. If you go to www.YadaYahweh.com, you will meet the one and only God. You will find that He is anti-religious and that He hates Islam. All He wants is for you to know Him, trust Him, rely upon Him, walk with Him, talk with Him, and develop a personal and familial relationship with Him. My prayer for you, and for all Muslims, is to read Prophet of Doom, so that you learn that Muhammad wasn't a prophet, that Allah is not god, and that Islam is not true. Then, I pray that you, and all Muslims, read Yada Yahweh so that you might come to know Yahweh through His real prophets, and come to know what is actually true. Yahweh's Word is vastly superior to the lie that is Islam, and is in every way the inverse of Muhammad's message. May the truth set you free. PS Prophet of Doom remains one of the most popular websites in the Islamic world with countless Muslims freeing themselves from Islam as a result of actually reading the book. If you'd like to join the YY Study Group room on Paltalk - just click here. The lockword is: yadayahweh You can download the free software here. Hope to see everyone on Paltalk! WARNING: Do not give out personal information (name, address, etc.) to anyone on Paltalk - ever! The following is an exchange between "RK" and Yada: On Fri, Aug 1, 2008 at 8:42 AM, "RK"wrote: > THANKS TO OPEN MY EYES I WAS BLIND THESE DAYS THAT WHAT IS ISLAM AND > WHO IS ALLAH AND HIS MESSENGER MOHAMMED(PEACE BE UPON HIM) AS UR > HUMILIATION REALLY CREATING A TRUE MUSLIM INSIDE ME TO GIVE BACK A > PERFECT REPLY TO YOU .NOW IF YOU WANT GET FREE FROM UR STUPID THINKING > AND UR STUPID POSTINGS OR YOU WANT TO HAVE DEBATE I AM HERE PLZ MAIL > OR REPLY AS YOU FOOLS ARE STILL SLEEPING IN SATANS LAP. THERE IS ONLY > ONE ALLAH AND HIS MESSENGER (PEACE BE UPON HIM). IF U STILL DONT > UNDERSTAND WHAT ISLAM IS ACCEPT IT THAN ONLY U WILL GET FREE FROM > SATAN AND AND YOUR SO CALLED RELIGI And, Yada's response: From: Prophet of Doom <email@prophetofdoom.net> Date: Wed, Aug 6, 2008 at 9:24 AM Subject: Re: AWAKNING OF ISLAM To: RK Cc: Prophet of Doom <email@prophetofdoom.net> RK, If you are capable of rational thought, much less an informed debate, then read Prophet of Doom starting with the Source Material Appendix, and prove that what I have presented is errant. A thousand Muslims before you have tried, and thus far none have prevailed in even the smallest way. And to disprove the conclusions contained in Prophet of Doom, Muslims would have to be able to refute the perponderance of the evidence--an impossible task since all of the evidence used to discredit Islam comes directly from Islam's five oldest and most reliable sources. "RK" continues his rant with: On Fri, Aug 1, 2008 at 8:58 AM, "RK" wrote: > I AM BACK WITH A SPECIAL GIFT FOR YOU BUT FIRST. > BY WRITING AND POSTING STUPID NONSENSE THINGS IS EASY BUT YOU CANT WIN > OVER THAT INFACT YOU ARE MAKING OUR BELIEF MORE STRONGER IN ISLAM AND > ALLAH. SO AS YOU STATED ISLAMS TEACHES TO KILL WHY???? WHY YOU EVER > THOUGHT ABOUT IT . IF I SLAP YOU THEN SURE YOU WILL REPLY WITH A SLAP > RIGHT. YOU HAVE HUMILIATED ISLAM ALLAH AND HIS MESSENGER (PEACE BE > UPON HIM) HIM EVERYWAY. OK THATS YOUR SIN YOU GET PAID FOR THAT. > BUT I AM HERE TO FREE YOU FROM YOUR STUPID RELIGION AND THINKING WITH A > GIFT. > GIFT IS > ACCEPT ISLAM . > AND I AM SURE YOU WILL GET ALL YOUR UNFOLDED ANSWERS. > BELEIVE IN ALLAH > OR PREPARE WORSE FROM ALLAH > PLZ REPLY WHAT U THINK > I AM WAITING Subject: Re: ISLAM IS TRUE ACCEPT IT To: "RK" Read Prophet of Doom and then write me again. Start with the Source Material Appendix called "Islam's Dark Past." Once you have considered the thousands of citations I have presented from the oldest and most reliable Islamic sources to prove conclusively that Islam is Satanic, a complete fraud, and overwhelmingly violent, you will be in a position to respond to the book intelligently. Otherwise, stop "posting stupid nonsense things." "G" writes to Yada, "Thank you for the true accounts of the Iraq War..." From: "G" Date: Mon, Aug 4, 2008 at 9:01 AM Subject: Thank you for the true accounts of the Iraq War To: email@prophetofdoom.net I have sent every person listed in my address book your link to your website. Maybe if others read it , we can get Bush out of office and try to turn this country around, if still possible. I plan on continuing to forward your website to other s I meet in the future. I agree so much with what you wrote about every incident. If you ever have rallies in my state or nearby state (I'm on the border of Mass and NH) I will attend. I was so against the war. I even tried to do my part to impeach Bush when he won the election. Idon't think we've ever had such a stupid leader til him- he takes the case to the max. What an ignorant man. I think he uses an eight ball to make his decision planning and jsut wanted the prestige of the position, but wish his daughters had been drafted to give him a real feel for the war. He hides more than he helps. I love how Saturday Night Live realizes his ignorance with their skits. I still have the article of my friend from the fire dept whose son went to Iraq whose life was turned upside down. I knew the family of the pilot on 9/11 whose wife and 3 daughters were devastated. Another customer whose grandparents were coming to visit and they were blown up in one of the planes on Sep 11th and they were mailing dental records to identify the bodies. I tried getting pertinent information to the FBI about suspects on the terrorist watch list only to be told by my branch of Gov't I was paranoid and the info never reached FBI HQ's in time...and Fahid, Fazul and Ali escaped in a blue car with Florida license tags. I had addresses around the world that potential affiliates used constantly with name shifts at same location that were ignored. I had even told my parents prior to 9-11 that Logan would be a target eventually because it was vunerable. I don't have SPELL CHECK...sorry. I type so fast...so forgive me. I need military connections to have them investigate these locales and places around the US and abroad. Know of any trustworthy people I can turn to-without being named as the ones giving the information to them? I hope you find my friend John Ingemi retired and safe if you have pull to find out. I tried all public records of Naval deceased lists to no avail and a lot of roadblocks. Keep up the good work to keep the general public informed of the real war going on in a place we don't belong. What a God given site of someone who thinks as I do about this whole goddamn stupid gigantic mistake. The following is an exchange between "S" and Yada: On Tue, Aug 5, 2008 at 7:31 AM, "S" wrote: > Dear Yada, > Your website is incredible. It gives such a comprehensive insight > into islam..probably the most complete out there. I have used some of > the quotes from the bukari and the other Islamic books to support my > arguments when I speak to people about islam. Some people ,muslim as > well have Christian, have argued that only the Koran is sacred. The > other books (bukari, Tobari, > etc) are not sacred and not to look to them to define Islam. How can I argue > to them that the quotes from these books do define islam? > "S" Subject: Re: which texts are sacred to Islam? To: "S" "S," Thanks for engaging in the battle of ideas and for the endorsement. I explain the validity of the Hadith, Sira, and Ta'rikh in five places. I have listed them along with their URL for your convenience. The short answer is that Islam ceases to exist without the information contained in Ishaq's Biography and Tabar's Hadith. The Qur'an could not be ordered, be set into context, be understood, or followed without the information contained in the Hadith, Sira, and Ta'rikh. So a Muslim can protest all they want, but virtually everything they know about Muhammad (whose example and instruction they are ordered to follow), the essence of all of their religious rituals and practices (including all of the five pillars), and the basis of most all of their laws, come out of the other sources. Ignorance of these facts becomes the only defense. The Letter to the Reader http://www.prophetofdoom...uhammads_Own_Words.Islam Prologue http://www.prophetofdoom...t_of_Doom_Prologue.Islam Chapter 1 "Would You Believe?" http://www.prophetofdoom..._Would_You_Believe.Islam Source Material Appendix "Islam's Dark Past" http://www.prophetofdoom...x_Islams_Dark_Past.Islam Quotations Overview "Muhammad's Own Words" http://www.prophetofdoom.net/Quotes_Overview.aspx From: "AI" Subject: Letter to the Editor Hope you will be doing well, I have just found your site, I am a muslim and I know better my relegion .. I am wondring why you people dont write about hindus ... who waste their lives in worship of stones, trees sun and moon... The one who wrote the Letter about Prophet of Dooms, If I find him I will kill him the death of whom no body have thinkg about. Nobody got the right to speak wrong about others religeon ... The one who wrote the letter dont have his own relegion he is a buster, I dont think he can find his father ... And the desire of luch belong to his mother... I want to know about the person, his email or telephone.. so that I can speak to him ... "A" On Thu, Jul 24, 2008 at 1:13 PM, "KG" wrote: > Hi sir, > I heard your radio show on crosstalk with the muslim khaled. He > said that we christians in arabia use the name for allah in our bible. > Well the thing is we were forced to use the word allah. Just think > the muslims already want us dead think how would it be if we say we > dont believe in allah. They will torture us for saying we do not > believe in allah! So the answer is that we were forced to use the > name Allah in our bible since the muslims took over our land Egypt! > Massacred the us copts, then forced us to use arabic! Hello Dear Writer, Thank you for sharing these sad, yet true, facts. I am certain based upon your letter that you recognize that Muhammad was a repulsive schemer, that Islam is a terrorist dogma, and that Allah isn't god. Hopefully you know that God's name is Yahweh. If you would like to know more about what Yahweh said about Himself, His purpose and plan, I invite you to read www.YadaYahweh.com. While you are there, please consider joining the forum. We have nothing to sell, and nothing to gain. Everything we have to say is well researched, properly documented, and absolutely free. On Wed, Jul 23, 2008 at 4:29 PM, "KK" wrote: > Asslaam-alaikum! > i came across ur site which is wonderful > but what I didn't like is that ur site gave all quotes about women etc > etc BUT WHERE ON EARTH HAVE YOUR SITE EXPLAINED THE RIGHT ON MEN? YOUR > SITE HAVE NOT EXPLAINED WHAT A MAN SHOULD BE WITH A WIFE HOW A MAN > SHOULD BE RESPONSIBLE TOWARDS HIS WIFE & KIDS? YOU HAVE TALKED ABOUT > THE 4 MARRIAGES BUT YOU HAVE NOT TALKED ABOUT THE DUTIES ON MEN WHAT > ALLAH-SAUBHANATAALA HAVE LAID UPON > WOMEN IS LIKE A GEM WHICH A MAN SHOULD KEEP IT LIKE A TREASURE > FROM A MUSLIM Since every word and deed with forms the basis of your religion was spoken or acted out by a ruthless rapist, a disgusting pedophile, an immoral incestuous libertine, a polygamous despot with a harem full of sex slaves (many of whom he personally put into slavery), and an oppressive sexist who said that women were like domesticated animals whose value was half that of a man, and who should wear tents in public, I'm not overly motivated to see the "gems" of his religion. On Tue, Jul 22, 2008 at 7:55 AM, "BI"> wrote: > I have been a fan of your site for a long time and often quote it when > posting in forums. I have created a new blog that is heavy on visuals > and videos, all designed to show > Americans the dark side of Islam they never see. I think it complements your > site very well. > I was wondering if there was anyway you could link my blog to your site, if > you like it. > It would be an honor to be a part of this fine site. > Here's the link: > http://barenakedislam.wordpress.com/about/ "BI" "B," I've been to your site and I have asked our webmaster to add it in our links section. Good job. And thanks for the compliment. #10 Posted : Thursday, August 7, 2008 5:17:52 AM(UTC) On Tue, Jul 22, 2008 at 2:02 AM, "AI" wrote: > no one in the right sense wud beliv ur article. but nice to read - > very fascinating indeed. > I doubt u read till finish the bible . wat is there left to u for > quran ? Bear in mind religion is not to be distinquished. be tolerant > - i wish u all the best in ur heaven > thank u "A," Prophet of Doom is 1000 pages long, so it is hardly an "article." But that aside, your "no one in the right sense wud beliv ur/it," poses a real problem for you if you are a Muslim. And that's because Prophet of Doom is based entirely on Islam's five oldest and most trusted sources. It orders the Koran chronologically and sets it into the context of Muhammad's life using the Hadith, Sirah, and Ta'rikh. If they aren't true, if they cannot be believed, then Islam cannot be true. You would be wrong about the "bible" too. Not only have I read it, I've written a 1500 page review of it, translating Yahweh's oldest prophetic manuscripts in an amplified fashion, so as to increase understanding. After reading Prophet of Doom, I invite you to read Yada Yahweh. Both are free. If you read Yahweh's Scripture you will learn that God doesn't want us to be tolerant of anything which is not true, especially if it is religious, immoral, or violent. > is the american/jews paying to pay off ur shit words - hahahhaha why > not u make tis into a movie. > this is only ur assumption n presumption- big joke - u eat rats Muslims are consistently unable to differentiate a messenger from their message. I'm irrelevant, as are my finances. To answer your question, no one has paid me or is paying me. I realize all Muslims are instructed by Allah to hate Jews, but you can't blame Prophet of Doom on them. There is something deeply disturbing about a person who finds the world's most comprehensive, best documented, chronological and contextual presentation of the words and deeds of their prophet and god funny. And as one would expect in such a case, the joke is on you. On Tue, Jul 22, 2008 at 2:18 AM, AI wrote: > i really enjoy ur fucking articles - fill full of lies- hahahhaha Based upon your letter, and the thousands of emails we have received at Prophet of Doom, the minds of far too many Muslims are as depraved as their mouths. I am sorry for what Muhammad has done to you. On Mon, Jul 21, 2008 at 2:58 PM, "C" wrote: > "I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your > right to say it." Voltaire. > Freedom, we all want it and wish to exercise it, but if that ever to > become a reality without being morally governed, we will burn down the > free world our fathers created like Golding's boys of the lord of the > flies. I have read the comments you wrote about the holy prophet > Mohammed (mpbuh) and I am shocked and startled at the level of > ignorance and obvious contempt to Islam. I cannot change how you feel, > but I beseech you if ever you have an once of dignity, if you possess > an ethical commitment to write what is true and valid. > Stop this ridiculous disregard to the intelligence of the readers, I do not > care what credentials you possess or what "professors" have contributed to > your website, you are brewing lies. What scares me is that a person who has > no idea what Islam is but triggered to feed a curiosity to learn more of it > will believe what you wrote which no doubt is your aim. > Initiating discrimination against Muslims, enticing hatred towards a > religion of mercy, is cowardly. > I leave you with a thought; Ariel Sharon committed acts of genocide > and he is Jewish >Mary Queen of Scots had thousands killed and she was an ardent Christian. >The Taliban, purged their people and yet they were Muslims. > Acts of dire evil answers to no religion and no faith condones murder > or oppression. Islam had nothing to do with what happened in 9/11 or > any acts of terrorism. May God show you the path. C, Simply sated: Prophet of Doom is the most comprehensive, best documented, most chronological and contextual presentation of Islam's five oldest and most trustworthy sources ever written. It proves that Muhammad was a rapist, a pedophile, incestuous, a sexist, a liar, thief, assassin, mass murderer, slave trader, and ruthless terrorist. It, using only the oldest Islamic sources proves that Allah is not god and that Islam is not true. It's credibility is derived entirely from Muhammad's Qur'an, Ishaq's Sira/Biography of Muhammad, Tabari's Ta'rikh/History of Islam's formation, and Bukari's and Muslim's topical collection of Hadith/Oral Reports from Muhammad and his companions. If they are not reliable or true, Islam cannot be true. There are very few things in life more compassionate and worthy than exposing and condemning religious lies like Islam. I have done the same with the politicized religions of Judaism, Nazism, Catholicism, Mormonism, and Secular Humanism. While I am not a Jew or a fan of Sharon, he has not committed acts of genocide, but Muhammad did. And Muhammad was the central character in Prophet of Doom, not Sharon. While I am not a Christian, nor a fan of any political leader, the acts of Mary Queen of Scots aren't germane to the subject of Prophet of Doom. I am anti-religious and despise all of the evil perpetrated in the name of God. The Taliban are fundamentalist Muslims, and as such they are terrorists. That is the point of Islam. Muhammad led 75 terrorist raids in the first ten years of the Islamic Era. The Qur'an tells Muslims to follow his example. The truth which you dismiss with opinion is that Islam was completely responsible for 9-11 (Allahu Akbar), and that according to Muhammad and the Qur'an, all good Muslims are terrorists. To be a peaceful Muslim, according to the Qur'an, a person has to be a hypocrite. Allah wants good Muslims to kill the peaceful bad Muslims so that he can personally attend to their torture in hell. Surely you have read the 9th surah and understand what it says. God has shown me the path. His name is Yahweh. If you would like to know Him and it, please read www.YadaYahweh.com. It is based upon His seven Miqra'ey--Called Out Appointments. And if you'd like to demonstrate that you are better informed and more reasonable, consider reading Prophet of Doom, starting with the Source Material Appendix, and then, when you have finished the book, demonstrate where I have erred in my citations of the oldest Islamic sources or in my conclusions derived from them. All I ask is that you avoid citing irrelevant material and stating your opinions as you have here. Focus on the evidence. On Sun, Jul 20, 2008 at 1:56 PM, DS wrote: > I keep bothering you as I know you are very busy, but I will continue > to bother you. > I study your work every day and have it on my MP3 players and in my > commute player (1 hour to and one hour from work). I have memorized > about half of your work. > I want your work and will prepay if you send me a purchase order. > Should I consider learning to read the Qur'an (Koran), I have both. > If you find time answer. I have lots of interest here in 'fly over > country' If you get a chance to be around I'd like to meet you. > Now get back to work, OK. You are not bothering me because, due to the volume of emails we receive at Prophet of Doom, I am able to read very few of them. I am pleased, however, that you have found the research I've brought together beneficial. You don't need to pay me anything, I'm just thrilled you are using it. I don't have any remaining copies of POD, but you can print the PDF files out cheaper than the book can be purchased used online, anyway. To answer your question, if you want to engage in live public debates on Islam, learning the Qur'an will be helpful. If not, I wouldn't bother. My first choice for you would be to encourage you to read www.YadaYahweh.com. It will empower you to do great things. I don't travel apart from family vacations, much anymore, so our online meeting will have to suffice. On Sat, Jul 19, 2008 at 12:18 PM, AI wrote: > Telling the Truth is Islam Bashing? > By: AI (obviously not the same "AI" who's quoted in earlier emails on this thread) I am bombarded by hate and threats by the Allah-fearing fanatics, > simply because I speak the truth about Islam. If telling the truth > about Islam is Islam bashing, then mea culpa. Question: Does Islam get a pass because it is a religion? Who says > Islam is a religion? Millions do? What is the evidence? The words of > masses of brainwashed carriers of the Islamic virus, transmitted to > them by their parents, are worthless as evidence. What counts is the > irrefutable fact that this creed, claimed to be the one and only > religion of Allah, has been and continues to be a source of great > suffering for non-Muslims as well as the ignorant masses of Muslims > themselves. > Please continue.... Very well stated, A. Exposing and condemning the scourge that is Islam is the most compassionate and rational thing any informed and moral person can do. It is a gift to Muslims and it will leave non Muslims without excuse. On Thu, Jul 17, 2008 at 6:09 PM, DAVID TABER DT wrote: > Sirs: I have read your condemnation of terrorism with great interest. > It contains the kind of belief that most non-Muslims feel is > characteristic of believers in Islam. > It has occurred to me to wonder at the reception of your > document. Was it publicized in Europe and the Middle East? And if so, with what result. > The intensity of differing views about this sublect in the U.S., > as you know, is provoking radically different feelings, so it would be > important to publcize any positive outcomes of your document. -DT Truth has never been popular, so judging the worth of a book by its success would be counterproductive. But to answer your question, the first printing of POD in the US sold out very quickly. It has not been reprinted, however, because I find it more beneficial to give the book away free online. We have several million visitors at the site each year. It is interesting to note that the Prophet of Doom website is among the most popular in Islamic countries--ten times more heavily read per capita in the Middle East than it is in America, Europe, or Australia. On Tue, Jul 15, 2008 at 8:46 AM, AAM wrote: > I'm not surprise when I saw your website because in Al Qurán Surah Al > Baqarah Verse 121 Allah said (The Jews will never be pleased with > thee, nor the Christians, unless thou follows their creed…). Why some > Jews and Christian try to defame Muslim? Try to make other people > confuse with Muslim? … Because Jews and Christian known that Islam is > the true religion by God. Some of Christian take photo and video sex > wear clothes like Muslim and some of Christian kills human do like > Muslim. This is really Muslim? No, they are Jews and Christian. >Thanks God born me in Islam. This is the most lame reasoning ever postulated in the name of God. It is neither true, or rational. Why is it that Muslims have been rendered unable to think? Why do Muslims believe such rubbish? On Sun, Jul 13, 2008 at 11:40 AM, BGS wrote: > Yada/To Whom it may concern, > First of all, thank you so much for the fantastic work you have been > doing! Your investigations and consequent revelations about Islam - > are truly a huge service to the world. We truly appreciate the > sacrifices of time and money your entire team has made to make this > critical information available to mankind. > Cutting to the chase.... > I am working with a group of people who are making an educational game > system, which will include some discussion of Islam's clearly negative > contribution to mankind. > We understand that a substantial amount of the Islamic writings, > including the Koran, that are currently quoted, are sanitized for the > West. We also understand they are not the same source materials that > are being taught to Islamic terrorists of today in Arabic. > My question is this... Can you quickly list a bibliography of the the > most accurate translation(s), to English, that have been made so far, > of the Koran, and other important Islamic early texts, so we can > obtain copies of them for our own research? > I see some texts you are linking to Amazon.com to from your website, > but are these the best ones available to the general American public > to do accurate research with? > Thank you in advance for your reply. > BGS BGS, The Noble Qur'an is the most literal. The publisher is listed in the Bibliography of the book. At the Prophet of Doom site you will find it along with the other four most reliable Islamic translations of the Qur'an. But to understand Muhammad/Allah's book, I'd strongly encourage you to read Prophet of Doom because it arranges the Qur'an chronologically and sets it into the context of Muhammad's life. Here is the URL for the Five Qur'ans: http://www.prophetofdoom.net/Qurans.Islam. All of the sources used in Prophet of Doom are listed in the Letter to the Reader and in the Bibliography. Thanks: 3 times Swalchy wrote: Does Yada get more threatening emails or more encouraging ones, or is it roughly 50-50? Are you asking via the POD contact or the YY contact? Maybe they run about the same? Many of the YY exchanges Yada has shared have been less than encouraging. It's an interesting question - this response from Yada: At YY, the emails are 99% encouraging. At POD, the emails from non-Muslims are 90% encouraging and 10% condemning. At POD, the emails from Muslims are 70% nasty and stupid, 5% threatening, 20% civil but either ignorant or irrational, and 5% encouraging. That is an interesting break down. While a small percentage, I find the encouraging Muslim responses to POD to be both surprising and hopefull. I suppose that most of the already convinced readers of YY who quickly dismiss it wouldn't bother to send a note expressing that to Yada, especially if they skimmed the surface rather then dig into the material in detail. I think even in the YY introduction Yada hints that an agnostic may be least shocked by YY's conclusions. For my part I found that after going from Christian to Agnostic, I began to be convinced that the universe required a Creator but had to table many unresolved conflicts between the Scriptures of the various religions and what we've come to understand about the universe's beginnings. YY's bridging this gap was of tremendous interest to me and I'll suspect many others encountering similar conflicts of reason and faith. Now I'm wondering what the responses have trended regarding Ken's writings? I'll guess that Rabbinical Jews would find TOM unsettling and not support the conclusions. I'll guess that FH would upset Muslims based on the Muslim Connection, Europeans, and Chinese based on Anti-Messiah and Armageddon, and Christians for considering dates and for presenting Three-Doors. #22 Posted : Thursday, August 7, 2008 1:34:54 PM(UTC) On Thu, Jul 10, 2008 at 9:27 AM, "DN" Dear Yada, >>> I have learned quite a bit from Tea With Terrorists and Prophet of >>> Doom. In chapter 6 of POD you state: "Yet the only archeological >>> evidence that has survived from the Qur'an's first century is a coin >>> and an inscription inside the Dome of the Rock on the Jewish Temple >>> Mount. These fragments differ from each other and from today's >>> book." Is there some place that I can get confirmation of these two >>> "verses"? I have been unable to find a way to verify this oft' >>> repeated claim. Thank you for doing the Lord's work, sir! -DN On Aug 7, 2008, at 11:28 AM, Prophet of Doom wrote: "D," >> I provide more detail on these claims, as well as the sources >> responsible for acquiring the evidence, in the Source Material >> Appendix, "Islam's Dark Past." While the appendix would bore most >> people (which is why it was put at the end of the book), for someone >> like yourself, who likes to verify everything they read, it will >> provide a more solid foundation. If you read it, let me know what you >> think. >> Yada #23 Posted : Friday, August 8, 2008 1:42:51 AM(UTC) On Fri, Jul 4, 2008 at 11:40 PM, RB wrote: > To > The Editor, > The Prophet of Doom. > Dear Sir, > I send an article "DESTINATION: Allah's Brothel" for your kind > perusal and publish in your extremelyn reputed website, if you find > the same suitable. The article has already been published by > faithfreedom.org and islamwatch.org. > With profound regards, > Dr RB, > July 5, 12.05 AM (IST) > ************************************ > DESTINATION: Allah's Brothel > By Dr RB > CONCEPT OF JAHELIA: > According to Islamic theology, the jahelia (or darkness of > ignorance) was prevailing throughout the entire world during the > pre-Islamic days, and it was Almighty Allah, Who, by revealing the > Koran, separated light of truth from the darkness of false-hood. Hence > the other name of the Koran is Forkan or that separates light and > darkness. But for a commoner, it is really incomprehensible why the > all knowing Allah took so much time to separate light and darkness and > compelled the human race wait for centuries to enlighten them with the > wisdom of Koran. It would have been better for Allah to reveal his > Koran just after his creation of man. This makes one sceptical about > the adequacy of Allah's intelligence. > However, some Muslim intellectuals and clerics try to propagate the > notion that Islam means peace (only to confuse the non-Muslim kafirs). > In fact the Arabic word Islam stands for surrender. Or more pointedly, > unconditional surrender to Allah's revealed book Koran and Allah's > Prophet Muhammad. Furthermore, Islam as a creed is a package and every > Muslim must have blind faith in the totality, or in every aspect of > it. In Islam, free thinking is a taboo and no Muslim has the right to > question the contents of Koran and Hadith (or Prophet's Tradition). > Allah has already laid down the truth and hence it is useless to spend > time and energy in re-discovering the same. So it is the duty of every > Muslim to accept the truth revealed by Allah without any question, and > it is their religious duty to explain and propagate the said truth. > So the Muslims around the world, who were converted to the > faith from other religions, had to accept the entire package of the > creed without any question, sacrifice their right to free thinking and > blindly surrender to the most unscientific and irrational diktats of > Koran and Hadith. So every Muslim had no other option but to mend > their thought process according to the demand of the faith. In fact, > most of them have already lost their rationality and thinking power by > following the faith for centuries. On the other hand, being influenced > by the preaching of the extremely biased and fanatic mullahs, every > Muslim maintains that he is following a religion which is far better > than the religion of his ancestors. He believes that he is lucky > enough to have the privilege of following the most up to date message > of God. He even condemns his ancestors, as they were the people the > said period of jahelia. > In India, in particular, most of the Muslims are converted Hindus and > it is therefore necessary to make a comparative study of these two > religions, namely Hinduism and Islam from an unbiased platform, so > that a common man may evaluate the two religions himself. At the out > set, it should be made clear that historically man began his journey > as a food gatherer and later on he could advance himself to the > pastoral way of life after domestication of animals. Till then he had > to lead a nomadic life. It is evident that a nomadic life style is > unsuitable for advancement of learning, or for spread of knowledge and > education. The civilisation began when man could raise himself from a > pastoral and nomadic life to an agricultural life style. Such a life > style provided him with a permanent address, and this permanent > habitation at particular place gradually led to the formation of > modern state with its administrative, judicial system along with its > army and institutions for maintenance of law and order. So it can > safely be said that agriculture is the womb of modern civilisation. > Scholars agree that India went agricultural well before the age of > Rigveda and hence Hinduism or Vedic culture is a product superior > agricultural civilisation. But in the peninsula of Arabia, where Islam > originated, land is semi-desert in nature and rain fall is scanty. > These two geographical compulsions have rendered agriculture an > impossible task in Arabia, and have arrested its advancement into the > agricultural stage of civilisation. So, pastoral and nomadic way of > life still prevails in that country. Hence it becomes evident that > Islam is a fruit of pastoral civilisation and hence it is inferior to > Hinduism. Furthermore, the originators of Islam were illiterate > pastoral people, while the proponents of basic philosophy and > spiritual ideology Hinduism were highly educated and spiritually > elevated agricultural people, called Risis. > The reader can discover other evidence in favour of the fact that > pastoral civilisation still prevails in the peninsula of Arabia. An > agricultural society has no other option but to follow a solar > calendar, as the changes of seasons, or rather the seasons of sowing, > reaping and harvesting depends absolutely upon the annual movement of > the sun. But the people of Arabia are being able to manage their day > to day life, even today, by following a lunar Hijri calendar, as the > Arabian society is pastoral and do not need farming for its survival. > So it becomes evident that the basic concepts of Hinduism should be > far more superior to those of Islam, as the latter is the product of > inferior pastoral civilisation. > A comparative narration of all the aspects of Hinduism and > Islam would be voluminous. So the author of this article has confined > his discussion to one aspect, the final or ultimate destination which > these two religions cherish to attain. There is another motive of > writing this article. It carries a request to our Muslim brothers to > go through it with an open mind so as to assess the religious creed > they are following, in comparison to the Vedic religion of their > ancestors. > WHAT A HINDU SHOULD ASPIRE FOR: > Hindu scriptures offer four goals before every man to be fulfilled in > this life, dharma, artha, kama and moksha. Two of them, namely artha > and kama, are material and the remaining two are ethical and > spiritual. Out of these four, moksha is the highest aspiration of > human life, the highest and the ultimate spiritual attainment of man. > Literally, moksha stands for liberation, and more pointedly, > liberation from the unending cycles of birth and rebirth. But the path > to obtain Moksha is very difficult, as difficult as the sharp edge of > a razor. When a man realises that only Brahman exists in this vast > Universe and all contingent beings in this Universe are nothing but > Brahman appearing in infinite hues and shapes, and he himself is also > Brahman, then he becomes Brahmavid or a seer and liberates himself > from infinite cycles of birth and rebirth or obtains Moksha. This > realisation comes after complete renunciation from all worldly objects > of pleasure, purification of soul by giving up lust, greed, anger, > violence and continuous musing of Brahman, and other austere > practices. Thus when an individual purifies his body and soul like > Brahman, he attains Brahman as pure water mixes with pure water (Katha > Upanisad-II,I,15). Such a Brahmavid himself becomes Brahman and hence > the Mundaka Upanisad says, "Whoever really knows that all-highest > Brahman, really becomes Brahman. … Transcending grief, transcending > evil, relieved from the knots (of birth and rebirth), he becomes > immorta"(III,ii,9). > HIGHEST SPIRITUAL ATTAINMENT IN ISLAM: > The highest spiritual attainment in Islam is entering Alla's > Paradise and live there for eternity. On the 'Day of Resurrection' or > Qiyamah, Allah will forgive every sin of his beloved believers and > allow them to enter his Paradise due to the only merit of their belief > in Allah's Koran and the Prophet-hood of Muhammad, or simply for the > merit of believing in the first Kalima or Kalima Taib that reads, La > Ilaha Illallah, Mohmmadur Rasulullah. (or Allah is the only God to be > worshiped and Muhammad is his messenger). On that day, Allah will > raise each and every human being from their graves and assemble them > to assess their deeds in this world and hence to send them to either > hell or heaven. The people would be assembled on the Day of > Resurrection bare footed, naked and uncircumcised (Sahih Muslim: 6844, > 6846, 6847). It should be noted here that Islamic scriptures gives no > clue whether Allah is circumcised. > In one occasion Ayesha asked, "Will the male and the female be > together on that day and would they be looking at one another?" > Allah's Messenger visibly became annoyed with this vexed question and > replied, "The matter would be too serious for them to look at one > another" (Sahih Muslim: 6844). "On the Day of Resurrection, Allah > would bring the sun very close to the people and there would be left > only a distance of one mile" (Sahih Muslim: 6852). After the > judgement, each and every Muslim, due to the merit of believing in > Allah's Koran and the Allah's Prophet Muhammad, would be admitted into > the paradise, while the entire lot of non-Muslims (kafirs) will be > thrown into hell-fire. It should also be mentioned here that, Allah > will be extremely cruel to Hindus as they are idolatrous. So Koran > says, "You (the disbelievers or the kafirs) and all your idols shall > be the fuel of Hell; therein you all go down. Were they true gods, > your idols would not go there; but in they shall abide for ever. They > shall groan with pain and be bereft of hearing"(21:98-100). One should > notice that Almighty Allah did not say how he would raise the people > who cremate the dead. Perhaps the all-knowing Allah, at the time of > revealing the Koran, was not aware that some people did not bury their > dead but cremate. > The wisdom of Allah has created eight kinds of heavens to maintain a > hierarchy among the believers and these are (1) Kheld, (2) > Dar-es-salam, (3) Darul, (4) Adan, (5) Nayeem, (6) Mawa, (7) Alluyin > and (8) Ferdaus. Best places of the Paradise are reserved for > Prophets, the martyrs of jihad and ghazis or slayers of infidels. So > the Koran says "We shall pardon your > (believers') evil deeds admit you with all honour to Paradise" (4.31). > "Allah will not forgive those who serve other gods besides him. … He that > serves other gods besides him is guilty of a heinous sin (shirk)" (4.48). > "Allah will not forgive idolatry. He will forgive all other sins. He says > that, who serves other gods besides Allah, has strayed far from the truth" > (4.116). "Allah will do away with their (believers') foulest deeds" (39,35). > As mentioned above, the believers would find places in different kinds of > Paradise according to their hierarchy, and hence the Koran says-"The > (common) inmates of the paradise will look to the upper apartment of the > paradise as you see the planets in the sky (Sahih Muslim: 6788 & 6789). And > all those, who do not believe in Islam, will be thrown into hell-fire. > The fire in Hell would be quite different from ordinary fire. It would > be 70 times more intense than mundane fire (Sahih Muslim: 6811). The > wisdom of Allah has created seven categories of Hell to suit different > kinds of kafirs and the intensity of fire and height of the flames > will be different in these Hells. In some Hell, fire will reach the > ankles, somewhere it will reach the knees, somewhere to the waist and > somewhere to the collar-bone > (SM: 6815, 6816). Hindus are not simple kafirs, but kafirs of the worst > kind, as they are idol worshipers (or mushriks). As a punishment for this > fault as well as for the most serious fault of creating partners to Allah by > way of worshiping other gods, they would be thrown into Havia, the most > tormenting Hell, where the flames of hell-fire would reach one's scalp. > While the Jews and Christians, for their merit of not being idolatrous, > would be thrown into less tormenting Hells. > "In this eternal Hell-fire, Allah would roast the kafirs again and > again, and every time He will replace their skins with new ones, so > that they could suffer this inhuman torture without any pause" (Koran- > 4:56). There will be no death for the inmates of the Paradise and no > death for the inmates of the Hell (SM: 6827, 6829), and this > announcement will increase the delight of the dwellers of the > Paradise, while it would increase the grief of the inmates of the Hell > (SM: 6830). Furthermore, the kafirs in Hell would have very strange > appearances. For example, the molar teeth or the canine teeth of an > unbeliever in Hell would be like Uhud (a hill in the neighbourhood of > Mecca) and the thickness of his skin would be three night's journey (SM: > 6831) and the distance between his two shoulders would also be three night's > journey for a swift rider (SM: 6832). Muhammad has seen Amr bin Luhayy bin > Qama, brother of Bani Ka'b, dragging his intestines in Hell fire (SM:6838), > for the sin of introducing idolatry in Arabia. > BELIEVERS IN PARADISE: > While the unbelievers will perish in Hell, the believers, though > fallen and evil doers, will joyfully enter Allah's Paradise where > rivers of pure water, milk, pure honey and divine wine are flowing and > the Koran says, "Allah will do away with their foulest deeds" (39:35). > "As for those who led the way, the First of the muhajirs (Muslims > migrated from Mecca to Medina) and the ansar (Muslims of Medina who > helped muhajirs), and those who nobly followed them, Allah is pleased > with them and they with Him. He has prepared for them gardens watered > by running streams, where they shall dwell for ever. That is the > supreme triumph"(9:100). "He will forgive, you your sins and admit you > to gardens watered by running streams; He will lodge you in pleasant > mansions in the garden of Eden. That is the supreme triumph"(61:12). > "This is the Paradise which the righteous (Muslims) have been > promised. There shall flow in it rivers of unpolluted water, and > rivers of ever fresh milk; rivers of delectable wine and rivers of > clearest honey. They shall eat therein every fruit and receive > forgiveness from their Lord" (47.15). > In a hadith narrated by Abu Huraira, a close companion of prophet > Muhammad, Allah, the Exalted and Glorious, said, "I have prepared (the > paradise) for My pious servants which no eye has ever seen, no ear has > ever heard, and no human heart has ever perceived but it is testified > by the book of Allah. … No soul knows what comfort has been concealed > from them, as a reward for what they did" (Sahih Muslim: 6779, 6780, > 6781, 6782 & 6783). > "In paradise, there is a street to which they (the inmates of > paradise) would come every Friday, the north wind will blow and would > scatter fragrance on their faces and on their clothes and would add to > their beauty and loveliness"(Sahih Muslim: 6792). "In paradise, there > is a tree under the shadow of which a rider of a fine and swift footed > horse would travel for a hundred years without covering the distance > completely" (Sahih Muslim: 6784, 6785, 6786 & 6787). "In paradise > there would be for a believer a tent made of a single hollowed pearl > the breath of which would be sixty miles" (Sahih > Muslim: 6804). "… the breath of which would be sixty miles from all sides" > (Sahih Muslim: 6805). "The height of which would be sixty miles. In each > corner, there would be a family of the believer, out of sight of the other" > (Sahih Muslim: 6806). "In paradise there would be two rivers Saiban and > Jaiban. Beside that, people would find Euphrates and Nile are all among the > rivers of paradise" (Sahih uslimM: 6807). > To describe Islamic Paradise, Sir W. Muir writes, "Rest and passive > enjoyment; verdant gardens watered by murmuring rivulets, wherein the > believers, clothed in green silk brocades and silver ornaments, repose > beneath the wide-spreading shade on couches well furnished with > cushions and carpets, drink the sweet waters of the fountains, and > quaff aromatic wines such as the Arab loved from goblets placed before > them or handed round in silver cups resplendent as glass by beautiful > youths; while clusters fruit hang close by inviting the hand to gather > them; - such is the paradise framed to captivate the inhabitant of the > thirsty sterile Mecca". Another element is soon added to complete the > Paradise of the pleasure-loving Arabs –"Theirs shall be gardens and > vineyards, and damsels with swelling bosoms, of an equal age, and a > full cup" (78,31). "In the oft described shady garden 'with fruits > and meats, and beakers of wine causing not the head to ache, neither > disturbing the reason", these damsels of the paradise are introduced > as "Lovely large-eyed girls resembling pearls hidden in their shells, > a reward for that which the faithful have wrought. …Verily We have > created them of a rare creation; We have made them virgins, > fascinating, of an equal age" (52:21). > The believers after entering Paradise would assume completely changed > appearances and hence the hadith of Sahih Muslim says, "The (members) > of the first group to get into the paradise would have their faces as > bright as full moon during the night, and the next group would have > their faces as bright as the shining stars in the sky" (Sahih Muslim: > 6793). Not only their appearances but also their physiology as well > as metabolic activities would also be greatly altered. "The members of > the first group that would be admitted to the paradise would have > their faces as bright as the full moon during the night. They would > neither spit nor suffer catarrh, nor void excrement. They would have > their utensils and their combs made of gold and silver and the fuel of > their braziers would be aloes and their sweat will be musk and every > one of them would have two spouses (so beautiful) that the marrow of > their shanks would be visible through the flesh. There would be no > dissension amongst them and no enmity in their hearts".(Sahih Muslim: > 6797, 6798, 6800). "They (the dwellers of paradise) would neither pass > water, nor void excrement, nor will they suffer from catarrh, nor will > they spit, and their combs would be made of gold, and their sweat will > be musk, the fuel of their brazier will be aloes, and their wives will > be large-eyed maidens and their form would be alike as one single > person after the form of their father (Adam) sixty cubits tall" (Sahih > Muslim: 6795, 6796). > To describe His Paradise, Allah, in Koran, says, "The righteous shall > surely dwell in bliss. Reclining upon soft couches they will gaze > around them; and in their faces you shall mark the glow of joy. They > shall drink of a pure wine, securely sealed, whose very dregs are > musk, for this let all men emulously strive; a wine tempered with the > waters of Tasnim, a spring at which the favoured will refresh > themselves" (36.5-22). > "But the true servants of Allah shall be well provided for, feasting > on fruit, and honoured in the gardens of delight. Reclining face to > face upon soft couches, they shall be served with a goblet filled at a > gushing fountain, white and delicious to those who drink. It will > neither dull their senses nor befuddle them" (37: 47). "As for the > righteous, they shall surely triumph. Theirs shall be gardens and > vineyards, and high-bosomed maidens for > companions: a truly overflowing cup" (78: 31). > "But in fair gardens the righteous shall dwell in bliss, rejoicing in > what their Lord will give them. They shall recline on couches ranged > in rows. To dark-eyes houris, We shall wed them. Fruits we shall give > them, and such meats as they desire. They will pass from hand to hand > a cup inspiring no idle talk, no sinful urge; and there shall wait on > them young boys of their own as Fair as virgin pearls" (52:17-24). > "But for those that fear the majesty of their Lord there are two > gardens planted with shady trees. Which of your Lord's blessings would > you deny? Each is watered by a flowing spring. Each bears every kind > of fruit in pairs. They shall recline on couches lined with thick > brocade, and within their reach will hang the fruits of both gardens." > (55: 46-55) > "The righteous shall drink of a cup tempered at the Camphor Fountain, > a gushing spring at which the servants of Allah will refresh > themselves: Allah will, reward them for their steadfastness with robes > of silk and the delights of Paradise. Reclining there upon soft > couches, they shall feel neither the scorching heat nor the biting > cold. Trees will spread their shade around them, and fruits will hang > in clusters over them. They shall be served with silver dishes, and > beakers as large as goblets; silver goblets which they themselves > shall measure; and cups brim-full with ginger- flavoured water from > the Fount of Selsabil." (76:5-18) "On that day there shall be radiant > laces, of men well-pleased with their labours, in a lofty garden. > There they shall hear no idle talk. A gushing fountain shall be there, > and raised soft couches with goblets placed before them; silken > cushions ranged in order and carpets richly spread" (88:8-16). > "The righteous shall surely dwell in bliss. Reclining upon soft > couches they will gaze around them: and in their faces you shall mark > the glow of joy. They shall drink pure wine, securely sealed, whose > very dregs are musk, for this let all men emulously strive; a wine > tempered with the waters of Tasnim, a spring at which the favoured > will refresh themselves". > (83:22-28) > HOURIES > The chief attractions of Allah's Paradise are houries or Heavenly > damsels, who are virgins, chaste, dark eyed with swelling bosoms > (perhaps comparable to Uhud) and never become older than 16 and the > Koran says, "as for the righteous, they shall surely triumph. Theirs > shall be gardens and vineyards, and high-bosomed maidens for > companions: a truly overflowing cup" (78:31-34). "They shall sit with > bashful, dark-eyed virgins, as chaste as the sheltered eggs of > ostriches. Surely that is the supreme triumph. Let every man labour to > achieve it" (37; 48-50). > "And theirs shall be dark-eyed houris, chaste as hidden pearls: a > guerdon for their deeds. They shall recline on couches raised on high > in the shade of thornless sidrahs and clusters of talh; amidst gushing > waters and abundant fruits, unforbidden. never-ending. We created > houris and made them virgins, loving companions for those on the right > hand: a multitude from the men of old, and a multitude from the > later". (56:22-40). "They (the dwellers of Paradise) shall live with > bashful virgins whom neither man nor jinnee will have touched before. > They would be virgins, as fair as corals and rubies. Which of your > Lord's blessings would you deny? And beside these there shall be two > other gardens of darkest green. A gushing fountain shall flow in each. > Each planted with fruit-trees, the palm and the pomegranate. In each > there shall be virgins chaste and fair. Which of your Lord's blessings > would you deny? Dark-eyed virgins sheltered in their tents whom > neither man nor jinnee will have touched before. They shall recline on > green cushions and rich carpets. Which of your Lord's blessings would > you deny? Blessed be the name of your Lord, the Lord of majesty and > glory!" (55:56-78). > "As for the righteous, they shall dwell in peace together amidst > gardens and fountains, arrayed in rich silks and fine brocade. Yes, > and we shall wed them, to dark-eyed houris. Secure against all ills, > they shall call for every kind of fruit; and, having died once, they > shall die no more. Your Lord will, through His mercy, shield them from > the scourge of Hell. That will be the supreme triumph." (44:51-57) > "There would be an announcer in Paradise who would make this > announcement: Verily, there is in store for you > (everlasting) health and that you should never fall ill and that you live > (for ever) and do not die at all. And that you would remain young and never > grow old. …This is Paradise. You have been made to inherit it for what you > used to do" (Sahih Muslim: 6803). > Regarding these houris, Sir W. Muir says "It is remarkable that the > notices in the Koran of this voluptuous paradise are almost confined > to a time when, whatever the tendency of his desires, Mohammad was > living a chaste and temperate life with a wife threescore years of > age" (Life of Mahomet, Voice of India, New Delhi, 1992, pp-76). There > is another point to note. So long the Prophet lived in Mecca with his > only wife Khadija, houris were simply rewards of Allah. But later, > after the death of Khadija, when the Prophet started marrying several > wives, houris became legal wives. So Allah said, "Every person would > have two wives and the marrow of their shanks would glimmer beneath > the flesh and there would be none without a wife in paradise" (Sahih > Muslim: 6793). > It is not clearly specified how many of these heavenly > damsels a believer in Paradise would get. As quoted above, somewhere > Allah says that each believer would get two houries as their wives. > Somewhere Allah promises many, e.g. He allots 72 of them for the > saheeds (or martyrs), who die in fighting for Allah's cause. But > extreme sensuality of the Prophet of Arabia has been reflected in a > hadith narrated by Abu Huraira, that says, even the most wretched, the > most fallen believer in Allah's Paradise would own a vast compound > which would contain seventy mansions of pearls, every mansion would > contain seventy houses of rubies, every house would have seventy rooms > of emeralds, every room would contain seventy couches, and every couch > would be covered with seventy carpets of every colour, and a houri > would be sitting on each carpet. Furthermore, every such above > mentioned rooms would have seventy tables laid out, and on every table > there would be seventy dishes of seventy colours and every room would > also have seventy maid slaves. Every believer would have the > capability of copulating with each of these houris and maids. Simple > calculations will show that the believer will get (70 x 70 x 70 x 70 x > 70=) 1,680,700,000 or 1.6807 billion houris.(Ram Swarup, Understanding > Islam Through Hadis, Voice of India, New Delhi, 1983, p-205). > According another hadith narrated by Abu Sa'id, all these > women would put on see-through garments. "Each houri will have seventy > garments, but the believer will be able to look through them and see > the marrow of the bones of her legs". Every houri will have a crown on > her head, the meanest pearl of which would give light between the east > and the west. According to another tradition mentioned by Aldous > Huxley, every orgasm in Allah's Paradise would last for 600 years > (Aldous Huxley, Moksha, Chatto & Windus, London, 1980, p-112). > GELEMANS > Perhaps no worldly brothel has quite a good stock of young > boys, to be offered to the customers to do sodomy. But in the Islamic > Paradise, by the grace of most merciful Allah, each and every believer > will be supplied with plenty of most charming, beautiful and obedient > Heavenly young boys, called gelemans, to do sodomy with them, and > hence the Koran says, "They shall be attended by boys graced with > eternal youth, who to the beholder's eyes will seem like sprinkled > pearls. When you gaze upon that scene you will behold a kingdom > blissful and glorious. They shall be arrayed in garments of fine green > silk and rich brocade, and adorned with bracelets of silver. Their > Lord will give them pure beverages to drink. Thus you shall be > rewarded; your high endeavours are gratifying to Allah" (76:19-22). > "They shall be brought near to their Lord in the gardens of delight. > They shall recline on jewelled couches face to face, and there shall > wait on them immortal youths with bowls and ewers and a cup of purest > wine, that will neither pain their heads nor take away their reason; > with fruits of their own choice and flesh of fowls that they relish" > (56: 11-21). > How many of these heavenly boys or gelemans a believer will > own in Allah's Paradise? A tradition says that every believer in > Paradise, irrespective of his hierarchy, will own 1000 gelemans. > According to another hadith narrated by Anas, everyone will get 10,000 > slaves. According to a hadith narrated by Abu Sa'id, the number of > slave boys, a believer will own, will be not less than 1000 and not > more than 80,000 (Ram Swarup, ibid, p-205). > From the above discussions it becomes evident that Most > Merciful Allah offers, in the name of Paradise, a super luxury and > five star brothel to His beloved believers. There are three main > aspects of a mundane brothel and they are (1) good food, (2) good wine > and (3) charming women and Allah's brothel called Paradise provides > all the three in profuse quantities and that too absolutely free of > cost. In addition to that, the articles in Allah's brothel would bear > some divine qualities which can never be obtained in a worldly > brothel. To mention a few are, (a) wine in Allah's brothel does not > cause the head to ache, (b) that wine would be securely sealed, whose > very dregs are musk, (c) the visitors of Allah's brothel would neither > pass water, nor void excrement, nor will they suffer from catarrh, nor > will they spit, (d) they would eat divine fruits and desired > preparations of meat, (e) the dark-eyed women of Allah's brothel would > always remain virgins and chaste, (f) they would not get older than > sweet sixteen, (g) they would wear see-through garments, (h) the > visitors of the Allah's brothel would be able to see the marrow of > their bones, and above all (i) every orgasm in Allah's brothel with > these heavenly damsels would last for 600 years. In addition to all > the above mentioned facilities, Allah's brothel would offer another > unique amenity. The visitors would be provided with pretty young boys, > who would never be older than 16, for doing sodomy. Most importantly, > Allah will provide all these facilities absolutely free of cost. One > should also notice the tremendous insult that has been committed to > woman virtue in Alla's Paradise. > SOME OTHER FEATURES OF ALLAH'S BROTHEL: > A Bengali author, Mr. A T M Rafiqul Hasan, in his book Aat Behest O > Saat Dojokh (Eight kinds of Heaven and Seven Kinds of Hell, Muslim > Library, Calcutta, 2003), has clarified some other rare aspects of > Allah's brothel. For example, a grape of Allah's Paradise would > contain enough juice to fill up a cask and a date palm of Paradise > would be as long as twelve cubits that would not bear any seed. The > trees in Allah's Paradise would be capable of playing any kind of > movement including walking. If an inmate of Paradise desires to taste > a fruit, even of a distant tree, the tree would come near to him and > push the desired fruit into his mouth. > It has been mentioned above that a visitor of Allah's > brothel would be able to copulate with billions of heavenly damsels or > houris. But what would be the nature of... On Fri, Jul 4, 2008 at 5:08 AM, <mcinnesmom@bellsouth.net> wrote: > Yada, > Thank you for your website; it is an interesting read. I do have one > comment, though. To lump "removal of choice" with "these things are > immoral" is simply baffling. > You are obviously educated and know that once the sperm and egg meet, > a life forms and grows. It is not a rock. It is a growing human. You > also know that at 4 weeks the heart of that growing human beats and at > six weeks that human has brain waves. And long before that the human > has DNA markings. To dismiss the killing of a child for often mere > convenience and to then label that "removal of choice" "immoral" makes > no rational sense. You also lumped it in with many crimes that are > clearly immoral: theft, bribery, etc. > It always amazes me when intelligent people will try to dismiss what > "choice" is all about. If you can be honest about Islam and Mohammed, > you should be able to be honest about abortion and just who is being > slaughtered for convenience. Do you really believe you would feel the > same way if that growing baby were seen and heard and felt by you and > others who dismiss it's life and it's right to exist? I think not. > We women are not victims. We are intelligent people who do have the > compassion within us to make good choices when it comes to life and > death of an innocent child. We have the wonderful alternative of > adoption. Yes, we can be unselfish and put someone else before > ourselves, especially when that someone had no choice on whether to be > conceived. I removed my "victim" label from my forehead years ago; > please do not try to stamp it back on > there:) > Thank you again for your website. I have enjoyed it. -NM >--------------------------------- > "The historical experience of > socialist countries has sadly > demonstrated that collectivism > does not do away with alienation > but rather increases it, adding to > it a lack of basic necessities and > economic inefficiency." > -Pope John Paul II > ---------------------------------- I am pro choice in the sense that Yahweh is pro choice, meaning the enlightened exercise of freewill. I am against abortion, but politically, it is irrelevant because Roe vs. Wade will never be overturned. Abortions will continue in the first trimester no matter what those who are opposed do. Therefore I focus my time on things which I can influence such as providing the information required for people to make good choices--especially on eternal, spiritual matters. If you are genuinely interested in my position on these important issues, read www.YadaYahweh.com. If you are a Catholic and a patriot, it will profoundly influence your thinking. On Thu, Jul 3, 2008 at 2:07 AM, WK wrote: > Its a request, if you cant believe in Islam then at least respect it. > I cant believe you can fall that low. We respect your religion and the > least you can do is respect ours. I am truly shocked at the language > you have used, i just feel sorry for you. Now as far as your critique > about Prophet Mohammad (SAW's) marriage with Bibi Aisha is concerned > then atlease bother researching carefully and think before you write > something that sensitive. I have given all the details below for your > major criticism and there are some of the verses from the bible as > well, which you might wana look at in the end. I use to respect jews > and christians alot until now but now you changed my view .If you dont > know much about Islam then dont open your mouth and if you do then > please be impartial atleast. I dont want to hurt anyones feelings or > else I can quote you here a million errors in your bible and the old > testament. I can even prove you from Your old testament, The Bible, > The Hindu scriptures and several other religious books that every > religion and every prophet prophesised the coming of propher Mohammad, > SAW(BY NAME) including Jesus Christ(PBUH). If god wills, he will show > you the right path someday. > Here is an answer to your criticism and something for your knowledge: > Respect other peoples feelings, abusing our prophet or equating > muslims with terrorists wont get you anywhere. Just try and look for > the truth and Allah will guide you Inshallah. > Age of Aisha at time of marriage with Holy Prophet Muhammad > It is believed on the authority of some Hadith reports that the > marriage ceremony (known as nikah, amounting to betrothal) of Aisha > with the Holy Prophet Muhammad took place when she was six years of > age, and that she joined the Holy Prophet as his wife three years > later at the age of nine. We quote below from two such reports in > Bukhari. > "It is reported from Aisha that she said: The Prophet entered into > marriage with me when I was a girl of six … and at the time [of > joining his household] I was a girl of nine years of age." "Khadija > died three years before the Prophet departed to Medina. He stayed > [alone] for two years or so. He married Aisha when she was a girl of > six years of age, and he consummated that marriage when she was nine > years old." [3] > As to the authenticity of these reports, it may be noted that the > compilers of the books of Hadith did not apply the same stringent > tests when accepting reports relating to historical matters as they > did before accepting reports relating to the practical teachings and > laws of Islam. The reason is that the former type of report was > regarded as merely of academic interest while the latter type of > report had a direct bearing on the practical duties of a Muslim and on > what was allowed to them and what was prohibited. Thus the occurrence > of reports such as the above about the marriage of Aisha in books of > Hadith, even in Bukhari, is not necessarily a proof of their > credibility. > Determination of the true age of Aisha > On this issue Maulana Muhammad Ali was the first Islamic scholar > directly to challenge the notion that Aisha was aged six and nine, > respectively, at the time of her nikah and consummation of marriage. > This he did in, at least, the following writings: his English booklet > Prophet of Islam, his larger English book Muhammad, the Prophet, and > in the footnotes in his voluminous Urdu translation and commentary of > Sahih Bukhari entitled Fadl-ul-Bari, these three writings being > published in the 1920s and 1930s. In the booklet Prophet of Islam, > which was later incorporated in 1948 as the first chapter of his book > Living Thoughts of the Prophet Muhammad, he writes in a lengthy > footnote as follows: > "A great misconception prevails as to the age at which Aisha was taken > in marriage by the Prophet. Ibn Sa'd has stated in the Tabaqat that > when Abu Bakr [father of Aisha] was approached on behalf of the Holy > Prophet, he replied that the girl had already been betrothed to > Jubair, and that he would have to settle the matter first with him. > This shows that Aisha must have been approaching majority at the time. > Again, the Isaba, speaking of the Prophet's daughter Fatima, says that > she was born five years before the Call and was about five years older > than Aisha. This shows that Aisha must have been about ten years at > the time of her betrothal to the Prophet, and not six years as she is > generally supposed to be. This is further borne out by the fact that > Aisha herself is reported to have stated that when the chapter [of the > Holy Quran] entitled The Moon, the fifty-fourth chapter, was revealed, > she was a girl playing about and remembered certain verses then > revealed. Now the fifty-fourth chapter was undoubtedly revealed before > the sixth year of the Call. All these considerations point to but one > conclusion, viz., that Aisha could not have been less than ten years > of age at the time of her nikah, which was virtually only a betrothal. > And there is one report in the Tabaqat that Aisha was nine years of > age at the time of nikah. Again it is a fact admitted on all hands > that the nikah of Aisha took place in the tenth year of the Call in > the month of Shawwal, while there is also preponderance of evidence as > to the consummation of her marriage taking place in the second year of > Hijra in the same month, which shows that full five years had elapsed > between the nikah and the consummation. Hence there is not the least > doubt that Aisha was at least nine or ten years of age at the time of > betrothal, and fourteen or fifteen years at the time of marriage." [4] > (Bolding is mine.) > To facilitate understanding dates of these events, please note that it > was in the tenth year of the Call, i.e. the tenth year after the Holy > Prophet Muhammad received his calling from God to his mission of > prophethood, that his wife Khadija passed away, and the approach was > made to Abu Bakr for the hand of his daughter Aisha. The hijra or > emigration of the Holy Prophet to Madina took place three years later, > and Aisha came to the household of the Holy Prophet in the second year > after hijra. So if Aisha was born in the year of the Call, she would > be ten years old at the time of the nikah and fifteen years old at the > time of the consummation of the marriage. > Later research > Research subsequent to the time of Maulana Muhammad Ali has shown that > she was older than this. An excellent short work presenting such > evidence is the Urdu pamphlet Rukhsati kai waqt Sayyida Aisha Siddiqa > ki umar ('The age of Lady Aisha at the time of the start of her > married life') by Abu Tahir Irfani.[4a] Points 1 to 3 below have been > brought to light in this pamphlet. 1. The famous classical historian > of Islam, Ibn Jarir Tabari, wrote in his > 'History': > "In the time before Islam, Abu Bakr married two women. The first was > Fatila daughter of Abdul Uzza, from whom Abdullah and Asma were born. > Then he married Umm Ruman, from whom Abdur Rahman and Aisha were born. > These four were born before Islam." [5] > Being born before Islam means being born before the Call. > 2. The compiler of the famous Hadith collection Mishkat al-Masabih, > Imam Wali-ud-Din Muhammad ibn Abdullah Al-Khatib, who died 700 years > ago, has also written brief biographical notes on the narrators of > Hadith reports. He writes under Asma, the older daughter of Abu Bakr: > "She was the sister of Aisha Siddiqa, wife of the Holy Prophet, and > was ten years older than her. … In 73 A.H. … Asma died at the age of > one hundred years." [6] (Go here to see an image of the full entry in > Urdu.) > This would make Asma 28 years of age in 1 A.H., the year of the Hijra, > thus making Aisha 18 years old in 1 A.H. So Aisha would be 19 years > old at the time of the consummation of her marriage, and 14 or 15 > years old at the time of her nikah. It would place her year of birth > at four or five years before the Call. 3. The same statement is made > by the famous classical commentator of the Holy Quran, Ibn Kathir, in > his book Al-bidayya wal-nihaya: > "Asma died in 73 A.H. at the age of one hundred years. She was ten > years older than her sister Aisha." [7] > Apart from these three evidences, which are presented in the Urdu > pamphlet referred to above, we also note that the birth of Aisha being > a little before the Call is consistent with the opening words of a > statement by her which is recorded four times in Bukhari. Those words > are as follows: > "Ever since I can remember (or understand things) my parents were > following the religion of Islam." [8] > This is tantamount to saying that she was born sometime before her > parents accepted Islam but she can only remember them practising > Islam. No doubt she and her parents knew well whether she was born > before or after they accepted Islam, as their acceptance of Islam was > such a landmark event in their life which took place just after the > Holy Prophet received his mission from God. If she had been born after > they accepted Islam it would make no sense for her to say that she > always remembered them as following Islam. Only if she was born before > they accepted Islam, would it make sense for her to say that she can > only remember them being Muslims, as she was too young to remember > things before their conversion. This is consistent with her being born > before the Call, and being perhaps four or five years old at the time > of the Call, which was also almost the time when her parents accepted > Islam. > Two further evidences cited by Maulana Muhammad Ali > In the footnotes of his Urdu translation and commentary of Sahih > Bukhari, entitled Fadl-ul-Bari, Maulana Muhammad Ali had pointed out > reports of two events which show that Aisha could not have been born > later than the year of the Call. These are as follows. 1. The above > mentioned statement by Aisha in Bukhari, about her earliest memory of > her parents being that they were followers of Islam, begins with the > following words in its version in Bukhari's Kitab-ul-Kafalat. We quote > this from the English translation of Bukhari by M. Muhsin Khan: > "Since I reached the age when I could remember things, I have seen my > parents worshipping according to the right faith of Islam. Not a > single day passed but Allah's Apostle visited us both in the morning > and in the evening. When the Muslims were persecuted, Abu Bakr set out > for Ethiopia as an emigrant." [9] > Commenting on this report, Maulana Muhammad Ali writes: > "This report sheds some light on the question of the age of Aisha. … > The mention of the persecution of Muslims along with the emigration > to Ethiopia clearly shows that this refers to the fifth or the sixth > year of the Call. … At that time Aisha was of an age to discern > things, and so her birth could not have been later than the first year > of the Call." [10] > Again, this would make her more than fourteen at the time of the > consummation of her marriage. 2. There is a report in Sahih Bukhari as > follows: > "On the day (of the battle) of Uhud when (some) people retreated and > left the Prophet, I saw Aisha daughter of Abu Bakr and Umm Sulaim, > with their robes tucked up so that the bangles around their ankles > were visible hurrying with their water skins (in another narration it > is said, 'carrying the water skins on their backs'). Then they would > pour the water in the mouths of the people, and return to fill the > water skins again and came back again to pour water in the mouths of > the people." [11] > Maulana Muhammad Ali writes in a footnote under this report: > "It should also be noted that Aisha joined the Holy Prophet's > household only one year before the battle of Uhud. According to the > common view she would be only ten years of age at this time, which is > certainly not a suitable age for the work she did on this occasion. > This also shows that she was not so young at this time." [12] > If, as shown in the previous section above, Aisha was nineteen at the > time of the consummation of her marriage, then she would be twenty > years old at the time of the battle of Uhud. It may be added that on > the earlier occasion of the battle of Badr when some Muslim youths > tried, out of eagerness, to go along with the Muslim army to the field > of battle, the Holy Prophet Muhammad sent them back on account of > their young age (allowing only one such youngster, Umair ibn Abi > Waqqas, to accompany his older brother the famous Companion Sa'd ibn > Abi Waqqas). It seems, therefore, highly unlikely that if Aisha was > ten years old the Holy Prophet would have allowed her to accompany the > army to the field of battle. We conclude from all the evidence cited > above that Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) was nineteen years > old when she joined the Holy Prophet as his wife in the year 2 A.H., > the nikah or betrothal having taken place five years previously. > The Bible on marriage of young girls with much older men > As it is Christian evangelists and other believers in the Bible who > have been bitterly reviling the Holy Prophet Muhammad on account of > his marriage with Aisha, we put to them the practices of the great > patriarchs and prophets that are recorded in the Bible itself in this > connection. The main accusations regarding the marriage of Aisha are > that she was too young in age while the Holy Prophet was a much older > man, being fifty years of age, and that consent to marriage was either > not obtained from her or she was not capable of giving it. > Abraham > In the book of Genesis in the Bible it is recorded about Abraham: > "Now Sarai, Abram's wife, had borne him no children. But she had an > Egyptian maidservant named Hagar; so she said to Abram, 'The Lord has > kept me from having children. Go, sleep with my maidservant; perhaps I > can build a family through her.' Abram agreed to what Sarai said. So > after Abram had been living in Canaan ten years, Sarai his wife took > her Egyptian maidservant Hagar and gave her to her husband to be his > wife. He slept with Hagar, and she conceived. … So Hagar bore Abram a > son, and Abram gave the name Ishmael to the son she had borne. Abram > was eighty-six years old when Hagar bore him Ishmael." (Genesis, > chapter 16, verses 1–4, and 15–16, New International Version. Bolding > is mine.) > Firstly, it is evident that as Abraham (who then had the name Abram) > was 86 years old, Hagar must have been some fifty years younger than > him, and probably even younger, to bear a child. Secondly, the Bible > speaks of Sarai giving her maidservant Hagar to Abraham. So Hagar's > consent was not obtained but rather she was commanded by Sarai to go > and become Abraham's wife. > The first book of Kings in the Bible begins as follows: > "When King David was old and well advanced in years, he could not keep > warm even when they put covers over him. So his servants said to him, > 'Let us look for a young virgin to attend the king and take care of > him. She can lie beside him so that our lord the king may keep warm.' > Then they searched throughout Israel for a beautiful girl and found > Abishag, a Shunammite, and brought her to the king. The girl was very > beautiful; she took care of the king and waited on him, but the king > had no intimate relations with her." (1 Kings, chapter 1, verses 1–4, > New International Version. Bolding is mine.) > So there seems nothing wrong, according to the Bible, in procuring a > young virgin, again apparently without her consent, whose duties > include lying with the elderly king in bed. The intention was > certainly for sexual enjoyment, otherwise there was no necessity of > looking for a young, beautiful virgin. A much older woman, perhaps a > widow, could have performed all these duties, including lying with the > king to keep him warm. > Mary and Joseph > The most famous marriage in Christianity is no doubt that of Mary, > Jesus' mother, with Joseph. While the following details are not in the > canonical Gospels in the Bible, it appears from other early Christian > writings (known as apocryphal writings) that Mary was twelve years old > when the temple elders decided to find a husband for her. They > selected the husband by drawing lots, and Joseph whom they chose was > an elderly man, being according to some accounts ninety years old. The > husband was selected and Mary was handed over to him, and she played > no part in his selection. These accounts are summed up in the Catholic > Encyclopedia, 1913 edition, which is available online, as follows: > "It will not be without interest to recall here, unreliable though > they are, the lengthy stories concerning St. Joseph's marriage > contained in the apocryphal writings. When forty years of age, Joseph > married a woman called Melcha or Escha by some, Salome by others; they > lived forty-nine years together and had six children … A year after > his wife's death, as the priests announced through Judea that they > wished to find in the tribe of Juda a respectable man to espouse Mary, > then twelve to fourteen years of age, Joseph, who was at the time > ninety years old, went up to Jerusalem among the candidates; a miracle > manifested the choice God had made of Joseph …" [13] (Bolding is > mine.) > Although these apocryphal accounts are not now accepted by many > Christians, and the Catholic Encyclopedia says that they "are void of > authority", yet it also speaks of their influence as follows: > "they nevertheless acquired in the course of ages some popularity; in > them some ecclesiastical writers sought the answer to the well-known > difficulty arising from the mention in the Gospel of the Lord's > brothers; from them also popular credulity has, contrary to all > probability, as well as to the tradition witnessed by old works of > art, retained the belief that St. Joseph was an old man at the time of > marriage with the Mother of God." > However, these accounts are accepted by the Eastern churches. The > website of the Ukrainian Orthodoxy has an article on this subject > entitled An Elderly Joseph which agrees with the presentation in the > apocryphal writings "of Joseph as an elderly man, a widower with adult > children". It concludes: > "The Christian East's picture of Joseph as a courageous, faithful, > God-centred elderly widower rings true." [14] > We give below, as Appendix, a quotation from one of these apocryphal > books, The Infancy Gospel of James, describing how Mary's husband was > selected. While the Western Christian churches may not accept these > accounts as authentic, the Eastern churches in Europe do accept that > Mary was 12 years old and Joseph a widower 90 years old when they > married. Moreover, there is nothing in the Gospels of the New > Testament to contradict these accounts, and the Gospel stories are not > at all inconsistent with these ages for Mary and Joseph. > ________________________________ References > [1]. Tirmidhi, Abwab-ul-Manaqib, i.e. Chapters on Excellences, under > 'Virtues of Aisha'. > [2]. Muslim Saints and Mystics, abridged English translation of > Tadhkirat-ul-Auliya, by A.J. Arberry, p. 40. > [3]. Bukhari, Book of Qualities of the Ansar, chapter: 'The Holy Prophet's > marriage with Aisha, and his coming to Madina and the consummation of > marriage with her'. For Muhsin Khan's translation, see this link and go down > to reports listed as Volume 5, Book 58, Number 234 and 236. > [4]. Living Thoughts of the Prophet Muhammad, 1992 U.S.A. edition, p. 30, > note 40. > [4a]. This Urdu pamphlet was published by the Ahmadiyya Anjuman Isha'at > Islam, Bombay, India. A partial English translation is available at this > Lahore Ahmadiyya website. > [5]. Tarikh Tabari, vol. 4, p. 50. > [6]. Mishkat al-Masabih, Edition with Urdu translation published in Lahore, > 1986, vol. 3, p. 300–301. (Go here to see an image of the full entry in > [7]. Vol. 8, p. 346. > [8]. Those four places in Sahih Bukhari are the following: Kitab-us-Salat, > ch. 'A mosque which is in the way but does not inconvenience people'; > Kitab-ul-Kafalat, ch. 'Abu Bakr under the protection of a non-Muslim in the > time of the Holy Prophet and his pact with him'; Kitab Manaqib-ul-Ansar, ch. > 'Emigration of the Holy Prophet and his Companions to Madina'; and > Kitab-ul-Adab, ch. 'Should a person visit everyday, or morning and evening'. > [9]. Muhsin Khan's English translation of Bukhari, Volume 3, Book 37, Number > 494. See this link. > [10]. Fadl-ul-Bari, vol. 1, p. 501, footnote 1. > [11]. Sahih Bukhari, Kitab-ul-Jihad wal-Siyar, Chapter: 'Women in war and > their fighting alongside men'. See this link in Muhsin Khan's translation > and go down to report listed as Volume 4, Book 52, Number 131. > [12]. Fadl-ul-Bari, vol. 1, p. 651. > [13]. In article St. Joseph, under letter J. Here is a link to this article > in the online Catholic Encyclopedia. > [14]. Here is a link to this article An Elderly Joseph. > Appendix: The Infancy Gospel of James, Chapter 8 verse 2 to Chapter 9 > verse 11 > "When she [Mary] turned twelve, a group of priests took counsel > together, saying, 'Look, Mary has been in the temple of the Lord > twelve years. What should we do about her now, so that she does not > defile the sanctuary of the Lord our God?' And they said to the high > priest, 'You have stood at the altar of the Lord. Go in and pray about > her. And if the Lord God reveals anything to you, we will do it.' And > the priest went in taking the vestment with twelve bells into the holy > of holies and prayed about her. Suddenly, an angel of the Lord stood > before him, saying, 'Zachariah, Zachariah, depart from here and gather > the widowers of the people and let each one carry a staff. And the one > whom the Lord God points out with a sign, she will be his wife.' So > the heralds went out to the whole surrounding area of Judea and the > trumpet of the Lord rang out and all the men rushed in. Throwing down > his axe, Joseph went out to meet them. And after they had gathered > together with their rods, they went to the high priest. After > receiving everyone's rod, the high priest went into the temple and > prayed. When he was finished with the prayer, he took the rods and > went out and gave them to each man, but there was no sign among them. > Finally, Joseph took his rod. Suddenly, a dove came out of the rod and > stood on Joseph's head. And the high priest said, 'Joseph! Joseph! You > have been chosen by lot to take the virgin into your own keeping.' > And Joseph replied, saying, 'I have sons and am old, while she is > young. I will not be ridiculed among the children of Israel.' And the > high priest said, 'Joseph, fear the Lord your God and remember what > God did to Dathan and Abiron and Kore, how the earth split open and > swallowed them because of their rebellion. Now fear God, Joseph, so > that these things do not happen in your house.' Fearing God, Joseph > took her into his own possession." — Translation by Shelly Matthews, > available at this link. For other translations of this gospel see this > link. It is impossible to be informed and rational and respect Islam. If a man at the age of 53 was having sex with a 9 year old girl, I would be repulsed by him, not listen to him. If a man led 75 terrorist raids, I would see him as a brute, not as a prophet. If a man raped three of the women his jihadists had enslaved, I would despise him, not revere him. If a man made his living by the slave trade and stealing what belonged to others, I wouldn't believe him when he claimed to speak for god--especially when he said that the spoils of war are lawful and good. If a man told me that god told him that those who kill earn the highest rewards in paradise, and that the reward was multiple perpetual virgins, I'd call him a liar. If a man said that his revelations were from the same god who inspired the Torah, Prophets, and Psalms, and yet contradicted everything Yahweh had to say, I'd recognize him as a deceiver. Muhammad was such a man, so why should I respect him or anything he had to say? Better question yet, since Muhammad was among the most repulsive souls to ever live, why do you believe him? PS: If you had actually read POD, you would know that I am anti-religious, as is Yahweh. You cannot respect my religion because I have none. And even if I did, the Qur'an is the most intolerant book ever written, making you like your prophet--a deceiver. On Mon, Jun 30, 2008 at 6:51 PM, NA wrote: > i just looked at your website and thought i'd let you know that its > propa bullshit!!!! The crap u expose about islam its a friggin > disgrace if you dont know nothing about the religion dont diss it > okay!!! YOu guys seriosuly need to get a life and open yours eyes stop > polluting the world with your hate islam and muslims bull please your > just making yourself look the smaller person. > This so called war on terror which may i add was all planned by jews > is just an excuse to rule the world and degrade and even try to > prevent islam form growing but if you havent noticed islan is the no1 > fastest growing religion on this world especially in america. > If you want to do something usefulwith your time try a website against > BUSH AND BLAIR who are the most evil and demonic people of this > century,they deserve to die and will indeed die a painful and brutal > death. > And where in the world did this crap emerge form about islam being the > cause of the holocaust?? Those jews were punished for whtever reason > but it in fact had nothing to do with islam so you should seriously > cut the crap and stop being demonic haters and racist - will do you > good. > And also stop misinterpreting the quranic quotes to ur expense its > really a disgrace you should one day pick up the quran and read it and > see its beauty and how all that is written and predicted in the book > is all true and all science written in the holy book is being proven > right even today. Only then once reading the quran will youknow its > true meaning and realise and tell people the truth about islam and how > its peaceful, non-violent and there is much equality for both men and > woman including rights for both sexes. > SO pleaseeeeee i request could you stop the uneducated bull about > islam and make yourselves useful by either writting pieces which are > TRUE or just getting over the fact that islam is the perfect system > and that your society and world created now is fuked up because all > you think about is money and power. And your fear inside that one day > just one day the world will be abetter place and islam will prevail > and prove victorious and your sorry ass lives will be useless. > Well thankyou for your time and please dont hesitate to accept the > truth that i speak of. > The University of Edinburgh is a charitable body, registered in > Scotland, with registration number SC005336. Your reasoning is as good as your language. You wrote such an astute rebuttal, I'm surprised you forgot to sign it. Dealing with your arguments in the order you listed them, the simple truth is that Prophet of Doom is the best documented, most comprehensive, chronological, and contextual presentation of Islam's five oldest and most reliable sources ever written. If it is "bullshit," then so are the Islamic scriptures. Perhaps that wasn't the point you wanted to make. While we agree that the Islamic sources and scriptures are a "friggin disgrace," you don't understand why because you haven't bothered to read the book you are bashing. Yes, I hate Islam, Muhammad, and his pretend god Allah, as well as everything they said and did. But that does not cause me to hate Muslims. In fact the opposite is true. I care enough about Muslims to invest my time and risk my life to free them of Muhammad's deception. Many have benefited. I don't speak about the "war on terror," because it is a misnomer. Terror is just a tactic. The source of terrorism is fundamentalist Islam. All good Muslims are terrorists according to Muhammad, Allah, and the Qur'an. They claim that peaceful Muslims are hypocrites who should be killed. Allah teaches Muslims to hate Jews and blame everything on them. So, in submission to them, you have gone so far as to credit Jews with perpetrating Islam's trademark. I appreciate you pointing out to me that Osama bin Laden was a Jew, and that the 19 Muslims who flew suicide missions into our buildings screaming "Allahu Akbar," were really rabbis in disguise. Islam grows only because Muslims kill those who are not Muslims, or who leave the religion, in nations they control, and Muslims are breeding like rabbits. It is as simple as that. But even if millions were choosing Islam freely, something which has never occurred, it wouldn't substantiate the religion. Truth has never been popular. Using your reasoning, the pagan sun god religions of the Babylonians, Assyrians, Egyptians, Greeks, and Romans must be true because for a couple of thousand years they were the fastest growing religions. Like all Muslims, you have ranted before you bothered to read. I have dedicated enormous portions of the website to criticizing Bush and Blair. I despise both of them. Most everything the Qur'an has to say historically and scientifically is untrue. If you read the book, you'd know this. The Quran is, by any rational standard, the worst book ever written. It is jumbled and out of order. It is missing words and it makes up words. It is contradictory, sexist, violent, racist, and hateful. It is a poor job of plagiarism, and it is repetitive to a fault. Muhammad's/Allah's relentless rant against his neighbors is wearisome in Mecca and his call to arms in Yathrib is uncivilized. But more than anything, the Qur'an proves that it isn't true by claiming to be inspired by the same god it consistently contradicts. That is irrational. If you were rational, you would know that. But then again, if you were rational, you wouldn't be an Islamic apologist. While you are too lost to be saved, hopefully others will read this exchange who are not as deceived and they will open the book and actually read what it has to say about Muhammad and the founding of the Islamic religion. Those who do will cease to be Muslims because the book is based exclusively on Islam's oldest and most reliable sources. On Mon, Jun 30, 2008 at 1:01 PM, HR wrote: > Hello Mr.Yada : > I would like to congratulate you for your wonderful and very > informative web site. It is definitely very interesting and reveals many > facts about Islam which I did not know before. I was born in Egypt and I > lived there till I was about 11 years old. I learned to speak Arabic > and I was even encouraged to read certain parts of the Koran by my > private tutor . Of course he made me read certain verses which he > chose carefully for me without revealing the offensive nature of the > rest of the book. But after perusing your web site I realize how > ignorant I have been about this so called Holy Koran which they refer > to it as "el Koran al Kareem" The tutor told me that the Koran is the perfect book and that it is grammatically > flawless and this is of course absolutely false as I have learned from > your web site. My life in Alexandria ,Egypt, was very pleasant and > most of my friends were Muslims but unfortunately I still felt that there was an > insurmountable barrier between us. Islam teaches Muslims that we are > inferior to them and that we are Najaas (filth) ,among other things . I > was referred to as a Kaffir and Ibn Al Saleeb el Kalb (son of the > cross and > dog) during the period preceding the 1967 war with Israel by many of the > students who did not know me . I still think that I love the Egyptian > people for their humanity, hospitality and their kindness when they are not > talking about Islam. I hope that your work and the efforts of the many > ex-Muslims will open the eyes of millions of Muslims still trapped by this > most evil religion (inspired by SATAN), but this will also require a miracle > from YAHWEH. I enjoy reading the comments addressed to you by the Muslims > which I find very hilarious .. I sometimes read them aloud while trying to > imagine how they would sound like using their native accents. It makes me > laugh a great deal especially when the expletives are about your own mother > (Arabs love insulting each others' mothers and womens' private parts--for > some strange reason :-D ) but at the same time I feel very sorry for those > who make such hateful comments. I know that it probably pains you to read > them but God will bless you for your great efforts in sharing your love for > humanity and educating many of us about this very evil religion which > the naive apologists like Mr. Bush call "a peaceful religion hijacked by > terrorists". I am very certain that your work as well as the work of others > will bear fruit eventually with the help of our Lord. Keep up the > good work and thank you so much. > May God bless you. > -H H, Wow! Thank you for this wonderful letter. My Yahweh continue to enlighten and bless you, On Sat, Jun 28, 2008 at 10:12 PM, B wrote: > Sadly Sir your site feeds ati muslims. It is simply false. If you > had any clue of what islam was then you would find that this site is > false in its meaning. Anybody can take quotes from any religion and > put them on the internet and make them seem evil and terroristic. > Islam and terrorism is and oxymoron.Islam is derived from the Arabic > root "Salema": peace, purity, submission and obedience. In the > religious sense, Islam means submission to the will of God and > obedience to His law. Quote the opposite of terrorism. Also the quotes > you so called got from the Holy Quran call only be truly understood in > Arabic and any traslation is FALSE. Islam means "submission" not "peace," and if you don't know it, you should. Here is a clue: How is it possible for a religion to be different than the words and deeds of its lone founder? Since Prophet of Doom is the best documented, most comprehensive, chronological, and contextual presentation of Islam's five oldest and most reliable texts, citing 80% of the pertinent, non repetitive material in the Qur'an, Hadith, Sirah, and Ta'rikh, how can what it reveals differ from the religion based upon these texts? Why if Islam is peaceful, are 95% of the world's terrorist acts perpetrated by Muslims screaming "Allahu Akbar?" If Islam is peaceful, why was Muhammad a terrorist? Why do those who kill for Allah earn the best rewards in paradise? So, what you are telling me is that Allah is so incompetent that his message cannot be translated into any of the world's best known and most enlightened tongues? Are you saying that the god who revealed the Torah, Prophets, and Psalms in Hebrew, and the Renewed Covenant in Greek, only communicates in Arabic? If your best argument against Prophet of Doom is that the five most revered Islamic translations of the Qur'an are all FALSE, you have a very weak case. On Fri, Jun 27, 2008 at 5:06 PM, "TO" wrote: > Hi Yada, > I'm a big fan of your site. I've also read your books, Tea with > Terrorists and Prophet of Doom. They're both fantastic. In my > opinion, Prophet of Doom is the definitive book on Muhammad. It blew > my doors off. The research you did still amazes me. > Walid Shoebat along with another prophecy expert, Joel Richardson, are > about to release a new end-times book called, "God's War On Terror: > Islam, Prophecy and the Bible." Catchy title, no? > Joel Richardson isn't very well known yet, but that might change after > this book's release. Joel is the co-editor of the recently released > book, "Why We Left Islam." Mr. Richardson released a book about 4 > years ago called, > "Antichrist: Islam's Awaited Messiah." He also has a website, > http://www.joels-trumpet.com/ > Walid's son has a YouTube account and posted a trailer for the book. > I watched it and honestly, it's pretty good. Here's the link: > http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HLeRFwY3SDs > Watch it. Then, if you feel like posting the release of the book or > just posting the youtube trailer, great. Given the title, Yada, I > think it's going to garner interest from the press. "God's War On > Terror." Wow. Muslims and secular types alike are going to jump all > over that title. Can you hear it? > Anyway, We Christians have got to bang the drums loudly for what is > about to begin in the world. > Thanks and God Bless, -TO Thanks for the note and for the encouraging words. As one who knows the truth, and as one who has engaged in this battle of ideas and spirits, your comments are very important. I like Walid but I don't like his title. Sorry. First, God has a name, Yahweh, and that's important to know and use when attacking Islam and Allah. There can be no war on terror because terror is a tactic. To say that God is fighting a tactic is silly. That is not to say that Yahweh isn't against Islam. He will personally intervene during the next war and annihilate the Muslims who enter Israel. In writing Yada Yahweh, a 1500 page review of prophetic Scripture, I came to see hundreds of references to Islam. While the Magog War is purely Islamic, Yahweh has a lot to say about Satan's religion. He's not a fan. Yes, it is true, the Shiites are awaiting a Messiah, the Mahdi, who will turn out to be Gog. They know about the False Prophet and the return of Yahushua too, but as usual, they are confused as to who is who. I checked out the video. It is very well produced. I liked the comparisons between the Mahdi and the "Anti-Christ," but didn't care for the use of the name "Jesus." The Savior's name is Yahushua, meaning Yah Saves. The comparisons are very compelling. While it wasn't mentioned in the video, I agree with Walid's conclusions regarding the mark of the beast. It is allah. We also agree that the "Anti-Christ" won't come from Rome or the West, but instead the intersection of the Greek and Roman world. I think it is Macedonia, while Walid thinks it is Turkey. We differ because I see Gog and the AC as two different individuals, and he sees them as one. Gog is most definitely a Muslim, will be seen as the Mahdi, is alive today, and will fight against Israel and Yahuweh, and will lose. Thanks for the note and for letting me know that Walid is still engaged in the fight. I'll buy and read his book. He is a good guy and a very smart fellow. We agree on far more than we disagree. On Fri, Jun 27, 2008 at 10:45 AM, RM wrote: > Sorry to hear about the problems you've had with hackers. > I have always enjoyed exploring your site and reading the wealth of > information you present, but I do have a question, Today I ran across > this websit. I was wondering what your response is to this guys claims > about you? Thanks, -RM > www.answering-christiani...f_doom_book_rebuttal.htm AmericanCongressforTruth.Com > ACTforAmerica.Org > "We will put terror into the hearts of the unbelievers" (Koran 3:150) When the site was first established I copied and pasted his review of the Prologue and Chapter one of Prophet of Doom on our site because it was so laughable. He didn't make a single valid point. Knowing him, I don't suspect anything has changed. As for what he may have to say about me, I don't care. Prophet of Doom isn't about me. There are few things that are a bigger waste of time than trying to refute slander. On Mon, Jun 23, 2008 at 7:18 PM, TM wrote: > hello > i learn so much from your important articles > the world of us dhimmi needs to be told the truth. > may i please suggest, that you go thru the ( pro-jihad) articles of > www.wikipedia.org/ and please insert your articles and comments to the > many subjects of Islam, and the sadism it is. > many thanks for your courage. > tell the world, write your stuff in www.wikipedia.org/ Sadly, most everything our webmaster posts on Wikipedia, no matter how well researched and documented, gets taken down. It's not worth the effort. On Sat, Jun 14, 2008 at 6:15 PM, RC wrote: > Yada- You probably don't remember me- I live in Minnesota now, but > while teaching in Montana you sent me a large part of your > pre-released Prophet of Doom. Since then have listened (could listen > easier than read) to all your audio clips. Wonderful material- not > for the faint of heart or one with a tendency for depression. The > reason I am emailing you is that tonight I got an unexpected call from > a Usama Dakdok, an Egyptian/American, who was at our Assembly of God > church, Minnewaska Assembly little over a week ago. My wife and I > just listened to the audio recording of his talk and it brought back > so vividly your efforts that I had to ask him if he knew you and your > work. I think thats what prompted the call from his wife to check me > out first, then I chatted with him a bit. Their website is at: > http://www.thestraightway.org/index.html > I spent some time talking with him about your efforts- Usama is SO correct- > we in the U.S. are asleep at the switch. I pray God doesn't give us what we > deserve and Obama doesn't get elected. > We've had a repreive with Bush being at the helm- Am praying McCain is the > man God puts into the presidency. > Had to send you this about Usama's work- > Blessings!!! > \ Hello R, Thank you for sharing all of this. I went to Usama's site, and it is a good one, as is his ministry. #33 Posted : Friday, August 8, 2008 1:31:52 PM(UTC) On Sun, Jun 8, 2008 at 3:38 PM, "L" wrote: > "Let there be no compulsion in religion: Truth stands out clear from > Error: whoever rejects evil and believes in God hath grasped the most > trustworthy hand-hold, that never breaks. And God heareth and knoweth > all things." [Al-Qur'an 2:256] > ^^ > I was just wondering, what your comment is about this passage in the > Qur'an ? ( or if you think its a mistranslation ??) ;) > Is this also a lie and not to be believed, or is your website just > pushing lies based on mistranslations and misunderstandings therefore >http://www.ramadan.com.au/2007/islam-and-muslims-5.html < would you be > willing to engage these people in public talks about why you feel your > research is clear in showing the error of their ways ? > thx The passage is discussed in the book. If you read it in context, you will have your answer. The second surah is reviewed here: http://prophetofdoom.net...4_The_Anti-Semite.Islam. Allah consistently contradicts himself, as well as the God he falsely claims to be. It is the nature of Islam. On Sat, Jun 7, 2008 at 10:20 AM, "H" wrote: > Dear Sir or Madam, > My name is S and I work in Haifa University, Israel in a research > of terrorism. Our main goal is to study these terrorist activist all > over the world in order to prevent the phenomena, to stop terrorist > control our life, prevent them from harming our men women and > children, stop them from bombing us and help our government against > them. > It is well known that terrorist groups all over the wold help each > other , in weapon technique, hiding place and more, that is why we do > not content in studding only the Islamic group, we are gathering > information about terrorist all over the world > In order to complete the research we need information about the terror > attack all over the world. We would be very tankful if you could give > a source of information for all the international terror attack, if > you know one. > Thanks in advance Islamic terrorism is all that Israel needs to worry about, and it isn't going to go away or diminish. To produce the Islamic Terrorism Timeline I used some fifty websites and newspapers. Then to learn more, I Googled each event. So there isn't one site, or even two or three, just the investment of a whole lot of time. On Fri, Jun 6, 2008 at 6:28 PM, RB wrote: > I was questioned by a friend about when Jesus cast out the legion of > demons from a man to the swine...that whole story. Well, in Matthew it > speaks of two men...in Mark and in Luke it speaks of one man. My > friend has me unable to answer him honestly about the difference. If > you have the time, may you enlighten this. And I thank GOD for > you...you are the cream of the crop. GOD bless You! I haven't had a chance to read the POD emails for a while and I just stumbled upon yours. Sorry for the delayed response. There are just so many of them. If you are still bothered by the apparent discrepancy, I'll invest the time to review the oldest MSS and translate them in context and in an amplified fashion to determine what actually occurred and why. It is very possible that both are correct. One is a subset of two. Let me know. While I appreciate your kind words, I don't deserve them. On Thu, May 22, 2008 at 6:44 PM, TT wrote: > I don't know if you'll get to read this email but: you are a legend! > Like most people I was ignorant of Islam until I started googling it > around 3 months ago. Since then I have read Islam Undressed (by > Vernon Richards) and I visit religionofpeace.com daily to see what > else the little zealots have been up to. A few weeks ago I started > getting into Prophet of Doom and downloading the audio files, which I > listen to while working (as a software developer). > I was just listening to your radio interview with Atlas Shrugs where > you mention a three part plan for ending Islamic terrorism, and this > is the point of my email. While I agree with your first two parts > (reject PC and condemn Islam), I do not agree that your last part is > really viable (i.e. control oil distribution points). To do so would > probably bring on a bigger war between all nations than just a war > against Islam. Could you imagine China's reaction to the US doing so? > I would like to offer an alternative that you may or may not be > already aware of that relates to the Hydrogen Economy. > In my opinion, for the most part, an alternative to oil would have the > same effect as controlling oil. Your goal is to cut off Islam's sole > source of money so why not just produce an oil alternative? It is a > lot easier to achieve than most people think. I'm not suggesting this > to reduce global warming – in fact it will have no effect at all on > that. > Yada, rather than give you my full plan now, I submit this email to > you in the hope that you will reply. If you do so I will be happy to > document my plan in full so that you may be able to do more with it > than a relative nobody like me. I believe it's a good plan as it is > totally achievable with today's technology and in most of today's > vehicles. > Once again, thanks for taking the time to do what you have done. -TT I appreciate your support and kind words. To address your concern, the only way to defuel the Islamic war machine was to redirect the money which was flowing through OPEC to the mosques and jihadists. But since we have quadrupled it, our fate is already sealed. This was the reason I wrote the Islamic Terrorism Timeline--tying the rebirth of terrorism to the rise of OPEC. That said, if I had been president, I would have invested most all of the proceeds into alternative energy. And yes, the world would have cried foul, just as they did when we invaded Iraq. But at least with the plan to take oil money away from the OPERs, 5,000 fewer Americans would have died and we would have been a couple of trillion richer, not poorer. But more than that, Islamic Terrorism would be bankrupt. Hydrogen is only viable is things like OTEC prevail, as it requires too much energy to free from other compounds. While burning hydrogen as we do gasoline today is a great way to go, we are going to have to find a better way to make it, transport it, and store it. Personally, I like wind generation best, then OTEC, low-head damns, geothermal, gassification of coal, nuclear, and more offshore drilling for the petro reserves near us. However, without better battery technology, there will be nothing to replace oil for transportation in the near future. And quite frankly, we have so badly mismanaged the past seven years, it's a moot point. The damage has already been done. Too much wealth has been transfered to our enemies. On Mon, May 19, 2008 at 8:25 AM, JY wrote: > Dear Sir > My name is J, a woman who used to be Muslim, now I am almost Atheist... I am so happy to see your site. Well Done. The truth is so beautifully expressed on your web site. > Please read this book by a Muslim girl who ran away from Islam. It is called " What if? A shocking true story. By Asma Pumpi Moore.THe book can be bought on Amazon. You would love the way she exposer the islam. its pitty she got the death threats, I bet like you people. If Islam is the religion of TOLERENCE why they bloody give DEATH THREATS? > Anyway, welldone. Your web site made me happy > Thank you Congratulations to you. Leaving Islam is a very hard thing to do. If nothing else, Islam is very good at being bad. It corrupts a person's ability to reason. Thank you for the encouraging words. For someone who was once a Muslim to say these things about the book means a great deal. Yes we have received countless death threats. As you know, violence is Islam's trademark. Our webmaster was a Catholic, and as a result of their teaching and behavior, he became an atheist. Recognizing that this was a religious statement of faith, he became a thinking and informed agnostic. After reading the Scriptural presentation in Yada Yahweh (free at www.yadayahweh.com) he has now developed a personal, familial relationship with God. That is not to say that he or I are religious. We are anti-religious. But the evidence in favor of inspiration is overwhelming. So based upon our journey, and our conclusions, we invite you to read Yada Yahweh. If you do, please write us again. Edited by moderator Thursday, September 4, 2008 2:14:01 PM(UTC) \| Reason: Not specified On Sun, May 18, 2008 at 3:48 PM, PP wrote: >> Dear Sir/Madam, >> I hope you can share my story of conversion to Buddhism from Islam on your truthful and courageous site. >> My bog is here - http://religionofpeace-islam.blogspot.com/ >> I hope that you will post on your site about this blog, because that will particularly help 70 crores of Hindus and others, who are too simple-minded to understand cunningness of Islamic cult, in developing unity against Islam. It will also help good-hearted muslims , though they will resist these truths in the beginning, but eventually, they will realize the truth and get weaned away from Islam. >> I am very grateful to you, because only after reading your 100% bold site, I developed the clarity that by not coming out openly against Mohammed and his bloody cult of Islam, we are helping the growth of this cancer. Please keep this up. Please take care never to reveal your identity to any anonymous person, even if he/she is/poses as hindu/christian/jews/atheists/agnostics, because Islamic murderers have used such kind of deception throughout history of Islam. There is no need for you to come out in open, because that will give muslim murderers a chance to murder you and the world must not loose a brave, valiant fighter like you in such a naive manner (of course, we must be ever ready to lay down our lives for humanity, but only when that helps the humanity tremendously and not due to our impulse or folly.). >> So, please understand your importance, take care to maintain absolute secrecy about your real identity, eat well, do vipassana or other meditations and enjoy a long life to wage and finally win this holy war against the most unholy cult in the history of human civilization. >> Warm regards, >> Your brother -PP Prakash, I am thrilled that you have become one of many who are fleeing Islam and seeing Muhammad and Allah for the thugs they really are. And as a former Muslim, your positive review of our book and website is particularly encouraging. Thank you. While I am thrilled that you left Islam, and while I am thrilled that you have a heart to help Hindus, I am perplexed as to why you would convert to anything, especially a life view which grew out of Hinduism and then migrated into a religion. I am anti-religious, for many reasons, three of which are: religions preclude reason, religions cause wars, and God is anti-religious because all religions are manmade and lead souls away from Him. The good news about Buddhism is that according to Yahweh, you will get exactly what you are seeking at the end of your life. I hope that you invest the time to read www.YadaYahweh.com, and that you consider what the Source had to say with an open mind. If you do, please write me again. And if you write an article on why you left Islam, omitting why you became a Buddhist, we'll post it. I get many letters from people who speak very highly of the great work done by the website operating under the name religion of peace. But by the time I read your letter, your post had been removed. On Wed, May 7, 2008 at 7:12 PM, AA wrote: > Hello Yada > My name is AA , I live in Cairo . > I would suggest you reconsider studying your opinion about prophet Muhammad. Ask yourself again with a clean heart, "Am I really right or wrong?" > I would like to remind you that many of Muhammad's enemies became friends . Do you know that there was a jewish neighbour who used to throw dirt at Muhammad's door every day. The prophet used to remove the dirt silently. One day, the prophet didn't find the dirt at his door, so he visited his jewish neighbour asking for him and found him sick, he comforted him and said good words to him. The jewish guy was surprised of that attitude and he became a moslem ever since. Would you imagine a man with such a mentalty be the same one as some people in the west describe him? > This is just a tiny note and one day you will find out the truth. > With best regards -AA Read the evidence from the oldest and most reliable Islamic sources cited in Prophet of Doom and then ponder the possibility of me changing my mind. You have cited one hadith from a questionable source about a Jew Muhammad may have treated well, and yet the Qur'an and Hadith are filled with older and more reliable quotes of Muhammad robbing, exiling, enslaving, raping, and murdering Jews. Moreover, Muhammad wasn't a prophet. He didn't get a single prediction right, and he got many wrong. In fact, Muhammad couldn't even get the past right. Read the book "A." It will free you of Muhammad's curse. Edited by moderator Monday, September 8, 2008 2:26:39 AM(UTC) \| Reason: Not specified On Sat, May 17, 2008 at 10:06 AM, A wrote: > I have never seen a better, more comprehensive and in depth site as this on the Religion of Islam. It is the best. I can not give any better description and am more than pleased with it and know that it took a very great and sincere EFFORT and plenty of man hours to give it to the world interested in the truth. There was also a micro-chip awakening within the soul of this writer that was not of him but from GOD who removed the veil or chrysalis for the worm to BECOME on WING as the Buttterfly as per predestined design. I want to be a PART of this EXODUS which is about to become an Exponential Increase towards ultimate BECOMINGNESS of crossing over into the Promise of God. Therefore I would like to share what I have. Your findings are GREAT and wonderful in DETAIL on any level and when I see Greatness, I can acknowledge it but there is still one thing missing and that is the very ESSENCE of it that can DESTROY all lies for onmce and for all and that is the HIDDEN and "wrapped-up" SECRET NAME of God that the Queen of Sheba (Bilqis) paid more than R12billion (when gold at $700/oz) 3000 years ago on her trip to Suleiman for this NAME of the GOD of Israel (see 1Kings 10 and sura 27:30) . I reveal this NUCLEUS of the matter in my work where Solomon encoded the Name of Jesus Christ and she PUT it into the constitution of Yemen of the day.Once this TRUTH is revealed in proper understanding the CURSE of Malachi 2 and sura 3:61 will be lifted for all time and then sura 68;42 aqnd 43 will be fulfilled when the SHIN is revealed within the Tetragrammaton. If intersted to WIN and to have more ammo than you can imagine, contact me. In LOVE of truth. Anen. > I have never seen a better, more comprehensive and in depth site as > this on the Religion of Islam. It is the best. I can not give any > better description and am more than pleased with it and know that it > took a very great and sincere EFFORT and plenty of man hours to give > it to the world interested in the truth.There was also a micro-chip > awakening within the soul of this writer that was not of him but from > GOD who removed the veil or chrysalis for the worm to BECOME on WING > as the Buttterfly as per predestined design. I want to be a PART of > this EXODUS which is about to become an Exponential Increase towards > ultimate BECOMINGNESS of crossing over into the Promise of God. > Therefore I would like to share what I have. Your findings are GREAT > and wonderful in DETAIL on any level and when I see Greatness, I can > acknowledge it but there is still one thing missing and that is the > very ESSENCE of it that can DESTROY all lies for onmce and for all and > that is the HIDDEN and "wrapped-up" SECRET NAME of God that the Queen of Sheba > (Bilqis) paid more than R12billion (when gold at $700/oz) 3000 years ago on > her trip to Suleiman for this NAME of the GOD of Israel (see 1Kings 10 and > sura 27:30) . I reveal this NUCLEUS of the matter in my work where Solomon > encoded the Name of Jesus Christ and she PUT it into the constitution of > Yemen of the day.Once this TRUTH is revealed in proper understanding the > CURSE of Malachi 2 and sura 3:61 will be lifted for all time and then sura > 68;42 aqnd 43 will be fulfilled when the SHIN is revealed within the > Tetragrammaton. If intersted to WIN and to have more ammo than you can > imagine, contact me. In LOVE of truth.Anen. On Tue, May 13, 2008 at 10:12 PM, C B wrote: > http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_HiMgW9yd7w > I came across this interesting clip by a Shiia cleric, who seems to be verry knowlegeble on Islamic history. He acuses our cute litle Ayesha of being the assasin of our lovely Prophet...not a moment too soon, if is true. Do you think is historically accurate? If so, why is she called "Mother of believers"; I'm litle confused. I'm curious about what you have to say about this subject, so could you elaborate please? > Million blessings; > -C There is no way to know. While Muhammad abused her for years, he was her source of power, at least among women in the community. But it doesn't matter. Mo's poison is too widespread. On Sun, May 11, 2008 at 7:56 PM, TK wrote: > Sir: > You continue to state that you are not driven by any agenda and that you have no affiliation with any religion. That seems hardly the case when just browsing the "If you are a Muslim: Welcome" page. You state it is God who has asked you to expose Islam. It is blatantly obvious that you have a strong connection with some Yahuweh fellow as well. To me this is just dishonest. Where's the part where you ask us for money to support your cause? -TK > Toronto, ON Yada's rsponse: Yahuweh is God's one and only name. It is the name He used 7,000 times in the Torah, Prophets, and Psalms, all written 1,000 years before Islam was conceived. Yahuweh is anti-religious for many important reasons, so I am anti-religious. And it is a name you should know because Allah falsely claims to be Yahuweh. It is what Satan has always craved. No one has paid me anything to support the cause of exposing and condemning Islam. Yahuweh's rewards are spiritual and eternal. But even if someone had paid me a billion dollars, it wouldn't change the evidence contained in the book. Like most people who can't refute a message, you have elected to slander the messenger. I'm irrelevant. The evidence is all that matters. Read the book starting with Sources--Islam's Dark Past. When you are done, read www.YadaYahweh.com. On Thu, Aug 7, 2008 at 9:50 PM, TO wrote: > Mr. Winn, > Thank you for your thoughtful response to my email. You make very interesting points. I've dipped into your Yada Yahweh a few times and I have enjoyed it every time. I know you don't believe that Yahweh (I'm used to calling Him Jesus) will return until about 2032 and hope you're wrong about that. I pray and hope for Him to come back soon! > I'm one who definitely doesn't love the world. I cringe at its grotesque vanity with itself and am tired of its base behavior. An empty, over-sexualized world thinks it's smarter, wiser, and lovelier than any other in history, when the truth is the opposite. As King Solomon said, "Vanity....all is vanity" > I think it's wonderful that you share freely so much with the world from your ministry. I really do love your site. I'll be happy to buy your Prophet of Doom in the new format you're working on, though I have the big-book form it is now in. > God Bless, -TS -T, Yahweh, or more correctly, with the w pronounced, Yahuweh, is our Heavenly Father's one and only name. Rabbis, and then English translators removed His name 7,000 times from the Old Covenant Scriptures and replaced it with Lord (which is Satan's title and defines his ambition). Diminished to human form, Yahuweh selected the perfect name to describe His mission: Yahushua, meaning Yah Saves. Ignorant and errant men replaced this accurate and meaningful name with "Jesus" in the 17th century. "Christ" is equally errant and without rational basis. If it is a title, it's Messiyah, and thus should be transliterated as such. If it is a descriptive word, then it should be translated "Anointed Implement of Yah." The Greek basis of Christ means "drugged and whitewashed" and accordingly it is not written out anywhere on any page of the pre-Constantine Renewed Covenant manuscript (except in the one place where it does mean drugged as applied to the Laodicean assembly in Revelation). When fighting a false god like Allah, our best weapon is the true name. For example, the Qur'an says that "the son of Mary" was Issa, Arabic for Esau, the one person Yahuweh called out by name to say He hates. Esau married one of Ishmael's daughters and adopted his religion--a dogma which was reborn as Islam. The Qur'an claims that Islam is the religion of Ishmael and Muhammad claims to be one of his descendants. Further, the first name given to the spirit who became known as Allah in the Qur'an is "Lord," plagiarizing the lead of the Babylonian Talmud--the Qur'an's primary source. The second name, and one that forms the basis of several surahs, is ar-Rachman. He was the moon god a Yemeni reciter Muhammad copied in format and style. When the Islamic god's name finally changes to Allah following the Satanic Verses and Muhammad having to flee Mecca in shame, we are told that Allah has 99 names, none of which is Yahweh. And yet in the Scriptures Allah claims he inspired, Yahweh says that a god by any other name is false. Names are important--especially in spiritual battles, especially today. The problem is that far too many Christian writers use standard translations as if they were reliable. They aren't. And far too many Christians have replaced Yahuweh's seven Miqra'ey with Babylonian sun god festivals so the are without a proper foundation. Yahuweh will return on Yowm Kippurym exactly 40 Yowbel from His fulfillment of Passover, Unleavened Bread, and FirstFruits in 33. And that means that the Tribulation begins in the fall of 2026. That is how much time we have. While the day is known for the Taruw'ah harvest known as the rapture, the year is not--although it must occur before the Tribulation begins. These dates aren't speculative. I haven't guessed at them or used any codes. The Scriptural evidence is overwhelming. Poor translations and religious corruptions are what's blinding so many from knowing the obvious. Thanks for your interest Tim, and for your support of Walid. I love having him engaged and on our side. He is a good man. 2008/5/9 "horse" wrote: f#ck you, > From: Prophet of Doom [mailto:email@prophetofdoom.net] > Sent: Friday, August 08, 2008 9:08 AM > To: horse > Cc: Prophet of Doom > Subject: Re: > Thanks for the lovely sentiment. You must be an intellectual. > Yada #45 Posted : Sunday, August 10, 2008 12:38:11 PM(UTC) The following is an exchange between WKS and Yada. Yada's reponses appear in the color red. On Sun, Aug 10, 2008 at 12:48 AM, WKS wrote: You have been extremelyyy badly misrepresented by someone, either because you havent understood the book or because you have chosen not to. I cant explain everything to you except that Quran is a word of god that contains such scientific facts about child birth, water cycle, astrology, ecology, astronomy and everything you can think of. What the Quran has to say about these six things are overwhelmingly inaccurate. You have been duped. Moreover, what it has to say about the sun setting in a spring and about Alexander visiting people who live where the sun goes to bed, is laughable. Prophet Mohammad was an illeterate man, he couldnt read or write, can your mind believe that if he was the author of the book he could state scientific facts in the book with such accuracy. He was as dumb as is his god. Together they got most everything wrong. Islam only fools fools. There are many speculations about prophet's marriage with aisha when she was 9 years old, but thats not true if you just bother researching a bit. The age of aisha was somewhere between 14 and 19. Now you tell me at what age does a girl's puberty starts? At the age of 12, this means by nature or for you by scientific explanation a women is completely fertile at that age and can marry. But here Aisha age was somewhere between 14 and 19. about your speculations on prophet telling people to have slaves and have intercourse with them. Sorry. The Hadith are completely consistent in this regard. She was 9 and he was 53. That is the definition of pedophilia and it is repulsive. If you have to alter the facts to make your prophet look moral, he isn't. Don't trust a sexual pervert. (Is there any wonder such a man's paradise was filled with virgins?) Now do you know that what were the terms and conditions on which you can do it. Firstly the slaves use to be in deadly situations, with no shelter and no food to eat, at that time islam allows a man to have a proper ceremony, like marriage with witnesses, called Muthaa, which is to be performed between the slave and the muslim who wanted to marry her and he would have to give her almost the same rights as a wife and any child he would bear from her would have the man's name and he will have to support it. Now where does islam go wrong here, if islam didnt allow this method the women were sure to be bound to become prostitutes but islam gave them a proper right in those times when arabia is in the most appauling situation that maybe you cant even imagine now. Sex with a slave fits the definition of rape perfectly. There is no moral excuse or justification for it. Further, the "temporary marriage" is nothing but a justification for infidelity and fornication. Muslims use it today to have sex with prostitutes. It is in complete violation of the Seventh Commandment, which is a problem for you since Allah claims to have inspired the Torah. Lastly, Arabia was vastly more civil, and vastly less violent before Islam than after it. Read your history. Prophet said that bounty of war is legal. Now think in a practical way the army he was against, for the flourishment of Islam he needed that sum of money for his followers or else islam would have never come to surface. If you think he needed that money for himself then please read history because prophet mohammad was offered the kingdomship of arabia with most beautiful women of arabia at her service. If he wanted that luxury he could have easily opted for it. Stealing is not moral. It violates the Eighth Commandment. No civilized society has ever considered armed robbery good. But such is the nature of Islam. What Yahweh says is good, Allah says is bad. What Yahweh says is bad, allah says is good. Your opinions regarding what Muhammad could have chosen and what he actually chose are not consistent with the oldest and most trustworthy Islamic sources. Once again, you have had to clean up Muhammad to keep him from looking like the thief, terrorist, and sexual pervert he really was. you have been badly misled my friend. for your good i would advice you to listen to dr zakir naik on youtube. he speaks on comparitive religion and from a scientific perspective. Listen to him and then think what you want. Since I have relied entirely on Islam's five oldest and most reliable texts, if I have been misled by them, there is no possibility that Islam can be true. Think about that if you are able. The following is an exchange between "R" and Yada: On Sat, Aug 9, 2008 at 12:34 PM, "R" wrote: > Mr. Yada and Prophet of Doom, > YOU ARE BRILLIANT!.... and very brave. My mom sent me a link to your site and I have not been able to peel my eyes from the screen! I want to complement you on all of your hard work, and encourage you in the battle against the enemy (Islam). Your commentaries are seamless and you systematically dismantle weak and pityful arguements. > You manage to balance all of these weighty issues with logic, witt and humor. > Your work is truly enlightening, and quite impressive. Oh Happy Day!..... when you get to meet all who were freed from lies and hate because of your work and God's love! > Praising our Lord Thank you, R. You are too kind, but nonetheless, your encouraging and supportive words are nice to hear. After you have read POD I encourage you to read YadaYahweh. It's free as well. While the content is night and day, the style is very similar. The reason I suggest this is that our "lord" had a name and He likes it when we use it. I think you'd enjoy learning more about what He had to say, especially regarding religion, names, titles, as well as our future. #47 Posted : Monday, August 11, 2008 1:11:03 PM(UTC) On Sun, Aug 10, 2008 at 7:16 PM, PC wrote: > I enjoyed your article in regard of the enlightenment of the real Islam. It seems the world is in denial or just ignorant of what the teaching of this Warped religion really teach! I also have taken note of the phenomenal rise in anti-semitism worldwide. I pray for the Jewish folks and Israel. This is a revisting of the dark spirt of Hitler rising from the abyss. It all is starting again! God help us! I would like to be updated on some of your latest articles. Thanks for writing and for your support of Israel. I dedicated 77 pages of Prophet of Doom to a direct comparison between Muhammad's and Hitler's teachings, so we agree with regard to the rise of the dark spirit from the abyss. I don't know what "article" you read at the POD site, but the book itself is 1,000 pages long. The Islamic Terrorism Timeline is also over 1,000 pages, and the various articles on the site total a couple of thousand pages more. Moreover, my first book on Islam, Tea With Terrorists, adds another 600 pages to the count. And if you like organizational behavior, especially in business, read In The Company. By accident it details what drove Muhammad to be such a power, sex, and money motivated scumbag. One of the reasons I don't add much to the site these days is that I think I've already said everything that needed to be said. If you have consumed most of that, then I would recommend Yada Yahweh--A Conversation With God. There, you'll also find Future History and The Owner's Manual, which I highly recommend. All of these things are free online and they are all linked from the POD homepage. #48 Posted : Thursday, August 14, 2008 6:52:57 AM(UTC) On Thu, Aug 14, 2008 at 8:09 AM, "RT" wrote: > I appreciate any one who exposes Islam and this great tool of Satan. I get excited observing the threat Islam is and when they all gather together north of Israel to finally destroy her, they, themselves will be destroyed according to Ezekiel 38-39. I believe the rapture will probably take place at about that time. > -R Islam is the most overtly and obviously satanic dogma ever to be manifest as a mainstream religion. Allah was modeled after Halal ben Shachar, Satan. The harvest known as the rapture will occur on the Miqra' of Taruw'ah, known as Trumpets. There are only 20 more celebrations of this Miqra' prior to the beginning of the Tribulation in the late Fall of 2026. The Magog War, an all Islamic assault against Israel, will begin in 2027. Yahweh will personally annihilate the Muslim armies as the march into Israel (carrying American weapons). If you would like to know how I know this, I invite you to read Yada Yahweh (YadaYahweh.com) and Future History, both available free online. #49 Posted : Tuesday, August 19, 2008 3:07:06 PM(UTC) The following is an exchange between "SS" and Yada: On Mon, Aug 18, 2008 at 10:58 AM, SS wrote: > Hi Dude > Stop behaving like a kid and put some real arguments on your website; its a real pity you have totally fabricated, mis-quoted, made up stories.... you should be spanked for telling such tall tales :-), > if you have children; may they teach you a lesson by becoming muslims and good ones at that; a fitting and just gift for someone like you; I'll pray that happens, maybe through that you would understand.... but to be honest I dont hold my hopes to high. > Dont know what you are animal, vegatable or mineral, to be honest, dont really care; the facts and realities are plain and you have none of them on your website. > To say you have a grain of sand, on the earth worth of arguments in your favour is sadly an overstatement; your obsession with islam or religion is Id say an unhealthy one; did you get abused by a priest or summat as a kid, or mullah beat you with his beard, or a rabbi beat you with a pork sausage ? > Through your propaganda, islam is getting exposure and people are looking into it, and realising the truth and turning to islam; thank you sooooo much... the effect is backfiring, i know several people who have become muslims after coming across your site.... you are responsible to the group who are making it happen... proud of yourself now? > You are sadly misinformed about the facts; but hey, that is to be expected; u are a tool in gods plan to get exposure of islam, and satan is using you; he's a good buddy of mine, he told me.... he told me something else, he's enjoying his holiday in the states these days, and gaining his popularity their for new recruits, especially in the governement :-) > So, God works in mysterious ways and also Satan does :-), learn from Satan, that would be the better strategy; trust me;- hell dont trust me; i dont care. > Even he will be forgiven on judgement day, even satan has faith in the lord; question is; do you have more faith then satan in your Lord? > Think about it, it may save your soul in this life :-), I stress on the may, but to be honest I dont care. > Life is too short to hate people for what they believe in. > Lets see if you are a man of your words and put every detail of this email on your website. >-SS Congratulations, with thousands of entries to date, your letter ranks as one of the most childish, ignorant, and irrational we have received at Prophet of Doom. In the future, if you feel compelled to criticize something, read it first. What is it about Islam that renders its victims unable to think or communicate rationally. There are some one thousand copiously documented and irrefutable arguments against Muhammad, Allah, Islam, and the Qur'an in Prophet of Doom. While thousands of Muslims have tried, no one has found a single "fabrication," "misquotation," or translation error in the book. It is the opposite of what you claim. On Thu, Aug 14, 2008 at 2:13 PM, MK wrote: > I really tried hard but I couldn't get your book. I even phoned the United States but to no avail. Seems to me they want to muzzle you. I admire you because you're fighting against a horrible, insidious and perverted religion. And you're risking your life. Terrorism doesn't know any borders. Please let me know how to get your book at a reasonable price and I'd like to help you fighting against the head bangers Hope to hear from you Prophet of Doom is free online in HTML, PDF, and MP3. With several hundred thousand signed protestations against it, bookstores are afraid to carry it, so it's easier to give it away. Muslims are universally paranoid of the truth. It is the one thing lethal to Islam. 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__label__cc	0.720677	0.279323	Military Times Forums > Hot Topics > Politics & Government > Election Day 2016 View Full Version : Election Day 2016 Well ... the day is here. Hearing something funny, crazy, tinfoil hat-ish on Election day ... let's go folks ... http://static.boredpanda.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/funny-presidential-yard-signs-2016-election-3-573311d514eb8__605.jpg let's go folks ... How to unhypnotize a Clinton supporter.... http://blog.dilbert.com/post/152734465316/unhypnotizing-a-clinton-supporter MikeKerriii "Well, doctor,” she asked, “what have we got, a republic or a monarchy?" "A republic, If you can keep it." On today's local news, several people interviewed said the ONLY good thing that will come from today is that all this Bull, will finally (well hopefully) be over. No matter who wins, Rainmaker predicts that it'll be a contested election either way. Oh yeah ... completely agree. Imagine a 269-269 electoral college tie (viable scenario) ... It won't be close. Rainmaker sees it playing out 2 possible ways. Scenario A: Landslide win for Trump...... Then the MSM (Clinton propaganda machine) that's been gaslighting the shit out of the American People with these phony polls for months, Tells us it was "hacked by Putin" & All 17,000 Intelligence agencies agree. Clinton refuses to concede defeat and Black Jesus' DHS, DOJ and FBI springs into action to call for a do-over. Scenario B: Landslide win for Clinton.......Wolf Blitzer calls it over at 7:01 PM EST. Declaring she's unanimously carried all 57 states & immediately transitions to Queen Cankles Coronation Speech as being "a historic step for all woman-kind", as Chris Matthews breaks down sobbing with tears of Joy over the Tingle running up his leg. Trump refuses to concede defeat and points out that he's been talking to huge cheering crowds since, day 1, while she needs a free Beyonce concert just to be able to fill up a High school gym. So the Soros voting machines had to have been hacked. 40 Million racist, deplorable, Trumpanistas spring into action and take to the streets with pitchforks to call for a do-over. That's who I should have written in. Dang it. 0213 in the morning ...I just woke up ... Rainmaker may have called this ... holy shit. 0245 ... Clinton concedes. Donald Trump is the President-Elect. Republicans retain the House and Senate. Rainmaker ... you called it ... Am surprised Clinton conceded so quickly, now looking at the states she lost, within a couple of points but beyond the ability to really legally contest the results. Her conceding means there won't be weeks or months of lawsuits. When I got up and saw that FL, NC and OH had called for Trump I sat up a bit straighter. Well, the results are in and TRUMP WINS!!! Hillary already called to concede defeat. What got me, was lookin at the exit polls, all showing massive clinton support in black, latino, women, yet lost 214 to 288.. African American vote normally is around 8%, Obama brought that really up, much less support in 2016. Clinton had a big margin with female voters early, that got smaller as we moved West. When I went to bed FL was starting to pull away for Trump, he was up by about 10,000 but the panhandle was still open and that part of FL is heavy Republican. Also, was a bit disappointed that Hillary Clinton did not come out to address her supporters when it was becoming evident. Should have thanked them for their support. http://www.canadawelcomesyou.com/images/logo-index.jpg WILDJOKER5 I don't feel great, but more comfortable with Trump than Clinton. efmbman I don't feel great either. No possible outcome from this election would have made me feel great. Bos Mutus This is interesting... I don't personally care for the guy, much...but there's something refreshing about the tipping over of the apple cart, and there is no denying that he is his own man. He doesn't owe anything to the Republican Party or the political funding machine, he won in spite of them, so... More than willing to give him a fair shot...he won it fair and square. There is one elector from Washington that has proclaimed he will be faithless and not vote for Clinton. Might there be some considering the same tactic and vote for Clinton instead of Trump? The margin of victory in some states was razor thin. From what I understand, some states have fines for faithless electors but there is no mechanism to prevent this. You know how sometimes people wake up from a bender and look at their phone and see all their drunk texts and go "WTF did I do last night?" I feel once the anger hangover wears off from America they'll realize what they did. Also - no Trump didn't win this. The DNC won this for him by meddling with their candidates. If they had just let Sanders be nominated like their party members wanted him to be, there would be no President-elect Trump. I hope something good comes of this but I don't foresee it. Even with a Republican controlled Congress, I don't think he's going to get much of anything he wanted to do done. Hopefully they keep his ass in check. They don't like him anymore than anyone else. I just hope I don't nor the rest of women lose our reproductive rights, that the LGBT community doesn't lose their hard fought rights, that Muslims don't get locked up or tossed out, that journalists don't get locked away for criticizing him, that we don't end up in another godforsaken country or WWIII because someone hurts his ego. I also feel that after he gets sworn in he is going to get a rude awakening about how things work in this country and he's going to go "What the fuck did I sign up for?" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OwDiPrFCM0M&feature=share The only way Trump is a successful President is if he surrounds himself with the best and brightest who know how the political game works and he steps back a little. If he tries to control everything, if he lets his ego get the best of him he's going to fail and bring America down with him. Based on what I've read about likely picks for Cabinet - I'm worried. Also the fact that both candidates were the least liked in a very long time says something. Honestly America needs to stop angry voting. They did it with Obama and they're doing it again. Angry voting doesn't help. I hope he can succeed. I do because I don't want America to fail. If anyone says they hope he fails - then they are hoping America fails too. I hope this turns out better than I feel it will. I hope fears end up unwarranted. I hope it was just rhetoric to win but that still doesn't make me trust him. Honestly - I think everyone can agree we need to reform our electoral process. At least now parents can tell their children "Yes son, daughter you can be President. Apparently literally anyone can be President." Also - next time someone applies for a job and says "you don't have enough experience" I hope they point to Trump and say "really?" Many pundits were like you, feeling disappointed she didn't come out to speak.. And with Hillary in Soros's basket, i wonder how George (and his son who married chelsea iirc) are feeling about her loss. Marc Mezvinsky is George Soros' son? What? It's like watching the Dallas Cowboys play the Philadelphia Eagles....I'm glad to see one of them lose, but it sucks that the other won. Actually his nephew.. Well supposedly And notice which side is doing all the rioting/protesting? Yet they accuse trump supporters of being haters.. The left is always projectionists. They accuse every white person to be racist, when they are making a general sweeping accusation against an entire race of people. They claim the right is homophobic while supporting the religion that throws gays off roof tops. They claim to be the side of choice, but that only falls to whether or not you want to kill your baby in utero or not. Claim the right are war mongers when every war of the 20th century was started by dems and ended by the GOP. The best (worst) part about these election results, is watching the self proclaimed "tolerant progressives" in full meltdown mode because 50 Million Americans finally told them to Piss off They've actually been brainwashed into believing that the more that you can have Big Brother up your butt, the more free you can be. Only 70 more days until these useful idiots & a few Soros plants get their comeuppance. It's going to Epic!..... Tic- Toc Snowflakes... https://www.timeanddate.com/countdown/to?iso=20170120T00&p0=263&msg=Time+left+until+Obama+leaves+office&csz=1 Well, 59 million, but whos counting. I cant wait for CA to secede and take half the illegals with them. Chelsea's husband is not Soro's son. These are his parents: Edward Mezvinsky Marjorie Margolies Not sure why you thought Chelsea married George Soros' son. Nowhere did I find anything that states he is related to Soros at all. Oh do you really think that Trump supporters wouldn't be doing 100 times worse if he had lost??? Delusional. There are Trump supporters on camera when asked "What if Trump loses the election?" And they reply "Revolution." They stated they would arm themselves and march on Washington and "take back" the White House if Clinton won. You can be damn sure that there would have been a lot more protests and much more violent among some Trump supporters had he lost. Why would Trump supporters protest right now? That wouldn't make sense would it? So makes no sense to say "look who's protesting now." Oh and here you go from 2012: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/11/08/us/anti-obama-protest-at-university-of-mississippi-turns-unruly.html https://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/campus-overload/post/obamas-re-election-sparks-racially-charged-protest-at-ole-miss/2012/11/07/35129110-2914-11e2-bab2-eda299503684_blog.html During the campaign in 2012: http://www.usnews.com/news/blogs/washington-whispers/2012/09/26/protesters-disrupt-obama-campaign-event-in-ohio-demanding-money-out-of-politics This is from 2008: http://www.nbcnews.com/id/27738018/ns/us_news-life/t/obama-election-spurs-race-threats-crimes/ 2013: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/08/07/obama-protesters-arizona_n_3719050.html Jan 2013: https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/style/on-inaugural-eve-obamas-most-virulent-foes-want-the-celebration-stopped/2013/01/14/2050f75e-54f6-11e2-a613-ec8d394535c6_story.html?hpid=z2 Aug 2012: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/08/04/obama-protesters_n_1741260.html So please let's not act like some conservatives haven't been protesting Pres Obama for the last 8 years. Between the racial epithets, the questioning his birth certificate, his religion almost daily for 8 years (and some of that done by Trump too) AND the "Obama isn't my President"...c'mon. So why is it okay that Trump and his supporters have been saying and doing the things they have for the last year or more but when people are unhappy with Trump being elected, they are called "whiners" and "go to your safe space" and "get over it?" That's not how this works. Peaceful protests are constitutional rights. I'm pretty sure there's nothing more American than voicing your displeasure of your government. It's pretty easy to sit on your high horse but I guarantee you had he lost, it would be 100 times worse with protests. AND the right would be whining so much more than anyone is right now. That's fine Trump is about to get a rude awakening about what it takes to be POTUS. It gets kind of confusing since Soros paid for her wedding http://www.jewishpress.com/news/breaking-news/wikileaks-chelsea-clinton-used-foundation-money-to-pay-for-wedding/2016/11/07/ Yes, & We should thank God that the Founding Fathers (in their infinite wisdom) established , for us, a Constitutional Republic and NOT a Direct Democracy (i.e Mob rule). Prevents a bunch of knuckleheads clustered in Big cities and half-wits on the Left coast from imposing their twisted version of "Utopia" on the rest of America. https://mishgea.files.wordpress.com/2016/11/geographic-landslide1.png You do realize that he probably won't be able to do most of the things he promised right? The Republicans in Congress don't even like him or most of his plans. There is the whole checks and balances thing - but I guess if he wanted to be a dick he could write EOs. Also - Trump is about to get a rude awakening on how the world really works when he gets these briefings. Just like Obama did. Just like every other POTUS has realized. You do realize that he probably won't be able to do most of the things he promised right? The Republicans in Congress don't even like him or most of his plans. But actually, one of my reasons for voting in Trump, was that the Legislative Branch might start functioning again as a 3rd branch of Government , instead of just bending over and spreading their cheeks for everything the Black Jesus in the Executive wants. Trump is about to get a rude awakening on how the world really works when he gets these briefings. Just like Obama did. Just like every other POTUS has realized There shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth. But, the writing's on the wall ...... much of this will soon be happening. https://assets.donaldjtrump.com/_landings/contract/O-TRU-102316-Contractv02.pdf See, They can either get on board the Train with the rest of us or they'll be getting run the hell over by it (in the mid-term). On 10-13-2016, 05:57 PM you wrote: No 20 million of you don't exist and have not mastered a "coup." You do realize Trump is gonna lose in November right? In all actuality I am starting to think the theory that he only ran so Hillary could win is becoming more and more possible every day. Put your faith in that guy all you want. You aren't changing anything Wake up and smell the coffee sparksie! You were wrong last month....... So, maybe you're still wrong now? Stop relying on the NYT, WAPO, CNN, Hufpo, Politico ,et. al. (who were just exposed colluding with the Clinton Campaign and the DNC) to give you all of your "news". In case you haven't figured it out yet. They're paid liars....... Obama's approval rating is not really 55% But actually, one of my reasons for voting in Trump, was that the Legislative Branch might start functioning again as a 3rd branch of Government again, instead of bending over and spreading their cheeks for everything the Black Jesus in the Executive wants. I don't have a black Jesus. I'm not sure why you would say "my black Jesus." Obama isn't a "black Jesus" and I don't even believe in the supposed original Jesus (who was likely dark skinned as well). How exactly is your behavior and those of others who think like you "uniting" this country? It's not. That rhetoric is exactly why people are protesting right now. Even Trump didn't think he would win. Ok? Everyone was surprised Tues night. Even Trump. Don't lie to yourself. Especially when Clinton was up at least 8 points in PA most of the night. I don't rely on those arenas to get news. I read through multiple news sites - on both sides of the spectrum. I also am neither Republican nor Democrat. You realize that a good majority of people ONLY voted for him because they hate Hillary so much. They hate Trump just as much. The exit polls even showed that most people don't like his rhetoric they don't like what he speaks about. If Sanders had gotten the nomination there would be no President-elect Trump right now. Who said anything about Obama's approval rating? I bet you it's actually pretty high and a lot of people I have seen say "Are we sure he can't run one more term?" Okay let's look through this little "contract" of his (that isn't even a real contract). "Cleaning up Corruption and Special Interest" 1. Propose a constitutional amendment to impose term limits on Congress: It's been done. The SCOTUS has ruled already that term limits for Congress are unconstitutional. "U.S. Term Limits, Inc. v. Thornton, 514 US 779 (1995)." This case the SCOTUS ruled that states cannot impose qualifications for prospective members of the US Congress stricter than those specified in the Constitution. This invalidated the Congressional term limit provisions of 23 states. The Founders considered term limits and rejected it while writing the Constitution. In Federalist Papers No 53, James Madison explained why the Constitutional Convention of 1787 rejected term limits: "[A] few of the members of Congress will possess superior talents; will by frequent re-elections, become members of long standing; will be thoroughly masters of the public business, and perhaps not unwilling to avail themselves of those advantages. The greater the proportion of new members of Congress, and the less the information of the bulk of the members, the more apt they be to fall into the snares that may be laid before them," wrote Madison." So okay he can "propose" an amendment all he wants but it will never be ratified. Do you honestly think that 2/3s of both houses are going to ratify an amendment that limits THEIR jobs? You're more delusional than I thought. 2. Hiring freeze on federal employees - good luck with that. 3. For every new regulation, two existing regulations must be eliminated: How is he going to enforce this? 4. Five year ban on WH and Congressional officials becoming lobbyists after government service: Until he leaves government service right? 5. and 6. How will he get this enacted or enforced? Seven actions to protect American worker: Not going to happen. Any of it. Restore security and constitutional rule of law: Where does security need restored? Last I checked there isn't anarchy on the streets. I see police enforcing the law daily. He can "repeal" Obama's EOs. And? If he wants to rescind some of this immigration stuff what's his plan to get 11 million people and deport them? It's not really that easy of a task. Also what about those who were brought here as children and this is their ONLY home that they know? All those who fall under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program. So he just sends innocent children or people back to countries and cultures they aren't part of? Even with him nominating someone to the SCOTUS it won't change abortion or same sex marriage. You realize that Chief Justice Roberts is conservative and he has been the deciding factor - siding with liberals - on same sex marriage being legal and on abortion issues right? Those things are not going away. His immigration "policy" isn't even a policy. The wall will never be built. Even Republicans in Congress have said that. Mexico has said that. He can want to try all of these things but he's about to realize how the government works. He's going to come out of these briefings going "What the fuck did I just do?" Everyone does that. I guarantee you they don't realize what it means to be POTUS until they get those deep dives. He will not accomplish these things in 100 days. I just find it sad that people who think like you continue to want to drive a wedge in America. That rhetoric is exactly why people are protesting right now. They're "protesting" because they're a bunch of entitled brats (or paid agitators) that think the rest of us owes them a living. If Sanders had gotten the nomination there would be no President-elect Trump right now. Dream on snowflake. That sellout marxist would've gotten demolished by President Trump. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=grD_IINiH9c I laughed so much at that video, but not because Trump won and Hillary lost. Neither candidate appealed to me in any way. I laughed because people are taking this much too seriously. It is unhealthy to attach your well-being to the success of a political candidate. Nothing is guaranteed in politics. Besides, all the "evil" actions Obama was supposed to do in his 8 years didn't happen. I still have all my guns (even added to my collection). There are no FEMA camps nor are there UN troops policing our cities. Chances are, the same will be true for Trump. Although the federal hiring freeze is very possible. All the other crap, not so much. True that. The left also cries intolerance of the right, but are (often) the most intolerant around.. So much for the clinton foundation being only for charity!!?!? I mostly use social media for those food videos, sharing pictures of my kid and projects etc. the last two days though social media has been entertainment gold. So what's everyones thought on all these schools (some high) that the students are just 'walking out' to go protest?.. A) should they be charged by the school for truancy? B) should the school suspend them for leaving school during school hours? C) what of the parent(s)?? In part I am glad that younger Americans are getting politically and socially aware, I don't agree with all their actions ... but maybe the younger generation will be better on action than most people my age have been. Probably ... would depend on the local school's policy. Again, would depend on the school's policy. What of them, a kid doing something isn't necessarily reflective of a good or bad parent. BT BT So, I don't agree with all the 'sore loser' stuff going on right now, there was some of the same thing in 2007 after Obama won, didn't hear about it as much, but there were some protests. I am unsure whether or not there was destructive civil disobedience etc. ... just don't know of any. 2016 is much more widespread. In part, this unwillingness to accept an outcome that their side didn't want, is in part what makes Trump popular to his supporters. Things that I find really troublesome right how: 1. What are they protesting? A fair & democratic election, just one that they lost. There were no widespread instances of voter fraud, suppression etc. (by either side) that would have effected the outcome. 2. The Electoral College. This is the 2d time in 16 years the candidate with largest popular vote didn't win the election (Clinton in 2016, Gore in 2000). They knew the system, they couldn't get it go their way; if anyone had the machine to make the system work for them it was Hillary Clinton. The Electoral College was designed to prevent a slight majority from ruling roughshod over the rest of the country where population is more dispersed, our founders NEVER intended for a pure or direct democracy. Accounting for population centers, the slight majority could heavily impact widespread parts of the country where they are a huge minority. Using this map, 50% of the country lives in areas that are blue, the other 50% in areas that are grey: http://static4.businessinsider.com/image/5227a78e6bb3f70f68316148-800-/map%20of%20us%2050%20percent%20.png The Electoral College ensures that a candidate must get support from a variety of voting blocks & states. No faction/party can ignore one part of the country/state etc. for too long without it impacting them. So, I do favor the Electoral College system, I can think of a couple minor tweaks, but I do favor it. A & B: the schools are encouraging this behavior. There will be no repercussions from the school. The consequence will be that these students will be ill prepared for the adversity they will face later in life. Apparently, our institutions of higher learning (and some high schools!) are comfortable imparting the following lesson on their students: If you don't get your way, feel free to walk away from your responsibilities to cry about it. My tweak would be to remove the human Elector. Several have proclaimed publicly (even prior to the election) that they had no intention casting their Electoral College ballot for a candidate regardless of the popular vote in their state (Faithless Elector). There is no mechanism to prevent an Elector from doing this. Some states have fines, but they are not serious fines. I know that in our history, no faithless elector has altered the election results, but the potential is there. That potential grows every election cycle as the country becomes more politically polarized. The election is an internal matter, so the SECSTATE should simply tally the electoral votes from the states and that's that. We can also avoid the drama associated with the DEC 19 Electoral College vote. Not sure i call staging a "Cry in", or a walk out so we can go sob, or asking professors to cancel or postpone mid terms 'cause we can't deal', getting politically or socially aware.. No, but the parents often are targeted by the state when kids are 'skiving' off of school or being truant. Additionally, when i had a school trip off campus, i had to get parential sign off.. AND that was for school SUPERVISED trips.. not just the students deciding to walk off.. Which is something i am arguing with people over on gateworld about.. They argue 'cause the popular vote went to hillary, but the EC went to trump, he stole the election.. WAHHAA we want mob rule. BUT he was one of those a few years back who argued mob rule (the majority decides), when CA once again voted against legalizing gay marriage in a statewide referendum, was bad as it was a tyranny of the majority... It seems they only favor said 'tyranny' when its THEM benefiting.. Exactly. What do these snowflakes think about their chances to get a job, when EMPLOYERS are seeing this happen, and happen MORE often on liberal campuses.. Do they think their chance of getting a job will be higher or LOWER??? One tweak i am torn on, is assigning the EC votes from a state based on % of the vote someone got... So we don't see say clinton getting all 55 EC votes from CA, just cause she won the 4 big cities (LA/SF/SD/Bakersfield), but i am not sure if that would make it better or worse.. The Constitution leaves it up to the states to sort it out, but I feel all the states should adopt the way Maine and Nebraska do it. Each congressional district is awards an electoral vote independent of the others in the state. We could exclude the EC votes tied to Senators as well since each state has 2. That would take the EC from 538 to 438 with 220 to win. I suppose that plan would take gerrymandering to whole new level, though. waveshaper2 IMHO, maybe a fairer way to divide the electoral college votes would be to partial them out, below state level, based on Congressional Districts/Senate seats won. Of course, to do this, we would have to hold the Senate elections every four years to coincide with the Presidential election cycle. The current 538 electors (Electoral College Votes), correspond to the 435 Representatives and 100 Senate seats, plus the 3 electors for the District of Columbia. Example of how something like this might look for California; The 55 California electoral votes would be given out for the 2016 election cycle as follows; 1. The Republicans would get 23 electoral votes to put into the Republican Presidential nominee electoral vote basket (Note; The Republicans won 23 Congressional Districts in California). 2. The Democrats would get 32 electoral votes to put into the Democrats Presidential nominee electoral vote basket (Note; The Democrats won 30 Congressional Districts and 2 Senate seats which in California = 32). Example of how something like this might look at a National level; The total 2016 National Presidential electoral vote tally would look something like this (I think a few seats are still being contested or votes are being counted); 1. The Republican Presidential nominee would get 290 electoral votes (239 House of Representatives districts + 51 Senate seats won = 290). 2. The Democrat Presidential nominee would get 243 electoral votes (192 House of Representatives districts won + 48 Senate seats won + 3 Washington DC electoral votes won = 243). 3. Independents/others won a total of 5 districts/seats = 5 electoral votes? Totals; 290 + 243 + 5 = 538 electoral votes. the last two days though social media has been entertainment gold. http://i.imgur.com/Jg0gWBo.gifv All what schools? I know of one school where it was part of a civics class and it was a peaceful rally that wasn't bent on either side. Then they all returned to class. If they aren't coming back to school then that's different. If it's part of a government class that's different too. I can see what exactly would be some of the posts on this thread if it had gone the other way - and Trump supporters were crying "Revolution!" if he lost. In fact HE called for Revolution in 2012. And he also denounced the EC. I just find it funny that Trump supporters got conned big time by him. He's no different than any other politician before him. He's surrounding himself with the exact people he said he was running against to fight. Conaway is already "warning" senators to watch what they say about him. He even didn't think he would win - he played you all pretty good. As the shock has worn off I just sit back and laugh. I don't want him to fail because that doesn't help any of us. But I laugh at how much he fucking played his supporters. Empty promises just like Obama made. I laugh at how much he fucking played his supporters. His supporters laugh at how liberal Idiots have gotten every single prediction wrong. And yet, they'll still, continue to double down on their own stupidity. He's no different than any other politician before him. Empty promises just like Obama made So, you're no longer worried about having your pussy grabbed or getting deported? I would never allow anyone to grab my pussy and I was born in the US so there's no way I can be deported...unless he wants to illegally deport US citizens purely because they disagree with him. Empty promises as in campaign promises. It's comforting to know that you're clairvoyant & can tell us what's going to happen (66 days before he's even been sworn in). And while you're at it Miss Cleo....... Can you give the rest of us dupes the winning numbers for next week's Powerball lottery? Stop being mean..... What they really need are puppies and coloring books! http://reason.com/blog/2016/11/11/upenn-created-a-post-election-safe-space WEll, we had several high schools where the students did a walk out.. And that was in CA, one in Mi and iirc one in NYC.. THAT doesn't speak to be about it being official, cause if it was, it wouldn't have been a 'walk-out'.. Also, according a group 'votefraud.org' (though when i click to go to their website, i get a site not built!), http://www.infowars.com/report-three-million-votes-in-presidential-election-cast-by-illegal-aliens/ up to 3 million votes so far have been counted that were fraudulet (cast by someone dead, illegal immigrants etc). So because of that, trump seems to not only have one via the EC, but also got the popular vote.. Rusty Jones I love the looks on Trump's face recently. I'm just now starting to agree with Bos. Trump's campaign was a sham. He was trying to lose on purpose, and ended up winning when he wasn't "supposed" to. I think he's going to get overwhelmed by the job and end up resigning. And that's the best case scenario. Worst case? He doesn't seek reelection in 2020. I'm just now starting to agree with Bos. Trump's campaign was a sham. He was trying to lose on purpose, and ended up winning when he wasn't "supposed" to. I think he's going to get overwhelmed by the job and end up resigning.. Uh oh .... I see we've got another one here that's still stuck in phase one! Elizabeth Kübler Ross: On Death and Dying – 1969 1 – Denial. Denial is a conscious or unconscious refusal to accept facts, information, reality, etc., relating to the situation concerned. 2 – Anger. 3 – Bargaining. 4 – Depression. (Also referred to as preparatory grieving) 5 – Acceptance. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/K%C3%BCbler-Ross_model Got anything written or even read by sane people? Infowars states that the US was going to invade Texas ans that Texas was only saved by the brave action of some brave patriots with an average IQ in the 60s.. They also believe that all the airlines and all the world military forces s are conspiring to poison everyone mysterious chemicals in jet contrails Not to mention some other truly stupid nutjob conspiracies like those about remote weather control via radio waves. Yes, help is available for you too Mike! Ask, and it shall be given you.... https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/51%2BRjMY4UxL._SX330_BO1,204,203,200_.jpg Yeah? What phase is uncontrollable laughter at the fact that he's gonna choke? http://www.businessinsider.com/trump-obama-meeting-2016-11 President-elect Donald Trump celebrated his status as a Washington outsider during his campaign for the presidency, but his lack of familiarity with the US government appears to be coming into view as he transitions to the White House. During Trump's private meeting with President Barack Obama on Thursday, Trump "seemed surprised" by the scope of the president's responsibilities, according to a report from The Wall Street Journal. Trump's aides were also apparently unaware that the entire staff of the president working in the White House's West Wing would need to be replaced, according to The Journal. Obama reportedly will spend more time counseling Trump about the presidency than most presidents do with their successors. Trump and Obama were highly critical of each other during the campaign season but appear to have struck a conciliatory tone since Trump's election, at least publicly. "I want to emphasize to you, Mr. President-elect, that we now are going to want to do everything we can to help you succeed, because if you succeed, then the country succeeds," Obama told Trump in front of reporters on Thursday. Trump called Obama "a very good man." What? Donald Trump and his aides didn't know that they had to replace the West Wing staff? LOL, even the rednecks who voted for him knew that. Yeah, your boy can't swim. He's bound to drizzown.	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line2995
__label__cc	0.683189	0.316811	Category: Trailers by jonathan · Published December 8, 2018 RAGE 2 – Open World Trailer Bethesda have dropped the latest trailer for RAGE 2, showcasing the massive open world, multiple biomes, soaring gyrocopters, crushing monster trucks, big-ass guns, Mutant Bash TV mayhem, a taste of some serious Faction-action …... Far Cry New Dawn – Announcement Trailer Set seventeen years after a global nuclear catastrophe, Far Cry New Dawn brings players into a wildly beautiful and radically transformed Hope County, Montana. Life has begun to emerge from the chaos, but the... Battlefield V Chapter 1: Overture Now Live! Battlefield V’s ambitious post-launch journey, Tides of War, has now officially kicked off with the release of Chapter 1: Overture. Updates on PC, PS4 and Xbox One have all gone live. In this first... Orange is the New Black: Season 6 – Official Trailer It’s a whole new world. Season 6 of Orange is the New Black arrives July 27. by jonathan · Published April 1, 2018 Xbox – April 2018 Games with Gold Play together with Xbox Live Gold. April’s 2018 Games with Gold lineup for Xbox One includes: The Witness and Assassin’s Creed Syndicate. For Xbox 360 owners (and through Xbox One backward compatibility), April kicks... by jonathan · Published February 5, 2018 Skyscraper – Official Trailer Global icon Dwayne Johnson leads the cast of Legendary’s Skyscraper as former FBI Hostage Rescue Team leader and U.S. war veteran Will Sawyer, who now assesses security for skyscrapers. On assignment in China he... Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom – Official Trailer #2 It’s been four years since theme park and luxury resort Jurassic World was destroyed by dinosaurs out of containment. Isla Nublar now sits abandoned by humans while the surviving dinosaurs fend for themselves in... Mission: Impossible – Fallout – Official Trailer The best intentions often come back to haunt you. MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE – FALLOUT finds Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) and his IMF team (Alec Baldwin, Simon Pegg, Ving Rhames) along with some familiar allies (Rebecca... Unsane Official Trailer A young woman is involuntarily committed to a mental institution where she is confronted by her greatest fear — but is it real or is it a product of her delusion? Directed by: Steven...	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3001
__label__wiki	0.671495	0.671495	TV Series We Got Married Seasons 1,2,3 All Episodes for Download We Got Married seasons list: Looking for the We Got Married TV Show? Seasons 1,2,3 are available for downloading in good and high hd quality, select the season number below. We Got Married screencaps In the center of the plot of the Comedy television series"married" married couple, in whose life came not the best of times.Rus and Lina have been married for many years and have two wonderful daughters. From the outside it may seem that in their family reigns a real idyll. However, in fact, everything is not so smooth, because the spouses have to deal with a lot of everyday difficulties every day, and everything else in their relationship came the very crisis when the wife prefers to watch the series or read a book than to have sex with her husband. But once they had had a rather colourful sex life, which was nothing but only memories. But our heroes are not completely hopeless, and try to return to its former passion, which often leads to funny and ridiculous situations… Televison show We Got Married seasons available for download - 1,2,3 We Got Married Season 1	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3006
__label__wiki	0.839904	0.839904	{{short description\|Iranian religion founded by Zoroaster}}{{pp-semi-protected\|small=yes}}{{Zoroastrianism}}Zoroastrianism{{refn\|group=n\|Less frequently known as Mazdaism or Magianism from the Magi or Zarathustraism from an alternate name of Zoroaster.}} or Mazdayasna is one of the world's oldest continuously practiced religions. It is a heterodox yet orthopraxic faith centered in a dualistic cosmology of good and evil and an eschatology predicting the ultimate conquest of evil with theological elements of henotheism, monotheism/monism, and polytheism.{{citation \|last= Boyd \|first= James W. \|author2-last= Crosby \|author2-first= Donald A. \|display-authors= 1 \|ref= {{harvid\|Boyd & al.\|1979}} \|title=Is Zoroastrianism Dualistic or Monotheistic? \|journal= Journal of the American Academy of Religion \|date= 1979 \|volume= Vol. XLVII \|issue= 4 \|pages= 557â588 \|url=weblink \|doi= 10.1093/jaarel/XLVII.4.557 }}WEB,weblink "O Wise One and You Other Ahuras": The Flawed Application of Monotheism Towards Zoroastrianism, Vazquez III, Pablo, 2019, Academia.edu, JOURNAL, Hintze, Almut, 2013, Monotheism the Zoroastrian Way,weblink Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society, 24, 225-249, ResearchGate, WEB,weblink Introduction to Zoroastrianism, SkjÃ¦rvÃ¸, Prods Oktor, 2005, Iranian Studies at Harvard University, Ascribed to the teachings of the Iranian-speaking spiritual leader Zoroaster (also known as Zarathushtra),WEB,weblink Zarathustra â Iranian prophet, 9 June 2017, it exalts an uncreated and benevolent deity of wisdom, Ahura Mazda (Wise Lord), as its supreme being.WEB,weblink AHURA MAZDÄ â Encyclopaedia Iranica, www.iranicaonline.org, 2019-07-13, Major features of Zoroastrianism, such as messianism, judgment after death, heaven and hell, and free will may have influenced other religious and philosophical systems, including Second Temple Judaism, Gnosticism, Greek philosophy,WEB,weblink Greece iii. Persian Influence on Greek Thought â Encyclopaedia Iranica, www.iranicaonline.org, 2019-07-14, Christianity, Islam,{{Citation\|last= Hinnel\|first= J\|title= The Penguin Dictionary of Religion\|year= 1997\|publisher= Penguin Books UK}}; {{Citation\|last= Boyce\|first= Mary\|title= Zoroastrians: their religious beliefs and practices\|year= 2001\|publisher= Routledge and Kegan Paul Ltd}} the BahÃ¡'Ã Faith, and Buddhism.BOOK, Beckwith, Christopher I., Greek Buddha: Pyrrho's Encounter with Early Buddhism in Central Asia, 2015, Princeton University Press, 9781400866328, 132â133,weblink en, With possible roots dating back to the second millennium BCE, Zoroastrianism enters recorded history in the 5th century BCE.WEB,weblink ZOROASTRIANISM i. HISTORY TO THE ARAB CONQUEST â Encyclopaedia Iranica, www.iranicaonline.org, 2019-07-13, Along with a Mithraic Median prototype and a Zurvanist Sassanid successor, it served as the state religion of the pre-Islamic Iranian empires for more than a millennium, from around 600 BCE to 650 CE. Zoroastrianism declined from the 7th century onwards following the Muslim conquest of Persia of 633â654.Hourani, p. 87. Recent estimates place the current number of Zoroastrians at around 190,000, with most living in India and in Iran; their number has been thought to be declining.WEB,weblink Zoroastrians Keep the Faith, and Keep Dwindling, Laurie Goodstein, 6 September 2006, 25 September 2017, JOURNAL,weblink The Last of the Zoroastrians, Time (magazine), Time, Deena Guzder, 9 December 2008, 25 September 2017, {{refn\|group=n\|The change over the last decade is attributed{{by whom\|date=December 2016}} to a greater level of reporting and open self-identification more so than to an actual increase in population; however, precise numbers remain difficult to obtain in part due to high levels of historic persecution in Middle Eastern regions.}} However, in 2015, there were reports of up to 200,000 converts in Iraqi Kurdistan.WEB, Fatah, Lara, The curious rebirth of Zoroastrianism in Iraqi Kurdistan,weblink Projects21.org, 27 February 2018, 2015-11-26, Besides the Zoroastrian diaspora, the older disputed Mithraic faith YazdÃ¢nism is still practised amongst Kurds.{{refn\|group=n\|As a kind of proto-Zoroastrianism, both worship "Seven Angels" alongside the primary deity and have a high regard for the concept of truth.}}The most important texts of the religion are those of the Avesta, which includes as central the writings of Zoroaster known as the Gathas, enigmatic ritual poems that define the religion's precepts, which is within Yasna, the main worship service of modern Zoroastrianism. The religious philosophy of Zoroaster divided the early Iranian gods of the Proto-Indo-Iranian tradition into ahurasWEB,weblink AHURA â Encyclopaedia Iranica, www.iranicaonline.org, 2019-07-13, and daevasWEB,weblink DAIVA â Encyclopaedia Iranica, www.iranicaonline.org, 2019-07-13, , the latter of which were not considered worthy of worship. Zoroaster proclaimed that Ahura Mazda was the supreme creator, the creative and sustaining force of the universe through Asha, and that human beings are given a right of choice between supporting Ahura Mazda or not, making them responsible for their choices. Though Ahura Mazda has no equal contesting force, Angra Mainu (destructive spirit/mentality) is considered the main adverserial force of the religion standing against Spenta Mainyu (creative spirit/mentality)WEB,weblink AHRIMAN â Encyclopaedia Iranica, www.iranicaonline.org, 2019-07-13, , whose forces are born from Aka Manah (evil thought). Middle Persian literature developed further Angra Mainyu into Ahriman and advancing him to be the direct adversary to Ahura Mazda.{{harvnb\|Boyce\|1979\|pp=6â12}}.Asha (truth, cosmic order), the life force that originates from Ahura MazdaWEB,weblink Aá¹¦A (Asha "Truth") â Encyclopaedia Iranica, Iranicaonline.org, 2017-06-14, , stands in opposition to Druj (falsehood, deceit)WEB,weblink Drujâ Encyclopaedia Iranica, Iranicaonline.org, 2017-06-14, WEB,weblink Ahura MazdÄ â Encyclopaedia Iranica, Iranicaonline.org, 2017-06-14, and Ahura Mazda is considered to be all-good with no evil emanating from the deity. Ahura Mazda works in gÄtÄ«g (the visible material realm) and mÄnÅg (the invisible spiritual and mental realm)WEB,weblink GÄTÄªG AND MÄNÅG â Encyclopaedia Iranica, www.iranicaonline.org, 2019-07-13, through the seven (six when excluding Spenta Mainyu) Amesha SpentasWEB,weblink AMÆÅ A SPÆNTA â Encyclopaedia Iranica, www.iranicaonline.org, 2019-07-13, (direct emanations of Ahura Mazda) and the host of other Yazatas (literally meaning "worthy of worship"), who all worship Ahura Mazda in the Avesta and other texts and who Ahura Mazda requests worship towards in the same texts. Zoroastrianism is a heterodox faith, meaning it is not uniform in theological and philosophical thought, especially with historical and modern influences having a significant impact on individual and local beliefs, practices, values and vocabulary, sometimes merging with tradition and in other cases displacing it. Modern Zoroastrianism, however, tends to divide itself into either Reformist or Traditionalist camps with various smaller movements arisingWEB,weblink A Tale of Two Zs: An Overview of the Reformist and Traditionalist Zoroastrian Movements, Vazquez III, Pablo, 2019, Academia.edu, . In Zoroastrianism, the purpose in life is to become an Ashavan (a master of Asha) and to bring happiness into the world, which contributes to the cosmic battle against evil. Zoroastrianism's core teachings include but are not limited: Follow the Threefold Path of Asha: Humata, Huxta, Huvarshta (Good Thoughts, Good Words, Good Deeds)WEB,weblink HUMATA HÅªXTA HUVARÅ TA â Encyclopaedia Iranica, www.iranicaonline.org, 2019-07-13, . Charity is a way of maintaining one's soul aligned to Asha and to spread happinessWEB,weblink CHARITABLE FOUNDATIONS â Encyclopaedia Iranica, www.iranicaonline.org, 2019-07-13, . The spiritual equality and duty of the gendersWEB,weblink WOMEN ii. In the Avesta â Encyclopaedia Iranica, www.iranicaonline.org, 2019-07-13, . Being good for goodness' sake without hope of reward (see Ashem Vohu). The name Zoroaster is a Greek rendering of the name Zarathustra. He is known as Zartosht and Zardosht in Persian and Zaratosht in Gujarati. The Zoroastrian name of the religion is Mazdayasna, which combines Mazda- with the Avestan language word yasna, meaning "worship, devotion". In English, an adherent of the faith is commonly called a Zoroastrian or a Zarathustrian. An older expression still used today is Behdin, meaning "The best Religion \| Beh < Middle Persian Weh (good) + Din < Middle Persian dÄn < Avestan DaÄnÄ". In Zoroastrian liturgy the term is used as a title for an individual who has been formally inducted into the religion in a Navjote ceremony.The term Mazdaism ({{IPAc-en\|Ë\|m\|Ã¦\|z\|d\|É\|.\|Éª\|z\|Ém}}) is a typical 19th century construct, taking Mazda- from the name Ahura Mazda and adding the suffix -ism to suggest a belief system. The March 2001 draft edition of the Oxford English Dictionary also records an alternate form, Mazdeism, perhaps derived from the French MazdÃ©isme, which first appeared in 1871.Zoroastrian philosophy is identified as having been known to Italian Renaissance Europe through an image of Zoroaster in Raphael's "School of Athens" by Giorgio Vasari in 1550. The first surviving reference to Zoroaster in English scholarship is attributed to Thomas Browne (1605â1682), who briefly refers to Zoroaster in his 1643 Religio Medici,Browne, T. (1643) "Religio Medici" followed by the Oxford English Dictionary's record of the 1743 (Warburton, Pope's Essay). The Oxford English Dictionary records use of the term Zoroastrianism in 1874 in Archibald Sayce's Principles of Comparative Philology. Zoroastrians believe that there is one universal, transcendent, all-good, and uncreated supreme creator deity, Ahura Mazda, or the "Wise Lord". (Ahura meaning "Lord" and Mazda meaning "Wisdom" in Avestan).ENCYCLOPEDIA, Duchesne-Guillemin, Jacques, Zoroastrianism,weblink Encyclopedia Britannica, Zoroaster keeps the two attributes separate as two different concepts in most of the Gathas yet sometimes combines them into one form. Zoroaster also claims that Ahura Mazda is omniscient but not omnipotent. In the Gathas, Ahura Mazda is noted as working through emanations known as the Amesha Spenta and with the help of "other ahuras", of which Sraosha is the only one explicitly named of the latter category.Scholars and theologians have long debated on the nature of Zoroastrianism, with dualism, monotheism, and polytheism being the main terms applied to the religion.Some scholars assert that Zoroastrianism's concept of divinity covers both being and mind as immanent entities, describing Zoroastrianism as having a belief in an immanent self-creating universe with consciousness as its special attribute, thereby putting Zoroastrianism in the pantheistic fold sharing its origin with Indian Brahmanism.FranÃ§ois Lenormant and E. ChevallierThe Student's Manual of Oriental History: Medes and Persians, PhÅnicians, and Arabians, p. 38 BOOK,weblink General Sketch of the History of Pantheism, Constance E. Plumptre, 81, 2011, 2017-06-14, 9781108028011, In any case, Asha, the main spiritual force which comes from Ahura Mazda, is the cosmic order which is the antithesis of chaos, which is evident as druj, falsehood and disorder. The resulting cosmic conflict involves all of creation, mental/spiritual and material, including humanity at its core, which has an active role to play in the conflict.WEB, Zoroastrianism: Holy text, beliefs and practices, 2010-03-01,weblink Iranicaonline.org, 2017-06-14, In the Zoroastrian tradition, druj comes from Angra Mainyu (also referred to in later texts as "Ahriman"), the destructive spirit/mentality, while the main representative of Asha in this confict is Spenta Mainyu, the creative spirit/mentality. Ahura Mazda is immanent in humankind and interacts with creation through emanations known as the Amesha Spenta, the bounteous/holy immortals, which are representative and guardians of different aspects of creation and the ideal personality. Ahura Mazda, through these Amesha Spenta, is assisted by a league of countless divinities called Yazatas, meaning "worthy of worship, and each is generally a hypostasis of a moral or physical aspect of creation. According to Zoroastrian cosmology, in articulating the Ahuna Vairya formula, Ahura Mazda made the ultimate triumph of good against Angra Mainyu evidentWEB,weblink AHUNWAR â Encyclopaedia Iranica, www.iranicaonline.org, 2019-07-13, . Ahura Mazda will ultimately prevail over the evil Angra Mainyu, at which point reality will undergo a cosmic renovation called Frashokereti WEB,weblink FRAÅ Å.KÆRÆTI â Encyclopaedia Iranica, www.iranicaonline.org, 2019-07-13, and limited time will end. In the final renovation, all of creationâeven the souls of the dead that were initially banished to or chose to descend into "darkness"âwill be reunited with Ahura Mazda in the Kshatra Vairya (meaning "best dominion")WEB,weblink Å AHREWAR â Encyclopaedia Iranica, www.iranicaonline.org, 2019-07-13, , being resurrected to immortality. In Middle Persian literature, the prominent belief was that at the end of time a savior-figure known as the Saoshyant would bring about the Frashokereti, while in the Gathic texts the term Saoshyant (meaning "one who brings benefit") referred to all believers of Mazdayasna but changed into a messianic concept in later writings.Zoroastrian theology includes foremost the importance of following the Threefold Path of Asha revolving around Good Thoughts, Good Words, and Good Deeds. There is also a heavy emphasis on spreading happiness, mostly through charity, and respecting the spiritual equality and duty of the genders. Zoroastrianism's emphasis on the protection and veneration of nature and its elements has led some to proclaim it as the "world's first proponent of ecology."WEB,weblink What Does Zoroastrianism Teach Us About Ecology?, Parliament of the World's Religions, The Avesta and other texts call for the protection of water, earth, fire and air making it, in effect, an ecological religion: "It is not surprising that Mazdaism ... is called the first ecological religion. The reverence for Yazatas (divine spirits) emphasizes the preservation of nature (Avesta: Yasnas 1.19, 3.4, 16.9; Yashts 6.3â4, 10.13)." Richard Foltz and Manya Saadi-nejad, "Is Zoroastrianism an Ecological Religion?" {{Webarchive\|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160101215651weblink \|date=2016-01-01 }}" However, this particular assertion is undermined by the fact that early Zoroastrians had a duty to exterminate "evil" species, a dictate no longer followed in modern Zoroastrianism.Richard Foltz, "Zoroastrianism and Animals," Society and Animals 18 (2010): 367-378 File:Dinastia tang, shanxi, straniero dal volto velato, 600-750 ca.JPG\|thumb\|upright=1.15\|An 8th century Tang dynasty Chinese clay figurine of a Sogdian man wearing a distinctive cap and face veil, possibly a camel rider or even a Zoroastrian priest engaging in a ritual at a fire temple, since face veils were used to avoid contaminating the holy fire with breath or saliva; Museum of Oriental Art (Turin), Italy.Lee Lawrence. (3 September 2011). "A Mysterious Stranger in China". The Wall Street JournalThe Wall Street JournalThe religion states that active and ethical participation in life through good deeds formed from good thoughts and good words is necessary to ensure happiness and to keep chaos at bay. This active participation is a central element in Zoroaster's concept of free will and Zoroastrianism as such rejects extreme forms of asceticism and monasticism but historically has allowed for moderate expressions of these concepts.WEB,weblink DARVÄªÅ â Encyclopaedia Iranica, www.iranicaonline.org, 2019-07-13, In Zoroastrian tradition, life is a temporary state in which a mortal is expected to actively participate in the continuing battle between Asha and Druj. Prior to being born, the urvan (soul) of an individual is still united with its fravashi (personal/higher spirit), which has existed since Ahura Mazda created the universe. The fravashi before the urvan's split act as aids in the maintanance of creation with Ahura Mazda. During life, the fravashi act as aspirational concepts, spiritual protectors, and the fravashi of bloodline, cultural, and spiritual ancestors and heroes are venerated and can be called upon for aid.WEB,weblink FRAVAÅ I â Encyclopaedia Iranica, www.iranicaonline.org, 2019-07-13, On the fourth day after death, the urvan is reunited with its fravashi, in which the experiences of life in the material world are collected for the continuing battle in the spiritual world. For the most part, Zoroastrianism does not have a notion of reincarnation, at least not until the Frashokereti. Followers of Ilm-e-Kshnoom in India believe in reincarnation and practice vegetarianism, among other currently non-traditional opinions,{{sfn\|Boyce\|2007\|p=205}} although there have been various theological statements supporting vegetarianism in Zoroastrianism's history and claims that Zoroaster was vegetarian.WEB,weblink Interfaith Vegan Coalition: ZoroastrIan KIt, In Defense of Animals, In Zoroastrianism, water (aban) and fire (atar) are agents of ritual purity, and the associated purification ceremonies are considered the basis of ritual life. In Zoroastrian cosmogony, water and fire are respectively the second and last primordial elements to have been created, and scripture considers fire to have its origin in the waters. Both water and fire are considered life-sustaining, and both water and fire are represented within the precinct of a fire temple. Zoroastrians usually pray in the presence of some form of fire (which can be considered evident in any source of light), and the culminating rite of the principal act of worship constitutes a "strengthening of the waters". Fire is considered a medium through which spiritual insight and wisdom are gained, and water is considered the source of that wisdom. Both fire and water are also hypostasized as the Yazatas Atar and Anahita, which worship hymns and litanies dedicated to them.A corpse is considered a host for decay, i.e., of druj. Consequently, scripture enjoins the safe disposal of the dead in a manner such that a corpse does not pollute the good creation. These injunctions are the doctrinal basis of the fast-fading traditional practice of ritual exposure, most commonly identified with the so-called Towers of Silence for which there is no standard technical term in either scripture or tradition. Ritual exposure is currently mainly practiced by Zoroastrian communities of the Indian subcontinent, in locations where it is not illegal and diclofenac poisoning has not led to the virtual extinction of scavenger birds. Other Zoroastrian communities either cremate their dead, or bury them in graves that are cased with lime mortar, though Zoroastrians are keen to dispose of their dead in the most environmental way possible.While the Parsees in India have traditionally since the 19th century been opposed to proselytizing, and even considered it a crime for which the culprit may face expulsion,WEB, Khan, Roni K, Online, 1996, Traditional Zoroastrianism: Tenets of the Religion,weblink Tenets.parsizoroastrianism.com, 2009-10-08, Iranian Zoroastrians have never been opposed to conversion, and the practice has been endorsed by the Council of Mobeds of Tehran. While the Iranian authorities do not permit proselytizing within Iran, Iranian Zoroastrians in exile have actively encouraged missionary activities, with the Zarathushtrian Assembly in Los Angeles and the International Zoroastrian Centre in Paris as two prominent organizations and the Federation of Zoroastrian Associations of North America being in favor of conversion and welcoming to converts. Converts from both traditionally Persian and non-Persian ethnicities have even been welcomed at international events, even attending and speaking at events such as the World Zoroastrian Congress and the World Zoroastrian Youth Congress.WEB,weblink Speakers and Panelists, 7th World Zoroastrian Youth Congress, en-US, 2019-07-13, WEB,weblink Congress Speakers, 2018, 11th World Zoroastrian Congress, As in many other faiths, Zoroastrians are encouraged to marry others of the same faith, but this is not a requirement outside of traditionalist communities. File:BactrianZoroastrian.jpg\|thumb\|upright=1.15\|Painted clay and alabaster head of a Zoroastrian priest wearing a distinctive Bactrian-style headdress, Takhti-Sangin, Tajikistan, Greco-Bactrian kingdomGreco-Bactrian kingdom {{See also\|Zoroaster#Western civilization\|l1=Western Perceptions of Zoroastrianism}}File:The tomb of Cyrus the Great.jpg\|alt=\|thumb\|The Tomb of Cyrus the Great at Pasargadae, IranIranThe roots of Zoroastrianism are thought to have emerged from a common prehistoric Indo-Iranian religious system dating back to the early 2nd millennium BCE.Foltz 2013, pp. 10â18 The prophet Zoroaster himself, though traditionally dated to the 6th century BCE, is thought by many modern historians to have been a reformer of the polytheistic Iranian religion who lived in the 10th century BCE.Patrick Karl O'Brien, ed. Atlas of World History, concise edn. (NY: Oxford UP, 2002), 45. Zoroastrianism as a religion was not firmly established until several centuries later. Zoroastrianism enters recorded history in the mid-5th century BCE. Herodotus' The Histories (completed c. 440 BCE) includes a description of Greater Iranian society with what may be recognizably Zoroastrian features, including exposure of the dead.The Histories is a primary source of information on the early period of the Achaemenid era (648â330 BCE), in particular with respect to the role of the Magi. According to Herodotus i.101, the Magi were the sixth tribe of the Medes (until the unification of the Persian empire under Cyrus the Great, all Iranians were referred to as "Mede" or "Mada" by the peoples of the Ancient World), who appear to have been the priestly caste of the Mesopotamian-influenced branch of Zoroastrianism today known as Zurvanism, and who wielded considerable influence at the courts of the Median emperors.File:Sassanian Empire cca. 620 A.D.png\|alt=\|thumb\|The Zoroastrian Sasanian EmpireSasanian EmpireFollowing the unification of the Median and Persian empires in 550 BCE, Cyrus the Great and later his son Cambyses II curtailed the powers of the Magi after they had attempted to sow dissent following their loss of influence. In 522 BCE, the Magi revolted and set up a rival claimant to the throne. The usurper, pretending to be Cyrus' younger son Smerdis, took power shortly thereafter.{{Citation\|url=https://books.google.com/?id=dHIlhU4Gd5AC&pg=PA1&dq=cambises+and+smerdis+#v=onepage&q=cambises&f=false \|title=Resumen de la Historia Universal: escrito con su conocimiento, y aprobado ... â Joan Cortada i Sala \|via= Google Libros \|accessdate=2012-11-07\|year=1867\|last1=Sala \|first1=Joan Cortada I. }} Owing to the despotic rule of Cambyses and his long absence in Egypt, "the whole people, Persians, Medes and all the other nations" acknowledged the usurper, especially as he granted a remission of taxes for three years (Herodotus iii. 68).Darius I and later Achaemenid emperors acknowledged their devotion to Ahura Mazda in inscriptions, as attested to several times in the Behistun inscription, and appear to have continued the model of coexistence with other religions. Whether Darius was a follower of Zoroaster has not been conclusively established, since devotion to Ahura Mazda was (at the time) not necessarily an indication of an adherence to Zoroaster's teaching. A number of the Zoroastrian texts that today are part of the greater compendium of the Avesta have been attributed to that period. This calendar attributed to the Achaemenid period is still in use today. Additionally, the divinities, or yazatas, are present-day Zoroastrian angels (Dhalla, 1938).According to later Zoroastrian legend (Denkard and the Book of Arda Viraf), many sacred texts were lost when Alexander the Great's troops invaded Persepolis and subsequently destroyed the royal library there. Diodorus Siculus's Bibliotheca historica, which was completed circa 60 BCE, appears to substantiate this Zoroastrian legend (Diod. 17.72.2â17.72.6). According to one archaeological examination, the ruins of the palace of Xerxes bear traces of having been burned (Stolze, 1882). Whether a vast collection of (semi-)religious texts "written on parchment in gold ink", as suggested by the Denkard, actually existed remains a matter of speculation, but is unlikely. Given that many of the Denkards statements-as-fact have since been refuted by scholars, the tale of the library is widely accepted to be fictional (Kellens, 2002).{{Specify\|reason=please add official citation; specify page numbers}}Alexander's conquests largely displaced Zoroastrianism with Hellenistic beliefs, though the religion continued to be practiced many centuries following the demise of the Achaemenids in mainland Persia and the core regions of the former Achaemenid Empire, most notably Anatolia, Mesopotamia, and the Caucasus. In the Cappadocian kingdom, whose territory was formerly an Achaemenid possession, Persian colonists, cut off from their co-religionists in Iran proper, continued to practice the faith [Zoroastrianism] of their forefathers; and there Strabo, observing in the first century B.C., records (XV.3.15) that these "fire kindlers" possessed many "holy places of the Persian Gods", as well as fire temples.Mary Boyce. Zoroastrians: Their Religious Beliefs and Practices Psychology Press, 2001 {{ISBN\|978-0415239028}}, p. 85 Strabo further states that these were "noteworthy enclosures; and in their midst there is an altar, on which there is a large quantity of ashes and where the magi keep the fire ever burning." It was not until the end of the Parthian period (247 {{sm\|b.c.}}â{{sm\|a.d.}} 224) that Zoroastrianism would receive renewed interest. As late as the Parthian period, a form of Zoroastrianism was without a doubt the dominant religion in the Armenian lands.Mary Boyce. Zoroastrians: Their Religious Beliefs and Practices Psychology Press, 2001 {{ISBN\|0415239028}}, p. 84 The Sassanids aggressively promoted the Zurvanite form of Zoroastrianism, often building fire temples in captured territories to promote the religion. During the period of their centuries long suzerainty over the Caucasus, the Sassanids made attempts to promote Zoroastrianism there with considerable successes, and it was prominent in the pre-Christian Caucasus (especially modern-day Azerbaijan).Due to its ties to the Christian Roman Empire, Persia's arch-rival since Parthian times, the Sassanids were suspicious of Roman Christianity, and after the reign of Constantine the Great, sometimes persecuted it.{{Citation\|page=34\|author=Wigram, W. A.\|title=An introduction to the history of the Assyrian Church, or, The Church of the Sassanid Persian Empire, 100â640 A.D\|publisher=Gorgias Press\|isbn=978-1593331030\|year=2004}} The Sassanid authority clashed with their Armenian subjects in the Battle of Avarayr ({{sm\|a.d.}} 451), making them officially break with the Roman Church. But the Sassanids tolerated or even sometimes favored the Christianity of the Church of the East. The acceptance of Christianity in Georgia (Caucasian Iberia) saw the Zoroastrian religion there slowly but surely decline,Dr Stephen H Rapp Jr. The Sasanian World through Georgian Eyes: Caucasia and the Iranian Commonwealth in Late Antique Georgian Literature Ashgate Publishing, Ltd., 28 September 2014. {{ISBN\|1472425529}}, p. 160 but as late the 5th century {{sm\|a.d.}} it was still widely practised as something like a second established religion.Ronald Grigor Suny. The Making of the Georgian Nation Indiana University Press, 1994, {{ISBN\|0253209153}}, p. 22Roger Rosen, Jeffrey Jay Foxx. The Georgian Republic, Volume 1992 Passport Books, 1992 p. 34 Decline in the Middle Ages {{See also\|Persecution of Zoroastrians}}File:Hamza Burns Zarthustâs Chest and Shatters the Urn with his Ashes.jpg\|thumb\|A scene from the Hamzanama where Hamza ibn âAbd al-MuttalibHamza ibn âAbd al-MuttalibMost of the Sassanid Empire was overthrown by the Arabs over the course of 16 years in the 7th century. Although the administration of the state was rapidly Islamicized and subsumed under the Umayyad Caliphate, in the beginning "there was little serious pressure" exerted on newly subjected people to adopt Islam.{{harvnb\|Boyce\|1979\|p=150}}. Because of their sheer numbers, the conquered Zoroastrians had to be treated as dhimmis (despite doubts of the validity of this identification that persisted down the centuries), which made them eligible for protection. Islamic jurists took the stance that only Muslims could be perfectly moral, but "unbelievers might as well be left to their iniquities, so long as these did not vex their overlords."{{harvnb\|Boyce\|1979\|p=146}}. In the main, once the conquest was over and "local terms were agreed on", the Arab governors protected the local populations in exchange for tribute.The Arabs adopted the Sassanid tax-system, both the land-tax levied on land owners and the poll-tax levied on individuals, called jizya, a tax levied on non-Muslims (i.e., the dhimmis). In time, this poll-tax came to be used as a means to humble the non-Muslims, and a number of laws and restrictions evolved to emphasize their inferior status. Under the early orthodox caliphs, as long as the non-Muslims paid their taxes and adhered to the dhimmi laws, administrators were enjoined to leave non-Muslims "in their religion and their land." (Caliph Abu Bakr, qtd. in {{harvnb\|Boyce\|1979\|p=146}}).Under Abbasid rule, Muslim Iranians (who by then were in the majority) increasingly found ways to taunt Zoroastrians, and distressing them became a popular sport. For example, in the 9th century, a deeply venerated cypress tree in Khorasan (which Parthian-era legend supposed had been planted by Zoroaster himself) was felled for the construction of a palace in Baghdad, {{convert\|2000\|mi\|km}} away. In the 10th century, on the day that a Tower of Silence had been completed at much trouble and expense, a Muslim official contrived to get up onto it, and to call the adhan (the Muslim call to prayer) from its walls. This was turned into a pretext to annex the building.{{harvnb\|Boyce\|1979\|p=158}}. Another popular means to distress Zoroastrians was to maltreat dogs, as these animals are sacred in Zoroastrianism. Such baiting, which was to continue down the centuries, was indulged not only by high officials, but by the general uneducated population as well.Ultimately, Muslim scholars like Al-Biruni found little records left of the belief of for instance the Khawarizmians because figures like Qutayba ibn Muslim âextinguished and ruined in every possible way all those who knew how to write and read the Khawarizmi writing, who knew the history of the country and who studied their sciences.â As a result, âthese things are involved in so much obscurity that it is impossible to obtain an accurate knowledge of the history of the country since the time of Islam...âWEB,weblink Kamar Oniah Kamaruzzaman, Al-Biruni: Father of Comparative Religion, Lib.iium.edu.my, 9 June 2017, yes,weblink" title="web.archive.org/web/20150713061658weblink">weblink 13 July 2015, Though subject to a new leadership and harassment, the Zoroastrians were able to continue their former ways. But there was a slow but steady social and economic pressure to convert.{{harvnb\|Buillet\|1978\|p=37,138}}.{{harvnb\|Boyce\|1979\|pp=147}}. The nobility and city-dwellers were the first to convert, with Islam more slowly being accepted among the peasantry and landed gentry.{{harvnb\|Buillet\|1978\|p=59}}. "Power and worldly-advantage" now lay with followers of Islam, and although the "official policy was one of aloof contempt, there were individual Muslims eager to proselytize and ready to use all sorts of means to do so."Two decrees in particular encouraged the transition to a preponderantly Islamic society.{{Citation needed\|date=January 2010}} The first edict, adapted from an Arsacid and Sassanid one (but in those to the advantage of Zoroastrians), was that only a Muslim could own Muslim slaves or indentured servants. Thus, a bonded individual owned by a Zoroastrian could automatically become a freeman by converting to Islam. The other edict was that if one male member of a Zoroastrian family converted to Islam, he instantly inherited all its property.In time, a tradition evolved by which Islam was made to appear as a partly Iranian religion. One example of this was a legend that Husayn, son of the fourth caliph Ali and grandson of Islam's prophet Muhammad, had married a captive Sassanid princess named Shahrbanu. This "wholly fictitious figure"{{harvnb\|Boyce\|1979\|p=151}}. was said to have borne Husayn a son, the historical fourth Shi'a imam, who claimed that the caliphate rightly belonged to him and his descendants, and that the Umayyads had wrongfully wrested it from him. The alleged descent from the Sassanid house counterbalanced the Arab nationalism of the Umayyads, and the Iranian national association with a Zoroastrian past was disarmed. Thus, according to scholar Mary Boyce, "it was no longer the Zoroastrians alone who stood for patriotism and loyalty to the past." The "damning indictment" that becoming Muslim was Un-Iranian only remained an idiom in Zoroastrian texts.With Iranian (especially Persian) support, the Abbasids overthrew the Umayyads in 750, and in the subsequent caliphate governmentâthat nominally lasted until 1258âMuslim Iranians received marked favor in the new government, both in Iran and at the capital in Baghdad. This mitigated the antagonism between Arabs and Iranians, but sharpened the distinction between Muslims and non-Muslims. The Abbasids zealously persecuted heretics, and although this was directed mainly at Muslim sectarians, it also created a harsher climate for non-Muslims.{{harvnb\|Boyce\|1979\|p=152}}. Although the Abbasids were deadly foes of Zoroastrianism, the brand of Islam they propagated throughout Iran became ever more "Zoroastrianized", making it easier for Iranians to embrace Islam. File:USSHER(1865) p012 BAKU, FIRE TEMPLE.jpg\|thumb\|upright=1.05\|The fire temple of BakuBakuDespite economic and social incentives to convert, Zoroastrianism remained strong in some regions, particularly in those furthest away from the Caliphate capital at Baghdad. In Bukhara (in present-day Uzbekistan), resistance to Islam required the 9th-century Arab commander Qutaiba to convert his province four times. The first three times the citizens reverted to their old religion. Finally, the governor made their religion "difficult for them in every way", turned the local fire temple into a mosque, and encouraged the local population to attend Friday prayers by paying each attendee two dirhams. The cities where Arab governors resided were particularly vulnerable to such pressures, and in these cases the Zoroastrians were left with no choice but to either conform or migrate to regions that had a more amicable administration.The 9th century came to define the great number of Zoroastrian texts that were composed or re-written during the 8th to 10th centuries (excluding copying and lesser amendments, which continued for some time thereafter). All of these works are in the Middle Persian dialect of that period (free of Arabic words), and written in the difficult Pahlavi script (hence the adoption of the term "Pahlavi" as the name of the variant of the language, and of the genre, of those Zoroastrian books). If read aloud, these books would still have been intelligible to the laity. Many of these texts are responses to the tribulations of the time, and all of them include exhortations to stand fast in their religious beliefs. Some, such as the "Denkard", are doctrinal defenses of the religion, while others are explanations of theological aspects (such as the Bundahishn's) or practical aspects (e.g., explanation of rituals) of it. About sixty such works are known to have existed, of which some are known only from references to them in other works.{{Citation needed\|date=January 2010}}File:Atashkadeh.jpg\|thumb\|upright=1.15\|Fire temple in YazdYazdFile:Museum of Zoroastrians - Kerman.jpg\|thumb\|upright=1.15\|Museum of Zoroastrians in KermanKermanIn Khorasan in northeastern Iran, a 10th-century Iranian nobleman brought together four Zoroastrian priests to transcribe a Sassanid-era Middle Persian work titled Book of the Lord (Khwaday Namag) from Pahlavi script into Arabic script. This transcription, which remained in Middle Persian prose (an Arabic version, by al-Muqaffa, also exists), was completed in 957 and subsequently became the basis for Firdausi's Book of Kings. It became enormously popular among both Zoroastrians and Muslims, and also served to propagate the Sassanid justification for overthrowing the Arsacids (i.e., that the Sassanids had restored the faith to its "orthodox" form after the Hellenistic Arsacids had allowed Zoroastrianism to become corrupt).Among migrations were those to cities in (or on the margins of) the great salt deserts, in particular to Yazd and Kerman, which remain centers of Iranian Zoroastrianism to this day. Yazd became the seat of the Iranian high priests during Mongol Il-Khanate rule, when the "best hope for survival [for a non-Muslim] was to be inconspicuous."{{harvnb\|Boyce\|1979\|p=163}}. Crucial to the present-day survival of Zoroastrianism was a migration from the northeastern Iranian town of "Sanjan in south-western Khorasan",{{harvnb\|Boyce\|1979\|p=157}}. to Gujarat, in western India. The descendants of that group are today known as the Parsisâ"as the Gujaratis, from long tradition, called anyone from Iran"âwho today represent the larger of the two groups of Zoroastrians.The struggle between Zoroastrianism and Islam declined in the 10th and 11th centuries. Local Iranian dynasties, "all vigorously Muslim," had emerged as largely independent vassals of the Caliphs. In the 16th century, in one of the early letters between Iranian Zoroastrians and their co-religionists in India, the priests of Yazd lamented that "no period [in human history], not even that of Alexander, had been more grievous or troublesome for the faithful than 'this millennium of the demon of Wrath'."{{harvnb\|Boyce\|1979\|p=175}}. {{further\|Parsi\|Irani (India)\|Zoroastrians in Iran}}File:Pundole Agiary Udvada.jpg\|thumb\|right\|upright=0.9\|A modern Zoroastrian fire templefire templeFile:Sadeh.jpg\|thumb\|right\|Sadeh in TehranTehranZoroastrianism has survived into the modern period, particularly in India, where it has been present since about the 9th century.Today Zoroastrianism can be divided in two main schools of thought: reformists and traditionalists. Traditionalists are most Parsis and accept, beside the Gathas and Avesta, also the Middle Persian literature and like the reformists mostly developed in their modern form from 19th century developments. They generally do not allow conversion to the faith and, as such, for someone to be a Zoroastrian they must be born of Zoroastrian parents. Some traditionalists recognize the children of mixed marriages, though usually only if the father is a born Zoroastrian, as Zoroastrians.WEB,weblink CONVERSION vii. Zoroastrian faith in mod. per. â Encyclopaedia Iranica, Iranicaonline.org, 2017-06-14, Reformists tend to advocate a "return" to the Gathas, the universal nature of the faith, a decrease in ritualization, and an emphasis on the faith as philosophy rather than religion. Not all Zoroastrians identify which either school with minor ones getting traction including Neo-Zoroastrians/Para-Zoroastrians, which are usually radical reinterpretations of Zoroastrianism appealing towards Western concernsBOOK, Parsis in India and their Diasporas, Stausberg, Michael, Routledge, 2007, Hinnels, John, London, 236-254, Para-Zoroastrianisms: Memetic transmissions and appropriations, Williams, John, , and Revivalists, who center the idea of Zoroastrianism as a living religion and advocate the revival and maintanance of old rituals and prayers while supporting ethical and social progressive reforms. Both of these latter schools tend to center the Gathas without outright rejecting other texts except the Vendidad.From the 19th century onward, the Parsis gained a reputation for their education and widespread influence in all aspects of society. They played an instrumental role in the economic development of the region over many decades; several of the best-known business conglomerates of India are run by Parsi-Zoroastrians, including the Tata, Godrej, Wadia families, and others.Though the Armenians share a rich history affiliated with Zoroastrianism (that eventually declined with the advent of Christianity), reports indicate that there were Zoroastrian Armenians in Armenia until the 1920s.Anne Sofie Roald, Anh Nga Longva. Religious Minorities in the Middle East: Domination, Self-Empowerment, Accommodation Brill, 2011, {{ISBN\|9004216847}}, p. 313 A comparatively minor population persisted in Central Asia, the Caucasus, and Persia, and a growing large expatriate community has formed in the United States mostly from India and Iran, and to a lesser extent in the United Kingdom, Canada and Australia.At the request of the government of Tajikistan, UNESCO declared 2003 a year to celebrate the "3000th anniversary of Zoroastrian culture", with special events throughout the world. In 2011 the Tehran Mobeds Anjuman announced that for the first time in the history of modern Iran and of the modern Zoroastrian communities worldwide, women had been ordained in Iran and North America as mobedyars, meaning women assitant mobeds (Zoroastrian clergy).WEB,weblink The Jury Is Still Out On Women as Parsi Priests, Parsi Khabar, 2011-03-09, 2013-10-12, WEB,weblink A group of 8 Zartoshti women received their Mobedyar Certificate from Anjoman Mobedan in Iran, Amordad6485.blogfa.com, 2017-06-14, WEB,weblink Sedreh Pooshi by Female Mobedyar in Toronto Canada, Parsinews.net, 2013-06-19, 2017-06-14, The women hold official certificates and can perform the lower-rung religious functions and can initiate people into the religion.WEB ,weblink , Ú¯Ø²Ø§Ø±Ø´ ØªØµÙÛØ±Û-ÙÙØ¨Ø¯ÛØ§Ø±Ø§Ù Ø¨Ø§ÙÙÛ Ø²Ø±ØªØ´ØªÛØ Ø¨Ù Ø¬Ø±Ú¯Ù ÙÙØ¨Ø¯ÛØ§Ø±Ø§Ù Ù¾ÛÙØ³ØªÙØ¯ (Ø¨Ø®Ø´ ÙØ®Ø³Øª) , August 10, 2013 , unfit ,weblink" title="web.archive.org/web/20130927204603weblink">weblink , September 27, 2013 Relation to other religions and cultures File:Iran-achaemenids (darius the great).jpg\|upright=1.15\|thumb\|right\|The (Achaemenid Empire]] in the 5th century BCE consisted of the largest empire in history by percentage of world population.While estimates for the Achaemenid Empire range from 10â80+ million, most prefer 50 million. Prevas (2009, p. 14) estimates 10 million 1. Langer (2001, p. 40) estimates around 16 million 2. McEvedy and Jones (2001, p. 50) estimates 17 million 3 {{webarchive\|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131013110506weblink \|date=2013-10-13 }}. Strauss (2004, p. 37) estimates about 20 million 4. Ward (2009, p. 16) estimates at 20 million 5. Aperghis (2007, p. 311) estimates 32 million 6. Scheidel (2009, p. 99) estimates 35 million 7. Zeinert (1996, p. 32) estimates 40 million 8. Rawlinson and Schauffler (1898, p. 270) estimates possibly 50 million 9. Astor (1899, p. 56) estimates almost 50 million 10. Lissner (1961, p. 111) estimates probably 50 million 11. Milns (1968, p. 51) estimates some 50 million 12. Hershlag (1980, p. 140) estimates nearly 50 million 13. Yarshater (1996, p. 47) estimates by 50 million 14. Daniel (2001, p. 41) estimates at 50 million 15. Meyer and Andreades (2004, p. 58) estimates to 50 million 16. Pollack (2004, p. 7) estimates about 50 million 17. Jones (2004, p. 8) estimates over 50 million 18. Safire (2007, p. 627) estimates in 50 million 19. Dougherty (2009, p. 6) estimates about 70 million 20. Richard (2008, p. 34) estimates nearly 70 million 21. Mitchell (2004, p. 16) estimates over 70 million 22. Hanson (2001, p. 32) estimates almost 75 million 23. West (1913, p. 85) estimates about 75 million 24. Zenos (1889, p. 2) estimates exactly 75 million 25. Cowley (1999 and 2001, p. 17) estimates possibly 80 million 26. Cook (1904, p. 277) estimates exactly 80 million 27. )Some scholars believeWEB,weblink Zoroastrianism, jewishencyclopedia.com, 2012, 23 February 2012, that key concepts of Zoroastrian eschatology and demonology influenced the Abrahamic religions.{{harvnb\|Black\|Rowley\|1987\|p=607b}}.{{harvnb\|Duchesne-Guillemin\|1988\|p=815}}. On the other hand, Zoroastrianism itself inherited ideas from other belief systems and, like other "practiced" religions, accommodates some degree of syncretisme.g., {{harvnb\|Boyce\|1982\|p=202}}., with Zoroastrianism in Sogdia, the Kushan Empire, Armenia, China, and other places incoporating local and foreign practices and deities.BOOK, The Wiley-Blackwell Companion to Zoroastrianism, John Wiley & Sons, 2015, 9781444331356, 83-191, Zoroastrian influences on Hungarian, Slavic, Ossetian, Turkic and Mongol mythologies have also been noted, all of which bearing extensive light-dark dualisms and possible sun god theonyms related to Hvare-khshaeta.Å . KuliÅ¡iÄ; P.Å½. PetroviÄ; N. PanteliÄ. "ÐÐµÐ»Ð¸ Ð±Ð¾Ð³". Ð¡ÑÐ¿ÑÐºÐ¸ Ð¼Ð¸ÑÐ¾Ð»Ð¾ÑÐºÐ¸ ÑÐµÑÐ½Ð¸Ðº (in Serbian). Belgrade: Nolit. pp. 21â22.Juha PentikÃ¤inen, Walter de Gruyter, Shamanism and Northern Ecology 11/07/2011DiÃ³szegi, Vilmos (1998) [1958]. A sÃ¡mÃ¡nhit emlÃ©kei a magyar nÃ©pi mÅ±veltsÃ©gben (in Hungarian) (1. reprint kiadÃ¡s ed.). Budapest: AkadÃ©miai KiadÃ³. {{ISBN\|963-05-7542-6}}. The title means: âRemnants of shamanistic beliefs in Hungarian folkloreâ. Indo-Iranian origins {{See also\|Indo-Iranians\|Proto-Indo-Iranian religion}}The religion of Zoroastrianism is closest to Vedic religion to varying degrees. Some historians believe that Zoroastrianism, along with similar philosophical revolutions in South Asia were interconnected strings of reformation against a common Indo-Aryan thread. Many traits of Zoroastrianism can be traced back to the culture and beliefs of the prehistorical Indo-Iranian period, that is, to the time before the migrations that led to the Indo-Aryans and Iranics becoming distinct peoples. Zoroastrianism consequently shares elements with the historical Vedic religion that also has its origins in that era. Some examples include cognates between the Avestan word Ahura ("Ahura Mazda") and the Vedic Sanskrit word Asura ("demon; evil demigod"); as well as Daeva ("demon") and Deva ("god") and they both descend from a common Proto-Indo-Iranian religion. Zoroastrianism is often compared with Manichaeism. Nominally an Iranian religion, it has its origins in Middle-Eastern Gnosticism. Superficially such a comparison seems apt, as both are dualistic and Manichaeism adopted many of the Yazatas for its own pantheon. Gherardo Gnoli, in The Encyclopaedia of Religion,Gherardo Gnoli, âManichaeism: An Overviewâ, in Encyclopedia of Religion, ed. Mircea Eliade (NY: MacMillan Library Reference USA, 1987), 9: 165. says that "we can assert that Manichaeism has its roots in the Iranian religious tradition and that its relationship to Mazdaism, or Zoroastrianism, is more or less like that of Christianity to Judaism".Contrast with Henning's observations: Henning, W.B., The Book of Giants, BSOAS, Vol. XI, Part 1, 1943, pp. 52â74:But they are quite different.{{harvnb\|Zaehner\|1956\|pp=53â54}}. Manichaeism equated evil with matter and good with spirit, and was therefore particularly suitable as a doctrinal basis for every form of asceticism and many forms of mysticism. Zoroastrianism, on the other hand, rejects every form of asceticism, has no dualism of matter and spirit (only of good and evil), and sees the spiritual world as not very different from the natural one (the word "paradise", or pairi.daeza, applies equally to both.)Manichaeism's basic doctrine was that the world and all corporeal bodies were constructed from the substance of Satan, an idea that is fundamentally at odds with the Zoroastrian notion of a world that was created by God and that is all good, and any corruption of it is an effect of the bad. From what may be inferred from many Manichean texts and a few Zoroastrian sources{{citation needed\|date=October 2014}}, the adherents of the two religions (or at least their respective priesthoods) despised each other intensely. Present-day Iran Many aspects of Zoroastrianism are present in the culture and mythologies of the peoples of Greater Iran, not least because Zoroastrianism was a dominant influence on the people of the cultural continent for a thousand years. Even after the rise of Islam and the loss of direct influence, Zoroastrianism remained part of the cultural heritage of the Iranian language-speaking world, in part as festivals and customs, but also because Ferdowsi incorporated a number of the figures and stories from the Avesta in his epic ShÄhnÄme, which is pivotal to Iranian identity. One notable example is the incorporation of the Yazata Sraosha as an angel venerated within Shia Islam in Iran.WEB,weblink SRAOÅ A â Encyclopaedia Iranica, www.iranicaonline.org, 2019-07-13, The Avesta is a collection of the central religious texts of Zoroastrianism written in the old Iranian dialect of Avestan. The history of the Avesta is speculated upon in many Pahlavi texts with varying degrees of authority, with the current version of the Avesta dating at oldest from the times of the Sassanian Empire.WEB,weblink AVESTA i. Survey of the history and contents o â Encyclopaedia Iranica, www.iranicaonline.org, 2019-07-13, According to Middle Persian tradition, Ahura Mazda created the twenty-one nasks of the original Avesta which Zoroaster brought to Vishtaspa. Here, two copies were created, one which was put in the house of archives and the other put in the Imperial treasury. During Alexander's conquest of Persia, the Avesta was burned, and the scientific sections that the Greeks could use were dispersed among themselves. However, there is no strong evidence historically towards these claims and they remain contested academically and within the faith.As tradition continues, under the reign of King Valax of the Arsacis Dynasty, an attempt was made to restore what was considered the Avesta. During the Sassanid Empire, Ardeshir ordered Tansar, his high priest, to finish the work that King Valax had started. Shapur I sent priests to locate the scientific text portions of the Avesta that were in the possession of the Greeks. Under Shapur II, Arderbad Mahrespandand revised the canon to ensure its orthodox character, while under Khosrow I, the Avesta was translated into Pahlavi.The compilation of the Avesta can be authoritatively traced, however, to the Sassanian Empire, of which only fraction survive today if the Middle Persian literature is correct. The later manuscripts all date from after the fall of the Sassanian Empire, the latest being from 1288, 590 years after the fall of the Sassanian Empire. The texts that remain today are the Gathas, Yasna, Visperad and the Vendidad, of which the latter's inclusion is disputed within the faithWEB,weblink Is The Vandidad aÂ Zarathushtrian Scripture?, www.zoroastrian.org.uk, 2019-07-13, . Along with these texts is the individual, communal, and ceremonial prayer book called the Khordeh Avesta, which contains the Yashts and other important hymns, prayers, and rituals. The rest of the materials from the Avesta are called "Avestan fragments" in that they are written in Avestan, incomplete, and generally of unknown provenance.{{sfn\|Bromiley\|1995\|p=124}} Middle Persian (Pahlavi) Middle Persian and Pahlavi works created in the 9th and 10th century contain many religious Zoroastrian books, as most of the writers and copyists were part of the Zoroastrian clergy. The most significant and important books of this era include the Denkard, Bundahishn, Menog-i Khrad, Selections of Zadspram, Jamasp Namag, Epistles of Manucher, Rivayats, Dadestan-i-Denig, and Arda Viraf Namag. All Middle Persian texts written on Zoroastrianism during this time period are considered secondary works on the religion, and not scripture. Nonetheless, these texts have had a strong influence on the religion. Zoroastrianism was founded by Zoroaster (or Zarathushtra) in ancient Iran. The precise date of the founding of Zoroastrianism is uncertain and dates differ wildly from 2000 BCE to "200 years before Alexander". Zoroaster was born in either Northeast Iran or Southwest Afghanistan. He was born into a culture with a polytheistic religion, which included excessive animal sacrificeBoyce (1979), p. 26 and the excessive ritual use of intoxicants, and his life was defined heavily by the settling of his people and the constant threats of raids and conflict. Zoroaster's birth and early life are little documented but speculated heavily upon in later texts. What is known is recorded in the Gathasâthe core of the Avesta, which contains hymns thought to be composed by Zoroaster himself. Born into the Spitama clan, he refers to himself as a poet-priest and spiritual master. He had a wife, three sons, and three daughters, the numbers of which are gathered from various texts.WEB,weblink ZOROASTER â Encyclopaedia Iranica, www.iranicaonline.org, 2019-07-13, Zoroaster rejected many of the gods of the Bronze Age Iranians and their oppressive class structure, in which the Karvis and Karapans (princes and priests) controlled the ordinary people. He also opposed cruel animal sacrifices and the excessive use of the hallucinogenic Haoma plant (possibly a species of ephedra), but did not outright condemn completely either practice in moderate forms.WEB,weblink SACRIFICE i. IN ZOROASTRIANISM â Encyclopaedia Iranica, www.iranicaonline.org, 2019-07-13, WEB,weblink HAOMA â Encyclopaedia Iranica, www.iranicaonline.org, 2019-07-13, Zoroaster in Legend According to later Zoroastrian tradition, when Zoroaster was 30 years old, he went into the Daiti river to draw water for a Haoma ceremony; when he emerged, he received a vision of Vohu Manah. After this, Vohu Manah took him to the other six Amesha Spentas, where he received the completion of his vision.Boyce (1979), p. 19 This vision radically transformed his view of the world, and he tried to teach this view to others. Zoroaster believed in one supreme creator deity and acknowledged this creator's emanations (Amesha Spenta) and other divinities which he called Ahuras (Yazata). Some of the deities of the old religion, the Daevas (Devas in Sanskrit), appeared to delight in war and strife and were condemned as evil workers of Angra Mainyu by Zoroaster.Zoroaster's ideas were not taken up quickly; he originally only had one convert: his cousin Maidhyoimanha.Boyce (1979), pp. 30â31 The local religious authorities opposed his ideas, considering that their faith, power, and particularly their rituals were threatened by Zoroaster's teaching against the bad and overly-complicated ritualization of religious ceremonies. Many did not like Zoroaster's downgrading of the Daevas to evil ones not worthy of worship. After twelve years of little success, Zoroaster left his home.In the country of King Vishtaspa, the king and queen heard Zoroaster debating with the religious leaders of the land and decided to accept Zoroaster's ideas as the official religion of their kingdom after having Zoroaster prove himself by healing the king's favorite horse. Zoroaster is believed to have died in his late 70s, either by murder by a Turanian or old age. Very little is known of the time between Zoroaster and the Achaemenian period, except that Zoroastrianism spread to Western Iran and other regions. By the time of the founding of the Achaemenid Empire, Zoroastrianism is believed to have been already a well-established religion. Principal beliefs Humata, Huxta, Huvarshta (Good Thoughts, Good Words, Good Deeds), the Threefold Path of Asha, is considered the core maxim of Zoroastrianism especially by modern practitioners. In Zoroastrianism, good transpires for those who do righteous deeds for its own sake, not for the search of reward. Those who do evil are said to be attacked and confused by the druj and are responsible for aligning themselves back to Asha by following this path.File:Faravahar.svg\|thumb\|right\|Faravahar (or Ferohar), one of the primary symbols of Zoroastrianism, believed to be the depiction of a Fravashi or the Khvarenah.]]In Zoroastrianism, Ahura Mazda is the beginning and the end, the creator of everything that can and cannot be seen, the eternal and uncreated, the all-good and source of Asha. In the Gathas, the most sacred texts of Zoroastrianism thought to have been composed by Zoroaster himself, Zoroaster acknowledged the highest devotion to Ahura Mazda, with worship and adoration also given to Ahura Mazda's manifestations (Amesha Spenta) and the other ahuras (Yazata) that support Ahura Mazda.WEB,weblink GATHAS â Encyclopaedia Iranica, www.iranicaonline.org, 2019-07-13, Daena (din in modern Persian and meaning "that which is seen") is representative of the sum of one's spiritual conscience and attributes, which through one's choice Asha is either strengthened or weakened in the Daena.WEB,weblink DÄN â Encyclopaedia Iranica, www.iranicaonline.org, 2019-07-13, Traditionally, the manthras, spiritual prayer formulas, are believed to be of immense power and the vehicles of Asha and creation used to maintain good and fight evil.WEB,weblink ZOROASTRIAN RITUALS â Encyclopaedia Iranica, www.iranicaonline.org, 2019-07-13, Daena should not be confused with the fundamental principle of Asha, believed to be the cosmic order which governs and permeates all existence, and the concept of which governed the life of the ancient Indo-Iranians. For these, asha was the course of everything observableâthe motion of the planets and astral bodies; the progression of the seasons; and the pattern of daily nomadic herdsman life, governed by regular metronomic events such as sunrise and sunset, and was strengthened through truth-telling and following the Threefold Path.All physical creation (getig) was thus determined to run according to a master planâinherent to Ahura Mazdaâand violations of the order (druj) were violations against creation, and thus violations against Ahura Mazda. This concept of asha versus the druj should not be confused with Western and especially Abrahamic notions of good versus evil, for although both forms of opposition express moral conflict, the asha versus druj concept is more systemic and less personal, representing, for instance, chaos (that opposes order); or "uncreation", evident as natural decay (that opposes creation); or more simply "the lie" (that opposes truth and goodness). Moreover, in the role as the one uncreated creator of all, Ahura Mazda is not the creator of druj, which is "nothing", anti-creation, and thus (likewise) uncreated and developed as the antithesis of existence through choice.File:Parsee Wedding 1905.jpg\|thumb\|left\|A Parsi Wedding, 1905]]In this schema of asha versus druj, mortal beings (both humans and animals) play a critical role, for they too are created. Here, in their lives, they are active participants in the conflict, and it is their spiritual duty to defend Asha, which is under constant assault and would decay in strength without counteraction. Throughout the Gathas, Zoroaster emphasizes deeds and actions within society and accordingly extreme asceticism is frowned upon in Zoroastrianism but moderate forms are allowed within Zoroastrianism. This was explained as fleeing from the experiences and joys of life, which was the very purpose that the urvan (most commonly translated as the "soul") was sent into the mortal world to collect. The avoidance of any aspect of life which does not bring harm to another and engage in activities that support the druj, which includes the avoidance of the pleasures of life, is a shirking of the responsibility and duty to oneself, one's urvan, and one's family and social obligations.Central to Zoroastrianism is the emphasis on moral choice, to choose the responsibility and duty for which one is in the mortal world, or to give up this duty and so facilitate the work of druj. Similarly, predestination is rejected in Zoroastrian teaching and the absolute free will of all conscious beings is core, with even divine beings having the ability to choose. Humans bear responsibility for all situations they are in, and in the way they act toward one another. Reward, punishment, happiness, and grief all depend on how individuals live their lives. In the 19th century, through contact with Western academics and missionaries, Zoroastrianism experienced a massive theological change that still affects it today. The Rev. John Wilson led various missionary campaigns in India against the Parsi community, disparaging the Parsis for their "dualism" and "polytheism" and as having unnecessary rituals while declaring the Avesta to not be "divinely inspired". This caused mass dismay in the relatively uneducated Parsi community, which blamed its priests and led to some conversions towards Christianity. The arrival of the German orientalist and philologist Martin Haug led to a rallied defense of the faith through Haug's reinterpretation of the Avesta through Christianized and European orientalist lens. Haug postulated that Zoroastrianism was solely monotheistic with all other divinities reduced to the status of angels while Ahura Mazda became both omnipotent and the source of evil as well as good. Haug's thinking was subsequently disseminated as a Parsi interpretation, thus corroborating Haug's theory, and the idea became so popular that it is now almost universally accepted as doctrine though being reevaluated in modern Zoroastrianism and academia.Throughout Zoroastrian history, shrines and temples have the been focus of worship and pilgrimage for adherents of the religion. Early Zoroastrians were recorded as worshiping in the 5th century BCE on mounds and hills where fires were lit below the open skies.WEB,weblink Herodotus, The Histories, Book 1, chapter 131, www.perseus.tufts.edu, 2019-07-13, In the wake of Achaemenid expansion, shrines were constructed throughout the empire and particularly influenced the role of Mithra, Aredvi Sura Anahita, Verethragna and Tishtrya, alongside other traditional Yazata who all have hymns within the Avesta and also local deities and culture-heroes. Today, enclosed and covered fire temples tend to be the focus of community worship where fires of varying grades are maintained by the clergy assigned to the temples.WEB,weblink ÄTAÅ KADA â Encyclopaedia Iranica, www.iranicaonline.org, 2019-07-13, Cosmology: Creation of the universe According to the Zoroastrian creation myth, Ahura Mazda existed in light and goodness above, while Angra Mainyu existed in darkness and ignorance below. They have existed independently of each other for all time, and manifest contrary substances. Ahura Mazda first manifested seven divine beings called Amesha Spentas, who support him and represent beneficent aspects of personality and creation, along with numerous Yazatas, divinities worthy of worship. Ahura Mazda then created the material and visible world itself in order to ensnare evil. Ahura Mazda created the floating, egg-shaped universe in two parts: first the spiritual (menog) and 3,000 years later, the physical (getig). Ahura Mazda then created Gayomard, the archetypical perfect man, and Gavaevodata, the primordial bovine.{{Citation\|title=Mythology: an Illustrated Encyclopedia \|pages=40â45 \|first1=Richard \|last1=Cavendish \|first2=Trevor Oswald \|last2=Ling \|publisher=Rizzoli \|year=1980 \|isbn=978-0847802869 \|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GdEnAAAAYAAJ}}While Ahura Mazda created the universe and humankind, Angra Mainyu, whose very nature is to destroy, miscreated demons, evil daevas, and noxious creatures (khrafstar) such as snakes, ants, and flies. Angra Mainyu created an opposite, evil being for each good being, except for humans, which he found he could not match. Angra Mainyu invaded the universe through the base of the sky, inflicting Gayomard and the bull with suffering and death. However, the evil forces were trapped in the universe and could not retreat. The dying primordial man and bovine emitted seeds, which were protect by Mah, the Moon. From the bull's seed grew all beneficial plants and animals of the world and from the man's seed grew a plant whose leaves became the first human couple. Humans thus struggle in a two-fold universe of the material and spiritual trapped and in long combat with evil. The evils of this physical world are not products of an inherent weakness, but are the fault of Angra Mainyu's assault on creation. This assault turned the perfectly flat, peaceful, and ever day-lit world into a mountainous, violent place that is half night. Eschatology: Renovation and judgment Zoroastrianism also includes beliefs about the renovation of the world (Frashokereti) and individual judgment (cf. general and particular judgment), including the resurrection of the dead, which are alluded to in the Gathas but developed in later Avestan and Middle Persian writings.Individual judgment at death is at the Chinvat Bridge ("bridge of judgement" or "birdge of choice"), which each human must cross, facing a spiritual judgment, though modern belief is split as to whether it is representative of a mental decision during life to choose between good and evil or an afterworld location. Humans' actions under their free will through choice determine the outcome. According to tradition, the soul is judged by the Yazatas Mithra, Sraosha, and Rashnu, where depending on the verdict one is either greeted at the bridge by a beautiful, sweet-smelling maiden or by an ugly, foul-smelling old hag representing their Daena affected by their actions in life. The maiden leads the dead safely across the bridge, which widens and becomes pleasant for the righteous, towards the House of Song. The hag leads the dead down a bridge that narrows to a razor's edge and is full of stench until the departed falls off into the abyss towards the House of Lies.WEB,weblink ÄINWAD PUHL â Encyclopaedia Iranica, www.iranicaonline.org, 2019-07-13, Those with a balance of good and evil go to Hamistagan, a neutral place of waiting where according to the Dadestan-i Denig, a Middle Persian work from the 9th century, the souls of the departed can relive their lives and conduct good deeds to raise themselves towards the House of Song or await the final judgement and the mercy of Ahura Mazda.WEB,weblink Dadestan-i Denig ('Religious Decisions'): Chapters 1-41, www.avesta.org, 2019-07-13, The House of Lies is considered temporary and reformative; punishments fit the crimes, and souls do not rest in eternal damnation. Hell contains foul smells and evil food, a smothering darkness, and souls are packed tightly together although they believe they are in total isolation.In ancient Zoroastrian eschatology, a 3,000-year struggle between good and evil will be fought, punctuated by evil's final assault. During the final assault, the sun and moon will darken and humankind will lose its reverence for religion, family, and elders. The world will fall into winter, and Angra Mainyu's most fearsome miscreant, Azi Dahaka, will break free and terrorize the world.According to legend, the final savior of the world, known as the Saoshyant, will be born to a virgin impregnated by the seed of Zoroaster while bathing in a lake. The Saoshyant will raise the deadâincluding those in all afterworldsâfor final judgment, returning the wicked to hell to be purged of bodily sin. Next, all will wade through a river of molten metal in which the righteous will not burn but through which the impure will be completely purified. The forces of good will ultimately triumph over evil, rendering it forever impotent but not destroyed. The Saoshyant and Ahura Mazda will offer a bull as a final sacrifice for all time and all humans will become immortal. Mountains will again flatten and valleys will rise; the House of Song will descend to the moon, and the earth will rise to meet them both. Humanity will require two judgments because there are as many aspects to our being: spiritual (menog) and physical (getig). Thus, Zoroastrianism can be said to be a universalist religion with respect to salvation in that all souls are redeemed at the final judgement. Ritual and Prayer The central ritual of Zoroastrianism is the Yasna, which is a recitation of the epynomous book of the Avesta and sacrificial ritual ceremony involving Haoma.WEB,weblink YASNA â Encyclopaedia Iranica, www.iranicaonline.org, 2019-07-13, Extensions to the Yasna ritual are possible through use of the Visperad and Vendidad, but such an extended ritual is rare in modern Zoroastrianism.WEB,weblink VISPERAD â Encyclopaedia Iranica, www.iranicaonline.org, 2019-07-13, WEB,weblink VENDÄªDÄD â Encyclopaedia Iranica, www.iranicaonline.org, 2019-07-13, The Yasna itself descended from Indo-Iranian sacrificial ceremonies and animal sacrifice of varying degrees are mentioned in the Avesta and are still practiced in Zoroastrianism albeit through reduced forms such as the sacrifice of fat before meals.WEB,weblink SACRIFICE i. IN ZOROASTRIANISM â Encyclopaedia Iranica, www.iranicaonline.org, 2019-07-13, High rituals such as the Yasna are considered to be the pruview of the Mobeds with a corpus of individual and communal rituals and prayers included in the Khordeh Avesta.WEB,weblink KHORDEH AVESTÄ â Encyclopaedia Iranica, www.iranicaonline.org, 2019-07-13, A Zoroastrian is welcomed into the faith through the Navjote/Sedreh Pushi ceremony, which is traditionally conducted during the later childhood or pre-teen years of the aspirant, though there is no defined age limit for the ritual.WEB,weblink Zoroastrian rituals: Navjote/Sudre-Pooshi (initiation) ceremony, www.avesta.org, 2019-07-13, After the ceremony, Zoroastrians are encouraged to wear their sedreh (ritual shirt) and kusti (ritual girdle) daily as a spiritual reminder and for mystical protection, though modern Zoroastrians tend to only wear them during festivals, ceremonies, and prayers.WEB,weblink KUSTÄªG â Encyclopaedia Iranica, www.iranicaonline.org, 2019-07-13, The incoporation of cultural and local rituals is quite common and traditions have been passed down in historically Zoroastrian communities such as herbal healing practices, wedding ceremonies, and the like.NEWS,weblink Herbal life: traditional medicine gets a modern twist in Iran, Ajiri, Denise Hassanzade, 2016-04-11, The Guardian, 2019-07-13, correspondent, Tehran Bureau, en-GB, 0261-3077, WEB,weblink Zoroastrian Rituals: Wedding, www.avesta.org, 2019-07-13, Traditionally, Zoroastrian rituals have also included shamanic elements involving mystical methods such as spirit travel to the invisible realm and involving the consumption of fortified wine, Haoma, mang, and other ritual aids.WEB,weblink ARDÄ WÄªRÄZ â Encyclopaedia Iranica, www.iranicaonline.org, 2019-07-13, WEB,weblink KARTIR â Encyclopaedia Iranica, www.iranicaonline.org, 2019-07-13, WEB,weblink BANG â Encyclopaedia Iranica, www.iranicaonline.org, 2019-07-13, WEB,weblink MAGIC i. MAGICAL ELEMENTS IN THE AVESTA AND Nï¿½ â Encyclopaedia Iranica, www.iranicaonline.org, 2019-07-13, Historically, Zoroastrian rituals Zoroastrians are encouraged to pray the five daily GÄhs and to maintain and celebrate the various holy festivals of the Zoroastrian calendar, which can differ from community to community.WEB,weblink GÄH â Encyclopaedia Iranica, www.iranicaonline.org, 2019-07-13, WEB,weblink FESTIVALS i. ZOROASTRIAN â Encyclopaedia Iranica, www.iranicaonline.org, 2019-07-13, Zoroastrian prayers, called manthras, are conducted usually with hands outsretched in imitation of Zoroaster's prayer style described in the Gathas and are of a reflectionary and supplicant nature believed to be endowed with the ability to banish evil.WEB,weblink YEÅÌHÄ HÄTÄM â Encyclopaedia Iranica, www.iranicaonline.org, 2019-07-13, WEB,weblink AÅ ÆM VOHÅª (Ashem vohu) â Encyclopaedia Iranica, www.iranicaonline.org, 2019-07-13, Devout Zoroastrians are known to cover their heads during prayer, either with traditional topi, scarves, other headwear, or even just their hands. However, full coverage and veiling which is traditional in Islamic practice is not a part of Zoroastrianism and Zoroastrian women in Iran wear their head coverings displaying hair and their faces to defy mandates by the Islamic Republic of Iran.WEB,weblink ÄÄDOR (2) â Encyclopaedia Iranica, www.iranicaonline.org, 2019-07-13, File:Zoroastrian Persian Shrine chak-chak Republic Ardakan.jpg\|alt=\|thumb\|The sacred Zoroastrian pilgrimage shrine of Chak Chak in Yazd, Iran.]]{{further\|List of countries by Zoroastrian population\|List of Zoroastrians}}Zoroastrian communities internationally tend to comprise mostly two main groups of people: Indian Parsis and Iranian Zoroastrians. According to a survey in 2004 by the Federation of Zoroastrian Associations of North America, the number of Zoroastrians worldwide was estimated at between 124,000 and 190,000. The number is imprecise because of wildly diverging counts in Iran.NEWS,weblink Zoroastrians Keep the Faith, and Keep Dwindling, The New York Times, 2008-09-06, 2009-10-03, Laurie, Goodstein, India's 2011 Census recorded 57,264 Parsi Zoroastrians and Kurdish numbers, along with those of non-ethnic converts, are difficult to speculate upon.{{Citation \| title=Parsi population dips by 22 per cent between 2001â2011: study \| url=http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/other-states/Parsi-population-dips-by-22-per-cent-between-2001-2011-study/article14508859.ece \| publisher=PTI \| date=2016-07-26 \| accessdate=2016-07-26\| newspaper=The Hindu }}Small Zoroastrian communities may be found all over the world, with a continuing concentration in Western India, Central Iran, and Southern Pakistan. Zoroastrians of the diaspora are primarily located in the United States, Great Britain and the former British colonies, particularly Canada and Australia, and usually anywhere where there is a strong Iranian and Gujarati presence. In South Asia File:Parsi-navjote-sitting.jpg\|thumb\|right\|upright\|Parsi NavjoteNavjoteIndia is considered to be home to the single largest Zoroastrian population in the world. When the Islamic armies, under the first Caliphs, invaded Persia, those locals who were unwilling to convert to Islam sought refuge, first in the mountains of Northern Iran, then the regions of Yazd and its surrounding villages. Later, in the ninth century CE, a group sought refuge in the western coastal region of India, and also scattered to other regions of the world.Following the fall of the Sassanid Empire in 651 CE, many Zoroastrians migrated. Among them were several groups who ventured to Gujarat on the western shores of the Indian subcontinent, where they finally settled. The descendants of those refugees are today known as the Parsis. The year of arrival on the subcontinent cannot be precisely established, and Parsi legend and tradition assigns various dates to the event.In the Indian census of 2001, the Parsis numbered 69,601, representing about 0.006% of the total population of India, with a concentration in and around the city of Mumbai. Due to a low birth rate and high rate of emigration, demographic trends project that by 2020 the Parsis will number only about 23,000 or 0.002% of the total population of India. By 2008, the birth-to-death ratio was 1:5; 200 births per year to 1,000 deaths.{{Citation \| title=Doomed by faith \| url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/asia/doomed-by--faith-856095.html \| publisher=Guardian \| date=2008-06-28 \| accessdate=2008-06-28}} In Pakistan, they number fewer than 1,700 in 1998, mostly living in Karachi.WEB,weblink The Parsi Community in Karachi, Pakistan, Public Radio International, According to the National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) of Pakistan there are 4,020 parsis in Pakistan in 201weblink increased to 4,235 in 2018. Majority of them are settled in Sindh followed by Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.weblink Iran, Iraq and Central Asia Iran's figures of Zoroastrians have ranged widely; the last census (1974) before the revolution of 1979 revealed 21,400 Zoroastrians.WEB, K. E. Eduljee,weblink Zoroastrian Demographics & Group Names, Heritageinstitute.com, 2008-06-28, 2017-06-14, Some 10,000 adherents remain in the Central Asian regions that were once considered the traditional stronghold of Zoroastrianism, i.e., Bactria (see also Balkh), which is in Northern Afghanistan; Sogdiana; Margiana; and other areas close to Zoroaster's homeland.In Iran, emigration, out-marriage and low birth rates are likewise leading to a decline in the Zoroastrian population. Zoroastrian groups in Iran say their number is approximately 60,000.WEB, U.S. State Department, Iran â International Religious Freedom Report 2009, The Office of Electronic Information, Bureau of Public Affair, 2009-10-26,weblinkweblink" title="web.archive.org/web/20091029231558weblink">weblink yes, 2009-10-29, 2009-12-01, According to the Iranian census data from 2011 the number of Zoroastrians in Iran was 25,271.WEB,weblink Census: Iran young, urbanised and educated, Egypt Independent, 2012-07-29, 2017-06-14, Communities exist in Tehran, as well as in Yazd, Kerman and Kermanshah, where many still speak an Iranian language distinct from the usual Persian. They call their language Dari (not to be confused with the Dari of Afghanistan). Their language is also called Gavri or Behdini, literally "of the Good Religion". Sometimes their language is named for the cities in which it is spoken, such as Yazdi or Kermani. Iranian Zoroastrians were historically called Gabrs, originally without a pejorative connotation but in the present-day derogatorily applied to all non-Muslims.More recently the Zoroastrian faith has gained strength among the Kurds in Iraq, where they have official recognition, and numbers of adherents have been claimed to be ranging from 100,000 to 300,000 followers and official numbers from government sources range between 500 to 5000 and numbers in the Kurdish Diaspora ranging wildly, with 3000 claimed in Sweden alone.WEB,weblink Zoroastrian faith returns to Kurdistan in response to ISIS violence, Rudaw, 2015-06-02, 2016-05-17, WEB,weblink Kurdistan, the only government in Middle East that recognizes religious diversity, Kurdistan24, Kurdistan24, en, 2019-07-13, WEB,weblink Ù¾ÛØ±ÙÛÙØ§ÙÛ ÙÙØ±Ø¯Ø³ØªØ§Ù Ø¦ÛÙÚÛ ÙÛØ¯ÛØ¨ÛØªÛÙÛ, www.xendan.org, en-US, 2019-07-13, BOOK, The Zoroastrian Flame: Exploring Religion, History and Tradition, Stewart, Sarah, Hintze, Almut, Williams, Alan, I.B Tauris, 2016, 9781784536336, London, Western world North America is thought to be home to 18,000â25,000 Zoroastrians of both South Asian and Iranian background. A further 3,500 live in Australia (mainly in Sydney).As of 2012, the population of Zoroastrians in USA was 15,000, making it the third largest Zoroastrian population in the World after those of India and Iran.WEB,weblink An Old Faith in the New World â Zoroastrianism in the United States, Washington insights for the Iranian-American community from the National Iranian American Council, NIAC inSight, www.niacinsight.com, Dualistic cosmology Iranian religions Proto-Indo-European religion Zoroastrian calendar {{-}} {{reflist\|group=n}} {{citation\|editor-last=Black\|editor-first=Matthew\|editor2-last=Rowley\|editor2-first=H. H.\|title=Peake's Commentary on the Bible\|year=1982\|publisher=Nelson\|location=New York\|isbn=978-0-415-05147-7\|title-link=Peake's Commentary on the Bible}} {{citation\|last=Boyce\|first=Mary\|title=Textual sources for the study of Zoroastrianism\|location=Manchester\|publisher=Manchester UP\|year=1984\|isbn=978-0-226-06930-2}} {{citation\|last=Boyce\|first=Mary\|title=Zoroastrianism: A Shadowy but Powerful Presence in the Judaeo-Christian World\|location=London\|publisher=William's Trust\|year=1987}} {{citation\|last=Boyce\|first=Mary\|title=Zoroastrians: Their Religious Beliefs and Practices\|publisher=Routledge\|location=London\|year=1979\|isbn=978-0-415-23903-5}} (note to catalogue searchers: the spine of this edition misprints the title "Zoroastrians" as "Zoroastians", and this may lead to catalogue errors; there is a second edition published in 2001 with the same ISBN) {{citation\|last=Boyce\|first=Mary\|title=The History of Zoroastrianism\|volume=1\|year=1975\|publisher=Brill\|location=Leiden\|id=(repr. 1996)\|isbn=978-90-04-10474-7}} {{citation\|last=Boyce\|first=Mary\|title=Zoroastrians: Their Religious Beliefs and Practices\|publisher=Routledge\|location=London\|year=2007\|isbn=978-0-415-23903-5}} {{citation\|last=Boyce\|first=Mary\|chapter=Ahura MazdÄ\|title=Encyclopaedia Iranica\|location=New York\|publisher=Routledge & Kegan Paul\|year=1983\|volume=1}} pp. 684â687 {{citation\|last=Bulliet\|first=Richard W.\|title=Conversion to Islam in the Medieval Period: An Essay in Quantitative History\|year=1979\|location=Cambridge\|publisher=Harvard UP\|isbn=978-0-674-17035-3}} {{citation\|last=Carroll\|first=Warren H.\|year=1985\|title=Founding Of Christendom: History Of Christendom\|volume=1\|publisher=Illinois UP\|location=Urbana\|id=(repr. 2004)\|isbn=978-0-931888-21-2}} {{citation\|last=Clark\|first=Peter\|title=Zoroastrianism. An Introduction to an Ancient Faith\|location=Brighton\|publisher=Sussex Academic Press\|year=1998\|isbn=978-1-898723-78-3}} {{citation\|last=Dhalla\|first=Maneckji Nusservanji\|publisher=OUP\|location=New York\|year=1938\| title=History of Zoroastrianism}} {{citation\|last=Duchesne-Guillemin\|first=Jacques\|chapter=Zoroastrianism\|title=Encyclopedia Americana\|location=Danbury\|publisher=Grolier\|year=1988\|volume=29}} pp. 813â815 {{citation\|last=Duchesne-Guillemin\|first=Jacques\|chapter=Zoroastrianism: Relation to other religions\|title=EncyclopÃ¦dia Britannica\|edition=Online\|year=2006\|chapter-url=http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9207\|accessdate=2006-05-31\|deadurl=yes\|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20071214203650weblink\|archivedate=2007-12-14\|df=\|title-link=EncyclopÃ¦dia Britannica}} {{citation\|last=Eliade\|first=Mircea\|last2=Couliano\|first2=Ioan P.\|year=1991\|title=The Eliade Guide to World Religions\|location=New York\|publisher=Harper Collins}} {{Citation \|first=Richard \|last=Foltz \|authorlink=Richard Foltz \|title=Religions of Iran: From Prehistory to the Present \|publisher=Oneworld publications \|location=London \|year=2013 \|isbn=978-1-78074-308-0}} {{citation\|last=Kellens\|first=Jean\|chapter=Avesta\|title=Encyclopaedia Iranica\|volume=3\|location=New York\|publisher=Routledge and Kegan Paul}} pp. 35â44. {{citation\|last=Khan\|first=Roni K\|year=1996\|title=The Tenets of Zoroastrianism\|url=http://tenets.parsizoroastrianism.com/}} {{Citation\|last=King\|first=Charles William\|origyear=1887 \|year=1998 \|title=Gnostics and their Remains Ancient and Mediaeval\|publisher=Bell & Daldy\|location=London\|isbn=978-0-7661-0381-8}} {{citation\|last=Melton\|first=J. Gordon\|year=1996\|title=Encyclopedia of American Religions\|location=Detroit\|publisher=Gale Research}} {{citation\|last=Malandra\|first=William W.\|title=An Introduction to Ancient Iranian Religion. Readings from the Avesta and Achaemenid Inscriptions\|location=Minneapolis\|publisher=U. Minnesota Press\|year=1983\|isbn=978-0-8166-1114-0}} {{citation\|last=Malandra\|first=William W.\|year=2005\|chapter=Zoroastrianism: Historical Review\|title=Encyclopaedia Iranica\|location=New York\|publisher=iranicaonline.org\|chapter-url=http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/zoroastrianism-i-historical-review}} {{citation\|last=Moulton\|first=James Hope\|title=The Treasure of the Magi: A Study of Modern Zoroastrianism\|publisher=OUP\|location=London\|year=1917\|id=1-564-59612-5 (repr. 1997)}} {{citation\|last=Robinson\|first=B.A.\|year=2008\|title=Zoroastrianism: Holy text, beliefs and practices\|accessdate=2010-03-01\|url=http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/zoroastrianism-i-historical-review}} {{citation\|last=Russell\|first=James R.\|title=Zoroastrianism in Armenia (Harvard Iranian Series)\|location=Oxford\|publisher=Harvard University Press\|year=1987\|isbn=978-0-674-96850-9}} {{citation\|editor-last=Simpson\|editor-first=John A.\|editor2-last=Weiner\|editor2-first=Edmund S.\|chapter=Zoroastrianism\|title=Oxford English Dictionary\|location=London\|publisher=Oxford UP\|year=1989\|edition=2nd\|isbn=978-0-19-861186-8}} {{citation\|last=Stolze\|first=Franz\|title=Die Achaemenidischen und Sasanidischen DenkmÃ¤ler und Inschriften von Persepolis, Istakhr, Pasargadae, ShÃ¢pÃ»r\|publisher=A. Asher\|location=Berlin\|year=1882}} {{citation\|last=Verlag\|first=Chronik\|publisher=Konecky and Konecky\|location=United States\|year=2008\| title=The Chronicle of World History}} {{citation\|last=Zaehner\|first=Robert Charles\|title=The Dawn and Twilight of Zoroastrianism\|location=London\|publisher=Phoenix Press\|year=1961\|isbn=978-1-84212-165-8}} {{sisterlinks\|d=Q9601\|commons=Category:Zoroastrianism\|voy=no\|species=no\|mw=no\|m=no\|n=no\|q=no\|s=Portal:Religion#Zoroastrianism\|b=no\|v=no}}{{Prone to spam\|date=April 2012}}{{Z148}} {{Dmoz\|Society/Religion_and_Spirituality/Zoroastrianism}} FEZANA - Federation of Zoroastrian Associations of North America The Zarathushtrian Assembly Zoroastrianism, BBC Radio 4 discussion with Vesta Sarkhosh Curtis, Farrokh Vajifdar & Alan Williams (In Our Time, Nov. 11, 2004) {{Religion topics}}{{Authority control}} - "Zoroastrianism" does not exist on GetWiki (yet)	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3008
__label__cc	0.62542	0.37458	> HP Discover Keynote Open: “Zero Degrees of Separation” I used to be one, and now I’m zero degrees from Kevin Bacon. He was the surprise keynote speaker for this year’s Discover. Gmake was brought in to design and build media to bring his presentation to life. Visually, this project was all about balance. The primary projection surface was a 60 foot, 3.33 x 1 aspect ratio screen, looming about 6 feet over a bare stage. Too much visual thunder would dominate the speaker. Too little and it would feel underwhelming. To that end, we worked with the producers and scriptwriters to come up with a structure and a flow where there were moments that the visuals could shine, while the rest could be carried by the very talented Mr. Bacon. 8-minute, 3.33x1 (3600x1080) film, queued with 18 loop points Project overview: Early in the process, the stage design included ten custom-built Barco MiStrip triangles. The MiStrips are essentially strips of LED lights that can be fed by a video source. They’re extremely low-resolution — which gives them a very abstract quality — but they have a powerful stage presence. Given this abstract nature, the plan was to pacethe open around moments of high (upper screen) and low (MiStrips) resolution media to get across concepts of big data, connectedness and the changing digital world. A prototype was built and test — and this frame shows a mock-up we created after seeing the test to better understand how to harness the technology.	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3010
__label__wiki	0.563016	0.563016	The show opened this week with a look back at last week's women's title match. Mercedes Martinez regained the GMW Women's Championship in a great match against the eccentric Trinity H. Campbell. Next was a highlight package focusing on three of GMW's "Young Lions" in "The Alpha Male" Justin Powers, "Rapid Fire" Brian Jury and Johnny Curtis. These three men have been toiling in GMW rings for the past year or so and tonight is their big chance as they'll be competing in a three way elimination match to determine the inaugural GMW Young Lions Champion! Not only is the match to be fought under elimination rules, it's going to be twice as difficult as a wrestler must be pinned two times to be eliminated! In the early going, what could only be described as a double slingshot sunset flip caused the shoulders of Powers and Jury to be pinned, and both men were suddenly within one fall of being eliminated. With that advantage, Curtis was in position to use some risky maneuvers. Not the least of which was a wild somersault plancha out onto the concrete floor on top of both Jury and Powers. After letting his guard down, Curtis was then pinned and the match was tied all the way around with each man having been pinned once. During a quick run in the middle of the match, these young lions showed a bit of their youthful exuberance and inexperience by missing some big moves. Curtis went for it all with a corkscrew moonsault to no avail. Shortly thereafter, Jury followed up with a big frogsplash and caught nothing but canvas! Justin Powers then was able to apply a figure four leglock to Curtis' injured leg while Jury worked his top half with his version of a Fujiwara armbar submission hold. For only a moment, Jury lost his grip and Curtis was able to use his long frame as leverage to reverse the figure four on Powers. Quickly, Jury was in position to add to Powers' woes with a camel clutch while still locked up in the figure four! Brian Jury then went up top and hit a superb missile dropkick on the dazed "Alpha Male". Jury went back up top to deliver a second and was a recipient of a chokeslam by Powers who scored the pinfall to eliminate "Rapid Fire". This left Powers and a still ailing Johnny Curtis to fight it out for the title. Quickly Curtis went for it all as he went to the top rope and hit the prone Powers with a legdrop from up top for the pinfall. The winner and GMW Young Lions Champ is Johnny Curtis! That's all for this week. Tune in again next week and catch the action of Green Mountain Wrestling! Catch the Action by clicking below! "Let's go HOME!!!	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3011
__label__cc	0.730679	0.269321	Mon, Jul 15, 2019 \| 21:33 MST About GGR A positive approach to living a healthy lifestyle, in harmony with nature, is a goal we all share. We invite you to make use of this site as a resource for living green, or as a contributor with an idea or product to share. As the saying goes, "Be the change you want to see in the world." Going Green Resources Green Living at Home Celebrities Go Green Cleaning, Eco-Style Cosmetics & Hygiene Eco-Pets Green Eating Green Families Home Handyman Framing & Insulation Solar Energy and Photovoltaics Gardens & Outdoor Living Green Living at School Elementary, Mid & High "Greening" Your Business Commercial Green Buildings Creating a Green Office Earth-friendly Design Homes, Green Projects Hospitality & Travel Travel, Eco-Wise Green Associations Find a Green Job Now! List your Green Job Position Now! Connecting great people with a Green job or career Receive Newsletter & Valuable Coupons Add Comments to Blogs Search for products like: Solar Panels, Solar Pool Heaters, Organic Food, Organic Bedding, Organic Candles, Air Purifiers, Faucet Filters and Organic Baby Clothes. Welcome to GoingGreenResources.com! The world is full of great products and ideas being introduced everyday. GoingGreenResources.com will bring you the latest unbiased information. We invite you to Register as a Member and offer us your thoughts. Please tell your friends about GoingGreenResources.com. Our advertisers are committed to making a difference for our environment. Join Us on a Journey to a Green and Healthier Life Going Green Ideas Preparing for Electric Cars Many new models of electric cars are about to hit the roads. Think Nissan Leaf, GM's Volt, among others! How to recharge electric vehicles is becoming a serious concern. The US is far behind many other countries in this regard. A recent visit to Andorra, a tiny principality between Spain and France, revealed a popular option - plugging in when you park on the street. It is a complicated subject requiring all vehicle manufacturers to have a common system which in turn will be complemented by a common system of recharging. Some steps being taken include: Houston, Texas - the City of Houston has joined with Reliant Energy and Nissan to ensure recharging stations are ready for the Nissan Leaf. So far 10 charging stations, seven of them public, are ready. San Francisco, San Jose, Oakland, California - These cities are partnering with Better Place, an electric-car company that plans to launch its vehicle in 2012. There will be 220 volt charging stations throughout the cities, permits will be expedited to allow fast installation of outlets and employer incentives will be put in place that will encourage employees to drive electric cars. Raleigh, North Carolina - Local utility Progress Energy has partnered with Nissan and the city to create a recharging infrastructure. West Sacramento, California - Retailer DMC Green Inc. opened its first electric-vehicle charging station in August 2009, the first of many retrofitted gas stations in California. Massachusetts - The state government and Nissan are developing plans for home, work and public charging facilities. Elk Horn, Iowa - The city installed four public charging stations in November 2009. In August 2009, the US Department of Energy awarded Electric Transportation Engineering Corp., a charging-station maker, $100 million to deploy more than 11,000 charging stations, and 4,700 Nissan Leaf vehicles in the following locations - Portland, Corvallis and Eugene, Oregon; Seattle; San Diego; Phoenix and Tucson, Arizona; Nashville, Knoxville, and Chattanooga, Tenn. Let us know what is happening in your area - John@GoingGreenResources.com Hawksbill turtle hatchings have their first swim in Barbados Helping Hawksbill turtles to the water in Barbados At Going Green Resources.com we are committed to preserving the environment.When you have a chance to see Mother Nature at work, as we recently did, the point of environmentalism is made really clear. We traveled to Barbados to see these Hawksbill turtles hatch and go to sea. This occurred on beautiful Turtle Beach, at the east end of St. Lawrence Gap.We helped release 126, day-old, Hawksbill turtles that hatched earlier in the day.A local fisherman had collected them and protected them until nightfall.They are released at night to increase their chances of survival. Hotels often dim their lights so as not to confuse the turtles as they are attracted to light.A naturalist uses a light to lead the turtles to water.We are not supposed to help them into the water as their lungs and hearts have to be ready to swim. These special creatures try so hard to start their lives and yet many people make their life more difficult. Plastic bags and bottles, fish nets and wastewater runoff, all impact their survival.Next time you plan to wash your car and let the soapy water runoff into the storm sewer, please think of these turtles. It is really amazing to witness. Thank you for caring. We hope you enjoy the video, even though it was taken at night for the turtles sake. Around the world people have been “going green” for many years and enjoying it. There is a sense of pride when we incorporate some basic steps into our everyday life, at home, at school and at our place of business. The cumulative effect of our actions can have a dramatic effect on our environment. At GoingGreenResources.com we realize that people are often prevented from doing more as they don’t have a central resource of ideas and products. We aim to change that! Ten years ago some ideas seemed crazy that we now take for granted. Now within ten years it is entirely possible we may not have gas stations as auto manufacturers are finally creating some really incredible “green” cars. Many people we know now drive hybrids and are not only thrilled with the reduced cost of gas but they also feel good about fighting global warming in their own small way. In March of 2008 we visited a “sustainable farm” in Costa Rica. Using intriguing methods this farm is growing beautiful organic vegetables, tasty free-range eggs, unique plants with health benefits and so much more. There is reason to believe that many of these farming ideas can be used around the world. More on this wonderful experience can be found in our travel section. Last November, we traveled to Barbados in the Caribbean. Beaches were lined with recycling bins. There a small number of visitors were fortunate enough to help the locals return some newborn turtles into the waves so they could begin their journey. The excitement everyone felt as they helped Mother Nature along was beyond words. Our travel section has some great photos. Back at home we take the steps that we can. Our recycling container is full each week, while the trashcan is nearly empty. It’s a good feeling knowing that there is a lot less waste being sent to landfills. Where possible at home, CFL’s are used for lighting; water waste is minimized; biodegradable detergents are used and all personal grooming products are organic and fragrance free. The benefits are many of minimizing the chemicals that come in touch with the skin, the body’s largest organ. Please bookmark our site and tell your friends. New content will be added frequently and we will be offering commentaries from our fellow green citizens and well-respected individuals in the environmental field. - John Livingstone, GoingGreenResources.com Filed under: Home \| Comments (3) Buy a Link for Advertise Copyright 2008- GoingGreenResources.com Privacy Policy Contact	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3012
__label__wiki	0.699023	0.699023	The Life and Media of Gordon F. Sander Welcome to the Sander Zone Cultural Reportage Foreign Reportage Travel Reportage Style Reportage Education Reportage Miscellany/Humor Popular History The Battle of Finland/The Hundred Day War The Frank Family That Survived Serling: The Rise and Twilight Jesse Ball, an autobiography written with Jesse Braverman Off The Map: A Personal History of Finland “C-Town” “C-Town” Illustrations Nordic Sweep St. Petersburg ’08 Baltic Babes: The Hardest Working Models (City Paper 12/04) On a recent morning in the down-town Tallinn offices of Estonian Model Agency, better known as EMA, the pace was tempo furioso. While agency co-managing director Katrin Rannaväli feverishly worked the long distance phone lines in one corner of the cluttered, magazine cover-lined working-cum-prep space — “No, she’s not available; yes, she’s available” — in another corner partner Margit Jõgger was having a pep talk with the latest EMA prospect to zoom off into the international fashion slipstream, a rosy-cheeked, doe-eyed blonde named Ruja. For Ruja this was D-Day minus one. She was due to fly to Paris the next day. A New Face, as they are called in the beauty business, the 18-year-old Estonian high school student had done but one local shoot for the agency when she was tapped to go to Paris. “I am sure she will be fine,” said Jõgger, like a nervous mother about to pack her daughter off to university. “I am sure of it,” she said, turning to the bright-eyed hopeful, who happily returned her smile, as the phone continued to trill in the background. “She’s got what it takes.” Jõgger should know. She and Rannaväli have been picking and fielding Estonian lookers on the international fashion circuit ever since 1992, when the dynamic duo founded Estonia’s first post-Soviet model agency, not an easy feat at the time, when the peoples of the newly-liberated Baltic states had other things on their minds besides fashion. The two were responsible for producing Estonia’s first bona fide international model, the formidable Iris Teiter, now retired from the hurly-burly of the fashion world. According to Jõgger, demand for Baltic beauties — or Baltic Babes, as some of them like to call themselves — is definitely on the rise. “Things are definitely popping,” said Jõgger, as she returned to coach her waiting charge. Jõgger’s upbeat tone is mirrored across town at the sleek, new offices of EMA’s leading competitor, Baltic Models, the agency which both represents and is owned by Estonian supermodel Carmen Kass. “Business is very good,”agrees Eva-Kristina Mill, who manages the agency along with Katrin Meier. Of course, we like to think that we” — meaning the Baltic states in general — “have the most beautiful girls in the world, but that is not for me to say. Anyway, I don’t like comparing girls from one country or one part of the world with another,” declared the 22-year-old. No doubt Mill’s precocious poise and confidence derives from the fact that she is a former model herself — as is her colleague, Ms. Meier, a common situation at agencies in the region. But it’s not just our looks,” said Mill, earnestly. “Our girls, from Estonia, as well as Latvia, have the right attitude about the business. They’re not dreaming about becoming a supermodel from day one.” Certainly an interesting remark for one to make in light of the fact the agency is owned by one of the world’s mega-models. Basically, our girls just want to work,” said Mill, leaning forward for emphasis. “And correspondingly they are easy to work with. They’re down to earth. They have the right attitude.” Models from the region do work harder,” contends Kristine Kalnaja, a Latvian journalist who covers the style scene for the Latvian teen magazine, Avene. Like Mill and Meier, Kalnaja, a former model, has seen the business from both sides of the klieg lights. Unlike Mill and Meier, Kalnaja isn’t shy about comparing the virtues of models from the Baltic countries with those from elsewhere. “Nature and heredity have been very kind to girls from the Baltic,” said the avowed Baltic Babe booster. “So many of us are fortunate to have naturally blond hair, or green eyes, or blue, or grey,” said Kalnaja. “And let’s not forget good teeth,” the model-turned-journalist said evenly. But, she continued, echoing Mill’s remarks, “That’s not why models from the Baltic states have an edge in the beauty business. It’s because they work harder than most girls from other countries. It’s because they treat it like a business, not a hobby, or a sport, or a game, or a stepping stone to international stardom, even though a couple like Kass and so forth inevitably do become stars.” Showing admirable ecumenism, Kalnaja concedes that Estonia, with its three leading model agencies — EMA, Baltic Models, as well as Beatrice Models, the agency shepherded by veteran Tallinn celebrity clotheshorse Beatrice — is first in the business of exporting Baltic Babes. The loyal Latvian is quick to point out that her own country is coming up fast, thanks in large part to the growing reputation of Natalie Models, the well-stocked, highly regarded agency run by Erik Meisans, who took over the agency founded by his late wife. “Natalie represents more than a hundred models and New Faces,” according to Kalnaja, who writes frequently about Natalie. “Just as Latvia won the Eurovision contest after Estonia, so we are intent on winning the worldwide beauty sweepstakes! And we will!” According to Kalnaja, Lithuania is still a distant third in the Baltic Babe-stakes. “The attitude towards beauty and fashion in Lithuania is more industrial,” said Kalnaja. “The whole business is less developed. It’s not really a business there, at least not yet, although they certainly have beautiful women, too.” Kalnaja’s contention is borne out by the fact that Baltic Models recently closed its offices in Vilnius (a development about which both Mill and Meier are diplomatically mum). Kaia Kont-Kontson, one of the hard-working, if not yet mega-famous models in Baltic Models’ stable, is a good exemplar of the level-headed, down-to-earth attitude ascribed by the above. “I enjoy modelling,” said the dazzling and modest 23-year-old brunette, one of the agency’s dozen or so steady earners. “But at the end of the day, it is just a job.” A relative latecomer to the modelling business, Kaia stumbled into the profession, as it were, after she was asked at the last minute to appear in a fashion show for a designer friend. Soon enough, she too was winging her way to Paris and Milan and Tokyo and the other stops on The Circuit. Three years and hundreds of flights, shows, and shoots later, Kaia is now a veteran. And she still has her head screwed on straight. Like the practical Estonian she is, Kaia is already preparing for life after the footlights by studying to be a clothing designer. In the meantime, she is happy to stretch her lucrative moment in the couture sun for as long as she can. In addition to the Estonian and Latvian models working internationally, some prefer to work locally, with perhaps half a dozen models sharing what work there is to be had in Tallinn and Riga. One of the more established “locals,” as they are called, is Sirly Tillman, who is also represented by Baltic Models. Like her colleagues on the international circuit, Tillman, who has done campaigns for Kaubamaja and other Tallinn stores, has a no-nonsense attitude towards her profession, as well as why she and the few other other successful “locals” are more successful than others. We have so many pretty faces,” said the flinty Tillman, who is also an interior designer, as she went through her paces on a local beach for the writer-photographer. “It’s important to have the right attitude, to know how to smile.” Whereupon she flashed a very genuine, and very professional, one of her own. Meanwhile, back at EMA’s offices, the agency’s newest prospect, Ruja, was chomping at the bit. Her imminent Parisian sortie was the first time the Estonian teenager had ever visited a Western European country, no less worked in one, but she didn’t seem fazed at the prospect. “Everything will be okay,” she said confidently. Were her parents worried about her? “Everything will be okay,” she repeated, like a mantra. And somehow, one felt, she would. ← What I Miss About Cornell (The Cornell Daily Sun 09/28/06) Aki Kaurismäki, hotellinjohtaja (Image) → Comments are disabled for this post Finland used the swastika before the Nazis. Why do they still? (CS MONITOR 9/2018) THE TRUTH ABOUT MONTENEGRO (Politico 7/18) THE KGB LIVES THE IMMORTAL B-52 DATELINE DAUGAVPILS Email Gordon Copyright © 2007-2011 Gordon F. Sander \| WordPress \| The Erudite \| less.ly	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3014
__label__cc	0.610606	0.389394	(ARC) Book Review (464): 99 Days - Katie Cotugno by Katie Cotugno Publication: 21st April 2015 Buy It: Amazon \| The Book Depository Day 1: Julia Donnelly eggs my house my first night back in Star Lake, and that’s how I know everyone still remembers everything—how I destroyed my relationship with Patrick the night everything happened with his brother, Gabe. How I wrecked their whole family. Now I’m serving out my summer like a jail sentence: Just ninety-nine days till I can leave for college, and be done. Day 4: A nasty note on my windshield makes it clear Julia isn’t finished. I’m expecting a fight when someone taps me on the shoulder, but it’s just Gabe, home from college and actually happy to see me. “For what it’s worth, Molly Barlow,” he says, “I’m really glad you’re back.” Day 12: Gabe got me to come to this party, and I’m actually having fun. I think he’s about to kiss me—and that’s when I see Patrick. My Patrick, who’s supposed to be clear across the country. My Patrick, who’s never going to forgive me. I was a big fan of Katie's previous book How To Love, so when I received a copy of 99 days to review I was over the moon. I was drawn to the plot of this book immediately, while I'm not a fan of books that feature cheating the idea that the main protagonist Molly cheated on her boyfriend Patrick with his older brother Gabe intrigued me enough to want to pick it up and give it a go. The one thing I really disliked about the story was the slut shaming, it's like they forgot that it takes two to tango, the amount of harassment and name calling amongst other things was enough to have Molly up and leave for boarding school while Gabe seems to get off scot free, Molly was left to endure all of the lewd and cruel comments alone. When Molly arrives home the summer before college she counts down the 99 days until she leaves, off to begin her college years, with the relationship with her Mother who is a famous author strained after she wrote a book about the whole Molly, Patrick and Gabe situation, and through an article written about the book everybody in town discovered the secret she and Gabe had hidden, the extremely awkward encounters with Patrick and the hateful attitude directed towards her from her former best-friend and Patrick's twin sister Julia, Molly is left alone, depressed and lonely so she shuts herself away in her room, that is until Gabe arrives home from college, they tentatively begin a romantic relationship and although she finds herself developing feelings for Gabe, she can't stop her thoughts drifting towards Patrick. But will history repeat itself, will Molly make a serious mistake again and lose the trust of the people she's just started to get to trust her again, torn between two brothers this is one decision that Molly must make once and for all. A very thought provoking story about the double standards women are still subjected to in society today, a very enjoyable story, I still love How To Love more but I await the next book Katie releases, I really like her writing style and story ideas. I give this 4/5 stars. Katie Cotugno went to Catholic school for thirteen years which makes her, as an adult, both extremely superstitious and prone to crushes on boys wearing blazers. She routinely finds herself talking about the romantic endeavors of characters on TV shows as if they actually exist in the world. Katie is a Pushcart Prize nominee whose work has appeared in The Broadkill Review, The Apalachee Review, and Argestes, as well as on Nerve.com. Her first novel, HOW TO LOVE, is due out from Balzer + Bray on October 1st, 2013. The great loves of Katie's life include child's pose, her little sister, and mozzarella and honey sandwiches. She lives in Boston (and in sin) with her boyfriend, Tom. Goodreads \| Twitter \| Website \| Facebook (ARC) Book Review (470): Trouble From The Start - ... (ARC) Book Review (469): Nova And Quinton: No Regr... Book Review (468): Saving Quinton (Nova #2) - Jess... Book Review (467): Breaking Nova (Nova #1) - Jessi... Book Review (466): Home To You - Robin Kaye (ARC) Book Review (465): Things We Know By Heart -... (ARC) Book Review (463): City Love - Susane Colasa... Book Review (462):The Wrong Billionaire's Bed (Bil... (ARC) Book Review (461): The Duke's Disaster - Gra... Blog Tour, Excerpt & (ARC) Book Review (460): The ... Book Review (459): One Wish (Thunder Point #7) - R...	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3029
__label__wiki	0.786747	0.786747	Home » News » Blues Aim To Fly In November Blues Aim To Fly In November Blue Angels looking to perform for fans during Veterans Day weekend (PENSACOLA NEWS JOURNAL 28 AUG 13) … Rob Johnson The emerging possibility that the Blue Angels might fly at the proposed Wings Over Pensacola Air Show Festival during Veterans Day weekend was welcomed by the event’s manager Tuesday, but he hopes they won’t be doing a cameo appearance. A spokeswoman for the Blues said they might be allowed limited participation in theair show events planned for Nov. 8-11. But W.A. “Buck” Lee, chairman of the Santa Rosa Island Authority, which would run the events, said that whether the Blue Angels could help make them successful depends on whether they can fly for “30 seconds or 30 minutes.” The Navy has restricted the flight demonstration team’s practice time this summer in the wake of federal budget cuts, and it’s uncertain they can regain air show proficiency standards by November. The Blue Angels have been practicing together more lately than has previously been made public to be ready for a return to air shows if and when the Navy allows. “They are not doing any aerobatics,” Navy Lt. Katie Kelly, a spokeswoman for the group, said on Tuesday. But she acknowledged that during past two weeks the six-jet team has flown together briefly for the first time in several months, “maybe once or twice.” Those flights, she said, are essentially “transiting” from their base at Pensacola Naval Air Station to a practice area over the Gulf of Mexico. Kelly added the Blues learned late Monday about the proposed three-day Wings Over Pensacola Air Show Festival for Veterans Day weekend in November. Although Kelly told the News Journal on Monday that the Blue Angels aren’t involved with plans for that show, she said in an interview Tuesday, “If we are given permission from the higher command we would like to support the air show in any way we can.” That participation might be no more than signing autographs, Kelly said, but it could be a “fly over,” and the team might be able to do a “partial demonstration.” Such an appearance would probably be limited to a little more than “straight-level” flight during the Wings Over Pensacola events, tentatively scheduled for Nov. 8 through 11. As reported, in reaction to federal budget cuts the Navy has limited each of the Blues aviators to 11 hours of practice time a month during the summer, about one-third of their normal schedule. Let The Blue Angels Soar Again Navy Removes Its El Centro Leader More Funding, But Less Flying For Navy Planes	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3050
__label__wiki	0.620215	0.620215	Talk:Characters 90.204.249.155 (Talk) (→Character Heights) Current revision as of 05:06, 7 January 2019 (edit) (undo) Gfdgsgxgzgdrc (Talk \| contribs) (→Minor Character Variations: reply to self) (includes 23 intermediate revisions) Why on earth does bands and companies on a '''CHARACTERS''' page? they are not characters and they cramp up the page! Should they have onother page? --[[User:Jfilesguy\|that guy who is Jfiles]] 12:37, 21 June 2011 (UTC) June 2011 : I believe if any of the characters have contact with the bands/ characters in question, Like, Sloshy, for instance, they are characters. And they are also characters is they simply appear in cartoons and SBemails more then 2 or 3 times. [[User:Jibblejibblejibble\|Jibblejibblejibble]] == F. Sack == Souldn't we put the F. Sack from Flash is dead under inanimate objects? {{unsigned\|2.124.225.245\|20:25, 5 August 2015 (UTC)}} :I'll add him in. - {{User:Catjaz63/sig}} 20:34, 5 August 2015 (UTC) == A good idea == I thought of a pretty good idea to help Homestar Runner fans' knowledge get better. Maybe we should add the first time a main character '''spoke''' in a cartoon. If you don't like that idea, never mind. I thought it would help people's knowledge. After all, this IS a knowledge base.--[[Special:Contributions/90.203.153.27\|90.203.153.27]] 18:33, 12 April 2016 (UTC) :What are some notable times that this is different from their first appearance? Besides the Poopsmith (which of course we note), none spring to mind. — [[User:It's dot com\|It's dot com]] 23:16, 14 April 2016 (UTC) ::Didn't bubs and the KOT appear in a background somewhere before actually becoming main characters? I also seem to recall marzipan not originally having a voice... {{User:DeFender1031/sig}} 23:45, 14 April 2016 (UTC) :::Who cares about The Poopsmith? I just think a character's first speaking roll will make the wiki better and expand people's knowledge--[[Special:Contributions/90.203.153.27\|90.203.153.27]] 15:44, 15 April 2016 (UTC) ::::It sounds like you want to add content for the sake of adding content; I see absolutely no benefit to the typical user the knowledge of when a character first spoke. It sounds like fluff that would be fine for a user subpage, but I really don't think it holds enough water to justify its addition to the Wiki. - {{User:Catjaz63/sig}} 20:27, 15 April 2016 (UTC) :::::I think this is a good idea — though maybe not on it's own page. For example, on the page for [[Bubs]], we could mention under the bullet where his Filmography is listed that [[A Jumping Jack Contest]] was his first speaking role (off the top of my head, it could be wrong). Seems pretty useful to me. :::::That said, I also think we should have a page for not-quite [[Character Relationships]], but I seem to be in the minority there. So take my opinion about what belongs on the wiki with a grain of salt, I guess. --{{User:Purple Wrench/sig}} 21:03, 15 April 2016 (UTC) ::::::The first few characters to appear in the Homestar body of work did so before sound was a factor, so the characters from the [[Original Book]] that have since spoken would be a few examples. ::::::I'd support the first speaking role as a bulletpoint under the debut. {{User:Mee/sig}} 23:41, 15 April 2016 (UTC) == These == Should we include [[Large Bean]], [[Tucker Donaldson]], and [[Twelve-Times-A-Day Man]] on here? I mean, they ''are'' characters... {{User:Gfdgsgxgzgdrc/sig‎}} 22:23, 8 June 2016 (UTC) :Large Bean: <s>I mean, he's not even alive. He's just an attraction for Strong Bad's crappy haunted-type place.</s> :Tucker Donaldson: I don't think Unseen Characters go here; they stay on their own page. :12-Times-A-Day Man: Yeah, he goes under [[Characters#Other Alternates]]. :That's my two cents. - {{User:Catjaz63/sig}} 22:34, 8 June 2016 (UTC) ::Actually Large Bean goes on [[Characters#Pseudocharacters]]. - {{User:Catjaz63/sig}} 22:37, 8 June 2016 (UTC) :::Wha' 'bout [[The Bug]], [[The Mountain Goat]], [[Pazquel]], [[Von Blaubloods]], and maybe the [[Turtle]]? {{User:Gfdgsgxgzgdrc/sig‎}} 02:18, 12 June 2016 (UTC) ::::I don't think animal characters go on this list. - {{User:Catjaz63/sig}} 02:21, 12 June 2016 (UTC) :::::Well, there's [[Gavin]]... {{User:Gfdgsgxgzgdrc/sig‎}} 05:32, 12 June 2016 (UTC) ::::::And the [[Fat Bluebird]] is there too! {{User:Gfdgsgxgzgdrc/sig‎}} 20:06, 22 June 2016 (UTC) :::::::I added an "Animals" section. And maybe some more: [[Edgar]], [[strong badathlon\|Laconic]] (PBTC), [[Fish Eye Lens\|"Your Mom"]] (PBTC), and [[PhoneTime XL8]] ([[Marzipan's Answering Machine Version 17.2\|pseudocharacter]])? {{User:Gfdgsgxgzgdrc/sig‎}} == Atari Marzipan == I don't think Atari Marzipan should be here. She doesn't have a page, whereas [[Atari Homestar]] and [[Atari Strong Bad]], who are also listed, do have pages. If we include her, we might as well include the [[Retro Gaming Character Variations\|rest of the Atari characters]] as well. {{User:Gfdgsgxgzgdrc/sig‎}} 05:20, 8 August 2016 (UTC) :Why are Atari Homestar and Atari Strong Bad singled out? Each of their articles consist of all of five sentences. They have more appearances than the other Atari versions, but are they really separate characters? Since we have the retro gaming variations page, I'd be fine with leaving them off here. That or we should list them all. — [[User:It's dot com\|It's dot com]] 15:44, 8 August 2016 (UTC) == [[Minor Character Variations]] == So far, 4 out of 19 minor character variations pages are listed here. Highschool, middle school, Free Petry Dish, and Xeriouxly Forxe. Why those in particular? Should we remove them? Or include all the minor character variations? Or decide which ones should be here and which shouldn't? {{User:Gfdgsgxgzgdrc/sig‎}} 04:43, 15 December 2018 (UTC) :There's a link to it at the bottom of the page, so I think they can be removed. {{User:Gfdgsgxgzgdrc/sig‎}} 05:06, 7 January 2019 (UTC) Current revision as of 05:06, 7 January 2019 2 Pom Pom link 3 Character page official format 4 Stickly Man 5 Brief descriptions? 6 Character Heights 7 Where my ideas reallly that bad? 8 Character Evolution 9 Links in header lines 10 The Guys You Don't See Anymore 11 Galleries 12 Folk Tale World 13 Little Girl Location 15 Minor Alternate Versions? 16 Staff Characters 17 The Brothers Strong 18 See Gee En Buisness 19 romans 20 Bear-Shark 21 Separate characters and character videos 22 Template 23 Teenage variations, etc. 24 Created Worlds vs. Fictional Fictional Characters 25 Strong Badian Pseudocharacters 26 Also which what? 27 The decemberween decorations 28 Undead Strong Bad 29 Suggestion for Homsar & Senor 30 Chart 31 Minor Characters? 32 where be poppy? 33 Senor Cardgage a main character? 35 Petry Dish vs. Petri Dish 36 New Bad Guy Girl Character 37 A. Chimendez 38 Blubb-o's mascot 39 Fav main character? 40 New Character images? 41 Favorite Characters? 42 MADE UP ANIMALS?? 43 'Wil Characters 44 Ready for Primetime 45 userboxes 46 Not Charactors! 47 F. Sack 48 A good idea 49 These 50 Atari Marzipan 51 Minor Character Variations [edit] Questions Okay. Rejects only has like 3 things to go in it, so does it get its own page? Also, in the "Who?" section, there are a whole lot of "characters", so that would get its own page....right? -- AgentSeethroo 15:18, 16 Aug 2004 (MST) Hmm. I'm looking at the page now... Yeah, I don't know. I don't think they need their own page if we are going to have the Cheat Commandos on this page too. I know there's those bands there too. We might want to do something with them. Or at least adjust the section heading level. And it sure seems like there's a lot on this page. I think furrykef has something in mind though. Whatcha up to, Kef? -- Tom 15:48, 16 Aug 2004 (MST) I don't really have anything in mind. I just wanted to get the stuff indexed to make it easier to tell what's missing. - furrykef 09:14, 17 Aug 2004 (MST) Arg. Okay...personally, I like the smallerer pages. They're less...big...and ugly. I dunno though...it may look too sparse if we split up the thing into lotsa pages... -- AgentSeethroo 10:15, 17 Aug 2004 (MST) I think the rejects page was a good idea for all those "grey-area" characters places and things. But it seems to have been destroyed. What happened to it, and how was that decided upon? --Ogog Oops. Please note that this conversation happened last August. Currently there are no more rejects. This was "decided upon" mostly here. -- Tom 19:38, 18 Jan 2005 (MST) [edit] Pom Pom link Can I fix that Pom Pom link? it's buggin' the snot outta me. -- AgentSeethroo 16:02, 19 Aug 2004 (MST) Yeah, go ahead, I don't know what was going on there. -- Tom 16:20, 19 Aug 2004 (MST) [edit] Character page official format We need to come up with one. There's a lot of variation between the several character pages. I haven't followed the format for the few I did recently, simply because I couldn't see what the format should've been. — Joey (talk·edits) 10:17, 24 Aug 2004 (MST) The format on Strong Bad and Homestar Runner seems fine to me. But I think we should limit each character page to one picture. -- InterruptorJones 10:47, 24 Aug 2004 (MST) I kinda wanna just nuke the galleries, too. — Joey (talk·edits) 10:49, 24 Aug 2004 (MST) You'll hear no complaints from me. -- InterruptorJones 10:53, 24 Aug 2004 (MST) I want to know what happened to the halloween costume lists :) On the old wiki, each character had listed what they dressed up as each year for halloween.. It's been five years and TBC do not appear daunted in their love to painstakingly dress up the characters every year. Should the costume lists be added back on, nearby the 'aka' lists? MetaStar 02:11, 31 Oct 2004 (MST) As a followup, even the halloween toon pages lack a breakdown of who dressed up as what. If noone else feels up to it, let me know it's allowed and I'll add tasteful lists both to the characters' pages and the 'ween pages. MetaStar 02:14, 31 Oct 2004 (MST) [edit] Stickly Man Please discuss in Talk:Stickly Man before editing Stickly Man's status as the 20x6 Poopsmith. [edit] Brief descriptions? I've added brief descriptions to the computers, similar to the links in the AKA section to the real characters represented by the 20x6 and 1936 crew. Are the brief descriptions of the computer appropriate on this page, adding to the usefulness of the information; or should we be trying to keep the size and scope of index pages to a minimum? Render [edit] Character Heights In the facts Strong Bad's computer analysis reveals that Strong Mad is 88 inches tall and 88 inches wide. Actually he's about 7.25% taller than he is wide. Anyway, I did a height comparison for all the characters based on Strong Mad's height being 88 inches, using The House That Gave Sucky Treats as a reference. Here's what I got: Character Height Strong Mad 7'4" The Cheat 3'0" Marzipan 7'4" King of Town 5'0" Coach Z 6'6" Homestar 6'8" Homsar 4'7" Poopsmith 7'5" Pom Pom 7'7" Strong Bad 5'5" Strong Sad 6'6" Anyway the numbers were a little disappointing, as Strong Bad was indicated to be less than 4'0" tall in Strong Bad is in Jail Cartoon, so I wasn't really sure if there was any way to incorporate this information into the site. I might run the numbers again using Strong Bad's height as 4'0" and see what I get. Interesting calculations. I've dabbled in the height thing a bit myself. Check out the forum post. Of course, I think it would be rather difficult to come up with anything definite. -- Tom 20:07, 30 Sep 2004 (MST) Another reference point for the character heights is that The Cheat is 1'2", as revealed in Where's The Cheat? --Paliosun 18:51, 17 Oct 2004 (MST) Don't forget that Pom Pom's ID says he is 6'2" 67.161.224.65 The Cheat (sort of) puts Strong Mad as 6' in 'i she be'. Dude, you have way to much free time. Get a hobby. Nah, kudos go out to whoever did this -BazookaJoe 03:46, 9 Jul 2005 (UTC) This is his hobby. Awesome job, but why wasn't Bubs done as well? TheTylor 21:57, 15 April 2009 (UTC) You forgot Bubs :( --90.204.249.155 11:34, 20 July 2015 (UTC) [edit] Where my ideas reallly that bad? What's wrong the Different Town and Virus sections? Simply put, they were all only seen once. --thatkidsam 18:43, 4 Jun 2005 (UTC) LOL we have a section for the Folky Tale characters, and they were seen only once. Isn't that a double standard? --NERD42 email talk h²g² pedia uncyc 14:49, 2 March 2006 (UTC) The ones for folky Tale are new characters. Virused and others alike are vriations and appear on Minor Character Variations. — Elcool (talk)(contribs) 17:09, 2 March 2006 (UTC) [edit] Character Evolution Shouldn't there be a link to each character's Evolution on their character page? Seems like it should go in the bar at the bottom, but I don't know how to put it there. --Pianoplayerontheroof [edit] Links in header lines In my opinion, linking header lines is more convenient and less awkward than "Something is something something". --Trogga 16:07, 7 Mar 2005 (MST) [edit] The Guys You Don't See Anymore There are alot of old, un-named "characters" that have a one paragraph pages just for them. Can we just make a full, long page about all of those? they are Unnamed Girl, Homeschool Winner, The Unguraits, Dijjery-Doo, The Robot (storybook), the guys in the back of the arena and maybe Mr. Bland and Señor (as they appeared in flashback). We did it for Teen Girl Squad and The King of Town... E.L. Cool 12:21, 25 May 2005 (UTC) Can someone please replay?? E.L. Cool 05:57, 3 Jun 2005 (UTC) I agree, unnamed characters it is! User:Stongbah So I'm on it! E.L. Cool 16:13, 3 Jun 2005 (UTC) [edit] Galleries Would it be feasable to add small 'gallary format' pictures beside some of the character categories, as seen on such pages as Toilets and The Cheat's Head Exploding? It might help in the quest to clean up this page a bit. ⇔Thunderbird⇔ 22:39, 3 Sep 2005 (UTC) I tried it out on the Main Characters, and it seems the only problem might be people clicking on the pictures trying to reach the articles. Should we revert it and try something else, or do the same to the rest of the page? I'm voting for the latter. ⇔Thunderbird⇔ 22:48, 3 Sep 2005 (UTC) I think that looks fine. Is there a way to make the pictures link to a page, or is that the only way? But I really think it looks fine, I think if all of the other ones are like that, it would look alot cleaner-- Bkmlb(talk to me·stuff I did) 22:52, 3 Sep 2005 (UTC) Me too, but I'm curious about the picture link. Does anyone know if it's possible to link to the page instead? ⇔Thunderbird⇔ 22:53, 3 Sep 2005 (UTC) There's a way to link the pictures, but there's a lot of coding involved. I'm sure given time I could get it done if you want. Username-talk 22:54, 3 Sep 2005 (UTC) That would be excellent, or at least do the first one as a sample, and I'm sure somebody could copy the format for the rest. Then in that case, the only downside to the gallaries, would be this page is gonna get a bit longer. But all in all I think it's an improvement. ⇔Thunderbird⇔ 22:57, 3 Sep 2005 (UTC) After some frustration and trial and error, I have found that the gallery format does not allow linking of images to separate pages. This project would ionvolve uploading many new images and and placing them manually where they belong. Myself being unable to work with images very well, I regret to inform you that my task cannot be completed as expected. Sorry. Username-talk 23:09, 3 Sep 2005 (UTC) That's okay, I think this will still work well. Thanks for the attempt. ⇔Thunderbird⇔ 23:21, 3 Sep 2005 (UTC) I think the new gallery format looks outstanding! I reorganized the order just a bit, placing all the characters of the "real" universe before those in the "invented" universes (e.g. TGS and Cheat Commandos). Also, the Chaps have stated that Senor Cardgage is a real and separate character now, not just an alternate version of Strong Bad. Last, I moved bands and companies to a groups section, because they seemed to be taking up a lot of space without actually being characters. — It's dot com 05:40, 4 Sep 2005 (UTC) Well, it look nice and all, but... I feel like a little child, you know? Not knowing how to read so I have to use pretty pictures to find out where I want to go. I think it made the page cluttered up and take longer to scroll. I don't hate it, but I'm not vary fond of it neither. — Elcool (talk)(contribs) 08:38, 4 Sep 2005 (UTC) Well it can be interpreted that way, yes. But we still have to think of the anonys, those that come to learn a bit here and there. They might not all know all the names, that could be why they're here in the first place. Plus it's alot faster to find a certain character, you just scroll down quickly and watch for a glimpse of the guy you're looking for. The worst thing is that the pictures don't link to the articles. I'm thinking maybe if somebody goes through all the pictures, and insures that the summary includes a bolded link to the main article, this'll probably be a good thing. ⇔Thunderbird⇔ 11:05, 5 Sep 2005 (UTC) You'r right. For all the new ones it's all good. And tomorow after school maybe I'll start working on those links. I like gnoming :) — Elcool (talk)(contribs) 19:30, 5 Sep 2005 (UTC) Half of the links are done. And you know what? I've take it to myself to caption correctly every freacking picture in the wiki! It would be long, it would be hard and maybe I'll need some help. but I can do it! — Elcool (talk)(contribs) 04:03, 7 Sep 2005 (UTC) Why? What gain would that get us? Most of the captions are fine, thanks. --Shadow Hog 04:12, 7 Sep 2005 (UTC) I think it's a good idea. It'll allow us to search pictures more easily. Rock rock on. Homestar Coder 07:15, 7 Sep 2005 (UTC) Anybody else think TMBG need a different picture? Like, one that at least shows their entire faces? — User:ACupOfCoffee@ 06:44, 17 November 2005 (UTC) Speaking of the galleries, I think that the 1936/2006/20X6 counterparts should be arranged in the same way, like having first the Homestar of the era, then the Strong Bad, then the The Cheat, and so on, especially for 1936, since all of the main characters but Homsar have counterparts there. 20X6 might be a bit difficult, at least until we find out whether or not 20X6 Coach Z and the Shadowy Figure are one in the same. TTE 20:23, 28 June 2006 (UTC) [edit] Folk Tale World Should we really have all those Folk Tale World characters here? All of them except Saddy Dumpington link to the same page. We can move Saddy Dumpington to Other Alternates and the Folk Tale World page to Related Pages. -Lotionman 01:30, 24 Sep 2005 (UTC)Lotionman Having the other characters fills out the section. Most of the secions are about 9–12 pictures big, and so even with all the Folk Tale World characters, this one's size is about par for the course. The point of all these galleries is to showcase all the various worlds and characters. The only reason we group things like minor Teen Girl Squad characters into one picture is that there's so many of them it would be ridiculous to try and show them all on this page. Also, even though the links for the Folk Tale characters mostly point to the same page, they don't all point to the same spot on that page. — It's dot com 05:40, 24 Sep 2005 (UTC) [edit] Little Girl Location I moved her from Misc. Characters to Site Contributers, along with Missy and Ryan. I think she fits in better there. ⇔Thunderbird⇔ 06:58, 5 November 2005 (UTC) Good move, looks much better there. -- Tom 07:59, 5 November 2005 (UTC) [edit] Contributors Is it appropriate for the Contributors to be in the characters page? Since they themselves are not necessarily characters (unless they were part of the Peasant's quest trailer, or Limozeen, in which case they should be referred to by their character names, not their real names). I think this section deserves its own page. --Stux 15:39, 11 November 2005 (UTC) P.S. who is Ruby Red Productions? It is listed as a contributor. --Stux 15:40, 11 November 2005 (UTC) In a few days I want to be create a Contributors page and take aforementioned section there, and then link it from the Related Pages subsection.--Stux 16:14, 12 November 2005 (UTC) [edit] Minor Alternate Versions? I'm wondering if some of the characters showing up in Other Alternates should instead in be in Minor Alternate Versions? With the exception of Strong Bad's made-up animals, I think virtually all of these qualify as Minor Alternates. Anyone else agree? — KieferSkunk (talk) — 21:00, 16 November 2005 (UTC) [edit] Staff Characters Listing Mike and Matt Chapman in the same page as Homestar and Strong Bad is... odd. They're staff, not actual HR characters like the rest of 'em. Shouldn't real people who help HR be listed on their own page? They aren't really "characters." - Joshua 22:53, 20 November 2005 (UTC) Yeah, that is odd. But note that "Real Bands" is there too, along with Real Companies. Maybe the page title is no longer accurate? —AbdiViklas 23:12, 20 November 2005 (UTC) I mentioned the same thing a few comments above in the Contributors section. --Stux 23:32, 20 November 2005 (UTC) Yes, but no one seemed to notice it, unfortunately. Anyway, we don't need to change this page's name; just move the contributers to the Contributors page Stux menionted earlier. - Joshua I'm guessing this sounds like some sort of consensus... --Stux 00:53, 21 November 2005 (UTC) Okay! it's been moved! Feel free to check it out! No, seriously, feel free to check it out! I didn't modify it much, just pasted it in there, added categories, and spruced up header a bit. Oh and I inserted a rather lackluster introduction to the page. --Stux 01:12, 21 November 2005 (UTC) [edit] The Brothers Strong The Brothers Strong Entry in the Organizations page has no link... this should link to something, where does it mention the Brothers Strong as being an origanization? Where's the picture from? (The picture links to caper, it says that's where it's from, but that is all) --Stux 03:46, 23 November 2005 (UTC) [edit] See Gee En Buisness In reply to Stux, maybe CGNU hasn't been in "Fictional Companies" before now because educational institutions aren't companies (certainly not public ones). I'm not sure it should be taken off, though. Techincally... I think that yes they are companies... private universities are likely 501(c)3's (non-profit, is that the right #?) and public universities are usually considered independent governmental organizations in and of themselves... so I think they can be considered "companies"... ? (Universities can hold patents, make money, get sued, and can even have bad customer service!) --Stux 05:23, 23 November 2005 (UTC) Hehe... you don't have to tell me about that last one! —AbdiViklas 05:43, 23 November 2005 (UTC) [edit] romans can someone please upload a picture of the "romans" from the sbemail "highschool"? [edit] Bear-Shark Do we really need two bear-shark/"Bear holding a Shark" links on this page? Which one should stay? —NFITC1 talk 06:42, 16 February 2006 (UTC) I SWARE I saw BearShark on Space Ghost Coast to Coast. [edit] Separate characters and character videos I think that the Character Video should be on their own pages, not on the same page as their character. Thoughts? Homestar Coder 22:27, 1 March 2006 (UTC) I dunno. The videos don't really take up that much space, and they are descriptive of each character. Why make people have to click through? — It's dot com 22:30, 1 March 2006 (UTC) Because they're really different objects, one is a toon and one is a character. It just bothers me. Homestar Coder 16:57, 2 March 2006 (UTC) I would like to open this back up, mainly because I just saw the Marzipan article recieve the "Toons with Dialogue Alternatives" category. Characters should not go in toon categories, but that's the only way we can do this now. I still don't understand why we have character videos on character pages. Every single other video and snippet of flash on HR gets a separate page except the character videos. I mean, if click-through was a problem we'd have all the Decemberween in July shorts on one page, for example. Homestar Coder 18:42, 9 May 2007 (UTC) I would be okay with all the character video transcripts being on a single page, but I don't think they should each have a separate page if they're taken off of the characters' articles. Trey56 19:41, 9 May 2007 (UTC) Why shouldn't they each have a separate page? We certainly have shorter and more useless pages than a character video transcript. Homestar Coder 21:06, 9 May 2007 (UTC) To my mind, they're all part of the same feature: HR:characters2.html. Also, I guess if you're reading the transcript for one, you might be wanting to reading the transcript for some of the other ones, and this makes that easier. However, I do see the advantage of each having its own page: it's easier to use {{Film}} for each of the characters' filmographies. And, if we use some navigation templates, it won't be hard to find the other ones. Either way, the more I think about it, I feel that it would be good to take the transcripts off the characters' main articles. I remember the first time I was trying to find one: it took me a while, and when I found it I was a little confused about why it was on there. We can still put prominent links on those pages to the separate article(s) for the character videos, and it might make the transcripts easier to find. Trey56 21:15, 9 May 2007 (UTC) I'm surprised action hasn't been taken on this. Would there be objections to me (or anyone) starting to make individual character pages later on? --TimMierz 19:56, 21 April 2009 (UTC) Well there is Character Video Transcripts and ongoing discussion about it there. 64.198.255.1 20:16, 21 April 2009 (UTC) [edit] Template I barely notice the "DOmicile: House" "Debut: Debut". So, here's an idea for a template for all main characters: {{{character_name}}} [[Image:{{{image}}}\|100px]] [[{{{domicile}}}]] [[{{{debut}}}]] [[:Category:{{{character_name}}} Filmography\|Complete Filmography]] Yes, it was tekn from Template:Infobox Band. Here's an example of {{Template name\|character_name=Homestar Runner\|domicile=Homestar's House\|debut=Original Book\|"The Homestar Runner Enters The Strongest Man in the World Contest"}} Homestar's House "The Homestar Runner Enters The Strongest Man in the World Contest" Just an idea. Bluebry 02:37, 6 April 2006 (UTC) I like it. Anymore info we could throw in? — Elcool (talk)(contribs) 11:25, 6 April 2006 (UTC) Perhaps you could just use {{PAGENAME}} for the character name? Mr. Shmallow (character) is the only page this wouldn't work... though what would you do for characters that don't have a domocile? Oh, and your example wouldn't work... the \| in the debut link will make all the stuff after it get ignored by the templating thing. --phlip TC 11:41, 6 April 2006 (UTC) This looks pretty cool. I, for one, welcome our new template overlords. — Has Matt? (talk) 12:10, 6 April 2006 (UTC) Thanks everyone! And, Phlip? This is just for m,ain characters, as they have the Domiclile: things. Wait, Homsar doesn't. See the revised template below. {{{PAGENAME}}} {{{domicile}}} [[:Category:{{{PAGENAME}}} Filmography\|Complete Filmography]] That way we can say None if needed. Oh, and your probably right about the \| , but it's in a link, and it's in these tables a lot, so it actually would work. That and it works on the example. Bluebry 00:46, 7 April 2006 (UTC) [edit] Teenage variations, etc. Everything else is split so we can see the individual characters; teenage, middle school, and Free Petry Dish should be too. The amount of time it takes the page to load is negligible after it's already loaded over 220 images. — It's dot com 15:58, 28 April 2006 (UTC) I like the compromised version of the sub-headers. Should I upload seperate images of the babies? — Elcool (talk)(contribs) 17:39, 28 April 2006 (UTC) We already have the baby pics for Strong Bad, Strong Sad, Coach Z and the Diapersmith. I don't remember if we have one for Pom Pom, though. — KieferSkunk (talk) — 21:45, 28 April 2006 (UTC) Yep, we do. Just refer to the character pages for Strong Bad, Strong Sad, Coach Z, The Poopsmith and Pom Pom. :) — KieferSkunk (talk) — 21:47, 28 April 2006 (UTC) [edit] Created Worlds vs. Fictional Fictional Characters In my opinion, "Fictional Fictional Characters" is a better name for the Teen Girl Squad, the Cheat Commandos, the Sweet Cuppin' Cakes gang etc. than "Created Worlds", because: It's a term used by Wikipedia It refers to the characters, not the worlds they live in --66.26.92.121 01:18, 28 May 2006 (UTC) [edit] Strong Badian Pseudocharacters I think that the Strong Badia characters should be a subsection of Pseudocharacters. Anyone agree? Trey56 15:44, 14 June 2006 (UTC) You may have a point. They do seeem to fit.Geshmalder 16:00, 14 June 2006 (UTC) Done'd Trey56 17:07, 14 June 2006 (UTC) What about the bundt cake pan? -Dutchscout 00:29, 5 October 2009 (UTC) Unfortunately, the Bundt Cake Pan only ever had one appearance, and never did anything particularly pseudocharacter-y in its brief time onscreen. --DorianGray 04:18, 5 October 2009 (UTC) [edit] Also which what? I really think our "Also known as" section in Character pages could do with a rename. Not only is it misleading (people try to add Nicknames to the sections all the frikking time), but it's not exactly accurate (I don't think Pom Pom would respond well if he was called Fat Dudley). Perhaps "Alternate forms" or "Variants"? --Fourth of Jay (Fireworks!) 22:22, 20 August 2006 (UTC) I agree. Either of those would be a good alternate title. --DorianGray I say we rename it "Character Variations", like the category. --Trogga 22:39, 20 August 2006 (UTC) That's a good idea. I like that. --DorianGray [edit] The decemberween decorations Should the Decemberween decoration versions of the characters from decemberween short shorts be an alternate? [edit] Undead Strong Bad I believe that Strong Bad as a zombie should be included in this page as an Other Alternate. Any comments? ——Supuhstar Actually it all depends on what will come of The Zombie Uprising of 2046. — Elcool (talk)(contribs) 13:07, 16 March 2007 (UTC) [edit] Suggestion for Homsar & Senor Senor shows up too much to be misco & Homsar shows up too little to be main. Both should be secondary & the kings lackies should be misco; though they have been showing up more & more lately, but not as often as Senor or Homsar. Of course all of them could be listed as "Frequent Guest." ^_^ Homsar is widely considered to be one of the "core 12", as his presence is usually in an Easter egg. Senor Cardgage, on the other hand, rarely interacts with the others, and does not have his own character page. --DorianGray 07:33, 23 July 2007 (UTC) [edit] Chart If anyone has the time & will, I'd love to see a chart of character vs year on appearences. For instance, the graph would show Strong Bad skyrocketing ujp the graph while Pom Pom slowly plunges & goes slightly up again. It would be based on appearences in both emails & toons. Last year, I was almost positive Pom Pom was going to vanish like all the king's men, but then they started showing up again while popular characters like Teen Girl Squad & Cheat Commandos are making a small decline. [edit] Minor Characters? Moved from: Talk:Tentacle Skull#Minor Characters Resume discussion! --DorianGray 00:01, 13 August 2007 (UTC) I think we should make a Minor Characters page and put any character with only one appearance there. Who's with me? — Defender1031Talk 23:47, 12 August 2007 (UTC) I think... that would be the longest page ever. --DorianGray 23:48, 12 August 2007 (UTC) Why? — Defender1031Talk 23:49, 12 August 2007 (UTC) It couldn't be any longer than this page.--Antisexy 23:54, 12 August 2007 (UTC) Actually, it would, because it would have to have more detail and description of each character. --DorianGray 23:55, 12 August 2007 (UTC) But it wouldn't have all of those, just the minor ones. — Defender1031Talk 23:57, 12 August 2007 (UTC) For the real people like Don Knotts, all it would need is a link to the appropriate Wikipedia article.--Antisexy 00:00, 13 August 2007 (UTC) Dorian, why don't we try it and cut it into smaller pages and categories if need be? — Defender1031Talk 00:04, 13 August 2007 (UTC) Like "Real people that appear in the HR Universe," "Minor characters with only one appearance," and "minor characters" that that have more than one appearance but really REALLY don't need their own page.--Antisexy 00:16, 13 August 2007 (UTC) Actually, ali and ali's sister should, as they've become a running joke and have 3 appearances, but the rest of what you said is good. — Defender1031Talk 00:18, 13 August 2007 (UTC) I'm with you like no otha, brotha!--Antisexy 23:49, 12 August 2007 (UTC) Wait, didn't we decide not to merge most pages? --Trogga 00:25, 13 August 2007 (UTC) That discussion was while ago, though. Lemme go dig it up. LATER: Here's the ol' discussion. Just for reference. --DorianGray 00:30, 13 August 2007 (UTC) Well, otherwise, we keep ending up with more and more and more pages with just two or three sentences directly quoted from the "references" section of some toon and a link to a Wikipedia article. It's just unsightly.--Antisexy 00:30, 13 August 2007 (UTC) [edit] where be poppy? poppy the tire isn't in the mascots section? we have the stop sign... mistake or purposeful? By clicking Mount RidesPlace USA Mascots you get to see all three mascots, but still, I do think all three deserve a place on the characters page. OptimisticFool 19:54, 7 November 2007 (UTC) [edit] Senor Cardgage a main character? He should be.Physicsguymonsterman 13:06, 12 March 2008 (UTC) Doesn't have a character video or appear in Halloween toons. Therefore, not main. --DorianGray 20:28, 12 March 2008 (UTC) [edit] English What the heck is wrong with the English on this website? It's awful. I can't understand anything. I don't see anything wrong. Perhaps you have a virus that activated on your computer today? --Fourth of Jay (Fireworks!) 18:37, 1 April 2008 (UTC) [edit] Petry Dish vs. Petri Dish Does anybody know where the spelling of "Petry Dish" came from? From what I remember in high school/college chemistry, it's proper spelling was "petri" dish. I think someone should change this... It was (mis)spelled "Petry" in the cartoon, therefore that's the "official" spelling that we use. --DorianGray 20:21, 14 May 2008 (UTC) [edit] New Bad Guy Girl Character Should she go in Blue Laser, or in other characters? And where would the Guy Who Does The Bad Guy's Voice go? Shadoman 16:08, 30 July 2008 (UTC) And where is A. Chimendez? You have Crack Stuntman and Guy Who Does The Bad Guy's Voice, but not Chimendez. [edit] A. Chimendez Seeing as he has a page about him, A. Chimendez should really have his own character link and image on this Characters page, in the same vein as Crack Stuntman does. [edit] Blubb-o's mascot Shouldn’t Coach Z in his Dive-thru whale costume be in mascots? If not the drive through whale is a mascot not just a pseudocharacter. Please explain how you define the category of characters if they belong in more than one category. [edit] Fav main character? Headline speaks for self. My fav is Homsar, AKA "The captain of the gravy train." AKA "Daaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa! This is a great kind of thing to ask on the forum. Why not take it there? — Defender1031Talk 17:51, 31 January 2009 (UTC) [edit] New Character images? I know it's probably uneeded, but I always thought that for the character pages, at least those of the main 12, we should have images of just the characters, without any of the background in it. If so, the images would look something like the ones found here: [1]. What do you guys think? TheTylor 03:37, 14 April 2009 (UTC) I think that link is broken. — Defender1031Talk 03:39, 14 April 2009 (UTC) Hopefully fix'd. Try again. TheTylor 20:29, 14 April 2009 (UTC) Updated with more pictures and categories. No one wants to say whether they think this will be a good idea or not? I'd rather talk about it before I try to change anything. TheTylor 17:39, 19 April 2009 (UTC) Not a bad idea, I think the grid of images would look nice that way. Before uploading those though, some of them could benefit from just a little bit of refinement. The Poopsmith and the KoT images both have some semi-transparent pixels of background still visible in places, and the cut-out of KoT is pretty rough along his back. Sorry to be nit-picky, good work on them ;) —98.222.134.36 18:04, 19 April 2009 (UTC) Okay well, I waited awhile in case someone thought this was a bad idea, but nobody seemed to want to comment on it, so I went ahead and uploaded the main 12 character images with transparent backgrounds. If someone objects, they can just revert the images. If they aren't reverted within a couple of days, I'm just gunna go ahead and work on more of the secondary and minor characters. If anyone wants to help, feel free. I've uploaded everyone I've done so far onto that photo bucket account. TheTylor 02:40, 13 June 2009 (UTC) [edit] Favorite Characters? Hey everypeoples! Just wonderin', would you mind telling me your favorite character? Thank ya so nice! Fingerface 00:01, 2 June 2009 (UTC) Why don't you ask that kind of thing on the forum, you could get a wider response??? Not that many people look at this talk page to awnser that.--Smartkidhen 19:39, 3 June 2009 (UTC)smartkidhen [edit] MADE UP ANIMALS?? In the Other Alternates section, wouldn't it just be easier to list all the names and pictures of the made up animals instead of that one picture and the link to the made up animals page???????? I added Sterrance to the list, but I can take him off if you guys want.--Smartkidhen 19:34, 3 June 2009 (UTC)smartkidhen Well, by a purely simplistic standpoint, listing one is easier than listing a bunch. --DorianGray 20:24, 3 June 2009 (UTC) [edit] 'Wil Characters Okay, this may seem weird, but should we put pictures of the younger ones on their pages? Like, Lil SB on SB's page, Teen Mad on SM's page, Lil Coach Z. Sort of. Catch my drift? SI.com! [edit] Ready for Primetime According to these two edits, Strong Mad's name doesn't belong adjacent to Ready for Primetime in that spot. Apparently we've decided against it. However, I can find no proof that this has been decided against (i'm probably not looking hard enough), and I believe that Strong Mad's name certainly belongs there. In order to prevent a further edit war, I would like to either see evidence to back up Jay's claim, or to open discussion on whether or not Strong Mad's name belongs there. And maybe both; seeing evidence isn't going to change my mind. The Knights Who Say Ni 20:21, 11 February 2011 (UTC) Because Ready for Primetime is his own body. He's a self-sustaining character like Homestar or Eh! Steve!. — MichaelXX2 22:08, 11 February 2011 (UTC) no he's not. he's Strong Mad's head. If Strong Bad's name belongs beside Keyboard Strong Bad since he's based on Strong Bad, then Strong Mad's name belongs beside Ready for Primetime since he's based on Strong Mad. oh, and the evidence was probably more important in my earlier post than the discussion part. The Knights Who Say Ni 00:03, 12 February 2011 (UTC) Frankly, I think you have it backward. I don't think we should have the "(Strong Bad)" next to Keyboard Strong Bad. We put them next to the alternate characters (Old-Timey and 20X6 and so forth), but I don't think they belong in other portions of the page. Now then, Ready for Primetime has Strong Mad's face, but it's not meant to be a counterpart to Strong Mad; after all, where's Homestar's counterpart? And exactly which character does Eh! Steve represent? --Fourth of Jay (Fireworks!) 04:55, 12 February 2011 (UTC) There's nothing to suggest that all the characters need variations. Strong Bad was making it up as he went, and he found a way for himself to fit in to the crazy cartoon, and later on, for Strong Mad to fit in. So, based on what I've said so far, would you predict that I think The Wheelchair should have (Bubs) next to it, or not? i'm closer to being swayed than i was this afternoon, but there still hasn't been any evidence provided to strengthen the edit summary in the first link i posted. anyway, what exactly does the name in parentheses mean? I might have that wiki terminology incorrect. The Knights Who Say Ni 06:12, 12 February 2011 (UTC) Then we should take the parenthetical away from keyboard head strongbad. 132.183.4.6 21:07, 14 February 2011 (UTC) [edit] userboxes Do you think there should be userboxes on all the characters' (including TBC) pages (except "This user" would be replaced with the character's name)? Just a suggestion. -- Gfdgsgxgzgdrc 23:44, 11 May 2011 (UTC) An interesting idea in theory, but I don't think it would work at all. — MichaelXX2 00:10, 12 May 2011 (UTC) Maybe mock up an example. — It's dot com 03:01, 30 May 2011 (UTC) ok how about JUST on tbc's pages? -- Gfdgsgxgzgdrc 22:23, 21 June 2011 (UTC) Perhaps draw it up in the sandbox so you can show us what your idea is. The Knights Who Say Ni 23:59, 21 June 2011 (UTC) [edit] Not Charactors! Why on earth does bands and companies on a CHARACTERS page? they are not characters and they cramp up the page! Should they have onother page? --that guy who is Jfiles 12:37, 21 June 2011 (UTC) June 2011 I believe if any of the characters have contact with the bands/ characters in question, Like, Sloshy, for instance, they are characters. And they are also characters is they simply appear in cartoons and SBemails more then 2 or 3 times. Jibblejibblejibble [edit] F. Sack Souldn't we put the F. Sack from Flash is dead under inanimate objects? — 2.124.225.245 (Talk \| contribs) 20:25, 5 August 2015 (UTC) (left unsigned) I'll add him in. - Catjaz63 20:34, 5 August 2015 (UTC) [edit] A good idea I thought of a pretty good idea to help Homestar Runner fans' knowledge get better. Maybe we should add the first time a main character spoke in a cartoon. If you don't like that idea, never mind. I thought it would help people's knowledge. After all, this IS a knowledge base.--90.203.153.27 18:33, 12 April 2016 (UTC) What are some notable times that this is different from their first appearance? Besides the Poopsmith (which of course we note), none spring to mind. — It's dot com 23:16, 14 April 2016 (UTC) Didn't bubs and the KOT appear in a background somewhere before actually becoming main characters? I also seem to recall marzipan not originally having a voice... — Defender1031*Talk 23:45, 14 April 2016 (UTC) Who cares about The Poopsmith? I just think a character's first speaking roll will make the wiki better and expand people's knowledge--90.203.153.27 15:44, 15 April 2016 (UTC) It sounds like you want to add content for the sake of adding content; I see absolutely no benefit to the typical user the knowledge of when a character first spoke. It sounds like fluff that would be fine for a user subpage, but I really don't think it holds enough water to justify its addition to the Wiki. - Catjaz63 20:27, 15 April 2016 (UTC) I think this is a good idea — though maybe not on it's own page. For example, on the page for Bubs, we could mention under the bullet where his Filmography is listed that A Jumping Jack Contest was his first speaking role (off the top of my head, it could be wrong). Seems pretty useful to me. That said, I also think we should have a page for not-quite Character Relationships, but I seem to be in the minority there. So take my opinion about what belongs on the wiki with a grain of salt, I guess. -- ■■ PURPLE WRENCH ■■ 21:03, 15 April 2016 (UTC) The first few characters to appear in the Homestar body of work did so before sound was a factor, so the characters from the Original Book that have since spoken would be a few examples. I'd support the first speaking role as a bulletpoint under the debut. DEI DAT VM ┌datvm center\super contra┘ 23:41, 15 April 2016 (UTC) [edit] These Should we include Large Bean, Tucker Donaldson, and Twelve-Times-A-Day Man on here? I mean, they are characters... Gfdgsgxgzgdrc 22:23, 8 June 2016 (UTC) Large Bean: I mean, he's not even alive. He's just an attraction for Strong Bad's crappy haunted-type place. Tucker Donaldson: I don't think Unseen Characters go here; they stay on their own page. 12-Times-A-Day Man: Yeah, he goes under Characters#Other Alternates. That's my two cents. - Catjaz63 22:34, 8 June 2016 (UTC) Actually Large Bean goes on Characters#Pseudocharacters. - Catjaz63 22:37, 8 June 2016 (UTC) Wha' 'bout The Bug, The Mountain Goat, Pazquel, Von Blaubloods, and maybe the Turtle? Gfdgsgxgzgdrc 02:18, 12 June 2016 (UTC) I don't think animal characters go on this list. - Catjaz63 02:21, 12 June 2016 (UTC) Well, there's Gavin... Gfdgsgxgzgdrc 05:32, 12 June 2016 (UTC) And the Fat Bluebird is there too! Gfdgsgxgzgdrc 20:06, 22 June 2016 (UTC) I added an "Animals" section. And maybe some more: Edgar, Laconic (PBTC), "Your Mom" (PBTC), and PhoneTime XL8 (pseudocharacter)? Gfdgsgxgzgdrc [edit] Atari Marzipan I don't think Atari Marzipan should be here. She doesn't have a page, whereas Atari Homestar and Atari Strong Bad, who are also listed, do have pages. If we include her, we might as well include the rest of the Atari characters as well. Gfdgsgxgzgdrc 05:20, 8 August 2016 (UTC) Why are Atari Homestar and Atari Strong Bad singled out? Each of their articles consist of all of five sentences. They have more appearances than the other Atari versions, but are they really separate characters? Since we have the retro gaming variations page, I'd be fine with leaving them off here. That or we should list them all. — It's dot com 15:44, 8 August 2016 (UTC) [edit] Minor Character Variations So far, 4 out of 19 minor character variations pages are listed here. Highschool, middle school, Free Petry Dish, and Xeriouxly Forxe. Why those in particular? Should we remove them? Or include all the minor character variations? Or decide which ones should be here and which shouldn't? Gfdgsgxgzgdrc 04:43, 15 December 2018 (UTC) There's a link to it at the bottom of the page, so I think they can be removed. Gfdgsgxgzgdrc 05:06, 7 January 2019 (UTC) Retrieved from "http://hrwiki.org/wiki/Talk:Characters"	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3051
__label__cc	0.652917	0.347083	Editing Talk:Rap Song (section) Warning: You are not logged in. Your IP address will be recorded in this page's edit history. ==Coach Z Doesn't Sound Like Himself== Hey!!! did any of you notice that coach z doesnt sound like himself until the rap{{unsigned\|67.170.119.144\|0:45:18, 2007-11-13}} :That because it was a powered by the cheat cartoon.{{unsigned\|68.210.53.58\|0:53:04, 2007-11-12}} :The Cheat is doing the voices.{{unsigned\|75.72.21.221\|0:53:29, 2007-11-12}} :That would be great... I mean [[Mike]]. He tends to do that for those [[Powered by The Cheat]] thingies. But perhaps it should be mentioned in the transcript when it's a PBTC voice and when it's Coach Z's voice. -- [[User:Laser-Grilled Crab & Cheese Sandwich\|LGC&CS]] 01:32, 13 November 2007 (UTC) ::How should it be noted, however? It doesn't look like there is any precedent for dialog in a PBTC voice and then a musical piece with the regular voice. Should {PBTC} noted in front of each line, or note in the description? {{User:Wbwolf/sig}} 14:57, 13 November 2007 (UTC) ::I'd support putting "Powered by the Cheat" or something tothat effect in front of everyone's name until the song starts. The Cheat made an intro on his own, and then made a video to a previously recorded R-A-P S-O-N-G. That's my view of it, at least. [[User:132.161.138.10\|132.161.138.10]] 20:35, 13 November 2007 (UTC) (I used to have an accoun, but I guess if you use it too infrequently it's DELETED? That's happened to me twice.) :::I'm pretty sure accounts are only deleted under extreme circumstances. I believe this is the case in most wikis, sometimes for legal reasons as well as technical ones. Here at the HRWiki, I don't think [http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.5/ the license] prevents them from deleting accounts (though I'm 1: not a lawyer, and 2: haven't really read the license looking for that kind of thing), but the technical issues here remain the same as anywhere else: If you delete an account, what happens to all of their edits? In any case, knowing what your account names were would help in tracking down the problem, and a [[Special:Listusers/sysop\|sysop]] could help you if you brought it to their attention. Well, if it's an account issue, you might just need a [[Special:Listusers/bureaucrat\|bureaucrat]]. -- [[User:Laser-Grilled Crab & Cheese Sandwich\|LGC&CS]] 03:36, 15 November 2007 (UTC) Your changes will be visible immediately. If you would like to test or practice editing, please do so in the sandbox. You are encouraged to create, expand, and improve upon articles; however, bad edits to articles are watched for and will be quickly removed. Image Code: You are required to enter a code from an image in order to perform certain operations. This image is designed to protect the site from vandalism. If the images are too obscured to read, just give it your best shot and a new image will be shown next time. If you are visually impaired or limited to text-based browsing, you can contact the site administrator and something can be arranged. The code is not case-sensitive. The Homestar Runner Wiki is neither owned by nor affiliated with homestarrunner.com. Much of the material presented here is copyrighted by The Brothers Chaps and/or Harmless Junk, Inc. For more information, see the legal stuff page on the official Homestar Runner website. The proprietor of this site asserts that publication of such material on the wiki qualifies as fair use under United States copyright law. Material on this site that is not copyrighted by The Brothers Chaps (e.g. opinions and mindless chatter) is licensed to the various authors, where indicated, and is released under a Creative Commons Deed, which simply ensures that none of this information may legally be used for commercial purposes. Retrieved from "http://hrwiki.org/wiki/Talk:Rap_Song"	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3052
__label__cc	0.51493	0.48507	You are at:Home»2015»December East Tennessee State University’s football team finally took the field. The Chamber of Commerce hit… A happy accident: Veteran furthers exciting research at VA By Sarah Colson To most people, the idea of spinning in a motorized chair at… Not your average day at the salon: Local boy donates 10 inches of hair It takes a lot of courage to be a soccer forward. For left-footed Lamar Elementary… The year in pictures From the mid-season stride of basketball and wrestling season through the football playoffs, News &… New dog breeds By Bill Derby Did you get one of these dogs for Christmas? Today there are… Reid’s FTDD: a force for good By Scott Robertson I’ve just put the finishing touches on the cover story for the… Farmers make sense on in-state tuition proposal By Jeff Keeling An investment in knowledge pays the best interest. – Benjamin Franklin Education… One Apple Watch and one step at a time By Sarah Colson I asked for it: that tiny, 38 mm screen on my little… State officials reviewing comments on merger rules By Jeff Keeling As Mountain States Health Alliance and Wellmont Health System work toward applying… Obituaries for the Week of 12.30.15 • Cheryl Arnett Ryans, 56, Johnson City, 12/19/15 • William Arthur “Poppy” Honeycutt, 62, Johnson City, 12/19/15…	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3060
__label__cc	0.638089	0.361911	Collection: Kitchen-Klatter Kitchen-Klatter v. 37, n. 03, 1973 Driftmier family Rural Iowa Kitchen-Klatter began as a half-hour radio show with Leanna Driftmier sharing household tips, recipes, and childrearing advice among other topics. The radio show aired from 1926-1986 making it the longest running homemaker program in the history of radio. Kitchen Klatter magazine was issued monthly from 1936-1986 and at one point had a circulation of 150,000. Driftmier, Leanna Field, 1937-1986; Driftmier Pub. Co. TX1 K57x Iowa State University Library Special Collections: http://www.add.lib.iastate.edu/spcl/index.html U.S. and international copyright laws protect this digital image. Commercial use or distribution of the image is not permitted without prior permission of the copyright holder. Iowa Cookbook Collection: http://www.add.lib.iastate.edu/spcl/exhibits/iowacookbook/home.html Serial: 12-32 pages/issue; 12 issues/year; 1937-1986; 28 x 21 cm TX1 K57x v. 37, n. 03, 1973 http://cdm16001.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/ref/collection/p15031coll24/id/23930 Kitchen-Klatter	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3065
__label__wiki	0.813584	0.813584	Loeb (x) › Sushin (x) › Distribution and abundance of larval fishes collected in the western Bransfield Strait region, 1986-87, Larval fishes were obtained from 0-50 m Bongo net and stratified 0-200 m Nansen net samples collected in the western Bransfield Strait region during four RACER (Research on Antarctic Coastal Ecosystem Rates) program cruises, December 1986 to March 1987. Three nototheniid species, Nototheniops larseni, Notothenia gibberifrons, and a form tentatively identified as Tremtomus scotti numerically dominated the total catch. Two typically abundant species in this area, Pleuragramma antarcticum and Notothenia kempi, were relatively uncommon. Gear differences, the restricted geographical coverage, and between-year variability in hydrographic conditions may explain species dominance differences between the RACER samples and prior surveys in the Antarctic Peninsula area. Largest abundances occurred in the vicinity of Gerlache Strait and island shelf areas; larvae were infrequently collected in Drake Passage waters. Individual species demonstrated different distributional patterns, suggesting that water mass influence, larval depth distribution and behavioral differences may be involved. Estimated January to March growth rates for N. larseni (0.06 mm day-1) and T. scotti (0.05 mm day-1) are similar but low compared to that of N. gibberifrons (0.12 mm day-1). © 1991., Cited By (since 1996):12, Antarctica, Fish and Fisheries, , Spatial association between hotspots of baleen whales and demographic patterns of Antarctic krill Euphausia superba suggests size-dependent predation, We examined the spatial association between baleen whales and their principal prey, Antarctic krill Euphausia superba near the South Shetland Islands (Antarctic Peninsula) using data collected by the US Antarctic Marine Living Resources (AMLR) program during January surveys from 2003 through 2007. Whale distributions were determined using ship-based visual surveys, while data on krill distribution, abundance, and demographic characteristics were derived from net hauls. Approximately 25 000 km of transects and 500 net hauls were sampled over 5 yr. We defined hotspots based on statistical criteria to describe persistent areas of occurrence of both whales and krill. Hotspots were identified, and whales and krill length-maturity classes exhibited distinct spatial segregation in their distribution patterns. We found that baleen whales aggregated to krill hotspots that differed in size structure. Humpback whales Megaptera novaeangliae were associated with small (<35 mm) juvenile krill in Bransfield Strait, whereas fin whales Balaenoptera physalus were associated with large (>45 mm) mature krill located offshore. Overlapping these size-dependent krill distributions, Antarctic minke whales B. bonaerensis were associated with intermediate sized krill (35-44 mm). The correlation among different whale species and krill swarms of differing size composition presents an intriguing pattern that deserves further study. © Inter-Research 2010., Cited By (since 1996):16, Marine Mammals, Birds & Turtles, Antarctica, CODEN: MESED, , Santora, Reiss, Loeb, Veit Variations in the biomass of Antarctic krill (Euphausia superba) around the South Shetland Islands, 1996-2006, The time-series of acoustically surveyed Antarctic krill (Euphausia superba) biomass near the South Shetland Islands (SSI) between 1996 and 2006 is re-estimated using a validated physics-based model of target strength (TS), and a species-discrimination algorithm based on the length-range of krill in plankton samples to identify krill acoustically, derived from TS-model predictions. The SSI area is surveyed each austral summer by the US Antarctic Marine Living Resources Program, and the acoustic data are used to examine trends in krill biomass and to assess the potential impact of fishing to the reproductive success of land-based predators (seals and penguins). The time-series of recomputed biomass densities varies greatly from that computed using an empirical log-linear TS-model and fixed-ranges of differences in volume-backscattering strengths (ΔS v), conventionally used to identify krill acoustically. The new acoustic estimates of biomass are significantly correlated with both proportional recruitment and krill abundance estimated from zooplankton samples. Two distinct peaks in biomass (1996 and 2003) are in accord with recruitment events shown by net-based krill time-series. The foundation for the new TS-model and the associated krill-discrimination algorithm, coupled with the agreement between acoustic- and net-survey results, provides strong support for the use of the new analytical technique. Variable biases in the re-estimated krill biomass have been greatly reduced. However, survey variability increased as a result of the increased rejection of acoustic backscatter previously attributed to krill. Management of Southern Ocean krill stocks based on a precautionary approach may therefore result in decreased allocations of krill, given its dependence on the variability of survey estimates. © 2008 US Government and the Department of Commerce/National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration/National Marine Fisheries Service/Southwest Fisheries Science Center., Cited By (since 1996):41, CODEN: ICESE, Antartica, , Reiss, Cossio, Loeb, Demer Long-term monitoring of krill recruitment and abundance indices in the Elephant Island area (Antarctic Peninsula), Krill distribution and density are reviewed for the Elephant Island area with regard to the representativeness of the study area (60°-62°30′S and 53°-57°30′W) for proportional recruit and density indices. Proportional recruitment indices were re-calculated applying the delta distribution approach introduced by de la Mare (1994a). The high interannual variability of krill recruitment is confirmed by the present analysis. Results are compared for one- and two-year-old krill (R1 and R2 respectively). Statistically significant fluctuations in krill density over the period 1977 to 1994 are also confirmed by this study using randomisation tests on an analysis of variance., Cited By (since 1996):33, Antarctica, Invertebrates, , Siegel, De La Mare, Loeb Pteropods and climate off the antarctic Peninsula Shelled (thecosome) and naked (gymnosome) pteropods are regular, at times abundant, members of Southern Ocean zooplankton assemblages. Regionally, shelled species can play a major role in food webs and carbon cycling. Because of their aragonite shells thecosome pteropods may be vulnerable to the impacts of ocean acidification; without shells they cannot survive and their demise would have major implications for food webs and carbon cycling in the Southern Ocean. Additionally, pteropod species in the southwest Atlantic sector of the Southern Ocean inhabit a region of rapid warming and climate change, the impacts of which are predicted to be observed as poleward distribution shifts. Here we provide baseline information on intraseasonal, interannual and longer scale variability of pteropod populations off the Antarctic Peninsula between 1994 and 2009. Concentrations of the 4 dominant taxa, Limacina helicina antarctica f. antarctica, Clio pyramidata f. sulcata, Spongiobranchaea australis and Clione limacina antarctica, are similar to those monitored during the 1928-1935 Discovery Investigations and reflect generally low values but with episodic interannual abundance peaks that, except for C. pyr. sulcata, are related to basin-scale climate forcing associated with the El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) climate mode. Significant abundance increases of L. helicina and S. australis after 1998 were associated with a climate regime shift that initiated a period dominated by cool La Niña conditions and increased nearshore influence of the Antarctic Circumpolar Current (ACC). This background information is essential to assess potential future changes in pteropod species distribution and abundance associated with ocean warming and acidification. © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. Loeb, Santora Early development of Diaphus garmani (Myctophidae) in the transition region of the western North Pacific, We present the descriptions of the larval and transforming stages of one of the most abundant Diaphus species in the transition region of the western North Pacific, Diaphus garmani. Species identification was achieved by tracing characters backward from identifiable juveniles through transforming and larval stages. Description of the larval development includes the morphometric characteristics, pigmentation, and photophore development, which help identify the early life stages of this species., Cited By (since 1996):6, Fish and Fisheries, , Sassa, Kawaguchi, Loeb Salp distribution and size composition in the Atlantic sector of the Southern Ocean, Salp abundance and length frequency were measured during the large-scale CCAMLR 2000 Survey conducted in the Atlantic Sector of the Southern Ocean in the 1999/2000 season. Results from regional surveys around Elephant Island in 1994/95 and 1996/97 seasons also were examined. During the CCAMLR 2000 Survey, salp abundance was higher in the Antarctic Peninsula and South Sandwich Island areas than in the central Scotia Sea. The probable reason for this pattern is a negative relationship with phytoplankton abundance; the central Scotia Sea having greater phytoplankton concentrations than required for optimal salp filter-feeding performance. Cluster analysis of salp size composition resulted in three cluster groups for each of the three surveys. Clusters comprising large salps occurred in warmer waters in all three surveys. The size composition of the salp populations suggests that the timing of intense asexual reproductive budding was earlier in warmer waters. As surface water temperatures generally decrease from north to south, and increase from spring to summer, the general spatio-temporal pattern of asexual reproduction by budding is likely to proceed from north to south as the summer season progresses. © 2004 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved., Cited By (since 1996):12, CODEN: DSROE, , Kawaguchi, Siegel, Litvinov, Loeb, Watkins Population dynamics of Salpa thompsoni near the Antarctic Peninsula: Growth rates and interannual variations in reproductive activity (1993-2009), The salp Salpa thompsoni has exhibited increased abundance in high latitude portions of the Southern Ocean in recent decades and is now frequently the numerically dominant zooplankton taxon in the Antarctic Peninsula region. The abundance increase of this species in high latitude waters is believed related to ocean warming. Due to its continuous filter feeding and production of dense rapidly sinking fecal pellets S. thompsoni is considered to be an important link in the export of particulate carbon from the surface waters. Hence basic information on the life history of this component of the Antarctic marine ecosystem is essential for assessing its impact given continued climate warming. Here we cover various aspects of the life history of S. thompsoni collected in the north Antarctic Peninsula during annual austral summer surveys of the US Antarctic Marine Living Resources (AMLR) Program between 1993 and 2009. We focus on seasonal and interannual variations in the size composition and abundance of the aggregate (sexual) and solitary (asexual) stages. This information is valuable for refining components of Southern Ocean food web models that explicitly deal with size-structured and life history information on zooplankton. Intraseasonal changes in length-frequency distribution of both stages are used to estimate their growth rates. These average 0.40mmday -1 for aggregates and 0.23mmday -1 for solitaries; together these represent ~7week and ~7.5month generation times, respectively, and a 9month life cycle (i.e., onset of aggregate production year 1 to aggregate production year 2). Based on the maximum lengths typically found during January-March, the life spans of the aggregate and solitary stages can reach at least ~5 and ~15months, respectively. Length-frequency distributions each year reflect interannual differences in timing of the initiation and peak reproductive output. Interannual differences in the abundance of total salps and proportions of the overwintering solitary stage are significantly correlated with El Niño Southern Oscillation indices (SOI and Nino3.4) prevailing over the previous 2years. Massive salp blooms result from two successive summers of elevated solitary production following a reversal from La Niña to El Niño conditions. These results indicate the role of basin-scale atmospheric-oceanic processes in establishing optimal conditions that support aggregate and solitary stage reproduction, development and growth. © 2011 Elsevier Ltd., Cited By (since 1996):4, CODEN: POCNA, , Using carapace measurements to determine the sex of Antarctic krill, Euphausia superba, Krill (Euphausia superba) carapace measurements (length and width; mm) collected from plankton tows in the South Shetland Islands (SSI), Antarctica are used to test the generality of a common discriminant function developed to reconstruct krill length frequencies in Antarctic fur seal diets for the area surrounding South Georgia (SG). Total length and sex ratio of krill in the SSI were overestimated by 5.6 and 154%, respectively, when the SG allometric equations were applied to 3 years (2003-2005) of data. These errors arise and increase as a result of krill population dynamics, specifically recruitment that contributes large proportions of immature krill, misclassified as males by the SG discriminant function. We develop sex-specific regression models based on separate discriminant functions that provide significantly better discriminatory power. However, our analysis indicates that reconstructions of krill sex ratio and length composition in the ocean environment are less reliable in years when the ratio of immature to mature krill is high. For the SSI area, five out of 14 years (35.7%) surveyed (1992-2005) had proportions of immature to mature adult krill ≥ 0.50. © 2006 Springer-Verlag., Cited By (since 1996):2, CODEN: POBID, , Goebel, Lipsky, Reiss, Loeb Seabird species assemblages reflect hydrographic and biogeographic zones within Drake Passage Drake Passage, extending from the southern tip of South America to the northern Antarctic Peninsula, is a dynamic oceanographic region with well-defined habitats delineated by the three strong frontal jets of the Antarctic Circumpolar Current (ACC). Here, we describe seabird species distribution patterns across Drake Passage and test the hypothesis that species assemblages broadly reflect physical characteristics of the hydrographic fronts. Strip-transect seabird surveys were conducted between Tierra del Fuego and the South Shetland Islands (700 km track line) during January–March (austral summer) over 14 years (48 crossings). Locations of the latitudinally variable fronts were assessed using in situ shipboard data on sea surface temperature and salinity; areas of high variance were used to indicate frontal features. We quantified five distinct species assemblages that correspond to biogeographic regions and relate to the positions of the Sub-Antarctic Front, Polar Front and ACC Southern Front. Dense seabird concentrations coincided with regions characterized by highly variable sea surface temperature and salinity, suggesting that associated species assemblages reflect the mesoscale hydrographic surface as indicated by sea surface conditions. Force, Santora, Reiss, Loeb Hydrographic control of the marine ecosystem in the South Shetland-Elephant Island and Bransfield Strait region The South Shetland-Elephant Island and Bransfield Strait region of the West Antarctic Peninsula is an important spawning and nursery ground of Antarctic krill (Euphausia superba) and is an important source of krill to the Southern Ocean. Krill reproductive and recruitment success, hence supply of krill to predator populations locally and in downstream areas, are extremely variable on interannual and longer time scales. Interannual ecosystem variability in this region has long been recognized and thought related to El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO) events, but understanding of how has been limited by the hydrographic complexity of the region and lack of appropriate ocean-atmosphere interaction models. This study utilizes multidisciplinary data sets collected in the region from 1990 to 2004 by the U.S. Antarctic Living Marine Resources (AMLR) Program. We focus on hydrographic conditions associated with changes in the distribution, abundance and composition of salp- and copepod-dominated zooplankton assemblages during 1998 and 1999, years characterized respectively by a strong El Niño event and La Niña conditions. We provide detailed analyses of hydrographic, biological and ecological conditions during these dichotomous years in order to identify previously elusive oceanographic processes underlying ecosystem variability. We found that fluctuations between salp-dominated coastal zooplankton assemblages and copepod-dominated oceanic zooplankton assemblages result from the relative influence of Weddell Sea and oceanic waters and that these fluctuations are associated with latitudinal movement of the Southern Antarctic Circumpolar Current Front (sACCf). Latitudinal movements of the sACCf can be explained by meridional atmosphere teleconnections instigated in the western tropical Pacific Ocean by ENSO variability and are consistent with out-of-phase forcing in the South Pacific and South Atlantic Oceans by the Antarctic Dipole high-latitude climate mode. During El Niño decreased northwest winds, equatorward movement of the sACCf and an intensified Weddell Gyre allow Weddell Sea water to flow into eastern Bransfield Strait. During these periods mixing between oceanic and coastal waters is reduced, chlorophyll a concentrations are low, salps numerically dominate the zooplankton, and krill recruitment success is poor. During La Niña increased and more frequent northwest winds and poleward movement of the sACCf allows increased influence of oceanic waters and mixing of these with cold coastal waters. These periods are characterized by numerical dominance of copepods, elevated concentrations of oceanic zooplankton taxa and phytoplankton blooms that promote krill reproduction and recruitment success. Hydrographic and ecological changes after the 1998 El Niño are associated with a shift from frequent El Niños to the prevalence of La Niña and neutral conditions and conform to a decadal-scale climate regime shift in the Antarctic Peninsula region., Cited By (since 1996):8, CODEN: DSROE Loeb, Hofmann, Klinck, Holm-Hansen Variability of Euphausia superba populations near Elephant Island and the South Shetlands: 1981 vs. 1984, March 1981 and 1984 Euphausia superba populations were compared using acoustics and net catches near Elephant Island, the South Shetlands, and in the Bransfield Strait. In 1981, krill tended to form large, thick swarms and in 1984, smaller, more dispersed, shallower patches. March body lengths of juvenile-adult krill were 22-59 mm in 1981 and 13-59 mm in 1984. Near Elephant I. in 1981, krill >45 mm were most numerous; in 1984 sizes <45 mm were dominant. In March 1984, the larger (>45 mm) body-size group was prereproductive and occurred from just west of Elephant I. westward into waters north of the South Shetlands; in 1981 the larger krill were postreproductive and more widely distributed in the Elephant I. area. Overall, netted postlarval krill, 1981 vs. 1984, averaged 73 vs. 48 individuals/m2, or 54 vs. 16 g/m2; acoustic biomass estimates were 229 vs. 134-201 g/m2. Larvae near Elephant I. averaged >2000/m2 in 1981 vs. <1/m2 in 1984-compatible with respective March reproductive states. Net-type comparisons revealed short-term (15 min to 6h) variability of a similar scale in both MOCNESS and bongo net catches, but bongo abundances averaged greater. Variation in maturity composition across 1981 swarms, patches, and random transects was like variation among the random 1984 tows; spatial distributions were more heterogeneous in 1984. The March 1984 krill of 20-44 mm (Year-2, mode 34 mm) relate to November 1983 krill of 9-30 mm (mode 21 mm), indicating growth averaging 12 mm during the season. Body-lengths and size-frequency modes of Year-2 and combined Years-3,3+ krill from comparable Feb-Mar data collected since 1968 suggest trends between times when (1) Year-2 krill average small and peak reproduction seems to be late in the season and/or weak (1979, 1982-1984), and (2) Year-2 krill are larger, and reproduction is possibly earlier and more successful (1976, 1980, 1981). © 1987 Springer-Verlag., Cited By (since 1996):9, CODEN: POBID, , Brinton, Loeb, Macaulay, Shulenberger Antarctic krill stock distribution and composition in the Elephant Island and King George Island areas, January-February, 1988, Information is provided on the distribution, size and maturity composition of Antarctic krill (Euphausia superba) stocks in the Elephant Island and King George Island areas, and at repeatedly sampled sites to the north of each island, during January-February, 1988. The overall distributional patterns of different sizes and maturity stages demonstrated a seasonal progression of those observed in the Antarctic Peninsula region during November-December, 1987 by Siegel (1989). The krill sampled at each island site represented different size-maturity groups and demonstrated different horizontal and vertical distributional characteristics. These distributional differences may be related to the demographic differences and/or hydrographie differences between the two sites. © 1993 Springer-Verlag., Cited By (since 1996):2, CODEN: POBID, Invertebrates, , Loeb, Amos, Macaulay, Wormuth Vertical distributions and relations of euphausiid populations off Elephant Island, March 1984, Distributional relationships are described for post-larval and larval Euphausia superba and Thysanoessa sp. (probably macrura) and post-larval Euphausia frigida collected in 0-70/80 m and 0-175/200 m depth ranges with a MOCNESS sampler north of Elephant Island (61°S, 55°W) during 17-23 March 1984. Larval E. superba (predominantly calyptopes stage 2 and 3) were rare shallower than 80 m at night. Day catches of post-larval E. suberba were small and night catches were primarily near the top of the thermocline above 50 m depth. Thysanoessa sp. occurred throughout the 0-200 m depth range and was abundant in the upper 80 m both night and day. E. frigida migrated to the upper 80 m at night from deeper day depths. Larval stages of E. superba and bost-larval stages of all three species demonstrated independent and variable vertical distribution patterns both night and day. Changes in E. superba abundance and distributional patterns could to a certain extent be associated with observed environmental changes. An increase in larval and decrease in post-larval E. superba abundances between 0-80 m was associated with an intrusion of cold water at depth. At night, vertically restricted concentrations of post-larval E. superba were associated with shallow mixed layer depths, and a significant vertical separation of developmental stages and size categories was observed only during periods of stratification in the upper 80 m. Fluctuations in the distribution and abundance of Thysanoessa sp. and distribution of E. frigida did not appear to be influenced by physical parameters within the upper 80 m. Within the 0-80 m depth range, the distributions of these two species differed from each other and from E. superba and showed large tow to tow variability that could not be related to physical parameters in the upper water column. © 1987 Springer-Verlag., Cited By (since 1996):8, CODEN: POBID, , Loeb, Shulenberger Climate variability and spatiotemporal dynamics of five Southern Ocean krill species Understanding the ecological response of marine organisms to future climate change will benefit from quantifying spatiotemporal aspects of their distribution and abundance as well as the influence of ocean-atmospheric climate modes on their population cycles. Our study provides a synthesis of 18. years of data (1992-2009) for 5 krill (euphausiid) species monitored near the North Antarctic Peninsula (NAP) during austral summer. Distribution and abundance data are presented for postlarval stages of Euphausia crystallorophias, E. frigida, E. superba, E. triacantha and Thysanoessa macrura and larval E. superba and T. macrura. Intraseasonal, interannual and longer-term distribution and abundance patterns are quantified relative to climate modes driving ecosystem variability off the Antarctic Peninsula: El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO), Southern Annual Mode (SAM) and associated zonal and meridional winds. Interannual abundance variations of all 5 species are significantly correlated with seasonally averaged ENSO indices and, with the exception of E. triacantha, elevated population sizes are associated with the higher productivity La Niña phase. Time-lagged responses of each species to ENSO indices approximate their generation times and suggest evolution of their life histories and reproductive efforts in accordance with the ENSO cycle. Postlarval E. crystallorophias and E. frigida and larval T. macrura demonstrate significant abundance increases after 1998 associated with a shift from an El Niño dominated period to predominantly La Niña and "Nino-neutral" conditions. Seasonal changes in species distributions and co-occurrence indicate portions of the southernmost E. frigida, E. triacantha and T. macrura populations move poleward with E. superba during late-summer, suggesting that environmental conditions associated with sea ice development (e.g., food, retention) may be more favorable than within the Antarctic Circumpolar Current during low productivity seasons. Spatial distributions of larval and postlarval T. macrura suggest 2 separate spawning populations within oceanic and coastal waters. Lastly, mean euphausiid species concentrations and abundance relationships encountered during 1992-2009 are remarkably similar to those reported for the Antarctic Peninsula during the 1928-1935 Discovery Investigations. Circumpolar observations of E. superba "superswarms" associated with a major climatically related ecosystem change in the late 1970s may have represented an episodic period of anomalous peak abundance. Subsequent abundance estimates compared to these anomalies would indicate a significant decrease, but should not be taken to reflect the impact of climate warming. Nearshore assemblages of larval rockfishes and their physical environment off central California during an extended El Niño event, 1991-1993, Rockfish are among the most prevalent members of nearshore ichthyoplankton assemblages off central California, yet their abundance varies greatly from year to year. Warm events, like El Niño, can have pronounced effects on the success of a year class. We evaluate distribution, abundance, and species composition of rockfish larvae on small spatial and temporal scales in the upwelling center north of Monterey Bay during an extended El Niño (December 1991 through June 1993) relative to regional hydrography. Anomalously warm, low-salinity water to depths greater than 50 m during much of our study was indicative of an onshore displacement of the California Current. Upwelling was reduced and delayed relative to other years. The two years differed, however, in the intensity, duration, frequency, and direction of wind events. Larval rockfish abundance was similar in both years of the El Niño, peaking in early February, and was among the highest when compared with estimates from CalCOFI surveys off central California (1951-84). Using larval ages, we determined that median birthdates of shortbelly rockfish were in early- to mid-February both years. Growth rates of larval shortbelly rockfish did not differ among months or between years. Relative to 1993, rockfish larvae were more abundant, and sizes of larval shortbelly were significantly greater at onshore stations in 1992. This coincided with onshore advection of water during the onset of the El Niño, suggesting retention of larvae nearshore. Initiation of upwelling in March and April 1993 and fewer larvae at onshore stations are indicative of greater offshore transport during the second year. Juvenile rockfishes were extremely rare in summer of 1992; in 1993 they were twenty times more abundant and larger. Surviving juvenile shortbelly rockfish were born late during both years; upwelling occurred coincidentally during this period in 1993 but not in 1992. We suggest that substantially higher survival and recruitment of juvenile rockfishes in 1993 was due to increased offshore transport and perhaps lower predation during the larval stages., Cited By (since 1996):34, CODEN: FSYBA, , Yoklavich, Loeb, Nishimoto, Daly Krill population dynamics in the Scotia Sea: Variability in growth and mortality within a single population, Understanding the demographics of Antarctic krill over large scales may be complicated by regional differences in the processes that govern population structure. The influence of regional differences in growth and mortality on population size structure was examined using data on the length-frequency distribution of krill in the Scotia Sea using samples from the South Shetland Islands and South Georgia collected annually from 1991 to 2000. A correction function, which took account of the higher growth rate at South Georgia, produced a consistent similarity in the position of the modal size classes that was not present in the raw data. Optimising the mortality rate, to minimise the differences in the growth corrected length-frequency distribution, suggested a higher mortality rate at South Georgia that the South Shetlands. The intra-specific variations in growth and mortality rates are consistent with published values and with other Euphausiids species. Having accounted for the demographic plasticity, it is apparent that strong recruitment of the smallest size class of krill is represented in both populations simultaneously. It appears that first-year krill are advected into different regions of the Scotia Sea where the resultant population size structure is determined by regional differences in growth and mortality. The majority of the commercial harvest of krill in the Antarctic occurs in a relatively small number of regional fisheries within the Scotia Sea and is managed using population models based on a single set of demographic parameters. Where substantial differences in these parameters exist between fishing areas, the calculation of catch limits should take these differences into account., Cited By (since 1996):28, CODEN: JMASE, , Reid, Murphy, Loeb, Hewitt Interannual variation of ichthyoplankton composition and abundance relations off northern Chile, 1964-83, The 19-yr timespan included a wide variety of hydrographic conditions in the Humboldt Current area (cold years, El Nino events, and intervening transition years); it also included the decline and collapse of the anchoveta Engraulis fisheries and increases of sardine Sardinops, mackerel Scomber and jack mackerel Trachurus stocks off northern Chile and Peru. A marked shift in relative abundances of nonfished mesopelagic species in 1969-70 is associated with changes within long-term physical data bases from Chile and Peru suggesting a large-scale environmental change. Sardine stock growth began with successful larval survival of 1968-69 and later year classes. Anchoveta stock decline began in 1972 probably due to poor larval survival. Affiliation of anchoveta and coastal species larval abundance implies that they are similarly influenced by coastal processes. An atmospherically driven oceanic circulation change beginning in the late 1960s and possibly involving onshore presence of subtropical and/or oceanic waters and altered coastal processes may have been responsible for the changes in the northern Chilean fish assemblages., Cited By (since 1996):25, , Loeb, Rojas Krill (Euphausia superba) density, proportional and absolute recruitment and biomass in the Elephant Island region (Antarctic Peninsula) during the period 1977 to 1997, The Elephant Island region (Antarctic Peninsula) was selected as a long-term monitoring site to describe the interannual variability of important krill stock parameters. The analysis reviewed and updated krill density and proportional recruitment indices. Krill absolute recruitment and biomass from net sampling surveys are introduced as additional indices from this time series. New survey results from the past two seasons indicate a very successful 1994/1995 year-class and slightly below average proportional recruitment of the 1995/1996 krill year-class. Absolute recruitment of the 1995/1996 year-class was high compared to preceding years, because total stock size was relatively high in 1996/1997. After a period of low krill density and biomass in the area for almost a decade, krill density and biomass have increased. Caution is expressed as to whether this observed increase represents a long-term recovery of the stock., Cited By (since 1996):55, CODEN: POBID, , Siegel, Loeb, Gröger Effects of sea-ice extent and krill or salp dominance on the Antarctic food web, Krill (Euphausia superba) provide a direct link between primary producers and higher trophic levels in the Antarctic marine food web. The pelagic tunicate Salpa thompsoni can also be important during spring and summer through the formation of extensive and dense blooms. Although salps are not a major dietary item for Antarctic vertebrate predators, their blooms can affect adult krill reproduction and survival of krill larvae. Here we provide data from 1995 and 1996 that support hypothesized relationships between krill, salps and region-wide sea-ice conditions. We have assessed salp consumption as a proportion of net primary production, and found correlations between herbivore densities and integrated chlorophyll-a that indicate that there is a degree of competition between krill and salps. Our analysis of the relationship between annual sea-ice cover and a longer time series of air temperature measurements indicates a decreased frequency of winters with extensive sea-ice development over the last five decades. Our data suggest that decreased krill availability may affect the levels of their vertebrate predators. Regional warming and reduced krill abundance therefore affect the marine food web and krill resource management., Cited By (since 1996):361, Antarctica, Invertebrates, CODEN: NATUA, , Loeb, Siegel, Holm-Hansen, Hewitt, Fraser, Trivelpiece, Trivelpiece ENSO and variability of the Antarctic peninsula pelagic marine ecosystem, The West Antarctic Peninsula region is an important source of Antarctic krill (Euphausia superba) in the Southern Ocean. From 19802004 abundance and concentration of phytoplankton and zooplankton, krill reproductive and recruitment success and seasonal sea ice extent here were significantly correlated with the atmospheric Southern Oscillation Index and exhibited three- to five-year frequencies characteristic of El NioSouthern Oscillation (ENSO) variability. This linkage was associated with movements of the Southern Antarctic Circumpolar Current Front and Boundary, a changing influence of Antarctic Circumpolar Current and Weddell Sea waters, and eastward versus westward flow and mixing processes that are consistent with forcing by the Antarctic Dipole high-latitude climate mode. Identification of hydrographic processes underlying ecosystem variability presented here were derived primarily from multi-disciplinary data collected during 19902004, a period with relatively stable year-to-year sea ice conditions. These results differ from the overwhelming importance of seasonal sea ice development previously established using 19801996 data, a period marked by a major decrease in sea ice from the Antarctic Peninsula region in the late 1980s. These newer results reveal the more subtle consequences of ENSO variability on biological responses. They highlight the necessity of internally consistent long-term multidisciplinary datasets for understanding ecosystem variability and ultimately for establishing well-founded ecosystem management. Furthermore, natural environmental variability associated with interannual- and decadal-scale changes in ENSO forcing must be considered when assessing impacts of climate warming in the Antarctic PeninsulaWeddell Sea region. © Antarctic Science Ltd 2009., Cited By (since 1996):20, Antarctica, Invertebrates, Oceanography, CODEN: ANTSE, , Loeb, Hofmann, Klinck, Holm-Hansen, White A re-appraisal of the total biomass and annual production of Antarctic krill, Despite much research on Euphausia superba, estimates of their total biomass and production are still very uncertain. Recently, circumpolar krill databases, combined with growth models and revisions in acoustics have made it possible to refine previous estimates. Net-based databases of density and length frequency (KRILLBASE) yield a summer distributional range of ∼19×10 6km 2 and a mean total abundance of 8×10 14 post-larvae with biomass of 379 million tonnes (Mt). These values are based on a standardised net sampling method but they average over the period 1926-2004, during which krill abundance has fluctuated. To estimate krill biomass at the end of last century we combined the KRILLBASE map of relative krill density around Antarctica with an acoustics-derived biomass estimate of 37.3Mt derived for the Scotia Sea area in 2000 by the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR). Thus the CCAMLR 2000 survey area contains 28% of the total stock, with total biomass of ∼133Mt in January-February 2000. Gross postlarval production is estimated conservatively at 342-536Mtyr -1, based on three independent methods. These are high values, within the upper range of recent estimates, but consistent with the concept of high energy throughput for a species of this size. The similarity between the three production estimates reflects a broad agreement between the three growth models used, plus the fact that, for a given population size, production is relatively insensitive to the size distribution of krill at the start of the growth season. These production values lie within the envelope of what can be supported from the Southern Ocean primary production system and what is required to support an estimated predator consumption of 128-470Mtyr -1. Given the range of recent acoustics estimates, plus the need for precautionary management of the developing krill fishery, our net-based data provide an alternative estimate of total krill biomass. © 2008 Elsevier Ltd., Cited By (since 1996):34, CODEN: DRORE, , , Antarctica, Invertebrates Atkinson, Siegel, Pakhomov, Jessopp, Loeb Oceanic circumpolar habitats of Antarctic krill, Surveys of Euphausia superba often target localised shelves and ice edges where their growth rates and predation losses are atypically high. Emphasis on these areas has led to the current view that krill require high food concentrations, with a distribution often linked to shelves. For a wider, circumpolar perspective, we compiled all available net-based density data on postlarvae from 8137 mainly summer stations from 1926 to 2004. Unlike Antarctic zooplankton, the distribution of E. superba is highly uneven, with 70 % of the total stock concentrated between longitudes 0° and 90° W. Within this Atlantic sector, krill are abundant over both continental shelf and ocean. At the Antarctic Peninsula they are found mainly over the inner shelf, whereas in the Indian-Pacific sectors krill prevail in the ocean within 200 to 300 km of the shelf break. Overall, 87% of the total stock lives over deep oceanic water (>2000 m), and krill occupy regions with moderate food concentrations (0.5 to 1.0 mg chl am -3). Advection models suggest some northwards loss from these regions and into the low chlorophyll belts of the Antarctic Circumpolar Current (ACC). We found possible evidence for a compensating southwards migration, with an increasing proportion of krill found south of the ACC as the season progresses. The retention of krill in moderately productive oceanic habitats is a key factor in their high total production. While growth rates are lower than over shelves, the ocean provides a refuge from shelf-based predators. The unusual circumpolar distribution of krill thus reflects a balance between advection, migration, top-down and bottom-up processes. © Inter-Research 2008., Cited By (since 1996):76, CODEN: MESED, , , Downloaded from: www.int-res.com/articles/feature/m362p001.pdf (13 June 2014). Atkinson, Siegel, Pakhomov, Rothery, Loeb, Ross, Quetin, Schmidt, Fretwell, Murphy, Tarling, Fleming Krill space: A comparative assessment of mesoscale structuring in polar and temperate marine ecosystems The spatial organization, mesoscale variability, and habitat associations of krill within portions of the Antarctic Peninsula and California Current marine ecosystems are compared. Using a decade of acoustic observations and remotely sensed oceanography (20002009), the hypothesis that mesoscale spatial organization of krill in both systems closely relates to geospatial variability of the shelf break and is non-linearly related to geostrophic flow and positively related to chlorophyll a (Chl a) is tested. Directional-dependence analysis to measure spatial variability of krill is used along with spatially explicit generalized additive models to quantify and compare the spatial relationships among krill and habitat characteristics in both systems. The results suggest the following aspects of krill spatial organization: (i) areas of dense aggregation, i.e. hot spots, are present in both systems and are orientated in the direction of the shelf break, (ii) moderate levels of eddy kinetic energy seem to concentrate krill in favourable habitats and lessen the likelihood of advection away from the system, and (iii) variable responses to surface Chl a concentration suggest that real-time Chl a values may not be useful as a global predictor of important krill habitat. The results provide valuable reference points for marine spatial management of krill and for refining ecosystem and foodweb models., Cited By (since 1996):5, CODEN: ICESE Santora, Sydeman, Schroeder, Reiss, Wells, Field, Cossio, Loeb Santora (6) + - Siegel (6) + - Reiss (5) + - Hewitt (3) + - Holm-Hansen (3) + - Kawaguchi (3) + - Atkinson (2) + - Cossio (2) + - Demer (2) + - Hofmann (2) + - Klinck (2) + - Macaulay (2) + - Murphy (2) + - Pakhomov (2) + - Shulenberger (2) + - Amos (1) + - Brinton (1) + - Daly (1) + - De La Mare (1) + -	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3066
__label__wiki	0.715345	0.715345	Geographic variation in density, demography, and life history traits of a harvested temperate sex-changing reef fish Geographic variation in ecological and environmental factors may lead to intraspecific differences among populations. For the California sheephead (Semicossyphus pulcher), an important predator in kelp forests and a target of commercial and recreational fisheries, we evaluated the degree to which different populations exhibited variation in density, demography, and life history traits. We assessed biogeographic patterns of abundance through underwater visual census at 39 sites spanning a major portion of the species range (southern California, USA, to Baja California, Mexico) and made collections from seven focal sites to investigate geographic differences in demography and life histories. California sheephead densities were significantly greater in the southern part of their range and at offshore islands than along the mainland coast. At the focal sites, we found significant spatial variation in density, fecundity, size structure, growth rates, annual survivorship, and the timing of maturation and sex change. Density- and temperature-dependent effects helped to explain the intraspecific differences in these parameters. Studies such as this one will allow for demographic plasticity to be incorporated into future stock assessments. Management of temperate reef fishes may best be achieved on smaller spatial scales as we increase our understanding of geographic variation among populations. Caselle, Hamilton, Schroeder, Love, Standish, Rosales-Casián, Sosa-Nishizaki Fishing top predators indirectly affects condition and reproduction in a reef-fish community To examine the indirect effects of fishing on energy allocation in non-target prey species, condition and reproductive potential were measured for five representative species (two-spot red snapper Lutjanus bohar, arc-eye hawkfish Paracirrhites arcatus, blackbar devil Plectroglyphidodon dickii, bicolour chromis Chromis margaritifer and whitecheek surgeonfish Acanthurus nigricans) from three reef-fish communities with different levels of fishing and predator abundance in the northern Line Islands, central Pacific Ocean. Predator abundance differed by five to seven-fold among islands, and despite no clear differences in prey abundance, differences in prey condition and reproductive potential among islands were found. Body condition (mean body mass adjusted for length) was consistently lower at sites with higher predator abundance for three of the four prey species. Mean liver mass (adjusted for total body mass), an indicator of energy reserves, was also lower at sites with higher predator abundance for three of the prey species and the predator. Trends in reproductive potential were less clear. Mean gonad mass (adjusted for total body mass) was high where predator abundance was high for only one of the three species in which it was measured. Evidence of consistently low prey body condition and energy reserves in a diverse suite of species at reefs with high predator abundance suggests that fishing may indirectly affect non-target prey-fish populations through changes in predation and predation risk. © 2012 The Authors. Journal of Fish Biology © 2012 The Fisheries Society of the British Isles., Cited By (since 1996):1, Export Date: 24 September 2013, Source: Scopus, CODEN: JFIBA Walsh, Hamilton, Ruttenberg, Donovan, Sandin Spatial and temporal variation in the natal otolith chemistry of a Hawaiian reef fish: Prospects for measuring population connectivity, , , , One of the most compelling unanswered questions in marine ecology is the extent to which local populations are connected via larval exchange. Recent work has suggested that variation in the chemistry of otoliths (earstones) of fishes may function as a natural tag, potentially allowing investigators to determine sources of individual larvae and estimate larval connectivity. We analyzed the spatial and temporal variation in natal otolith chemistry of a benthic-spawning reef fish from the Hawaiian Islands. We found no consistent chemical variation at the largest scale (>100 km, among islands), but found significant variation at moderate scales (sites within islands, tens of kilometres) and small scales (clutches within sites), and chemistry of otoliths was not stable between years. These results imply that we may be able to use otolith chemistry to track larval dispersal only if the scales of dispersal match those of variation in natal otolith chemistry, and that separate natal otolith collections may be needed to track different cohorts of larvae. Finally, we found that elemental composition of recruit cores often did not match that of natal otoliths, suggesting that additional methodological development is required before we can effectively apply methods in otolith chemistry to the study of larval dispersal., , Ruttenberg, Hamilton, Warner Elevated levels of trace elements in cores of otoliths and their potential for use as natural tags, , , , Variation in the chemical composition of fish otoliths has been used in recent years to address a range of ecological questions, including levels of stock mixing, variation in habitat use, and rates of larval exchange. While some of these questions have been answered with varying success, the degree to which discrete populations are connected via larval exchange remains unknown. To identify larval sources using natural variation in otolith chemistry, we must distinguish and measure the chemical composition of the otolith core, the portion of the otolith formed at the spawning site. Using laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (LA-ICPMS), we found that the core regions of otoliths from 6 different species of fishes were highly enriched in manganese (Mn), and elevated in magnesium (Mg) and barium (Ba), relative to adjacent regions of the otolith. These patterns were consistent for species drawn from different taxonomic groups, which inhabit temperate and tropical regions, are found in marine and freshwater, and utilize a variety of spawning modes. Variation among species in Mn concentration in the core also corresponds to maternal investment, measured by egg size. These data suggest that core enrichment may be a general characteristic of otoliths, and that the chemical composition of the otolith core is fundamentally different from other regions of the otolith. The localized elemental enrichment of the core underscores the importance of methods that analyze the core region in small, discrete samples if otolith chemistry is used to address questions of larval exchange among populations., , Ruttenberg, Hamilton, Hickford, Paradis, Sheehy, Standish, Ben-Tzvi, Warner Postsettlement survival linked to larval life in a marine fish, , , , There is a growing realization that the scale and degree of population connectivity are crucial to the dynamics and persistence of spatially structured populations. For marine organisms with complex life cycles, experiences during larval life may influence phenotypic traits, performance, and the probability of postsettlement survival. For a Caribbean reef fish (Thalassoma bifasciatum) on an oceanic island, we used otolith (ear stone) elemental profiles of lead (Pb) to assign recent settlers to a group that developed in waters elevated in Pb concentrations throughout larval life (i.e., nearshore signature) and a group that developed in waters depleted in Pb (i.e., offshore signature), potentially dispersing from upstream sources across oceanic waters. Larval history influenced early life history traits: offshore developers initially grew slowly but compensated with fast growth upon entering nearshore waters and metamorphosed in better condition with higher energy reserves. As shown in previous studies, local production contributed heavily to settlement: at least 45% of settlers developed nearshore. However, only 23% of survivors after the first month displayed a nearshore otolith profile. Therefore, settlers with different larval histories suffered differential mortality. Importantly, selective mortality was mediated by larval history, in that the postsettlement intensity of selection was much greater for fish that developed nearshore, potentially because they had developed in a less selectively intense larval environment. Given the potential for asymmetrical postsettlement source-based survival, successful spatial management of marine populations may require knowledge of “realized connectivity” on ecological scales, which takes into account the postsettlement fitness of individuals from different sources., , Hamilton, Regetz, Warner Geographic variation in natal and early larval trace-elemental signatures in the statoliths of the market squid Doryteuthis (formerly Loligo) opalescens, , , , We found distinct geographic differences in trace element concentrations in both the core and early larval areas of the statoliths of paralarval market squid Doryteuthis (= Loligo) opalescens at sites throughout the Southern California Bight, USA. Laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (LA-ICPMS) of individual statoliths indicated detectable levels of Mg, Mn, Sr, and Ba, with marginal levels of Cr and Pb. While these paralarvae showed considerable within-sample differences in elemental concentrations, there was significant between-site discrimination of natal (core) and early larval signatures for collection sites up to 100 km apart. In 2002 and 2003, levels of Ba and Sr in the statolith cores were significantly different among sites, suggesting differences in the natal environment or local maternal effects. Site specific differences in elemental signatures were also apparent for Mg and Mn in samples taken from outside the core in the early post-hatching period. These same portions of the statolith can be analyzed from adult squid collected on spawning grounds. We showed that concentrations of trace elements in the statolith cores of adults closely resembled the core signatures of squid paralarvae, which opens the possibility of identifying the source populations for stocks of this commercially important species., , Warner, Hamilton, Sheehy, Zeidberg, Brady, Caselle The interaction of retention, recruitment, and density-dependent mortality in the spatial placement of marine reserves, Population density can affect rates of mortality and individual growth. We measured these for the nonexploited bluehead wrasse, Thalassoma bifasciatum, at three sites around St. Croix, US Virgin Islands. Previous work demonstrated that differences in the degree of larval retention in these sites results in very large differences in recruitment intensity. Post-settlement mortality differed among sites and was positively related to recruitment density. Post-settlement growth differences were small. Because of strong mortality effects early in life, adult densities and size/age distributions differed among sites and did not reflect differences in recruitment rate. The site with the highest retention and recruitment (Butler Bay) had many small fish, while the two other sites with lower recruitment rates (Jacks Bay and Green Cay) had proportionally more large fish. These differences resulted in large differences in egg production. Per capita production was highest at the lowest density site (Green Cay). Total egg production at Green Cay was 75% that at Butler Bay, despite only having half the population size, and the highest overall production was at Jacks Bay, with low retention and moderate recruitment. In terms of marine reserve location, sites predicted to have high retention and recruitment may not always be the sites of highest egg production due to density-dependent processes, and it is important to consider the relative values of self-recruitment and larval export in reserve design., , , Caselle, Hamilton, Warner Utilizing spatial demographic and life history variation to optimize sustainable yield of a temperate sex-changing fish Fish populations vary geographically in demography and life history due to environmental and ecological processes and in response to exploitation. However, population dynamic models and stock assessments, used to manage fisheries, rarely explicitly incorporate spatial variation to inform management decisions. Here, we describe extensive geographic variation in several demographic and life history characteristics (e.g., size structure, growth, survivorship, maturation, and sex change) of California sheephead (Semicossyphus pulcher), a temperate rocky reef fish targeted by recreational and commercial fisheries. Fish were sampled from nine locations throughout southern California in 2007-2008. We developed a dynamic size and age-structured model, parameterized separately for each location, to assess the potential cost or benefit in terms of fisheries yield and conservation objectives of changing minimum size limits and/or fishing mortality rates (compared to the status quo). Results indicate that managing populations individually, with location-specific regulations, could increase yield by over 26% while maintaining conservative levels of spawning biomass. While this local management approach would be challenging to implement in practice, we found statistically similar increases in yield could be achieved by dividing southern California into two separate management regions, reflecting geographic similarities in demography. To maximize yield, size limits should be increased by 90 mm in the northern region and held at current levels in the south. We also found that managing the fishery as one single stock (the status quo), but with a size limit 50 mm greater than the current regulations, could increase overall fishery yield by 15%. Increases in size limits are predicted to enhance fishery yield and may also have important ecological consequences for the predatory role of sheephead in kelp forests. This framework for incorporating demographic variation into fisheries models can be exported generally to other species and may aid in identifying the appropriate spatial scales for fisheries management. © 2011 Hamilton et al., Cited By (since 1996):3, Fish and Fisheries, Art. No.: e24580 Hamilton, Wilson, Ben-Horin, Caselle Benthic processes and overlying fish assemblages drive the composition of benthic detritus on a central Pacific coral reef, While detrital material is recognized as an important food source on coral reefs, its role in reef food webs remains unclear. We quantified standing stock and input rates to the detrital resource pool in exposed forereef and protected backreef habitats of Palmyra Atoll National Wildlife Refuge and measured the trophic structure of the overlying fish assemblage. While detrital standing stock was 1.6 times higher on the backreef than on the forereef, detrital input rates were 1.7 to 2.9 times higher on the forereef. Planktivores were the most abundant guild in the fore reef habitat, and stable isotope signatures of detritus reflected a greater input from pelagic sources (i.e. depleted in 13C). In contrast, herbivores and detritivores numerically dominated the backreef habitat and detrital stable isotope signatures appeared to be predominately of benthic origin (i.e. enriched in 13C). Through total organic carbon (TOC) and nitrogen analyses we found that benthic detritus may represent a significant nutritional source. Converting total nitrogen into maximum protein estimates, we found high benthic deposition of protein (104 to 124 mg m-2 d-1) and organic carbon (184 to 190 mg m -2 d-1), but very low standing stocks of these materials (protein: 5 to 6 mg m-2, organic carbon: 46 to 63 mg m-2). While high water flow rates may explain low standing stocks of detritus in forereef habitats, the lower flow rates in backreef habitats suggest that removal of this material is via consumption by abundant roving detritivorous fishes. Our results provide support for the hypothesis that reef fish detritivory represents a significant consumer-mediated energy pathway, promoting nutrient recycling by linking many elements of a complex food web. © Inter-Research 2013., Cited By (since 1996):1, Fish and Fisheries, CODEN: MESED, , Max, Hamilton, Gaines, Warner Variable responses of temperate calcified and fleshy macroalgae to elevated pCO2 and warming Anthropogenic carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions simultaneously increase ocean temperatures and reduce ocean surface pH, a process termed ocean acidification (OA). OA is expected to negatively affect the growth and physiology of many calcified organisms, but the response of non-calcified (fleshy) organisms is less well understood. Rising temperatures and pCO2 can enhance photosynthetic rates (within tolerance limits). Therefore, warming may interact with OA to alter biological responses of macroalgae in complicated ways. Beyond thresholds of physiological tolerance, however, rising temperatures could further exacerbate negative responses to OA. Many studies have investigated the effects of OA or warming independently of each other, but few studies have quantified the interactive effects of OA and warming on marine organisms. We conducted four short-term independent factorial CO2 enrichment and warming experiments on six common species of calcified and fleshy macroalgae from southern California to investigate the independent and interactive effects of CO2 and warming on growth, carbonic anhydrase (CA) enzyme activity, pigment concentrations, and photosynthetic efficiency. There was no effect of elevated pCO2 on CA activity, pigment concentration, and photosynthetic efficiency in the macroalgal species studies.However,we found that calcareous algae suffered reduced growth rates under high pCO2 conditions alone, although the magnitude of the effect varied by species. Fleshy algae had mixed responses of growth rates to high pCO2, indicating that the effects of pCO2 enrichment are inconsistent across species. The combined effects of elevated pCO2 and warming had a significantly negative impact on growth for both fleshy and calcareous algae; calcareous algae experienced five times more weight loss than specimens in ambient control conditions and fleshy growth was reduced by 76%. Our results demonstrate the need to study the interactive effects of multiple stressors associated with global change on marine communities., http://icesjms.oxfordjournals.org/content/early/2015/09/25/icesjms.fsv168.abstract, Advanced view Kram, Price, Donham, Johnson, Kelly, Hamilton, Smith Exploitation and recovery of a sea urchin predator has implications for the resilience of southern California kelp forests Size-structured predator–prey interactions can be altered by the history of exploitation, if that exploitation is itself size-selective. For example, selective harvesting of larger sized predators can release prey populations in cases where only large individuals are capable of consuming a particular prey species. In this study, we examined how the history of exploitation and recovery (inside marine reserves and due to fisheries management) of California sheephead (Semicossyphus pulcher) has affected size-structured interactions with sea urchin prey in southern California. We show that fishing changes size structure by reducing sizes and alters life histories of sheephead, while management measures that lessen or remove fishing impacts (e.g. marine reserves, effort restrictions) reverse these effects and result in increases in density, size and biomass. We show that predation on sea urchins is size-dependent, such that the diet of larger sheephead is composed of more and larger sized urchins than the diet of smaller fish. These results have implications for kelp forest resilience, because urchins can overgraze kelp in the absence of top-down control. From surveys in a network of marine reserves, we report negative relationships between the abundance of sheephead and urchins and the abundance of urchins and fleshy macroalgae (including giant kelp), indicating the potential for cascading indirect positive effects of top predators on the abundance of primary producers. Management measures such as increased minimum size limits and marine reserves may serve to restore historical trophic roles of key predators and thereby enhance the resilience of marine ecosystems. Hamilton, Caselle Predator-induced demographic shifts in coral reef fish assemblages, In recent years, it has become apparent that human impacts have altered community structure in coastal and marine ecosystems worldwide. Of these, fishing is one of the most pervasive, and a growing body of work suggests that fishing can have strong effects on the ecology of target species, especially top predators. However, the effects of removing top predators on lower trophic groups of prey fishes are less clear, particularly in highly diverse and trophically complex coral reef ecosystems. We examined patterns of abundance, size structure, and age-based demography through surveys and collection-based studies of five fish species from a variety of trophic levels at Kiritimati and Palmyra, two nearby atolls in the Northern Line Islands. These islands have similar biogeography and oceanography, and yet Kiritimati has ~10,000 people with extensive local fishing while Palmyra is a US National Wildlife Refuge with no permanent human population, no fishing, and an intact predator fauna. Surveys indicated that top predators were relatively larger and more abundant at unfished Palmyra, while prey functional groups were relatively smaller but showed no clear trends in abundance as would be expected from classic trophic cascades. Through detailed analyses of focal species, we found that size and longevity of a top predator were lower at fished Kiritimati than at unfished Palmyra. Demographic patterns also shifted dramatically for 4 of 5 fish species in lower trophic groups, opposite in direction to the top predator, including decreases in average size and longevity at Palmyra relative to Kiritimati. Overall, these results suggest that fishing may alter community structure in complex and non-intuitive ways, and that indirect demographic effects should be considered more broadly in ecosystem-based management. © 2011 Ruttenberg et al., , , , Ruttenberg, Hamilton, Walsh, Donovan, Friedlander, DeMartini, Sala, Sandin Species-specific consequences of ocean acidification for the calcareous tropical green algae Halimeda Ocean acidification (OA), resulting from increasing dissolved carbon dioxide (CO2) in surface waters, is likely to affect many marine organisms, particularly those that calcify. Recent OA studies have demonstrated negative and/or differential effects of reduced pH on growth, development, calcification and physiology, but most of these have focused on taxa other than calcareous benthic macroalgae. Here we investigate the potential effects of OA on one of the most common coral reef macroalgal genera, Halimeda. Species of Halimeda produce a large proportion of the sand in the tropics and are a major contributor to framework development on reefs because of their rapid calcium carbonate production and high turnover rates. On Palmyra Atoll in the central Pacific, we conducted a manipulative bubbling experiment to investigate the potential effects of OA on growth, calcification and photophysiology of 2 species of Halimeda. Our results suggest that Halimeda is highly susceptible to reduced pH and aragonite saturation state but the magnitude of these effects is species specific. H. opuntia suffered net dissolution and 15% reduction in photosynthetic capacity, while H. taenicola did not calcify but did not alter photophysiology in experimental treatments. The disparate responses of these species to elevated CO2 partial pressure (pCO2) may be due to anatomical and physiological differences and could represent a shift in their relative dominance in the face of OA. The ability for a species to exert biological control over calcification and the species specific role of the carbonate skeleton may have important implications for the potential effects of OA on ecological function in the future. © 2011 Inter-Research., Cited By (since 1996):12, Seaweeds, CODEN: MESED Price, Hamilton, Tootell, Smith Reassessment of the fecundity of California sheephead, Fecundity estimates used in a 2004 stock assessment to evaluate the overall health of the population of California sheephead Semicossyphus pulcher were based primarily on two studies. The first estimated the total fecundity of only nine individuals captured near Santa Catalina Island, California, and the second estimated batch fecundity of individuals taken from only one artificial reef. In order to develop a current and more comprehensive estimate of fecundity, we collected California sheephead from seven locations off southern California throughout the spawning season (July through September). To estimate both total fecundity and batch fecundity, we categorized and counted oocytes from ovarian subsamples of 28 and 24 (respectively) mature females (stage 3, spawning capable; determined by histological analysis). Total and batch fecundity increased with somatic mass, standard length, and ovary mass. We found total fecundity to increase with somatic mass to a power of 5.5, which is considerably greater than the value (2.95) reported previously. Our observations therefore highlight the importance of large females in the reproductive potential of the California sheephead stock. Regression analysis indicates that ovary mass is the most accurate biological indicator of fecundity for California sheephead and should be used for subsequent stock analyses., , , Loke-Smith, Floyd, Lowe, Hamilton, Caselle, Young Extensive geographic and ontogenetic variation characterizes the trophic ecology of a temperate reef fish on southern California (USA) rocky reefs, Interactions between predator and prey act to shape the structure of ecological communities, and these interactions can differ across space. California sheephead Semicossyphus pulcher are common predators of benthic invertebrates in kelp beds and rocky reefs in southern California, USA. Through gut content and stable isotope (δ 13C and δ 15N) analyses, we investigated geographic and ontogenetic variation in trophic ecology across 9 populations located at island and mainland sites throughout southern California. We found extensive geographic variation in California sheephead diet composition over small spatial scales. Populations differed in the proportion of sessile filter/suspension feeders or mobile invertebrates in the diet. Spatial variation in diet was highly correlated with other life history and demographic traits (e.g. growth, survivorship, reproductive condition, and energy storage), in addition to proxies of prey availability from community surveys. Multivariate descriptions of the diet from gut contents roughly agreed with the spatial groupings of sites based on stable isotope analysis of both California sheephead and their prey. Ontogenetic changes in diet occurred consistently across populations, despite spatial differences in size structure. As California sheephead increase in size, diets shift from small filter feeders, like bivalves, to larger mobile invertebrates, such as sea urchins. Our results indicate that locations with large California sheephead present, such as many marine reserves, may experience increased predation pressure on sea urchins, which could ultimately affect kelp persistence. © Inter-Research 2011., Cited By (since 1996):6, CODEN: MESED, , Hamilton, Caselle, Lantz, Egloff, Kondo, Newsome, Loke-Smith, Pondella II, Young, Lowe Size-selective harvesting alters life histories of a temperate sex-changing fish, , , , Selective mortality, whether caused naturally by predation or through the influence of harvest practices, initiates changes within populations when individuals possessing certain heritable traits have increased fitness. Theory predicts that increased mortality rates will select for changes in a number of different life history characteristics. For example, fishing often targets larger individuals and has been shown repeatedly to alter population size structure and growth rates, and the timing of maturation. For sex-changing species, selective fishing practices can affect additional traits such as the mature population sex ratio and the timing of sexual transformation. Using historical comparisons, we examined the effects of exploitation on life history characteristics of California sheephead, Semicossyphus pulcher, a temperate protogynous (female–male sex changer) labrid that inhabits nearshore rocky environments from central California, USA, to southern Baja California, Mexico. Recreational fishing intensified and an unregulated commercial live-fish fishery developed rapidly in southern California between the historical and current studies. Collections of S. pulcher from three locations (Bahı´a Tortugas, Catalina Island, and San Nicolas Island) in 1998 were compared with data collected 20–30 years previously to ascertain fishery-induced changes in life history traits. At Bahı´a Tortugas, where fishing by the artisanal community remained light and annual survivorship stayed high, we observed no changes in size structure or shifts in the timing of maturation or the timing of sex change. In contrast, where recreational (Catalina) and commercial (San Nicolas) fishing intensified and annual survivorship correspondingly declined, males and females shifted significantly to smaller body sizes, females matured earlier and changed sex into males at both smaller sizes and younger ages and appeared to have a reduced maximum lifespan. Mature sex ratios (female : male) increased at San Nicolas, despite a twofold reduction in the mean time spent as a mature female. Proper fisheries management requires measures to prevent sex ratio skew, sperm limitation, and reproductive failure because populations of sequential hermaphrodites are more sensitive to size-selective harvest than separate-sex species. This is especially true for S. pulcher, where different segments of the fishery (commercial vs. recreational) selectively target distinct sizes and therefore sexes in different locations., , Hamilton, Caselle, Standish, Schroeder, Love, Rosales-Casian, Sosa-Nishizaki Synthesizing mechanisms of density dependence in reef fishes: Behavior, habitat configuration, and observational scale, , , , Coral and rocky reef fish populations are widely used as model systems for the experimental exploration of density-dependent vital rates, but patterns of density-dependent mortality in these systems are not yet fully understood. In particular, the paradigm for strong, directly density-dependent (DDD) postsettlement mortality stands in contrast to recent evidence for inversely density-dependent (IDD) mortality. We review the processes responsible for DDD and IDD per capita mortality in reef fishes, noting that the pattern observed depends on predator and prey behavior, the spatial configuration of the reef habitat, and the spatial and temporal scales of observation. Specifically, predators tend to produce DDD prey mortality at their characteristic spatial scale of foraging, but prey mortality is IDD at smaller spatial scales due to attack-abatement effects (e.g., risk dilution). As a result, DDD mortality may be more common than IDD mortality on patch reefs, which tend to constrain predator foraging to the same scale as prey aggregation, eliminating attack-abatement effects. Additionally, adjacent groups of prey on continuous reefs may share a subset of refuges, increasing per capita refuge availability and relaxing DDD mortality relative to prey on patch reefs, where the patch edge could prevent such refuge sharing. These hypotheses lead to a synthetic framework to predict expected mortality patterns for a variety of scenarios. For nonsocial, nonaggregating species and species that aggregate in order to take advantage of spatially clumped refuges, IDD mortality is possible but likely superseded by DDD refuge competition, especially on patch reefs. By contrast, for species that aggregate socially, mortality should be IDD at the scale of individual aggregations but DDD at larger scales. The results of nearly all prior reef fish studies fit within this framework, although additional work is needed to test many of the predicted outcomes. This synthesis reconciles some apparent contradictions in the recent reef fish literature and suggests the importance of accounting for the scale-sensitive details of predator and prey behavior in any study system., , Wilson White, Samhouri, Stier, Wormald, Hamilton, Sandin Consistent long-term spatial gradients in replenishment for an island population of a coral reef fish The population replenishment of marine organisms is routinely characterized as highly variable and unpredictable in space and time. Using island-wide recruitment surveys of a common coral reef fish, the bluehead wrasse Thalassoma bifasciatum, in 6 summers spanning a 12 yr period (1991 to 2003), we examined whether spatial patterns of recruitment are consistent or variable through time on St. Croix, US Virgin Islands. Despite annual fluctuations in the magnitude of replenishment, recruitment intensity follows a distinct and consistent spatial gradient that differs in direction between the north (leeward) and south (windward) shores; recruitment declines from west to east on the north shore and east to west on the south shore. The rank ordering of sites on each shore was concordant when recruitment was either pooled across years (monthly variation) or pooled across months (annual variation). When the 2 highest recruitment sites on each shore were considered alone, consistent seasonal effects were also apparent, with higher recruitment from June through August on the north shore, and higher recruitment in September on the south shore. Thus, while the magnitude of recruitment is indeed variable in space and time, its qualitative pattern is predictable in this area. Results of prior investigations of larval dispersal and coastal oceanography around St. Croix shed light on the origin of the consistent recruitment patterns documented in this study. The potential for consistent spatial and temporal patterns in recruitment is an important consideration in the spatial management of marine resources. Hamilton, White, Caselle, Swearer, Warner Otolith barium profiles verify the timing of settlement in a coral reef fish, , , , Otolith microstructure has been shown to record valuable information about fishes including age, growth, and the timing of life history transitions, while microchemical analysis can reveal information about environmental history, dispersal, and migration. For the bluehead wrasse Thalassoma bifasciatum, a common coral reef fish on an oceanic island, we examined whether otolith chemistry could be used to identify the timing of settlement from the pelagic larval phase to the reef-based juvenile phase. This species has a distinct settlement mark visible in its otolith microstructure. Using laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (LA-ICPMS), we found that Ba:Ca ratios increased abruptly at the time of settlement. On average, Ba:Ca ratios were 6.5× greater in the juvenile than the larval phase. Other elements (Mg, Mn, and Sr) also displayed ontogenetic changes in concentration; however, those changes were not associated with the settlement mark. We demonstrate the potential utility of otolith chemistry as a method to identify the timing of settlement (and thereby the larval duration) in other marine fishes with similar early life histories, whose otoliths may not produce distinct settlement checks or those whose settlement stage larvae may not be captured by other means., , Hamilton, Warner Larval history influences post-metamorphic condition in a coral-reef fish Upon settlement, many Wshes undergo an energetically costly metamorphic period that requires substantial nutritional reserves. Larval growth and the accumulation of lipids prior to metamorphosis are likely to infuence growth and survival following this critical period. On the Caribbean island of St. Croix, I investigated relationships between larval growth, early life-history characteristics, and post-metamorphic lipid content in the bluehead wrasse Thalassoma bifasciatum. Lipid reserves remaining after metamorphosis were positively related (r2 = 0.62) to the width of the metamorphic band; thus, this otolith-derived trait may be used to estimate the condition at emergence of survivors collected at some later time. In contrast, pelagic larval duration, average larval growth, and otolith size at settlement were negatively related to postmetamorphic lipid content. Interestingly, the trend for slower growth among fish in good condition was not consistent over the entire pelagic larval duration. Analyses of daily larval growth histories indicated that Wsh with high lipid reserves grew rapidly in the last week prior to settlement, but relatively slowly during the early phases of larval life; those emerging with low lipid concentrations, however, displayed strikingly opposite patterns. These contrasting patterns of growth and energy storage were consistent at two sites and over three recruitment events. Otolith chemistry data suggested that diVerences in growth histories and body condition were consistent with the hypothesis of larval development in distinct oceanic environments (characterized by Pb concentration); but, within a water mass, differences reflected life-history trade-offs between growth and energy storage. The results have implications for understanding the processes driving juvenile survival, which may be condition dependent. Testing larval fish dispersal hypotheses using maximum likelihood analysis of otolith chemistry data, Sandin, Regetz, Hamilton Geographic variation in trace-element signatures in the statoliths of near-hatch larvae and recruits of Concholepas concholepas (loco) Spatial variation of trace elements in calcified structures (otoliths, statoliths, and shells) has been used to track the movements of individuals among habitats, and connectivity between marine populations. In the present study, we used laser ablation-inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry to quantify the concentrations of trace elements in statoliths of prehatch larvae and recruits of the gastropod Concholepas concholepas from 3 regions in Chile. We also examined spatial variation in chemical signatures deposited during larval life and at the time of settlement in intertidal habitats. We found significant differences between 3 geographic regions in the trace element concentrations recorded in natal statoliths of near-hatch larvae and in natal core and edge areas of recruit statoliths. Discriminant function analysis indicates that natal signatures of near-hatch larvae and the cores and edges of recruit statoliths show spatial segregation among regions. High levels of reclassification success of larvae to the origin region suggest potential for assigning recruits to the corresponding matching region. Concentrations of trace elements in the natal cores of recruit statoliths fell relatively close but did not overlap with the discriminant space occupied by larvae, and at regional scales the pattern of geographic variation of recruit statoliths resembles that of larval statoliths. This suggests population grouping and little population interchange at this regional scale. Assessing population stocks and connectivity of this species at smaller scales along the Chilean coast will only be possible with more finely structured sampling and a better understanding of temporal variation in the chemical environment. © Inter-Research 2012., CODEN: MESED Manríquez, Galaz, Opitz, Hamilton, Paradis, Warner, Castilla, Labra, Lagos Quantifying patterns of fish herbivory on Palmyra Atoll (USA), an uninhabited predator-dominated central Pacific coral reef On many coral reefs, herbivorous fish play an essential role in regulating algal growth and influencing the outcome of coral-algal competition. Working on a remote predator-dominated coral reef on Palmyra Atoll, USA, we used behavioral foraging observations to quantify the roles of common parrotfish and surgeonfish in the roving herbivore guild. We recorded species-specific bite rates on different benthic organisms, quantified the relative abundance of those benthic organisms, and estimated benthos-specific grazing intensities as a function of bite rates, fish abundance, and percent cover. These grazing metrics were compared between the exposed fore reef (∼10 m depth) and protected reef terrace (∼5 m depth) habitats. We observed large differences in feeding rates and substrate selectivity among fish species. Most species fed predominately on algal turfs; however, some species foraged broadly among fleshy macroalgal taxa, while others specialized on calcified green algae of the genus Halimeda. The highest bite rates were recorded from species targeting algal turfs, while the highest rates of defecation were recorded from species targeting Halimeda. Per capita bite rates of all species were higher in the fore reef habitat (mean 45% more bites min-1); however, overall grazing intensities on turf algae (bites cm-2 d-1) were 5 times higher on the reef terrace than on the fore reef. Despite habitat-specific differences in the herbivore assemblages, the estimated distribution of total bites showed consistency among habitats, with strong guild-level positive foraging selectivity for algal turf. Comparisons of bite and defecation rate data for these herbivores across the Indo-Pacific highlight phylogenetic constraints on grazing activities. Overall, this study illustrates the importance of herbivore functional redundancy, variability in species-specific grazing, and provides a framework for assessing guildwide grazing impacts on coral reefs. © Inter-Research 2014. Hamilton, Smith, Price, Sandin Incorporating biogeography into evaluations of the Channel Islands marine reserve network, , , , Networks of marine reserves are increasingly a major component of many ecosystem-based management plans designed to conserve biodiversity, protect the structure and function of ecosystems, and rebuild and sustain fisheries. There is a growing need for scientific guidance in the design of network-wide monitoring programs to evaluate the efficacy of reserves at meeting their conservation and management goals. Here, we present an evaluation of the Channel Islands reserve network, whichwas established in 2003 off the coast of southern California. This reserve network spans a major environmental and biogeographic gradient, making it a challenge to assess network-wide responses of many species. Using fish community structure data from a long-term, large-scale monitoring program, we first identified persistent geographic patterns of community structure and the scale at which sites should be grouped for analysis. Fish communities differedmost among islandswith densities of individual species varying from 3- to 250-fold. Habitat structure differed among islands but not based on reserve status. Across the network, we found that, after 5 years, species targeted by fishing had higher densities (1.5×) and biomass (1.8×) inside reserves, whereas nontargeted species showed no significant differences. Examining trophic groups, piscivore and carnivore biomass was significantly greater inside reserves (1.8× and 1.3× more, respectively), whereas the biomass of planktivores and herbivores was similar inside and out. A framework for incorporating biogeographic variation into reserve network assessments is critical as we move from the evaluation of single reserves to networks of reserves., , Hamilton, Caselle, Malone, Carr Caselle (11) + - Warner (9) + - Sandin (5) + - Ruttenberg (4) + - Price (3) + - Smith (3) + - Standish (3) + - Donovan (2) + - Loke-Smith (2) + - Love (2) + - Lowe (2) + - Newsome (2) + - Paradis (2) + - Regetz (2) + - Schroeder (2) + - Sheehy (2) + - Sosa-Nishizaki (2) + - Walsh (2) + - Young (2) + -	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3067
__label__cc	0.592169	0.407831	Smith (x) › Cobalt and copper distributions in the waters of Santa Monica Basin, California, The trace metals cobalt and copper are removed from the oceans interior by scavenging on to particle surfaces, but the mechanisms for removal of these two metals are probably quite different. Cobalt appears to be scavenged by manganese oxide particles, whereas organic compounds are the main carrier phase for copper. Remobilization of these metals in marine sediments therefore proceeds by different pathways. The differences in the pathways of remobilization are accentuated in oxygen-deficient environments: manganese oxide reduction is accelerated at low oxygen levels and organic carbon is preserved. Cobalt fluxes from sediments underlying oxygen-deficient waters should be enhanced and copper fluxes reduced. We report here measurements of the cobalt and copper distributions in the waters of an oxygen-deficient marine basin in the Southern California Bight. Cobalt concentrations near the bottom are raised four times above the background level, whereas copper concentrations show no increase. These measurements confirm features of existing models for the oceanic cycles of these metals., Cited By (since 1996):18, Oceanography, CODEN: NATUA, , Johnson, Stout, Berelson, Sakamoto-Arnold Chemical and biological interactions in the Rose Garden hydrothermal vent field, Galapagos spreading center, The concentrations of a suite of redox reactive chemicals were measured in the Rose Garden hydrothermal vent field of the Galapagos spreading center. Sulfide, silicate, oxygen and temperature distributions were measured in situ with a submersible chemical analyser. In addition, 15 chemical species were measured in discrete samples. Variability in the slope of the temperature-silicate plots indicates that heat is lost from these relatively low temperatures (<15°C) solutions by conduction to the solid phase. Consumption of oxygen, sulfide and nitrate from the hydrothermal solution as it flows past the vent animals is apparent from the distributions measured in situ and in the discrete samples. The fraction of sulfide and nitrate removed from the solution by consumption appears to have increased between 1979-1985. Sulfide and oxygen appear to be consumed under different conditions: sulfide is removed primarily from the warmest solutions, and oxygen is consumed only from the cold seawater. This separation may be driven primarily by the increased gradients of each chemical under these conditions. There is no evidence for the consumption of significant amounts of manganese(II) by the vent organisms. The analysis of other data sets from this vent field indicate no significant consumption of methane by the vent organisms, as well. © 1988., Cited By (since 1996):103, Oceanography, , Johnson, Childress, Hessler, Sakamoto-Arnold, Beehler Clark (17) + -	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3068
__label__wiki	0.772252	0.772252	Gordon (x) › Kim (x) › Comparison of seastar (Asteroidea) fauna across island groups of the Scotia Arc, The Antarctic shelf fauna is isolated from other continental shelf faunas both physically by distance, and oceanographically by the Antarctic circumpolar current (ACC). To elucidate the relative importance of these two isolating mechanisms, we used the seastar fauna of the south-Atlantic sub-Antarctic islands to address the hypothesis that the ACC is dominant in controlling the distribution pattern of Antarctic fauna. We expected that seastar faunas from islands on the high latitude side of the ACC would show more similarities to each other than to faunas from islands on the low latitude side. The alternative isolation by distance model predicted that the island furthest from others would have the most unique fauna. For shelf-depth (<500 m) Asteroidea of the Scotia Arc region, assemblages were more similar between islands on each side of the ACC barrier than islands that were closer together, and this pattern was caused by differences in abundance of a few ubiquitous species. © 2006 Springer-Verlag., Cited By (since 1996):3 Invertebrates, , Kim, Thurber Broad-scale factors influencing the biodiversity of coastal benthic communities of the Ross Sea, Early ecological research in McMurdo Sound revealed local spatial gradients in community structure associated with variations in anchor ice disturbance, fast ice and snow cover, and the effects of predators. Research contrasting the east and west sides of McMurdo Sound has shown major differences in benthic communities, which have been attributed to oceanographic influences on the advection of water-column productivity and the frequency of fast ice break-out. Despite these regional and local differences, coastal benthic communities in McMurdo Sound show a high level of stability, and contain a variety of large and potentially very long-lived species. In Terra Nova Bay, about half way along the Victoria Land Coast of the western Ross Sea, the coastal benthic communities provide some insightful contrasts with those in McMurdo Sound. For example, the abundance and depth distribution of dominant species such as Sterechinus neumayeri and Adamussium colbecki are markedly different from McMurdo Sound. In both locations communities dominated by large sponges are most prolific in regions that are free from iceberg disturbance of the seabed. A recent assessment of northern Victoria Land coastal benthic communities, in conjunction with multibeam imagery of the seafloor, further highlights the importance of iceberg disturbance in structuring Antarctic benthic communities. A comparative synthesis of these coastal ecological studies enables us to generate hypotheses concerning the relative importance of different environmental drivers in structuring benthic communities. Overlain on the regular latitudinal shifts in physical factors such as light regime, are regional fluctuations that are controlled by atmospheric and oceanographic circulation patterns and coastal topography/bathymetry. Change in diversity along the western coast of the Ross Sea is predicted to be influenced by three main factors (1) ice disturbance (e.g., via anchor ice and advection of supercooled water or icebergs), (2) photosynthetically available radiation (affected by ice and snow cover and water clarity), (3) the locations of polynyas and advection of planktonic production and larvae. Interactions between these factors are expected to result in non-linear changes along the latitudinal gradient. While predictions generated from these hypotheses remain to be rigorously tested, they provide indications of how benthic communities may respond to changes in production, disturbance and the stability of coastal sea ice. © 2006 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved., Cited By (since 1996):28, Invertebrates, CODEN: DSROE, , Thrush, Dayton, Cattaneo-Vietti, Chiantore, Cummings, Andrew, Hawes, Kim, Kvitek, Schwarz The development of a new optical total suspended matter algorithm for the Chesapeake Bay, Sediment loading is one of the primary threats to the health of the Chesapeake Bay. We have developed a high resolution (250m) ocean color satellite tool to monitor sediment concentrations in the Bay. In situ optical and sediment sampling is used to develop a total suspended matter (TSM) algorithm for the Chesapeake Bay. The Coastal Optical Characterization Experiment (COCE) is part of an ongoing effort to optically characterize processes and to develop regional remote sensing ocean color algorithms in the coastal waters. The goal is to characterize sediment concentrations and to develop a tool to track plumes cascading down the Bay following heavy rainfall events. Background TSM concentrations in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed can also be characterized. The plumes can have potentially devastating effects on the Chesapeake Bay's fragile ecosystem by increasing nutrient loads, depositing sediments, and decreasing salinity and light levels. Sampling took place throughout 2006 to 2008 in the upper and mid portions of the Chesapeake Bay. Measurements of TSM, chlorophyll a (Chl), and hyperspectral optics were collected. The optical measurements included above water surface irradiance (E s(λ)), in-water downwelling irradiance (E d(λ)) and in-water upwelling radiance (L u(λ)). These optical data were used to analyze the performance and utility of the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) Aqua Band 1 (645nm) for use as a TSM monitoring tool. From the optical measurements we have derived a 3rd order polynomial regression of TSM to normalized water-leaving radiance (r 2=0.79) to form an algorithm that quantitatively relates TSM to the MODIS 250m resolution band 1 (645nm). The algorithm performance was validated (a mean percent difference of -4.2%) against 270 total suspended solids samples collected by the Chesapeake Bay Program during routine water quality monitoring of the Chesapeake Bay environment. The TSM algorithm tool is then used to demonstrate monitoring of significant runoff events that occurred in June, 2006 and March, 2008. In addition, the utility of the Chesapeake Bay TSM product is demonstrated by describing regional and seasonal variations in sediment concentrations throughout the Chesapeake Bay for 2009. Mean concentrations ranged from 11.55mg/l in the upper Chesapeake Bay winter season to 6.37mg/l in the middle Chesapeake Bay spring season. These remote sensing tools can be valuable instruments in the detection and tracking of runoff events and background concentration for monitoring the health and recovery of the Chesapeake Bay. © 2012., Cited By (since 1996):7, CODEN: RSEEA, , , Oceanography Ondrusek, Stengel, Kinkade, Vogel, Keegstra, Hunter, Kim Seastar response to organic enrichment in an oligotrophic polar habitat, The high Antarctic marine system, including McMurdo Sound, is food limited. Benthic scavengers, especially the seastar Odontaster validus, respond rapidly to sources of organic material, however, fecal material from the McMurdo Station sewage outfall is not consumed. Laboratory and field experiments showed that O. validus responded quickly (within hours) to organically enriched sediments, but that the presence of the anaerobic bacteria Beggiatoa spp. modified seastar behavior. In the lab, anoxic sediments, even more strongly than the presence of Beggiatoa, caused seastar avoidance. In the field, Beggiatoa caused seastar avoidance even of organically enriched sediments. The large mass of organic material remaining from pre-sewage treatment years at the McMurdo outfall is currently completely covered by a thick Beggiatoa microbial mat. O. validus and other megafaunal scavengers are abundant nearby but do not feed on the sewage organics that are covered by the microbes. The outfall deposit is thus likely to exist for a long period of time, undergoing slow anaerobic microbial degradation rather than rapid processing by megafaunal scavengers. This is an example of competition between constituents of the microbial and megafaunal communities and espouses the need for an ecosystem approach to ecology rather than community analysis within a limited size class (i.e. mega-, macro-, meio-, or micro-fauna). © 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved., Cited By (since 1996):10, Invertebrates, CODEN: JEMBA, , Kim, Thurber, Hammerstrom, Conlan Unusual coastal flood impacts in Salmon Valley, McMurdo Sound, Antarctica Large floods bringing significant sediments into the coastal oceans have not been observed in Antarctica. We report evidence of a large flood event depositing over 50 cm of sediment onto the nearshore benthic habitat at Salmon Bay, Antarctica, between 1990 and 2010. Besides direct observations of the sedimentation, the evidence involves a debris flow covering old tyre tracks from the early 1960s, as well as evidence of a considerable amount of sediment transported onto the Salmon Creek delta. We believe that the flood was sourced from the Salmon Glacier and possibly the smaller Blackwelder Glacier. Such floods will be more common in the future and it is important to better understand their ecological impacts with good monitoring programmes. © Antarctic Science Ltd 2016, Export Date: 13 May 2016, Article in Press Dayton, Hammerstrom, Jarrell, Kim, Nordhausen, Osborne, Thrush Ocean optics protocols for satellite ocean color semsor validation, revision 4, Volume VI: Special topics in ocean protocols and appendices, Mueller, Clark, Kuwahara, Lazin, Brown, Fargion, Yarbrough, Feinholz, Flora, Broenkow, Kim, Johnson, Yuen, Strutton, Dickey, Abbott, Letelier, Lewis, McLean, Chavez, Barnard, Morrison, Subramaniam, Manov, Zheng, Harding Jr., Barnes, Lykke Hydrothermal vent community zonation along environmental gradients at the Lau back-arc spreading center, The Lau back-arc spreading center exhibits gradients in hydrothermal vent habitat characteristics from north to south. Biological zonation within a few meters of vents has been described as temperature driven. We constructed georeferenced photomosaics of the seafloor out to tens of meters beyond vents to describe peripheral zonation and explore correlations between environmental conditions and the biological community. Cluster analysis separated northern sites from southern sites, corresponding to a break in substrate from basalt in the north to andesite in the south. Northern sites were dominated by anemones, and southern by sponges. A previous suggestion that dominants may be dependent on friability of the substrate was not supported; when visually distinguishable, individual species within taxa showed different patterns. Northern sites hosted proportionally more suspension feeding species. Sulfide that can support microbial food sources is at higher concentrations at these sites, though bathymetry that may enhance bottom currents is less rugged. Northern sites had higher diversity that may result from the overall northwards flow, which would generally permit easier dispersal downcurrent, though we observed no difference in dispersal strategies at different sites., Cited By (since 1996):1, CODEN: DRORE, , Kim, Hammerstrom Simultaneous measurement of up-welling spectral radiance using a fiber-coupled CCD spectrograph, Determination of the water-leaving spectral radiance using in-water instrumentation requires measurements of the upwelling spectral radiance (L u) at several depths. If these measurements are separated in time, changes in the measurement conditions result in increased variance in the results. A prototype simultaneous multi-track system was developed to assess the potential reduction in the Type A uncertainty in single set, normalized water-leaving radiance achievable if the data were acquired simultaneously. The prototype system employed a spectrograph and multi-track fiber-coupled CCD-detector; in situ in-water tests were performed with the prototype system fiber-coupled to a small buoy. The experiments demonstrate the utility of multi-channel simultaneous data acquisition for in-water measurement applications. An example of the potential impact for tracking abrupt responsivity changes in satellite ocean color sensors using these types of instruments as well as for the satellite vicarious calibration is given., Cited By (since 1996):1, Oceanography, Art. No.: 66800J, CODEN: PSISD, , Yarbrough, Flora, Feinholz, Houlihan, Kim, Brown, Johnson, Voss, Clark Development of the ROV SCINI and deployment in McMurdo Sound, Antarctica Remotely Operated Vehicles (ROVs) are powerful tools whose use has become common in many aquatic systems, for many purposes, from commercial to research applications. Polar regions, because of ice cover and harsh conditions, remain difficult locations for ROV work. This paper outlines the development of an ROV designed to facilitate exploration and scientific research under sea ice, giving easier access to largely unexplored regions of the seafloor. The ROV SCINI (Submersible Capable of under Ice Navigation and Imaging) was developed at Moss Landing Marine Laboratories and deployed in Antarctica for four field seasons, from 2007 to 2011. Ice provides a convenient deployment platform but commercially available ROVs require a large hole in the ice and much logistic support, which restricts their use in polar regions. Unlike other ROVs, SCINI has a slender torpedo shape (length: 1.4 m, diameter: 15 cm), which allows it to be deployed through a 20 cm hole in the ice. This small hole can be drilled by two people, using a handheld drill. The entire SCINI system and personnel (three or more persons) can fit in one helicopter, thus giving easy and quick access to remote sites. SCINI is a modular vehicle that can easily be modified or serviced in the field. It is also rugged and designed for harsh polar conditions. SCINI is equipped with two video cameras, scaling lasers, and lights. Its maximum depth capability is 300 m. A long baseline acoustic positioning system is used for navigation. SCINI is a highly manoeuvrable vehicle, better suited for flying transects over the seafloor than most ROVs. Engineering tests and scientific surveys were based out of McMurdo Station, Antarctica, and carried out at various sites within a 100 km radius. Knowledge gained from these deployments led to numerous modifications and improvements to the vehicle. This paper provides details on the vehicle's most recent configuration, including mechanical design, electrical design, software, and navigation system. Deployment methods, vehicle behaviour, and results of field testing are described. Four scientific surveys are also briefly described as examples. Copyright Journal of Ocean Technology 2011., Cited By (since 1996):3, Oceanography Cazenave, Zook, Carroll, Flagg, Kim New molluscan larval form: Brooding and development in a hydrothermal vent gastropod, Ifremeria nautilei (Provannidae), Despite extreme differences between some shallow and deep-sea habitats, the developmental modes and larval forms of deep-sea animals are typically similar to those of their shallow-water relatives. Here we report one of the first documented exceptions to this general rule. The hydrothermal vent snail Ifremeria nautilei displays two novel lifehistory traits: (1) an unusual uniformly ciliated larva that we here name Warén's larva, and (2) internal brood protection in a modified metapodial pedal gland. Warén's larva emerges from the internal brood pouch as a fully ciliated lecithotrophic larva with a unique external cuticle. The larvae swim with their posterior end forward and metamorphose into typical veliger larvae after 15 days at room temperature. Warén's larva is the only known example of a free-swimming pre-veliger larval stage in the higher gastropods and is the first new gastropod larval form to be described in more than 100 years. © 2010 Marine Biological Laboratory., Cited By (since 1996):2, CODEN: BIBUB, , Reynolds, Watanabe, Strong, Sasaki, Uematsu, Miyake, Kojima, Suzuki, Fujikura, Kim, Young Distribution and near-bottom transport of larvae and other plankton at hydrothermal vents, Distributions of larvae of benthic invertebrates and other planktonic organisms (holoplankton) were determined near hydrothermal vents along the East Pacific Rise (9°50'N) and combined with current meter records to estimate the extent and direction of transport in near-bottom flows. Diurnal tidal currents were strong enough to transport larvae substantial distances (up to 2 km) across the ridge axis during a single 12-h excursion. Potential longer-term transport in mean flows, however, appeared to be relatively slow (typically less than 1 km d-1). The proportion of larvae dispersing in near-bottom flows, as opposed to becoming entrained into the buoyant plume (and transported up out of the near-bottom environment) was estimated for a range of vent community sizes and black-smoker buoyancy fluxes, using a buoyant-plume entrainment model. These estimates suggested that larvae were most often transported in near-bottom currents, but that plume-level dispersal dominated for short periods of the tidal cycle (0.5-3 h) when the currents were slower than 1-2 cm s-1. The plume exit temperature also affects entrainment rate, so the proportion of larvae in each transport pathway (near-bottom flows and buoyant plumes) should vary substantially among vent habitats surrounding different temperature vents. The presence of certain holoplankton groups in diffuse vent flows, and their elevated abundances within the axial ridge valley, raises the possibility that these groups may be specifically associated with vent habitats., Cited By (since 1996):38, Invertebrates, CODEN: DSROE, , Kim, Mullineaux Benthic changes during 10 years of organic enrichment by McMurdo Station, Antarctica, A benthic habitat along the coast of McMurdo Station in the Ross Sea, Antarctica is enriched by sewage from the station and altered by hydrocarbons and heavy metals in an adjacent historic dumpsite. We report on 10 years of change in the benthic communities from 1988 to 1998 and compare enrichment effects at Australia's Casey Station, East Antarctica. Despite being 14 km apart, reference communities upcurrent and downcurrent of McMurdo Station remained closely similar over time, dominated in all years by a tube building polychaete, Spiophanes tcherniae. The community bordering McMurdo Station was generally a third as abundant as communities at the reference sites over the decade of sampling, although diversity was as high or higher, except in the most contaminated areas. In 1992, organic enrichment of the outfall community intensified and within the year, the opportunistic polychaetes Aphelochaeta sp., Ophryotrocha notialis, Capitella perarmata, and Leitoscoloplos kerguelensis became dominant. Since 1996, two of the three enriched communities have increased in resemblance to the reference communities. Given the observed responsiveness of the benthos to the outfall so far, further changes are anticipated within the year following implementation of sewage treatment in 2003. Organic enrichment by McMurdo Station has had a greater impact on benthic community structure than at Australia's Casey Station. © 2004 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved., Cited By (since 1996):37, CODEN: MPNBA, , Conlan, Kim, Lenihan, Oliver Recruitment, Growth and Mortality of an Antarctic Hexactinellid Sponge, Anoxycalyx joubini Polar ecosystems are sensitive to climate forcing, and we often lack baselines to evaluate changes. Here we report a nearly 50-year study in which a sudden shift in the population dynamics of an ecologically important, structure-forming hexactinellid sponge, Anoxycalyx joubini was observed. This is the largest Antarctic sponge, with individuals growing over two meters tall. In order to investigate life history characteristics of Antarctic marine invertebrates, artificial substrata were deployed at a number of sites in the southern portion of the Ross Sea between 1967 and 1975. Over a 22-year period, no growth or settlement was recorded for A. joubini on these substrata; however, in 2004 and 2010, A. joubini was observed to have settled and grown to large sizes on some but not all artificial substrata. This single settlement and growth event correlates with a region-wide shift in phytoplankton productivity driven by the calving of a massive iceberg. We also report almost complete mortality of large sponges followed over 40 years. Given our warming global climate, similar system-wide changes are expected in the future. © 2013 Dayton et al., Cited By (since 1996):4, Art. No.: e56939, Downloaded from: http://www.plosone.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0056939 (16 June 2014). Dayton, Kim, Jarrell, Oliver, Hammerstrom, Fisher, O'Connor, Barber, Robilliard, Barry, Thurber, Conlan Surprising episodic recruitment and growth of Antarctic sponges: Implications for ecological resilience Sponges are the most conspicuous component of the Antarctic benthic ecosystem, a system under stress both from climate change and fishing activities. Observations over four decades are compiled and reveal extremely episodic sponge recruitment and growth. Recruitment occurred under different oceanographic conditions on both sides of McMurdo Sound. Most of the sponges appear to have recruited in the late 1990s–2000. Observations from 2000 to 2010 follow thirty years of relative stasis with very little sponge recruitment or growth followed by a general pattern of recruitment by some forty species of sponges. That there was almost no recruitment observed on natural substrata emphasizes the contrast between potential and realized recruitment. This unique data set was derived from a region noted for physical stasis, but the episodic ecological phenomena highlight the importance of rare events. Against a background of intermittent food resources and the low metabolic costs of stasis, understanding the causes of irregular larval supply, dispersal processes, recruitment success and survivorship becomes critical to predicting ecosystem dynamics and resilience in response to increasing environmental change. Our time-series emphasizes that long-term data collection is essential for meaningful forecasts about environmental change in the unique benthic ecosystems of the Antarctic shelf. Dayton, Jarrell, Kim, Thrush, Hammerstrom, Slattery, Parnell Fishing for data in the Ross Sea, Cited By (since 1996):5, CODEN: SCIEA, , , Blight, Ainley, Ackley, Ballard, Ballerini, Brownell Jr., Cheng, Chiantore, Costa, Coulter, Dayton, Devries, Dunbar, Earle, Eastman, Emslie, Evans, Garrott, Kim, Kooyman, Lescroël, Lizotte, Massaro, Olmastroni, Ponganis, Russell, Siniff, Smith Jr., Stewart, Stirling, Willis, Wilson, Woehler Swarming benthic crustaceans in the Bering and Chukchi seas and their relation to geographic patterns in gray whale feeding, Swarms differed in their geographic extent, local biomass, and life stages of swarming individuals and thus in their availability to feeding Eschrichtius robustus. Immature amphipods apparently swarmed for dispersal, whereas cumaceans probably swarmed for mating. All life stages of the hyperbenthic mysids occurred above the sea floor. Although the geographic spread of mysid swarms and shrimp communities was much greater than for the amphipod and cumacean swarms, the latter swarmed in denser patches to produce higher local biomass. Crustacean swarms are important in describing the geographic patterns of gray whale feeding from the Chukchi Sea to Baja California. The primary feeding ground is in the S Chukchi Sea and especially the N Bering Sea, where gray whales suck infaunal amphipods from fine sand. The primary feeding ground is divided into a relatively deep zone (>20 m), where tube-dwelling ampeliscid amphipods are the major prey, and a shallow zone (<20 m), where burrowing pontoporeid amphipods dominate. The secondary feeding ground is in the S Bering Sea along the E Alaska Peninsula and adjacent Alaskan mainland where shrimp and mysids are the major prey. -from Authors, Cited By (since 1996):16, Invertebrates, Marine Mammals, Birds & Turtles, , Kim, Oliver Nesting behavior of the icefish Chaenocephalus aceratus at Bouvetøya Island, Southern Ocean, We describe in situ observations on nesting by the Scotia Sea (or blackfin) icefish Chaenocephalus aceratus (Lönnberg) that constitute the first substantive evidence of egg brooding and parental care by species of the family Channichthyidae. At Boutetoya Island six fish, all apparently male, were observed guarding egg nests at depths of 141-148 m during an ROV deployment. Eggs were laid as aggregated, round masses (∼20-25 cm diameter) in shallow, circular depressions (~1-m diameter, ∼20-cm depth) that were probably excavated by the parent(s) to protect the nests. The fish guardians remained tenaciously in contact with the eggs despite disturbances caused by the ROV, reacting to this threat with stress and defense behaviors. Because brooding fishes are more susceptible to the population impacts from trawl fisheries, we argue that this life history should be kept in mind in designing management schemes. © Springer-Verlag 2005., Cited By (since 1996):18, CODEN: POBID, , Detrich III, Jones, Kim, North, Thurber, Vacchi High species density patterns in macrofaunal invertebrate communities in the marine benthos, Species density of macrofaunal invertebrates living in marine soft sediments was highest at the shelf-slope break (100-150m) in Monterey Bay (449 m-2). There were 337 species m-2 in the mid-shelf mud zone (80 m). There were fewer species along the slope: 205 m-2 from the lower slope (950-2000 m) and 335 m-2 on the upper slope (250-750 m). Species density was highest inside the bay (328-446 m-2) compared to outside (336-339 m-2), when examining samples at selected water depths (60-1000 m). There was little difference in local species density from 1 km of shoreline compared to regional species density along 1000 km of shoreline at both shelf and slope depths. The highest species densities worldwide in the literature are recorded along the Carolina slope in the Atlantic Ocean, where peak species density (436/0.81 m2) at 800 m and values at the largest sample areas are similar to those on the Monterey Bay shelf. We speculate that the highest species densities occur where ocean water exchanges energy with shoaling topography at the continental margin, bringing more food to the benthos -- areas such as the very productive waters in the upwelling system of Monterey Bay., Cited By (since 1996):1, , Oliver, Hammerstrom, McPhee-Shaw, Slattery, Oakden, Kim, Hartwell Polar ecosystem dynamics: Recovery of communities from organic enrichment in McMurdo Sound, Antarctica, Community structure and diversity are influenced by patterns of disturbance and input of food. In Antarctica, the marine ecosystem undergoes highly seasonal changes in availability of light and in primary production. Near research stations, organic input from human activities can disturb the regular productivity regime with a consistent input of sewage. McMurdo Sound has both high-productivity and low-productivity habitats, thereby providing an ideal test bed for community recovery dynamics under polar conditions. We used experimental manipulations of the subtidal communities to test the hypotheses that (1) benthic communities respond differently to disturbance from organic enrichment versus burial and (2) community response also varies in areas with different natural patterns of food supply. Both in low- and high-food habitats, the strongest community response was to organic enrichment and resulted in dominance of typical organic-enrichment specialists. In habitats with highly seasonal productivity, community response was predictable and recovery was rapid. In habitats with low productivity, community variability was high and caging treatments suggested that inconsistencies were due to patchy impacts by scavengers. In areas normally subject to regular organic enrichment, either from primary production or from further up the food web (defecation by marine mammals), recovery of benthic communities takes only years even in a polar system. However, a low-productivity regime is as common in near shore habitats around the continent; under these conditions, recovery of benthic communities from disturbance is likely to be much slower and follow a variable ecological trajectory. © The Author 2010. Published y Oxford University Press on behalf of the Society for Integrative and Comparative Biology. All rights reserved., Cited By (since 1996):2, , Kim, Hammerstom, Conlan, Thurber Antarctic research bases, Contemporary studies of chemical contamination in Antarctica commonly focus on remnants of historical local releases or long-range transport of legacy pollutants. To protect the continent's pristine status, the Antarctic Treaty's Protocol on Environmental Protection prohibits importation of persistent organic pollutants. However, some polybrominated diphenyl ether (PBDE) congeners exhibit similar properties. Many modern polymer-containing products, e.g., home/office furnishings and electronics, contain percent levels of flame retardant PBDEs. PBDE concentrations in indoor dust and wastewater sludge from the U.S. McMurdo and New Zealand-operated Scott Antarctic research bases were high. Levels tracked those in sludge and dust from their respective host countries. BDE-209, the major constituent in the commercial deca-PBDE product, was the dominant congener in sludge and dust, as well as aquatic sediments collected near the McMurdo wastewater outfall. The pattern and level of BDE-209 sediment concentrations, in conjunction with its limited environmental mobility, suggest inputs from local sources. PBDE concentrations in fish and invertebrates nearthe McMurdo outfall rivaled those in urbanized areas of North America and generally decreased with distance. The data indicate that reliance on wastewater maceration alone, as stipulated by the Protocol, may permit entry of substantial amounts of PBDEs and other chemicals to the Antarctic environment. © 2008 American Chemical Society., Cited By (since 1996):48, Antarctica, CODEN: ESTHA, , Hale, Kim, Harvey, La Guardia, Mainor, Bush, Jacobs Peripheral communities of the Eastern Lau Spreading Center and Valu Fa Ridge: community composition, temporal change and comparison to near-vent communities Western Pacific hydrothermal vents will soon be subjected to deep-sea mining and peripheral sites are considered the most practical targets. The limited information on community dynamics and temporal change in these communities makes it difficult to anticipate the impact of mining activities and recovery trajectories. We studied community composition of peripheral communities along a cline in hydrothermal chemistry on the Eastern Lau Spreading Center and Valu Fa Ridge (ELSC-VFR) and also studied patterns of temporal change. Peripheral communities located in the northern vent fields of the ELSC-VFR are significantly different from those in the southern vent fields. Higher abundances of zoanthids and anemones were found in northern peripheral sites and the symbiont-containing mussel Bathymodiolus brevior, brisingid seastars and polynoids were only present in the northern peripheral sites. By contrast, certain faunal groups were seen only in the southern peripheral sites, such as lollipop sponges, pycnogonids and ophiuroids. Taxonomic richness of the peripheral communities was similar to that of active vent communities, due to the presence of non-vent endemic species that balanced the absence of species found in areas of active venting. The communities present at waning active sites resemble those of peripheral sites, indicating that peripheral species can colonize previously active vent sites in addition to settling in the periphery of areas of venting. Growth and mortality were observed in a number of the normally slow-growing cladorhizid stick sponges, indicating that these animals may exhibit life history strategies in the vicinity of vents that differ from those previously recorded. A novel facultative association between polynoids and anemones is proposed based on their correlated distributions., Accepted Sen, Kim, Miller, Hovey, Hourdez, Luther, Fisher Results in coastal waters with high resolution in situ spectral radiometry: The Marine Optical System ROV, The water-leaving spectral radiance is a basic ocean color remote sensing parameters required for the vicarious calibration. Determination of water-leaving spectral radiance using in-water radiometry requires measurements of the upwelling spectral radiance at several depths. The Marine Optical System (MOS) Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) is a portable, fiber-coupled, high-resolution spectroradiometer system with spectral coverage from 340 nm to 960 nm. MOS was developed at the same time as the Marine Optical Buoy (MOBY) spectrometer system and is optically identical except that it is configured as a profiling instrument. Concerns with instrument self-shadowing because of the large exterior dimensions of the MOS underwater housing led to adapting MOS and ROV technology. This system provides for measurement of the near-surface upwelled spectral radiance while minimizing the effects of shadowing. A major advantage of this configuration is that the ROV provides the capability to acquire measurements 5 cm to 10 cm below the water surface and is capable of very accurate depth control (1cm) allowing for high vertical resolution observations within the very near-surface. We describe the integrated system and its characterization and calibration. Initial measurements and results from observations of coral reefs in Kaneohe Bay, Oahu, extremely turbid waters in the Chesapeake Bay, Maryland, and in Case 1 waters off Southern Oahu, Hawaii are presented., , , Yarbrough, Feinholz, Flora, Houlihan, Johnson, Kim, Murphy, Ondrusek, Clark Benthic infaunal distributions in shallow hydrothermal vent sediments, This study examined the macrofaunal communities of two shallow hydrothermal vent areas, in Bahía Concepción (12 m depth), Mexico, and White Point (8 m depth), California. We tested whether the infaunal community compositions in these systems were different from the surrounding communities, and if the observed differences were related to pore-water and other habitat variables. A combination of temperature, hydrogen sulfide, salinity, and pH influenced the species composition within zones of venting. The vent communities, with a few exceptions, were a sub-set of the surrounding community, represented by a limited diversity of outside fauna in lower abundance. Examination of infaunal life-histories revealed that tube-dwelling and mobile species represented a relatively higher proportion of the fauna near vents than away. Tubes were proposed as a beneficial life-history strategy to inhabitants of the high temperatures of Bahía Concepción, but did not predominate in the high sulfide sediments of White Point. Furthermore, there was no evidence for chemosynthetic strategies amongst the shallow vent infauna, unlike fauna at deep-sea hydrothermal vents and cold seeps. © 2008 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved., Cited By (since 1996):5, Invertebrates, CODEN: ACOEE, , Melwani, Kim Conlan (6) + - Hammerstrom (6) + - Thurber (6) + - Dayton (5) + - Oliver (4) + - Clark (3) + - Feinholz (3) + - Flora (3) + - Jarrell (3) + - Thrush (3) + - Yarbrough (3) + - Brown (2) + - Chiantore (2) + - Fisher (2) + - Houlihan (2) + - Lewis (2) + - Ondrusek (2) + - Slattery (2) + -	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3071
__label__cc	0.701375	0.298625	MyCat: Saving Tigers And Wildlife Posted on 14-Aug-2013 Written by Lance Corporal Wan Rui Ming, from 4th KL Company SUNGAI BESI, KUALA LUMPUR - This day's parade started off as usual but as it went on, there is a realisation among is that there will be a special event. As the title suggest, on this day there was a talk regarding saving tigers and wildlife by Malaysian Conservation Alliance for Tigers or MyCat in short. Band started as usual at 1pm, ending an hour later. Then everyone kept their instruments and went into joint-classrooms for the talk. The KL State FTO, Mr Kenny Voon, also come and joined us for the program, wanting to know more about this global issue. The MyCat team presenting and creating awareness on wildlife awareness, especially on tigers Founded in 2003, MyCat is an alliance of several NGOs which includes the Malaysian Nature Society, TRAFFIC Southeast Asia, Wildlife Conservation Society-Malaysia Programme and WWF-Malaysia. These NGOs are supported by the Department of Wildlife (Jabatan Perhilitan in Malay) and National Parks (Taman Negara) Peninsular Malaysia for joint implementation of the National Tiger Conservation Action Plan for Malaysia. Currently, there is an estimated 3,200 tigers left roaming the planet, a very big decline from 100,000 tigers at the beginning of the century. There used to be nine tiger sub-species in the world, but in the last 70 years, 3 have gone extinct - the Balinese, Caspian and Javan. Globally, the tiger has lost 93% of its habitat in the last 100 years. Left: The Malayan Tiger: Center: An actual snare borrowed by the Wildlife Department for a demonstration. Right: Deforestation and activities by mankind are the sole factors for the destructionof wildfire and loss of tigers. For Malaysia, our tiger is called the Malayan Tiger (Panthera tigris jacksoni). It is known for its symbol of majesty, power and is the national animal of Malaysia. It is also used in many logos including, Malaysia’s Coat of Arms where two Malayan Tigers fearlessly guard our country’ sovereignty , Polis Diraja Malaysia also features a tiger at its logo’s center, symbolising fearlessness. The tiger is also featured as Maybank’s logo, the country’s leading bank. Despite being a symbol in all these sectors, the Malayan Tiger's population has decreased to about 500 tigers in Peninsular Malaysia – which is a very saddening number. Some of the logos we see everyday, most of us forget the fact that these logos bear the Malayan Tiger Why? One of the main factor is us, humans. We don't realise that these animals are facing extinction because of illegal (or even legal) over-logging and poaching. Logging eliminates their homes and causing there no place to search for foods. Even if jungles are replaced with plantations, the biodiversity needed sustain an ecosystem is lost forever. Tigers also need a very wide area to roam and hunt down prey. We need food and so do they. Tigers are victims of mankind's activities and greed. Turn into products, often meaningless. If not stopped, tigers could be something of the past Poaching or hunting for tigers also a factor why this magnificent animals are starting to dissapear. Almost every body part of the tiger is thought by some to have medicinal properties or ‘magical’ powers. Its meat is served as a delicacy in exotic meat restaurants and other body parts such as the teeth, claws, bones, skin and it's over parts are also used in illegal trade throughout the world. To "procure" these parts traps need to be set and are always found around dense jungles where tigers and wild animals exist. Fortunately, these traps are often disabled by workers from wildlife department and organisations like MyCat. Left: Orang utan looking for its home. This one in the picture is seen darted, possibly to be relocated. Center: A Malayan Tapir, once roamed throughout Malaysia is also an endangered species. Right: The pangolin can once be found anywhere in any place, so plentiful they are often accidentally killed by traffic. It's now a rare sight as it is hunted for it's meat. Not only tigers fall victim to mankind's greed. Other wild animals such as the tapir, the Malayan sun bear, Sumatran rhinoceros, pangolin, elephant and also the clouded leopard were also listed as an endangered species. These are just a few examples, there are much more. Some of those mentioned are traded as pets, which is illegal without a proper license. Knowing these information, what should we do? Ignore it? Let the government do the rest? NO! We can help these animals by calling MyCat's hotline 019-3564194 or email to report@malayantiger.net if we witness any form of illegal animal trade, be it in pet shops or traditional medicine vendors. The caller's identity will be kept anonymous and a reward will be given if the call is found to be legitimate. In conclusion, saving tigers will help save the habitat and other wildlife. We can help by just doing the simple steps above, which will eventually discourage the trade and save one tiger or more from being killed. For more information on MyCat's cause, please visit www.malayantiger.net After the presentation from the MyCAT team, we proceeded for drill at around 4pm followed by dismissal at 5pm. A very good day, much knowledge obtained by us all and thank you MyCAT! Credits to Malayan Tiger.net, Google Images and Captain Ngai for the photos and the related informations. Page created: 14th August 2013 Last updated: 14th August 2013	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3075
__label__cc	0.646642	0.353358	- Aktuellt - Politik - Språk - Religion - Framtiden - Data - Rymd - Övrigt - 2006-11-26: What is Depeche Mode singing about? Finns även på There is one thing that I have pondered for many years. In fact practically ever since I discovered their music some time in the middle of the 1980's. What is Depeche Mode singing about? Purely statistically, I mean. I have now, finally, stopped just thinking about it and actually counted the words in the 165 songs in the archive on depechemode.com. The result is presented below (at least the most common 250 words). It turned out that the lyrics consisted of a total of 18462 words and that these occurances are divided on 2379 different words. The most common are of course small binding words that in them selves do not say anything about the contents of the text. The most common significant word is found on 22nd place. In other words, love is the most common subject in these texts. I guess that was to be expected. It is hard to draw the line between the small words and the significant words and there can be different opinions on that subject. It is, however, pretty clear at least down to place 32. Down there, we find the words "know" and "feel" and it turns out that knowing is more common than feeling. It's pretty even, though. An other thing to notice is that "I" is more common than "you", "my" beats "your", "I'm" is ahead of "you're" and "I've" is more common than "you've". I'm not sure what this means, but maybe it can be infered that the texts are a bit introvert. By the way, "I'll" occurs twice as often as "you'll". Further more, we see that some words, that some people may associate with Depeche Mode, are not at all as common as one might have expected. "Pain" is found as far down as place 119. "Black" is on place 136. "Strange" shows up just 8 times, which is as many as "celebration", "nodisco" and "servant", but one less than "master". "Silence" occurs just 3 times in the whole mass of text (two "leave in silence" and one "words like violence break the silence"). The lyrics do not contain that much sex either. Not in so many words anyway. The word "sex" occurs twice ("sex jibe husband murders wife" and "no sex, no consequence, no sympathy"). For those who are interested in religion, I can say that "god" is mentioned 15 times (including two "god's" and one "gods") but that his sick sense of humour comes up only once. "Jesus" occurs six times and he's "personal" five of those. "Devil" shows up three times in different shapes. The word "sin", that we find on 162nd place and that, together with the variations "sinner" and "sinfulness", gets up to 24 occurances, exists in the neighbourhood between religion and sex. It is probably somewhere around there that many of the songs about these subjects end up. To get some kind of gender perspective on this thing, we have to compare the different gender markers that can be found. "Girl" is a bit more common than "boy" (25-24) in spite of Vince Clarke's contributions. As it turns out, neither "woman" nor "women" is mentioned at all, while "man" occurs a few times. "He" ends up on place 206 with 14 occurances and "she" is on place 113 with 26. Other variations of "he" and "she" shows a clear preference for "she". One common motif seems to be time, with "now" on place 47 and "time" on 50. Also, the words "never" on 54 and "again" on 57 can be said to deal with time. It's not as obvious a subject as love, but it still seems to be something significant. 2. i 611 3. you 584 4. to 497 5. and 448 6. me 370 7. a 353 8. in 305 9. my 297 10. of 277 11. your 236 13. for 192 14. that 179 15. all 171 16. on 157 17. is 155 18. i'm 151 19. be 124 20. when 119 it's 119 22. love 110 23. so 103 24. with 102 25. what 100 26. just 98 27. this 96 28. from 94 29. we 90 30. don't 87 but 87 32. will 85 33. know 84 can 84 35. have 81 feel 81 37. if 80 38. you're 78 39. do 77 40. want 76 41. not 74 i've 74 43. like 70 44. no 68 45. down 67 46. here 66 47. now 63 49. are 62 50. time 61 take 61 52. see 60 53. by 59 54. never 58 55. been 56 56. come 54 57. again 52 58. as 51 59. they 50 60. say 49 61. let 48 i'll 48 63. there 47 can't 47 66. things 44 got 44 68. you've 42 70. at 40 71. only 38 need 38 give 38 75. something 37 could 37 77. up 36 back 36 82. we're 35 84. our 34 86. where 33 someone 33 inside 33 91. way 31 there's 31 93. through 30 93. life 30 95. was 29 understand 29 still 29 100. try 28 hear 28 enough 28 change 28 105. us 27 put 27 110. too 26 think 26 she 26 mind 26 how 26 an 26 117. walking 25 touch 25 nothing 25 heard 25 122. you'll 24 won't 24 well 24 tonight 24 tell 24 127. we've 23 said 23 keep 23 132. who 22 their 22 sometimes 22 137. that's 21 or 21 hands 21 believe 21 always 21 145. would 20 girl 20 better 20 149. words 19 kiss 19 ever 19 155. though 18 then 18 than 18 looking 18 find 18 162. them 17 sin 17 should 17 myself 17 move 17 light 17 joy 17 hand 17 going 17 175. why 16 waiting 16 together 16 tears 16 taking 16 had 16 even 16 easy 16 care 16 am 16 187. trying 15 tried 15 smile 15 seen 15 let's 15 has 15 everything 15 done 15 198. sure 14 sky 14 knew 14 hey 14 he 14 fun 14 forget 14 comes 14 211. these 13 such 13 some 13 sister 13 same 13 moved 13 lay 13 him 13 higher 13 feet 13 couldn't 13 bone 13 230. we'll 12 truth 12 tora 12 stripped 12 stitch 12 stay 12 secret 12 sea 12 please 12 own 12 once 12 leave 12 god 12 favourite 12 every 12 burning 12 anything 12 I want to thank Depeche Mode for their wonderful music and deep poetry. I also want to thank the creators of the commands awk, grep, sed and wget. All of these people's contributions have been very important for making this study possible to complete. Nyckelord: Depeche Mode words sex love time religion gender statistics	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3076
__label__wiki	0.536423	0.536423	Election Petition: Hearing adjourned to Thursday Posted by: kessbenfm In Politics Posted on April 24, 2013 Comment The hearing of the election petition seeking to annul the results of the 2012 general election has been adjourned to Thursday, April 25. Cross-examination continued on Day 6 of the hearing of the substantive case and saw lawyer Tony Lithur closing his cross-examination. He quizzed the second petitioner on the issues surrounding over-voting and voting without biometric verification among others. Lawyer for the the Electoral Commission (EC) Quarshie Idun also commenced his cross-examination of the witness Dr. Bawumia. He questioned Bawumia on the EC’s guidelines for the election, the role of polling agents and the process of special voting, among other things. One major issue that came under contention was the matter “rogue or unknown” polling stations, to which the petitioners had indicated that they had not sent any polling agents. Lawyer Quarshie Idun submitted into evidence letters he claimed were from the petitioners to some polling agents to man the “rogue or unknown” polling stations. Below is a timeline of some of the activities as they happened in court 15:43 – Hearing resumes with Dr Bawumia still in the witness box being cross-examined by Lawyer Quarshie Idun. 15:25 – Court goes on short recess. 14:46 – Cross-examination continues with Quarshie Idun quizzing Dr. Bawumia about the process of voting before, during and after the election. Philip Addison raises objection to Quarshie Idun’s questions over the collation sheets. 14:42 – Dr Bawumia reads sections of the tendered document per the request of Quarshie Idun. 14:38 – Quarshie Idun tenders into evidence, ‘The Electoral Commission’s Guide to Candidates and Agents.’ 14:33 – Quarshie Idun quizzes Dr. Bawumia about the procedures voters and agents and officials go through on voting day.14:22 – Lawyer Quarshie Idun takes over the cross examination after Tony Lithur brings his to a close. 14:00 – “When he asks a question, you don’t elect the version you want and answer,” Justice Atuguba tells Dr. Bawumia. 13:55 – Lithur – “Doc, am suggesting to you that in all cases that people voted without biometric verification, it was an error by the EC officials.” Bawumia – “Well, I do not agree.” 13:30 – Hearing resumes in the Supreme Court with Dr Bawumia in the witness stand and Tony Lithur cross examining. The Supreme Court hearing the election petition case seeking to annul the results of the 2012 general elections is on a lunch break. Hearing resumes at 13:20 GMT. 12:18 – Court goes on a lunch break and will return at 13:20 GMT 12:15 – Tony Lithur – “Nobody in the 2012 election voted, whose identity had not been checked in the register” Dr Bawumia – “I was not at all the polling stations.” 11:55 – Cross examination continues in court with Tony Lithur questioning Dr Bawumia about issues relating to voting without biometric verification. 11:35 – Tony Lithur accuses that: “The idea of serial number was conjured by the petitioner to beef up the numbers.” Dr Bawumia however responds saying: “I disagree. We cannot trust the integrity of the forms they (Serial numbers) are written on.” 11:25 – “We expected the second respondent to protect the integrity of the ballot” – Dr Bawumia tells the court after questions from Tony Lithur suggests that the polling agents of the petitioners should have trained to check some of the “irregularities” they claim took place during voting. 10:50 – “In every single case where results have been annulled, reports were made” – Tony Lithur No, my Lord, i am not aware of that – Dr Bawumia 10:40 – “Trim the answers according to the size of the question” – Justice Atuguba cautions both petitioners and respondents Philip Addison raises an objection to the manner in which, according to him, Tony Lithur is badgering the witness. The court cautions lawyer Addison to have his client answer the questions directly. 10:28 – Tony Lithur insists that the differences in total valid votes documented and the number entered into the C1 section of the sheet is so because of an administrative error. Dr Bawumia however insists that since counsel and himself (Bawumia) were not physically present at the time the details were being entered, an inference could not be made to that effect. 10:21 – Cross examination begins with Tony Lithur giving Dr Bawumia some sheets, which he says he has run by the lawyers of the petitioners. He requests Dr Bawumia to take a close look at the total valid votes at the bottom with C1 on the pink sheets. 10:15 – Lawyers for the petitioners and the respondents introduce their teams to the court. Cross examination of New Patriotic Party’s Vice Presidential Candidate in the 2012 election Dr. Mahamadu Bawumia is set to continue on Wednesday. During Tuesday’s hearing, one of the Justices of the Supreme Court questioned the cross examination method adopted by lead counsel for President Mahama, Tony Lithur in a bid to prevent further delays. Though it is unclear if things are likely to change in Wednesday’s hearings, a member of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) Legal Team, Victor Adawudu thinks the respondents have a right to peruse every evidence presented by the petitioners. “He [Bawumia] told us in his evidence that he had 24 categories and ended with 4 categories. We are still on the over voting and you will see the inconsistency in it. I can tell you that we have other pink sheets that deal with over voting which are clear.” He alluded to what he referred to as inconsistencies in the answers provided by Dr Bawumia during the cross examination, adding that “the number of polling stations has kept changing”. Source: Citifmonline	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3077
__label__cc	0.726781	0.273219	HEMINGWAY HATED HIS MOTHER Strong title. Can’t argue with history, however. Fact is fact. Hemingway hated his mother. John dos Passos, famous writer and Hemingway friend, said Hemingway was the only man he ever knew who truly hated his mother. His mother was Grace Hall Hemingway. An aspiring opera singer, she settled into marriage and family. Taught music and voice lessons from the Hemingway home. Strictly religious, a woman with a melodramatic and mercurial temperament. Grace had a peculiarity. Probably what contributed to her son hating her. She had a fondness for dressing Hemingway and his older sister as twins. Sometimes as boys with short hair, sometimes as girls with flowery dresses and long hair. Hemingway was concerned at Christmas time when he was 3 that Santa Claus would not know he was a boy. He was 6 years old when his mother finally permitted him to cut off his long locks for good. Historians claim being dressed as a girl, etc. is why Hemingway spent his life proving his masculinity to himself and those closest to him. The bitterness of his mother’s treatment is further evident in the way Hemingway treated female characters in his fiction and the way he treated his 4 wives. Life is strange. Strange the impact a parent has on a child. Good, bad, or indifferent. Spent time at the Chart Room last night. John bartending. Steve and Cindy at the bar. Also Mike, owner of the Grand Guesthouse. Steve and Cindy unquestionably Key West historians. They have resided in Key West since the mid 1970’s. Steve owned a series of taco stands in Key West and throughout Florida. Cindy was Jimmy Buffett’s assistant for more than 30 years. They both know everything there is to know about Key West for the past 50 years. Mike owns the Grand Guesthouse in Key West. A year since I had last seen him. We chatted a while. Learned something I did not know. His wife is Chef at the Reach. She has to be an absolutely outstanding cook. One of the finest steak houses in Key West. A side note. Common knowledge that David Wolkowsky built the Pier House. What most do not know is that he also built the Reach. Two fine hotels on the opposite sides of the island. The Reach initially was a rough sand beach with a shack sitting on it. Owned by the Catholic Church. A gathering spot for druggies. Wolkowsky bought the property, threw the beach bums out, and built a magnificent edifice. A busy afternoon ahead for me. Sloan at 2. Some important work to be done. One of my programs is screwed up. Then at 3:30, Syracuse/Georgetown. Old time Big East basketball foes. Syracuse 6-2, Georgetown 7-1. Syracuse a 12 point favorite. Patrick Ewing was an All-American star at Georgetown in his college days. Syracuse coached by Boeheim back then. Boeheim now in his 43rd year as Syracuse coach. Ewing today in his second year as head basketball coach at Georgetown. A Hall of Fame Coach and a Hall of Fame Player oppose each other this afternoon. Tonight one of my favorite Key West evenings. The Christmas Parade. Like one no where else. The whole town turns out to watch. I sometimes think half of Key West is in the parade itself. An exaggeration, of course. I generally watch somewhere on Truman. Near Don’s Place. With Lisa and the grandkids. Don’t know if I will make it tonight. I will be tired from my afternoon and will probably end up staying home. The stock market.. Like Humpty Dumpty……Falling down! Blame Trump. The tariffs and sanctions he has imposed. Things are not getting better. Last week at the G 20 in Buenos Aires, Trump and China President Xi were having a private dinner with staff to try to work out the tariff war which is greatly adversely affecting the U.S. and China. Duplicity reared its ugly head. While Trump and Xi were talking in Buenos Aires, the U.S. had a prominent Chinese business person arrested at the Vancouver airport. Huawei CFO Meng. Huawei is a major Chinese company. Heavily involved in cell phones in Africa, Europe and Asia. Meng’s father and Xi close friends. Meng was on her way to Mexico. She was arrested because her company has been doing business with companies doing business with Iran. Contrary to Trump imposed rules. Such bullshit! The horror of it all is that Trump and Xi were supposedly trying to work things out tariff wise at the moment of her arrest. China pissed! Big time! A major insult by way of Asian thinking to China and Xi. The market has been dropping dramatically as a result. One day up, I think. The rest down. Big numbers. Yesterday the market dropped 558 points to 24,388. The 558 point drop erased all market gains for the year. Good job, Donald! The drop in my opinion not over. The tariffs and sanctions remain. China the biggest concern. Arresting Meng did not help. If the market drops below 2,000 by year’s end, it will be the beginning of a world wide recession. Hopefully it will not hit 2,000. I predicted last year that late this year or early into next year, the U.S. would be in recession. Not because I am an economic genius. Rather because I am 83 years old and have seen recessions develop in the past. Posted in Key West Lou \| Tagged CFO Meng, Chart Room, China President Xi, Christmas Parade, Dress Like A girl, Ernest Hall, Grace Hall Hemingway, Grand Guesthouse, Hall of Fame Coach/Hall of Fame Player, Hemingway Hated His Mother, Huawei, John, John dos Passos, Key West, Key West Lou, Mike, Mistrust and Fear of Women, Mistrust of Women, Nutcracker Key West, Oscar Wilde, Patrick Ewing, Reach, Santa Claus, Sloan, Steve and Cindy, Stock Market, Syracuse/Georgetown, Tennessee Williams Theater, Trump \| 2 Replies CHINA 2018 THE JAPAN OF 1941? December 7, 1941. In the words of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, “A date that will live in infamy.” Japan had bombed Pearl Harbor. There is cause and effect. Every action does have an equal and opposite reaction. Are the U.S. and China on a path similar to that which led to the Japanese attack? Examine the facts. It was December 6, 1941, the day before Pearl Harbor. U.S. intelligence less than adequate. Roosevelt had been told the Japanese fleet was heading for Thailand. Roosevelt sent a telegram to Emperor Hirohito: “For the sake of humanity” intervene “to prevent further death and destruction in the world.” Roosevelt amusingly told his wife Eleanor…..”The son of man has just sent his final message to the son of God.” U.S. intelligence was wrong. Roosevelt relied on the erroneous intelligence. The next day, Hawaii was attacked. Not Thailand. Why did Japan attack Pearl Harbor? Japan was a non-entity in world affairs in the years leading to 1900. Isolated from the rest of the world. In 1894 and 1904, Japan successfully engaged in wars against nations considered superior to Japan. During World War I, Japan participated on the side of the Allies. The Great Depression affected Japan as most nations at the time. Tensions had begun growing between the U.S. and Japan 10 years earlier. Driven by economic and demographic woes. Japan invaded Manchuria and other parts of China. The League of Nations condemned the invasion. Japan withdrew from the League as a result. The Sino-Japanese War began in 1937. Japan acted in an extremely brutal fashion. Perpetrated massacres. Mass killings and rapes. It was obvious Japan was expanding globally. The U.S. tried to stop Japan’s expansion. The U.S. imposed economic sanctions on Japan, including trade embargoes on aircraft exports, oil, and scrap metal. In September 1940, Japan signed the Tripartite Pact with Germany and Italy. The U.S. not involved in war with Germany and Italy yet. The U.S. and Japan negotiated Japan’s expansion, the sanctions, etc. for months. Without success. The U.S. had hoped the embargoes on oil and other key goods would lead Japan to halt its expansions. The opposite proved correct. The sanctions and other penalties actually convinced Japan to stand its ground. Stand up for Japan. Japan became increasingly angered. Thought U.S. conduct a part of Western interference in Asian affairs. Importantly also, Japan felt the U.S. was not paying Japan the respect to which it was entitled. Japan believed they had earned respect as a world power beginning with the wars surrounding 1900 and its actions into the 1940’s. Respect/face very important in Asian thinking. Neither was forthcoming from the U.S. There was a failure to recognize the new kid on the block. Japan realized war was inevitable. Japan recognized the odds were stacked against them in a military confrontation. Success depended on surprise. The target Pearl Harbor. Four thousand miles from Japan’s homeland. The U.S. would not expect it. Pearl Harbor was perfect. The U.S. fleet, except for carriers, in harbor. The fleet and U.S. morale would be destroyed. There would be no will to fight back. Japan underestimated the U.S. and its people. Sanctions a major cause compelling Japan’s decision to attack. U.S. sanctions in effect today against China. The tariff wars. War, global recession possible. Perhaps imminent. The issues the same. Overbearing sanctions, the economies of both countries in disarray. Everything moving at a rapid pace. Trump the creator of the present scenario. His intelligence advise questionable. Where it does exist, he does not pay attention. He refuses to be properly briefed. An example is Meng Wanzhou who was arrested/detained in Vancouver saturday. At the same time Trump was sitting with China’s President Xi in Buenos Aires. Meng is CFO of China’s second largest technology company Huawei. Her father founder and a leading Chinese figure. Huawei has been violating U.S. imposed sanctions by doing business with Iran. The reason Meng was arrested. She is awaiting deportation to New York for a federal court appearance. Note again she was arrested while Trump and Xi negotiating at the G 20. An embarrassing loss of face for Xi. The question also arises as to what right the U.S. has to impose penalties on China for doing business with Iran. The Iran problem is between the U.S. and Iran, not the U.S., Iran, and China. Word is that Trump was unaware Meng was being arrested. John Bolton says Trump did not know and had not been briefed. Makes one wonder what is going on at the highest levels of U.S. government. The outcome of any military conflict uncertain. Both nations have nuclear weapons. China considered the world’s second most powerful nation. It may be questionable whether it is behind the U.S. militarily. In the past five years, China has gone all out improving its military. In excess of 350 new naval vessels constructed with up to date nuclear missile capacity. China has also constructed islands where none existed in Asian waters. Islands out of nothing. Now airbases with planes and troops stationed thereon. It makes me question whether the U.S. is still the strongest nation in the world. I would not what to find out the answer. Similarities exist between the Japan of yesterday and the China of today. Especially as regards each’s relationship at the specific time with the U.S. Hopefully both the U.S. and China will negotiate their way out of this mess. We are entering a Don’t Tread On Me situation. Where one side will not take it anymore. Similar to the Boston Tea Party, the Alamo, Pearl Harbor. Not a comfortable time. Posted in Key West Lou \| Tagged 12/7/41, Allied Partner World War I, Buenos Aires, China, FDR, Great Depression, Huawei, Infamy, Japan, John Bolton, Key West, Key West Lou, League Of Nations, Loss of Face, Major World Power, Manchuria, Meng Wanzhou Arrest, Pearl Harbor, President Xi, Sanctions, Sino-Japanese War, Tripartite Pact, Trump, U.S., Vancouver, War Inevitable \| 7 Replies MERYL STREEP AND ANTONIO BANDERAS IN TOWN Meryl Streep and Antonio Banderas in Key West for a few days. Filming a movie. The Laundromat. Movie stars Gary Oldman, also. Do not think he is here. Actual filming in Key West only 2 days. 12/5 & 12/6. Filming taking place on Caroline Street. Caroline already Christmas decorated. Decorations had to be removed for the filming. Locals hired as extras. $125 for a 12 hour day. The Laundromat is the story of a group of journalists who took part in unearthing 11.5 million files linking the world’s most powerful figures to secret banking accounts to avoid taxes. The film chronicles how a Panamanian law firm allowed the wealthy and connected to funnel money illegally via tax havens. Last night, a colorful one. The Lighted Bike Ride. Christmas decorated bicycles and riders. Hundreds participated. The Ride ended at Mary Ellen’s on Applerouth. Applerouth one block long. Closed. A block party held for the bike riders. Love Mary Ellen’s! Not 2 years old yet. A popular spot. Inexpensive. The best tomato soup and grilled cheese sandwiches. Funky decorated. Funky games. Like tuesday evenings at 9 for the Dildo Races. Stopped at Blue Macaw. Cold! Seventy degrees. Temperature dropped to low 60’s during the evening. Heat back on! Bar crowd skimpy. Said hello to Alisa and Stephanie. Chatted too briefly with Angie. A bit warmer tonight. Low 70. Still heat time for locals. Our blood is thin! I watched President Bush’s service at the Washington National Cathedral. Moving. Mourning and celebratory. More celebratory. Showed sides of the man not generally known. Bush had a sense of humor. Stories told which shared that facet of his life. One of the more humorous involved Bush’s operation of the motorboat at his Maine home. Bush was less than a good driver. He scared the hell out of Putin! Tears shed on occasion. By those in the Cathedral and Louis. The eulogies personal and warm. Son George broke down and cried near the end of his. Former Senator Simpson could have had a career as a comedian. Former Canadian Prime minister Mulroney, also. Jon Mecham articulate. Warm. Weaves words well. Described the President as Mr. Peepers who wanted to be John Wayne to the laughter of all. Perhaps not everyone. I refer to President Trump. Perhaps Melanie, also. Both obviously uncomfortable, a strange addition to the rest in the Cathedral. The former Presidents and their spouses sat together in the front row. Trump and Melania came in after they had been seated a while. Before their appearance, the former Presidents and wives were chatting and joking. Trump arrived and everyone went stiff. Sat quietly staring ahead. The Obamas were seated next to the Trumps. They briefly and respectfully greeted the Trumps. The Clintons would have nothing to do with him nor Trump they. Trump appeared uncomfortable throughout. Scowling and arms crossed. Slouching forward. Looked like a slob compared to the other Presidents. The thought just occurred. If you remove the T from Trump and replace wit with a G, it becomes Grump. Respectfully, what Trump appeared to be during the service. Trump supported by the Evangelicals. A strong religious group in the United States. Trump did not appear evangelical yesterday. He did not participate in prayers or hymns. The Apostles’ Creed was recited by all. It was even printed in the program. Trump’s lips closed throughout, as were Melania’s. So too with the Lord’s Prayer. One other Presidential observation. President Carter and Hillary. Sat next to each other. A “created” space between them. Appeared to be by choice. Never saw them talk to each other. Family. The Bush family tight. Close. The influence of George Sr. and Barbara apparent. It was obvious throughout that brothers Jeb and George have a close relationship. Today ends the President’s final services. The family has to be beat. They are in Houston for a service at the President’s personal Church. Then a 70 mile train ride to his Library where he will be buried with Barbara and Robin. This is the first time in more than half a century a political figure worthy of note has been train transported to his final resting place. Robert Kennedy. I clearly recall. A train took his body to Washington. The tracks along the way lined with people paying their last respects. As thousands had done a hundred years earlier for Lincoln. God bless President Bush! God bless our having been reminded of him. It comes at a time in American history when we need to recall there have been Presidents of character, morality, empathy, humanity, etc. Posted in Key West Lou \| Tagged 12/5-12-6, Alisia, Angie, Antonio Banderas, Apostles' Creed, Applerouth, Block Party, Blue Macaw, Bush National Cathedral service, Caroline Street, Celebration of Life, Cold, Evangelicals, Five Living Presidents, Gary Oldman, Key West, Key West Lou, Lighted Boat Parade, Lord's Prayer, Mary Ellen's, Meryl Streep, Scowling and Arms Crossed, Stephanie, The Laundromat, Trump, Trump and Melania, Weather, Whitehead, Xmas Decorations \| 1 Reply A DAY OF NATIONAL MOURNING This morning at 11, family, friends, world, and national leaders will pay homage to George H. W. Bush at the Washington National Cathedral. We no longer refer to funeral services as a time for sorrow, a time for mourning. Though in fact they are. Over the years those two words have transformed into a time for celebration. Whatever, all apply. While Bush’s life is being celebrated in the Cathedral, I will be full of sorrow. My heart will mourn for a good man gone. I will shed some tears. Always do at events of this nature. A box of tissues nearby. The Washington National Cathedral was completed in 1990. Following 83 years of construction. Though not complete till 1990, used for religious services in the years leading up to 1990. Woodrow Wilson and Helen Keller are laid to rest within the walls of the Cathedral. Later today, Bush will be flown to Houston. Tomorrow at 5:15 pm, he will be buried on the grounds of the George Bush Presidential Library and Museum next to his wife Barbara and daughter Robin. Television yesterday showed former Senator and Presidential candidate Bob Dole pay his last respects to Bush at the Capitol Rotunda. Moving. Friends and foes in the past. One saying good bye to the other. Bush and Dole are members of the Greatest Generation. Both fought with distinction in World War II. Bush as a Navy carrier pilot shot down twice. Dole as an infantry man so severely wounded he was lucky to survive. Let alone still living today at age 95. It was touching to watch Dole be helped from his wheel chair to offer a final salute to his friend and leader. Syracuse won big time last night. Beat Northeastern 72-49. The team looked good. May they continue improving. Syracuse’s next foe old time rival Georgetown. Saturday afternoon. Immediately following the game, it was Tuesday Talk with Key West Lou. Enjoyed doing the show last night. Then again, I enjoy doing it every time it is done. The show went smoothly. Many thoughts shared. My dear friend Lauri Thibaud has left the Rum Barrel and returned to Aqua. She will be working the Back Bar saturday and sunday evenings. Saturdays beginning at 5, sundays at 4. Harry Truman time again. I mentioned yesterday how Truman had bad eyesight, wanted to join the Missouri national guard in 1905, and feared he would fail the eye test. He cheated. Sort of. He memorized the eye chart. Passed with flying colors! Truman now a private. Proud. Wanted his grandmother Louisa Young to see him in his uniform. He made a special trip to Grandview, Missouri to visit her. Wore his uniform. Blue with red stripes down the trouser legs, red piping on the cuffs, and a red fourragere over the shoulder. His grandmother was outraged! She told him the uniform reminded her of the Union soldiers who pillaged the family farm during the Civil War. She admonished him never to return wearing the uniform again. He never did. Posted in Key West Lou \| Tagged Aqua, Back Door, Blog Talk Radio, Civil War, Day of Sorrow and Celebration, George H. W. Bush, Greatest Generation, Helen Keller, Key West, Key West Lou, Key West Lou Blog Talk Radio, Lauri Thibaud, Louise Young, Military Attire, National Day of Mourning, Senator Bob dole, Spiritual Home of the Nation, Syracuse Basketball, Syracuse/Northeastern, Truman's Grandmother, Trump, Tuesday Talk with Key West Lou, Washington National Cathedral, Woodrow Wilson \| Leave a reply GOD, MYSTICISM, BELIEF IN A SUPERNATURAL Most people believe. Some in a God. Others a supernatural being of sorts. Some that things happen for a reason. That an individual by his or her actions can compel a result. I was at the Gardens last night. A sizeable crowd. Peter Diamond entertaining with songs born in my generation. I was sitting alone in the back when Jackie Tee stopped by to say hello. I last wrote about Jackie a year ago. We met in the Chart Room. Following the meeting, I wrote her story. One involving a broken toe ring and Irma. One based in a religious type belief. Some background first. Jackie a Canadian. Her first trip to Key West 20 years ago with her husband, 4 1/2 year old son and her sister. They have continued to visit every year for 20 years. Sometimes as much as 4 times a year. Always stay at the Galleon. As Jackie describes it, she is drawn to Key West. While here 20 years ago, she purchased a toe ring. Wore it religiously for 20 years. A couple of months before Irma, the toe ring began to split. The toe ring totally split on September 10, the day Irma hit Key West. Jackie thought some omen might be involved. A friend who she describes as a “new age spiritual” suggested the ring be repaired. Intimating some good might come as a result. Jackie had the toe ring repaired. It was returned to her on the same day as Key West was opened for the first time permitting residents to return. The toe ring have something to do with it? Perhaps. Jackie believes so. With Jackie last night was her sister Donna. We had met last year at the Chart Room also. Both Jackie and Donna read my blog every day. Love them! A bit humid at the Gardens. No breeze last night. I was in need of air conditioning. Left and headed for the Chart Room. John bartending. Chatted with Carla and Jerry. First time in Key West. Staying at the Pier House. Both retired. Presently live on Smith Mountain Lake in Virginia. Jerry had an interesting career. Spent 31 years with UPS. A welder, his title aircraft master. Retired from UPS and went to work the next 10 years at a company called Alston. It was there he met and married Carla. They are having a ball! No question, they will return. John mentioned that another person at the bar was from Utica. My home town. Rarely run into someone from Utica. His name Tom Burns. We talked a long time. An interesting guy. Tom is not actually from Utica. From Forestport. Fifteen-twenty miles outside Utica. Otter Lake area. Beginnings of the Adirondacks. He brought me up to date on the Utica hospital situation. The 3 hospitals are merging and planning on rebuilding. In a place presently covered by an old Police Station building and a relatively new City Court House. Both would be torn down. I immediately thought how my friend Anthony “Muzzy” Garramone would be upset. Muzzy and I grew up together. He eventually became a Judge. Thereafter, Chief Judge of the Utica City Courts. Utica desperately needed a new City Court House. Muzzy lead the drive politically. He was primarily instrumental for its design. A beautiful edifice the result. The building was named after him. The Anthony J. Garramone Court House. Other than his marriage and the birth of his children, the biggest day in Muzzy’s life. Much deserved. Tom is involved with telephones. Believe he mentioned Verizon. Forty nine years old. Has avoided matrimony. Single. His first visit to Key West. Obviously enjoying it. Who does not? I have not been back to Utica in 12 years. I have lost contact with the community. He brought me up to date on the local political scene. Especially the recent Congressional race. The Republican incumbent the daughter of a deceased New York State Supreme Court Justice. The Judge could be a difficult man to work in front of. The Democrat the young son of a Utica attorney. An outstanding trial lawyer. Extremely successful in the practice. Made his reputation early in his career representing prominent criminals. Successfully so on most occasions. Tom told me a major issue in the campaign was the early checkered career of the Democratic candidate’s father. The district traditionally Republican. The Democratic candidate won. Posted in Key West Lou \| Tagged Belief In The Supernatural, Chart Room, Cracked Toe Ring, Donna, Forestport, Gardens, God, Hospitals, Irma, Irma and Me, Jackie Tee, Jean Thornton, John, Key West, Key West Lou, Mysticism, Smith Mountain Lake, Tom Burns, Utica \| Leave a reply GROCERY SHOPPING WITH THE BLIND A unique experience yesterday. I took Terri grocery shopping. Donna was ill and asked me to step in. It was the blind leading the blind. I shop at the new Publix. Know where everything is. Terri shops at the old Publix. I knew where nothing was. Everything in a different place from the other store. The experience began with the drive. I was on Whitehead approaching Truman. She said, “Take a left on Truman.” How did she know Truman was ahead? When we arrived at Publix, she explained the game plan. We were to enter on the right side of the store. Get a cart immediately. She would drive. I was to lightly pull from the front to control direction. We started on the right side of the store. Needed bacon. She got me to it. So far, I was comfortable. Not bad. Then it began. Go 2 aisles right. Take a left. Half way down on the right. Top shelf. Box or can colored such and such. Brand name provided. And so it went. Occasionally, I took the wrong item off the shelf. She was able to tell by the size of a can if I did wrong. The size not being that much different from that which she wanted. She directed. I followed. I was proud of myself. I did good. She wanted me to go one way, I went another. I saw one of the items on her grocery list 2 aisles in the opposite direction from where she wanted me to go. Blew it for her! Totally discombobulated! She was lost! Not panicked. Merely said to me, “You did wrong. I do not know where I am.” I righted the wrong and we were on our way again. I was impressed. She knew where most things were. The side of the aisle as well as shelf. Occasionally, she would tell me she was staying where she was with the cart. The Deli area an example. Too crowded for her. Gave me walking orders and off I went. Checking out interesting. She can empty a cart, though I did. She pays with a credit card, not a debit. Merely push it in and it registers without her doing anything else. I was impressed! Her only inability was driving the car itself. Who knows, some day. Intended to go out last night and watch the Syracuse/Cornell game. Too tired. The shopping trip had tired me out! Remained home and watched Syracuse beat Cornell 63-55. Cornell was winning by one point with 5 minutes to go. An unimpressive Syracuse game against a lesser opponent. The nice thing was that Boeheim’s 2 sons were playing. On opposite sides. One for Syracuse, the other Cornell. Neither embarrassed themselves nor their father. Driving down a street this time of the year in Utica and Key West the same. With one difference. Utica has snow. Otherwise, Key West homes are decorated as those up north. Christmas spirit exists regardless of location. The Key West homes I have seen absolutely beautiful. Obvious that a lot of thought and work were involved. George H. W. Bush a frequent visitor to the keys. Primarily, Islamorada area. The President an avid fisherman. Generally stayed at Cheeka Lodge. Visited before, during and following his Presidency. His biggest fishing experience involved landing a 135 foot tarpon. The largest game fish he ever caught. Bush was 84 at the time. Took him only 45 minutes to land the giant fish. Bush used a live crab for bait. Afterwards he said, “It was a thrill of a lifetime…..A great fighting fish was finally baited.” Bush’s character, sensitivity, caring, etc. coming out from every source. Things we did not know about him. I share two I came across. In the 1950’s, the Bush’s lost their daughter Robin to leukemia. She was 2 at the time. Bush wrote a letter to his mother following Robin’s death…..”We need a legitimate Christmas angel, one who doesn’t have cuffs beneath her dress. You have to be a father to know this,” he wrote. “We need a little one who can kiss without leaving egg or jam or gum. We need a girl. We had one once…..But she is still with us. We need her yet we have her.” In 2013, Bush shaved his head in solidarity with 2 year old Patrick, the son of one of the agents on his Secret Service detail who was being treated for leukemia and had lost all his hair. He was that type man. Another nature disaster. The Alaskan earthquake friday in the Anchorage area. A big one. One 7.0 in magnitude. Trump immediately responded. Issued an emergency declaration making it possible for the Department of Homeland Security and FEMA to act. Trump told the people of Alaska, “Your federal government will spare no expense.” Trump will fail Alaska as he failed Puerto Rico, Florida, northern Florida, and the California fire areas. There is not enough money! It was more than color in Puerto Rico. Not enough money. Florida still owed billions to reimburse and /or complete rebuilding following Irma. No one hears about Florida’s Panhandle. Michael destroyed most areas hit. One city totally obliterated. We hear nothing about how great FEMA is doing in the Panhandle because it is not doing enough. California desperately waits dollars rather than criticism. Trump should sweep out the swamp people in his cabinet rather than recommend the forest grounds in California be swept. He will fail Alaska also. His administration has misused, misallocated, and I don’t know what else, funds for natural disaster relief. Talk is cheap. Put money where your mouth is, Mr. President. Our country needs you. Enough for today. Posted in Key West Lou \| Tagged 135 Foot Tarpon, Alaska Earthquake, Bush 41 and Keys Fishing, California Fires, Cheeka Lodge, China, DHS, Donna and Terri, Emergency Declaration, FEMA, George H. W. Bush, Irma, Islamorada, Key West, Key West Christmas Decorated Homes, Key West Lou, Key West Lou Live Video, Leukemia, Michael, Old Publix, Publix, Puerto Rico, Robin, Shopping With The Blind, Syracuse Basketball, Syracuse/Cornell, Tariff War, Terri, Trump, Two Sensitive Stories, Your Federal Government Will Spare No Expense \| 10 Replies MY BOOKS DON’T BALANCE Posted on November 30, 2018 by keywestlou I have difficulty making my check book balance. And I have only a measly Social Security check to be concerned with. The federal government on the other hand has tons of money. Especially the Department of Defense/Pentagon. Should be easier. Especially with hundreds of thousands of employees. A number I assume bookkeepers. No, the Pentagon has trouble balancing its check book. Congress hired Ernst & Young to do an independent audit of the Pentagon’s finances. Hard to believe, but the Pentagon had not audited itself for decades. A serious error. Especially since 2 of every 3 federal tax dollars collected goes to the Pentagon. On November 15, Ernst & Young advised it could not complete its audit. Too many bookkeeping deficiencies, irregularities, and errors. A reliable audit impossible. The amount Ernst & Young could not trace/account for $21 trillion. Beside poor bookkeeping habits, graft has to be involved. Too many dollars unaccounted for not to have been. Cold yesterday. Required long pants. Nothing fits because of my 62 pound weight loss. Found an old pair of khakis. Fit. Tucked my shirt in. I looked terrific! Straight! Did not even have to suck in my stomach! The proof was when I walked into Lori’s for a haircut. Lori looked at me with bright open eyes and exclaimed “Louis, you look terrific!” One of her associates said, “Oh, my God!” I threw my arms up in victory and exclaimed “Love it!” Oh, vanity. However, I deserve to be vain in this instance. Last night Blue Macaw for a while. One drink. Then off to Publix. Most of the food I had purchased before I got sick I threw away. No longer edible. Tomorrow is World AIDS Day. Key West’s gay community was hard hit. I have been here 30 years. I saw it when I began coming down. Sad. Men wasting away. The interesting thing was the the love. Evident everywhere. Partners taking care of those afflicted. Gays taking care of each other. Straights helping the gay community in every conceivable way. Key West took the problem in hand. Organized. Worked at the problem. Today, life can be sustained if a person is afflicted. A lovely AIDS Memorial sits at the end of White Street at the opening to the bridge. The day will be commemorated with a procession from City Hall to the AIDS Memorial where a service will be held. No question, it will be sensitive and heart warming. Syracuse/Cornell tomorrow night at 8. Syracuse should win by 20 points. A special significance to the game. Coach Boeheim has 2 sons, Jimmy and Buddy. Jimmy plays for Cornell, Buddy Syracuse. Going to be interesting. Mom Juli will be cheering for both teams. Trump and his defense team have been out foxed. For over a year, Trump’s lawyers have been fighting Mueller re interview, depose, have the President answer written questions with written answers? Finally, last week the President provided Mueller with written responses. Trump proudly said he prepared the answers himself, not his attorneys. Trump’s attorneys only permitted Trump to answer collusion with Russia. Refused to have Trump answer obstruction inquiries. Probably because it had to be obvious Mueller had much evidence obstruction wise to charge. However, it appeared little to nothing re collusion. Yesterday, Trump’s former personal attorney Cohen plead guilty in federal court to lying to Mueller about a host of situations connecting Trump up with Russia. Collusion! The President is in deep shit trouble. Collusion obviously viable. Big time! I blame the President for the fix he is now in. His fault. Instead of retaining the best lawyers available, he took on hacks. Lawyers like Rudy Giuliano. Over the hill or incompetent, or both. Again, Mueller’s play brilliant! Sucked the President’s lawyers right in. Disease at the border. It now exists. Did not earlier when some were saying illnesses like leprosy were being carried by the immigrants. Trump has created a situation where more than a thousand migrants are stuck in a small area at the border. Caused by Trump denying them the right to apply for asylum which would have resulted in the prolonged crowding not to have occurred. Food not plentiful. Showers similarly. Sewage a problem. Portable toilets overused, plugged with crap on the floors. Disease inevitable. TB, chicken pox, and AIDS. Good job, Mr. President. Everything you touch becomes a disaster. Posted in Key West Lou \| Tagged $21 Trillion, AIDS and Chicken Pox, Blue Macaw, Boeheim's Sons, Collusion, Department of Defense, Diseases at Border, Ernst & Young, First Amendment, Freedom of Speech, Graft, Key West, Key West AIDS Memorial, Key West Lou, Lori/Haircut, Mueller, Obstruction, Out Foxed, Pentagon, Publix, Sandy's Cafe, Supreme Court Justice Brennan, Syracuse Basketball, Syracuse/Cornell, TB, World AIDS Day \| 8 Replies JEAN THORNTON RETURNS A crowd of 200 was waiting at the Key West Airport last night. Waiting for Jean Thornton who was arriving on the Delta flight out of Atlanta. The crowd yelled and screamed as she descended the plane’s steps. Soon she was hoisted on some burly shoulders and carried into the airport. Jean is one of the most popular and loved persons in Key West. The Golden Girl. Found gold coins and emeralds when diving with Mel Fisher many years ago. Changed her life! She was my benefactor also. When escaping Irma, I stayed at her home in Birmingham for 12 days. Her airport reception is fantasy. Created by me. Everything else true. Thought she was deserving of such a reception. A figment of my imagination. Welcome back, Jean! I learn more about Captain Tony each day. His daughter Toni a huge help in acquainting me with him. Tony had an electric car. Made it himself. Piece by piece, part by part. Inside and out. The car tiny. Maximum speed 3 mph. There was an airbrush painter by the name of Bill Miller in town for years. A friend Of Captain Tony’s. He painted Tony’s face on the side of the car. Took up half of one side. Painted all kinds of other things on the rest of the car. Tony had an old Lincoln. Airbrushed by Miller, also. Tony drove around in the Lincoln with his goat Ruff. Ruff meaaahhhing along the way. Cape Air is a small regional airliner that had been serving Key West for years. Their planes colorfully painted. One had Tony’s face covering better than half of one side. A cruise back in time to the 1940s. Next wednesday. A preservation fundraiser for the Custom House. KWAHS has gone all out putting the event together. Cocktails on the veranda of the Custom House first. Then a walk next door to Magaritaville’s Grand Ballroom. The Ballroom will have been transformed into a luxury cruise liner. Recommended attire 1940s. The weather outside is frightful…..No snow. But cold! Last night 63 degrees. At moment 64. High supposedly will reach 70 today. Normalcy returns tomorrow when the temperature will be in the low 80s. The game plan last night was for me to go to Jack Flatt to watch Syracuse/Ohio State at 7. I laid down around 3:30 for a nap. Woke a little after 6. Too late for Jack Flat. Needed to shave, shower, dress, drive into town, etc. Stayed home and watched the game. Syracuse played its best game of the season. Its only good game. Beat Ohio State 72-62. Ohio State undefeated prior to the game at 6-0. Syracuse 3-2. It all came together for Syracuse last night. The hit on 3s, played great defense. Boeheim mixed his players up. May have hit on the right combination. An on the road upset win. My faith has been restored! Manafort’s duplicity may save his ass with a Trump pardon. It will not help his attorneys or Trump’s attorneys. Their participation in the scheme borders on the criminal. Ethically, they are over the line. Could cost them their licenses. Trump leaves today for the G 20 meeting in Argentina. He has a meeting scheduled with his “friend” Putin. The two will leave the meeting arm in arm. Friends! Trump should be meeting with China’s Xi. The U.S. problem with China big. Sensitive. What makes me laugh is that Russia benefits every time the U.S. and China conflict. For example, Russia is selling soybeans to China. In 2 years, Trump has pushed Russia and China closer and closer. They have become bedfellows economically. Lets hope it does not happen militarily. A big day in history. November 29, 1947. It was on this day 71 years ago that the UN voted for partition of Palestine and the creation of an independent Jewish state. Conflict ever since. Peace seems impossible. Could be another 71 years and the Jews and Palestinians will still be warring. Posted in Key West Lou \| Tagged 71 Years, Ahead Of His Time, Back In Time - Cruise To The 40s, Bill Miller, Cape Air, Captain Tony, Dress 1940s, Electric Car, Face Painted on Car, G-20, Goat Ruff, Jean Thornton, Jewish/Arab conflict, Key West, Key West Lou, KWAHS, Luxury Cruise Liner, Manafort's Attorneys, Preservation of Custom House, Putin, Russia and China Bedfellows, Syracuse Basketball, Syracuse/Ohio State, Trump, Trump's Attorneys, UN, Vote for Partition and Creation of Jewish State, Weather, Xi \| 4 Replies FIRST COLD SPELL TONIGHT I can see those in the cold areas of the country smiling already. Yes, it will be cold in Key West for the next 2 days beginning tonight. I will be cold. I am complaining. Today’s temperature 80 degrees. Tonight, it will drop to 64. I will have the heat on. Tomorrow, 69 by date and 63 in the evening. Then a return to normalcy. Eighty degree weather Yesterday proved my body is finally back to normal. Ran a few errands by day. Last night out. Aqua first for Dueling Bartenders. Not “dueling” for a while. Tom Luna on a 6 month sabbatical. Rick Dery ran the show alone. Spectacular! However had to be tired at the end. He sang every song! My dear friend Liz at the bar. Liz is waning. Hurts. I like her so much. Wish I had met her 15-20 years ago. My friend who was Dean of 2 law schools. I chatted with her a while. Each word she spoke took effort. Josefina, Linda and Mary singing along with everyone else. Afterwards, Mary and I had dinner at the bar at La Trattoria. Where I really put my body to the test. I had limited myself to 2 drinks at Aqua. Enjoyed a third at La Trattoria. And a plate of lasagna. Oh, what a night it was! Sat next to Dink Bruce. Dink a Key West legend. Everyone likes Dink. That kind of guy. Dink and some of Hemingway’s artifacts, writings, etc. related. Dink’s father Toby Bruce. He and Hemingway tight. Together every day. When Hemingway died, he left behind a pile of boxes in Sloppy Joe’s back room. Hemingway’s fourth wife Mary Welsh Hemingway visited to go through the boxes. She took with her what she thought valuable. Gave the rest to Toby and his wife Betty. No one bothered to categorize the contents of the boxes till 15 years ago. Most importantly, Hemingway’s first writing. One he did at the age of 10. Other items included additional writings, photos, notes, pieces of his hair, and prints. Bruce and Betty long gone. Contents now the property of their son Dink. Dink told me last night Penn State is interested in the contents. He is in negotiations at the present time with Penn State. Love tuesday nights! My podcast show. Tuesday Talk with Key West Lou. Join me at 9 for a fast moving half hour of me venting and raving about things. Fun to do! Guaranteed you will enjoy. www.blogtalkradio.com/key-west-lou. I slammed Trump hard yesterday for the use of tear gas at the border. Wrong place, wrong time for such an horrendous act. Blame has to be spread. Obama’s use of tear gas at the border makes Trump look like an angel. I was not aware of Obama’s use yesterday when I wrote. Obama used the same type tear gas frequently. Twenty six times in 2012, 27 times in 2013. Then its usage dropped off. In 2016, only 3 times. Obama authorized pepper spray on occasion, also. The Trump administration has come up with another bright idea. Credit scores to be used to determine who may become a citizen. Anyone with poor scores would be ineligible. The purpose is to prevent immigrants from becoming a burden on the welfare system. Makes me wonder how my family would have fared under such a rule. My people came from Italy between 1900 and 1915. Peasants. Third class steerage. Not a pot to piss in, as the saying goes. This first group worked hard. Most succeeded in living a step above the poverty level. My mother a most interesting story. She came over as a child. Lived in New York City. Her father had a stroke. She had to leave school while in the third grade to work 14 hours a day in a shoe factory. They all became citizens. Their children became the stars. Only because of the stringent upbringing which pushed them to do better. None would have become citizens if the credit score rule were in effect. What would have happened to me and my many cousins?Would we have been able to become the successful professional and business people we did? Trump campaigned big time on the representation he would bring jobs back. He has done a poor job so far. It was announced yesterday that General Motors would be getting rid of 14,000 jobs and closing 5 plants. A winner, Mr. President! Recall he also promised that coal plants would return. Where? Aluminum companies, also. Good luck! And then there is the farming industry. Totally mucked up because of the tariff wars. Soybeans, wheat and corn hit especially hard. Soybean sales down 94 percent this year. Then there is the stock market. Down 2,500 points since early October. Erratic. Up and down hundreds of points each week. If it drops another 2,500 point, we will be in a recession big time. I believe a recession possible. Between now and late spring. The world is too turbulent. Posted in Key West Lou \| Tagged Aluminum Companies, Aqua, Betty Bruce, Blog Talk Radio, Border, Bring Jobs Back, Coal Plants, Cold Spell, Credit Scores, DHS, Dink Bruce, Dueling Bartenders, Farming Industry, GM, Key West, Key West Lou, Key West Lou Blog Talk Radio, Key West Lou Live Video, La Trattoria, Lasagna, Liz, Mary, Mueller Investigation, Obama, Paul Manafort, Peas and Carrots, Penn State, Rick Dery, Russia/Ukraine, Russian Mafia, Sleeping Dogs/Fleas, Soybeans, Tear Gas, Toby Bruce, Tom Luna, Trump, Tuesday Talk with Key West Lou, Turkey Pardoned, Washington Times, Weather, World War III \| 2 Replies CONGRATULATIONS MR. PRESIDENT, YOU DID IT AGAIN…..CHILDREN BAREFOOT, IN DIAPERS, CHOKING ON TEAR GAS First, it was ripping babies from their mothers’ arms. Now, tear gassing children barefooted and diapered. You are a big man Mr. President. A bully. Next bullets fired and immigrant parents and children killed and wounded? What could be expected of a people who have walked 2,000 miles in hope of gaining admission to the U.S. The beaming light at the top of the hill is growing dim. If I had walked 2,000 miles, I would have run up the hill trying to get into the U.S. as were the asylum seekers. Persons having every right to enter the U.S., be interviewed by a Judge to determine if they might be eligible for asylum status, and then given a date to return. In the meantime, you are trying to “buy” Mexico to help with “our” problem. The money being offered will have to be gigantic to bribe the new Mexican officials to go along with any arrangement. The backlog of asylum cases is estimated at 1 million with a projected time of 2 years to be heard. You and your predecessors should have appointed more Judges years ago to work the problem. One more thing my President, you are solely responsible for the critical situation now existing at the border. You have created it with your thrusting fear into the hearts of some Americans about the bad immigrants on their way to hurt us. A falsehood you well knew and continue to know. You did the same thing with Kim Jung Un. Got into a pissing match with him. Names exchanged. War possible. Suppose Kim decided to drop a nuclear device on South Korea or the U.S. instead of meeting with you? It was possible. Hundreds of thousands dead because of your ill equipped mind. People are going to continue trying to cross the border till you come up with a better solution. One to help, not hurt them. Barbra Strunk reads this blog. Has so for some time. Never met her. She is a stalwart Trump supporter. We are on opposite ends of the spectrum. Adamant in her feelings. I can sense it when she responds to something negative I might have said about him. She hits hard! There are times when Barbra will write a pleasant friendly e-mail re my health or some other thing. Such messages are sweet. Gives one the sense Barbra is a nice person. Barbra lives somewhere in north Florida. Spoke with her for the first time sunday morning. She is visiting Key West. Stopped at Hard Rock to hear Terri sing. She and Donna began talking. All of a sudden, Donna had Barbra on the phone with me. What a nice person! Barbra is here till friday. Hope we get together before she leaves. Beard or no beard? Should have run a contest as to whether I would shave. Received about 20 comments. Equally divided. Male and female. Leave it on, take it off. I took it off. Decided I looked homeless with it on. That and the weight loss. Decided I did not want to go another week developing it. Out last night for the first time in a week. Planned on hitting all my favorite spots. It was the Chart Room first. John bartending. John put a Beefeater on the rocks in front of me. I lit up a cigarette. The first for both in a week. Could not handle either. Two sips of the gin and 2 drags on the cigarette. Neither tasted right. Instead a diet Coke. Left soon after. I was having no fun. Did not feel right. Probably because I have not physically moved my body for a week. I have to walk a bit today. The Key West Cemetery is an interesting place. A lot of odd ball tombstones. Perhaps ghosts. I am not sure. Two tombstones of particular interest. One is the world famous headstone which reads” “I Told You I Was Sick.” Sits on the grave of B. P. “Pearl” Roberts. The other is referred to as the Bound Woman. This one cool! It is located as part of the grave of Archibald John Sheldon Yates. A statue of a nude woman with her hands bound behind her back. It sits at/on the head of Yates’ grave. On top of a long flat stone under which is Yates’ body. Who is the lady and why? Part of a perverted joke by the deceased? Key West had its funky moments in his day also. Two reasons as to who and why. Not sure which is correct. One is that the naked bound woman represents Yates’ wife Magdalena. It is said he expressly told his son before he died that he wanted her to sit upon him for all eternity. A problem. Uncertainty as to whether it represents his wife. Another theory is that it represents Andromeda from Greek mythology. She was bound naked hands tied to a rock as a sacrifice to the sea monster Cetus. She was saved before the terrible event occurred. There are a number of paintings of Andromeda as she was awaiting death. Some naked, some clothe from the waist down. Most standing tied to a rock. None similar to the supposed Andromeda sitting on Yates’ face. My dear friend of many years Cheryl Keast sent me a FB message yesterday with an attachment. The attachment read: “Unpacked our Nativity scene yesterday. Removed all the Jews, Arabs, and foreigners. Ended up with a jackass and a handful of sheep.” Posted in Key West Lou \| Tagged Andromeda, Archibald John Sheldon Yates, B. P. "Pearl" Roberts, Barbra Shrunk, Border, Bound Woman, Cetus, Chart Room, Cheryl Keast, ChildrenBeard, Credit Scores, DHS, Greek Mythology, I Told You I Was Sick, John, Key West, Key West Cemetery, Key West Lou, Nativity Scene, Nude Woman, Peas and Carrots, Shaved, Tear Gas, Tijuana, Trump, Turkey Pardoned \| 17 Replies	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3080
__label__wiki	0.585857	0.585857	Sarina Khan Reddy Media Artist / Project Manager / Media Specialist DAVIS Museum @ WELLESLEY COLLEGE Grants, Panels, Awards & Publications Sarina Khan Reddy’s video, photo, print and installation work explores the differences within her cultural identity as an Islamic-American woman. Through the lens of her Indian heritage, she explores the new colonization embodied in globalization. Specifically she focuses on how the economic system is reflected in all social formations and how war and militarization are fueled by corporate globalization. In her video work she is exploring the blurred boundaries between news and entertainment. She uses appropriated footage from advertising, news, and Hollywood movies. She juxtaposes these sources to subvert the original meaning to create new and alternative histories. In her photo work she explores the perpetuation of the colonialist image, the construction of the exotic, in Disney’s theme park – Animal Kingdom. She asks the questions: What is authentic? What is the role of photography in tourism? What happens when you construct a scene (a spot) for a tourist snapshot? Does this perpetuate the construction of the other? Her latest performance video work is a deeply personal and yet very public. She engages in self-examination to express her desires, frustrations and ideological views as an American mother and a South Asian diasporic artist. She questioning the dominant ideology around domesticity, hysteria and sexuality in the West. She has worked for many years with technology and today strives towards the strategic use of technology and media for education and social change. She has exhibited locally and internationally. NOTE: This site is only a documentation of the work, for digital content please contact: sarinakhanreddy@gmail.com Grant / Projects	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3081
__label__wiki	0.509253	0.509253	Total Loss Brand Title Motor Vehicle Concerning the addition of a brand to designate a certificate of title to a motor vehicle that has been the subject of an insurance claim, and, in connection therewith, making an appropriation. Currently, a motor vehicle title is branded when certain events that negatively affect the vehicle's title occur. The bill adds a total loss brand when the motor vehicle has been: Found to need repairs whose cost exceeds the value of the vehicle; or Designated as a total loss by an insurer under the terms of its policy as a result of the vehicle being damaged. The bill clarifies that a motor vehicle that is designated as a total loss and also qualifies as a salvage vehicle will be branded as a salvage vehicle. When the department of revenue issues a new title with the total loss or salvage brand, it also notifies the owner and senior lienholder. Collector's item and street rod vehicles are exempt. $97,142 is appropriated to the department of revenue from the Colorado state titling and registration account in the highway users tax fund to implement the bill. (Note: This summary applies to the reengrossed version of this bill as introduced in the second house.) View Research Note Jovan Melton Chris Holbert Transportation & Energy 04/27/2016 \| Senate State, Veterans, & Military Affairs (2 ) Postpone House Bill 16-1293 indefinitely using a reversal of the previous roll call. There was no objection to the use of the reverse roll call, therefore, the bill was postponed indefinitely. 03/16/2016 \| House Transportation & Energy (4 ) Adopt amendment L.002 (Attachment A). Adopt amendment L.003 (Attachment B). Adopt amendment L.004 (Attachment C). 04/27/2016 Senate Senate Committee on State, Veterans, & Military Affairs Postpone Indefinitely 04/14/2016 Senate Introduced In Senate - Assigned to State, Veterans, & Military Affairs 03/16/2016 House House Committee on Transportation & Energy Refer Amended to Appropriations 02/24/2016 House Introduced In House - Assigned to Transportation & Energy Rep. J. Melton Sen. C. Holbert Rep. C. Duran, Rep. D. Primavera, Rep. M. Tyler Licensing Regulation Ambulatory Surgical Centers Vehicle Transfer Registration Fee Credit State Procurement Disparity Study Class 2 Misdemeanor Traffic Offenses State Laws Addressing Fees Related to Credit Security Freezes (2017) Traffic Demand Management and Managed Lanes (18-06)	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3089
__label__wiki	0.968058	0.968058	Summer 2013 /Baseball/ Big-League Books The Smartest Stadium Restaurant in America The Ultimate Baseball Roadtrip Goofball Classic Baseball Worldwide Major League Math Reassuring Research Changeup Four Games Putting Bytes into the Old Ball Game What We Gave the Game Picking Teams Foul Job Quick takes: News From Campus One Season, Seven Records How to Save a Lost Language The Summer of Turrell Ready for the Real World A Dream Made Real Immigration and Opportunity Tech vs. Stress A Different Groove The first interactive baseball computer game was born in Mudd-Blaisdell. Here’s how a would-be playwright and a ballet dancer became video game pioneers. June 26, 2013 by Mark Kendall In his baseball-loving boyhood, Don Daglow ’74 used to get calluses on his fingers from flicking the spinner for the All-Star Baseball board game that he’d play again and again, sometimes eight times a day. Over time, he even reworked the venerable game to allow changes in pitching. And then, still in love with the old ball game, he arrived at college, where he met his first mainframe computer, the PDP-10, tied in to terminals in Mudd-Blaisdell residence hall. “That one moment,’’ says Daglow, “changed my life pretty dramatically.” He learned programming and in no time he thought, “‘Oh, wait a sec, now I can do baseball.’” By 1971, English major Daglow had come up with the first computer simulation baseball game in which the player could make choices—moves like sending in a pinch hitter or having the pitcher walk a batter intentionally—with results from each play printed out on paper. The game was a hit. Daglow was shocked to get his first fan letter, from someone at a college back east. More acclaim was coming down the road, but for now Daglow was busy digging deeper into programming and writing. Over nine years as a student at Pomona and then a grad student and later an instructor at Claremont Graduate University, he would hone his programming skill through his access to then-rare mainframe computers, even as he pursued his plans to become a playwright. “Baseball,” says Daglow, “is one of the most spectacular pieces of theatre ever invented by human beings.” One hitch in the script, though: Working on games on the busy mainframes could you get kicked off the system. “That’s why we were always sneaking about at night,” recalls Daglow. “We knew where all the terminals were at the other five campuses.” All that covert computing paid off. By 1980, Mattel had hired him and Daglow was put to work on a video game called Utopia for the company’s innovative Intellivision video game console. Ever the fan, Daglow was watching a ballgame on TV after completing that first title when he got a thought for a new video baseball game: What if we could make a game that looked like one on TV, with sweeping camera angles? “That would be new,” Daglow recalls thinking. “It would be a blow to Atari.” But how to deliver the blow? Enter the dancer. Daglow put out the call for applicants from his alma mater, and among the Sagehens he wound up hiring was Eddie Dombrower ’80, who turned out to be perfect for the part. An athlete, programming whiz and math major who had taken up ballet in high school, Dombrower had just completed a Watson Fellowship studying the computer simulation of dance in Europe and Israel after graduation. That led him to create a system for computerized dance notation, with an animated figure repeating the moves. “In those days computers were really, really slow,” recalls Dombrower, noting that the Watson work came in quite handy. He used the tricks he learned in math to make the animation go fast on slow computers. Daglow crafted the initial specs and statistical simulation design, then Dombrower came through with a prototype for TV-style baseball, bringing the challenging visuals to life. “Most programmers would have crashed and burned,” says Daglow. Now Daglow had something to show off within the company, and the bigwigs liked it. Maybe a bit too much. “The marketing V.P. looked at it and said, ‘you know we can have TV commercials running for that in three to four weeks, in time for the Christmas selling season,’” Daglow recalls. Daglow was taken aback: “I looked at him and said ‘we’ve got months to go on this.’” The marketing exec wouldn’t budge: “You have to understand we’re at war with Atari,” he warned. “It’s going to be us or them. If this is what we can do in the future, we want to show it now.” So the company did just that, with George Plimpton unveiling the baseball game in TV commercials, intoning: “This is the future of video games.” And it was. But not yet. The whole industry tumbled, if only temporarily, in the video game crash of 1983. Intellivision World Series Major League Baseball was released during the freefall, hardly any copies were made and soon enough Intellivision itself went kaput. But the knowledge and experience Daglow and Dombrower gained would still be put to work. By the late ’80s, the pair had gone on to work for industry powerhouse Electronics Arts, working with legendary Orioles Manager Earl Weaver on the game that became Earl Weaver Baseball. Crafting innovations like customized play for different ball fields such as Boston’s Fenway Park, Dombrower and Daglow created a title that went far beyond the once-futuristic Intellivision game. First, though, Daglow had to do the statistics and Dombrower had to do the physics. How do the parabolas diminish from bounce to bounce as a ground ball slows down hopping on grass? On artificial turf? With Fenway’s famous, close-in Green Monster, how often would a ball that bounces off the wall wind up as a single instead of the expected double? With so many variables at work in the game, “you create this really interesting, very natural feel,’’ recalls Dombrower. “It doesn’t feel canned any more. The drama just ratchets up.” So did sales. Earl Weaver Baseball was a hit, and Dombrower hatched a sequel a few years later. By the ’90s, Daglow, meanwhile, was on to another stat-laden baseball game, this time picking the brain of another standout manager. Tony La Russa Baseball, which carried on in a series of versions from 1991 to 1997, built on the earlier innovations, with more sophisticated stats and better graphics during its long sales run. Even today, as an accomplished, Emmy-winning game developer, Daglow still can’t believe he got a chance to work with legends like La Russa, with whom he’s now designing a new game title. “How the hell did that happen?,” Daglow asks. “I’m so freakin’ lucky I’m just beyond words.”	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3097
__label__cc	0.588616	0.411384	Home > M&A Reports > Reports > Zephyr Week in Review 13th June Half-yearly / Annual Zephyr Week in Review, w/c 8th July 2019 The week’s largest M&A deal by value involved IBM completing its previously announced acquisition of Red Hat for USD 34,000 million. Zephyr Week in Review, w/c 1st July 2019 The week’s largest deal by value featured Brookfield Infrastructure Partners teaming up with GIC and a group of smaller investors to acquire Genesee & Wyoming for USD 8,400 million, including debt. Zephyr Week in Review, w/c 24th June 2019 The week’s largest M&A deal by value involved AbbVie agreeing to acquire Allergan for USD 63,533 million. The week’s largest M&A deal by value involved Pfizer agreeing to acquire Array BioPharma for USD 11,400 million. Salesforce pitched a USD 15.7bn bid for Tableau in the largest M&A deal either rumoured, announced or completed last week. Zephyr Week in Review, w/c 3rd June 2019 Asia Pacific dominated the news last week, with rumoured, announced and completed M&A deals targeting companies based in Australia, South Korea and China. Zephyr Week in Review, w/c 20th May 2019 The week’s largest M&A deal by value involved Natura agreeing to acquire Avon Products for USD 4,230 million. The week’s largest M&A deal by value involved Churchill Capital completing its previously announced acquisition of Clarivate Analytics for USD 4,200 million. Zephyr Week in Review, w/c 6th May 2019 The week’s largest M&A deal by value involved Occidental Petroleum agreeing to acquire Anadarko Petroleum for USD 57,000 million. Zephyr Week in Review, w/c 29th April 2019 BASF acquired DEA Deutsche Erdoel for USD 13,454 million in the largest merger and acquisition (M&A) announced last week. Displaying results 1-10 (of 394) \|< < 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5 - 6 - 7 - 8 - 9 - 10 > >\|	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3099
__label__wiki	0.647458	0.647458	Dope Year in Review I slacked here in the writing department but if you are really ambitious then you can dig through the archives of the first four-five months when I was most active. At the start of the year, I embarked on a wild adventure with Shaniac and we co-hosted a podcast that we titled Dope Stories. I was fortunate enough to be a part of 27 wonderful episodes. Here's the descriptions and links to every one... Episode 001: Down and Out in NYC (46:34) -- Stream \| Download Description: Debut episode of Dope Stories Podcast includes Shane's first time getting stoned (at William Kunstler's townhouse), his drug-induced mental breakdown in Amsterdam, medicinal marijuana in the NFL, the origins of Chemdawg strain, and how to get busted for weed in Giuliani's NYC. Episode 002: Philip Seymour Hoffman Remembered (47:41) -- Stream \| Download Description: Special episode in response to the OD death of actor Philip Seymour Hoffman. Shane and Pauly are impressed with Hoffman's haunting performance as a compulsive gambler in Owning Mahowny. They also discuss the 90s heroin chic scene in NYC. Pauly shares a few OD stories (DMT, heroin, and the Seattle grunge scene). Shane recalls a James Brown heroin PSA. Episode 003: Start Up Dot Weed: The 2014 L.A. Cannabis Cup (53:32) -- Stream \| Download Description: An overzealous landlord denies Shane new housing because of his affiliation with Dope Stories. Shane fills in Pauly about what he missed at the L.A. Cannabis Cup. Dope Stories welcomes its first guest, DJ Trent, who shares his thoughts on the heavy tech influence and innovation on the burgeoning marijuana industry. Episode 004: Talkin' About Base: Crack 101 (51:14) -- Stream \| Download Description: Shane buys scratch off lottery tickets, Pauly discusses his chronic insomnia, and Shane reveals his experiences with crack cocaine. Also, Pauly has a theory that George Clinton is an alien. Episode 005: The Oxy Years (46:16) -- Stream \| Download Description: Shane and Pauly discuss their origins in the NYC underground poker scene and how Pauly got hired to become a poker writer and reporter in Las Vegas. Pauly explains how a car accident in Vegas altered his life and quickly led to an addiction to prescription painkillers. The accident triggered two tumultuous years of soul searching while battling an addiction to OxyContin. Episode 006: Tripping in The House I Live In (51:04) -- Stream \| Download Description: Shane's crack article in Slate, 50 Cent documentaries, Eugene Jarecki's drug war documentary The House I Live In, Shane's bad trips, Pauly's turbulent trip at Phish, Ken Kesey testing LSD for the CIA, Shane's friend busted for weed, web series High Maintenance, and Shane's experiences working for a marijuana delivery service in NYC. Episode 007: Greg Merson (57:31) -- Stream \| Download Description: Shane and Pauly interview 2012 World Series of Poker Main Event Champion Greg Merson. During their discussion, Merson reveals how poker was both his downfall and savior while he battled an addiction to cocaine and prescription opiates. Within a year of getting clean, Merson won the WSOP Main Event. Merson currently travels the international circuit and playing in high roller tournaments and the biggest stakes cash games, yet he knows that a potential relapse is lurking around every corner. After the interview, DJ Trent gets schooled on basic poker concepts that Greg mentioned. Episode 008: Dr. Carl Hart (1:09:48) -- Stream \| Download Description: Shane and Pauly interview Dr. Carl Hart, Columbia University professor of neuroscience and the author of High Price. Dr. Hart shares the straight dope on certain drug myths. Dr. Hart spoke on numerous topics including his experiments on behavior in crack users, how there's no scientific evidence for addictive personalities, the importance of clever campaigns explaining the real effects of drugs, the dangers of mixing drugs with alcohol and other drugs, a letter he wrote to his son about how to use drugs safely, and his problem with David Simon's The Wire. Episode 009: Media Dope (41:14) -- Stream \| Download Description: Shane shares some lyrical insight he grokked from Dead Prez and Wu-Tang Clan. Shane and Pauly discuss the Gus Van Sant film Drugstore Cowboy. Pauly's Dope Media suggestions include a biography on David Foster Wallace and podcasts with Duncan Tressell, Amber Lyon, and Dean Delray. Shane watched Drugs, Inc.: Jamaica. Also, Shane explains his recent run in a poker tournament and how $151,000 is not really what it seems. Broke Stories - Episode 001 (56:01) -- Stream \| Download Description: Shane and Pauly created a new podcast about going broke. Pauly's broke stories include shoplifting CDs in the East Village, meeting a weed dealer at a country club in Atlanta, selling his hair in Seattle, losing a $6,000 bet on a March Madness basketball game, blowing his poker winnings on Phish tour, and getting stiffed by a bookie. Shane's broke stories include winning his first prop bet inside a Bronx diner, panhandling for 25 cents to take a crosstown bus, betting/losing on tennis matches during summer camp in Maine, and taking a wrong turn along the way to a Rainbow Gathering in Montana. Episode 010: Ridin' Dirty (1:02:05) -- Stream \| Download Description: Shane roadtripped to New Mexico and calls into the Dope Stories studios to chat with Pauly. Shane tells his infamous Amtrak story involving a near bust. Pauly tells a few stories about using a Jedi mind trick with a security guard, an encounter with a drug dog checkpoint on a Kansas freeway, and the time he randomly met Bill Murray in NYC. This week's Dope Media included: High Maintenance, Gil Scott-Heron, Mistaken for Strangers (documentary film), A.K.A. Tommy Chong (documentary), Murder City by Charles Bowden (book about Juarez, Mexico), Lost in America/Easy Rider, and the new War on Drugs album. Episode 011: Sean Azzariti (1:05:05) -- Stream \| Download Description: Shane and Pauly interviewed medicinal marijuana activist and Iraq War veteran Sean Azzariti, who uses marijuana to treat his PTSD. Sean is most known for being the first person to ever buy legal weed in Denver, Colorado on Jan 1, 2014. Sean explains how he got tapped to be the first recreational buyer along with how he's working on a bill to help get PTSD listed as one of the approved conditions for medicinal marijuana in Colorado. Sean also talked a little bit about his two tours in Iraq with the Marines, including his encounters with trecherous camel spiders and day workers trying to bribe him with bags of hashish. Dope Media segments included: High Times podcast - The Stash, Back and Forth (documentary about Dave Grohl forming the Foo Fighters), Pharoahe Monch's new album P.T.S.D., Roadside Prophets (1992 movie with John Cusak), and Scrapple documentary. Episode 012: International Dope (57:52) -- Stream \| Download Description: Pauly's girlfriend shares a lost in translation story from London. Shane tells a couple crazy tales about trying to score in Europe and in the Bahamas (including a night involving a character named Mack Daddy). Pauly talks about his first visit to the Christiania "green-light district" in Copenhagen, along with the time he was accused of being a CIA agent in Uruguay. Pauly also tells of the time he met Kate Hudson backstage at Big Day Out music festival in Australia. Dope Media includes books by Tom Davis, Geoff Dyer, and Russell Banks, and the most recent episode of SNL with Seth Rogen. Episode 013: The 4/20 Show (49:00) -- Stream \| Download Description: Special episode to commemorate 420 Day. Half-baked festivities included sampling pre-rolled joints, vaping "Brown Sugar" shatter, and setting off the smoke detector in Pauly's office. Shane and Pauly had a brief discussion about Gimme Shelter, the documentary on the Rolling Stones and Altamont. Shane told a story about losing an ounce of weed and drinking shroom tea on Easter and tripping at Roseland Ballroom. Dope Media included Dave Chappelle/Neal Brennan, What You Want Is in the Limo by Michael Walker, Don't Look Back (Bob Dylan documentary by D.A. Pennebaker), and Seven Ages of Rock documentary. Episode 014: The Acid Test (56:45) -- Stream \| Download Description: Pauly read Acid Dreams (book by Martin A. Lee) and shared his notes with Shane that includes Timothy Leary at Millbrook, the CIA buying 100 million hits of LSD from Sandoz labs in Switzerland, Ken Kesey & the Merry Pranksters, Neal Cassady driving the Furthur bus, the history of the Acid Tests, the Grateful Dead dosing Playboy bunnies, and the time Allen Ginsberg gave Psilocybin to Theolnious Monk. Shane re-examines his initial experimentation with psychedelics (including a DMT experience on Halloween) leading up to his psychotic breakdown in Amsterdam. Dope Media included Silicon Valley (new show on HBO), Magic Trip documentary, El Viaje Misterioso de Nuestro Jomer (The Simpsons episode when Homer trips on Guatemalan insanity pepper), Bates Motel, Broad City, and Acid Dreams: The Complete Social History of LSD: the CIA, the Sixties, and Beyond. Episode 015: The Acid Test, Part 2: Furthur (54:47) -- Stream \| Download Description: Shane gifts Pauly a vinyl copy of Europe '72 by the Grateful Dead. John Lennon reminds us to thank the CIA and U.S. Army for LSD. Shane reviews the Magic Trip documentary and explains why he wouldn't want to travel on the Furthur bus with the Merry Pranksters. Shane and Pauly discuss Ken Kesey's One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest and why Kesey's problems with the film version of his novel. Other stories include Shane's trip on a Green Tortoise adventure tour, teenaged Pauly "adopted" by older hippies on Grateful Dead tour, and Shane's encounter with a sketchy "leprechaun" in Central Park. Dope Media includes Searching for Sound by Phil Lesh, Pet Sounds by The Beach Boys, Free Your Mind... and Your Ass Will Follow by Funkadelic, Paul Krassner's Impolite Interviews, and The Eden Express: A Memoir of Insanity by Mark Vonnegut. Episode 016: High Maintenance (Katja Blichfeld & Ben Sinclair) (48:54) -- Stream \| Download Description: Shane and Pauly interview Ben Sinclair and Katja Blichfeld, the co-creators of High Maintenance, which is a critically acclaimed web series about a weed delivery guy in NYC who encounters an eclectic pastiche of customers and characters. This interview was conducted at Thank You For Coming in Atwater Village. Episode 017: I Get High With A Lil Help From Strangers (55:33) -- Stream \| Download Description: Shane and Pauly swap different dope stories involving strangers. Shane's stories include his first crack experience, getting stoned with his friend Dee Dee and two German tourists, and meeting a Dutch traveler who helped shape his mind about traveling. Pauly's stories include hanging out with spies in Amsterdam hash bars, gambling on basketball with British ex-pats in Jamaica, and following Phish in Japan and meeting generous local hippies. Dope Media included Keith Richards autobiography and Pharoahe Monch's newest album. Episode 018: We Are So High (52:56) -- Stream \| Download Description: Shane and Pauly sound off on a recent episode of This American Life "I Was So High." Shane has issues with Ira Glass' Us vs. Them theme and Alex Blumberg's segment about his pothead father. Pauly claims he can spot which chefs on Top Chef are high. Shane touches upon recent articles about Harm Reduction in the Guardian and Buzzfeed's Buzzreads, which brought attention to different programs to help heroin users in NYC and cocaine users in the U.K. Dope Media includes Howard Stern's interviewing Doug Stanhope and Billy Joel, and a book on the Oral History of L.A. Punk called We Got the Neutron Bomb by Marc Spitz and Brendan Mullen. Episode 019: Lost Vegas (49:32) -- Stream \| Download Description: The theme this week is "Las Vegas as a drug" and the nonstop temptations of Sin City. Pauly explains how he chats up strippers and other elements of the dark side of Las Vegas. Shane shares a couple of classic Vegas sex stories including the Glove Scam and he gives tips on how not to get rolled by a hooker. Shane started reading Pauly's book "Lost Vegas: The Redneck Riviera, Existentialist Conversations with Strippers, and the World Series of Poker" and asks Pauly about the book's origins and his Vegas psychedelic experiences from the 1990s. This week's Dope Media includes: Tom Wolfe essay on Vegas, Bob Dylan's Rambling Gambling Willie, Drugs Inc. (Las Vegas episode), and the obituary for Dr. Alexander 'Sasha' Shulgin (a.k.a. the Godfather of Ecstasy). Episode 020: Dr. Shulgin, MDMA, and New Reefer Madness (48:44) -- Stream \| Download Description: The passing of chemist Dr. Alexander 'Sasha' Shulgin, a.k.a. the Godfather of Psychedelics, inspired a discussion on MDMA. Dr. Shuglin perfected MDMA in the 1970s and authored two books about his psychedelic discoveries like 2C-B and DOM. Pauly reminds us about Dr. Shulgin's philosophy on self-experimentation and his message about psychedelics: "Use them with care." Shane and Pauly warn listeners about the wave of severe depression that accompanies heavy usage of MDMA. Shane reveals an affinity for chocolate and Pauly delves into his recent addiction to Two Dots. Shane sounds off the new 'Reefer Madness' in the media and Maureen Dowd's op-ed in NY Times about overdosing on cannabis edibles. Dope Media picks include Finding the Funk documentary, VICE interview with Dr. Sasha Shulgin, and Believer article on the future of marijuana growers in NoCal's Emerald Triangle. Episode 021: Dope Economies (40:39) -- Stream \| Download Description: Shane returns from a long weekend in Vegas and asks Pauly about an article in The Believer about the future of marijuana growers in the Northern California's Emerald Triangle. Pauly explains how wholesale weed prices dropped dramatically over the last 10 years. Shane and Pauly discuss the documentary Crackhouse USA, in which narcotics police in Rockford, Illinois set up surveillance inside a stash house. Pauly remarks on the 44th anniversary of Dock Ellis pitching a no-hitter while under the influence of LSD and speed. Dope Media includes Dead Prez and Michael Rappaport's documentary Beats, Rhymes and Life about A Tribe Called Quest. Episode 022: Jordan Morgan (1:06:39) -- Stream \| Download Description: Shane is on the road in Las Vegas and calls Pauly in the studio. They interview professional poker player Jordan Morgan moments after he won a tournament and his first World Series of Poker bracelet. Morgan was recently prescribed Adderall and he explains how the cognitive enhancer drug turned his life around. Shane and Pauly discuss Electric Daisy Carnival, Shane's worst festival experience, and Pauly's worst Phish show in Vermont. Shane also asks Pauly about his writing methods and inspiration behind his new novel, Fried Peaches. Dope Media includes True Romance (film recommended by Jordan Morgan), How I Hacked My Brain on Adderall article by Trent, and Supermensch, a documentary by Mike Myers about legendary manager Shep Gordon. Episode 023: Degens of Summer (49:38) -- Stream \| Download Description: Shane returns from Vegas, where he played poker with Michael Borovetz, a degenerate gambler most known for scamming people at airports. Shane and Pauly discuss heroin experimentation, while Pauly explains how he's too busy with work to be a full-blown junkie. Dope Media selections include Kid Cannabis film and 112 Weddings documentary. Episode 024: TURBO: Sean Azzariti (20:48) -- Stream \| Download Description: In this special "Turbo" episode, Pauly interviews marijuana activist and veterans advocate Sean Azzariti. Sean talks about the controversial dismissal of medicinal marijuana researcher, Dr. Sue Sisley. Sean updates us on his recent work with Grow4Vets, which offers free cannabis for military veterans. Sean also explains how medicinal marijuana helps him and other Iraq War vets deal with PTSD. FYI... Sean was previously a guest on Episode 11. Episode 025: TURBO: Mexicali Blues (20:49) -- Stream \| Download Description: In this special "Turbo" vacation episode, Pauly asks Shane about living in Mexico as an online poker exile. Shane answers the popular question "Is Mexico dangerous?" and he describes his weekly routine commuting from Santa Monica to Rosarito Beach, Mexico. Episode 026: Phish Tour (51:39) -- Stream \| Download Description: Pauly returns from two weeks on the road following the band Phish for seven concerts and Shane asks him about his psychedelic travels in New York, Detroit, and Chicago. Other topics include: sleep as a drug, habituation and compulsion of social media, the nitrous mafia, Phish as a religion and "what is a wook?" Dope Media segment features Down the Rabbit Hole (a novel by Juan Pablo Villalobos) and Michael Walker's book on the Laurel Canyon music scene. Episode 027: This Is The End (53:57) -- Stream \| Download Description: Shane explains how he arrived at the difficult decision to end Dope Stories after 27 episodes. Shane and Pauly reminisce about their favorite moments from the show, and they also briefly discuss the New York Times op-ed series supporting the legalization of marijuana. Pauly shares a Las Vegas story about dropping LSD at the World Series of Poker on the day Phil Hellmuth made a grandiose entrance dressed as Julius Caesar. Dope Media includes Drunk History, WTF Podcast with The Amazing Johnathan, Graham Hancock's banned Ted talk, and Pauly’s upcoming novel Fried Peaches. Also, check out other Inside Dope posts, which give you a behind the scenes look at the development of each episode. Quick links: Dope Archives \| Twitter \| Donate \| Soundcloud \| Subscribe iTunes \| RSS by Pauly at 12/29/2014 04:20:00 AM No comments: Tags Dope Stories, Podcast, Year in Review Magic Mountains and Tangerine Bubbles The ornate bubbles glowed. The incandescent bowl illuminated the darkness. Dream-like, yet somber. Sultry and wispy, yet sullen. Hypnotic dripping pipes pierced the night time sounds and drowned out a low-fi Latin rumba from down the hall, hissing radiators in the stairwell, clanging gears of ancient elevators, rumbling subways, early morning sanitation trucks, and the screeching halt of gypsy cabs on Broadway. Eerie church organ echoed in the near distance. Maybe the church doors were open. Maybe it was one of those open-air tourist buses driving through the neighborhood and cranking the organ sounds. I imagined a flatbed truck and old widow from Birmingham with flea bites on her ankles whaling away on a church organ in the back of the truck, while chain smoking like Tom Waits on a Tuesday afternoon. You never know which relic of the past thirty years will present itself at any given moment. Chance encounters are fickle affairs. You can never prepare yourself for a casual stroll through the mental ward inside the hallways of your mind. Awkward "bump intos" in the middle of a crosswalk. Or in line at the deli. Or waiting for the elevator. Or being flagged down by the mousey woman with the glass eye. Unsuccessfully navigated a conversation with the uneasiness of a wayward stripper who was forced to give up the pole in exchange for a so-called pious life as a born-again. Addiction swapping is a dangerous enterprise, but no one had OD'd on Jesus... yet. That's the most dreadful part about wandering the streets of the old neighborhood. Bad enough you're ambushed by ghosts and shrapnel bursts of memories. Blasted by fragmented clips of the past. Black and white. And technicolor. None of them have any chronological order. They just appear and disappear. Jolts of light and tsunami of memories. by Pauly at 12/28/2014 04:20:00 PM No comments: Tags NYC End of the Ebbs to the Philosophical Flow Ebbs and flows. More ebbs than flows. This space used to resemble a raging flow with the occasional ebb tossed in out of sure exhaustion. At its peak, the flow was insurmountable. Like the metamorphosis of a stream in the mountains during the spring thaw that's transformed into a raging river as the winter season's snow and ice finally wilts under the baking sun and the water runs everywhere... wherever it wants. But over the last few years, the water has been dammed up. Plenty of reasons. Mostly excuses. But I built lots of dams. Some of them were not even mine. Yet as they say, the water used to run through my property. Some shysters dammed it up and made sure I didn't get any more run off. I'm starting to sound like Jake in Chinatown. I know what it's like to be an addict that is jonesin' for a hit. Any hit. If you're reading this, then you're the last of the Mohicans. A true junkie's junkie. The dope here? Shit. Cut so many dimes it's like snorting baby powder. It has been barely a trickle... at best. It's like scraping the inside of your bong and hoping to get stoned off the gunk. It's hopeless and sad, but you gotta do what you gotta do. The word river nearly evaporated. Like the so-called Los Angeles river that's invisible. You've seen the viaduct in movies (most notably Terminator 2) but SoCal is in the middle of its worst drought in decades, so there's not even a tiny trickle of water down there. Sure, it gets wet when it rains, but it rarely ever rains. And when it does rain, the droplets are vacant. Dry drops. Like a shell of a drop without any actual H20 in it. It's parched. Empty. The cracks are showing. But it only takes one swift kick in the dam to punch a hole in one side. Then the laws of physics take over. The pressure is immense. The whole fucker is ready to blow. But we have to be careful, otherwise we drown everything below. It's a parched valley. Desperate for any semblance of wetness. I'm ready. And I got the hose. I lost it. Can't figure out if it lost itself, or I forgot where it was located, or if I purposely lost it. Combination of all of those self-loathing excuses marinating in self-pity. It is what it is. I hope someday to say, it was what it was. Big difference between is and was. Present vs. Past. The past almost always wins. Or it's the anxiety of the future. That's the root of all depression. Anger/resentment of the past + anxiety/fear of the future. It paralyzes the now. You can only live in the present. The future doesn't actually exist. All that exists is the now. Even the past is not a tangible thing. If anything, it's a series of jagged memories, many of which have been tweaked. Revisionist history. Besides, our feelings and emotions hinder the filter from which we see reality. That's why some people are a pain in the ass and will never change. A complete immersion of love/hate and hate/love is dangerous. All you have to do is blink and you can see millions of hate mongers. Consumed by hate, paranoid by fear. One of my friends said the other night that "Hate is taught." He's a wise man and 110% correct. So as those dope-smoking hippies once sung in a three-piece harmony... "Teach your children well." On the flip side, deep, penetrating love of thyself is just as infuriating. Just take a peek on Facebook and you'll see hundreds of people in love with... themselves.... but we all know it's bullshit, because it's not even the real them. Nope. It's millions of acquaintances pretending to be perfect and out-perfect their fake-friends. It's the vapid, PR-glossy version of their resume. Doesn't having a FB account go against one of the Ten Commandments? The one about carving idols and worshiping that instead of God? Or it's the opposite and it's a self-pity party when everyone is invited. It's the best day of your life, or the worst day. Nothing in between. The extremes. Social media has been hijacked by the extremes, which is why it's difficult to find meaningful and inspiring notions. It's there...but it's buried underneath thousands and thousands of miles of rubbish. Native Americans had it right. They refused to be photographed. A photographed image supposedly steals their soul. It's ironic, yet truthful. Some of the most soulless people I know take the most selfies. The same applies to the written word when it's fulfills a role other than providing necessary information. Yet, even all those self-indulgent words don't add up to a portrait. Nope. It's deeper. Refined. Complex. Rooted. Like a chiseled sculpture. It might not steal your soul, but it's an idol nonetheless. Idol worship. The most disturbed ones need an omnipotent being to explain unexplained answers. Or a foil to fight against. Hitchens said it best... philosophy begins where religion ends. by Pauly at 12/27/2014 04:20:00 AM 1 comment: Tags Philosophy New Kindle or iPad or SmartPhone? Buy My E-Books! Congrats on surviving the holidays, whether it was Christmas or Chanukah or both Did you acquire an iPad, Kindle, iPhone, tablet, or smartphone? If so, then here's your chance to buy digital copies of my books. Even if you don't have a Kindle, you can download a Kindle app for your smart device. The e-book version of Lost Vegas is only a few clicks away. It's a memoir (of sorts) spanning four years as a poker reporter in Las Vegas (2005-2008) during the height of the online poker boom. Click here to buy Lost Vegas for Kindle and iPads. Click here to buy a print copy of Lost Vegas on Amazon.com. Do you like raunchy fiction? Indulge yourself with 100% pure Americana trash with an e-book Kindle version of Jack Tripper Stole My Dog. Thanks for the support. Hopefully, I'll have a new novel to pimp sometime in Spring/Summer 2015. Tags Books, e-books, Jack Tripper Stole My Dog, Lost Vegas Merry Christmas 2014 and the Annual Re-Reading of Augie Wren's Christmas Story I'm not someone who lusts for tradition, but every Christmas morning I do the same thing... rub one out in the shower. The second thing I do is re-read Auggie Wren's Christmas Story. If that sounds familiar, it's because I pimp it every December 25th. Or you might have heard the monologue via the Brooklyn-centric film Smoke (directed by Wayne Wang). And many Christmas blessings to you and your consumer-addled family members! Tags Auggie Wren, Merry Christmas, Paul Auster RIP Joe Cocker How is Joe Cocker not in the rock n roll Hall of Fame? Here's his cover of The Letter... Tags Joe Cocker, Music Moving Matter: Live in Austin 12/19/14 My bud Chris shared this video with me. His band, Moving Matter, had a gig in Austin over the weekend. Here's a little taste of Bond & Coke Dealer. The world needs more Moving Matter shows. Tags Moving Matter, Music James Franco and Seth Rogan Interviewed by Howard Stern The Interview drama is heating up. Seth Rogan and James Franco's silly movie has become a casualty of censorship. Great interview conducted by Howard Stern on 12/15/14. I'm not sold on the official story about North Korea. My take: Sony got Snowden'd by disgruntled former employees and they are saving face by throwing North Korea under the bus. When someone kicks over a rock, plenty of shady entities pop up. Tags Hacking, Hollyweird, Howard Stern NOLA Pic Dump Sampling of the last few days... Tags NOLA, On the Road, Pic Dump Writing Music: Ege Bamyasi by Can Today's writing music is nothing but Krautrock. The band CAN. They were an early 70s art rock band from Germany that was drenched in psychedelia. They are one of Paul Thomas Anderson's favorite bands, which is why their songs often pop up in his films. I turned my bud Chris (bass player from Moving Matter) onto CAN and he was blown away that he had never heard of them before and was missing out on them all of these years. Here's EGE BAMYASI... by Pauly at 12/13/2014 04:20:00 PM 1 comment: Tags Can, Krautrock, Writing Music Jack Tripper Flashbacks: Trailer, Book Review, and Podcast Help support indie writers and buy one of my books this holiday season. Either will make a great stocking stuffer. Or if you happen to acquire a Kindle for Christmas, then pick up one of my e-books as well. Buy... Jack Tripper Stole My Dog Buy... Lost Vegas In addition, here are a few things for Jack Tripper Stole My Dog (aka JTSMD) that you probably saw before, but I'm posting it again for new readers. The "trailer" for JTSMD... This is a podcast that I recorded with Nicky in 2011. She sort of interviewed me and inquired about the origins of JTSMD... And here is the infamous review that someone randomly uploaded to YouTube.... Tags Books, Jack Tripper Stole My Dog Writing Music: A Love Supreme Has it really been 50 years? John Coltrane is timeless. But you already know that. This morning's writing music has been A Love Supreme. On repeat. This is one of Coltrane's masterpieces, which he penned in 1964 and recorded exactly 50 years ago today at Van Gelder's home studio in the New Jersey burbs. Coltrane's quartet for that particular session included Elvin Jones on drums, McCoy Tyner on piano and Jim Garrison on bass (who shared a name with the infamous DA in New Orleans). A Love Supreme was not released until February 1965, but twenty plus years ago Schanzer gave me my first copy when we were in college in Atlanta. He dubbed me a cassette tape. I wore it out and have no idea where it found its final resting place. I finally bought A Love Supreme on CD when I lived in Seattle in the late 90s. I still have that copy somewhere in storage at my mom's apartment. A Love Supreme is one of those desert island albums. It's something I listen to frequently in various mixes labeled "writing music." When I'm burning daylight and under the gun of a looming deadline, I'll often pop in Coltrane and he'll be blowing away as I stumble toward the finish line. Heavy rotations of Coltrane are sprinkled throughout different junctures over the last two decades... road trips, self-pity trips, cocktail parties, writing assignments, wandering streets of London or Amsterdam or driving through bat country from LA to Vegas. Coltrane penned a universal soundtrack that marked many highlights and pulled me out of the doldrums during the lowest of the lowlights. 100 years from now, people will still be listening to Coltrane's music. He achieved immortality. That makes me feel like there is a glimmer of hope in this bleak world. Art is timeless. Amazing music that tickles the soul is universal. Coltrane's inspiration transcends time and space. Tags Jazz, John Coltrane, Writing Music Graham Hancock on Joe Rogan Graham Hancock appeared on the Joe Rogan Experience. This interview occurred two months ago, but I finally got around to listening to it. Hancock is the author of one of my favorite books: Fingerprints of the Gods. Tags Graham Hancock, Joe Rogan, Psychedelics Dinner for Five with Marty I miss this series. Dinner for Five hosted by Jon Favreau. He would invite four random entertainers to a meal and swap stories while they filmed. In a departure for the original format, he's a one-on-one conversation with Martin Scorsese. Tags Dinner for Five, Hollywood, Martin Scorsese Nirvana Snark Interview with Nirvana. Krist reminds lazy teenagers that more Americans smoke pot than voted for George Bush. Kurt explains how he plays catch with the audience. And Grohl says buy nitrous. Tags Grunge, Nirvana Grateful Dead France 1971 G-Money pointed out this rare show from June 1971 at a Chateau in France. This overlooked gig occurred the year before the infamous Europe 72 tour. Tags Grateful Dead Tweedy - Lil Desk Concert Jeff Tweedy and his son Spencer visited the NPR music offices in September and put on a lil show... Tags Jeff Tweedy, Music, NPR Painting the Slums of Brazil Great TEDtalk about two painters who wanted to help transform rundown communities in Brazil and Philadelphia. Tags Painting, TED Vegas Podcast: All 11 Episodes of the Wook Vegas Wook Patrol Podcast The Joker and I co-host a podcast for CoventryMusic. Like most of the creative things that drift in and out of my life, I gave it a silly title based on an even sillier inside joke because I figured no one would hear it aside from me and the Joker and our friends. Along the way, more and more people started tuning in and it became one of those underground hits. I love the punk-rock DIY guerrilla nature of the podcast with zero production value. Quickie episodes. Hit-and-run. Roughly the same length of a radio song. Episodes are usually 3-5 minutes. Tons of fun to record. So that's how the Wook Patrol podcast was born. We had no idea we'd even post the first episode, yet five years later we cranked out almost 100 with different friends of ours, which we recorded live all over the country while we followed Phish or attended music festivals. (FYI... here's quick links to old episodes archives: 2010 Summer & Fall Tour - 2013 Summer.) After a lengthy hiatus, the Joker and I returned for a series of quick episodes (longest was under 6 minutes) with our friends during Phish's Halloween run in Las Vegas. Guests for this batch include Nicky (aka Change100), RambleOnRose, BTreotch, Wildo, Sean W, Doctor Scotch and Butters. Here is the quick link for the entire playlist of Wook Vegas episodes. Wook Vegas 2014 Episodes Episode 01: Halloween Costumes with Change100.... Pauly asks Change100 to describe some of the Halloween costumes she saw at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas before the Phish Halloween show. Episode 02:The Joker's Fox Costumes.... Pauly asks the Joker to explain his costume from the Fantastic Mr. Fox. Episode 03: Phish Ditka with Wildo and Butters.... Wildo had the best costume out of the Coventry Crew when he dressed up like coach Mike Ditka. Episode 04: Amish Girls and the Unabomber with Sean... At setbreak of Halloween, Pauly asks Sean to describe an Amish girl's costume. Also, Sean dressed up as the Unabomber and a local TV crew actually thought he was the professional poker player known as The Unabomber Episode 05: Btreotch at Haunted House Setbreak with BTreotch... Pauly chats with BTreotch to get his initial impressions of Phish's Halloween cover set of the Disney album The Haunted House. Episode 06: Haunted House Impressions with Change100... Pauly was too spun to talk at setbreak, but Change100 had some things to say about Phish's Halloween set, in which they covered Disney's "Chilling, Thrilling Sounds of the Haunted House." Episode 07: Doctor Scotch's Symmetry Thoughts... After the Halloween Phish show, Pauly chats with Dr. Scotch to get his impressions of the evening including the Esther farts and symmetry. Episode 08: Adopt A Wook with Change100 and Rose... Pauly asks the Joker and Rose about their Adopt-A-Wook process. Meanwhile, Change100 reads over their adoption papers. Episode 09: Break Up Songs and Phishy Tinder with Sean and Change100... Setbreak during the Saturday night Phish show in Las Vegas, and Pauly chats with Sean and Change100. They try to explain the mellow first set that included several songs that featured "break up or cheating themes." Episode 10: The Joker Defends His Seat... Joker tells Pauly about his awkward seating situation during the Saturday night Phish concert in Vegas. Episode 11: BTreotch, Austin 98, and Pauly Tests the Unknown Baggie... Pauly catches up with BTreotch after the Saturday Phish show, which reminded BTreotch of his first show at Austin, Texas in 1998. Also, earlier in the weekend, Pauly volunteered to test an unknown powder inside a baggie (groundscored from Dicks) that no one knew its exact contents, but presumed contained a molly-like substance. Quick link to playlist of all 11 episodes of Wook Vegas. You can listen to all of the episodes in a row via the player... Tags Coventry Music, Music, On the Road, Phish, Podcast, Vegas, Wook Patrol Final Vegas Pic Dump A few more pics from this weekend in Vegas... Tags On the Road, Pic Dump, Vegas Instant Classic Podcast: Adopt A Wook My friends from the @CoventryMusic crew have a podcast called Wook Patrol. We haven't been doing episodes much this year. In fact, the Joker and I only recorded one episode all summer. But, the hiatus is over! We recorded a dozen mini-episodes (all under 6 mins) including something titled "Adopt A Wook." Without a doubt, this episode was by far my favorite of the bunch and it ranks among my all-time favorite pods (and this includes older episodes of Wook Patrol, Dope Stories and Tao of Pokerati). Yes, the Adopt A Wook episode became an instant classic. Joker and his wife decided to Adopt not one but two wooks. Nicky read over their paperwork while I interviewed them for this episode of WOOK PATROL podcast. Listen to all of the Wook Patrol Podcast 2014 Halloween episodes here. Tags Coventry Music, Phish, Podcast, Vegas, Wook Patrol Another Vegas Pic Dump Here's another batch of pics from Vegas after Phish invaded Sin City for three nights of mayhem... Tags On the Road, Phish, Pic Dump, Vegas Halloween Vegas Pic Dump I'm in Vegas for a long weekend. Phish invaded for Halloween. Here's some random pics that popped up on Instagram (@taopauly and @CoventryMusic).... SF Phish Fried I wrote a couple of quickie recaps of two Phish concerts in San Francisco. Check out Night 1 and Night 2. Edit: And here's Night 3. Tags On the Road, Phish, SF John Lennon on Dick Cavett John Lennon was born on October 9th. One of my favorite interviews. Lennon and Yoko Ono chain-smoking on the Dick Cavett show in September 1971... At the 20-minute mark, Cavett and John and Yoko discuss the break-up of the Beatles, which officially happened in April 1970, or a year and a half earlier. Tags Dick Cavett, John Lennon More More Cowbell Sometimes you need more cowbell. Tags More Cowbell, SNL Pic Dump: Free Shit in Slums of BevHills Some of the things I see while wandering around the neighborhood... by Pauly at 9/25/2014 04:20:00 PM No comments: Tags Hollyweird, Pic Dump, Slums of Beverly Hills Soultrane John Coltrane was born on this day many moons ago. by Pauly at 9/23/2014 04:20:00 AM No comments: Tags Jazz, John Coltrane Kutiman Video: Give It Up Featuring 23 YouTuber Musicians Chris Lindsy tipped me off to this gem of a video that is comprised of 23 live musical (at-home) performances from other YouTubers... Tags Music, YouTube Saturday Night Tunes: Ladies Night with Change100 After a two-week hiatus, Nicky is spinning tunes again. Saturday Night is Ladies Night! Listen live starting Midnight ET or 10pm Colorado time: http://mixlr.com/coventrymusic/ Tags Ladies Night, Mixlr, Music Travel Day Soundtrack: Home by LCD Soundsystem I survived Lockn festival in Nelson County, Virginia. Another Travel Day for me: 4.5 hour drive + 4.5 hour flight. After two weeks on the road, cue the accompanying soundtrack... Tags On the Road, Travel Music Lockn Food Pic Dump Nelson Country, VA I ate very well the last few days thanks to the Kentucky crew. I missed Southern grub. Well fed all weekend thanks to our hosts on Wintergreen Mountain, Susan and Andrew. I spent several days in Nelson Country and sampled the local BBQ joint (Blue Ridge), which was a modest and humble shack on the side of the road, but it's a meal I'm gonna be thinking about for a long time. Festival food is always overprices, but the local booths at the LOCKN festival in Arrington, VA delivered with delicious foodstuffs. I developed an addiction to the jalapeno and cheddar hush puppies that will be tough to kick... Tags Bacon, Food, On the Road, Pic Dump Marge Simpson Melting Walls I blew it. I shoulda pitched Vice, or a far-out media outlet somewhere a potential mini-series about a moronic writer (ahem, me) who dove deep into the The Simpsons mega-12-day marathon and ate a ton of Adderall and foolishly stayed up for as many days in the row as possible before going schizo and passing out cold on the toilet, face down ass up just like the muthafucking King... Elvis. But I blew it, never followed through. Alas, I'm somewhat on the fringe of The Simpsons marathon on FXX. I think we are a couple days in and it's been on nonstop in the living room. Day and night. Night and Day. I tune in for an episode every few hours. 3am when I can't sleep. 8pm when I'm done with work. 8am when I should be working. I forgot about the LSD in the water system episode when Marge starts tripping balls! Tags The Simpsons RIP Robin Williams Robin Williams... gone too soon. Marc Maron replayed his WTF podcast interview with Robin Williams from 2010. Here's the Playboy Interview with Robin Williams circa 1992. Here's Williams in one of my favorite scenes from John Irving's The World According to Garp... by Pauly at 8/11/2014 04:20:00 PM 1 comment: Tags Robin Williams, WTF Podcast Inside Dope: Behind the Scenes of the LAST and FINAL Episode of DopeStories [Ep. 27 - This Is The End] Sometimes you have to pull the plug. But, sometimes you have to pull the plug early when things are going good, before things get really bad. I hate to use a poker metaphor here, but we're cashing out while we're ahead. After 27 episodes (and one special episode of Broke Stories), we're officially pulling the plug on Dope Stories podcast. But why? The short answer: Money, time, and professionalism. Shane explained more in his post Dope Stories Denouement. We both want to continue with Dope Stories, but last month we reached a crossroads. In order to continue for the rest of 2014, we needed a huge influx of capital, which we could get from a major crowdfunding campaign. But that would require us to pester y'all for money. Like really pester y'all. Spam your inboxes. Be annoying on Twitter. Yadda yadda yadda. It's easy to say, "Just Kickstarter it!" Sure, all of our friends suggested that route, but we all know that after a week or so, everyone can't wait for the Kickstarter campaign to end so we'll stop spamming and pestering them. Yes, Kickstarter works in theory... but in reality, it's a major pain in the ass with zero guarantees of working. Look, media consumers rarely pay for content. It's the way the world works right now. We didn't get into Dope Stories for the money. It was truly a labor of love. I didn't get paid a cent. Neither did Shane. Except, Shane shelled out at least one buy-in to the WSOP Main Event in order to launch Dope Stories and keep the podcast on the air for a half a year. Jeez, we were slightly uncomfortable asking for donations as is via PayPal, but we were really squeamish about launching a Kickstarter or something similar. The two biggest concerns were... 1) only small percentage of listeners will actually donate, and 2) if we ask for a lot of money and miraculously get it, then we really have to deliver on a second batch of episodes... I mean, really deliver. No time for filler... every episode had to be killer and have a well-known guest. That was the uphill battle that we thought we were ready to fight, but in all honesty, we did not think we could pull it off. It was a struggle just to keep our heads above water and provide weekly content... we knew it was going to be a near-impossible task to pull off another 26 episodes, let alone kick-ass ones. To clarify... we didn't think we could get close to raising the necessary funds to continue. But if we somehow managed to get the money, we did not think we could consistently provide great episodes. It's one thing to give away a meh episode for free... it's a whole other thing if someone paid for that meh-ness. I've been on the front lines of the art vs. commerce war for two decades. It's always a bloody mess. Whenever money enters the equation, shit gets fucked up. My biggest concern was the direction of the podcast... we maintained a sense of purity and integrity by 100% controlling out artistic vision by producing the shows we wanted to talk about. But once money starts flowing in from external sources... either via advertisers, patrons, or crowdfunding... things get weirdly complicated and you immediately lose control because the people holding the money strings are always looming overhead. All of a sudden every artistic decision is really disguised as a money decision. You become dependent on the funding, which comes with a hidden cost because you're also getting artistically castrated. Once you start worrying about upsetting the audience or pissing off the money people... then you stop taking chances and lose your prime directive. That's when your artistic vision gets hijacked. I've been in that unsettling position more times that I can count in the last decade. When you're on the wrong side of art/commerce battle lines, it is a miserable and insufferable existence. We didn't want to get dragged into that quagmire, so we opted out of the battlefield. So while things were great, we decided to end things now before things got really ugly and we lost artistic control by bringing in advertisers (which were extremely difficult to find, even with legal weed in Colorado and Washington state). I'm sure the climate will be much cooler in the future (with more tolerance and push toward national legalization), but at the present moment we hit a brick wall to trying to develop relationships with long-term advertisers that had cash to give us (instead of merchandise and vapor pens). As we anticipated, normal companies and business wanted to be nowhere near us and associated with a "drug" podcast. But we didn't expect a huge difficulty factor in trying to attract pot-associated businesses, who were also reluctant to get involved. I really don't blame them either. With rare exceptions, podcasting is impossible to monetize. Shit, anything creative is impossible to monetize. The stigma of a "drug podcast" is what also made it difficult to book guests. We had plenty of interest from potential guests, but a few got gunshy. The few that came on? They were awesome. But for the folks who got scared off at the last moment, I don't blame them. But it was just a part of doing business. Unless we could overcome that stigma of being a drug podcast, it difficult to truly have a rational discussion about drug use, especially in a country that is ruled by fear mongers. It's essential to be ahead of the curve... and we were. But Dope Stories was still a too far ahead of the curve. We debated whether or not it was worth holding out until the rest of the curve caught up to us, but that would have been a costly decision. Shane wrestled with one of the most difficult decisions of his life... to end Dope Stories after 27 episodes. He funded this entire adventure by himself, which included startup capital to purchase the equipment, website/hosting, and some consulting fees to help us get off and running. Each episode was not cheap. Shane had to shell out somewhere around $250 per week to cover production costs. Yes, Dope Stories was not a cheap podcast to produce, but we wanted to work with one of the best producers in the business, DJ Trent. Even if we were able to reduce production costs, we were still in the hole. Big time. Donations only covered about 10% of total production costs. We could have hired a cheaper producer, but we were concerned that the overall sound quality would be compromised. We both wanted to continue. For the record, I did not want to quit and tried to find some middle ground. I initially suggested that we take a break for a few months and end season 1 of Dope Stories and during the hiatus we'd launch a crowdfunding campaign for Season 2. However, for the reasons I stated earlier, even if we got the money, did we have what it takes to really pull off a better season 2? That's when self-doubt creeps and once that fucker sets up shop, he's impossible to shake loose. It's fiscally wise to stop now at 27 episodes before we went deeper into debt. Sucks to stop after a half of year of episodes, but these episodes don't magically produce themselves. It requires a significant amount of time and money. Shane's out of money and I'm out of time. But even if we were able to alleviate our financial constraints, we'd still have to face scheduling issues for the last quarter of 2014. Life gets in the way of art, and in this instance, I have a book to finish editing and a couple of big trips on the horizon. If we continued for the rest of 2014, then we'd have to scramble and record several canned episodes and do call-in shows from the road via Skype, in which audio is always compromised and there's always some sort of technical issue. Yep, we found out the hard way... producing an original hour-long weekly show was more than we could handle. We bit off more than we could chew. Now, I know why Hollywood schedule shows for 26 episodes (or 13-episode seasons on cable) and even those are spread out over seven or even eight months of production. We probably will do a one-off episode in the future, but for now Dope Stories is dunzo as a weekly format every Thursday. We cranked out 27 episodes (plus a bonus episode - Broke Stories - on April Fools Day), which is truly an amazing feat. So many people in LA talk shit about projects they're gonna do, but very few people have the balls to try to pull it off. Kudos to Shane for have gigantic balls and for putting himself out there. He took a ton of guff for being honest, which was insanely inspiring. Shane stopped by my office once a week to have an open, raw, and brutally honest discussion about drugs in our lives and in society. We never backed down from the moment we turned on the microphones until this final moment. It was tons of fun and I'm gonna miss our weekly discussions. Time for some thanks... Thanks to our donors. Y'all rock. We probably would have ended the podcast around Memorial Day if it weren't for a small group of you who helped keep us afloat the last month. And special thanks to a guy named Sonny for a super generous donation. I will be discrete and I will not name all of our donors, but you know who you are, and I'm eternally grateful. Thanks to our listeners. Without you, it's just me and Shane sitting in my office talking to each other about drugs. Our initial goal was to be "two dudes in a room talking" but thanks for taking an hour out of your week to listen to us ramble on. Many thanks to friends and family for their support. Due to the sensitive nature of the podcast, I totally understand why many of you did not vocalize your support by publicly sharing us/liking us via social media. The entire point of Dope Stories was an attempt to break down those antiquated stigmas so you could 'like' a drug podcast without being judged, but unfortunately, we still live in a time when petty stuff like that matters to judgmental people. But to the silent majority... thank you for your support behind closed doors. Special thanks to any of my friends that I mentioned in various stories on the podcast.... I left out your names to protect your identity, but I sincerely thank you for being a part of the wacky adventures. Extra-special thanks goes out to our significant others.... Shane's wife Shelia and my girlfriend... for putting up with this crazy idea and giving us advice when we needed it the most. Thanks to all of our guests... Dr. Carl Hart, Greg Merson, Jordan Morgan, Sean Azzariti, my girlfriend, and the duo from High Maintenance -- Ben Sinclair and Katja Blichfeld. To all of our guests who were in line to get interviewed... my deepest and sincerest apologies. I'm sorry we quit before we had time to chat. Thanks to our producer, DJ Trent, for making us sound awesome. Sincere honor to work with someone of his caliber. Seriously, he's great and he really DJs weddings. Hire him. You won't be disappointed. Without a doubt, special thanks goes out to Shane for following through on his vision. He funded this entire operation on his own and I'm grateful he invited me along on this wild ride. This is one of the coolest things I've ever done... creatively or otherwise... so thanks for conceiving Dope Stories. So about Episode 27 - This Is The End.... We spent the first segment explaining why we're ending the run. We also spent some time reminiscing about our favorite moments from the show. We actually had a regular segment on the New York Times Op/Ed on why it's time to legalize marijuana. Since it was the final episode and the last chance to tell a story, I decided to reveal the one and only time I dropped acid during the WSOP. It happened to be one of the craziest days of the summer... the day Phil Hellmuth dressed up like Julius Caesar (which I wrote about on Tao of Poker in an entry titled Welcome to the Psychedelic Circus. Our final Dope Media picks included.... Drunken History, WTF podcat with Amazing Johnathan, Graham Hancock's banned TedTalk, and all of my books including upcoming novel Fried Peaches. And here's the setlist for Episode 27... Listen/stream the final episode.... Download link for Episode 27. Subscribe to Dope Stories on iTunes. Listen to previous shows with full description of every episode... DOPE STORIES - EPISODE GUIDE. Here's Inside Dope for interviews we conducted... Inside Dope - Ep 7: Greg Merson (WSOP Champion) Inside Dope - Ep 8: Dr. Carl Hart Inside Dope - Ep 11: Sean Azzariti Inside Dope - Ep 16: Ben Sinclar and Katja Blichfeld from High Maintenance Inside Dope - Ep 22: Jordan Morgan by Pauly at 7/31/2014 04:20:00 AM 2 comments: Tags Dope Stories, Inside Dope Stories, Podcast Merry Christmas 2014 and the Annual Re-Reading of ... James Franco and Seth Rogan Interviewed by Howard ... Jack Tripper Flashbacks: Trailer, Book Review, and... Vegas Podcast: All 11 Episodes of the Wook Vegas W... Kutiman Video: Give It Up Featuring 23 YouTuber Mu... Inside Dope: Behind the Scenes of the LAST and FIN...	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3100
__label__wiki	0.644205	0.644205	Digital\| TimesKnowledge.in launches ‘Know India’ Section Adding to the existing line-up of sections – Science, History, Nature and Knowledge Frames The ‘Know India’ tab will go live on 26th January, 2019 TimesKnowledge.in, a knowledge portal from Worldwide Media Private Limited, announces the upcoming launch of a riveting new section – ‘Know India’ on the website. The platform, known for its fun, fantastic and futuristic facts delivered in an easy-to-read format, will soon feature a dedicated India-centric section on the website. In time for Republic Day 2019, TimesKnowledge.in will launch ‘Know India’ on 26th January, to cover the country’s incredible cultural and traditional diversity. Commenting on the upcoming addition on the website, Primrose Monteiro-D’Souza, Editor - TimesKnowledge.in said, “TimesKnowledge.in serves as a platform for readers to gain knowledge and learn interesting facts, in an easy-to-consume format. Taking it a step ahead, we are launching the dedicated Know India tab on 26th January; it will cover various facets along the length and breadth of India and reconnect the audience with our motherland. India’s diversity and culture will be celebrated in posts that aim to educate and engage the readers. The audience will be able to explore India across the realms of science, history, nature, personalities and human nature. Each of the Know India posts will offer information to a community of users that are inquisitive and interested in knowing more about their own homeland.” The ‘Know India’ section will add to the existing exhaustive content buckets on the platform comprising: SCIENCE: The section is further divided into Space, Discoveries & Technology and About Us Humans tabs to deliver mind-blowing facts about the universe, information about cutting-edge gadgets and innovations, as well as explorations of the miracle that is the human body, respectively. HISTORY: This section with its Events, People and Natural History tabs offers insights into historical milestones, biographies of individuals, and creatures from times gone by, respectively. NATURE: This particular section covers everything with skin, scales, feathers and fur. KNOWLEDGE FRAMES: The section comprises sub-sections like Views of the World, Global Bites and Pop Culture, covering travel, food and trending topics. The website, in a short span of two years since its launch, has recorded 2.30 minutes time spent on an average by a user per visit as per the website statistics. While Knowledge Frames is the most popular section on the website, the History and Science sections record the highest engagement by the visitors. In addition to India, the website is very popular with readers in the USA, Australia and Canada, with 50% of users falling under the 25-34 age groups and the content being equally popular among males and females. More in DIGITAL Swag gets a new 'Interactive' definition as snapchat an... Times Internet sees 133 million users on Election Resul... Junk news ‘not prevalent’ on Twitter, but more like... iCubesWire Elevates Nishant Sharma as its Chief Busines... A Note From Mark Zuckerberg... Will digital advertising ever be truly relevant?... Digital Twins Are Entering Mainstream Use... Swag gets a new 'Interactive' definition as snapchat and Pepsi partner for a campaign Read more... Times Internet sees 133 million users on Election Results Day Read more... Junk news ‘not prevalent’ on Twitter, but more likely to be shared and liked on Facebook Read more... iCubesWire Elevates Nishant Sharma as its Chief Business Officer Read more... A Note From Mark Zuckerberg Read more... Will digital advertising ever be truly relevant? Read more... Digital Twins Are Entering Mainstream Use Read more...	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3102
__label__wiki	0.785331	0.785331	android game mod apk game mod best android game mod best game mod game mod apk android game download android game free make up wedding jogja make up wedding yogyakarta make up prewedding jogja make up prewedding yogyakarta make up pesta jogja make up pesta yogyakarta make up pernikahan jogja make up pernikahan yogyakarta make up wisuda jogja make up wisuda yogyakarta Moviepie Musings Title: Baby Driver Director: Edgar Wright Actors: Ansel Elgort Kevin Spacey Lily James Eiza González Jon Hamm Jamie Foxx Jon Bernthal MPAA Rating: R Genre(s): Action Official Site: Official Site Though the movie, on first glance, has a terrible name, it ends up being an action-packed earworm that is totally entertaining. When I first heard the title of this movie I hated hated HATED it. The animated kiddie movie Boss Baby has just been released. Is the baby now driving a car? All I could think of was that the film's marketers had a HUGE problem. When I found out later that title comes from a Simon & Garfunkel song (and I like Simon & Garfunkel), I felt kind of bad... but not bad enough to express any interest in seeing Baby Driver until it came out on video. Well, it turns out the buzz on this summer hit is true: the movie is a fun, sleek, clever heist movie. Like the song that influenced the title of the film, we have a driver named, yes, Baby (baby-faced Ansel Elgort). He is a young man that has a debt to pay to a big-time criminal mastermind called Doc (Kevin Spacey) for stealing his car when he was a kid. The problem is, Baby is such a great getaway driver for Doc's ruthless bank heist gang (including Jamie Foxx, Jon Hamm, Eiza González, and Jon Bernthal) that it is not clear that Doc will let him go once they are square. The other problem is that Baby has just met a sweet waitress named Debora (Lily James), and all they want to do it hit the road and start a new life. Baby suffers from a hearing issue since his childhood accident, so he is always listening to music to drown out the ringing sound. This is where music comes in and the fanboys freak out. Writer/Director Edgar Wright (Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz) has made the soundtrack an organic part of the movie--matching beat to movement, sound to color. Music is what propels and protects Baby, not only as he records and loops his own mixes of things he hears, but the way he uses it to drown out his job and the people he hates. I think we can all relate to that a bit. By the time Simon & Garfunkel's song finally comes in overr the closing credits, you'll have a new earworm: "The call me baby driverrrr...." and you'll maybe will stop hating the title (like me). Though it is an undeniably fun ride, Baby Driver doesn't break a whole lot of new ground in action and plot. But I'm sure it will be taught in future master classes of editing as super-fans will want to pick this one apart frame by beat by frame. Ready to dissect the movie? They've got the extras for you on the Blu-ray, including a six behind the scenes featurettes covering music, choreography, the driving, and more. There are two commentaries, with Writer/Director Edgar Wright alone, and with Cinematographer Bill Pope joining him, plus rehersal footage, animation pre-visualizations, storyboards, extended and deleted scenes, and a music video for "Blue Song" by Mint Royale, among a slew of extras. Hot cars Heists Linda, Webmistress Enjoys Oscar-bait, foreign films, sci-fi movies, and even movies with talking dogs. Latest from Linda, Webmistress More in this category: « The Wizard of Lies Summer of Fear (1978) » Movies Search MPAA Rating - Select MPAA Rating - G PG PG-13 R NC-17 NR I get the impression that there are… Jennifer, Pie Pal I think I'd flip out if I… Forget the kid! After watching the trailer,… Yep! That's about what I would have… Tom, Pie Pal It wasn't bad, it just wasn't great.… Pie Pal Vickie Oh, there was definitely an after party… Too bad about 'We Are The Best!'.… 30 years ago, I loved "Big Chill."… I agree with the review. I thought… Anime feels all warm and calm. Derossett Aliens Animals Animation Christmas Civil Rights Disney Family Horror LGBT Marvel Musicians Nature gone wrong Romance RomCom Singing and Singers Sports Superheroes Survival Teens World War II Copyright © 2000-2019 Movie*Pie: All rights reserved.	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3116
__label__cc	0.53204	0.46796	THE MPN HOME PAGE INDEX PAGE for all MPN Letters Bible Studies 1 Timothy 4 - False Teaching INTRODUCTION: In this chapter the apostle Paul reveals some changes that will begin to affect the church as men fall away from the faith and employ practices that are not consistent with scripture. He advises Timothy about the course to follow for maintaining sound doctrine in his teaching, and integrity in his own conduct. NOTE: Bible passages are from the World English Bible. A - SOME WILL FALL AWAY FROM THE FAITH WITH FALSE TEACHING 1Timothy 4 "1 But the Spirit says expressly that in later times some will fall away from the faith, paying attention to seducing spirits and doctrines of demons, 2 through the hypocrisy of men who speak lies, branded in their own conscience as with a hot iron; 3 forbidding marriage and commanding to abstain from foods which God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and know the truth. 4 For every creature of God is good, and nothing is to be rejected, if it is received with thanksgiving. 5 For it is sanctified through the word of God and prayer." COMMENTS: Paul opened this chapter with some warnings that he received explicitly from the Holy Spirit, and therefore there was certainty that the matters of concern would develop. These warnings written for Timothy as a church overseer have continued to apply as many church bodies have seriously strayed from the truth from that time even unto the present. Some leaders are able to develop a following as they speak of the Bible but do not have a sincere faith in the true and living God. There pretense so maligns the truth that their own conscience becomes seared and is then ineffectual to guide them. They actually propagate doctrines that are representative of demons, not of the Lord. Paul lists the forbidding of marriage as one of the errors that will be taught. That prohibition is not anywhere in the law of the Old Testament, nor is it a teaching of Christ. Paul also states that another error is to require Abstinence from certain foods which God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and know the truth from the Lord. Paul was the apostle to the Gentiles, and he knew Christ had made it unnecessary for Gentiles to follow all of the strict laws established for the Jews. But even as a Jew, he had a new freedom from many dietary restrictions through the teaching of Christ. The Lord had also made Peter aware that Gentiles did not need to become Jews in order to become Christians. A vision helped to prepare Peter to accept Cornelius and other Gentiles into the faith. Acts 10 "7 When the angel who spoke to him had departed, Cornelius called two of his household servants and a devout soldier of those who waited on him continually. 8 Having explained everything to them, he sent them to Joppa. 9 Now on the next day as they were on their journey, and got close to the city, Peter went up on the housetop to pray at about noon. 10 He became hungry and desired to eat, but while they were preparing, he fell into a trance. 11 He saw heaven opened and a certain container descending to him, like a great sheet let down by four corners on the earth, 12 in which were all kinds of four-footed animals of the earth, wild animals, reptiles, and birds of the sky. 13 A voice came to him, "Rise, Peter, kill and eat!" 14 But Peter said, "Not so, Lord; for I have never eaten anything that is common or unclean." 15 A voice came to him again the second time, "What God has cleansed, you must not call unclean." 16 This was done three times, and immediately the vessel was received up into heaven." What God has cleansed, even the souls of men, will no longer be called unclean. In his second letter, Peter reminded his readers that long before Christ came there were false prophets among the people. His warning was much like that of Paul, as he said that false teachers will also come into the assemblies and try to lead away many. 2 Peter 2 "1 But false prophets also arose among the people, as false teachers will also be among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, denying even the Master who bought them, bringing on themselves swift destruction. 2 Many will follow their immoral ways, and as a result, the way of the truth will be maligned." There is final destruction awaiting those who claim to teach as Christians, but lead many astray from the way of truth in Christ Jesus, and bring public reproach to his name. Paul wrote to the Corinthians about false apostles who are servants of Satan, following in his example as Satan falsely appears to be an angel of light, while contradicting God's truth. This fact requires close examination for true doctrine from those who claim to teach in the name of Jesus, but are not his servants. 2 Corinthians 11 "13 For such men are false apostles, deceitful workers, masquerading as Christ's apostles. 14 And no wonder, for even Satan masquerades as an angel of light. 15 It is no great thing therefore if his servants also masquerade as servants of righteousness, whose end will be according to their works." Paul agrees with Peter that there will be a final judgment for the deception of such people. B - COMMAND AND TEACH SOUND DOCTRINE 1Timothy 4 "6 If you instruct the brothers of these things, you will be a good servant of Christ Jesus, nourished in the words of the faith, and of the good doctrine which you have followed. 7 But refuse profane and old wives' fables. Exercise yourself toward godliness. 8 For bodily exercise has some value, but godliness has value in all things, having the promise of the life which is now, and of that which is to come. 9 This saying is faithful and worthy of all acceptance. 10 For to this end we both labour and suffer reproach, because we have set our trust in the living God, who is the Saviour of all men, especially of those who believe. 11 Command and teach these things." COMMENTS: Paul said it is good to instruct others in the church about the distortions that can come into the assembly if the nourishment of faith from the Word of God is not the true doctrine closely followed for teaching and preaching. Paul cautions Timothy to keep secular fables from becoming mixed in with the teaching of the sound doctrine of scripture. Instead, as a servant of God, it is important to employ practices that strengthen and develop preaching and teaching ability that will build a better foundation for Godliness for those hearing God's Word. Paul makes the comparison that exercise of the body has value, but exercise to develop Godliness has value in all things for the present, and for the life that is to come. Paul said that both he and Timothy worked toward developing Godliness and were willing to suffer reproach because they knew that their trust was firmly fixed in the living God, who is the Savior of all who believe in him. These things are essential to command and teach to those in the assembly of believers so their trust would be in God their Savior. C - BE DILIGENT IN ALL OF YOUR CONDUCT 1Timothy 4 "12 Let no man despise your youth; but be an example to those who believe, in word, in your way of life, in love, in spirit, in faith, and in purity. 13 Until I come, pay attention to reading, to exhortation, and to teaching. 14 Don't neglect the gift that is in you, which was given to you by prophecy, with the laying on of the hands of the elders. 15 Be diligent in these things. Give yourself wholly to them, that your progress may be revealed to all. 16 Pay attention to yourself, and to your teaching. Continue in these things, for in doing this you will save both yourself and those who hear you." COMMENTS: Paul told Timothy that he must not be intimidated by any who may speak against him because of his young age. He could refute such distractions by being an example to believers through his words, his way of life, in love, in spirit, in faith, and in purity. Paul had said near the end of chapter three that he planned to return to Ephesus. So Paul instructed Timothy to keep his attention to reading, encouragement, and preaching until he was able to return. Paul encouraged Timothy to diligently keep in regular practice the gift that was given to him through prophecy with the laying on of hands of the elders. Full dedication to these things would be a demonstration to everyone of his progress. Timothy should stay clearly defined in his own conduct and in his doctrine. These things are the elements of the assurance of salvation for Timothy and for those who would hear him. Paul gave clarity to this process in his second letter to Timothy. 2 Timothy 1 "9 who saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given to us in Christ Jesus before times eternal, 10 but has now been revealed by the appearing of our Saviour, Christ Jesus, who abolished death, and brought life and immortality to light through the Good News." --- REFLECTIONS IN PRAYER --- I believe that the writings of the apostle Paul are inspired by you Lord as are all of the scriptures, making absolutely reliable the warnings and instructions that he has given. The nature of man is just as susceptible now to give rise to false teachers as it was from the first giving of the law by Moses, and the rebellion within our hearts still allows us to be taken in by their distortion of the truth. Thank you Lord for providing the spread of your written word all around the world in many languages, and for the guidance of your Holy Spirit to lead your servants into your truth. May I personally apply the advice that Paul gave to Timothy to continue reading the Word of God, and to cultivate life practices that will be indicative of your presence within me. Help me to avoid any inappropriate and harmful mixture of secular fables with the purity of scripture. I want to be nourished by the words of faith so I will use sound doctrine to exercise myself toward Godliness for the present and for the life to come. I have fixed my trust in you Lord because you are the true and living God who alone has provided the gift of salvation for my soul. Praise to the living God, amen! Published 7 June 2013	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3117
__label__wiki	0.654544	0.654544	Page 10 - Top MMA News and Mixed Martial Arts Headlines Do you have a hot MMA story or news item that you have found and would like to share? Then read our guidelines then post it to our MMA News Share Forum to have it display here for the community to read on this page. Anderson Silva, Israel Adesanya verbally agree to UFC 234 bout in Australia (https:) A middleweight fight between an icon and one of the division’s future stars is heading to Australia. Former champion Anderson Silva and rising star Israel Adesanya have verbally agreed to face each other at UFC 234 in Melbourne, Australia. MMA Fighting confirmed an initial report by ESPN. Adesanya (15-0), a multiple-time kickboxing champion, is coming off a violent first-round finish over Derek Brunson at UFC 230 earlier this month. This victory not only kept the New Zealand native’s perfect record intact but marked his 13th victory by KO/TKO. Prior to that performance, Adesanya picked up wins over Brad Tavares, Marvin Vettori and Rob Wilkinson. Submitted Nov 25, 2018 10:25PM by JLS - 7 comments Filed under: UFC Raoni Barcelos vs. Chris Gutierrez added to The Ultimate Fighter 28 Finale in Las Vegas As expected, a bantamweight matchup between Raoni Barcelos (12-1 MMA, 1-0 UFC) and Chris Gutierrez (12-3-1 MMA, 0-0 UFC) has been added to this month’s The Ultimate Fighter 28 Finale. UFC officials recently announced the contest, which takes place on Nov. 30 at Pearl Theater at Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas. The complete bout order has yet to be revealed, but the featured bouts are on FS1 following prelims on UFC Fight Pass. Submitted Nov 25, 2018 8:16PM by JLS - 0 comments Filed under: UFC, The Ultimate Fighter Liddell vs. Ortiz 3: A (potential) buyer's guide to pay-per-view It’s almost decision time for fight fans. The trilogy fight most of us stopped asking for a decade ago is almost upon us. This Saturday night in Inglewood, Calif., Chuck Liddell and Tito Ortiz will square off for the third time when Oscar De La Hoya’s Golden Boy Promotions makes its first foray into the world of MMA. And yeah, they’re selling this thing on pay-per-view – and the fighters themselves are reportedly depending heavily on good sales figures to make this worth their while. Should you buy it? Should you try to find some means of watching it without paying for it? Should you ignore it altogether? To answer these questions, maybe we need to start by asking and answering some others. Submitted Nov 22, 2018 3:07PM by grappler0000 - 5 comments Filed under: Other MMA Organizations John Kavanagh: Conor McGregor was offered $5M to fight Chinese kickboxer With the combat sports rumor mill buzzing about Floyd Mayweather’s on-again-off-again kickboxing exhibition bout with Japanese star Tenshin Nasukawa, it’s only natural that his rivals might be feeling left out. That may explain why John Kavanagh dropped a rumor of his own in a recent interview about his student and good friend Conor McGregor, who just so happened to be the other half of Mayweather’s August 2017 crossover boxing bout that did blockbuster numbers. The former UFC two-division champion has already weighed in on Mayweather’s potential Rizin Fighting Federation meeting with Nasukawa, and now his coach is saying that “The Notorious” is no stranger to receiving wild offers himself. Filed under: UFC, Other Combat Sports, MMA Personalities, Interviews Sean O’Malley says right now he’s ‘making around $4,500 a month through gaming’ Sean O’Malley is trying to stay positive while he’s stuck on the sidelines. The undefeated 24-year-old bantamweight is currently serving a six-month suspension handed out by the Nevada Athletic Commission after testing positive for the performance-enhancing drug ostarine in a September drug test ahead of his UFC 229 fight against Jose Quinonez — a test result that O’Malley believes to be the result of a tainted supplement. Submitted Nov 22, 2018 2:58PM by grappler0000 - 1 comment Filed under: UFC, Interviews Giving thanks to the many wonderful things in MMA: 2018 The two most egregious acts in MMA this year — Conor McGregor’s Dolly Incident and Khabib Nurmangomedov’s timely rebuttal at (and after) UFC 229 — threatened to give this here sport a black eye. Yet we all know that’s impossible. In the sports family, MMA is the kid who ends up in the principal’s office quite a bit, which tends to cause the most prude observers to squirm — but everybody else? Filed under: General MMA LFA Champion Kevin Aguilar Signs with the UFC, Faces Rick Glenn at the TUF 28 Finale Add another fighter to the list of LFA champions who have received the call up to the UFC. It is being reported that Kevin Aguilar, the LFA Featherweight champion, will step in for an injured Arnold Allen to face Rick Glenn at the TUF 28 Finale. Currently on a 7-fight winning streak, Aguilar’s most recent win was a split decision victory on this past season’s Dana White’s Contender Series. Prior to that fight, Aguilar had finished 4 of his 6 opponents, which included a first round knockout over Than Le at LFA 40 to unify the featherweight titles. Submitted Nov 20, 2018 9:43AM by JLS - 0 comments Taekwondo master Valerie Loureda signs with Bellator, aims to be best fighter on planet At just 20 years old, Valerie Loureda has been preparing her entire life for her Bellator debut. “My mom was pregnant with me during her black belt test,” Loureda told MMAjunkie. “I guess you could say I was kicking from before I was even born. It’s in my blood. I haven’t gone a day in my life without throwing a punch or a kick. It’s who I am.” A 4th dan taekwando black belt, Loureda (0-0) is a former member of the U.S. Olympic team. Her father served as her grandmaster, training her “very old school and very old-fashioned.” The dedication paid off, and she progressed up the ranks of the taekwondo scene. But a moment in 2017 made her realize her true future lied in another direction. Filed under: Bellator Ostovich attacked in Hawaii (m.tmz.com) UFC fighter Rachael Ostovich -- who was scheduled to fight Paige VanZant in January -- was attacked in Hawaii and sources tell us it was so serious, she's being hospitalized for major injuries. Submitted Nov 19, 2018 3:28AM by Schatte - 1 comment UFC Argentina bonuses: Two Argentine natives cash $50,000 checks A pair of Argentinian fighters were among the bonus winners at the UFC’s debut event in the South American nation. Argentina’s Laureano Staropoli and Mexico’s Hector Aldana shared “Fight of the Night” honors, while Argentina’s Santiago Ponzinibbio and Brazil’s Johnny Walker each earned “Performance of the Night” honors at UFC Fight Night 140, which took place Saturday at Parque Roca Arena in Buenos Aires. The card aired on FS1 following early prelims on UFC Fight Pass. LFA 54 results: Mazo cruises in title defense, Murrietta delivers stunning KO “The Colombian Queen” failed to deliver another head-kick KO, but Sabina Mazo did comfortably cruise to a decision win over an outgunned Carol Yariwaki (7-3), defending the LFA women’s flyweight title in the process. The bout served as the main event of tonight’s LFA 54, which aired on AXS TV from OC Fair & Event Center in Costa Mesa, Calif. Cage Warriors 99 results: James Webb scores first-round knockout in front of home crowd James Webb wasn’t intimidated by Jason Radcliffe’s reach or power, and it paid off big – and quickly – at Cage Warriors 99. Less than 1:30 into tonight’s headlining bout, Webb (5-1) closed in on the lengthy, studious Radcliffe (13-6) and landed a left hook that would cause his knees to give out from under him. Radcliffe’s delayed physical reaction made for a confusing sight at first, but it soon became clear that he was seriously disoriented. ONE Championship 84 results: Zebaztian Kadestam takes 170-pound title with thrilling late KO As ONE Championship 84’s headliner wore on, it wasn’t at all clear whether Zebaztian Kadestam’s somewhat patient approach would pay off against a gritty Tyler McGuire. However, just as it seemed like ONE Championship’s new welterweight titleholder was going to be decided in the judges’ scorecards, Kadestam (11-4) found what he’d been looking for. With about 30 seconds left in the fifth and final round, Kadestam dropped McGuire (11-1) with a massive right hand, which he followed up with a knee to secure the most notable win of his MMA career. ONE Championship 84 took place at Stadium Istora in Jakarta, Indonesia. It streamed live on the ONE Championship app, following prelims on Facebook and Twitter. Filed under: Other MMA Organizations, Asian MMA 'Bellator 209: Pitbull vs. Sanchez' official results Bellator returns after a break of nearly a month with Bellator 209. In the main event, featherweight champion Patricio Freire puts his title on the line against Emmanuel Sanchez. In the co-main event, Ryan Couture looks to get back in the win column when he faces Haim Gozali in a welterweight rematch. Former light heavyweight champ Phil Davis is also on the card against knockout artist Vadim Nemkov. Invicta FC 32 results: Felicia Spencer claims vacant title with gutsy win over Pam Sorenson It certainly didn’t come easy, but Felicia Spencer (6-0) kept her perfect record intact and claimed Invicta’s vacant featherweight title with a fourth-round submission win over a gritty Pam Sorenson (7-3). The bout served as the main event of Invicta FC 32, which streamed live tonight on UFC Fight Pass from FireLake Arena in Shawnee, Okla. Gina Carano Joins ‘Star Wars’ Spinoff Series Headed to New Disney Streaming Service Former Strikeforce and Elite XC contender Gina Carano is traveling to a galaxy far, far away. On Wednesday it was revealed that Carano has landed a part in ‘The Mandalorian’, a new ‘Star Wars’ spinoff series being developed by writer and director Jon Favreau. Submitted Nov 15, 2018 12:29AM by grappler0000 - 0 comments Filed under: General MMA, MMA Personalities Sean O'Malley suspended six months, eligible to return on March 6 Sean O'Malley has been suspended six months by the Nevada State Athletic Commission following an anti-doping violation flagged by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency. The UFC bantamweight was also ordered to pay costs and fees of $472.42 associated with his case. Donald Cerrone vs. Conor McGregor? 'Cowboy' says he's 'just waiting on him' Is a fight between Donald Cerrone and Conor McGregor in the works? “Cowboy” just hinted that it might very well be. Submitted Nov 15, 2018 12:23AM by grappler0000 - 1 comment Filed under: UFC, MMA Personalities Bellator 209 weigh-in results: Patricio 'Pitbull,' Emmanuel Sanchez on mark for title fight Complete Bellator 209 main-card weigh-in results included: Patricio Freire (144.5) vs. Emmanuel Sanchez (143) Ryan Couture (169) vs. Haim Gozali (170) Phil Davis (206) vs. Vadim Nemkov (204.5) Cindy Dandois (145.5) vs. Olga Rubin (143.5) Adam Keresh (238) vs. Kirill Sidelnikov (262) Justin Gaethje vs. Anthony Pettis targeted for early 2019 The UFC is in the process of booking a lightweight showdown between Justin Gaethje and Anthony Pettis. Following an initial report from ESPN’s Brett Okamoto, sources confirmed that the lightweight matchup is in the works to MMA Fighting’s Shaun Al Shatti, and is being targeted for early 2019. 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__label__cc	0.661888	0.338112	OLAMI Resources / Featured Posts / BetaMidrash: My Favorite Torah App for the Android Smartphone BetaMidrash: My Favorite Torah App for the Android Smartphone by Rabbi Tzvi Pittinsky \| November 17, 2015 A few weeks ago, as I waited for the Chuppah ceremony to begin at a wedding of a dear family member, I took out my smartphone. The wedding was in an area where I had poor cell phone service, so my “yetzer hara” to check my Facebook, Twitter, or other social media accounts was minimal. Rather, I opened my favorite Torah app, BetaMidrash and started reviewing Parshat Hashavua, the weekly Torah portion. The person sitting next to me, who had a real sefer in his hands, looked over at my phone in amazement and quickly struck up a conversation about this incredible app. BetaMidrash BetaMidrash is a free Android app using open-source online Jewish texts crowdsourced from Sefaria – an incredible platform in its own right which I plan to feature in a future post. BetaMidrash combines an attractive interface complete with Hebrew texts and translations, embedded commentaries when available, a powerful search engine, and downloaded texts so that the app continues to work even with a minimal data connection. What I did not realize when I first started using BetaMidrash after it was launched in April 2015–and quickly fell in love with it–was that this app was created by two electrical engineering students at Cooper Union. Wow! Vast Library of Hebrew Texts The first thing one notices when opening BetaMidrash is its vast library with all of the basic texts like the Bible, Talmud, and Halachic codes together with many other classics that are rarely found in anything but the most advanced (and expensive) databases like Bar Ilan Responsa and Otzar Hachachma. This app has works like Shaarei Teshuva, Chovot Halevavot, and Meshech Chachma, just to name a few. See a list of categories below. These works are provided by Sefaria but while Sefaria requires a constant data connection and is designed for more careful research, BetaMidrash is optimized to quickly find text and learn on-the-go using one’s mobile device. User-Friendly Interface It is a pleasure to learn on BetaMidrash. I use it on a consistent basis to review the weekly Torah portion. (Confession: sometimes I even use it in shul during Chazarat Hashas.) It contains the text in Hebrew with vowels, together with its translation, and embedded on each verse are classical commentaries. They include the commonly used ones like Targum Onkelus and Rashi and some that I rarely have found in a digital format like Daat Zekenim m’Baalei ha’Tosafot, the commentary of the Baalei HaTosafot on the Torah which is one of my favorites. The interface is so user-friendly that in many cases I prefer learning Parsha on my smartphone to learning from a Mikraot Gedolot. (My one small quibble is that the text is organized by chapter but not by Parsha so I have started to bookmark each Torah portion on my device for easy searching.) Everything in BetaMidrash is searchable and while it does not have the Boolean search engine that one gets in something like the Bar Ilan Responsa, the search feature can be quite useful. It even lets you search in both Hebrew and English, something that I have not seen on any other Torah app. See an example below. Includes Many Hard to Find Digital Texts, Often with Translation As mentioned above, BetaMidrash contains not only basic texts, but even many that are not frequently available in a digital format. In this respect, it is similar to the popular app ובלכתך בדרך, On Your Way, but while the On Your Way app only has Hebrew, BetaMidrash has English translations whenever available, from Sefaria’s expanding database. See the example of the Rambam’s Shemoneh Perakim below. As mentioned above, BetaMidrash, a labor of love created by two college students (I love student projects!), is currently only available for the Android. The programmers have created a crowdfunding campaign to help them develop an iPhone/iPad app in the future. Click here to help support this most worthy cause להגדיל תורה ולהאדירה. Rabbi Tzvi Pittinsky is the Director of Educational Technology at the Frisch School, in Paramus, NJ. In this capacity, he works with the faculty to integrate technology into every aspect of teaching and learning at Frisch. He is an active blogger on topics related to the intersection of technology and Jewish education and an avid user of social media. You can read his blog at: http://techrav.blogspot.com and follow him on Twitter @techrav. Rabbi Pittinsky received his B.A., Semicha and two master’s degrees in Medieval Jewish History and Education from Yeshiva University and is currently a doctoral candidate at Yeshiva University’s Azrieli Graduate School of Education and Administration. Categories: android app free rabbinics resource Teaching Torah with Torah Live at Summer Camps NEW WEBSITE: Sefaria.org New Features to Sefaria.org: A Living Library of Jewish Texts Online Discover Why Torah Tidbits is a Great Resource! NOW AVAILABLE: Torah for the Hard of Hearing	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3130
__label__cc	0.547982	0.452018	Occurrence of molybdenum in British surface water and groundwater: distributions, controls and implications for water supply Smedley, P.L.; Cooper, D.M.; Ander, E.L.; Milne, C.J.; Lapworth, D.J.. 2014 Occurrence of molybdenum in British surface water and groundwater: distributions, controls and implications for water supply. Applied Geochemistry, 40. 144-154. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apgeochem.2013.03.014 Full text not available from this repository. (Request a copy) Official URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.apgeochem.2013.03.014 Data for Mo in British surface water and groundwater collated from a number of databases show that concentrations are in most cases low, of the order of 2 μg/L or less. However, variability is large and sporadic high values are found in both streamwaters and groundwaters. Data for some 11,600 British streamwater samples indicate a 10–90th percentile range of 0.08–2.44 μg/L with a median of 0.57 μg/L and maximum observation of 230 μg/L. High values tend to be from streams on clay-rich formations and sulphide-mineralised bedrock and streams affected by localised urban and industrial contamination. Monitored lowland river waters also typically have median concentrations <1 μg/L although higher values are present in a number of urban/industrialised English rivers. Highest observed concentrations (median 20 μg/L), occur under low-flow conditions in a river system from an urban, industrial area of NE England and are likely the products of industrial contamination and mine drainage. Concentrations in 96 upland lakewater samples from NW England are universally 0.1 μg/L or less. Data for 1735 groundwater samples from across Britain have a 10–90th percentile range for Mo of 0.035–1.80 μg/L with a median of 0.20 μg/L and maximum observation of 89 μg/L. Relatively high values derive from some Lower Cretaceous greensand, Carboniferous limestone and mudstone (Coal Measures) aquifers, particularly under anaerobic conditions. Release from Fe oxides and possibly Mn oxides by reductive dissolution is a likely mechanism for the concentrations. Under more rarely observed sulphate-reducing conditions in British aquifers, concentrations of Mo diminish, likely due to sequestration by precipitating sulphide minerals. The observed ranges in aqueous samples indicate that most water sources in Britain have Mo concentrations more than an order of magnitude below the WHO health-based value for Mo in drinking water (70 μg/L). Such sources are unlikely to pose a risk to drinking water from the current WHO guidance, provided those impacted locally by mining or other industrial contamination are avoided. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apgeochem.2013.03.014 CEH Sections/Science Areas: GroundwaterBGS, Groundwater, Groundwater quality, Groundwater and health 06 Mar 2014 14:25 +0 (UTC)	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3131
__label__wiki	0.895589	0.895589	PTV station to be installed in Marawi 11 months ago by NoToViolence PHNews People’s Television Network, Inc. (PTV) announced that it will be constructing a satellite television station this year in Marawi City. Executives from PTV and Philippine Information Agency (PIA) said the establishment of the PTV station aims to create an infrastructure that will serve as an… Read More Army recovers molotov bomb bottles in Iligan City hinterland village 11 months ago by Chrystal VillalobosMilitary & Police The 4th Mechanized Infantry Battalion (4MIB) of the 2nd Mechanized Infantry Brigade, Philippine Army reported the discovery of thirteen bottles of molotov bombs in the secluded Sitio Malagsong in the hinterland village of Rogongon, Iligan City, Mindanao Southern Philippines. Lieutenant Colonel Bernardo Taqueban, Commanding Officer… Read More Army engineers: The game-changer in Marawi 11 months ago by NoToViolence PHMilitary & Police In the Philippines, the Army Engineers have been silent in performing their duties since most battles are guerilla warfare— such as encounters with the New People’s Army (NPA) on the mountains. The Army Engineers help bring development in far flung areas by constructing roads, helping… Read More Armed Forces vows to tap all resources to crush terrorism The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) will use all its available resources to fight terrorism in the coutry. This was disclosed by AFP spokesperson Col. Edgard Arevalo in a radio interview Friday, August 3, 2018. “(Whether they are) foreigner(s) or Filipinos, if they pose… Read More Army condemns terrorism spate in Basilan 12 months ago by NoToViolence PHCountering Violent Extremism ILIGAN CITY – Philippine Army Commanding General Rolando Joselito Bautista strongly condemned in the strongest term the recent spate of terrorism transpired in Basilan that killed 11 persons including the bomber. “The bombing attempt was clearly meant to create atrocities and terror attack in the… Read More Duterte to NPA, terrorists: Allow countryside development President Rodrigo Roa Duterte told the New People’s Army (NPA) and other terrorist groups to allow government and investors to work for countryside development. In his visit to personally witness the condemnation and destruction of 68 illegally imported luxury cars and eight high-end motorcycles in… Read More International community hails new Bangsamoro law in PH The recent signing of the Philippines’ Bangsamoro Organic Law (BOL), which seeks to establish a new Bangsamoro political entity that will replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, was commended by the European Union (EU), the United Nations (UN), and the Japanese government. In a… Read More Duterte signs Bangsamoro Organic Law President Rodrigo Roa Duterte stated on Thursday, July 26,2018, that he already signed the Bangsamoro Organic Law (BOL). Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque also announced “the President has just signed the BOL into law.” During the ‘69th Araw ng Ipil’ celebration in Zamboanga Sibugay, Duterte said… Read More Suspected terrorist killed in an encounter in Lanao del Sur 12 months ago by Chrystal VillalobosCountering Violent Extremism A suspected Maute-ISIS terrorist was killed in a combat operation conducted by troops under Joint Task Force ZAMPELAN on July 26 at 9:00 AM in Masiu, Lanao del Sur after concerned residents informed the military units of the presence of the terrorists. Major Ronald Suscano,… Read More MILF to decomission fighters, qualified to join military against terrorists in Mindanao 12 months ago by NoToViolence PHCounter Terrorism The Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) announced that it is willing to disarm and decommission over 30,000 of its fighters once the Bangsamoro Organic Law (BOL) is passed. File photo of MILF fighters (Source: Luwaran.net) “This announcement is very much welcomed, If this happens peace… Read More	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3132
__label__wiki	0.895339	0.895339	Parks & Rec Reviews Parks & Rec Spoilers Parks & Rec Watch Online Parks & Rec Episode Guide Parks & Rec Quotes Parks & Rec Cast Parks & Rec Pictures Parks & Rec Videos Follow Parks and Recreation Parks and Recreation Facebook Parks and Recreation Twitter Parks and Recreation Season 6 Watch Full Episode Parks and Recreation Season 6 Episode 21 "Moving Up" While putting together the Unity Concert, Leslie makea a big decision about her future on the season 6 finale of Parks and Recreation. "One in 8,000" Ben and Leslie decide to run a charity auction to raise funds for the unity concert while Donna asks Ron for help with an ex-boyfriend on Parks and Recreation. "Flu Season 2" While trying to book performers for the Unity Concert, Leslie and Andy are struck down by the flu on Parks and Recreation. "Prom" Leslie and the parks crew tries to save the prom on Parks and Recreation. "Galentine's Day 2" Leslie decides to throw a Galentine's party in the hopes of finding a new best friend on Parks and Recreation. "New Slogan" Two local shock jocks get wind of Leslie's push to come up with a new town slogan on Parks and Recreation. "The Wall" Leslie must handle several unexpected turns while Tom and Ben meet with the corporate sponsors for the benefit concert on Parks and Recreation. "Anniversaries" Tom attempts to work with Leslie to show the positives of the Pawnee / Eagleton merger while Ben plans an anniversary surprise on Parks and Recreation. "Ann and Chris" Everyone tries to find the perfect going away present as Chris and Ann prepare to leave Pawnee on Parks and Recreation. "Farmers Market" Questionable sales practices at a farmers market start an argument between Ben and Leslie on Parks and Recreation. "New Beginnings" Leslie and Ben face new challenges to go along with their new jobs on Parks and Recreation. "Second Chunce" As Leslie's comes upon the end of her term, she must decide what to do with her future on Parks and Recreation Parks and Recreation Season 6 Episode 9 "The Cones of Dunshire" Ron asks for helping selling his cabin in the woods while Leslie sits through a marathon negotiation where she won't take no for an answer on Parks and Recreation. "Flouride" Leslie tries to mark two big things off of her list while on City Council, adding flouride to the water supply and hosting a party with the Indianapolis Colts on Parks and Recreation. "Recall Vote" As Leslie gets the haunted house together with Ben and Chris she must face a recall election on Parks and Recreation. "Filibuster" Due to an emergency filibuster, Leslie must leave the party she's thrown for Ben on Parks and Recreation. "Gin It Up!" Tatiana Maslany guest stars on this episode of Parks and Recreation. She plays the character of Nadia. "Doppelgangers" The Pawnee Parks team joins up with their Eagleton counterparts at Leslie's request while Ann makes an announcement about her future on Parks and Recreation. "The Pawnee Eagleton Tip Off Classic" Leslie, Ben and Chris head to Eagleton to speak with an entitled councilwoman about financial issues on Parks and Recreation. "London, Part 1 & 2" Leslie, Ben, Andy, April and Ron all travel to London where Leslie is being given an award on the season 6 premiere of Parks and Recreation. Air Dates: September 26, 2013 to April 24, 2014 Total Episodes: Parks and Recreation Season 6 Quotes Just remember every time you look up at the moon, I too will be looking at a moon. Not the same moon, obviously, that’s impossible. Permalink: Just remember every time you look up at the moon, I too will be looking at a moon. Not the... Time is money, money is power, power is pizza, and pizza is knowledge, let’s go! Permalink: Time is money, money is power, power is pizza, and pizza is knowledge, let’s go! Parks and Recreation: Watch Season 6 Episode 21 Online Parks and Recreation Review: Ready or Not Parks and Recreation Season 6 Photos	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3142
__label__wiki	0.819293	0.819293	Little Ray Smith RAYMOND F. "LITTLE RAY" SMITH was born in Chicago, Illinois on December 3, 1894. He enlisted in the 3rd Regiment of the New Jersey National Guard in Camden in 1912, and saw duty with General Pershing's expedition to Mexico and in France during World War I. While in France began his professional boxing career. On January 1, 1926 former AEF champion lightweight boxer Little Ray Smith was assigned to Engine Company 8. He remained with Engine 8 until July of 1939, when he was promoted to Captain and assigned to lead the city's Fire Training Academy. He was living at 111 North 6th Street in 1942, when he registered for the draft. He later re-enlisted and although already in his late 40s was accepted into the Coast Guard. Camden Courier-Post - January 13, 1928 LOCAL LEGI0N POST TO PUT ON FIGHT SHOW Sergeant Ray Smith Heads Committee In Charge of Arrangement for Jousts Not to be outdone by any local organization, Corporal Raymond C. Thoirs Post, of the American Legion, passed a resolution last night in favor of staging a monster boxing show at Convention Hall sometime next month. Half the receipts will be donated to further the Boy Scout Movement. Sergeant Ray Smith, former heavyweight boxer and now a licensed referee, was elected to head the committee on arrangements, which consists if ten members; Judge Frank F. Neutze, Dr. Irwin B. Deibert, Tom Taylor, J. Harry Ashton, Harry E. Bayne, George P. Rothermel, Albert Wehner, Fireman Ray Smith and Jack Weinberg will assist the sergeant in making the show a success. A businessmen’s committee also will be appointed, but as yet has not been named by the legion committee members. It is the intention of the committee to bring some of the best boxers in the country here for the show, which they will make an annual affair providing the initial one is a success. Chairman Smith stated today that he would apply for a boxing permit from Deputy Boxing Commissioner Edward A. Welsh at once. LITTLE RAY SMITH NAMED BOXING INSTRUCTOR AT 'Y' Former Camden Scrapper to Teach Sport at Local Y.M.C.A. Ray Smith, well-known in Camden boxing circles, has been appointed to the position of boxing Instructor at the Camden Y. M. C. A. That post has been vacant since Max W. Younger left to accept a berth at Temple University. Smith, who is known as ‘Little Ray’ to distinguish himself from Sergeant Ray Smith, is going to get together a boxing team to represent the Y. M. C. A. in club competition. Ray has had a number of ring bouts, including one with Willie Davis in Norristown; Tony Angelo and Tommy Sharkey, at Atlantic City; Joe Elliott and Frankie Nelson in Camden; Tommy Lyons in Gloucester; Joe O’Keefe in Clementon; Jimmy Magee in Philadelphia; and Willie Preston and Francis DeSilver, in France during the World War. SGT. RAY'S CHATTER A letter from "Sunny Miami" brings a note from Little Ray Smith, now a city fireman and one of the writer's best friends. Little Ray, his wife Helen, and daughter Joan, are sojourning in the Southland during Ray's vacation. Enclosed in a letter are two snap shots taken of Joan and George Bernard Shaw. Ray says he met an old friend of mine, Jimmy Maloney, who now is a policeman. And that brings to mind a story. Jim, a good Irishman, and a few years back one of the best heavyweights ever turned out of Boston. It was in 1927 when I last saw Jim Maloney, a fine husky lad who on the night of May 20 that year, was to meet an old rival, ,Jack Sharkey, from his home town in the ring at Madison Square Garden. These two had been bitter enemies and I feel that Jim resented the fact that Sharkey, a Lithuanian, had taken an Irish moniker when he took up fisticuffs. These two had met twice before in the squared circle in Boston. In 1924 Jim gained the decision in 10 rounds. In 1925 Jim again won, this time on a foul in the ninth round. And so on May 20, 1927, these two were to meet for the third time. To the winner was to go the distinction of being a runnerup for the heavyweight title . .After shaking hands with Maloney at the weighing-in ceremonies, I walked across the ring where Sharkey was addressing Jimmy Johnston, the matchmaker of the Garden, presented me to the garroulous gob. I told Jack that I was a newspaper man and asked him how he felt about the encounter scheduled for that evening. "I'll knock that big Irishman right I into your lap in about three rounds," Sharkey told me. Jack was the underdog in the fight, all the sports scribes around New York labeled the match as just a warming-up process for Maloney who they thought was a great prospect to annex the heavyweight championship of the world. The night of the fight I was at the ringside with my nose literally in the resin box in Maloney's corner. Jack got away to a fast start and was well out in front when near the middle Of the fifth round, call it imagination if you pleas, but Jack looked down at me, winked and shot over a terrific right cross that sent Maloney sprawling to the canvas just a few inches from where I was sitting. That ended the fight and also the career of a great Irishman who always gave his best in the squared circle, and I'll bet that there is no finer bluecoat in all Miami than Jim Maloney. Incidentally that was the first fight that started Jack Sharkey on his climb to fame that resulted in his winning of the greatest of all fistic baubles- the heavyweight championship of the world. Camden Courier-Post - February 9, 1938 Charles Errickson - Rollo Jones - Little Ray Smith Camden Courier-Post - June 30, 1939 $100,00 FIRE SWEEPS STORE OF ANTRIM CO. Several Firemen Hurt; Oil Plant and Homes Are Menaced Ralph Bingemann - John Lennox - Andrew Ballantine - John Strauss Ray Smith - Lou Gold - Marvin Gold - Leroy Garrison - Emido Martelli Agnes Mitchell - Mrs. Roy Dilks - Albert Bowne Camden Courier-Post * June 5, 1940 CHANGES ANNOUNCED IN FIRE DEPARTMENT Truck Disbanded, Engine Company Created; 13 Men Transferred Commissioner Mary W. Kobus yesterday announced a number of changes in the fire department, including the disbanding of Truck Company No. 4; creation of a new engine company. No. 10, and the transfer of 18 officers and men, 12 of them captains. Most of the new captains have been serving as acting captains and promotion to full rank will involve no pay increases, inasmuch as the men signed waivers foregoing the raises. Commissioner Kobus explained most of the changes were made to conform with regulations of the National Board of Fire Underwriters. The board, Mrs. Kobus explained, made a survey of the department and advised appointments of acting captains to full rank. The commissioner also announced she had appointed Junior Captain Raymond Smith as director of the school for firemen at Engine Company No. 10, Ninth and Morgan streets. Smith, one of the youngest at the recently appointed junior captains, will succeed the late Battalion Chief Rollo Jones. Senior Captain Leonard Megee was appointed acting battalion chief to succeed Jones. He will continue at the Fifth and Arch streets fire headquarters. Junior Captain William Spencer, of headquarters company, was named relief captain. Engine Company No. 10 will use the headquarters of the old truck company, at Ninth and Morgan streets. To the new company Mrs. Kobus assigned Senior Captain Mortica Clark and Firemen Frank Burt, Frank Esperance and Clifford Lane. Junior Captain Frank Oberman was transferred from Engine Company No. 10 to Engine Company No. 1, at fire headquarters. Other assignments are as follows: Junior Captain Robert Wonsetler, Engine Company No. 11, to Engine Company No. 2. Fireman Harry Kleinfelder, Engine Company No. 6, to Engine Company No. 2 Junior Captain Edgar Ellender, Engine Company No. 2, to Engine Company No. 6. Junior Captain Ralph Bingemann, Truck Company No. 2, to Engine Company No. 7. Fireman David Humphries, Truck Company No. 3, to Engine Company No. 11. Junior Captain Nelson Andrews, Engine Company No. 2, to Truck Company No. 1. Fireman Albert Dukes, Jr., Truck Company No. 1, to Engine Company No. 2. Junior Captain Winfield Levisuer, Truck Company No. 2, to Truck Company No. 3. Junior Captain Edward McDowell retains assignment to Engine Company No. 3. Junior Captain Maurice O’Brien assigned to Engine Company No. 10. The changes were contained in notice to the Civil Service Commission, are effective as of June 1 and will appear on the June 15 payroll. Stanley Geda Raymond Smith Stanley Geda - Whitman Avenue - Thomas Murphy - Stanley Gasior - Mechanic Street George Pestridge - George Hess Sr. - Merrimac Road - Collings Road - William Hastings Charles Craig - Mary Kobus - Raymond Smith - John Githens - Monitor Road - West Jersey Cafe Gene R. Mariano - John Miller - Clinton Street - Federal Street - Albert Brager Camden Courier-Post * July 1, 1941 The photograph on the left shows Edward Friant, of 124 North Thirtieth Street, descending from a tall building on a rope by using a life belt. The center scene depicts Charles Geitz, of 465 Mechanic Street, left, and Nicholas Iacovelli, or 1303 Decatur street, using asbestos suits in the middle of roaring flames. The suits, according to Fire Captain Ray Smith, instructor at the school, are able to withstand 1,750 degrees of heat. Ernest Wilkinson, of 1304 Park boulevard, is the man behind the mask on the right shown emerging from a building filled with formaldehyde gas. 50 Volunteer Firemen Complete Training for Emergency Duties Graduates First of 500 to Be Trained by City for Huge Reserve Similar to that in London; Defense Officials Praise Work Camden's first group of war and emergency volunteer firemen received their "diplomas" last night on completion or their training at the fire school in No. 10 firehouse, Ninth street and Morgan boulevard. They are the initial volunteers to be trained as a reserve for the city fire department in an emergency. The volunteers, 50 of them, will be on 24-hour call. Eventually more than 500 men are expected to receive the training course for a huge reserve similar to the corps of firemen now being used in London. The men range in ages from 11 to 59 years with Charles Smith, son of Sgt. Ray Smith, being the youngest, and Harry L. Freidel, the oldest. The training course started May 12 and the trainees have attended three sessions a week, Monday, Wednesday and Friday nights, for seven weeks under the direction of Fire Captain Raymond Smith, no relation to the sergeant, who is director of the training school. Smith is a graduate of Class 56, of the Philadelphia Fire Training School. Each volunteer fireman will be issued an identification card which will hold his fingerprints. Class Praised Among those congratulating the graduates were Herbert E. Harper, chairman of the Camden Defense Council; William C. Schriver, council member; Fire Chief John Lennox and Captain Smith. Howard Odrain, deputy chief of the Philadelphia Fire Department with 31 years of experience in fighting fires, attended as an observer. "In behalf of the Camden City Defense Council, I want to thank you men for the hours and days you have put into taking this course," Harper told the graduates, "You have been prompt in attendance and have been attentive. We don't anticipate any air raids or any acts of war-invasion, but we have an important problem in enabling national defense Industries in Camden city to make load in their Jobs. "The sabotage committee of the defense council has been visiting the local Industries encouraging the plants to set up their own fire fighting squads and many are doing so. You men will be needed in times of an emergency to aid these forces and to assist at industries where there is no fire fighting squads." Chief Lennox termed the volunteers "our second line of defense" and thanked them for their cooperation. Training Complete The course included training In all phases of fire-fighting from operating pumpers to climbing ladders and combating incendiaries, Rescue work also was included. The use of gas masks and asbestos suits in chemical firs, how to approach delayed bombs with snubbers and the proper methods of using extinguishers were taught. A demonstration was held outside the firehouse by the volunteers. Their activities included scaling ladders, using gas masks to enter a smoke house, climbing and working on the top of the fire tower, using an aerial truck, tying tools for the lifting to tools, working on the end of water lines, working on pumpers, hooking up to stand pipes, jumping into life nets, tying life ropes and using asbestos suits through flaming gasoline and oil. The graduates included: George D. Wilkinson, fire marshal of the RCA Manufacturing Company, and his two sons, Ernest and George; Garfield Watson, sergeant of police at New York Shipbuilding Corporation; Lieut. George Hamilton, Jr., of the 157th Field Artillery; Captain William Hare, of the Kaighn Avenue-South Street Ferry. Harry B. Thompson, Earl Denby, Lester W. Giberson, Norman P. Maull, Joseph Leone, Samuel Schuele, George P. Smith, Joseph Marchese, Nicholas A. Messaro, Willam S. Martz, William E. Doan, Elwood P. Martz, Jr., Clyde Getzinger, George W. Grove, Stephen Kirby, James W. McCracken, William Watkin, Manuel Weiss, Riccardo DiGiacomo, Louis Cimini, William P. Walter, Sigmund Yakaski, Nicholas Iacovelli, Robert Holmes, Walter D. Lohrman. Myer J. Mutter, Charles Geitz, Charles A. B. Smith, Howard Doerschner, Harry L. Freidel, Franklin L. Wright, Paul W. Kessler, Warren I. Carter, Creston Polland, Edward E. Friant, Frank F. Shropshire, Charles Gall, Albert E. Pine, Nicholas Cerasoli, George W. Williams, Joseph G. Foster, Joseph Elliott, George Hance and Irving L. Stiefel. ccc Click on Image to Enlarge ccc Tom Ryan - E. Allen Hughes - Herman Silvers - Paul Campbell - Louis Leigh - Ralph Gaudio Mary Kobus - Helen Appleton North 6th Street - Kaighn Avenue - Merrimac Road Camden Coke - Camden Fire Department Engine Company 8	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3144
__label__cc	0.552678	0.447322	At your target in front... "Suspended Hato Paora College principal Elvis Dobson Shepherd has been found guilty of sexually abusing students at an Auckland school in the early 1990s..." Yes, yet another... Fuck me!- its CMOT Dibbler! We have crossover from the Discworld! Bipolar NZ In the world I live in- dominated by real men and a few women- doing all the stuff actually needed to make a country work- there is nothing but contempt for the bludgers along for a free ride. But the trouble is that these folks are so busy keeping the world going round, they have no time-or interest- in changing which direction it spins. THAT is governed by a class who are NOT bothered by the burden of meaningful work. And the good people who matter have been brainwashed to believing that politics are distasteful and beneath then (the current system IS) Politics are so far from the folks actually growing the food, making the power flow and keeping the roads open, that the politicians might as well be living in frickin' Narnia! (make your own observations about coming out of closets) We need to get away from elections and move to gallows. The people that matter are the only ones that know how to use a hammer and nails anyway... Pot- kettle "The Labour Party is concerned that ousted MP Chris Carter has become unbalanced, senior party figure Trevor Mallard says..." That would be like the micky's throwing out a priest who took mass! Feck- Liarbour are all barking! (along with most of the Nats and the others!) Just noticed On the 8th of this month, this blog has been going five years! Serious airgunning Stand by to repel boarders! Watch this mess up your fibreglass boat! "Christchurch's newest team of ghostbusters is ready for paranormal action. The new group, dubbed Christchurch Paranormal Investigators, was set up by Anton Heyrick who has been on the trail of apparitions for 10 years with various groups..." The team are quietly confident that with good funding and time they WILL eventually find traces of intelligent life in the Village of the Damned! Solutions are simple but unpalatable SO- what would stop SO MANY children being murdered? Stop funding the breeding of unwanted children. Despite funding girls to 'care' for their offspring full-time, they consistently fail at their duty in numbers too large to be ignored. I call them girls because they do not understand that which a woman does. Your 'needs' come second to your children's. Much, if not most of the problem would be the feckless male refuse they attract. These losers are attracted by sex, a roof over their heads and someone who get more taxpayer funding than he does to mooch off. At best they have no interest in another male's offspring. At worst, he is a loose cannon with a cracked barrel, as far as the kids are concerned. I look at the town degenerates that hang around the scrubbers loafing on the DPB in our street. I hear their fighting and drunken/drugged carry-ons and know that it is just a matter of time there... So WHY the gap? "The wage gap between New Zealand and Australian workers has widened by $40 to $580 a week since National came to power in late 2008 promising to address the income gap..." For one, they don't get the vapors at the thought of digging the place up for minerals. Plus I suspect they have a better ratio of workers to wastrels. More consistancy One thing missing from the otherwise fair drink-driving penalties. Stepped fines and penalties or how much offenders are over the limit- like they do with speeding. And I believe the limit should stay where it is for now. Before reducing it I would like to see PROOF that between 0.5 and 0.8 is a problem that warrants change. (Personally, my guidelines are one drink- that's it) Experiment Three NZDF medal 'progress' UPDATE - 19 MAY 2010 "The Government is considering the Medallic Recognition Joint Working Group's report on the proposed NZDF Medal. The NZDF is NOT currently accepting applications for the planned New Zealand Defence Force Medal. It is anticipated that a call for applications will happen in the second half of 2010. It will take approximately 20 to 22 weeks from when a decision is made by the Government, before any medals are available to be issued. There will need to be a tender process for the manufacturer(s), and then the medal and ribbon will still need to be manufactured. The NZDF Medals Office expects a large number of people to apply for the medal and, even with extra staff to process the applications, this could potentially be a two to three year project." You people work like old people fuck! How many friggin' years does this have to take? You pricks can vote yourselves a pay rise in a few nanoseconds. Are you waiting for a few more of us to friggin' die? It is a national embarrassment to turn out to an ANZAC day parade and the only ones NOT wearing a medal are the ex-bloody servicemen! Firemen, Cops- yep they all have them (and deserved, don't get that wrong) Soldiers- forget it. Every damned thing in the service needed doing the day before, so is it too much to ask for a bit of hurry-up on this? The NZDF site has issued an update today that is exactly the same as the one I posted in May! OI!- Wayne Mapp!- light a fire under these idle fuckers! Posted by Oswald Bastable at 20:38 14 comments: News flash- man leaves bar pissed "A Wellington RSA has been banned from selling alcohol for a day after one of its members got drunk at the club and was caught drink-driving at nearly four times the legal limit..." Slow new day, huh? Everyone knows that driving pissed is a bad thing. That is not the issue here. If there were any consistency in policing, EVERY drunk picked up in town who had come from a bar should result in a prosecution for that bar. [insert Tui ad here] If all bars lost a day's trading for every drunk that staggered out the door- you would have a hard time finding a bar open at all. It isn't even happening with people convicted for drink-related offences in other cases. Why single out the Tawa RSA all of a sudden? Some copper get their membership application blackballed? Behind the times as usual Given that I never get to the pictures, refuse to listen to what is hot and trendy and only buy the DVDs when they are at knockdown prices, I would be possibly the worlds slowest movie reviewer. Yesterday I finally got a couple of hours between jobs and got to watch the copy of District 9 that I brought about a month ago. Something quite fresh and new and not a freaking remake or sequel. Lots of good splatter and effects- not for the kiddies like the R16 rating implies. I hate to spoil a story by actually giving away any details (plus that would involve an effort on my part) so I won't. It's a good, gritty fast paced action sci-fi- think shades of ET and Blackhawk Down crossed with Naked Lunch! Well worth the $15 buck at the red shed and buying a copy might get Peter Jackson nearing to affording a local hanger for his new jet! Newspeak translated 'Hate Speech'- Translation: 'Hates freedom of Speech' Here endth today's lesson. Fair Trade stuff "...Fair trade bananas are flying off Moore Wilson's shelves in Masterton despite Oxfam warning demand needs to pick up or New Zealand may lose the ethical fruit..." Another piece of 'feel good' marketing. Of course 'Fair Trade' only works for overseas produce. The buying practices of the supermarket chains here are conveniently ignored. The bleeding hearts couldn't give a stuff about NZ growers- who get screwed over just the same as the foreign ones! Crystal Ball gazing Hat Tip: Fairfacts Media Show Dumb and the other one "An energy company has been forced to compensate a Wellington apartment owner after a meter reader defecated in a plastic bag while at the man's flat and left it there. The Electricity and Gas Complaints Commissioner has told Genesis Energy to pay $800 to Errol Anderson, after the incident last September. However, Mr Anderson says the compensation is insufficient, as he cannot rent the apartment out until the "stigma" of what happened has faded..." I would say $800 for finding a bag of crap on your doorstep should take away one's angst. Asking $200k is about as dumb as the clown who crapped in the bag (pleading desperation) and then left it there. I personally know of a similar case of a jar of urine being left in a ceiling space. Again the offender was too dumb/lazy to simply remove the jar and dispose of it and the contents. Shit happens... What are you saying here? "...Thirty-eight people charged with unlawful assembly should be seen by the same judge on the same day, a Christchurch judge says. In the Christchurch District Court yesterday, the first seven people appeared before Judge Stephen Erber. Each of the 38 is charged with unlawful assembly relating to a gathering of 39 revving cars and 140 people at Chaneys, Belfast, just after midnight on July 10. Police had planned to drip-feed those charged through the court to avoid clogging the system. However, the judge took a different view yesterday, saying all 38 should be seen on the same day by the same judge to achieve consistent penalties..." SO have them ALL flogged to within an inch of their lives! That aside, is the beak suggesting that our highly paid and above reproach judiciary are NOT consistent? Gosh, who would have thought! Day by Day needs our help Keep the hottest cartoon character in the known universe going! Minging old farts and Entitleitis "...Nine party-goers dined for lunch at Robbie's Bar and Bistro to celebrate a Nelson woman's 70th birthday. The celebration turned to disbelief when they where told they could not bring in the birthday cake, baked as a present, without a $12 "cutting fee". "I couldn't believe it," cake-baker June Thompson said. "I was actually gutted because I thought, 'that's a heck of a charge on top of making the cake'..." Ever here of corkage for BYO- same thing. A perfectly reasonable charge for staff's time for serving, cleaning plates and forks and more importantly- for the use of the venue. Less than $1.50 a head is a 'heck of a charge'? Stick to stewed tea and stale biscuits in one of your unheated state houses! Back down to another friggin' minority group. How come you pander to these wingers- who would NEVER vote for you- but ignore issues supported by the majority? Is someone getting paid off here? Mental Health Days Take a friggin' days leave. Sick leave is for when you- or one of the family- is SICK. Not for 'Tui Flu' Bloody slackers! The end result is always the same for the host... Shooting for goals I have decided I WILL do the Southern Crossing trip by the end of next year. If I can drop 40 kg (which I have so far), I can do that! That last trip away- my first overnight in 12 years- made me realize how much I missed getting out into the bush... Discipline and Professionalism Taking a piece of shit out alive when 92% of the population would have been happy to see him full of holes. All the real news that never makes the news! Let's have the whole story "Proposed Government moves to cut council costs will put lives "at risk", a senior Canterbury medical officer says.... ...The board has drawn parallels with the cost-cutting of Canada's Ontario government in the late 1990s that led to seven drinking water-related deaths in 2000. "You're putting lives in the community at risk," Canterbury medical officer of health Dr Alistair Humphrey told The Press yesterday. "If people do lose their lives, the costs of addressing that are far higher than the money you'll save..." The Walkerton incident is a case study used in water treatment industry training. The series of failures leading to the incident were not cost cutting- they were the result of willful negligence and a cover-up on the parts of those concerned. Saw a convoy of cops heading north up SH1 at speed about an hour ago and they were loaded for bear. Wonder if this is anything to do with the Fielding murder a few days ago? Why would you NOT I cannot understand the procrastinating about arming the police. I can see no reason that they should NOT be armed. To go about unarmed, they fail in their duty to protect the public. Remember that- used to happen before they became the uniformed branch of the IRD. They existed to protect the law-abiding and make the lives of those who chose to live outside the law difficult. Every crim everywhere SHOULD expect an armed response! For the cops to chickenshit to pick up a weapon- we have the making of the all new old Traffic Department. To the politicians who piss about and let cops AND VOTERS die- give us the power to defend our own lives. We can't hide behind our own personal armed diplomatic protection squad- like you craven swine! Merry Christmas Ted! Arse biscuit! Party politics aside "...East Timor's parliament has resoundingly rejected Australian prime minister Julia Gillard's proposal for a refugee processing centre in the country..." Feckin' ingrates~ cut off ALL aid immediately! 1. You cannot legislate the poor into prosperity by legislating the wealthy out of prosperity. 2. What one person receives without working for, another person must work for without receiving. 3. The government cannot give to anybody anything that the government does not first take from somebody else. 4. When half of the people get the idea that they do not have to work because the other half is going to take care of them, and when the other half gets the idea that it does no good to work because somebody else is going to get what they work for, that my dear friend, is the beginning of the end of any nation. 5. You cannot multiply wealth by dividing it. Nicked from Theo's Away from the interlink No broadband here. Not a lot of electricity for that matter! This is my son's first 'real' tramping trip. He has done a lot of camping and quite a few day trips- this is the big overnighter. Back in a couple of days Why won't the government save us from ourselves "...Fight the Obesity Epidemic spokeswoman Dr Robyn Toomath said the Government had barely acknowledged obesity as an issue. It had increased funding for Kiwisport in schools, but there was no evidence that participation in sport affected obesity levels. Widespread discrimination against obese people meant there was no public outcry that nothing was being done. "It must be a prejudicial view that you have brought it on yourself, and that's a nonsense," she said..." I'm calling 'bullshit' on this one. NOBODY forced you to eat. When your fat arse got too wide for your clothes- THEN was when you got the warning sign to change your ways. Never mind you THOUGHT you were eating right. You were wrong. Research- learn a bit about diet and nutrition and amend your ways. or chose not to- it's YOUR choice. And YOUR consequences to live with. Another minus five night forecast I'm glad I spent a day cutting Manuka last year. If this global warming continues, I think I will buy a bigger chainsaw. There is a lot of free wood about if you know where to look. On Tuesday it's off into the Tararuas for a night or two and I think it may be a little colder than minus five up there. Glad I liberated that high-spec sleeping bag many years ago. My research into alternative fuel is coming along nicely. Those soft drink bottles burn very well when you have the fire box good & hot! Almost as good as coal! The alternative being? "Last Sunday [4 July] air quality in the Wairarapa failed to meet the national standard for the fourth time this winter. Greater Wellington’s Masterton air quality monitoring station measured 57 micrograms per cubic metre (57 µg/m3) of fine particles (PM10) in the air – that’s 7 µg/m3 over the national standard threshold of 50 µg/m3. Exposure to PM10 is linked to adverse health effects including respiratory problems. “In each of the four high pollution nights, the cause can be attributed to the combination of smoke from domestic wood burners and the weather – pollution usually builds up overnight during still and cold conditions,” says Greater Wellington’s Ted Taylor, Manager, Environmental Monitoring and Investigations..." So frickin' what? It's frickin' freezing and everyone who has one has the fire going. If you want to see health problems, ban the bloody fires and watch the respiratory illness admissions take off. Far more than you get from breathing a bit of woodsmoke. This is the dishonesty of this greenie hype- they fail to mention the cost of NOT using wood to heat homes. I use a heatpump for a few hours in the morning, but get nothing like the warmth from my logburner. I would need three heatpumps to get the same output and I'm already paying about $100 a month to run the one I have. Also, when the 'pollution' outside is high- people are INSIDE trying to stay warm. Government changes, PC continues "BREAKING NEWS: Rugby World Cup Minister Murray McCully is poised to axe controversial rugby ambassador Andy Haden. In a strongly-worded statement, Mr McCully said he would be meeting Mr Haden this afternoon over comments he made about rape and rugby players on Sky Television on Wednesday night..." Rugby world cup minister- now there is someone who needs to be made redundant. OK- he IS redundant- now he needs to be removed from the trough. What a load of twadle- expecting a rugby head to be PC. What next- vegetarian tigers at the Wellington zoo? Golgafrincham Ark Fleet, Ship B- the crew Adapted from from Johnboy's comment here Information on the Golgafrincham Ark Fleet, ship B here. Labels: Hitchhikers guide to the galaxy I mean- really! It's a dead fish! Push it back into the drink and let the crabs and seagulls finish the job! "LATEST: Hamilton police have charged three teenagers with the murder of Wellington man Donald Stewart. Acting Detective Senior Sergeant Mark Greene said this morning they had charged three male youths, aged 14, 15 and 17, with Mr Stewart's murder..." More mad dogs in need of a bullet... Southern Man Don't get between the denizens of the Village of the Damned and their Canterbury Draught. They will vote for fuckwits like Red Jim, but won't stand for an interruption to their drinking! A new word Culturist: A person who discriminates against or dislikes other cultures. 'Oswald is an unashamed culturist.' Racist is so misused that I came up with this new term. It fits a lot better! It's a different world to the one that welcomed all-comers with open arms- the young USA and: "Give me your tired, your poor, Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me, I lift my lamp beside the golden door!" Those days are gone. It's a very different world now. In those days the immigrant had to fit in and scratch for a living. Their new home and hope had no safety net- or the snare of- welfare. They got their heads down and worked hard to make a living. Not anymore- and THIS is reason one as to why we cannot afford to take all-comers now. This is why they MUST apply and should only be permitted entry if they will not be a drain. We already have too much deadwood. We live in a welfare state- I don't like it, a thousand libertarians don't like it and I suspect quite a few others don't, either. Unfortunately, we are stuck with this welfare black hole and the best we can do is to lobby to manage it. We need more immigrants on the dole like we need more revisionist history professors in our universities. One way is to only allow immigrants who will be a net gain as soon as they land here. Then there are the illegals. They want to bypass the screening system, usually by emotional blackmail- often in the form of a leaky boat or by claiming to belong to some persecuted group. Surely there is empty land in Africa for them. I can't see any place here. Finally- the colonists- they are not here to join our society. They are here to take over, make no mistake about that and they will play on our PC-faux guilt-tripping for all it is worth. If you don't believe me, spend some time reading the UK blogs. Won't SOMEBODY think of the children? School principals say measures should be put in place to make it difficult for teenagers to buy pointed sticks, similar to rules restricting the purchase of spraycans. The Principals Association welcomed moves to help them search pupils for weapons. Justice Minister Simon Power has announced proposals to help deal with a rise in pointed stick-carrying. These included increasing the sentence for possessing an offensive weapon from two to three years and a voluntary accord with pointed stick sellers to help restrict sales to teenagers. In my day, almost everybody from the age of about eight years and up carried a pointed stick. Pointed sticks have thousands of practical applications other than sticking into people. We knew it was a bad idea to poke somebody with a pointed stick and that the consequences (remember those) would be on the harsh side of severe. So we didn't do it. I often dreamed of actually buying a pointed stick, but being poor had to fashion my own out of stuff found in sheds. Or use one of the ones found lying about in every house. And although we were often cautioned by our mothers, almost nobody put an eye out! Things to avoid doing #37862 Buying you wife an over-complicated WINDOWS based 'smart' phone. Just don't go there... Another trougher LATEST: The Law Society has asked to strike off controversial lawyer Chris Comeskey after he pleaded guilty to three counts of professional misconduct. Comeskey changed his position when the Lawyers and Conveyancers Disciplinary Tribunal reconvened this afternoon. He pleaded guilty to one charge of failing to act appropriately for a client, one charge of misleading the Court of Appeal and one charge of submitting a false invoice to legal aid. John Billington, QC, for the New Zealand Law Society, told the tribunal the charges were serious and the society was asking for Comeskey to be struck off. It can be no co-incidence that there are so many lawyers in politics... Better places to be than in front of a screen TradeMe hints When you sell a palm mobile or suchlike CRAMMED with sensitive personal information- it is a REALLY GOOD IDEA to do a factory reset when selling it. You might sell it to somebody who does not respect privacy and LOVES to pass such stories to the media. Fortunately, I am not one of them. Any media types can kiss my arse- this is as far as this story goes. You would have loved it as it was a serious national news one. Eat shit and die you pricks "Kiwibank is calling for compulsory KiwiSaver membership, a tightening of rules around disclosure by KiwiSaver providers, and more incentives for savings... ...Chief executive Sam Knowles said the bank, along with most commentators, believed this country had a savings problem..." Yes, you would say that. Not content with having OUR tax money to play banks with, you want your stinking hands even further into OUR pockets. Fuck you- stick your kiwisaver up your arse! Banks don't exactly have the best reputation for investing other peoples money well. Be thankful for what you have "Social Development Minister Paula Bennett was grilled by teenage parents over early-childhood centre funding cuts during a visit to North Canterbury. Bennett yesterday visited Kaiapoi's Karanga Mai, a school for young parents, where pupils questioned a $17,000 funding cut to the school's early-childhood centre..." More entitlitis here. These people fucked up their lives through dumb choices, then complain because they don't get the gold-plated option. "...The Government's Budget cuts involve replacing the top two funding rates for centres employing more than 80 per cent of qualified teachers with a single lower rate..." So some of the teachers are not fully qualified. they probably know more than the genius student that came out with: "...Karanga Mai pupil Tracey Andrews said the cuts were "ridiculous" and that each centre should be judged on individual need. She felt her child's safety would be compromised if left in the care of an untrained teacher. "Say a child is choking, and there's no-one else around, if that [untrained] person doesn't know CPR, that's that kid gone just because they weren't trained," she said..." I suppose that according to that a fully trained doctor should be in the room at all times! Be thankful the TAXPAYERS are supporting you and your bastard offspring at all! Tithing starts today What else can you call tax increases to fund the new state religion? Which is all this greenie bullshit is. A irrational load of arse, where dissent is forbidden and emotion rules. But will the sheep reject the two main parties who both BELIEVE in the great gods of carbon? Fat friggin' chance- they are sheep!	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3148
__label__wiki	0.573493	0.573493	Premium Members: April 11, 2014 Tokaku Azuma is a heartless teenage assassin on a mission of death. She’s been sent to a prestigious, all-girls boarding school to compete in an assassination game against eleven other beautiful killers. Their heinous mission: send the innocent and cheerful Haru Ichinose to an early grave. But when Tokaku finds herself strangely drawn to her intended target, she must utilize her lethal skills to keep her new friend alive – and Haru must place her life in the ruthless, cold-blooded hands of the very woman sent to kill her. 12 pisode 12 23:28 06/20/14 06/27/2014 9 pisode 9 23:43 05/30/14 06/06/2014 Shin Koihime Musou Towards the end of the Han Dynasty, the world is in the throes of chaos and disorder. In a time when strength is needed, a hero is secretly sharpening her skills as a warrior of justice: her name is… Otome Yokai Zakuro "Demon Girl Zakuro," an ongoing favorite in Gentosha Comics's Monthly "Comic Birz," is being adapted into anime form! Watch Lily Hoshino's gorgeous characters in motion! This story takes place … Ayase Chihaya is a sixth grader whose dream is for her older sister to become the top model in Japan. The Prince of Tennis II Middle school students fought fiercely against one another in a national tournament. Now, 50 chosen representatives return to fight again as high school students! The stage is the U-17 (Under Seventee… Lilpri The queen of the Wonderland orders her “Ma(gic)Pets” to find three human girls who have the potential to become the Princesses in order to save Wonderland which is on the verge of extincti… COLUBOCCORO A sci-fi, eco-conscious fantasy about a 14-year-old heroine, SUZU, a descendent of a distinguished shaman who saved people from catastrophe in the past. SUZU sets out on a journey, along with the spir… Break Ups 'Break Ups' is a slice of life story about a young couple with an on-and-off relationship. They stumble upon a time machine that takes them back to several periods in their lives as a couple.	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3149
__label__cc	0.610124	0.389876	Daniel Roebuck One of Hollywood's Most Familiar Faces! Daniel Roebuck Videos View All Daniel Roebuck: Education Entertainment Humor University Inspiration University Entertainment Speaker Fee Details Burbank, CA, United States About Daniel Roebuck Daniel Roebuck has always defied description. Although he is best known as one of Hollywood's busiest character actors (having starred on hit shows like LOST and MATLOCK and in blockbuster movies like THE FUGITIVE and AGENT CODY BANKS) Daniel has so much more to offer! He was performing as an impressionist at the age of 10; he joined the circus at 12 and toured as one of the youngest clowns in the country, soon he was entertaining as a magician and a stand up comic. He also started working in ... Wow! Dan delivered way more than was expected! He was a communicator, a student, a parent, a Christian, and a comic. The students and community packed the house and thoroughly enjoyed themselves during his entertaining and insightful lecture. Liz Eichler - University of South Carolina 1 speaker reviews for Daniel Roebuck View All Detailed Speaking Fees for Daniel Roebuck We are not able to provide this information on the website. Please call us at (615) 261-4000 for more details!	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3153
__label__cc	0.742492	0.257508	Petronas Adventure Team A Brief History of PETRONAS Notable PAT Adventures 2004 Trans-Sahara Adventure, Part 1 by SA-20 This site is dedicated to the Petronas Adventure Team, a 4×4 off-roading club which operated from 1999 to 2014 in Malaysia, operating epic and highly-publicized tours in the early 2000s. The team’s adventures included the 1999 Passage to Tibet, 2001 Silk Road adventure, and 2003 Africa Trek. They did community outreach projects at all their stops. I live far from Malaysia – I am merely a fan, living in America and running my own tree service business in Pflugerville, TX outside of Austin. But reading articles and seeing pictures of these crazy adventures – a line of impressive bruiser vehicles, teal-green and trucking across oceans of sand dunes, stopping to rebuild schools in war-torn countries like the Sudan … … images like this made the world seem very large and amazing, and yet at the same time very small. In a far-away country like Malaysia, which could probably not be more different from my home in Texas (except I hear it’s hot) – different skin color, different food, different language, different religion, different music … yet there were still guys who loved to get into big trucks and drive over sand and rocks, just like I dreamed of doing, and who used their notoriety to help people. Check out the “About” page for details about the team and its history. In the blog I will expand on the background and historical context of various Petronas Adventure treks, and outline some of my own thoughts and ambitions that these . I started driving 4x4s with my dad when I was 16, and he was always very supportive. He loved big honking machines too – I guess we know where I got it from! (Hint – it wasn’t my mom.) My dad passed away in late 2011, and a few months later I read in 4×4 Magazine that Petronas Adventure Team founder Halim Rahman had passed away as well. I felt like I had lost two of my heroes. This site is an attempt to memorialize both of them, and to draw attention to the twin passions of off-roading and service that I think would have made Mr. Rahman proud. 4×4 off-roading is the best sport there is. Yes, it’s about big machines, but even riding the biggest machine you feel small next to the grand sweep of God’s creation. A big truck can put you face to face with mountains and valleys, sand dunes and swamps, miles from the garbage we surround ourselves with as “civilized” people and up close and personal with our mortality and insignificance in the big picture. We live on a beautiful planet. The Petronas Adventure Team showed me that, and it is now my life’s mission to recreate that magic in my own life, and in the lives of others. Plus, it’s fun to catch air as you barrel over a hill 🙂 Contact me with questions and comments, or visit the blog. Petronas Adventure Blog	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3155
__label__cc	0.520676	0.479324	"The honors department at the University of Louisiana-Lafayette was evacuated Wednesday. A custodian found a ticking bag on the first floor and called the campus cops. A university spokeswoman says it turns out there was a metronome in the bag." More here. And more here. And should enquiring minds need more, here's a brief history of the the metronome here. I never liked the metronome during my student days. Nowadays, let's just say we've made a truce. It's a handy tool when not abused --or allowed to abuse! Need a metronome? Well, here's one that runs on your computer or laptop. It's free! Check it out here. And another sofware version here. Or you can skip the whole thing, including practice, and just play the Xbox game called Metronome. Choice, choices, choices.	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3158
__label__cc	0.645898	0.354102	Kurdistan and Iraqi Central Governments Still Arguing Over Budget Baghdad and Irbil are still arguing over the national budget. Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki cut off money to the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) over its independent oil sales. Then at the start of Premier Haidar Abadi’s administration a temporary deal was made whereby the Kurds delivered oil for the central government, but that eventually broke down when neither side met their obligations. In February, PM Abadi said that Baghdad would pay KRG salaries in return for Kurdish exports, which Irbil then accepted. It didn’t appear that either side was serious about their remarks showing the continued divide between the two. On February 15, 2016 Prime Minister Haidar Abadi was being interviewed on state-run Iraqiya TV when he offered a new budget deal to the Kurds. He said that Baghdad would pay the salaries of Kurdistan’s government workers if it exported oil for the central government again. Kurdish state employees have not been paid for months leading to protests across the region. The problem with Abadi’s offer was that it wasn’t clear that he was serious. Baghdad is facing its own financial crisis due to the drop in oil prices and has discussed cutting its own public salaries as a result. Surprisingly two days later the KRG said that it accepted Abadi’s proposal. It said that there were 400,000 government workers in the region, which needed roughly $747 million a month. It then went on to list all the times that Baghdad broke deals over the budget, and claimed that it made more in 2014 from their independent oil sales than it received from the central government. Just like Baghdad it was pretty clear that the KRG was not serious either. Kurdish Premier Nechirvan Barzani said as much when he claimed that Abadi’s offer was just political theater. They only took up his offer in an attempt to embarrass him because they knew that he could not follow threw. The central and regional governments are still far apart over the budget. They are each following their own paths in the face of the financial crisis caused by the collapse in world oil prices. Both have built up a massive public sector with hundreds of thousands of workers, which the ruling parties use as part of their patronage networks to stay in power. Neither has a large private sector either to get them through this as they have based their entire economic platforms on their petroleum industries. To make the situation worse they are doubling down on their energy sectors instead of trying to carry out any meaningful reforms. The result is that the two will continue to drift apart on the budget and national policy. Agence France Presse, “Iraq PM offers cash-strapped Kurds salaries for oil,” 2/16/16 eKurd, “Iraqi Kurdistan News in brief – February 18, 2016,” 2/18/16 - “Iraqi Kurdistan News in brief – February 20, 2016,” 2/20/16 - “Kurdistan says will accept Iraqi PM’s oil for salaries deal,” 2/17/16 Osgood, Patrick and Tahir, Rawaz, “New rhetoric underscores Erbil-Baghdad oil disputes,” Iraq Oil Report, 2/17/16 Labels: Abadi government, Budget, Kurds, Oil Security In Iraq, Mar 22-28, 2016 Hint At Hashd Al-Shaabi Loses In Iraq War? U.S. Expanding Military Role In Iraq The Unknown Story Of US Outreach To Iraq’s Shiite ... GEORGE WASHINGTON UNIV VIDEO: Caucasian Foreign Fi... MERI VIDEO: Iraq Disputed Territories Earliest Financing Of Iraq’s Insurgency? Iraq’s Interior Minister: Fake Bomb Detectors Fias... Displaced From Iraq’s Ramadi Unlikely To Return To... When The U.S. Helped Start A Rebellion In Iraq Tha... HOUSE FOREIGN AFFAIRS COMMITTEE VIDEO: ISIS Point ... CARNEGIE ENDOWMENT VIDEO: Disrupting ISIL's Money ... Distribution Of Iraqi Forces Along The Frontline Security In Iraq, March 8-14, 2016 More On The Islamic State’s Participation In Iraq’... Remembering The 1991 Uprising In Iraq Islamic State’s Raid On Iraq’s Abu Ghraib PENTAGON VIDEO: Operation Inerent Resolve Press Br... WHITE HOUSE VIDEO: Press Briefing With President's... How The U.S. Missed An Opportunity To Kill Zarqawi... Security In Iraq, March 1-7, 2016 Iraq’s Oil Exports Flat For Last Three Months Preparations For Mosul Underway In Iraq But Battle... Violence In Iraq, February 2016 MIDDLE EAST RESEARCH INSTITUTE VIDEO: Turkey-KRG R... Selected Timeline of The 1991 Shiite and Kurdish U... AHULBAYT VIDEO: The Story Behind The 1991 Uprising... Baathists Joining Al Qaeda In Iraq Was Not So Easy... Security In Iraq, Feb 22-29, 2016 Kurdistan and Iraqi Central Governments Still Argu... Iraq’s Continued Displacement Crisis	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3161
__label__wiki	0.632354	0.632354	Ty Segall - 'Emotional Mugger' Grunge rocker returns with eighth studio effort by Chris Bound: January 22, 2016 Reviews, Albums Having been a notable figure in the DIY music culture for many years now, Ty Segall returns with his eighth studio album 'Emotional Mugger', and as usual has it draped in the quirky nostalgia his music creates. Not only has this new record been released on MP3, vinyl, CD and cassette, but promos of the album were sent out on VHS tapes, something that aims to reflect the full-lengths own rustic sound no doubt. While Segall has made a name for himself as the master of the fuzzy guitar, 'Emotional Mugger' certainly looks to continue that trend and even up the ante on it in places as "fuzzy" is probably the best way to describe this new material. A blend of distorted records, paired up with Ty's own calmly high-pitched vocals make for an interesting listen to say the least. Different in its presentation, this record aims to create a world of upset to the status quo that can leave you disorientated or pleased depending on your frame of mind. It is definitely a love it or hate it kind of release. Its lack of consistency and direction can be as charming as it is tedious. Certainly one for the hardcore Ty Segall fans but maybe not for the fair-weather listeners. Belle Sonder - 'Melancholy Love' Nimmo - 'The Power' Broke Royals - 'Saint Luxury' Idris Elba Presents: 'The Yardie Mixtape' Gabriella Cilmi - 'Ruins' The Soft Cavalry - 'The Soft Cavalry' Doze - 'Get Over It' Olympia - 'Flamingo'	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3163
__label__wiki	0.942184	0.942184	ncinc. Smackdown December 2005 Issue specialty maches Undertaker vs Muhammad Hassan The Great American Bash report How WWF formed to later become WWE History of WWF/ WWE Why did they change there name? Undertaker's Career Undertakers 2005 Paper-View Pictures Undertakers Wrestlemania Matches Undertakers Personas Takers Title history Undertaker's Tattos Undertaker vs Randy Ortan wrestlemania 21 Report smackdown magazine issue WWF/WWE title history Deadman's Legacy Survival of the Deadman Brian Solomon - SmackDown! Magazine December 2005 The Undertaker's Survivor Series Legacy He is one of the most awe-inspiring stories in WWE history, a journey fraught with danger at every turn, that has seen him duel with the forces of darkness, battle for honor and accolades, and do the impossible on a regular basis. Undertaker has had one of the longest, most successful careers ever witnessed, and it can all be traced back to the Survivor Series. The Deadman made his WWE debut at the event some 15 years ago, and to some extent, his destiny has been linked to it ever since. As he approaches his 12th Survivor Series appearance on November 27 in Detroit, we look back at Undertaker's storied accomplishments at WWE's own fall classic. 1990: THE JOURNEY BEGINS "Million-Dollar Man" Ted DiBiase had his work cut out for him. He and the tag team of the Honky Tonk Man & Greg "The Hammer" Valentine (a.k.a Rhythm & Blues) were set to take on The Hart Foundation, Koko B. Ware and "The American Dream" Dusty Rhodes in a classic Survivor Series elimination match. All he had up his sleeve was a mystery partner. It seemed like an afterthought, but all these years later, that mystery partner is what everyone remembers most from the evening-because it turned out to be none other than Undertaker, then managed by Brother Love. The gruesome newcomer silenced the crowd as he carved a path of destruction on his first night in WWE. Koko become the first victim of the Tombstone, and was pinned less than two minutes into the match. Not long after, Dusty followed. 'Taker was so hell-bent on destruction, in fact, that he accidentally got himself counted out. Nevertheless, his team won when DiBase emerged as the sole survivor. 1991: AN IMMORTAL BECOMES MORTAL It was called Hulk Hogan's "Gravest Challenge." The WWE Champion found himself defending his title against a man who in one year had become the talk of fans everywhere. Undertaker seemed to feel no pain, and had yet to be pinned. Still, fans a way to overcome the grim challenger. But with a little help from a chair-wielding Ric Flair, Undertaker Tombstoned the Hulkster fall defeat in WWE, and taking his coveted title. The victory marked Undertaker's first of four reigns as WWE Champion. 1992: DEADMAN VS WILDMAN Since the summer, Undertaker had been warring with the mighty Ugandan giant Kamala. A decisive victory had yet to be achieved. Once 'Taker learned of Kamala's terrible fear of caskets, however, the tide began to turn. Undertaker and Paul Bearer pressured Kamala and his manager Harvey Whippleman to sign for WWE's first-ever Casket Match. The Deadman was in his element, and the mortified Kamala could hardly keep his composure during the match, let alone put up much of a fight. Undertaker pinned the headhunter, then rolled his carcass into the casket that waited at ringside. It was the first of many such matches for the Man from the Dark Side. 1993: LIVE FREE OR DIE It was the first time Undertaker had taken part in a Survivor Series elimination match since his first appearance, and it wasn't even supposed to happen. The All-American team of Lex Luger, Tatanka & The Steiner Brothers were all set to take on the very un-American grouping of WWE Champion Yokozuna, Jacques Rougeau, Crush & Ludvig Borga. But when Borga took out Tatanka in a match leading up to the event, All-American team leader Luger had to think fast. He recruited the Undertaker to the cause, a decision which lead to victory. And even though Undertaker may not have been the first Superstar that comes to mind when it comes to patriotism, he proved that night that he may be a creature of the night, but he's still an American as well. 1994: THE HARDER THEY FALL Yokozuna thought he had rid WWE of the Undertaker forever, but like so many before and since, he was gravely mistaken in that assumption. Yoko's dubious Casket Match victory over 'Taker at the 1994 Royal Rumble was only a respite. Once the Undertaker had time to once again gather his powers, he returned to WWE with a vengeance, and before long, he was gunning for the former sumo grand champion. Their rematch turned out to be Undertaker's second Casket Match at Survivor Series. And just like the first one, it ended with 'Taker dumping his opponent in a casket-in this case a custom-made double-wide casket the Deadman had constructed just for the occasion. 1995: THE DARK SIDE REIGNS Once again part of an elimination team, this time Undertaker was the cap tin. His "Dark Side" teammates consisted of popular Latino competitor Savio Vega, hog farmer Henry Godwinn, and Fatu (years before he became known as Rikishi). Their opponents were "The Royals" led, of course, by Jerry "The King" Lawler, who was joined by WWE newcomer Hunter Hearst-Helmsley (a.k.a Triple H), King Mabel (a.k.a. Viscera) and Dr. Isaac Yankem, DDS. Proving their superiority beyond a shadow of a doubt, Undertaker's team survived in its entirety, and eliminated the entire opposing side in under 15 minutes. 1996: THE FALL OF MANKIND Perhaps no other opponent in Undertaker's career tested him as much as Mick "Mankind" Foley. As SummerSlam '96, Mankind stole Undertaker's longtime manager Paul Bearer. This time, 'Taker was out for blood. For the rematch at Madison Square Garden, he descended to the ring in the guise of a bat-quite literally a creature of darkness. Due to a special stipulation, Bearer had to be suspended above the ring in a cage, so there was nothing he could do to stop the Deadman from decimating his new protégé. The win put an end to 'Taker's war with Foley-for a time. 1998: A BITTERSWEET EVENING For the first time in a decade, the WWE Championship was up for grabs in a one-night single elimination tournament, and Undertaker was part of it. At the time, he had reinvented himself as the diabolical leader of the Ministry of Darkness. Both he and his half-brother Kane had received a bye into the quarterfinals, where they met in a rematch of WrestleMania XIV. As he did some months before, 'Taker got the satisfaction of defeating the Big Red Monster, bringing himself one step closer to the title. However, disappointment was to follow when Undertaker was dealt his first Survivor Series loss courtesy of The Rock, who beat him in the semifinals, and went on to win the tournament. 2001: THE ULTIMATE CONFLICT In 2001, WWE fell under attack from an Alliance formed by the united forces of both WCW and ECW. It was a time when fans wondered which company would survive the battle. When the war came to a head at Survivor Series, WWE gathered together its strongest forces, which of course included Undertaker, along with The Rock, Chris Jericho, Big Show and Kane. Representing the Alliance were WCW mainstay Booker T, ECW megastar Rob Van Dam, WCW owner Shane McMahon, and defectors Kurt Angle and Stone Cold Steve Austin. The losing faction would be forced out, and so the stakes were higher than ever. In the end, Angle turned out to be a mole for WWE, turning at just the time to assure that Undertaker and his teammates would win the day, ensuring that WWE would survive. 2003: BURIED ALIVE After years competing under the employ of Vince McMahon, Undertaker finally raised the ire of the boss in 2003, and before long found himself in an in-ring war with McMahon. The culmination was a Buried Alive Match, which, like the Casket Match, was an obvious specialty of the Deadman. But the unthinkable occurred thanks to the interference of 'Taker's old archenemy, Kane. Vince was able to get the better of Undertaker in his own match, and he and Kane succeeded in burying the Phenom under six feet of dirt. Yet even then, 'Taker was not destroyed, and emerged reborn some months later at WrestleMania XX. 2004: NO FRIEND TO THE PHENOM Heidenrich may be interested in making friends, but his actions toward Undertaker last year were anything but friendly. At No Mercy, he nearly accomplished the ultimate demise of the Deadman when he tried to run him down with a car during 'Taker's match against WWE Champion John "Bradshaw" Layfield. Heidenreich prevented 'Taker from regaining the gold that night, and needless to say, there would be hell to pay. Undertaker stepped in the ring to settle the score at Survivor Series, where Heidenrich became another victim of the Tombstone, and Undertaker logged his tenth Survivor Series victory. credit Smackdown Magazine December 2005 issue	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3164
__label__wiki	0.736689	0.736689	Android Rumors Leaked News Nokia Nokia C9 Flagship Smartphone Spotted in Leaked Images? by Anvinraj Valiyathara March 28, 2017 0 Nokia is rumored to be working on Nokia 7 and Nokia 8 midrange smartphones. It is also speculated to be working on a flagship phone. The leaked specs and photos of an alleged Nokia C9 have appeared. Some of the key specs of the alleged Nokia C9 smartphone include Snapdragon 835 SoC, 6 GB of RAM and native storage of 128 GB. The rear camera of the purported Nokia C9 is speculated to be of 22-megapixel. The leaked photos suggest that the Nokia C9 has a metallic frame and faux pas leather on its rear side. It reminds us of the LG G4 smartphone that came with a similar design. Nokia has released its budget devices like Nokia 5 and Nokia 6 with metallic chassis and it seems unlikely that the flagship phone from the Finnish firm will come with a non-premium design. Speculations have it that HMD Global may announce its flagship smartphone in June this year. HMD Global seems to be currently concentrating on releasing Nokia 3, Nokia 5, and Nokia 6 in around 120 markets across the world. These phones are confirmed to be available between April and June. The company is likely to announce its flagship device only after the launch of these phones. NokiaNokia 7Nokia 8Nokia C9 Fresh Green Oppo R9S will go on sale on April 1st Nubia will be unveiling a new handset on April 6th, rumored to be Nubia Z17 Mini	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3167
__label__wiki	0.572423	0.572423	[foreign policy] Foreign policy facts: August 7, 1964: Congress passed the Gulf of Tonkin resolution, giving President Lyndon B. Johnson broad powers in dealing with reported North Vietnamese attacks on U.S. forces. March 8, 1965: The United States landed its first combat troops in South Vietnam, about 3,500 Marines sent to defend the U.S. air base at Da Nang. President Richard M. Nixon and Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev signed the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty in Moscow. (The U.S. withdrew from the treaty in 2002.) January 20, 1981: Iran released 52 Americans it had held hostage for 444 days, minutes after the presidency had passed from Jimmy Carter to Ronald Reagan. July 25, 1994: Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and Jordan's King Hussein signed a declaration at the White House ending their countries' 46-year-old formal state of war. President George W. Bush endorsed Israel's plan to hold on to part of the West Bank in any final peace settlement with the Palestinians; he also ruled out Palestinian refugees returning to Israel, bringing strong criticism from the Palestinians. IS AMERICA THE [REAL SOURCE] OF THE WORLD'S PROBLEMS? HAS THE UNITED STATES FORCED NATIONS TO SEEK [NUCLEAR] WEAPONS? DOES U.S. FOREIGN POLICY PLAY A ROLE IN THE [GENOCIDE] OF A PEOPLE? IS FREE TRADE A [THREAT] TO AMERICA'S ECONOMY? Does Americas' national debt [THREATEN] the Worlds' Financial Stability? Should the U.S. TRADE AID FOR [DISARMAMENT] of Nuclear Weapons? Give a Gift Card for someone special. [Home] [About] [Press] [Contact] [Foreign Policy] [Gay Rights] [Global Warming] [Human Rights] [Immigration] [Iraq] [Middle East] [Race] [Religion] [Roe vs. Wade] [Social Issues] [Terrorism] [War] Copyright Politeed 2010 [Privacy] [Policies & Procedures] info@politeed.com or 866-490-TEED [8333]	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3171
__label__cc	0.566457	0.433543	OVA Impressions: xxxHolic Rou – Adayume Posted on 14 March 2011 with categories: OVA Impressions, xxxHolic, xxxHolic Rou For the fans of Gundam Unicorn who are complaining about slow release dates: the intervals between new xxxHolic episodes is a whole whopping year! But dear god, was it worth the wait. Unlike what I previously expected, this episode doesn’t really aim to answer any question whatsoever. In fact, it doesn’t even address the cliff-hanger that the previous episode left us with, and no new news about Yuuko appears anywhere. The length of this OVA was about half an hour, and its purpose was completely different from the first xxxHolic Rou. What this movie did do was incredibly heart-warming, though. It’s an entire episode full of subtle character-building on Watanuki and Doumeki. I mean, the changes that the first xxxHolic Rou episode brought forth were immense. This episode fleshes this out brilliantly by somehow doing the impossible and giving the characters even more depth than they already had. Yeah. I mean seriously, xxxHolic already was by far my favourite Clamp series, and this episode only made it better. This episode was full of quiet discussions between Watanuki and other side-characters like Mokona, Doumeki and his grandfather. Doumeki’s grandfather is just about the only one who didn’t change significantly, and even he had a wonderful portrayal in this episode, worried about his grandson. This episode also showed a few flashbacks to Watanuki’s past. And seriously, if there was any series in which such a small recap like that would would, it’s this one. For one thing, it was great to see Watanuki sigh at what a moron he used to be, but it also really reminded how it’s already been five years since I first started watching this series, and it reminded what kind of huge changes the characters went through. If you add all of the pieces of development together here, you really get an amazing cast of characters. And I really don’t hope that this was the last of the xxxHolic OVAs. OVA Episode Rating: 8.75/10 xxxHolic Rou – 01 Posted on 25 April 2010 with categories: xxxHolic, xxxHolic Rou Before watching this OVA, I had heard from people that xxxHolic Rou would be very confusing. But Bloody Nora, I never thought that it’d be this extreme! The non-manga readers who have yet to see this episode: STAY AWAY FROM THIS POST! MAJOR SPOILERS AHEAD. Because of xxxHolic Shunmuki, I was expecting something Tsubasa-related as well. Instead, the Tsubasa-cast doesn’t make an appearance at all. Instead, we get a time-skip of who knows how many years, in which A TON has happened: Yuko is dead, and Watanuki has now taken her place. This episode asked a whole tidal wave of new questions: what the heck happened to Yuuko? What caused her to come back? Why did Doumeki’s name change? Why does it seem that Watanuki can’t leave the shop? And taht’s just the tip of the iceberg. Even for xxxHolic’s standards, this episode was dark. Watanuki has changed a lot. The visual comedy around him and Doumeki is completely gone now. Instead, the jabs he takes to Watanuki are short and subtle. Also, this episode never left the shop: everything we see is from Watanuki’s perspective, who somehow doesn’t leave the shop. Doumeki also lost the wise-cracking part of him: he now really doesn’t fool with Watanuki anymore. He’s actually graduated university at this point. I guess this episode was all about Yuuko’s… rebirth or something, but what got to me the most was that phone-call at the end of this episode. After all that build-up! After all that time that was spent on the relationship between Watanuki and Himawari to make them like the perfect couple… she actually ended up marrying someone different and the two have grown apart! I must say, Clamp: you did it again. This episode really was amazing in its character-development. It’s such a stark contrast from what xxxHolic used to be. Including the time-skip was a brilliant idea. Rating: *** (Awesome)	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3173
__label__wiki	0.674688	0.674688	Shell and Cosan JV on sugarcane ethanol Cosan Shell and Cosan have signed a US$12 billion joint venture (JV) agreement to produce and commercialise ethanol and power from sugarcane. The sugarcane ethanol will be distributed through a combined distribution and retail network in Brazil, and the JV will explore opportunities to take production and sales global. The sugarcane ethanol JV will have an annual production capacity of over 2bn litres. It will also generate electricity from sugarcane bagasse in co-generation plants at all the sites. “The proposed joint venture is set to pool our complementary businesses, enhance our growth prospects in ethanol production globally and support our growth platform for our retail and commercial fuels businesses in Brazil,” says Mark Williams, Shell Downstream Director. “Over the next 20 years, sustainable biofuels are one of the most realistic commercial solutions to reduce CO2 emissions from transport.” Rubens Ometto Silveira Mello, Cosan’s Chairman of the Board and Non-Executive Chairman-Elect of the proposed JV, adds: “While there is still plenty of integration planning to do before we launch the proposed joint venture, this is an important milestone in our effort to create one of the world’s most competitive sustainable biofuels companies.” Cosan and Shell are bringing the following assets into the JV: Sugarcane crushing capacity – ~60 million tonnes per year from 23 mills; Ethanol production capacity – >20bn litres per year; All co-generation plants; Brazilian downstream assets, including ~1730 retail sites, and supply and distribution assets; and Ethanol logistics assets. US$1.275bn in cash paid over two years – equivalent to US$1.625m net of payments to be made to Shell and its affiliates related to the brand licensing and other ancillary agreements for a period of 10 years; Brazilian downstream assets, including ~2740 branded retail sites, supply and distribution assets, and the aviation fuel business; Its share interest in cellulosic ethanol technology developer Iogen Energy; and Its 14.7% share interest in biocatalyst provider Codexis.	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3175
__label__cc	0.738683	0.261317	I Was Late for Shatranj Ke Khilari, Rues Gulzar March 4, 2019 RadioBanglaNet 513 Views 0 Comments Directors RBN Web Desk: Poet and filmmaker Gulzar has said that he closely missed an opportunity to work with auteur Satyajit Ray in the latter’s Shatranj Ke Khilari. The film is widely considered as Ray’s most ambitious project and comprised several leading Hindi film actors including Sanjeev Kumar, Amjad Khan, Saeed Jaffrey, Shabana Azmi, Farida Jalal, Faroq Sheikh and others. Speaking to the media on the sidelines of an event in Mumbai recently, the Aandhi director said, he heard that Ray was making Shatranj Ke Khilari in 1975 and went to meet him. Gulzar requested Ray whether he could write the script for the film since it had a unique subject. Ray politely turned him down in his rich baritone, and said that he had already committed the script to someone else, Gulzar recalled. Rewind: 30 Years of Mile Sur Mera Tumhara Gulzar, considered one of the finest filmmakers in India said, this was his second lost opportunity to work with Ray. He had earlier started writing the script for the Hindi version of Goopy Byne Bagha Byne (1969). However, Ray abandoned the project probably after a fallout with the producer, Gulzar said. ← ‘আমাকে বোধহয় কেউ মনে রাখেনি’ ‘সবাইকে তো খুশি করে ছবি করা সম্ভব নয়’ → ১০০ দিন অতিক্রম করল ‘তৃতীয় অধ্যায়’ May 22, 2019 RadioBanglaNet 0 Earrings Deterrent for Shaheb Bhattacharjee as Feluda? August 7, 2018 RadioBanglaNet 0 Ditipriya to Reprise Sharmila in New Apu Film March 13, 2019 RadioBanglaNet 1	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3178
__label__cc	0.592392	0.407608	Blog Archive – March, 2018 Let Teachers Teach, and Insist Our Leaders Lead by Barbara Nimri Aziz Will Saturday’s astounding "March for Our Lives" become the defining protest of our time? Some say it’s comparable to Vietnam War era anti-war marches. Not actually comparable, I hope. Because it took daily news of American deaths month after month to sustain those protests. March 24th’s nationwide event was led by youngsters, Americans even younger than the 1960s’ protesters. It is certainly a stirring event to witness-- unarguably inspiring for millions like me viewing it on television. Saturday’s rally demonstrated the leadership of ‘just’ teenagers. (We generally only hear about our youths’ drug habits or sports and cell phone obsessions, their sex lives or their music and clothing trends.) I hope the political work these new leaders have launched is sustained. I hope this movement doesn't need further killings anywhere to keep the issue alive, to activate media interest and to swell the numbers of activists. It is essential too that America’s adult responses are not technical, namely: not calling for still more security devices to sell to schools and municipalities, not commissioning more experts to invent even more bizarre safety measures. Whenever a massacre at a school or concert hall or other public event occurs, there’s ample television footage to demonstrate how authorities respond— police, FBI and other armed forces ‘secure’ neighborhoods and control onlookers with massive military-like tactics and equipment. (Only recently have Americans realized how much like a military occupation of our streets, local police forces had become.) Unquestioned is the associated tactic called “lockdown”. Following the end of deadly sieges, we witness survivors of an attack emerging from “lockdown”, moving in single file, hands above their heads, stripped of any bags or backpacks, obediently proceeding down a path past armed guards. (This presumably after they’ve been frisked to ensure they are not part of a terror group.) This scary procession is now a common procedure executed without questions about what affect these practices have on those innocents. Every school in this nation is geared for terror. With the powerful testimonies of the March 24 speakers in D.C. last week, those who may not normally visit schools hear how children are taught lockdown drill, procedures they must practice and then follow if their school is under threat. One 17-year old at a "March for Our Lives" event in Detroit confesses: “The fire alarm at Trenton High School is scary, …We don't know if it's an actual drill or if someone's actually inside the school, going to take your life." As a journalist I have occasion to visit local schools. When I do, I can secure entry only if I’ve made an appointment with a staff member who knows me and is expecting me. My name is listed beforehand, and when I arrive at the (locked) school door, a security guard, usually armed, calls the staff person I’m to meet, who then comes to the reception desk to accompany me into the school. I’m given an ID which I must wear while inside and relinquish when I leave. (Every schoolchild wears his/her special ID all the time at school.) This is the same process I go through when I visit a prison! Not to deny our youths their credit and our gratitude for their initiative today, one wonders: what took us so long? That is, what took so long for youths to dump any expectations they had of leadership by adults: —elected officials as well as community leaders, teachers and other educators, social workers, police and trauma experts, journalists and celebrities. How many deaths by gun-loving, angry, disturbed and embittered young men does it take for a sensible strategy to emerge? Maybe these youngsters stepping into the forefront marks a watershed, a turning point not only in gun reform but in American civic action. Regarding solutions: look what some in the (political) room have been advising in response to gun violence. (We know the U.S. president’s suggestion.) Even clear-headed, mature leaders have little to offer beyond assigning more money to build more safety mechanisms into schools. (This in addition to adding more on-duty armed officers inside and around schools.) When a recent threat of violence at undistinguishable school in my own semi-rural neighborhood occurred, the director announced measures including retrofitting every door in the place. This is an educator’s all-too-common solution in an institute already patrolled by two armed guards! From what we heard from school-age activists in their fearless and unequivocal statements these past weeks, they are not demanding more security measures in classrooms and hallways. They want their teachers to teach; they want political their leaders to enact gun reforms; they want to hold elected representatives accountable to the citizen, not to special interests. One may be unable to expect any reduction in safety measures. While the downside of increasing them is twofold: first, our places of learning become hazardous zones. Students report how they move through their classrooms in a state of fear. The educational budgets of public schools are already inadequate. From teachers’ rallies in Virginia and Arizona, we learn that teachers’ salaries are low and getting lower, with many teachers working at a second job. Core curricula are threatened by educational budgets cuts or freezes. If more funds are allocated to military-like solutions, basic educational facilities will suffer. Second, the main beneficiaries of all those technical solutions will be security companies who provide guards and who manufacture safety devices— part of the mammoth American arms business. The security industry is equally involved in diversionary costly solutions as is the NRA. [ Let Teachers Teach, and Insist Our Leaders Lead ] The Path of Martyrs In the final thirty kilometers’ drive back to my home in the Catskills, along a vacant highway through hills of leafless winter trees colorless and devoid of any sign of life, I inexplicably recall my recent journey in a distant known-but-unfamiliar land. Just a few weeks before, I’d traversed a profoundly different landscape en route from Baghdad to Kerbala city in Iraq. My Kerbala host and I had quipped that the two hours plus required to reach Kerbala that day was the time I needed to drive upstate from New York city. Except that that holy city is hardly 50 miles from the Iraqi capital. Scores—no, thousands-- of military checkpoints slow every kind of movement within Iraq today. I first traveled to Kerbala 27 years ago, visiting the magnificent Al-Hussain shrine and the city’s general hospital, also named Al-Hussain. On every visit to Iraq during the fierce 13-year embargo (from 1990 to 2003) against the nation-- starting in April 1991 when evidence of a government attack against rebels hiding there was still in evidence-- I made my way to Al-Hussain General Hospital. On subsequent annual visits, the hospital’s medical staff uncomplainingly helped me document the crime of sanctions, the U.S. campaign deliberately decimating Iraq’s once exemplary health system (along with the entire economy and civil structure). The four lane highway to Kerbala, the major route into south Iraq, is divided by a wide median. Unlike the vacant fields that stretch to a horizon of palm trees to my right, the median is planted with shrubs and trees. And tributes. Among the few private cars heading south, I see an occasional small bus. Most vehicles are large transport trucks, and those heading toward Baghdad carry imported goods from Basrah port, or earth from excavation sites in the south. Although crossing through farmland, viewed from the road there’s little sign of cultivation. Perhaps this is because of the dearth of rain this season. (I would later learn Iraq’s agricultural industry is badly neglected.) Occasionally we overtake a pickup truck loaded with sheep or with vegetables. What roadside structures we pass, auto-repair stations or cafes, look unkempt and uninviting-- part of the generally colorless landscape. Now and then I notice a cluster of children in uniform and toting bookpacks, strolling towards their local school. In the median in the center of the highway is a sight far more compelling and throughout this voyage my eyes refocus there. This is not because of anything alarming or troubling. It’s the stream of arresting, insistent images posted there:-- each one a different face, each a martyr of the recent wars (the costly fight against Daesh/ISIS). This silent parade constitutes a kind of running panorama of the battles for Iraq, for its sovereignty, for its honor and its history. The faces are mainly of young men, most likely no more than 30 years old. Although occasionally, the portrait of an older man, probably an officer, enters this landscape. All the way to Kerbala, and southward to Al-Najaf https://www.britannica.com/place/Al-Najaf and beyond in all directions, Iraq’s roads and highways are adorned with the names and faces of soldiers, a placard every few hundred feet, sometimes two or more photos on a single notice. These martyrs’ banners are posted high, like flags, in rows-- mile after mile. Each name a story, each a family’s son, each a patriot, each a sacrifice. For me, a visitor, they evidence the history of what war and nationhood mean. Today, back in the USA, I ask: Is that vista so different in its meaning and impact on Iraqi citizens from how fields of simple white plaques or crosses at French and Belgian Flanders, at Arlington National Cemetery, or the amassed names on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, affect Europeans and Americans? Although martyrdom may be central to Shiite history, belief and culture, it is deeply embedded in other societies. In Arab culture and thought—martyrdom is expressed in our language as well as our religion. A man can be named Shaheed (pl. Shuhadah) in some countries, and street names are prefixed with Shuhadah; the portrait of a martyr has a special place in his family’s home. A pity that people in the dominant Christian society of the West cannot grasp the universal qualities of the martyr. Was Prophet Jesus Christ not a martyr? As for those who die in battle, sacrifice for the American homeland is visibly displayed today in the high status accorded its soldiers killed in Iraq and Afghanistan, in inglorious wars moreover. What is “Gold Star Family” but a title honoring American military martyrs? U.S. veterans, especially the wounded, are heaped with praise for their service and they’re given unlimited government assistance. Even radio and television features regularly tell Americans of ‘noble sacrifices’ of troops in Iraq and Afghanistan. Those stories of hardships, trauma, and handicaps transmit a feeling of martyrdom. Then come civilians martyred in the daily racist war on America’s streets, deaths that awaken calls for social change. Not co-incidentally it was a religious leader, Reverend Jesse Jackson, who recognized martyrdom in the death of a Black child gunned down for his race: “We must illuminate the darkness with the light that comes from the martyr, Jackson pleaded after the death of 14-year old Trayvon Martin. The paths of martyrs are endless and boundless. BN Aziz recently returned from a two week visit in Iraq. Swimming up the Tigris: Real Life Encounters with Iraq, based on her work in Iraq between 1989 and 2003, is published by University of Florida Press, 2007 [ The Path of Martyrs ] Iraq Outside History "Scientists Outside History” was published in the September 1996 issue of Natural History, the popular educational journal of the American Museum of Natural History. Authored by me, “Scientists Outside History” was based on research I undertook in Iraq between 1989 and 1996. The article’s subheading: “Faced with international embargo, Iraq’s most progressive community finds itself abandoned.” Reviewing my early files on Iraq, along with this article I found a readers’ correspondence (that was the pre-digital era) which Natural History’s editor had forwarded to me. Most of these letters were from outraged readers, many of them scientists or teachers, berating and excoriating me for seeing any merits in what they viewed as the ‘vicious and tyrannical Saddam regime’. (Praise Iraq’s earlier four millennia, but not the 20th century.) How dare I claim “Iraq’s scientists and doctors had enjoyed strong government backing, enabling them to pursue their international studies”? (p. 15 in the article.) Those indignant respondents didn’t object that international scientific and medical journals were freely available in Iraq up to 1990. Nor did they challenge my report of how that embargo went far beyond its mandate, to include cultural and medical exchange, that even by 1996 (it would continue for another six years) it ensured Iraqis no longer received international journals, that Iraqi students were barred from post graduate studies (in U.S., Canada, and perhaps elsewhere) in scientific fields such as physics, and that invitations to international conferences could not be extended to Iraqis. As I wrote at the time, this exclusion “proved as severe as any weapon of mass destruction”. It was the noted sculptor, Mohammed Hikmat Ghani, one of many Iraqi artists who, sponsored by his government, frequently traveled abroad to meet his peers, pointed out to me in 1991, that (as a result of that vicious embargo) “Iraq is now outside history”. Visiting Iraq earlier this year, fourteen years into its American-designed and supervised democracy, I found that, as much as during the embargo-- perhaps more so today--Iraq is indeed outside history. It has been plundered of both its human and historical resources. During my 1989 tour of the resplendent Iraq National Museum, it was Mohammed Ghani who informed me how the government had secreted away and protected the entire museum’s holdings during the eight year Iraq-Iran war. That collection was returned intact and complete following the 1988 cease fire:-- the same treasure which, overseen by U.S. occupation troops in 2003, was ransacked and pillaged. (That was during the early months of the American invasion.) One need not invoke ancient eras of past millennia to acknowledge Iraq’s contributions to civilization. Modern Iraq, before that embargo, was replete with industrious, well trained, talented men and women dedicated to their arts and sciences, their efforts generously encouraged and published by the government. They advanced more by personal merit than by party membership then. The world famous architect Zaha Hadid, one of a large community of Iraqi artists and scientists, may have settled in Europe, but the foundation of her energy and imagination can be traced to her childhood within Iraq; there was early recognition of her mathematical genius and the influence of scientists in her own family. Although not without difficulty, one can find many examples of outstanding 20th century treatises by Iraqi engineers (e.g. Ahmed Sousa and Aliya Sousa), medical specialists, linguists and artists produced within Iraq prior to the sanction regime. That exhaustive embargo targeted Iraq’s intelligentsia as much as its Baathist leadership. You may ask: Why bring this up now? The embargo ended in 2003; Saadam is gone. Liberated from international isolation and dictatorship, Iraq’s an oil rich nation free to interact on the global stage. In fact Iraq is still culturally marginalized, and intellectually much weakened. Many teachers, scholars and other talent who represent the high standards of the 20th century and could bridge the three decade-long wasteland created by embargo and war, have departed. Either they have been snapped up by foreign nations who recognize their abilities and fine training. Or as refugees, they’re obliged to accept jobs that do not advance or nourish their talent and imagination. I was reminded of just how widespread the destruction of modern Iraqi civilization is today by a recent FB post from an Iraqi colleague residing abroad. Now middle aged and without economic security as a non-citizen in a nearby Arab country, following the work of theoretical physicist Michio Kaku, he recalls his own research in photon physics as a young engineer. He scans world scientific developments today realizing that Iraq, 30-60 years ago, was well placed to be in the forefront of scientific discoveries, on the cusp of frontiers in medical research, physics, and archeology. In response to his posting, colleagues in his network recalled their own attenuated and derailed careers. Many of these women and men are now exiles, snapped up by foreign companies and European and American universities, engineering institutes and hospitals, all well aware of the high standard of Iraq’s education (both before and during the Baath era). Tens of thousands of these experts are forced to take up work inferior to their level of training and without institutional support for publication and international dialogue. When did you last see a citation of research authored by an Iraqi scientist? When have you last heard an Iraqi scientific presentation at an international conference? Their absence is indicative of their continued isolation and of their government’s cultural poverty and mismanaged resources. Inside Iraq today the main concern of citizens (and government) is security. The streets of Baghdad are channels cutting through walled-in lanes. There’s no civic landscape. No conferences take place here; few foreign professional colleagues visit; the government’s resources are consumed by a military budget for tanks and trucks, foreign anti-terror devices, and arming check posts. Just as there are no conferences and few gatherings of musicians or writers or researchers, there are no open playgrounds, no public football matches, no concerts, and little inter-city travel. Children and families are confined to their homes watching the world pass through television, youtube, and whatsapp. With corruption gripping all levels of government, whatever resources are available are allocated to cronies and their families; merit is an alien concept now. Even the Ministry of Health, once the pride of Iraq, is today incapable of designing and carrying out essential research to assess the nation’s basic health needs. In response to the arrival of so many highly trained Iraqis in the West over the past 30 years, surely Americans and others could make an effort to visit Iraq and start a new dialogue with their peers there. BN Aziz’ recently returned from a two week visit in Iraq. Swimming up the Tigris: Real Life Encounters with Iraq, based on her work in Iraq between 1989 and 2003, is published by University of Florida Press, 2007. [ Iraq Outside History ] Don't forget that only imagination is clear-sighted Tahrir Diwan a poem.. a song.. "Don't Turn From Me" Poet and novelist Mohja Khaf See poems and songs list Call to Prayer: reciter, Mor Dior Bamba, Senegal See audio list Yousry Nasrallah, Director, Egypt's Scheherazade: Tell Me A Story reviewed by BN Aziz. See review list Tahrir Team 2004 co-producers Read about 2004 co-producers in the team page. See Tahrir Team Select Links Tahrir, WBAI Radio, E-mail:info@radiotahrir.org © Copyright 2015 RadioTahrir. All rights reserved. Site by baltaci.com Fatal error: Call to a member function Close() on a non-object in /home/content/45/4130645/html/blog.php on line 167	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3179
__label__wiki	0.819924	0.819924	Page 2 of 21, 2 Dragonblight - A Trial by Plague This forum is used to post one-author stories taking place in the past. For stories following characters in current events or ongoing RP, please post to the Alliance, Horde, or Cross-Faction forums instead. Grathier Re: Dragonblight - A Trial by Plague by Grathier » October 24th, 2014, 5:44 am "Come on, man." Grathier pleaded. "We're going down there tomorrow morning." "I told you, man." Decklyn explained again. "We're short on it enough as it is." "Should I tell Riley or should you?" he asked. Decklyn chuckled. "I think you can." Barnaby was given a small keg of rum to distrubute amongst the squad. A pint of the stuff was rationed to each man that evening in light of the coming attack. Most of them would drink their share and use it to put themselves down for an early night - reveillie would be an early one. But naturally, give an inch and they had told him to bargain for more. "Whatever, just have something to hide under when he comes storming over." he said in the end. He was about to heft the barrel and a forty-pound sack of grain when Decklyn spoke up again. "Hey Grathier." he said. "Could you could give me a hand with something?" "Sure, what's up?" "I need someone to pick some brandy up from one of the merchants here." Decklyn explained. "I bartered the stuff yesterday but he refuses to deliver." "Have you paid for it yet?" he asked. "No." Decklyn replied. "I would be doing it now, but my hands are tied with this coming attack." "What's the brandy for?" he asked. "The officers have stripped me of my supply." he continued. "And everyone seems to forget the coming winter." Aha. Barnaby had worked it out then. It was a trick his father did as well - a splash of alcohol to keep the water from freezing. They used to pour moonshine into the well every now and again to keep it flowing during winter. Barnaby wasn't at all suprised to find the army did something similar. "How many men will I need?" "Three barrels, so three people. We bartered the price to two gold and eighty." "Sure," Barnaby said with a grin. "I think Riley, Marcus and I can get two and nine-tenths of the stuff to you." The price was set with Decklyn's grunt of approval and he set off with his rations and three gold coins - a big trust on the quartermaster's part. It was snowing lightly now and a crunch returned to the thin layer on the ground when trod upon. A lot of men were sparring, venting their restlessness into echoing sword strokes. Some slept or ate or honed weapons. Mostly everyone was quiet, and the camp beset by a stillness. His squad's tent was thankfully close to the quartermaster and everyone sat in a ring around the fire. He dropped the barrel and sack. "Rum!" he called, imitating a market vendor as he poured into a stein. Not suprisingly, Riley owned the thing. "Pint of the army's finest paint thinner, going once, going twice--" "Rum! Yes!" Riley said, snatching the stein and skulling the contents. It probably didn't even faze him. "Gimme a refill." "A pint's your ration." he said. "Take it up with Decklyn after this if you're not happy." "Horseshit!" he boomed and reached for the keg. Barnaby darted a step back and couldn't help smirking. Riley's face contorted in anger and he thought the man would come swinging. Instead he stormed off to yell at the quartermaster. He took the stein with him, so they settled for an issued pot to boil water in its place. It went around the circle several times, everyone taking gulps of rum and passing it on. Barnaby filled it whenever it came back and the cycle continued. By the time they were finished, he felt pretty buzzed. Katherine was giggling over some unknown joke and Marcus was trying to chat up Private Astor, the other girl in their squad, about Katherine's age. They had left some for Sergeant Perth who was absent. Riley still hadn't returned when Grathier got to his feet. "Katherine," he said. "Off on an errand for Decklyn." he turned to the group. "Need two blokes to give me a hand with some heavy lifting." A groan from someone. Probably Bort. "There's a reward at the end." he said with a wry grin. He left the sentence hanging on everyone's ears. Distantly, Riley was shouting at Decklyn and probably someone with at least three chevrons as well. In the end, Marcus and Carson got up. Katherine was in charge while Perth was gone and Bort simply did his surly act and went to sleep. Astor was too small for heavy lifting (and didn't want to go with Marcus) and Private Wheeler - the fourth member from Barnaby's old squad - was busy sharpening his weapon. Grathier knew he was just lazy and would stop once they left. "So where are we going?" Marcus asked, pausing mid-sentence to turn his head and admire a passing female soldier. "Haul some brandy for Decklyn." Barnaby replied. "I would've taken Riley, but he was too busy complaining about the ration being only one pint to help us skim some here." "Oh the irony." Carson muttered with a grin. Neither Grathier nor Marcus knew what that meant, but they grinned anyway. They trudged away from the bonfires to the bottom of the hill where the camp followers massed. Apparantly, every marching army had one - merchants, whores, makeshift taverns and just about everything a soldier could spend his stipend on. Barnaby followed Decklyn's directions and found the supplier easily enough. He was a middle-aged man wish a hawkish face you instantly find distrustful and grey, thinning hair. A crate served as a counter and behind him was a tent filled with sealed and marked barrels. "Evening." Barnaby said amiably, beaming his friendly smile. "You have three barrels of brandy ready to go, I hear." "If you're here on behalf of that weasel, then yes." the merchant replied, gesturing to a tent where he kept his goods. Carson immediately peered inside. "The price is as we negotiated." the merchant said, then turned to the soldier. "First three on the left as you enter." "Two gold and sixty, if I was told correctly." Barnaby said. The merchant glowered. Carson hauled a keg out. "Two and eighty was the agreed price." "I don't know..." Marcus chimed in. "I was certain I heard two and sixty as well." His natural shitstirring ability never ceased to amuse Barnaby. "Well it's two and eighty!" he barked. "Or you can tell that halfling that--" "Relax, it's two and eighty." Barnaby said, offering the gold. "Can you change three?" The money was exchanged along with glares and smirks as Carson set the last one down. Barnaby was about to make for the nearest one when a hand clamped down on his shoulder. "Excuse me." the soldier inquired from behind him. He turned to identify the man as a corporal with dark green facings. "It looks like you need a hand." Two soldiers flanked him. Two big soldiers - one of which looked familiar. "Allow me." Barnaby was bemused, but played along. If they tried to steal the kegs, well, the bigger they are, the harder they fall with a boot to the groin. "Of course, mate." he gestured to the barrels. He noticed the men had longbows and one particularly muscular arm each - archers. "You must--" "You!" the merchant bellowed. "Begone from here before I call for your officers!" "Now wait just a minute," the corporal said half-innocently and went to the barrels. He opened one, sniffed the contents, rinse and repeat. When he reached the last one, he wrinkled his nose. "This one smells particularly good." Carson smelled it and winced. Barnaby did the same. It held a twinge of what he could only attribute to urine. He turned on the merchant and grabbed his collar. "Are you pissing in my product?!" "All of you! Be gone from my sight!" he bellowed feebly. "There will be no s--" Barnaby shook him. "Give us one good reason why we shouldn't hang you?" "Uh, Grathier..." one of the other archers warned. Barnaby turned to see several large men descending on the six of them. Barnaby stared the merchant down. The wind picked up a little, creating a light snow drift and chilling everyone. "You got friends, eh?" Grathier challenged the merchant as he heard a punch connect behind him. The swing held all the rattles of armour, so he assumed one of his new friend's entourage threw it. Something thudded in the snow. "Good for you. I've been looking forward for--" He turned on the archer as the other thugs fell upon the men. "How did you know my name?" There were more than a few thugs. At least eight had appeared, all cheered on by the other merchants. A guild, perhaps? That wasn't uncommon, but quite unfortunate. The archer had knocked the man clean out with a swing from his massive drawing arm and was grappling another. A man was in a scuffle with Marcus and Barnaby smashed the back of his knee with his boot, allowing Marcus to punch him in the throat. "We met in Valience Keep. I backchatted your sergeant?" He remembered that. The Sergeant whose name he had already forgotten had called him a 'potato' that made everyone snicker. Who calls someone a potato? All six soldiers were committed now against more than ten merchants and thugs. Three soldiers in breeches and sabres - cavalrymen wore that, he thought distantly - had seen the scuffle and had thrown themselves into the fray as well. Two dwarves in mountaineer cloaks had also joined in on his side. In short, an all-out brawl had erupted. "Oh! Windrest, right?!" he called, hauling a man off the back of Windrest's corporal. He turned the man around, uppercutted him on the chin but before he could continue, one of the cavalrymen crash-tackled him out of Barnaby's hands and onto the snow. He turned on another and feinted a punch, but instead brought his boot up into his groin as he blocked high. A gunshot pierced everyone's eardrums, lingering for a long second. The twenty strong brawling crowd all looked at an officer flanked by two riflemen. He looked like an infantry officer with black facings, but Barnaby didn't know facings and therefore couldn't pin his unit. Four of the guild thugs were sprawled on the ground, unconscious. "Enough!" the officer bellowed. "I'll not see soldiers scuffling about like rabble! Form rank!" Eight men, two dwarves and a high elf fell into line. The others melted away. "Give your name and service number when my sergeant asks for it." one of the riflemen produced an quill, inkwell and parchment and used the bartering counter to write on. The officer eyed the rogues before him. "Now I am an honest man. I demand an explaination for this." Barnaby was about to step forward when Windrest beat him to it. "The merchant behind us gave us a barrel of piss instead of rum." he explained. "We returned to confront him and caught him trying the same trick on three other soldiers. Red-handed." "This is an outrage!" the merchant exclaimed from one side. "Slander is what this is!" "Barrel's just there by the counter, sir." Barnaby chimed in, gesturing toward the barrels. Naturally the evidence had been spilled in the scuffle, but the snow had cushioned it at an angle and salvaged some inside. "The one that's been knocked over." The officer strode over to inspect the barrel, squatted on his haunches and took a whiff. He wrinkled his nose and looked at the merchant, who was scrambling for an excuse. "That's not mine, sir!" "Bullshit!" Marcus retorted. "Quiet!" the officer bellowed. "All eleven of you were in on this?" One of the dwarves proved. "We jumped in te help our lads out, we did!" Several murmurs of agreement from the other rifleman and the three cavalry troopers. The officer silenced them with a hand. "That was most certainly urine." he said. "All of you, get lost!" he turned on the merchant. "I'll get your name and details of your business and guild. I'll see to it you won't ply your trade with any soldiers again." The old merchant was cherry-red with anger. The other soldiers slinked away and Barnaby helped himself to one of the kegs of brandy. "Get away from that, Private!" he shouted. "My logistics officer paid him for six barrels, sir." Grathier retorted, knowing full well that Marcus wasn't a logistics officer, but a quartermaster. "He has three gold in his pockets - check him sir! I'll just get these and be on my way." "WHAT!" the merchant shouted. "YOU SLIMY PIECE OF--" "Enough!" the officer shouted him down. "Empty your pockets, sir." the merchant did, revealing three gold coins. "Get your damn barrels and go. If you're still here in ten seconds Private, I'll charge you for insubordination." "You cannot do this!" the old man shouted. Barnaby smirked and he, Marcus, Carson, Windrest and both of his friends all hefted a barrel and left. When they were out of earshot they started giggling. Then they stopped to laugh and hoot. "Paid him for six barrels!" Marcus exclaimed. Handshakes were exchanged all around and everyone introduced themselves. The two big thugs Windrest had brought were Private Reist and Corporal Costello - both had bows on their backs like Windrest. "Nothing like an archer's swing to put a man in his place." Costello hooted. They all had one slightly more muscular arm than the other, Barnaby noticed. "You guys must have some wicked porn back there." Marcus jeered. "And a killer donkey punch." Windrest replied. They all laughed except Carson. "A killer what?" "Never mind." Barnaby said. "They probably have a company rule banning choke sex as well." More laughter and more jeers. Windrest poked more fun at himself than at the others but everyone was cheerful - they had just scored free alcohol, after all. They checked each one and found none had the urine stench - thank the Light for that. With that done, they began helping themselves to a barrel, using Marcus's helmet and taking care not to get the plume stained. "We were sold one like that." Costello said. "You can have the other five." "Nonsense!" Barnaby retorted. "We were after three, so we're each taking one free keg for our troubles." That was agreed and Windrest offered to donate his to them so they walked together. Grathier saw the dark green facings again and took a mental note that it represented the 5th Brigade. "You're here for the attack tomorrow?" he asked. Barnaby dared not nod with a few dozen pounds of barrel on his shoulder, so he made an affirmatory clicking noise in the corner of his mouth. "Should be." he replied. "Our officers are in orders as we speak." "Our CO is meeting with the Highlord as well." he replied. "We're hoping for a skirmish line, but we'll probably be stuck on volley fire." Barnaby wasn't quite sure what a skirmish line was, so he bit his tongue. He knew what volley fire was at least. They reached the 9th's bonfires and he led the way now. Marcus and Carson had walked on ahead while they ambled and chatted. "I'm hoping for a lead company." he said. "First in order of march sounds just fine to me." "You like toeing with death?" "I like getting a chance to do my job." Barnaby clarified, going on about the brief battle in the Ruby Dragonshrine. He had slain perhaps a dozen ghouls and a cultist - who had only offered token resistance. Nothing major. "Any loot?" "A little." the three silver coins were genuine and not truesilver like he had feared - he hadn't sold them yet. The broken sword was worthless and no merchant would give him a price. He had discarded that already. "Well, let's hope tomorrow brings better spoils." "And a way into Icecrown Citadel." They dropped their barrels off to Decklyn, joking that it had been a firesale down there. He shook hands with Private Windrest and told him to shoot a necromancer for him. When that was done they parted ways and he went back to the fire to find Riley moping and everyone else asleep. He joined them - it would be a big day tomorrow. "It's Bolvar!" "Thank the Light!" "For Lordaeron!" "For the Alliance!" Cheers and roars resounded as the Highlord himself marched through the ranks, flanked by his commanders. Being in the front echelon (but not the front rank, to his displeasure), Barnaby didn't see him until he cleared the ranks and stood ahead of the force he was about to lead. The air hummed with a nervous excitement. Each half-company was led by a dismounted officer in their trademark Knight's Armour to the soldier's front. "Steady men." Karl said. "Eyes front." Ahead of them was the battlefield. The entire assault was up a slope, but worst of all were two great staircases, seaparated by a vast earthen landing. It was a bottleneck, and the longer it took Barnaby to get there, the less of a chance he would have to actually participate in the fight. And on that slope was a horde of Scourge waiting to be killed. And beyond that loomed Angrathar, their cold, unwelcoming path into Icecrown Citadel. The tension was almost overwhelming. When Bolvar took a step, a colours sergeant blew a battle horn to signal advance. The ranks broke into a walk. Footmen, archers, riflemen, priests, Sentinels. Marcus was on his left, grinning under his helmet. Barnaby had to grin as well. "I could get used to this." Marcus said, his helmet giving his voice a metallic echo. "You can say that again." Barnaby replied. The second horn bellowed. It heralded a great, collective roar as men shouted their challenges and charged. Fordragon was a full ten paces ahead of the main body, cape billowing behind him as he ran. The wave of soldiers washed over the undead with a crashing momentum. The front man ran a ghoul through, the second shield bashed another. Barnaby punched right past them, screaming at the top of his lungs as his sword came down on a skeleton. The blade hardly slowed as brittle bone was cut and shattered under the swing. He charged another one as the wave of soldiers passed him. Marcus was gone. Order became chaos as men and women lost themselves to their inner beast. The Scourge fell back quickly under this weight. Those that remained were cut down mercilessly. Up at the front, Highlord Fordragon had retaken the lead, pounding up the first flight of stairs. Everyone flocked to him, this beacon of might. But as the undead died and fled, the earth began to rumble. Something shouted in a language Barnaby didn't understand and Angrathar opened like a maw to hell. Giant warriors poured out of the gate, enormous humanoid beings wielding axes and carrying a terrible fury ready to be exacted on them. "Fight on my brothers!" the Highlord yelled as he cleared the first staircase. Barnaby climbed as fast as his armour would allow as these foes descenced. He cleared the staircase with several dozen others and charged across the landing. He aimed for one, which aimed for him. As battle was joined left and right, Barnaby's universe became this one foe. It came furiously, using his axe as nothing as an instrument of brute strength. As it swung down, he deflected it on his shield, causing the swing to fall right with most of its momentum. Barnaby used his own running momentum to run sword first into its leg. The giant screamed as its kneecap shattered. Barnaby twisted, wrenched and it fell to a knee. Before he could deliver another blow, the soldiers behind him washed over it with a flurry of hacking and slashing and the fiend was dead within a few seconds. The enemy fought ferociously, splitting armour apart with their axes and simply stomping on the shorter foes they encountered. One picked up a woman and swung her like a club at her comrades. Each fight now averaged about five to one, but the giants were not yielding easily. They pounded and swung and the Alliance surrounded them. Another horn - behind them. Some turned to look. "Lok'tar ogar!" "For the Horde!" They came on wolves. Orcs and trolls and tauren spilled onto the landing with them and into the enemy. An orc threw himself clear of his wolf and buried his axe into Barnaby's enemy. The Horde spread out amongst them, adding their might to the humans, dwarves and elves that fought. Barnaby ran at another one as a tauren smashed its kneecap with a hammer. He thrust upward, catching as many innards as he could. Half a dozen others did the same and brought down this one with him. It was over in minutes. Barnaby's sword was slaked to the hilt. He climbed the second flight and fell in to newly reformed ranks. Fordragon and the orc commander stood before the gate, backed by these two armies. "ARTHAS!" Bolvar roared into the heavy silence. "THE BLOOD OF YOUR FATHER! OF YOUR PEOPLE! "DEMANDS JUSTICE!" Apprehension built amongst the ranks. Barnaby felt a chilling sense of foreboding, and saw Marcus to his right, equally unsettled. "COME FORTH, COWARD!" he shouted at the gate. "AND ANSWER FOR YOUR CRIMES!" A moment of deafening silence, then the gates shuddered again. They saw his silhouette first. He marched out, alone, runesword in hand. The Lich King's eyes glowed a chilling blue as he stared down the army before him. A wave of hopelessness washed over Barnaby, and he gripped his sword again in reassurance. "YOU SPEAK OF JUSTICE AND COWARDICE." he boomed. His voice held an otherworldly echo. All around them rose ghouls, skeletons and other abominations; his army. "I WILL SHOW YOU THE JUSTICE OF THE GRAVE, AND THE TRUE MEANING... OF FEAR!" "ENOUGH TALK!" the orc bellowed, rushing forward with his axe. "LET IT BE FINISHED!" It was a bold act, and Barnaby watched him cover the entire distance. As his axe collided with Frostmourne, it shattered. The orc was thrown back, dead before he hit the ground. The armies stirred nervously, wavering at the sight. A moment passed. Barnaby suddenly felt certain he was going to die here. "YOU WILL PAY FOR ALL THE LIVES YOU'VE STOLEN, TRAITOR!" Bolvar snarled. "BOLDLY STATED." Arthas retorted. "BUT THERE IS NOTHING YOU CAN--" Something exploded behind them. Soldiers screamed. They turned to see a great sickly green cloud. And above them, something laughed. "HA HA HAAA! DID YOU THINK WE HAD FORGOTTEN?" it asked. Alliance, Horde and Scourge alike turned to look at this new player. "DID YOU THINK YOU HAD FORGIVEN?!" Barnaby couldn't work out what was happening. Behind the figure atop the cliffs, catapaults wheeled into view. He was confused, and scared. "BEHOLD NOW THE TERRIBLE VENGENCE... OF THE FORSAKEN!" The catapaults launched their projectiles with drill-like timing. They hurtled toward the crowd, and Barnaby still couldn't work out what was happening. When the first one exploded near the stairs, soldiers were thrown up, more sickly green liquid and gas came up and everything broke down. He understood. Plague. The barrels rained down around them and soldiers fled to the stairs. Barnaby panicked like everyone else and threw down his sword and shield and ran. On his left, a barrel came down. Marcus was thrown by the explosion, fell to his knees clutching his throat. Barnaby turned to see green liquid oozing from every orifice of his face. Was he screaming? But he collapsed before Barnaby would work that out. This was something out of a nightmare. Barnaby tripped down the first flight of stairs, tumbled to the ground, got up and ran again the landing. It was all downhill. He closed his eyes and held his breath, head down, hoping he wouldn't trip. The bombardment had stopped, but the gas was everywhere now. Soldiers trampled and flung aside their comrades in the mad scramble for safety. Barnaby wasn't thinking in his state of panic. If he breathed, he died. He kept running, didn't see the second staircase and tumbled down that one as well. He opened his eyes in surprise, felt a sting as the gas tried to seep in and shut them again. That second of fleeting vision had shown him a dwarf's face inches from his own, eyes bulging and face contorted in fear and agony. That was the least of his worries. The fall winded him. But he couldn't breathe - to breathe was to die. He crawled down, down, down the slope, over the body and over another and felt his gloved hand soak up the contents of a puddle. Everywhere he heard trampling feet and the cries and gurgles of death. He risked a glance to realise he was in an inch-deep sea of plague. He panicked again, scrambled to his feet, spudded face-first into the slime, got back to his feet, wiped it away, tripped again. He felt something grab his armour. He felt himself be dragged. He took a breath. Previous • Page 2 of 2 • 1, 2	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3180
__label__wiki	0.655581	0.655581	16 Questions: Friday’s First Round Games Posted by Matt Eisenberg on March 22nd, 2019 It’s time for another exciting day of 16 games. Here are the questions I have going into Friday’s action: The Zion Show Moves to the NCAA Tournament (USA Today Images) 1) Duke vs. 16) North Dakota State: Will Duke’s perimeter players begin the Tournament knocking down shots? Zion will be Zion, of course, but Duke will need its other players knocking down shots down the line if the Blue Devils are to cut down the nets in Minneapolis. 1) North Carolina vs. 16) Iona: Can Iona make it to the half within closer range than last year against Duke? As a #15 seed against Duke last year, Iona trailed at the half by 14 points before going on to lose by 22. While the Gaels shot a sterling 58.3 percent from inside the arc, they were just 5-of-24 from beyond the stripe. Duke, on the other hand, shot 62.2 percent from two-point range and went 13-of-30 from behind the line. 1) Virginia vs. 16) Garder-Webb: Will Virginia be quick to rid itself of last season’s nightmare? A 29-3 regular season was great, but memories of last year will surely still be on everyone’s minds as the Cavaliers’ postseason begins. Virginia scored just nine points during the opening 10 minutes against UMBC one year ago, so its first few segments of the game will be telling. 2) Tennessee vs. 15) Colgate: Will Tennessee make quick work of Colgate? Colgate comes into this game with a defensive efficiency ranking of #202, and the Raiders will be tasked with stopping the nation’s third most efficient offense led by the force that is Grant Williams. Good luck. 3) Houston vs. 14) Georgia State: Does Georgia State coach Ron Hunter have more Tournament magic up his sleeves? On the season, Houston has out-rebounded its opponents by an average of 7.7 rebounds per game, whereas Georgia State finds itself getting outmuscled by the tune of 5.3 rebounds per game. If the Panthers can survive on the glass, the duo of D’Marcus Simmonds and Devin Mitchell might be able to keep Georgia State within striking distance. 3) Texas Tech vs. 14) Northern Kentucky: Will Texas Tech’s loss to West Virginia have any carry-over effects? While Texas Tech held the Mountaineers to just 38.8 percent shooting, the Red Raiders gave up 19 offensive rebounds and 20 points at the charity stripe. 4) Kansas State vs. 13) UC Irvine: Will Kansas State be able to get any play and production out of Dean Wade? Wade did not play in the Big 12 Tournament and his status remains up in the air for today’s game. Without the big man inside, the Anteaters could be able to take advantage of its offensive rebounding prowess. 4) Virginia Tech vs. 13) Saint Louis: How will Virginia Tech work Justin Robinson back into the lineup? After missing the last 12 games of the season, Robinson is set to return for the Hokies. The senior guard averages just under 14 points per game while shooting better than 40 percent from deep. 5) Wisconsin vs. 12) Oregon: Can Wisconsin get D’Mitrik Trice and Brad Davison to knock down open shots? In Wisconsin’s five March games, the pair of Trice and Davison have gone a combined 11-of-48 from behind the three-point line. Without knocking down open shots, Oregon will be able to throw everything they have at slowing All-America center Ethan Happ. 5) Mississippi State vs. 12) Liberty: Will Liberty be overwhelmed by the Mississippi State offense? The Flames played 14 games against an opponent with an offensive efficiency ranking of 260th or worse. The Bulldogs have an offensive efficiency ranking of 56th and are led by Quinndary Weatherspoon, who shot an SEC-best 44.9 percent on three-point attempts during league play. 6) Buffalo vs. 11) Arizona State: Will Buffalo get the best of a school from Arizona again? Bobby Hurley and the Sun Devils won on Wednesday night in Dayton and are rewarded with a match-up against Hurley’s former squad. Arizona State will need more than 23 minutes of action from Remy Martin to get another victory. 6) Iowa State vs. 11) Ohio State: With Kaleb Wesson back, can Ohio State pull off the upset? The Buckeyes lost two of their last three games with Wesson back before falling in his return to the Spartans. Ohio State averaged 10 fewer points per game on the road than they did at home. 7) Cincinnati vs. 10) Iowa: Can Iowa change its late season misfortune? The Hawkeyes come into this game losers of five of their last six games. Throw in needing a pair of last second baskets to beat Northwestern and Rutgers and it’s clear Iowa is playing its worst basketball at the wrong time of the year. 8) Ole Miss vs. 9) Oklahoma: Can Ole Miss knock down enough threes to beat the Sooners? The Rebels were just 2-8 when they failed to make a third of their three-point attempts this season. On the year, Oklahoma has held opponents to a three-point average of 33.3 percent. 8) Utah State vs. 9) Washington: Can the Pac-12’s highest seed help the conference from its dismal 2018 showing in the NCAA Tournament? The Pac-12’s regular season champion scored fewer than 50 points in two of its final four games, both coming against Oregon. The Huskies’ defense does a terrific job of creating havoc, however, led by the wizardry of defensive ace Matisse Thybulle. 8) VCU vs. 9) UCF: If VCU’s Marcus Evans is not at 100 percent, will the Rams have enough firepower? Evans suffered a bone bruise in VCU’s loss to Rhode Island in last week’s Atlantic 10 tournament. The starting guard averages a team-best 13.9 points per game and VCU could be tested greatly by UCF’s stout defense — which includes the towering presence of 7’6″ Tacko Fall. \| 10 questions, 2019 ncaa tournament, Regular Features \| Tagged: arizona state, buffalo, cincinnati, colgate, duke, garnder-webb, georgia state, houston, iona, iowa, iowa state, kansas state, liberty, mississippi state, north carolina, north dakota state, northern kentucky, ohio state, oklahoma, ole miss, oregon, saint louis, tennessee, texas tech, uc-irvine, ucf, utah state, vcu, Viginia, virginia tech, washington, wisconsin NCAA Tournament Instareaction: Big 12 Edition Posted by Brian Goodman on March 17th, 2019 There’s no way around it: The Big 12 had a down year, propelling fewer than seven teams to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2013 (five). Despite having a smaller presence than usual, the pressure will be on the league to have a team make a deep run — and all the better if that team is not Kansas. Compared to some of the other power conferences, the Big 12 may be light at the top, but the middle of the league is sufficiently meaty. Here are some quick thoughts on each team’s draw. Is Texas Tech Ready for Another Run to the Second Weekend (USA Today Images) Texas Tech (#3 Midwest) Quick First Round Preview: Northern Kentucky is a spicy match-up for Texas Tech’s robust defense. The Norse move the ball extremely well, assisting on a higher percentage of all their shots than all but four teams in college basketball. Fortunately for the Red Raiders, Northern Kentucky’s defense isn’t much to write home about. Intriguing Potential Match-up: Buffalo in the Round of 32. The Bulls have repeatedly shown that they aren’t afraid of major conference powers and are loaded with experience. Texas Tech won a share of the Big 12 this season by loading up on transfers and having one freshman make a big enough leap to turn himself into a lottery pick. There are more than one ways to skin a cat, but what’s the best way? Final Word: It’s reassuring that last Thursday’s neutral court loss to West Virginia didn’t have a measurable effect on the Red Raiders’ seeding. Their region has the most manageable pair of top seeds (North Carolina and Kentucky), so I’ll be very curious to see if Chris Beard can deliver Lubbock its first Final Four. Kansas (#4 Midwest) Quick First Round Preview: Northeastern is a small team that isn’t shy about firing away from deep and is a very good defensive rebounding team despite its relative lack of size. If the Huskies get hot from long range, anything can happen, but they struggled mightily in earlier losses to Syracuse and Virginia Tech. Kansas fans shouldn’t be too concerned about this game. Intriguing Potential Match-up: North Carolina in the Sweet Sixteen. The Jayhawks have faced off against their previous coach multiple times over the last 10 years and could certainly be poised to do so again. From a match-up standpoint, however, a game with Auburn in the Round of 32 would be an interesting tilt. The Tigers, like Kansas, have experienced some head-scratching losses this season, but the their defense could cause problems for the inconsistent Jayhawks’ offense. Final Word: The Jayhawks got a massive break by being placed in the Midwest Region despite finishing third in the Big 12, a testament to the staff’s savvy non-conference scheduling. This team is so tough to peg that it’s challenging to see them winning enough to earn a trip back to Kansas City, much less winning there and advancing to consecutive Final Fours. Kansas State (#4 South) \| Uncategorized \| Tagged: barry brown, dean wade, iowa state, kansas, kansas state, lon kruger, oklahoma, xavier sneed What’s Trending: The NCAA Tournament is Closer Than You Think Posted by Matt Eisenberg on February 11th, 2019 What’s Trending is a column examining the week that was in college basketball social media. Matthew Eisenberg (@matteise) is your weekly host. Saturday marked the initial release of the Selection Committee’s top 16 seeds for the upcoming NCAA Tournament. While the choices lacked much in the way of surprise, the release was followed by five of those teams losing later that day. If the tournament started today… pic.twitter.com/amdEdgODcB — March Madness TV (@MarchMadnessTV) February 9, 2019 Earlier in the week, the college basketball world was reminded of the drama that comes along with NCAA violations, as Arizona decided to place assistant coach Mark Phelps on administrative leave. The Wildcats have struggled both on and off the court this season. Arizona assistant Mark Phelps has been placed on administrative leave by the school. Source close to situation told @WatchStadium they believe this is school building its case in potentially make a move with head coach Sean Miller as NCAA begins its investigation. pic.twitter.com/pN2066E2ex — Jeff Goodman (@GoodmanHoops) February 7, 2019 \| feature, Regular Features, what's trending \| Tagged: arizona, bill walton, buzzer beater, Ethan Happ, iowa state, john beilein, ncaa tournament, oklahoma, Selection Show, ucla, utah, virginia, zion williamson Ten Questions to Consider: A Weekend of Statement Games Posted by Matt Eisenberg on January 18th, 2019 This weekend features road tests for the two remaining undefeated teams, intrigue across the power conferences, and match-ups involving squads looking to end recent trends. Here are 10 questions I have for this weekend’s games. Tony Bennett is Ready to Take On Duke Again (USA Today Images) Can Duke do what few can and solve Virginia’s defense? (Virginia @ Duke, Saturday 6 PM EST, ESPN) Prior to last season’s win by Virginia at Cameron Indoor Stadium, Duke had beaten the Cavaliers in the teams’ previous 17 games in Durham. Duke’s offense to date has been held under one point per possession just one time this year (Texas Tech), while Virginia has held 13 of its 16 opponents under that threshold. To beat Virginia, Duke will have to improve upon its three-point shooting, though, as the Blue Devils are hitting only 22.8 percent from behind the arc over their last eight games. Can Wisconsin find enough production off of its bench to hand Michigan its first loss? (Michigan @ Wisconsin, Saturday Noon EST, ESPN) In the Badgers’ three Big Ten wins, their bench has averaged 18.7 points per game; but in the Badgers three conference losses, their bench has averaged just 7.7 points per game. The trio of Ethan Happ, D’Mitrik Trice and Brad Davison will need help from the reserves in scoring to beat the Wolverines. Will Ashton Hagans continue to shine as both Kentucky and Auburn try to avoid a second conference loss? (Kentucky @ Auburn, Saturday 4 PM EST, ESPN) After scoring no more than eight points in a single game during his first 11 outings as a Wildcat, Kentucky’s Ashton Hagans is averaging 15.6 points per game over the last five. Hagans will be dealing with an Auburn defense, however, that leads the country in forced turnover rate (27.8%). Can Kansas State avoid looking ahead to an upcoming game against Texas Tech when TCU comes to town? (TCU @ Kansas State, Saturday 4 PM EST, ESPN2) After starting Big 12 play 0-2, the Wildcats have subsequently rattled off three straight wins. While Kansas State has an elite defense, its offensive efficiency ranks outside of the top 175. As a team, the Wildcats shoot a mere 63.8 percent from the free throw line, a number that could haunt them if they get caught looking ahead to Texas Tech. Would keeping Maryland off of the free throw line be enough for Ohio State to end its recent three-game losing streak? (Maryland @ Ohio State, Friday 6 PM EST, Fox Sports 1) According to KenPom‘s database, the average rate at which Big Ten teams are sending opponents to the free throw line in conference play is 32.9 percent. Through five conference games, Ohio State’s defense is sending its opponents to the line at a rate of 53.6 percent. During the Buckeyes current three-game losing streak, their opponents have made 20 more free throws than Chris Holtmann’s team has attempted. Can Texas Tech find any sort of offensive rhythm? (Texas Tech @ Baylor, Saturday 6 PM EST, ESPN2) While the Red Raiders continue to own the nation’s best defense, their offensive efficiency ranks ninth among Big 12 teams in conference play. Texas Tech has made just 29.6 percent of its three-point attempts over the last eight games. Might Syracuse get stuck looking back at its huge win on Monday when Pittsburgh comes to the Carrier Dome? (Pittsburgh @ Syracuse, Saturday 2 PM EST) Jim Boeheim’s squad is coming off of a marquee win against Duke in which the Orange shot 11-of-25 from distance while the Blue Devils went 9-of-43. Syracuse now hosts a Pittsburgh team that is led by the freshman backcourt duo of Xavier Johnson and Trey McGowens. How will Marquette fare against Providence if Markus Howard is unable to play? (Providence @ Marquette, Sunday Noon, CBS Sports Network) Markus Howard left Marquette’s most recent game after playing just three minutes with a sore back. Without Howard in the lineup, Sam Hauser stepped up and scored 31 points while making 4-of-9 from beyond the arc. Hauser is now shooting 29.4 percent from three-point range in five Big East games — last season, however, Hauser led the Big East from distance at an incredible 53.7 percent. Who will walk away from the Red River Rivalry game with a win? (Oklahoma @ Texas, Saturday 8 PM EST, Longhorn Network) Both Oklahoma and Texas sit at 2-3 in Big 12 play, but Texas has lost three consecutive games and Oklahoma has lost three of its last five. Can Oregon State make a statement in the desert? (Oregon State @ Arizona, Saturday 10 PM EST, Pac 12 Network) Oregon State began this week as one of three Pac-12 teams undefeated in conference play — it lost to Arizona State last night and Arizona has since lost to Oregon. The Beavers will have an opportunity to salvage a split against the Wildcats on Saturday night. Keep in mind that Oregon State has lost 33 of its last 34 games against Arizona in Tucson. \| 10 questions, feature, Regular Features \| Tagged: ashton hagans, duke, kansas state, kentucky, marquette, ohio state, oklahoma, oregon state, sam hauser, syracuse, texas, texas tech, virginia, wisconsin, Xavier Johnson Ten Questions To Consider: Christmas Comes Early With Plenty of Hoops Posted by Matt Eisenberg on December 21st, 2018 With Christmas, the New Year and conference play all firmly in the sights of players and teams, this weekend’s slate of games brings plenty of questions to the table. Kick off the holidays with plenty of hoops on Friday and Saturday. Roy and Cal Get Together Again (USA Today Images) Will Buffalo pick up another win over a power conference opponent? (Buffalo @ Marquette, Friday 8:30 PM EST, FS1) Having already picked up Quadrant 1 wins at West Virginia and Syracuse, Buffalo can make it three big victories with a win at Marquette tonight. In those two wins, Bulls guard CJ Massinburg combined to score 68 points on 13 made three-pointers. Will Oklahoma’s success travel? (Oklahoma @ Northwestern, Friday 9 PM EST, Big Ten Network) The Sooners started the season with true road games at UT-Rio Grande Valley and UT-San Antonio, and they have not played a true game since then. This Friday evening trip to Northwestern could be feisty as the Wildcats gave Michigan all it could handle in the Wolverines’ narrow two-point win at Welsh-Ryan Arena. How will southern California’s best team do on the road at Butler? (UC Irvine @ Butler, Friday 6:30 PM EST, FS1) The most successful southern California basketball team this season belongs to UC Irvine. The Anteaters are 11-2 heading into their Friday evening match-up with Butler. Irvine has a suffocating defense that includes a defensive two-point field-goal percentage that ranks among the top 10 nationally. Which offensive rebounding force will come out on top in battle between blue-bloods? (Kentucky vs. North Carolina in Chicago, Saturday 5:15 PM EST, CBS) The CBS Sports Classic pits these two heavyweights against one another yet again. Both teams grab offensive rebounds at a rate that places them among the best in the country. In North Carolina’s convincing win over Gonzaga, the Tar Heels had an offensive rebound rate of 46.7 percent. Is Kansas ready for its first true road test? (Kansas @ Arizona State, Saturday 9 PM EST, ESPN2) Undefeated and top-ranked Kansas hits the road for its first true road game on Saturday evening. In a loss last season to the Sun Devils, the trio of Tra Holder, Shannon Evans, and Remy Martin combined to score 72 of the team’s 95 points. Of the three, only Martin is back with Arizona State this season. Will Arizona’s offense make an appearance? (UC Davis @ Arizona, Saturday 7 PM EST, Pac-12 Network) Arizona’s offensive efficiency had ranked among the top 20 in the nation in each of the past six seasons. This year, however, the Wildcats’ efficiency has fallen outside of the top 100. As a team, Arizona is 11-of-40 from beyond the arc in its last two games. Can the WCC pick up ANOTHER win over a Pac-12 opponent? (San Diego @ Washington State, Saturday 7:30 PM EST, FS1) The quest for the West Coast Conference to becoming a three-bid league continues as San Diego looks to pick the conference’s eighth win over the Pac-12. The Toreros are led by Isaiah Pineiro who has scored double-figure points in 30 of his last 31 games. How far can Kansas State’s superb defense carry the team? (Vanderbilt vs. Kansas State, Saturday 7 PM, ESPN2) Kansas State’s ability to defend the three, create turnovers and limit second-chance opportunities has allowed the Wildcats to log a defensive efficiency that sits among the top five nationally. They are now a team without one of its best offensive weapons in Dean Wade, however. Vanderbilt does not struggle to score the ball, so will this be the game in which Kansas State needs its offense to wake up? Will UConn get a win against former Big East foe Villanova? (UConn @ Villanova, Saturday 12:30 PM EST, CBS) After its two-game losing streak earlier this season, Villanova went on to win six straight. Having just lost two in a row again, the Wildcats now face a familiar opponent in former Big East rival UConn. The Huskies are 9-3 but have just one win (Syracuse) against an opponent with a KenPom ranking of #225 or better. Is Auburn vulnerable coming off of its loss at NC State? (Murray State @ Auburn, Saturday 4:30 PM EST, SEC Network) While Auburn shot 68 percent from inside the arc against NC State earlier this week, the Tigers were also a dismal 5-of-25 beyond the three-point line. Auburn returns home for a match-up against a Murray State team that has the nation’s best three-point defense to date. If the Racers can defend the three well and clean up their defensive glass, an area they have struggled in, Auburn could be in for a very tough 40 minutes. \| 10 questions, feature, Regular Features \| Tagged: arizona, arizona state, auburn, buffalo, kansas, kansas state, kentucky, murray state, north carolina, oklahoma, uc-irvine, uconn, wcc Big 12 Quarter-Pole Reset Posted by Brian Goodman on December 14th, 2018 As college basketball wakes up from Finals Week, it’s a great opportunity to look around the league and see how things are developing. Of course, Kansas being at the top of this league doesn’t surprise anyone, but the pecking order beneath the Jayhawks wasn’t what prognosticators pictured back in October. Texas Tech looks fantastic, although their numbers are a touch inflated by a soft schedule as we’ll get into below. Kansas State and West Virginia don’t look like the contenders many projected, but a couple surprise teams in Oklahoma and TCU have stepped up to take their spots. A collective effort led by Jarrett Culver has Texas Tech undefeated. (Getty) It doesn’t look like Kansas State and West Virginia will be giving the Jayhawks a run for their money after all, but Texas Tech, on the other hand, is undefeated heading into tomorrow’s match-up with Abilene Christian. This prediction could blow up in my face, seeing as how the Red Raiders have played the third-easiest non-conference schedule in the country, per KenPom, but they have the potential to be one of the best defensive teams we’ve seen in a very long time. Texas Tech’s opponents are averaging a lengthy 18.6 seconds per possession (346th nationally), committing turnovers 26 percent of the time and are shooting just 37.5 percent on two-point tried. Interestingly, Texas Tech isn’t getting out on the break very much despite generating all those turnovers, instead preferring to have Jarrett Culver, Kyler Edwards and Brandone Francis walk the ball up the floor. It’s reasonable to wonder if that will change come Big 12 play, though. The league currently houses four of the nation’s top 20 defensive units aside from the Red Raiders, so it might make sense for Chris Beard’s club to run more often in an attempt to get quality shots before those stifling defenses can set up. While I was pretty high on Texas Tech entering the season, I didn’t foresee Oklahoma and TCU looking as good as they have, and each team is getting it done in different ways. I thought the Sooners would be overwhelmed by the ambitious non-conference schedule Lon Kruger assembled (25th in the country, per KenPom), but while the Sooners still have a few hurdles to clear, their defense has been very good. Oklahoma to date has been strong both in transition and non-transition settings, and they dusted off Notre Dame and Wichita State without their best rim protector, Jamuni McNeace. The Horned Frogs’ offense, meanwhile, looks incredibly cohesive, which isn’t something commonly seen before the calendar flips to the new year. With TCU, the ball is always moving and every pass seems to have a purpose. The metrics affirm it, too, as Jamie Dixon’s team has assisted on a staggering 73 percent of its made shots, which is tops in the country. A potential issue with TCU is Jaylen Fisher’s limited ability to create as he continues to recover from offseason knee surgery. He’s attempted just seven twos in 123 minutes of action, which translates to a shade over three games’ worth of action, and his ability to penetrate just isn’t there yet. While he’s been terrific from deep, it won’t be long before opposing defenses start pressing up on both he and Alex Robinson to keep them from getting so much daylight. When people discuss West Virginia being a different team this season, the conversation is usually centered around how the Mountaineers have regressed without Jevon Carter and Daxter Miles there to set up shop inside opponents’ jerseys. Sure enough, they rank just 143rd in defensive turnover percentage (last four years: first, second, first, second), and even with strong offensive rebounding as usual, the relative lack of turnovers has Bob Huggins turning to an unlikely answer on offense: Sagaba Konate firing from deep. You read that right. The Mountaineers’ vaunted rim protector has attempted 23 three-pointers on the year, but even more surprising is that he’s connected on nine of them, enough to make him the team’s second-leading three-point shooter at 39.1 percent. Konate’s deep ball is slow to release, which shouldn’t shock anyone familiar with his game, nor will it make him the sport’s next unicorn, but he’s been effective enough to keep defenses honest. It’s a good idea for Konate to try to become more versatile, because at just 6’8”, there’s no guarantee that his shot-blocking will translate to the next level, wherever that may be. As long as he continues to make threes at a rate that forces opposing big men out of the paint, however, you’re probably not going to see Huggins complain too much. Kansas State hit a nadir last weekend with an embarrassing 47-46 loss to Tulsa, and while Barry Brown and Kamau Stokes haven’t emerged as the complementary options they were expected to be, Dean Wade’s recent duds (two points on 1-of-6 shooting with three turnovers at Tulsa; 11 points on 3-of-7 shooting and a DQ at Marquette) are concerning. Just five weeks after tip-off, Wade isn’t on the same planet that would be expected of the Preseason Big 12 Player of the Year. I don’t have a ballot, but if I had to name an all-conference first team today, there’s no way I could justify putting him there. He hasn’t been a total loss, and there’s only so much you can do as a big man when the backcourt cannot reliably set you up, but a forward with Wade’s skill set and experience should be considerably further along. Sticking with the Wildcats, the adage goes that once a coach is on the hot seat, he’s never truly off of it, and we’re seeing some of that now as fans are understandably frustrated with Bruce Weber’s performance less than a year removed from leading Kansas State to the Elite Eight. Even though athletic director Dean Taylor extended Weber’s contract last spring, the financials don’t make the extension an anchor, as the new Kansas State football coach, Chris Klieman, will draw a starting salary of just $2.3 million (lowest among the Big 12’s public schools). I’m not saying that Klieman was hired to make it easy for Kansas State to get out of Weber’s contract, but it could be a benefit if the fan base and big donors put enough pressure on the administration to think hard about retaining Weber if he can’t right the ship again. \| big 12, feature, microsites \| Tagged: bill self, bruce weber, jaylen fisher, oklahoma, texas tech Big 12 Feast Week Catch-Up Posted by Brian Goodman on November 21st, 2018 We’re halfway through Feast Week and even though much of the conference has faced strong competition for the first time this season, we aren’t that much closer to determining a pecking order than we were on Sunday. That’s a credit to the league’s performance rather than a detriment, though, with strong impressions being made throughout. Idle until later today, Kansas still has the inside track, but whereas before the season when Kansas State was thought to be the sole challenger, the battle for second is a jumbled mess at this juncture with not only the Wildcats but also Texas Tech, Texas and even Iowa State joining the fray. Further down, even Oklahoma isn’t looking like an easy out, which is another good sign for the league’s overall strength Udoka Azubuike and the Jayhawks stare down their next challenge in New York City. (Getty) Kansas (NIT Season Tip-Off) – The Jayhawks look to collect more marquee wins in their second neutral-court event of the season. Tonight’s semifinal pits Bill Self’s team against a Marquette squad eager to make a splash after finishing seventh in the Big East a season ago. While the Jayhawks are deservedly favored, they’ve been getting cooked from beyond the arc, ranking 331st in defensive 3PA/FGA and allowing opponents to hit 46.9 percent of their tries. Their weakness for going over screens and over-helping hasn’t cost them yet, but although the Golden Eagles haven’t truly heated up, they have the firepower to make the Jayhawks pay with an arsenal of shooters led by Markus Howard, Sam Hauser and Joey Hauser. If they don’t connect, there won’t be much to fall back on with Kansas having the skill and bodies down low to keep Marquette honest on the blocks. Offense hasn’t been much of a problem for the Jayhawks, but it could be against the Volunteers if that matchup materializes Friday night. Rick Barnes has always fielded stingy defensive teams as long as his players have bought in, and it’s been no different this year. Tennessee hasn’t forced turnovers or blocked a ton of shots, but they’ve been forcing tough attempts, which is almost as beneficial. Louisville’s no slouch, either, but the jury’s still out with Chris Mack working to establish the habits that made him a must-have to the Cardinals’ administration and donor base. Kansas State (Paradise Jam) – For Wildcat fans, watching this team in its first four games was kind of like eating Chinese food for dinner. It achieved the desired result, but it was never anything to write home about and you were hungry for something better just a short time later. A decisive 20-2 run against Missouri en route to the Paradise Jam title in Game 5 doesn’t mean that Kansas State’s offense is fixed, but it’s certainly a start. Dean Wade and Barry Brown leading the way with strong support from Xavier Sneed and Cartier Diarra putting in yeoman’s work off the bench is exactly what Bruce Weber needs from his squad to sufficiently complement its heady, efficient defensive play. Now comes the hard part of sustaining it against the rest of a solid non-con slate and into league play. Texas Tech (Hall Of Fame Classic) – The Red Raiders had a successful week in Kansas City, using big second halves to defeat USC and Nebraska on their way to the Hall of Fame Classic championship. Chris Beard made frequent substitutions in search of a rotation that could get the best of Tech’s opponents, but the constant was Jarrett Culver, who averaged 22 points and 7.5 rebounds in the event. Culver struggled to get going early in both games, but made increasingly better decisions as the individual games wore on. By the end of the event, he cemented his role as the team’s leader with Matt Mooney, Tariq Owens and Davide Moretti making for a solid supporting cast. I maintain that Tech’s drop-off from 2018 won’t be as steep as many around the landscape feel, but one thing that gives me pause relates to the way the offense stagnated when Culver wasn’t fully engaged, so while it’s still early and trusting Beard feels like a safe bet, I do worry a bit about the team being able to pick up the slack against better opponents when Culver isn’t at his best. Iowa State (Maui Invitational) – Beating superior competition when you’re short-handed is challenging enough in a normal setting, but when you’re slated to play three games in three days with just eight scholarship players, you just want to have a decent showing and not return to the mainland any worse off than you were when you arrived. A fully healthy Cyclone team might have have been able to finish the job against Arizona on Monday night, but they’re certainly making the best of it in the consolation bracket. Steve Prohm had Brad Underwood’s number in the latter’s lone season at Oklahoma State with the Cyclones sweeping all three meetings in 2017, and that continued Tuesday afternoon with an 84-68 trouncing. Iowa State’s effort epitomized basketball in 2018, with 47 of their 53 shot attempts coming on dunks, layups or three-pointers. With Marial Shayok and Talen Horton-Tucker showing out and the team playing free-flowing, efficient basketball, re-working Lindell Wigginton, Cameron Lard and Solomon Young into the rotation will make for a fascinating storyline they get closer to returning. Oklahoma (Battle 4 Atlantis) – Picked to finish eighth in the league, the Sooners have shown some moxie, undefeated with three of their four wins coming away from Norman and a chance to make the week a big one assuming they meet favored Wisconsin in Friday’s semifinal. As I discussed last week, the calling card of Oklahoma’s defense has been their ability to defend without fouling, but that risk-averse nature hasn’t yielded many turnovers. That may need to change against a Wisconsin team that really values the ball and has largely made the most of their possessions. Jamuni McNeace was highly effective defending the Gators, but stopping Ethan Happ will be one of the biggest challenges he’ll face all year if the matchup comes to fruition. Continuing to get standout offensive play from Christian James (21.5 PPG, 2.5 TO/40) will be vital as well. \| big 12, microsites \| Tagged: barry brown, bill self, bruce weber, cameron lard, cartier diarra, Chris Beard, christian james, davide moretti, dean wade, iowa state, jamuni mcneace, jarrett culver, joey hauser, kansas, kansas state, lindell wigginton, Marial Shayok, Markus Howard, matt mooney, oklahoma, sam hauser, solomon young, steve prohm, talen horton-tucker, tariq owens, texas, texas tech, xavier sneed Previewing Opening Week in the Big 12 Posted by Brian Goodman on November 6th, 2018 It’s been a long offseason, but we made it, everyone. Tonight is the night the 2018-19 season gets under way. As per usual, preseason #1 Kansas will own the marquee as one of the four elite teams competing in the Champions Classic, but half the conference will be in action this evening with Texas, Iowa State, Texas Tech and Baylor beginning their seasons as well. TCU will tip its season off on Wednesday, and following an idle Thursday, Kansas State, West Virginia and Oklahoma open the weekend with Friday jumps while Oklahoma State takes the caboose on Saturday afternoon. KenPom likes all 10 Big 12 teams to win their openers, with only the Jayhawks favored by fewer than 10 points (vs. Michigan State) and just one other game (West Virginia vs. Buffalo) coming in at fewer than 15 points. Still, you never know when a team might unleash a surprise, and even if not, there’s always something to keep an eye on as the curtains open. Here’s what to watch for around the Big 12 over the next few days. Look for Dedric Lawson to make a strong first impression in Indianapolis tonight. (Orlin Wagner/AP) Kansas vs. Michigan State – As mentioned in last week’s team preview, Kansas will feature two bigs in Dedric Lawson and Udoka Azubuike one year after going very guard-heavy. On the other side of this specific frontcourt match-up, Michigan State lost Miles Bridges and Jaren Jackson to the draft and Gavin Schilling to graduation, so the Spartans will counter with junior Nick Ward and sophomore Xavier Tillman, who aren’t bad, but don’t hold a candle to a pair of lottery picks and a useful program guy. While I like Kansas to win this one in large part because of the mismatches up front, don’t be surprised to see Michigan State’s Cassius Winston expose the Jayhawks’ new-look backcourt on more than one occasion. Texas vs. Eastern Illinois – Watching the Longhorns try to run offense last season was the ultimate test of will, as they finished dead last in the Big 12 in offensive efficiency. With four starters back this season, they absolutely have to get better. Their non-conference slate includes a neutral site date with Arkansas in addition to tilts against North Carolina, Purdue and Providence, so improved offensive cohesion will be important in the early going. Get to know Lindell Wigginton before the rest of the country catches up. (Andrew Dieb/USA Today Sports) Iowa State vs. Alabama State – There ought to be plenty of reps at the point guard position for both Nick Weiler-Babb and Lindell Wigginton. The Cyclones will be thin up front to start the season, though, with Solomon Young (injury) and Cameron Lard (suspension) both expected to miss tonight’s game. As a result, newcomers Michael Jacobson and George Conditt will be thrust into major minutes earlier than Steve Prohm would have liked. I don’t think that will be enough for the Hornets to make this game interesting, but it could make for a rockier ride than expected. Texas Tech vs. Incarnate Word – Chris Beard faces off against one of his former employers tonight and it will be next man up with Keenan Evans, Zhaire Smith, Zach Smith and Niem Stevenson all having moved on to the next stages of their careers. A game against one of the 30 worst teams in the sport won’t decide whether Jarrett Culver is ready for the spotlight, but how he starts the season will tell us a lot about the Red Raiders’ fortunes in 2018-19. Baylor vs. Texas Southern – The Bears will start the season as any rebuilding team of their caliber should, with four straight cupcakes. The first two weeks will be a great opportunity for Scott Drew’s squad to sharpen its defense after losing two of its best frontcourt defenders in Nuni Omot and Jo Lual-Acuil as well as an underrated perimeter defender in Manu Lecomte. Baylor’s going to feature smaller looks this year than what many are used to, which shouldn’t present any significant hurdles against the Tigers tonight, but is noteworthy going forward. TCU vs. Cal State Bakersfield – The Horned Frogs’ backcourt doesn’t get a lot of headlines, but that could change soon, because there’s a lot to like about the trio of Alex Robinson, Jaylen Fisher and Desmond Bane. They’re experienced, they can create for themselves as well as others, and they can shoot it from deep. Their defensive chops aren’t where you’d like them to be, but there’s some untapped potential that will show itself this time around. Keep an eye on TCU’s frontcourt too, as it picks up the pieces from Vladimir Brodziansky and Kenrich Williams’s departures. West Virginia vs. Buffalo – Aside from the Champions Classic, this is the only game of Opening Week whose outcome isn’t completely foregone, so it should be an interesting watch for those waiting to get back into the swing of things after the short Thursday break. You have a Mountaineer team that should be plenty good but not as good as last year’s edition facing the Bulls, who won the MAC by a country mile, embarrassed Arizona in last season’s NCAA Round of 64 and return nearly everyone, making themselves a strong favorite to repeat in conference. Will Bob Huggins‘ team be ready? Kansas State vs. Kennesaw State – The Wildcats have a strong non-conference schedule that they’ll hope to parlay into a favorable seed come March, but their first two weeks will be more manageable and should offer Bruce Weber opportunities to explore the limits of his rotation. Dean Wade and Barry Brown are the names everyone knows and will be excited to see, but JuCo transfer Austin Trice will look to make his case for minutes as a strong rebounder off the bench. Oklahoma at UT Rio Grande Valley – The Sooners are doing something a little different by starting the season on the road against two mid-majors. It’s admirable on Lon Kruger‘s part, but there isn’t much more to be said. Oklahoma will be among the league’s dregs despite being one of the oldest teams in the league, and they’re scheduled to play just two home games over the season’s first five weeks and won’t play their fifth home game until January 5. It’s setting up to be a long year in Norman. Oklahoma State at Charlotte – The Pokes also start the year on the road against a mid-major and aren’t projected to be very good this season. There’s not a lot returning on this team, so Mike Boynton will look to Cameron McGriff, Lindy Waters and Thomas Dziagwa to keep the ship from sinking early. \| big 12, feature, microsites \| Tagged: barry brown, baylor, dean wade, dedric lawson, iowa state, kansas, kansas state, lindell wigginton, nick weiler-babb, oklahoma, oklahoma state, tcu, texas, texas tech, udoka azubuike, west virginia Big 12 Previews: Oklahoma State and Oklahoma Posted by Brian Goodman on October 17th, 2018 With games starting in just a few weeks, we’re tipping off our 2018-19 Big 12 coverage by going around the league team-by-team. Be sure to check in throughout the season and follow Big 12 correspondent Brian Goodman on Twitter @BSGoodman. Let’s begin with the Oklahoma schools. Mike Boynton turned in a surprisingly strong debut season in 2017-18, leading the Cowboys to 21 wins that were highlighted by a regular season sweep of Kansas, a win over West Virginia in Morgantown, and a victory over an excellent Texas Tech team. The work for Boynton truly begins this year, though, as he looks to rebuild a squad that lost its best players as well as the majority of its complementary pieces. Oklahoma State head coach Mike Boynton will look to fire up a lackluster Cowboys squad in 2018-19. (Sue Ogrocki/AP) Who’s Gone: F Jeffrey Carroll: 15.4 PPG, 6.2 RPG, 33% 3FG F Mitchell Solomon: 8.5 PPG, 6.5 RPG, 14.2% OR (best in the Big 12) G Kendall Smith: 13.1 PPG, 41.0% 3FG (47.3% in Big 12 play) G Tavarius Shine: 9.7 PPG, 3.5 RPG C Yankuba Sima: 3.7 PPG, 3.3 RPG, 1.1 BPG Who’s Back: G Lindy Waters: 8.7 PPG, 3.7 RPG, 37.3% 3FG, 57.5% TS F Cameron McGriff: 8.4 PPG, 5.4 RPG, 86.5% FT G Thomas Dziagwa: 30 GS, 37% 3FG, 19.4 points per 40 minutes \| big 12, microsites \| Tagged: brady manek, cameron mcgriff, christian james, lindy waters, lon kruger, mike boynton, oklahoma, oklahoma state Where 2018-19 Happens: Reason #27 We Love College Basketball Posted by rtmsf on October 11th, 2018 As RTC heads into its 12th season covering college hoops, it’s time to begin releasing our annual compendium of YouTube clips that we like to call Thirty Reasons We Love College Basketball. These 30 snippets from last season’s action are completely guaranteed to make you wish the games were starting tonight rather than 30 days from now. Over the next month you’ll get one reason per day until we reach the new season on Tuesday, November 6. You can find all of this year’s released posts here. #27 – Where Trae Day Happens. We also encourage you to re-visit the entire archive of this feature from the 2008-09, 2009-10, 2010-11, 2011-12, 2012-13, 2013-14, 2014-15, 2015-16, 2016-17 and 2017-18 preseasons. \| 2018-19 Season Preview, 30 reasons \| Tagged: 30 reasons, freshman superstars, oklahoma, trae young	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3189
__label__wiki	0.75291	0.75291	Domestic Dog Blamed for Oregon Sheep Deaths Hoot Paulson arrived at his sheep pasture near Eugene, Ore., on Tuesday morning to find a grisly scene. Dozens of dead and dying sheep lay in the six-acre field with faces torn, skulls crushed and some missing eyes and ears. Whatever ravaged the flock the night before, Paulson said, it left nothing but carnage. "There was no feeding," said Paulson, 35, who runs H Paulson Livestock and Feed. "It was just malicious blood sport, is what it was." All told, 20 ewes and 24 lambs died, many of which Paulson had to euthanize. He had previously purchased 30 pregnant ewes as a present for his fiancee, which was supposed to be her start raising livestock as part of the family business. Chris Yee, district wildlife biologist for the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, said a large domestic dog is likely the culprit, based on tracks and the "incredibly sloppy" method of killing. "It didn't fit the killing method of a cougar, or bear or any other predator we have in this area," Yee said. While ODFW has recently confirmed the presence of wolves on national forest land in Lane and Douglas counties, Yee said he was able to immediately rule out the possibility of a wolf attack. "It was pretty obvious from the start it was something else," he said. "Most of the trauma was to the head ... That's not an efficient way for a predator to kill an animal." Click Here to read the full story. Source: Capital Press	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3194
__label__wiki	0.902851	0.902851	Vaccine Dangers Environmental Toxins EU postpones its decision on glyphosate October 27, 2017 Christopher Wyatt Environmental Toxins ER Editor: postponing the decision on whether or not to renew the glyphosate licence just leaves me shaking my head in utter disbelief. A few days ago we published an article on a new study which shows that around 45% of Europe’s soils are contaminated by glyphosate and its metabolite, AMPA. To quote this article, “Pesticides, once used, do not dissolve into thin air, but persist in the environment, contaminating soil, air and water. This is the most recent red flag to emerge as a result of a new joint study by the University of Wageningen, the Joint Research Center of the European Commission and RIKILT laboratories – recently published in the scientific journal “Science of the Total Environment.” Equally baffling is the recommendation some EU member states have made for 5 or 10 year renewal terms (see below). This is an issue about effecting a complete ban, not dribbling along with endless renewals putting the health of people and the environment even more at risk. When will citizens more generally wake up to the fact that the EU favors the interests of corporations and their lobbyists, not its own people. EU postpones decision on glyphosate PETER TEFFER EU member states have postponed voting on whether to renew the licence of weedkiller glyphosate on Wednesday (25 October), the European Commission said in an emailed statement. “The Standing Committee on Plant Animal Food and Feed met today to discuss renewing the approval of the active substance glyphosate,” said spokeswoman Anca Paduraru on behalf of the EU’s executive. “At the conclusion of the meeting, no vote was taken,” she said. The licence for glyphosate, used commercially in a Monsanto product called Roundup, is due to expire at the end of the year. Although two EU agencies have recommended it as safe, environmental and health activists have turned against the proposal to renew the licence, in part because the World Health Organisation’s International Agency for Research on Cancer has classified glyphosate as “probably carcinogenic to humans”. A previous attempt to renew the licence for fifteen years failed to reach a majority of support among EU member states, following which the commission proposed a 10-year renewal. On Tuesday (24 October), the European Parliament adopted a non-binding text calling for the phase-out of glyphosate in the coming years, with a compete ban by 2022. Shortly after the vote, the commission announced it would propose a licence period of five to seven years. During Wednesday’s meeting, member states exposed their positions, mainly favouring a 5,7 or 10-year renewal. But it appeared that none of them would gather enough support to be adopted. An EU source said “quite a few” member states were still in favour of a 10-year renewal – and that ‘phasing out’ was not considered, as that fell under different legislation. Some national representatives said they needed to talk more with their government. “The commission took note of the positions of the different delegations of member states upon which it will now reflect and will announce the date of the next meeting shortly,” Paduraru said. The meeting will most likely take place in the first half of November. The EU needs to take a decision before 15 December, when the current licence ends. Ahead of the vote, Greenpeace had already criticised the commission’s compromise proposal. “What matters is how much glyphosate is used and how it’s used, not how long the licence is for,” the campaign group said in a press release. “The European Parliament and Europeans want a ban, not a fudge that changes nothing about how much people are exposed and how much the environment is contaminated,” Greenpeace added. ER recommends other articles by EUobserver Photo insert of protestors courtesy of Moritz Richter-Campact Published to The Liberty Beacon from EuropeReloaded.com Leave a comment EU renewal of glyphosate licence, Glyphosate, Greenpeace, Peter Teffer, Roundup Get Remarkably Clean & Healthy Water HPV Vaccine inventor Ian Frazer Backs UK’s “Jabs for the Boys” Lobbyist Group – Conflict of Interest? 5 Seasonal Flu Vaccine Myths Debunked INTERVIEWS NEEDED: Mumps cases at Syracuse University jump to 34 confirmed, 73 probable since end of August Monsanto Halts Brand New Pesticide After People Broke Out In Rashes 20 Years of Keeping Lehigh Valley Vaccinated Are You Stressed, Tired or Feeling Down? Rid Your Body of Excess Toxins Bio-Active Broad Spectrum Probiotics TOXYSolutions Solutions THROWBACK THURSDAY: Mumps outbreak among vaccinated Harvard students? How can that be? Subscribe to Articles via Email Enter your email address to subscribe and receive notifications of new articles by email. For more information about this project About Us > \| Contact Us > Copyright © 2016 TLB Project, LLC All Rights Reserved. Third-party logos and marks are registered trademarks of their respective owners. All rights reserved.	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3198
__label__wiki	0.938162	0.938162	Sondre Lerche Join & Follow Heartbeat Radio Vinyl, CD and digital album Boston Globe review “The opening track, “Good Luck,’’ would hit No. 1 on the Billboard chart in a different era’’ Allmusic review “Rather than being some kind of surprising U-turn, the album is a consolidation of everything he's done so far. It has his best songwriting, most effective vocals, and most accomplished sound, and stands as some of the best modern pop around at the end of the decade’’ “Heartbeat radio” LA Times review “No matter what genre he's working in -- fuzzy garage rock, breezy vocal jazz, acoustic folk-pop -- this young Norwegian singer-songwriter crafts catchier choruses than many musicians who've been working twice as long as he has. His refrains always pay off” New York Times live review “Words & Music” directly maps romance onto songwriting, while “Don’t Look Now” may be the only pop song to mention “recoupable royalties.” YOU'RE ALWAYS WATCHING ME Sign up to be a part of the community and receive news, information about upcoming releases, free downloads and other goods. Join & follow me on social media © 2019 Sondre Lerche	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3199
__label__cc	0.736169	0.263831	if we lose, we should throw possums. Is there anyone better? I love love LOVE Dominique Dawes. Always have, always will. Is it a massive respect for her talent? Yes. Is it maybe a little bit of a girl crush? Also yes. But more than anything, it's how she dealt with everything. She was a champ. A classy champ. She had all of the poise of a Texas beauty queen without all of the ditziness and fake boobs. She is everything all women should be. And now she's out there, making sure kids don't get fat. Is there anything this superwoman doesn't do? I have no doubt that if asked to do so tomorrow, she could bust out a back-to-back tumbling pass, in heels, stick that dreaded punch front, and then casually walk off of the floor and go shake hands with the President, with nary a ruffle in her hair. That's how classy she is. While she does hold plenty of clout in the record books, it's not nearly enough, given how incredibly fantastically perfect she was. Granted, she competed against the best in a very deep field. But even still, she was SO MUCH BETTER.... tags: awesomeness, dominique dawes, gymnastics, montage Gabby Douglass reminds me of her, and I feel like Gabby will have the same fate, poor thing suzanne somers says that skipping breakfast is sui... at least i didn't fall and break my talent. they look like deep fried deep poop. you make the underflaps of my breasts burn, like w... you're a constellation of stars. i just hate to th... i just prefer to think of the homleess as outdoors... i told my parents i only want one thing for christ... i don't understand the difference between an elf a...	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3205
__label__wiki	0.774745	0.774745	Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Albania - but didn't know who to ask... (from http://www.lonelyplanet.com/destinations/europe/albania/) This pint-sized, sunny slice of Adriatic coast has been ground down by years of poverty, blood vendettas and too many five year plans, but Albania still manages to pack a wild punch of traditional Mediterranean charm and Soviet-style inefficiency. It's a giddy blend of religions, styles, cultures and landscapes, from Sunni Muslim to Albanian Orthodox, from idyllic beach and rocky mountain to cultivated field. Relics from one of the longest dictatorships in Eastern Europe rub shoulders with citrus orchards, olive groves and vineyards. Decrepit, Chinese-built factories stand next to breathtaking mosques; ornately decorated Orthodox churches face off 'Soviet Brutal' palaces of culture. Kicked around by the Balkan big boys for millennia and turned upside down by its very own Maoist Cultural Revolution in the 1960s, Albania is now tentatively embracing democracy, the outside world and a few foreign travelers. Some things won't ever change, though: the spectacular forested mountains, the warm Mediterranean sun, and the heart-rendingly blue waters of the Adriatic all endure the country's ups and downs. Warning - The security situation in Albania is improving, although visitors should continue to exercise care and maintain a high level of personal security awareness. The northeast of the country, which borders Kosovo, is the only region travelers should avoid. Unexploded ordnance is still scattered through some parts of this region. Full country name: Republic of Albania Area: 28,748 sq km Population: 3.5 million Capital City: Tirana People: Albanians, with Greek, Vlach, Macedonian and Roma minorities Language: Albanian, Italian, English, Greek Religion: Sunni Muslim (70%), Albanian Orthodox (20%), Roman Catholic (10%) Government: Emerging democracy Head of State: President Alfred Moisiu Head of Government: Prime Minister Fatos Nano GDP: US$15.69 billion GDP per capita: US$4,400 Inflation: 6% Major Industries: Cement, chemicals, food processing, hydropower, mining, oil, textiles and clothing, timber Major Trading Partners: Italy, Greece, Germany, Belgium, USA, Bulgaria, Turkey, The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia Member of EU: Application Pending Want to know even more about Albania? Check out the CIA World Factbook at http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/al.html - but keep in mind that these were they guys who accidentally targeted the Chinese Embassy during the Kosovo intervention, and though there were WMDs in Iraq... Lost in Albania Preliminary Assignment Albania in the News Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Albania -... Alphabet Soup - Navigating the Maze of Internation... "Albania!"	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3208
__label__wiki	0.692573	0.692573	Tag Archives: Trinidad Watch: Short Doc, ‘Haute Caribe,’ Depicts the Vibrant World of Fashion in Trinidad & Tobago Directed by Trevor Franchise, ‘Haute Caribe: The World of Trinidad & Tobago Fashion’ narrates T&T’s influence on Caribbean fashion and features Trini fashion designers Claudia Pegus, Robert Young, Meileng, and Anya Ayoung-Chee. Watch: Nicki Minaj Parties Carnival-Style in Trinidad for “Pound the Alarm” Video Nicki Minaj’s “Pound the Alarm” gets a festive Trini Carnival-style video treatment. Directed by Benny Boom, the visuals were captured last month in Trinidad’s capital, Port of Spain, at Queen’s Park Savannah — emulating the country’s largest tourist attraction. Creative Quickie: Gaks Designs’ “Skull Girls – Part 1” \| digital art Gerrel Sanders aka GAKS has released the first set of his Skull Girls series. The multi-disciplined Trinidad and Tobago-based digital artist has left fans in anticipation of his new skull-faced vector beauties for weeks. Must Have: ‘128 Beats Per Minute: Diplo’s Visual Guide to Music, Culture, and Everything in Between’ Diplo, world-renowned DJ, producer and cultural influencer, will soon release his first literary project entitled ‘128 Beats Per Minute: Diplo’s Visual Guide to Music, Culture, and Everything in Between.’ The book captures the DJ’s experiences over the course of seven years with photography by Shane Mccauley. About Sinuous Magazine Sinuous Magazine is dedicated to providing a multicultural exploration of art, entertainment, fashion and social issues. Copyright © 2017 Sinuous Magazine \| All rights reserved.	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3213
__label__wiki	0.793048	0.793048	RP wasting $30-billion fund DIE HARD III Herman Tiu Laurel 07/01/2011 RP wasting $30-billion fund What could be more important than writing about a key bit of information that will make the Filipino people realize they don’t need foreign funds in the national economy anymore to enable them to throw the yoke of economic colonialism immediately? All the BS that cause the inferiority complex and mendicancy of Filipinos (BS such as “we need foreign investors”; “we don’t have the funds”; “we can’t run the country without debt”; or “we can’t escape the debt trap”) will simply have to go down the toilet drain. Several times before, we have written about this idle fund that can free us of foreign dependency right away. We placed the figure at $28 billion or P1.3 trillion and identified that fund as the Special Deposit Account (SDA) with the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), which was pointed out to us by economist Hiro Vaswani of KME (Kilusang Makabansang Ekonomiya). Recently, we got another confirmation of the existence and availability of this “disposable” fund kept idle only because of the treasonous streak of our BSP officials. In a guest column by Mario Antonio Lopez in one business daily, it was reported that former Neda Chief Romulo Neri was of the opinion that “our dollar reserves of $65 billion (are) substantially above what the IMF (International Monetary Fund) considers adequate for a nation of our size and needs.” In fact, Neri was said to believe that “we can, if we wish to, use perfectly legal means to liberate half of the fund ($30 billion) to jump-start a number of badly needed initiatives in education, agriculture, and health over and above the money currently available,” stressing that the “P40 billion requested, indeed needed, by the AFP (Armed Forces of the Philippines) is a small amount compared to what can be made available to the three other programs which, in the process of providing the needed services, also means increased employment and livelihood opportunities.” In other words, we don’t need the PPP (Public-Private Partnership) projects of PeNoy because this $30-billion fund is already larger than all the funding requirements for the 83 “flagship” projects under his entire term. One report even placed the relatively miniscule “investment” requirement at “P739.78 billion under the Private-Public Partnership, 10 of which with investment requirements of P127 billion have been shortlisted and readied for rollout in 2011.” Besides this, another reason for tapping the idle SDA is that PPP partners get unconscionable “sweeteners” such as TRO-free operations which, like in past BOT (Build-Operate-Transfer) projects, effectively bar people from resorting to the courts no matter the inimical nature of these projects to public welfare or how financially abusive the project owners become. Of course, this is on top of the fact that “investor-partners” of government also get “sovereign guarantees” for their profits, which only means that they get to secure their loans risk free and their profits at exorbitant rates of return. One of our fellow columnists in another paper, Romeo Lim, sums up the flawed logic of the PPP program (and the BOT law that preceded it): “Government (does) not have money to fund the huge investment requirements of our infrastructures program. Revenue collection (is) never enough… Government assets for sale (are) not inexhaustible, and there (are) limits to government borrowings.” Unfortunately, that rationale, despite never being valid nor true, has gotten even the most intelligent and well-informed of our leaders either totally or partially ignorant of the existence of the huge fund that the country can use, perhaps out of a reluctance to exercise a modicum of mental or political independence. Actually, the BSP and the country’s bankers know that this gargantuan fund is readily available for the nation’s benefit. But why is everybody silent about it? Is it because of certain shenanigans in the BSP, where officials are in cahoots with foreign fund managers to take advantage of it? A recent news item (“BSP’s outsourced funds reach $9.8B”) reveals that a huge chunk of our reserves continues to yield management commissions or fees to almost a dozen foreign fund managers, stating, “The central bank’s externally-managed portfolios as of the end of last year totaled $9.89 billion, up by $5.94 billion from $3.95 billion third quarter of 2010 due to a shift in portfolios. (The BSP’s treasury department)… said the amount of almost $6 billion were cash infusions from the BSP’s internally-managed portfolios. The move was to shift this much amount from the internally-managed funds to externally-managed portfolios, which are funds outsourced to external managers and invested in longer-dated maturity securities, to preserve the country’s foreign currency capital. The BSP’s external fund management program started in 1997 (FVR’s time), when a portion of the gross international reserves was invested in long-term instruments. The BSP currently has 10 external fund managers including JP Morgan Chase.” So who are the other “fund managers?” Do BSP officials receive fat commissions for subcontracting this, too? In addition, it was revealed that “about 42 percent of Philippine funds which are US dollar hedged portfolios — are invested in the US, 33 percent in the Eurozone, 11 percent in Japan and nine percent in the United Kingdom.” BSP insiders tell us that commissions are paid out for such “investments” as well. The Filipino people should thus wake up to the big scam that is going on with the country’s huge financial reserves. We are not as poor as those opportunistic elements in our ruling elite and financial cabals make us to be. We, the people, should take charge of our nation’s financial resources through a People’s Bank run by our knowledgeable representatives — not by gofers of the international and local banking cartel. (Tune in to Radyo OpinYon, Monday to Friday, 5 to 6 p.m., and Sulo ng Pilipino, Monday, Wednesday and Friday, 6 to 7 p.m. on 1098AM; Talk News TV with HTL, Tuesday, 8 to 9 p.m., with replay at 11 p.m., on GNN, Destiny Cable Channel 8, on “Supreme Court: Supreme Injustices” with Lauro Vizconde, Dante Jimenez and Rasti Delizo of PMJ; visit http://newkatipunero.blogspot.com and http://hermantiulaurel.blogspot.com for our articles plus TV and radio archives) Recall and retaliation EDITORIAL 07/01/2011 Recall and retaliation What was going on in the mind of Justice Secretary Leila de Lima in calling a press conference to present supposed new witnesses in the unresolved Vizconde massacre case that apparently was meant to again implicate the same personalities already acquitted by the Supreme Court (SC) was too obvious: Recall and retaliation. Recall was for her 2013 senatorial ambitions as a coup in her public career which would be most accessible by sticking to the celebrated case and digging up old bones, including those consigned to lie in peace. Retaliation was meant for the SC that had already ruled exonerating Hubert Webb and all his other co-accused in the case. The apparent motive of De Lima was to hand the tribunal a slap on its face by bringing out the new witnesses against Webb and company after it already ruled to throw out the charges based on one dubious witness Jessica Alfaro, a National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) asset..... MORE Indecisive FRONTLINE Ninez Cacho-Olivares 07/01/2011 Indecisive Noynoy told reporters yesterday that one Cabinet official of his may be sacked if that person does not shape up, but added that the official will be given another assignment. He refused to identify the Cabinet official, saying that he will talk to the official, adding that the official could be transferred to a different agency if several issues are not addressed. One suspects that Noynoy has been forced into saying this, which is clearly an iffy thing, since there are conditions attached to this official’s removal. After his speech saying that he has at least two or three Cabinet members who always bring him the bad news which he said he dreads giving them appointments as he always wonders what bad news these officials will be bringing him, Noynoy received a lot of flak. His mouthpieces tried their hand at damage control, claiming it was all a joke, which brought even more flak. In the end, a mouthpiece came out to say that Noynoy will definitely fire officials who are incompetent, without identifying the officials..... MORE Of padres and padrinos NO HOLDS BARRED Armida Siguion-Reyna 07/01/2011 Of padres and padrinos Armida Siguion-Reyna Juggernaut, a regular blogger on ellentordesillas.com, asks: “so Gloria has corrupted the sc, the pcso, congress, the goccs, military — how are we to recover from this? how many years of reform must be undertaken? will one year be enough, will six years? can we undo in a year what has been done in nine? can we undo with good intentions the damage that has been done with ‘concrete monetary rewards?’” Searching for answers, I came across one of Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office Chairman Margarita Juico’s many recent revelations: Seven bishops received Mitsubishi Pajeros from Gloria Arroyo, presumably in exchange for “cooperating” with her. The cooperation apparently extended to all the way up to now, for the one using a spanking new Mitsubishi Montero Sports just last month demanded P-Noy’s resignation over his “KKK” — kaklase, kaibigan at kabarilan. Almost soon after, guess who put up a press conference and blustered, “Nobody’s home?” Not a coincidence, that. The bishops, identified not only by their past close relationship to Gloria Arroyo, but by their going around in, yes, Pajeros, are staying tightlipped. Those who didn’t get anything are the ones denying receipt of the bounty, and perhaps, this, too, is a ruse. Dedma ang mga nakatanggap, habang maingay sa pagtanggi ang mga walang nakuha..... MORE Impatience C.R.O.S.S.R.O.A.D.S Jonathan De la Cruz 07/01/2011 C.R.O.S.S.R.O.A.D.S Jonathan De la Cruz We can understand why most of those interviewed in the latest Pulse Asia survey (7 out of 10) were more forgiving of P-Noy and his administration than a lot of the pundits and experts in our midst. Not only are we a forgiving people we are also a very patient one. “Que sera, sera” whatever will be, will be remains a favorite among us ordinary folks. Also, in the period before taking over and even in the first month or so of his administration, P-Noy exuded a kind of folksy, forthcoming and trustworthy (Kayo and Boss Ko) air which endeared him to the public. No wang-wang became de rigeur and humility and accountability in public service and even in private transactions were expected to get back in style. Somehow, people believed that P-Noy will not only be a model of honesty and integrity but will be able to handle the demands of his office, carry on and deliver on his promises. And so, when things started to unravel across the board and finger pointing and the “blame game” became an almost daily Palace routine, the public began to take a second look at P-Noy and his crew.... MORE ‘New proof in Vizconde case inadmissible against Webb’ 07/01/2011 ‘New proof in Vizconde case inadmissible against Webb’ The alleged newly discovered evidence being introduced by the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) against Hubert Webb in connection with the Vizconde massacre case cannot be used against him and is “inadmissible” as evidence, a lawyer yesterday told the Tribune. Lawyer Romulo Macalintal said this was not only because of the principle against double jeopardy as Webb and his co-accused had already been acquitted by the Supreme Court (SC). Also, Macalintal stressed, the evidence allegedly belongs under the category of “forgotten evidence” which, according to him, “is not allowed as it defeats the orderly and speedy administration of justice.” Macalintal cited a June 27, 2006 case of “Ombudsman vs Coronel (GR164460)” wherein the court forbade the presentation of such “forgotten evidence.”.... MORE Saudi bans Pinoy OFWs, stops work permits issuance By Michaela P. del Callar 07/01/2011 Saudi bans Pinoy OFWs, stops work permits issuance By Michaela P. del Callar 07/01/2011 Saudi Arabia will stop issuing work permits to Filipino domestic helpers beginning July 2, adding pressure to the Aquino government to provide more jobs at home. Saudi imposed the deployment ban to protest the monthly wage increase from $200 to $400 being sought by the Aquino administration for Filipino maids. Rico Fos, Foreign Affairs Director for Migrant Workers Affairs, said Manila will seek clarification from Saudi regarding the ban, which also includes Indonesia, but noted that it will not back down from negotiations seeking better pay for Filipino maids. “The meeting will be held in July 4 in Riyadh between Philippine and Saudi officials. We hope something positive will come out of that dialog,” Fos said..... MORE Posted by Jesusa Bernardo at 12:32 PM 1 comment Links to this post Ombudsman orders plunder raps filed vs Bolante, Lorenzo By Arlie O Calalo 07/01/2011 Ombudsman orders plunder raps filed vs Bolante, Lorenzo By Arlie O Calalo 07/01/2011 Minutes after denying the motions for reconsderation of former Agricuture Secretary ordered the filing of plunder cases against the two on the P723-million fertilizer fund scam. Casimiro stood firm on his earlier order finding probable cause to indict Lorenzo, Bolante and several other high-ranking officials in connection with the fertilizer fund scam. Aside from the main respondents, incumbent Quezon City Rep. Nanette Castelo-Daza, ex-Rep. and now Marinduque Gov. Carmencita Reyes and former Catanduanes Gov. Leandro Verceles Jr. filed separate motions which were also denied by the anti-graft office. Charges of violation of the provisions of Republic Act 3019 (Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act) were ordered filed against them before the Sandiganbayan, the acting Ombudsman yesterday said..... MORE Senate to probe 2 more alleged anomalous deals By Angie M. Rosales 07/01/2011 Senate to probe 2 more alleged anomalous deals By Angie M. Rosales 07/01/2011 Two other cases of alleged fund misuse during the Arroyo administration are slated to be investigated by the Senate, with one involving the alleged anomalous acquisition of helicopters for the Philippine National Police (PNP)’s elite Special Action Force (SAF) unit amounting to P105 million and a purported irregularity in the use of almost P9 million of Road Users’ Tax. A twin move to probe the said issues is being pursued by Senators Panfilo Lacson and Teofisto “TG” Guingona, following their filing of Resolution Nos. 518 and 520 last Wednesday, it was gathered yesterday. Resolution No. 518 is about the alleged misrepresentation in the acquisition of the Light Police Operational Helicopters (LPOHs) from Manila Aerospace Products Trading Corp. (Maptra) while the other is about irregularities in the Motor Vehicle Users’ Charge (MVUC), also known as the Road Users’ Tax under the past administration. The lawmakers stressed the need to inquire into the use of P8.547 million from the MVUC to a youth “emergency employment program” as these releases “appear to be in violation of Republic Act 3019, otherwise known as the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act because ... all monies collected under RA 8794 should have been earmarked solely and used exclusively for the maintenance and improvement of road drainage, installation of adequate and efficient traffic lights and road safety and air pollution control, and NOT established to address underemployment or drug problems of the youth,” they said in their resolutions..... MORE China says naval drills not linked to sea disputes 07/01/2011 China says naval drills not linked to sea disputes BEIJING — China has said a series of recent naval drills are “routine” and unrelated to simmering tensions in the South China Sea involving a range of nations with competing territorial claims. When asked about the six military exercises staged by the Chinese Navy in June, including a joint drill with Vietnam in the Gulf of Tonkin, defense ministry spokesman Yang Yujun urged the media not to speculate about their purpose. “China hopes all parties will treat the Chinese navy’s normal exercises in an objective and rational way,” the official Xinhua news agency quoted Yang as saying Wednesday. He described the drills as “routine arrangements.” He said China expects all countries involved in the South China Sea disputes to “make the peace and stability of the region a priority and do more to contribute” to that outcome, according to Xinhua..... MORE LFS hits back at AFP, to file charges against CRS chief By Mario J. Mallari 07/01/2011 LFS hits back at AFP, to file charges against CRS chief The militant League of Filipino Students (LFS) yesterday lambasted the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) for identifying the youth group as among the organizations that should be avoided by young students, branding such pronouncements as dangerous and irresponsible. In a statement, LFS chairman Terry Ridon said they are holding AFP-Civil Relations Service (cRs) chief Brig. Gen. Eduardo del Rosario personally liable for deaths of their members in the future. “The bloody intrigue against student activists continues. In fact, it has never been abandoned by the AFP. If our ranks are again felled by bullets for being suspected rebels, Brig. Gen. Eduardo del Rosario shall be personally liable for our deaths,” Ridon said..... MORE Group to bring postponement of ARMM polls to UN court 07/01/2011 Group to bring postponement of ARMM polls to UN court A workers and farmers political group said yesterday it would bring to the United Nations court the postponement of elections in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM), saying the move is “a blatant violation of human rights.” At a forum in Manila, Partido ng Manggagawa at Magsasaka (PMM) president Jose Malvar Villegas Jr. said the postponement of polls in ARMM on Aug. 8 is equivalent to “illegal cancellation of elections” as this denies people their right to choose their leaders. “President Aquino cannot just appoint officials or his allies to take over in ARMM..... MORE RP wasting $30-billion fund DIE HARD III Herman Ti... Indecisive FRONTLINE Ninez Cacho-Olivares 07/01/2... Of padres and padrinos NO HOLDS BARRED Armida Sigu... Impatience C.R.O.S.S.R.O.A.D.S Jonathan De la Cruz... ‘New proof in Vizconde case inadmissible against W... Saudi bans Pinoy OFWs, stops work permits issuance... Ombudsman orders plunder raps filed vs Bolante, Lo... Senate to probe 2 more alleged anomalous deals By ... China says naval drills not linked to sea disputes... LFS hits back at AFP, to file charges against CRS ... Group to bring postponement of ARMM polls to UN co...	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3214
__label__cc	0.592159	0.407841	Last Sunday, in Paris The Case of Ellen Pao A Portrait of Hillary Trevor Noah's Anti-Semitism What Is "Offshore Balancing?" Don't Cry for Obama Clintonian Shamelessness Psychoanalysis on the Rocks Psychiatry and Madness Cultural Trade Offs Malign Neglect Political Correctness Is Making You Sick Which Side Is Obama On? Obama's War Against Israel The Pragmatic Lee Kuan Yew Enjoy Your Privilege Camille Paglia Says American Students Have Minds L... Diplomatic Leadership Coming from France In Favor of "Proper" English The Last Psychoanalyst: An Open Meeting Who's Afraid of Laura Kipnis? The Voice of Reason Is Speaking French Obama's Petulance Toward Netanyahu Israel Repudiates Obama and the New York Times Have We Progressed Beyond Violence? Open Marriage, Modern Style John Kerry Respects Fatwas Another Bad Review for Hillary Maureen Dowd Rides Again Precedented How To Be More Punctual Is Hillary Over? In Praise of Table Manners Hillary the Unready American Anomie The Obama Style of Diplomacy "Deleter of the Free World" Cropped History Advice for Whinos Moral Self-Indulgence Implausible Deniability From Choreplay to Choregasm The Stone Age of Aquarius Talking to a Child About Drugs and Alcohol The Wages of Guilt American Millennials: Too Proud to Compete Proving that Exercise Is Beneficial The Genius of Nancy Pelosi Save the Date: Saturday, March 21 Netanyahu's Moment; Obama's Shame The Case of Ellie Clougherty Laura Kipnis on Rape Culture Netanyahu, Obama, Israel, Iran "Moody Bitches" Egypt Rising As many have noted, America is beset with sociocultural inequality. Income inequality aside, Americans who have graduated from college have far more stable and orderly lives than do those who only finished high school. David Brooks summarizes Robert Putnam’s analysis from his new book, Kids: Roughly 10 percent of the children born to college grads grow up in single-parent households. Nearly 70 percent of children born to high school grads do. There are a bunch of charts that look like open scissors. In the 1960s or 1970s, college-educated and noncollege-educated families behaved roughly the same. But since then, behavior patterns have ever more sharply diverged. High-school-educated parents dine with their children less than college-educated parents, read to them less, talk to them less, take them to church less, encourage them less and spend less time engaging in developmental activity. Brooks says that it is anarchic. I would describe it as a form of social anomie: children do not know who they are, whom they are related to or where they belong. We now have multiple generations of people caught in recurring feedback loops of economic stress and family breakdown, often leading to something approaching an anarchy of the intimate life. Evidently, we are seeing the results of the countercultural revolution, begun during the Vietnam War, sustained by second-wave feminism and the therapy culture. Since these changes date to the 1970s, we are within our rights to see them as resulting from the war. Strangely enough, the people who promoted the counterculture found ways to immunize themselves from its deleterious effects while those less educated and more easily led by the media lived the countercultural dream, fully. For several decades now, America has been under attack. Most especially, it has been under attack from those who abhor societal norms. They have insisted that those who do not conform should not be judged ill. It all began when large segments of the American public decided to attack the soldiers who fought in Vietnam. After all, it was easier to deride the troops than to blame the Kennedy-Johnson administration for the debacle it had unleashed. And yet, once you systematically disrespect those who fight for the country, you undermine the values that they embody—among them, courage, honor, duty, patriotism…. I argued the point at length in my book, Saving Face. Brooks defines the problem clearly. He does not use the word “anomie,” but the word means normlessness or rulelessness: It’s not only money and better policy that are missing in these circles; it’s norms. The health of society is primarily determined by the habits and virtues of its citizens. In many parts of America there are no minimally agreed upon standards for what it means to be a father. There are no basic codes and rules woven into daily life, which people can absorb unconsciously and follow automatically. One understands that the “plague of nonjudgmentalism” was foisted upon us by the therapy culture. One recalls that when Freud came to America a century ago he confided: “They don’t know that we are bringing them the plague.” By now, of course, most therapists happily ignore Freud. They should not be ignoring his cultural influence. One notes that Brooks does not name those who have led the assault on the concept of fatherhood. In Brooks’s words: These norms weren’t destroyed because of people with bad values. They were destroyed by a plague of nonjudgmentalism, which refused to assert that one way of behaving was better than another. People got out of the habit of setting standards or understanding how they were set. If I may demur, ideas can only influence society through the behavior of real people who enact bad values. People imitate what they can envision. In a culture that values celebrity, that insists that people should be free to do as they please, when they please, with whom they please and that reserves its most vicious assaults for those who would dare say that some choices are better than others one is not shocked to see normlessness running amok. Beyond the ideas, we must note the influence of major public figures who behaved irresponsibly and who set a notably bad example. High on the list must be John F. Kennedy and Bill Clinton. Admittedly, Kennedy was far more discreet than Clinton, but the Kennedy family has certainly not set a sterling example of good behavior. In recent days Democrats and Republicans have been horrified to see that Hillary Clinton does not believe that she should be playing by the same rules as everyone else. And, Hillary Clinton, an adored and lionized public figure, a woman many girls emulate, influences the behavior of the masses in ways that even the editorial page of the New York Times will never be able to. Brooks defines the ethical guidelines that determine social harmony and cooperation. While reading them, ask yourself with the Clintons live these principles: Next it will require holding people responsible. People born into the most chaotic situations can still be asked the same questions: Are you living for short-term pleasure or long-term good? Are you living for yourself or for your children? Do you have the freedom of self-control or are you in bondage to your desires? And he adds that we must start holding people responsible for their actions, beginning, in my view with politicians and public figures, but also including celebrities: Next it will require holding everybody responsible. America is obviously not a country in which the less educated are behaving irresponsibly and the more educated are beacons of virtue. America is a country in which privileged people suffer from their own characteristic forms of self-indulgence: the tendency to self-segregate, the comprehensive failures of leadership in government and industry. Social norms need repair up and down the scale, universally, together and all at once. One would question whether the impulse to self-segregate is self-indulgence or self-protection. In New York City, for example, those who can afford to do so will send their children to overpriced private schools. Are they self-segregating or are they doing what is best for their children? And it would also help advance America’s moral revival if our president played by the rules that govern all presidents. It would help if we had a president who did not believe in governing by executive fiat and who did not attempt to exempt large groups of people from the rules that govern American life and American citizenship. Ares Olympus said... Really, why does everything have to be partisan? I don't understand. But maybe we can get back to Brooks and Robert Putnam? Like Brooks says: Reintroducing norms will require, first, a moral vocabulary. These norms weren’t destroyed because of people with bad values. They were destroyed by a plague of nonjudgmentalism, which refused to assert that one way of behaving was better than another. People got out of the habit of setting standards or understanding how they were set. In this regard there's a local nonprofit to Minneapolis called "Search Institute" which looked a "community values" 20 years ago, and had open meetings and each city picked their core values. I remember going to those meetings aroud 1995, although the only visible effect was my sitting put up "Values" signs with our 7 core values listed, with a pretty rainbow! http://www.search-institute.org/about Maybe the schools were more active, and they found 40 "assets" that helped kids succeed: http://www.search-institute.org/content/40-developmental-assets-adolescents-ages-12-18 On a different front for young parents, there's ECFE (Early child and Family Education) in Minnesota where they'd have free daycare for parents, and classes, although its probably 90% women attending. Perhaps it has helped keep Minnesota near top in the nation in many measures? http://education.state.mn.us/MDE/StuSuc/EarlyLearn/ECFE/ Early Childhood Family Education (ECFE) is a program for all Minnesota families with children between the ages of birth to kindergarten entrance. The program is offered through Minnesota public school districts. ECFE is based on the idea that the family provides a child's first and most significant learning environment and parents are a child's first and most important teachers. ECFE works to strengthen families. ECFE's goal is to enhance the ability of all parents and other family members to provide the best possible environment for their child's learning and growth. But what if all these efforts are only half-way there because they help mothers and not fathers? And how do we help people who slide through high school and get some income, and a girlfriend, and poof a family is born? How do we reduce unmarried couples from having kids too young? How do we prevent people from going onto the "easy credit for everything" debt escalator which guarantees short term pleasure for long term pain? Can we dare set limits on access to high interest credit cards to poor people? Can we dare eliminate pay day loan companies that exploit poor people? Can we dare set limits on the size of our softdrinks without the libertarians crying out against tyrany? Can we dare support mass transit so not every person over the age of 16 needs their own car to survive modern life? Can we dare declare Sunday as a day of rest, and allow employees the freedom to refuse to work on Sundays? There's lots of ideas, but with every single one of them, someone is going to say "But I want my freedom" and once you allow all the loopholes for personal freedom, we're back to a free-for-all where discipline is a daily chore of willpower for every citizen, and the devil shouting in every ear "Oh, you deserve it." and on and on... Is Brooks renouncing progressivism? Kinda sorrta sounds that way. Sam L, David Brooks has long been writing against the limits of moral relativism, for at least the last 10 years, at least looking for some sort of balancing tensions to avoid all fundamentalisms... http://www.nytimes.com/2005/03/26/opinion/26brooks.html The central weakness of the liberal case is that it is morally thin. Once you say that it is up to individuals or families to draw their own lines separating life from existence, and reasonable people will differ, then you are taking a fundamental issue out of the realm of morality and into the realm of relativism and mere taste. You are saying, as liberals do say, that society should be neutral and allow people to make their own choices. You are saying, as liberals do say, that we should be tolerant and nonjudgmental toward people who make different choices. What begins as an appealing notion - that life and death are joined by a continuum - becomes vapid mush, because we are all invited to punt when it comes time to do the hard job of standing up for common principles, arguing right and wrong, and judging those who make bad decisions. You end up exactly where many liberals ended up this week, trying to shift arguments away from morality and on to process. Then, if social conservatives tried to push their moral claims, you'd find liberals accusing them of turning this country into a theocracy - which is an effort to cast all moral arguments beyond the realm of polite conversation. Once moral argument is abandoned, there are no ethical checks, no universal standards, and everything is left to the convenience and sentiments of the individual survivors. What I'm describing here is the clash of two serious but flawed arguments. The socially conservative argument has tremendous moral force, but doesn't accord with the reality we see when we walk through a hospice. The socially liberal argument is pragmatic, but lacks moral force. Dennis said... I have to admit that I revel in Ares "digging rhetorical holes" for himself. If politics was not a major factor then a significant part of his commentary lacks any reason to be stated. "Ergo it does not follow." p.s. Dennis, there's a difference between partisanship and politics. Partisanship is spin and posturing to distort the facts. Politics is honest discussions in the facts where you assume not all virtue is on "your side", and all vice, on the other side. Here's a related commentary, a book by Isabel V. Sawhill called "Generation Unbound: Drifting into Sex & Parenthood without Marriage" and a related talk. I suppose family planning is a liberal plot to destroy America, but if it isn't there's probably something worth talking about here. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OH9pXuE6L4g http://www.amazon.com/Generation-Unbound-Drifting-Parenthood-Marriage/dp/081572635X/ref=sr_1_1 Over half of all births to young adults in the United States now occur outside of marriage, and many are unplanned. The result is increased poverty and inequality for children. The left argues for more social support for unmarried parents; the right argues for a return to traditional marriage. In Generation Unbound, Isabel V. Sawhill offers a third approach: change "drifters" into "planners." In a well-written and accessible survey of the impact of family structure on child well-being, Sawhill contrasts "planners," who are delaying parenthood until after they marry, with "drifters," who are having unplanned children early and outside of marriage. These two distinct patterns are contributing to an emerging class divide and threatening social mobility in the United States. "Politics is honest discussions in the facts where you assume not all virtue is on "your side", and all vice, on the other side." I'm not seeing that from the Dems. And especially not from The Won. Breaking things is easy. Building (or re-building) them is hard. The old ways (40s & 50s) were cruel for many (blacks, gays, vulnerable children). But we could have fixed, not broken them. And just who is "we" kemo sabe? Not most of us. 97% of us drafted in VN era, reported for duty. We don't rule, legislate, or make laws or change social mores or destroy millions of jobs or guard the border. I talked to an old teacher at Grayslake High. She's retired, but volunteers. Good school, good teachers when I graduated in 64. She said, "You kids wanted to learn. Most kids now don't". How do you re-build that? I'm getting v pessimistic. Stuart! I'm shocked! "discrete"??? -- Rich Lara	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3216
__label__cc	0.660743	0.339257	Summit County Engineer's Office Today's Engineer About Summit County County Maintained Items Media Advisory (Traffic Alerts) MBBC GIS and Drafting Storm Water Management Program Canton Road Cleveland-Massillon Road Hazel Street Northampton Road Ravenna Road Rothrock Road Van Buren Road How Do Potholes Form? Resources - Learning Library Why do they always happen in the spring? Potholes are holes in the roadway that vary in size and shape. They are caused by the expansion and contraction of ground water after the water has entered into the ground under the pavement. When water freezes, it expands. Think of when ice cubes are made. A tray full of water is put into the freezer, and when you remove the tray from the freezer, you will notice the water has expanded. This same effect happens when water gets into the ground under the pavement. If it has a chance to freeze, it will take up more space under the pavement, and the pavement will expand, bend, and crack, which weakens the material pavement. Then when ice melts, the pavement contracts and leaves gaps or voids in the surface under the pavement, where water can get in and be trapped. If the water freezes and thaws over and over, the pavement will weaken and continue cracking. As the weight of cars and trucks pass over the weak spot in the road, pieces of the roadway material weaken, which will cause the material to be displaced or broken down from the weight, creating the pothole. What happens when salt is brought into the picture? Water will freeze at 32 degrees Fahrenheit. When salt is used, it lowers the temperature that water will freeze. This creates an artificial freeze-thaw cycle that permits more occurrences of the damaging cycle to occur. This happens more often in the spring because of the melting that takes place and because the temperatures fluctuating above and below the freezing point very frequently. How Potholes Form Rainwater sinks through cracks in old or weakened asphalt. The water is soaked up by the mixture of rock, gravel, and sand that supports the road. Vehicles passing over the road force water through the soggy roadbed, eventually eroding parts of it. Asphalt sinks into the eroded portions of the roadbed and eventually cracks under the continued impact of vehicle tires. Chunks come loose. Holes may be patched with proprietary cold patch or hot patch materials. For instructions on how to report a pothole, click here. Last Updated on Thursday, 29 October 2009 11:27 » Summit County Ditches The responsibility for the maintenance and improvement of drains, ditches, and watercourses, whether established county ditches or not, rests entirely upon the land owners affected and benefited. It is not the obligation of the County Engineer to... » A pothole or other roadway defects? Potholes are holes in the roadway that vary in size and shape. They are caused by the expansion and contraction of ground water after the water has entered into the ground under the pavement. When water freezes, it expands. for more... Follow @summitengineer 2019 Pavement Maintenance Program Wright Road Bridge Replacement Portage Lakes Drive Resurfacing Medina Line Road Resurfacing Boston Mills Road Resurfacing - Phase 2 MEDIA ADVISORY: Longacre Drive Roadwork Joint Statement on Kungle Road MEDIA ADVISORY: West Bath Road Bridge Closure PUBLIC NOTICE: Wright Road Bridge Replacement 2019 Township Dinner Presentation Copyright © 2019 Summit County Engineer's Office. All Rights Reserved. 538 E. South Street, Akron, OH 44311 Phone: (330) 643-2850 Fax: (330) 762-7829	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3218
__label__cc	0.732636	0.267364	Tag: Sheldon Mitchell Steampunk Fridays – The Gilded Age Interviews By John McGuire art, comics, Crowdfunding, interview Check out John McGuire’s The Gilded Age steampunk graphic novel on Kickstarter! I knew around this time last year that at some point during 2017 I would need to run a Kickstarter for The Gilded Age. There was too much printing needing to be done. Too much trying to figure out how to spread the word on the book. I’ve said over and over comics are the most collaborative thing I am involved with. Which meant that I had any number of people who I could interview who I directly worked with. Maybe take a minute or two to showcase them a little bit (and let me get to know them as more than maybe a Facebook page or an email address!). Here are the people who brought The Gilded Age to life: Behind the Artist – Interview with La’Vata O’Neal Behind the Artist – Interview with Nimesh Morarji Part 1 Behind the Artist – Interview with Sean Hill Part 1 Behind the Artist – Interview with Antonio Brandao I’m still trying to get the rest to answer the long list of questions I had for them. I’ll update this post as I get them. John McGuire is the creator/author of the steampunk comic The Gilded Age. Want to read the first issue for free? Click here! Already read it and eager for more? Click here to join John’s mailing list. His prose appears in The Dark That Follows, Theft & Therapy, There’s Something About Mac, Hollow Empire, Beyond the Gate, and Machina Obscurum – A Collection of Small Shadows. He can also be found at www.johnrmcguire.com. Tagged Antonio Brandao, Interviews, John McGuire, khari sampson, Kickstarter, La'Vata O'Neil, Nimesh m, Rich Perotta, Sheldon Mitchell, Steampunk, Steampunk Fridays, The Gilded Age, Tom Chu Kickstart the Comic – Gilded Age: Vol 1 – A Steampunk Graphic Novel By John McGuire art, comics, Crowdfunding, Reviews As I wrote last week, this Kickstarter has been a long time coming for me. There have been many late nights struggling over scripts or waiting for edits or all those moments receiving a new piece of artwork – it has built to this.I’m hopeful this is the next step in being able to tell stories within the comic book medium. I love writing about these characters. I’m hopeful this is the next step in being able to tell more stories about them. And I’m looking forward to meeting the other members of The Gilded Age who have not appeared yet. From Terminus Media John McGuire – Writer Sheldon Mitchell – Artist António Brandão – Artist Sean Hill – Artist Rich Perotta – Inker Tom Chu – Colors Nimesh Morarji – Colors Lavata O’Neal – Graphic Novel Cover Artist Khari Sampson – Letterer/Copy Editor Kickstarter campaign ends on Friday, November 17, 2017 at 11:59 PM EDT. We are raising funds primarily to get the Graphic Novel, The Gilded Age Vol. 1, printed. 100 pages collecting the first four issues of the comic book. The Gilded Age is about a group of performers, the Branning Troupe. Half actors and half carnival folk, the group travels throughout the countries of Victorian Era Europe. For some it offers a direction to their lives, others get the adoration of the crowds, and the rest find simple refuge from a world which has cast them out. Each story would be done-in-one. They would tell stories that could be enjoyed by anyone picking up a random issue. The issues would have overlapping characters, but by and large, each issue would focus on one or a pair of characters. The key would be that I was slowly building up my world. And making the readers care about various characters by giving each the screen time they deserved. And by doing this I allowed for different types of stories within the same world. Whether that is Western or Horror or a Heist or something Fantastical, the hope has always been to build the world from the character’s eyes rather than try and hit you with one thousand years of history. The Gilded Age – Issue #2 – Page 12 – Pencils – Sheldon Mitchell – Inks -Rich Perotta – Colors – Thomas Chu John’s Thoughts: Comics have always been this way to connect with stories. Even before I was a “book reader”, I devoured comics. As the years went by, that never changed. I’m sure many of you have that same thing where you just can’t get something out of your system. Whether it is the collaborations or the characters or the universes or the ability to tell a story with a limitless visual budget or a way to connect to a younger version of myself… I think it is all those things and a thousand others. I think it is about someone holding something your brain thought up and thinking – “Hey, that was pretty cool.” However, the path of the indy comic creator is full of potholes. Money runs out, print runs don’t happen, and you’re constantly torn between this odd thing of people devaluing your work (“It costs how much!?!”). This Kickstarter will help push the comic to a place where it can start funding itself… hopefully into an issue 5 and 6 and 7 and… The Gilded Age – Issue #3 – Page 5- Art – Antonio Brandao – Colors – Nimesh Morarji The Rewards: The Kickstarter is for the first trade of the series which collects issues 1 through 4. There are the options to get either a pdf or the print version sent to you. At the $40 level there is a chance to get the anthologies Terminus put out in the past. At the $60 level there is an opportunity to not only get Gilded Age but also Route 3 (if you missed that Kickstarter). If being drawn as one of the Gilded Age Carnival Folk is more your style, there is an opportunity to do just that at the $300 level. Obviously, you should give this one a try, but I might be biased about such things (might). Seriously though – so many comic book Kickstarters are looking for funds to even come into being. That is a different kind of crapshoot as you can never be 100% sure the book is going to be completed. This is a FINISHED trade. All this money is going to print costs just so that I can get this out there and into people’s hands. The Gilded Age – Issue #4 – Page 4 – Art – Sean Hill – Colors – Nimesh Morarji I’d like to thank you in advance for checking the project out! For more information on The Gilded Age, check out the Facebook here. If you’d like to know more about the rest of Terminus Media’s comics, check out their Facebook here. John McGuire is the creator/author of the steampunk comic The Gilded Age which is currently LIVE on Kickstarter! Want to read the first issue for free? Click here! Already read it and eager for more? Click here to join John’s mailing list to keep up with all things Gilded Age. Tagged Antonio Brandao, John McGuire, khari sampson, Kickstart the Comic, Kickstarter, Lavata O'Neal, Nimesh Morarji, Rich Perotta, Sean Hill, Sheldon Mitchell, Terminus Media, The Gilded Age, Tom Chu 3 Comic Kickstarters You Need To Back – Niobe, Untold, and Grond By Egg Embry comics, Crowdfunding, Fantasy Demons, orcs, half-orcs, and a half-elf. Kickstarter offers some of the best fantasy and horror comic book options. This week, I’m counting down three winning comic book Kickstarters. 3) GROND “Oublar’s Revenge” Book Three by Midcity Comics Ends by Monday, June 26 2017 3:10 PM EDT . “Grond is now Kallok. Obberoth is dead. Valara’s fate is decided by Ugreth. Oublar is close to getting what he desires, being Mok’Dar. BOOK THREE : PRESENT DAY Obberoth is dead! A peaceful gift for a king turns out to be the death of him. Valara has been accused for the death of Obberoth and is outraged and is now fighting for her life. Oublar demands Taurok, Juug’la of the clan to hold a clan trial for the sentencing of Valara. Oublar’s plan has now been set in motion. Only Mok’dar can grant her freedom. But the oath of Rom’gara has been broken, and the punishment for that is DEATH. Grond is shocked to see what is about to happen next.” FUNDED AND WORKING ON STRETCH GOALS. Full Disclosure: I’m co-writing a comic set in the Grond-verse for Midcity Comics. Do you have enough orcs in your life? No. No, you don’t. If you break out D&D or Pathfinder or Shadowrun or any tabletop RPG on the weekends, chances are you’re looking for more orcs in your day-to-day. Michael Phillips has you covered with the Grond series! A half-orc fighting his orc family! Orc-errific! Grond is a half-orc and the son of a prince searching for acceptance among his orc brethren. Since these are orcs, they either accept him or plan to gnaw on his bones. Fortunately for the reader, they opt for bones and we get to enjoy the fights! This is a story of political intrigue, murder, and revenge. I’ve mentioned Grond several times over the course of its campaign. I’m excited about the book! The stories are from the orc point-of-view… No one but Michael Phillips would do that. For his part, Michael embraces the world and the orc culture. It reflects in the brutality of his work. This Kickstarter offers Grond #3 as well as the option to get Grond 1 to 3 and other Midcity Comics goodies. Michael’s completed ten Kickstarters, so this campaign and the production cycle are a science. Check out the Kickstarter here – GROND “Oublar’s Revenge” Book Three 2) NIOBE: She is Life Hardcover & She is Death #1 Comic Book by Stranger Comics Ends by Sunday, June 25 2017 3:01 AM EDT . “”With a world divided, who do you turn to?” Niobe by Sebastian Jones, Amandla Stenberg, Ashley Woods, Sheldon Mitchell, & Darrell May. NIOBE: She is Life and Death Campaign: Get an oversized special Kickstarter Exclusive edition hardcover collection of NIOBE: SHE IS LIFE with 32 pages of extra material not contained in the retail edition paperback and a Kickstarter Exclusive version of the first issue of the sequel NIOBE: SHE IS DEATH by Jones, Stenberg, May and new artist Sheldon Mitchell. Be the first to read the book well before its in-store release next year. While first introduced in The Untamed, Niobe’s solo story begins years later with the character as a teenager. A child of prophecy is on the road to fulfilling her destiny… Niobe: She is Life. Between two warring nations, in the heart of Western Ujoa, there is a haven to those who have lost their way. Some say you can rebuild your mind and spirit upon the mountains of Ugoma. For a Half-Elven (Sin-Galemren) girl with off-colored eyes, it is a chance to flee a dark past, and rest safely within the secret monatery of her ancestors. But you cannot run from destiny, or hide from the Devil. Set within the original fantasy world of Asunda, Niobe: She is Life is a coming of age Beauty and the Beast love story threaded with murder and mystery that leads to all out war. And the upcoming sequel… She is Death. Niobe: She is Death is a tale of hard truths and revelations for a young woman who is tired of running. Niobe has lost her faith – in humanity and the world around her. In the sequel to Niobe: She is Life, we will witness Niobe’s journey from heartbroken teenager to warrior woman, set to take on a world that would see her dead. Narrowly escaping a violent prison death, she learns that girls like her are being abducted. But the hunted becomes the hunter when she allies herself with a savage mentor who teaches her how to take vengeance on those who prey on the helpless – by being a bounty hunter herself. Niobe: She is Life #4 – Ashley Woods Cover Niobe will hunt down and capture human traffickers, rescuing the victims for the families who seek her help. But each step takes her further down the path toward a destiny she did not ask for and a burden she does not want. Written by Sebastian A. Jones (The Untamed, Dusu) & Amandla Stenberg (Everything, Everything, Hunger Games) Layouts and Concepts by Darrell May (The Untamed, Dusu) She is Life: Illustrated by Ashley A. Woods (Lady Castle, Millennia War) She is Death: Illustrated by Sheldon Mitchell (Cable, The Darkness, Vampire Hunter D)” FUNDED AND DESTROYING STRETCH GOALS. Niobe: She is Life is a beautifully illustrated graphic novel. Not enough good can be said about this project. The production values are second to none at Stranger Comics. Their books aren’t just comics, they’re art books. The art. Ashley A. Woods: She [well, her art] is Life. What first pulled me into Niobe is Ashley’s visuals. Her designs captivate the reader even as they capture the spirit of the scripts she works from. The work she does as she weaves the world of Niobe into a visual cornucopia is staggering – it’s bright, beautiful, alien, familiar, and wonderful. For Niobe, Ashley’s work set the stage and made this a comic worth hunting down. But, don’t take my word for it, at the end of this article, I have several pages from Niobe featuring Ashley’s work. The praise for the art is no slight to the work of Sebastian A. Jones, Amandla Stenberg, Darrell May, or Sheldon Mitchell. All of them bring their AAA games to the table. I cannot wait to have this book in my hands to take in all of the design elements poured into each page. The campaign has several other graphic novels from the same universe available.For the RPG side of my life, it also has the Niobe Pathfinder book as an add-on. “Want to play in Niobe’s world? Pathfinder is making a 32 page supplement book for Niobe, allowing fans their first opportunity to game in Asunda.” Comics and RPGs? Perfect for lil’ Egg Embry! Check out the Kickstarter here – NIOBE: She is Life Hardcover & She is Death #1 Comic Book Untold – Karl Jones Variant Cover 1) Untold #1 and #2 by Daniel Farrand Ends by Friday, June 23 2017 5:00 AM EDT . “Untold is a horror comic series that combines psychological unrest, with striking visual gore, to create a truly terrifying experience. Through a series of dark and twisted visions shown to her by a disfigured demon. Alice must attempt to separate fact from fiction, and unravel the truth behind her Grandpa’s decade long stay in the UK’s most notorious insane asylum. After a short lived reunion with her beloved grandpa, Alice finds herself confronted by the grotesque demon, Daisy, and is soon plummeted into a dark, and twisted vision. Issue #2 will introduce The Dark Figure, who we briefly saw in issue #1, as we delve deeper into his world, and discover exactly what he is capable of. Untold #1 (28 page) was successfully funded in 2016, thanks to the amazing support from 146 backers. We are offering anybody who may have missed out first time round, an opportunity to grab a copy of issue #1 within this Kickstarter. Untold #2 (22 page) is the latest installment within the Untold series.” Cut off your nose to spite your face? With a demon, would that be for spite or for Clive Barker reasons? Untold’s monster is a demon child without a nose named Daisy. Two issues – one in the can, one to be created using funds from this Kickstarter – of demons and asylums are available from this campaign.While a comic book project, this series has the feel that horror RPGs strive for. Creator Daniel Farrand presents a horror world of dark visuals and scares. Backing this campaign offers the option to get both issues for a deeper inspection of the world he’s crafting. Check out the Kickstarter here – Untold #1 and #2 Because I love tabletop RPG games and Kickstarters let me add a bonus to the list: The S’rulyan Vault II Map at the Gaming Table The S’rulyan Vault II by Kort’thalis Publishing Ends on Thursday, June 22 2017 10:46 AM EDT. “This project is a file/PDF for a high-resolution, printable map in both old school module blue and white, as well as, parchment color.” Example Map from the S’rulyan Vault II Check out the Kickstarter here – The S’rulyan Vault II. Examples of Ashley A Wood’s Niobe: She is Life art: Niobe Example Pages by Ashley A. Woods Wanna-lancer™ Checklist T-shirt available at Cafepress Interested in being a wanna-lancer? Start with the official Wanna-lancer Checklist t-shirt or wall clock or ice tea glass! Egg Embry wrote comic book short stories, edited comic book series, wrote and drew a webcomic, and contributed to comic book journalism across the 2000s. Now, he buys the opportunity to write for a variety of tabletop role-playing games in the tradition of vanity press. His purchases have been published by: Sasquatch Game Studio’s Primeval Thule for 5e available at DriveThruRPG.com – Writer Ember Design Studios’ Yrisa’s Nightmare for 5e and Pathfinder available at DriveThurRPG.com – Writer Ember Design Studios’ Rats in the Street for 5e and Pathfinder available at DriveThurRPG.com – Writer & Artist Kobold Press’ Tome of Beasts for 5e available at KoboldPress.com – Playtester Kobold Press’ Deep Magic 9: Ring Magic (5e) available at KoboldPress.com – Playtester EN World’ Gaming at the Kids’ Table Column – Journalist Total Party Kill Games’ Slaughter at Splinterfang Gorge – Writer Total Party Kill Games’ Fifth Edition Fighter Folio – Writer MidCity Comics’ Soon-to-be-Announced Comic Book Mini-Series – Writer Tagged Amandla Stenberg, Ashley A. Woods, Daniel Farrand, Grond, Kickstarter, Michael Phillips, Midcity Comics, Niobe, pathfinder, Sebastian A. Jones, She is Death, She is Life, Sheldon Mitchell, The S’rulyan Vault II, Untold, Venger As'Nas Satanis	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3225
__label__wiki	0.952721	0.952721	From The TV IV Premiere September 21, 1993 Finale March 1, 2005 Creator Steven Bochco & David Milch Style 60-minute crime drama Company Steven Bochco Productions Episodes 261 Origin USA NYPD Blue is a crime drama that aired on ABC. A ground-breaking show created by Steven Bochco and David Milch, it gained a devoted following and ran for 12 seasons, finally being axed in March 2005. However, before its launch in September 1993, it attracted much controversy because of reports that it would contain scenes of nudity and profanity on a scale not previously seen on American network television. A number of affiliated stations refused to run the opening episodes because of opposition from campaigners, but, when the programme proved to be a top 20 hit, most stations and advertisers ended their opposition. The show went on to win a whole string of awards, including Emmys and Golden Globes. Set in Manhattan's fictional 15th precinct, the series featured an ensemble cast and interwoven storylines in each episode. Dennis Franz starred throughout as veteran Det. Andy Sipowicz, teamed with a succession of younger partners, played in turn by David Caruso, Jimmy Smits, Rick Schroder and Mark-Paul Gosselaar. 3 In-Depth 4 DVD Releases 5 External Sites David Caruso Det. John Kelly 1 2 Jimmy Smits Det. Bobby Simone 2 3 4 5 6 12 Dennis Franz Det./Sgt. Andy Sipowicz 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Rick Schroder Det. Danny Sorenson 6 7 8 Mark-Paul Gosselaar Det. John Clark, Jr. 9 10 11 12 James McDaniel Lt./Capt. Arthur Fancy 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Sherry Stringfield ADA Laura Michaels Kelly 1 Amy Brenneman P.O. Janice Licalsi 1 2 Nicholas Turturro P.O./Det./Sgt. James Martinez 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Sharon Lawrence ADA Sylvia Costas 1 2 3 4 5 6 Gordon Clapp Det. Greg Medavoy 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Gail O'Grady PAA Donna Abandando 1 2 3 6 Justine Miceli Det. Adrianne Lesniak 2 3 Kim Delaney Det. Diane Russell 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 10 11 Andrea Thompson Det. Jill Kirkendall 4 5 6 7 Bill Brochtrup PAA John Irvin 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Henry Simmons Det. Baldwin Jones 7 8 9 10 11 12 Garcelle Beauvais-Nilon ADA Valerie Heywood 8 9 10 11 Charlotte Ross Det. Connie McDowell 8 9 10 11 Esai Morales Lt. Tony Rodriguez 8 9 10 11 Jacqueline Obradors Det. Rita Ortiz 9 10 11 12 John F. O'Donohue Det./Sgt. Eddie Gibson 7 8 9 10 11 Currie Graham Lt. Thomas Bale 12 Bonnie Somerville Det. Laura Murphy 12 Season numbers in red indicate a recurring or guest role in that season. Supporting/Recurring Cast Michael Sabatino P.O. Martelli 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Vincent Guastaferro Sgt. Vincent Agostini 1 2 3 4 Daniel Benzali James Sinclair, Esq. 1 2 6 11 Scott Allan Campbell IAB Sgt. Jerry Martens 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Billy Concha P.O. Miller 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 James McBride P.O. Mike Shannon 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Carmine Caridi Det. Vince Gotelli 2 3 4 5 6 James Eugene Davis P.O. Hutchison 2 3 4 8 9 10 11 12 Ray Latulipe Det. Josh Astrachan 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Michael Buchman Silver ADA Leo Cohen 3 4 5 6 8 11 Debra Monk Katie Sipowicz 3 6 7 8 Philip Angelotti P.O. Johnson 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Michael Echols P.O. Lowen 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Henry Murph Det. "Hank" Harold 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Joe Sabatino P.O. Mackey 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Lourdes Benedicto PAA Gina Colon Martinez 4 5 7 Anthony Mangano P.O. Ed Laughlin 5 6 7 9 10 Lola Glaudini PAA Dolores Mayo 5 6 Austin Majors Theo Sipowicz 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Sheeri Rappaport P.O. Mary Franco 7 8 Joe Spano Det. John Clark, Sr. 9 10 Chandra West Dr. Jennifer Devlin 10 11 Season One September 21, 1993 May 17, 1994 22 Season Two October 11, 1994 May 23, 1995 22 Season Three October 24, 1995 May 21, 1996 22 Season Four October 15, 1996 May 20, 1997 22 Season Five September 30, 1997 May 19, 1998 22 Season Six October 20, 1998 May 25, 1999 22 Season Seven January 11, 2000 May 23, 2000 22 Season Eight January 9, 2001 May 22, 2001 20 Season Nine November 6, 2001 May 21, 2002 23 Season Ten September 24, 2002 May 20, 2003 22 Season Eleven September 23, 2003 May 11, 2004 22 Season Twelve September 21, 2004 March 1, 2005 20 At a Glance: Additional information about the series Season Sets Season 1 March 18, 2003 6 Season 2 August 19, 2003 6 Season 3 February 21, 2006 4 Season 4 June 20, 2006 4 Season 5 January 21, 2014 6 Season 7 September 30, 2014 6 NYPD Blue Episodes, TV Listings, News, Photos and More at TVGuide.com Retrieved from "http://tviv.org/w/index.php?title=NYPD_Blue&oldid=2520408" Steven Bochco Productions 1993 Premieres 2005 Finales Emmy Award winner Golden Globe Award winner Programming grids iTunes TV Shows Amazon TV Shows on DVD/Blu-ray Amazon Instant Video TV Content is available under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 2.5 License. About The TV IV Wiki	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3231
__label__cc	0.664473	0.335527	Weekend TV Six-Pack – College Football Conference Championships, NFL And More Weekend Preview For All The Games Get the pizza guy on speed dial and leave him a key for your front door. You are not removing your heiner from the recliner this weekend. This... Weekend Of Sports Review – Rams The Lone NFL Unbeaten Team, College Football, MLB & More Sports News Starting With The Latest From The NFL The Los Angeles Rams escaped Denver on Sunday with a 23-20 victory that left them 6-0 and the NFL’s lone unbeaten team. The Kansas City... Weekend TV Six-Pack – Baseball Playoffs, College Football, NFL, & More Get Ready For The Weekend With Sports Preview This is what we like – meat and potatoes sports. Baseball and football. The National League Championship Series will get your weekend off to a sitting... Weekend In Review – Baseball Season Gets Longer, As Do NFL Games, Plus Golf And More Recapping The Weekend Of Sports Starting With MLB News Baseball’s interminable 162-game season just got longer. Because of ties in the National League’s Central and West divisions, there will be two playoff games on... Weekend TV Six-Pack – Ryder Cup Golf, College Football, NFL And More Getting Ready For The Weekend Of Action-Packed Sports The Ryder Cup got underway Friday just outside of Paris, France, and it is a compelling event from start to finish. That’s not always the way... Weekend In Review – Tiger Wins Tour Championship, Football Recap & More Tiger On Top With PGA Championship Win Four back surgeries and a rash of personal problems faded away on Sunday as Tiger Woods won the PGA Tour Championship at East Lake in Atlanta, marking... Monica Lewinsky Gives Funny Response To “Worst Career Advice You’ve…	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3233
__label__wiki	0.588434	0.588434	UCDW Our history John Parete, Ulster County Democratic Committee Chair, introduces the Ulster County Democratic Women, 2005. On April 17, 2005, ten women from around the county gathered at the Boiceville Inn and decided to reconstitute the old Ulster County Democratic Women’s Club–moribund since the 80s. In attendance were March Gallagher, Saugerties; Otia Lee, Shandaken; Joan Authenreith, Saugerties; Allison Lee, Hurley; Meryl Kramer-Harrison, Olive; Patti Candelari, Denning; Doris Bartlett, Shandaken; Joy Schluter, Hardenburgh; Janet Klugiewics, Shandaken; and Julie McQuain, Hardenburgh. All attendees were personally invited by the Ulster County Democratic Party Chairman John Parete. Chairman Parete addressed the assembly about the important role the new group would play in Ulster County politics and that the President or Chair would be an Executive Committee member at the County level, serving with the Town Chairs. He indicated his hope that this group would help move the County Democratic Party to be more party-driven in its endorsement of candidates. The Chairman also indicated that this should be a group not only of professional women, “elites” as he said, but that we should also reach out to young moms, “soccer moms,” pink and blue collar Democrats. Then the Chairman closed the door and left the assemblage to their discussion. At subsequent organizing meetings the evolving group was joined by Margaret Armento-McDowell, Gardiner; and Susanne Herl, Town of Kingston. Through discussions a consensus emerged to reconstitute the old Club. No bylaws from the old Club were discovered, so the Organizing Committee formulated them under the leadership of attorney March Gallagher, using bylaws from the Orange County and Dutchess County women’s groups as a template for the new bylaws. Through group discussions it became clear that an independent voice for women and their issues was missing in Ulster county. The group surmised in order to be truly independent they could not be dictated to by committee or by checkbook. On July 19, 2005, a powerful voice was created as UCDW held its Inaugural Meeting, attended by over 70 people and the press (press links below). Founding members were surprised and pleased to be presented with the minutes from the original Club by its last Secretary, Anne Cardinale. Some 40 new members, and even more interested friends of UCDW, discussed and identified local, county, state and national issues of greatest concern to them. On August 5, 2005, Congressman Maurice Hinchey attended a UCDW fundraiser at Le Canard Enchaine in Kingston with over 120 guests that generated a line down the block, a great deal of excitement and gave a boost to the campaign for Ulster County Legislature and Family Court Judge. The money raised allowed UCDW to make important contributions to the campaigns, and the boost in excitement galvanized Democrats. We knew we could win! September, October and November 2005 UCDW hosted a Leadership Development brunch for women candidates featuring Legislator Jeanette Provenzano and former Supervisor Bea Havranek; a breakfast for Silda Spitzer; outreach events in Legislative Districts 1 and 2; co-sponsored the enormous Hillary Clinton luncheon at Mohonk; the Annual Dinner with State Committee Chair Denny Farrell and the Democrats took the majority in the Ulster County Legislature! UCDW members are proud of the many accomplishments since those first heady days. With your help we will continue to grow our membership, contribute to the advancement of our Party, develop more women leaders and elect Democrats to office up and down the ballot. Democratic women should be seen AND HEARD. Join us. Read our Bylaws. Read Kingston Freeman press on the formation of UCDW by Hugh Reynolds 2005. Read Kingston Times Article on UCDW Inaugural meeting.	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3235
__label__cc	0.652262	0.347738	Category: Let’s Take Five (page 1 of 16) About the Let’s Take Five Podcast April 28, 2016 / ImmortalAustin / 0 Comments Throughout the history of cinema, some of the greatest stars have accomplished incredible feats in their field. Let’s Take Five is a podcast to highlight them and take five of their films to show their range and accomplishments. Every Friday, Austin Lugar and Eric Martindale will review one of those films to receive a better understanding about what makes them so great. Our current topic is John Ford and his Five are… 1 ) Stagecoach 2 ) The Grapes of Wrath 3 ) My Darling Clementine 4 ) The Searchers 5 ) The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance You can subscribe to the show on iTunes, Downcast or however you listen to podcasts. Or you can listen here every week and give your comments on the topics they talk about. We love to hear your feedback. Let’s Take Five Finale In which Austin and Eric end the podcast… Episode #130 — There Will Be Blood Grab your milkshakes before they’re gone, it’s the final movie review of Let’s Take Five. The guys dive into the Paul Thomas Anderson Oscar winning film, There Will Be Blood. They look into the complexity of the character of Daniel Plainview, the themes of duplicity and the films long-lasting impact on pop culture. Get excited! Episode #129 — The Royal Tenenbaums “All my life I wanted to review The Royal Tenenbaums.” Eric and Austin break down one of Eric’s favorite films–and favorite films to quote. It is the story of a father who abandoned his family and left them all emotionally stunted geniuses. The guys break down how this film features some of the best performances by its cast (included Gene Hackman), the particular qualities of the set design and its use of music. Episode #128 — The Last Temptation of Christ As we get closer to Easter, the guys look back at one of the great films by Martin Scorsese and his most controversial. The Last Temptation of Christ tells the story of the last days of Jesus as he embraces his destiny to die on the cross while dealing with the mortal fears and doubts. The guys talk about the powerful titular temptation, Willem Dafoe’s humanistic portrayal of a god and how Scorsese’s background inspires the types of stories he wants to tell. Episode #127 — Die Hard March 26, 2019 / ImmortalAustin / 0 Comments This publicity photo released by Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment shows Bruce Willis in a scene from the 1988 film, “Die Hard.” The “Die Hard” 25th Anniversary Collection Blu-ray released on Jan. 25, 2013. (AP Photo/Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment) Since the guys never did a Christmas Movies Five, they had to use these final episodes to dive into the holiday classic, Die Hard. They are joined by a big action movie fan, Adam Lord! They dive into what makes this movie move so quickly, the durability of its hero and why Ellis may be a secret MVP. Episode #126 — Amadeus Podcasts are like notes, you can never have too many of them. That’s what Eric and Austin learn as they rewatch one of their favorite epics, Amadeus. They dive into what makes the rivalry matter so much between these classic composers, how the movie differs from the theatrical version and how the director was able to make this a movie for everyone, not just classical music experts. Episode #125 — The Good, The Bad and The Ugly March 8, 2019 / ImmortalAustin / 0 Comments With a premise like this and a title like that, there’s no way the two guys could cover this movie by themselves. So they are joined by Eric’s brother Ray Martindale (The Good). Ray brings his editing background to talk about what Sergio Leone was able to accomplish in tension and tone. Eric (The Bad) dives into why these characters are so iconic and why the finished product is one of the best westerns on film. And Austin (The Ugly) says some bullshit about how maybe Angel Eyes is like Don Draper. Enjoy! Episode #124 — The Seventh Seal It should be no surprise that the podcast is ending. Death has been our companion for sometime. In the Ingmar Bergman classic The Seventh Seal, Death appears in front of a knight from the Crusade, ready to take him to whatever is next. Instead the knight challenges Death to a game of chess and during that time they both see who is living through the plague. The guys discuss the power and beauty of this film and why it resonates with them so much. Episode #123 — 12 Angry Men 12 men enter a small room to decide the fate of a man on trial. For Let’s Take Five, two men walk into a decently sized apartment in Chicago to decide the fate of the fate of a man on trial. The guys dive into the Sidney Lumet masterpiece in how it treats mob mentality, personal prejudice and the ideal justice system. Get excited! Episode #122 — Rear Window February 11, 2019 / ImmortalAustin / 0 Comments Let’s Take Five’s Final Ten The guys return to one of their former subjects as they look into the Alfred Hitchcock masterpiece. Instead of being a creepy dude in Vertigo, Jimmy Stewart plays a creepy dude in Rear Window. After an accident, Stewart is locked up in his apartment with a broken leg and nothing to do all day but spy on his neighbors and watch their lives. The guys dive into what makes this such an effective thriller and how Hitchcock once again succeeds by not showing the gruesome bits. Also Eric breaks down the worst shot in the movie!	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3238
__label__wiki	0.552779	0.552779	The ‘Mummies’ are back for the Rock the Light Music Festival on Sept. 6-7 Jefferson Starship is headline on Saturday The ‘Mummies’ are coming back! Here Come the Mummies, an eight-piece funk-rock band of reportedly 5,000 year-old Egyptian Mummies with a one-track mind who delighted Port Clinton crowds last year at Waterworks park for the inaugural Rock the Light Music Festival, announced they are returning on Friday, Sept. 6. Guaranteed to cap the two-day concert in style is Jefferson Starship, the headliner on Saturday, Sept. 7. The concert will have a new look for its second go around, according to concert promoter Main Street Port Clinton and the Port Clinton Chamber of Commerce. A large Main Tent will provide a spacious stage for the featured bands, with a variety of local groups also performing on a Party Stage inside the big tent. The opening bands appearing on Friday, Sept. 6 will be Athens Wheeler and Master TC & The Visitors, with Chris Jamison and Here Come the Mummies following on the Main stage. Miss Kitty & The Litter and the Eric Sowers Band will open the Saturday, Sept. 7 concert, followed by Jacks Ford and Jefferson Starship. Ticket sales made their debut this week, and are available at the Port Clinton Chamber of Commerce office and the Great Lakes Popcorn Company, both on Madison Street in Port Clinton. Friday night tickets are $25, $30 after May 28. Ottawa County residents get a local discount with tickets $20 until Aug. 1. Saturday tickets are $35, $40 after May 28. Main Stage VIP passes are $100 for either Friday or Saturday, with a weekend pass $150. VIP seating includes folding chairs in the VIP section, and a special VIP bar and restrooms. For more information, including lodging suggestions, visit rockthelightpc.com. Jefferson Airplane founding member, the late Paul Kantner, created Jefferson Starship with the collective spirit in mind that he carried with him throughout his life. The band members, past and present, have been exploring the mysteries of music for more than 100 collective years. Today’s Jefferson Starship band members include co-founder David Freiberg, Donny Baldwin, Cathy Richardson, Chris Smith and Jude Gold. So who are the “Mummies?” No one really knows. Their mysterious personas, cunning song-crat and unrelenting live show, according to the band, “will bend your brain and melt your face.” The “Mummies” have been an instant hit whoever they perform, and they’ve been traveling the country non-stop in recent years. Despite being a first-year concert in 2018, the Rock the Light Music Festival enjoy success in its first concert effort. “We were delight to see the fans response last year,” said Ron Miller of The Listening Room at Our Guest Inn, who was instrumental in booking the bands and bringing the concert venue together. “We had excellent crowds for an inaugural concert. After talking to fans after last year’s concert, and their hopes we could bring back Here Comes the Mummies, I expect a wild time this year.” Making an early visit to the Port Clinton Lighthouse to announce the lineup for the 2nd annual Rock the Light Music Festival at Waterworks Park on Sept. 6-7 was one of the local “mummies,” ready to kick off an early celebration. (Photo by D’Arcy Egan) Here Come the Mummies dazzled a Waterworks Park crowd in Port Clinton last year, bringing their eight-piece funk-rock band of reportedly 5,000 year-old Egyptian Mummies with a one-track mind. The “Mummies” will headline the Friday, Sept. 6 opening night of the Rock the Light Music Festival. (Photo by D’Arcy Egan) Ukulele, bluegrass, swing at summer Verandah Concerts Anita Cochran to ‘Fight Like a Girl’ with breast cancer benefit Jet Express spotlights beginning of summer season Put an island in your life! New Memory Care wing at Commons of Providence celebrates first anniversary	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3240
__label__cc	0.740379	0.259621	Announcements \| April 5, 2019, 7:12 AM 2019 Annual Family Policy Institute Dinner Family Policy Institute of Washington’s 2019 Annual Dinner is precisely one month from now: May 3, 2019, at the Hyatt Regency in Bellevue. And rarely has a dinner and its keynote speaker been so timely. Full information and tickets are available right here. AlfonZo Rachel, a unique pro-life and politically conservative voice, and who starred as Detective Stark in the critically acclaimed movie, “Gosnell: The Trial of America’s Biggest Serial Killer” joins us this year as our Keynote Speaker. This dramatization of the trial of abortion doctor Kermit Gosnell is a brutally hard movie to watch, but one that may very well change the way some viewers understand the tragedy of abortion. As states pass or entertain legislation that will legalize infanticide, we must ask, “How long until they try in Washington, and will we be ready?” Ripped from the Headlines in the last few months: New York celebrates legalizing abortion until birth New York’s new abortion law is more barbaric than China’s ‘No different than infanticide’: Pro-life leaders respond to New York States scramble to secure ‘right’ to abortion We are living in the Age of Infanticide Virginia Gov. wants to be ‘civil’ discussing infanticide? Gosnell 2: The Exoneration That last name, Kermit Gosnell probably sends chills down most pro-life champions spines. Gosnell is the horrific Pennsylvania abortion doctor and the subject of the critically acclaimed movie, “Gosnell: The trial of America’s Biggest Serial Killer.” He would have most likely faded into infamy, rotting in jail for his crimes, except for the extreme abortion legislation enacted by New York, and debated by Rhode Island and Virginia. Legislation that, if passed in Pennsylvania at the time of Gosnell’s trial, would have likely exonerated him from the three charges of first-degree murder that sent him to jail for life, without the possibility of parole. Well, how long until Washington entertains such extreme legislation, and will we, the Pro-Life champions of our state, be ready? To get us all prepared to make a stand, Family Policy Institute of Washington is blessed to announce that this year’s keynote speaker for the May 3rd Annual Dinner is one of the star’s of “Gosnell: The Trial of America’s Biggest Serial Killers,” AlfonZo Rachel who played Detective Stark in the film. Full information and tickets are available right here. AlfonZo Rachel is one of the unique voices in social-political commentary. Rachel’s Christian, conservative, pro-life voice has gotten him appearances on Bill O’Reilly, and Fox and Friends, while also sharing the stage with folks like Andrew Breitbart, Herman Cain, Larry Elder, and Ann Coulter. Among his books is, “A Solid Right Cross: Biblical Boxing and Conservative Counter Punching Against Liberal Loons and Godless Goons.” Praise for Rachel and his work Alfonzo represents the rugged individualism this country was founded on. Every time I watch one of his videos I want to stand up and salute. I see in him the same stuff the founding fathers are made of. He’s one of the most multi-talented, multifaceted, and one of the bravest bastards I know – the late Andrew Breitbart Zo has powerful things to say, and he says them in such a straightforward, honest, and truthful way that the sound you hear ringing in your ears is simply the ring truth, clearly and bravely uttered – Bill Whittle, Social/Political Commentator I hope you join us for this inspiring and unique look at the importance of the pro-life, and conservative movement overall, on May 3rd at the Hyatt Regency in Bellevue. Full information and tickets are available right here. I look forward to seeing you one month from today. Standing together, Mark Miloscia FPIW Executive Director P.S. FPIW’s Annual Dinner is its primary fundraiser of the year. We rely on the gifts and pledges made during this evening to sustain us until end-of-year giving in December. It is our pleasure to bring such an exciting and inspiring guest to Washington in AlfonZo Rachel, but we’re counting on you to join us and bring new friends to this critical night in our year. Learn more and get your tickets right here. Thank you.	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3245
__label__cc	0.719388	0.280612	Recipe Galleries Book Index About & Book Food inspired by literature from Kate Young Gazpacho. Love, Nina. It's a thing you can have in the summertime. One, because it's chilled and, two, because you need seasonal tomatoes. But it's very simple and easy to make (in the whizzer). I decided to make some using a recipe that came from the wife of the Spanish Ambassador (via Pippa), so bona fide. I couldn't believe the amount of olive oil you were supposed to put in, so I only put half the amount, and it came out a bit thick. Nunney tried a spoonful. Nunney: Ugh, that's horrible. Me: That's the Spanish Ambassador's Gazpacho. Nunney: It's liquidised salad. Love, Nina: Despatches from Family Life, Nina Stibbe I had never planned on being a nanny. After leaving teaching, and then my job as a young people's theatre producer, I assumed that, moving forward, the kids I would spend the most time with would be the ones that my friends were having - or perhaps one I may eventually have myself. And then in February 2016, I moved into a room in a family house in Clapham. I arrived with a bag filled with books, a hardy green plant in a pot, and a small selection of things from my wardrobe. A ten-year-old helped me unpack that first night, asking a thousand questions while she did: which dress was my favourite, why I needed so many lipsticks, how many books I could read in a month, why I didn't sound as Australian as the characters on Home and Away. Since that first night, we've been through a lot together. We've traveled (to Santa Barabara and Majorca), we've grumbled as we fought off shared colds, we've baked more biscuits than I can count, we've crammed for Latin tests, we've decorated a Christmas tree. After eighteen months, I know that this (now) eleven-year-old, her seven-year-old brother, and their mum, will be part of my life forever. Being a nanny hasn't been like any other job I've had, and leaving it doesn't feel familiar either. I am leaving much more than a job, but a house I have called home. This weekend, I'll put my books into boxes in the loft, pack as many dresses as I can fit into my suitcase, and will sadly relegate the hardy green plant to the bin (less a well-timed metaphor than a result of neglect - it never quite recovered from my abandoning it for a month in July). I saved Love, Nina for these final weeks of nannying, and am so pleased I did. The book is a warm and witty look at life in someone else's home, and time spent building relationships with a family. It reinforced the feeling I have of being part of a unique club; a group of friends and strangers who are ex-nannies, inextricably linked to the families we have shared a home with. 1kg fresh tomatoes Half a cucumber cucumber Half a large red onion 1 tbsp red wine vinegar Generous pinch flaky sea salt 150ml good olive oil 1. Preheat the oven to 180C. Slice 600g of the tomatoes in half, and arrange them in a single layer in a roasting tray. Add the peeled garlic cloves to the tray, drizzle with a little oil, and season with salt and pepper. Roast for 45 minutes until soft, and caramelised at the edges. Allow to cool. 2. Blitz the roasted tomatoes, fresh tomatoes, cucumber, red onion, and garlic in a blender until smooth. Add the red wine vinegar, taste and season. 3. While the blender is running, slowly pour in the olive oil. The soup should be smooth, creamy and emulsified. 4. Press the soup through a fine sieve, and refrigerate until cold - at least four hours. Whisk it when it comes out of the fridge, pour into chilled bowls, and serve with a drizzle of olive oil. In 21st Century Fiction, Soup, Dinner Tags Tomato, Soup, Cold, Summer, Spain, England, Quick, Easy Cinnamon Sponge Cakes. The Shadow of the Wind. 'Would you like a snack?' Clara offered. 'Bernarda makes the most breathtaking cinnamon sponge cakes.' We took our afternoon snack like royalty, wolfing down everything the maid put before us. I had no idea about the protocol for this unfamiliar occasion and was not sure how to behave. The Shadow of the Wind, Carlós Ruiz Zafon, Chapter Six This book is one that makes an impression on everyone who reads it – generally people have either never heard of it, or can’t speak enough about it once they know you've read it too. If you fall into the former camp, put some time aside for it this summer; it’s just gorgeous. As well as painting an evocative picture of Barcelona, Carlos Ruiz Zafónintroduces his readers to an extraordinary fictional world. Most thrillingly, we are taken into the Cemetery of Forgotten Books, a place for tomes that have fallen out of general consciousness. The search for a novel within a novel that follows is epic in scope. I spent a long weekend in Spain last summer, and enjoyed a brilliant array of oysters, ham, cheeses, churros and steak, but didn't find the cinnamon sponge cake described in the book. It turns out that it’s a light, fat-less sponge, very different in texture from an English sponge, soaked until damp with rich, boozy syrup and then sprinkled with cinnamon. Sitting with a slice of this, and a strong coffee, I have to say that Clara is correct in her description – it’s a truly breathtaking snack. 1tsp baking powder 1tsp cinnamon 2tbsp honey 50ml brandy Cinnamon stick Grated peel from 1/2 lemon Square cake tin Two mixing bowls Electric hand whisk Small saucepan Serving plate 1. Preheat your oven to 180C. Grease a 20cm square cake tin (ideally loose-bottomed) with a generous amount of butter and a little flour. 2. Separate your eggs. Beat the egg yolks and sugar until the mixture is creamy. In the second bowl, beat the egg whites until stiff peaks form. With a very light touch, fold in the yolk mixture with the spatula. Fold in the baking powder and flour a little at a time. 3. Pour the batter into the cake tin and bake for 20 minutes until the cake is golden and a skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean. 4. While the cake is baking, prepare the syrup. Place the water, sugar, cinnamon, honey and lemon peel into the saucepan. Allow the mixture to come to the boil for one minute. Remove from the heat, add the brandy and leave the syrup to cool. 5. Once the cake has cooled, slice it into twelve pieces and arrange them on a serving plate. Pour the brandy syrup onto each piece of cake and dust the top with cinnamon. The cakes are very thirsty and will soak up all the liquid, without it leaking all over the plate, so be generous with it! Serve with coffee. In 21st Century Fiction, Cakes Tags Baking, Brandy, Carlos Ruiz Zafon, Cinnamon, Spain, Sponge Replace all horse and dog racing with this literally immediately. https://t.co/E5m2KLr1XE RT @_Poots_: Good morning, this is your visual-canape-based reminder that we're now booking weddings for 2020/2021: deviled eggs… https://t.co/XT09G7E8tJ Red velvet. https://t.co/uEsljpVOx0	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3246
__label__wiki	0.588047	0.588047	[<] [>] Paramagnetism and conduction electrons Partial Differential Eq. What is Condensed Matter? Lattices, bases and unit cells Bravais lattices and symmetry Typical structure types of crystals Diffraction theory Lattice vibrations Dispersion relations Phonon spectroscopy H field and B field Diamagnetism and paramagnetism Collective magnetism: ferromagnetism and its relatives The other side of e-mag: Ferroelectrics and piezoelectrics Structure Determination Transmission electron microscopy Scanned probe microscopies Plane groups, space groups Scattering theory X-ray and neutron sources Diffraction of disordered structures Small-angle scattering Point defects, defect equilibria, diffusion Dislocations and their motion, material strength Quasicrystals Materials physics Types of phase transition Order of phase transitions A hint of Landau theory Tracking transitions experimentally Beamtimes Quantum Phys. Partial Diff. Eq. ph324/335/338 Atomic Phys. Y3/4 projects Walking in Wales Other Diversions Dr Rudolf Winter Penglais SY23 3BZ Ffiseg Defnyddiau Prifysgol Aberystwyth ruw@aber.ac.uk Sunset today: 21:32 1'05 earlier than y'day Paramagnetism in metals Curie's law states that the susceptibility of a paramagnetic material goes with inverse temperature. This is true for many materials, but in most metals the susceptibility doesn't depend very strongly on temperature. To understand this, we need to see how the band structure influences the magnetisation of a metal sample. In a metal, the Fermi energy, $E_F$, (the energy of the highest occupied state at absolute zero temperature) lies within an energy band, i.e. the conduction band. The detailed distribution of states within the band is governed by the density of states; here the bands are just shown as rectangular areas in which states are available to be occupied. Different bands are separated by band gaps in which there are no states available. The Fermi distribution (green curve) determines which of the available states will be occupied at a given temperature. At T=0K, the Fermi distribution is a step function with a sharp cut-off at the Fermi energy. As the temperature rises, the curve becomes more inclined, maintaining $E_F$ as a fixpoint - electrons are excited from the green triangle below $E_F$ into the green triangle above $E_F$. The range over which electrons can be excited thermally is of the order of $k_BT$. In an external magnetic field, the potential energy of those states whose magnetic moments are aligned with the field is reduced by the magnetic interaction energy, and those aligned against the field have a correspondingly higher potential energy. Therefore, the parallel aligned states are nearer the bottom edge of the band. This means that only magnetic moments within a range of $k_BT$ either side of $E_F$ can flip their orientation according to the magnetic field. The 'flippable' fraction is $\frac{k_BT}{E_F}$, and the resulting magnetisation is the usual paramagnetic magnetisation term multiplied by this fraction: $$M_{\textrm{metal}}=\frac{Np_m^2B}{k_BT}\cdot\frac{k_BT}{E_F}=\frac{Np_m^2B}{E_F}\qquad,$$ which is indeed independent of temperature. The discussion above makes no assumptions about the detail of the density of states within the conduction band. Despite this simplification, it predicts the magnetisation reasonably accurately and demonstrates the fact that the magnetisation of a metal is independent of temperature. We can derive a more accurate formula if we use the density of states according to the free electron gas model of a metal, i.e. treat the delocalised electrons of the atom as independent from the atom cores (nuclei and localised inner-shell electrons) and allow them to move freely like a gas. This model predicts the number $N$ of states per volume element at a particular energy $E$ as $$N(E)=\frac{1}{3\pi^2}\left(\frac{2m_eE}{\hbar^2}\right)^{\frac{3}{2}}\qquad,$$ and thus the density of states $D(E)$ (density here refers to how densely packed the states are on an energy scale) as $$D(E)=\frac{{\rm d}N}{{\rm d}E}=\frac{1}{2\pi^2}\left(\frac{2m_e}{\hbar^2}\right)^{\frac{3}{2}}\sqrt{E}\qquad,$$ represented by the two segments of parabola in the Figure. When placed in a magnetic field, the potential energy of the parallel and anti-parallel aligned moments is shifted down and up, respectively, by the magnetic interaction $p_mB$, resulting in a relative shift of $2p_mB$ between the parabola segments for the two different orientations. The Fermi energy still applies across the whole electron gas, resulting in a larger population of electrons with parallel aligned moments (in the lowered parabola segment) than anti-parallel ones (in the raised segment). The (anti-)parallel population is $$N_{\uparrow\uparrow,\color{Red}{\uparrow\downarrow}}=\frac{1}{2}\int_{\overset{\color{Red}{+}}{-}p_mB}^{E_F}f(E)D(E\overset{+}{\color{Red}{-}}p_mB){\rm d}E\qquad,$$ where the density of states $D$ has been shifted according to the strength of the magnetic interaction, but the Fermi distribution $f$ remains unchanged since it applies to the electron gas as a whole. The integral consists of a part corresponding to the number of states in the absence of an external field and an almost trapezoidal area (shown in green) near the Fermi energy which is affected by the shift: $$N_{\uparrow\uparrow,\color{Red}{\uparrow\downarrow}}\approx\frac{1}{2}\int_0^{E_F}f(E)D(E){\rm d}E\overset{\color{Red}{+}}{-}\frac{1}{2}p_mBD(E_F)\qquad.$$ The magnetisation arises from the population difference: $$M=p_m(N_{\uparrow\uparrow}-N_{\uparrow\downarrow})=p_m^2D(E_F)B\qquad.$$ The density of states at the Fermi energy $D(E_F)$ in the free electron gas model is $D(E_F)=\frac{3N}{2E_F}$, so the magnetisation becomes $$M_{\textrm{metal}}=\frac{3Np_m^2B}{2E_F}\qquad,$$ confirming the result from the less sophisticated model apart from a factor $\frac{3}{2}$. Next, we'll see how individual (para-)magnetic moments interact to give rise to much higher susceptibilities in ferromagnets. Department of Physics, Aberystwyth University, Penglais, Aberystwyth SY23 3BZ, Wales Adran Ffiseg, Prifysgol Aberystwyth, Penglais, Aberystwyth SY23 3BZ, Cymru Blame me, not my employer etc. etc. Content of this page last modified: 131204 This page is licensed under this Creative Commons License: .	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3264
__label__cc	0.663442	0.336558	Unique Property Bulletin – Archive Back Issue Bulletins – Former Lighthouses, Coastguard Stations, Castles, Barns, Railway Stations, Windmills, etc Unique Property Bulletin 9 June 2013 Unique Property Bulletin 16 June 2013 Unique Property Bulletin 7 July 2014 Unique Property Bulletin 14 July 2013 Unique Property Bulletin 4 August 2013 Unique Property Bulletin 11 August 2013 Home→Unique Property Bulletin 19 February 2012 Unique Property Bulletin 19 February 2012 House Island ! House Island (c) 2012 Waterside Estate Agents. Otherwise known as Cedar House, 1 Park Way, Ferry Road, Horning, Norfolk, NR12 8BF. This is a relatively normal looking house, but in what is an amazing location. The first photograph makes it look like an island. For most boat lovers this is exactly what it is. Whilst for those with a love of the water, the view from this house is also charming. Water and plenty of boats to mess around on. A wonderful way of life. Even better, the water you are connected to is the River Bure and lots of boating adventures to be had. Waterfront Location Master Ensuite Bedroom Private Boat Mooring 33ft Long Living Area Property Description:- This detached 3 bedroom house was built in 2005 of block construction under timber cladding, and offers gas fired central heating, full sealed unit double glazing, mains water and drainage. A fine waterside home located at the popular marina just off the River Bure in the sought after village of Horning. The ground floor accommodation consists of a master bedroom with ensuite shower room, two further double bedrooms, bathroom and utility room. The first floor is one impressive 33ft long open plan living area with its own private balcony offering panoramic views out over the marina, leading down to the main river itself. The first floor comprises an extremely well fitted kitchen with numerous built in appliances, a dining area and a lounge area. Outside Cedar House benefits from private off road parking and a south facing garden, substantial private mooring facilities with the side mooring measuring approximately 50ft x 17ft, and the front measuring also approximately 50ft. Cedar House is ideally suited for someone with a passion for boating and the Norfolk Broads who is looking for an impressive, low maintenance second home or a well laid out, well located holiday let. Freehold. Guide Price: £415,000 Online Brochure ….. http://www.watersideestateagents.com/details.php?id=10&forsale Or telephone 01692 531034. Former Fire Station Former Bardney Fire Station (c) 2012 Kevin Hale We haven’t had a fire station for a while. Here is the old Bardney Fire Station at 21 Queen Street, Bardney, Lincolnshire, LN3 5XF. A lot of building for little money. Also some fun to be had. Not sure if there is a firemans pole inside, but presents an interesting project for someone. Located a short distance to the east of the village centre. Bardney is a large village with good local facilities located approx. 10 miles south east of Lincoln. Fire Engine NOT Included (c) 2012 Mike Kirby The existing building is a purpose built fire station, now redundant. It comprises a single large garage area with ancillary accommodation providing staff facilities and office. Approx 777 sq ft (72.2 sq m) gross internal. The building occupies a large site of approximately 0.14 acres (0.06 hectares). Offers in the region of: £59,950. http://www.hodelk.com/commercial/property.asp?ref=CP7770 Former Shortlanesend School Truro, TR4 9DU. Shortlanesend School (c) 2012 Philip Martin & Co. A former primary school with a touch of Gothic. A place with the look of a school where the Addams Family kids might feel at home! Until recently it had a change of use to a garden machinery business. Well worth a telephone call to the local council planning department if you have a conversion to residential use in mind. This Victorian building comes complete with bell tower for your bats. The detached property is set in a walled site just two miles from Truro. Grade II Listed with ample features. The building is predominantly of local stone construction but with architectural detailing to the gothic arched windows and doors in a mellow sandstone and probably Pentewan Stone. It is largely on one level but some temporary first floor areas show the potential for a larger area to be created. A bell tower within the structure is a significant and unusual feature. General Details:- Main Showroom 10.36m(34’0”) x 6.10m(20’0”) Office 3.35m(11’0”) x 3.12m(10’3”) Cloakroom 5.79m(19’0”) x 1.32m(4’4”) Store 5.18m(17’0”) x 5.49m(18’0”) With stairs to temporary first floor. Second Store 6.71m(22’0”) x 1.83m(6’0”) With stairs to first floor over. Workshop 7.62m(25’0”) x 5.11m(16’9”) Outside: To one side and at the rear of the property there is a single storey range of buildings comprising two former w.c’s. Adjacent there are some further Store Buildings and also a detached Garage 24’6 x 12′ overall. Price Guide: £250,000. http://www.vebra.com/property/4220/20636444 Or telephone: 01872 248049. Boathouse, River Yealm, Plymouth, PL8 1AD. Boathouse, Riverside, Plymouth (c) 2012 Knight Frank It is a cruel thing sometimes to study some of these gorgeous unique homes each week. This is one to drool over. Riverside Road West, Plymouth. An exceptional waterfront property with private boathouse and jetty in the truly picturesque village of Newton Ferrers. This lovely building is situated in the village of Newton Ferrers which has some of the most sought after waterfront homes on the south Devon coast. It is one of a select few houses in the area which has direct waterfront access. This amazing home provides the setting for wonderful waterside living and has been designed to capture all aspects of its beautiful surroundings. All of the principal rooms have views over the garden to the river. On the ground floor both the kitchen and drawing room have direct access to a large terrace (which takes full advantage of the property’s proximity to the river via its own private jetty) or through the boathouse, which is situated below the drawing room and dining room. The safe moorings of the deep water harbour make Newton Ferrers very popular with yachtsmen and it is at the heart of fine cruising waters being equidistant from Salcombe and Fowey at about 15 nautical miles. 207.25 sqm (approximately) Private Boathouse. Patio/Terrace. Private Parking – For Car & Boat! Guide: £2,500,000 Online Brochure …. http://search.knightfrank.com/exe100218 Former Police Station & House – Abington Abington Police Station (c) 2012 Strathclyde Police This is an interesting one. Two parts for the price of one. Commercial plus residential. Ideal for a new lifestyle where you can live and work without more than a ten foot commute from home to the office. A former police station and a police house, with three bedrooms. Also adapted to be wheelchair friendly. The location is at Station Road, Abington, ML12 6RZ which is convenient for touring the Borders. Indeed Abington is only 49 miles and approximately 53 minutes from the Border between England and Scotland making an excellent base for an adventure between the two countries. Fast and easy access to the main Scotland-England arterial route A74/M74 is just a few minutes away. The house is a three bedroom “L” shaped bungalow, with an integrated small police office and a separate garage (sorry no police cell for the mother-in-law – yes an old joke but they are the best). This building is situated on a substantial plot set back from the main road with a shared driveway and has a grassed area with two outbuildings to the rear, hard standing to the front allowing for ample parking. It has a pitched and tiled roof with roughcast rendered walls, UPVC double glazed windows and an oil fired central heating system. One of the previous occupants of the property was wheelchair bound and access to the house has been adapted accordingly, there is a ramp up to the front door and ramps and a raised platform to allow access to the rear. The main entry to the house and office is from an open sided porch. The office consists of two small rooms, one which used to be a toilet and an office with fitted cupboards and a counter. The front door of the house leads straight into the hallway. The hall gives access to the three bedrooms (two with fitted cupboards), the bathroom, kitchen and lounge. * Important Note: due to damage caused by a burst water tank, the house requires extensive refurbishment throughout. Accommodation Summary:- Police House (approx) Kitchen (3.69m x 2.58m) Office (5.41m x 3.00m) Bathroom (2.47m x 2.05m) (Including toilet area) Lounge (4.68m x 3.99m) Bedroom 1 (3.56m x 2.99m) Plus Police Office Accommodation. Feuhold (Scottish Freehold Equivalent). Guide Price £110,000 * (requires repair) Viewing/Further Detail: Please contact Susan Gourley or Christina McEwan on 0141 532 6335/6930. Come In The Water Is Fine Former Manningham Swimming Baths (c) 2012 City of Bradford MDC Maybe the water is fine, but for now it’s gone! This is the last property in this Bulletin and has already been featured in 2011. We promised to revisit this building if it went unsold – if the sale position became “interesting” – which it has. Well this building has had a difficult time of it at past auctions and remains for sale. We have lost count how many times our own Unique Property Syndicate has ended up with something that failed to sell at auction. This is real bargain territory. So dear reader, if this fabulous project appeals to you, you can do two things. One, get your skates on (or rather flippers) and high tail it across to Roy Pugh & Co Auction House for 28th February 2012, or perhaps choose the second option; play the waiting game. No guarantees. Someone else may buy it on 28th February. However, if you are laid back about this building, and if it fails to sell, you are in a VERY strong negotiating position to arrange a “post-auction” purchase. If we weren’t so far away we have folk here who would happily stick their paw in the air at £50,000 just to see what happens. Former Manningham Swimming Baths (c) 2012 Betty Longbottom Either way, best of luck to you, our reader, if you do pop along, or arrange a post-auction offer. Please let us know if you buy this magnificent building? Onto the detail:- The Former Manningham Swimming Baths, Carlisle Road, Bradford, BD8 8DB. Located in a mixed use area on Carlisle Road close to the intersection with Drummond Road and Silver Street in Manningham. Bradford city centre lies approximately 1½ miles south east. Our own suggestion last year was to consider some form of part change of use. Retaining the original swimming facility for community use, and applying for change of use of part of the site for residential accommodation. A unique home; unique building; unique lifestyle; unique income! It should be noted though, that the building is Grade II Listed, and comes with all the additional conditions that a listed property requires to be satisfied before any works can be commenced. Lower Ground Floor: Boiler Room, Filter Room. Ground Floor: Reception, Central Swimming Pool, Three Changing Rooms, Sauna, Slipper Baths, W/Cs and Office. First Floor: Office Site Area: Approximately 875.97 sq m (1,047 sq yds). Planning: Interested parties should consult directly with the Local Planning Office, City of Bradford Metropolitan District Council, 3rd Floor, Jacobs Well, Bradford, BD1 1HY. Tel: 01274 434605. English Heritage lists the property as Grade II and dates it back to 1903. Guide £70,000 to £140,000 Plus VAT and 2% of the gavel price for the Council’s solicitors and surveyors fees with a minimum of £2,500. Auction Date & Start Time: 28th February 2012 starts 2pm Auctioneer: Pugh & Company, 4 The Parks, Newton le Willows, WA12 0JQ. Telephone: 0844 2 722444 Auction Venue: Leeds United Football Club, The Lorimer Suite, East Stand, Elland Road, Leeds, LS11 0ES. Online Details …. http://www.pugh-auctions.com/Lot/Leeds/20120228/194 To Return To Our MAIN & Current Unique Property Bulletin – Just Click On The Photograph… To RETURN to the MAIN Unique Property Bulletin website, please click on the photograph immediately above. Thankyou. © 2019 - Unique Property Bulletin – Archive	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3270
__label__cc	0.745381	0.254619	Federation Council Azerbaijan’s President receives Ilyas Umakhanov and Khizri Shikhsaidov 2 Nov 2017 in 13:40 Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev received the Deputy Chairman of Russia’s Federation Council, co-chairman of the bilateral commission Ilyas Umakhanov and the chairman of the People’s Assembly … Alexei Pushkov: meeting of Azerbaijani and Armenian Presidents is encouraging 17 Oct 2017 in 13:25 A new meeting of the Presidents of Azerbaijan and Armenia within the framework of the peaceful process of the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict can only be welcomed, the member of the Federation Council Committee on Defense and Security … Matviyenko: Iran fulfills all obligations under JCPOA Iranian side fulfills all obligations under the nuclear deal, Federation Council speaker Valentina Matviyenko said. She recalled that the last inspection happened in August of this year and the IAEA confirmed this. … Matviyenko: Council of Europe needs to change Depriving Russia of the right to vote in the Council of Europe shows that the organization needs to change, Federation Council speaker Valentina Matvienko says. "I'm absolutely convinced that Russia's … PACE’s new president says ready to meet Russian parliament speakers PACE’s new president Stella Kyriakides sent a letter to speakers of the Russian parliament’s lower and upper houses Vyacheslav Volodin and Valentina Matviyenko, where she confirmed … Matviyenko comments on rumors of her nomination as PM candidate 12 Oct 2017 in 9:55 Speaker of Russia’s Federation Council upper parliament house Valentina Matviyenko has refuted rumors that she is listed among potential prime ministers after the presidential elections in 2018. "I never … Rashid Temrezov thanks Vestnik Kavkaza for 'Karachay-Cherkessia - 25' film 29 Sep 2017 in 12:00 The head of Karachaevo-Cherkessia, Rashid Temrezov, sent a letter of appreciation to the information and analysis agency Vestnik Kavkaza for its assistance in the creation of the film 'Karachay-Cherkessia-25', dedicated … IPU to break several records in St. Petersburg Promoting cultural pluralism and peace through interreligious and interethnic dialogue Konstantin Kosachev: parliamentarians of Azerbaijan and Armenia should establish dialogue with each other 137th Assembly of the Inter-Parliamentary Union in St. Petersburg can be a good platform for a dialogue between parliamentarians of Azerbaijan and Armenia, Konstantin Kosachev, chairman of the Federation Council Committee on … Russia needs deeper democracy, Valentina Matvienko says Federation Council Chairwoman Valentina Matvienko noted a demand to deepen democracy is growing in Russia. She also pointed out that the laws that have been adopted in the Russian Federation in recent years do not restrict freedoms of citizens, … Matvienko on situation around DPRK: it is important to refrain from reckless steps 4 Sep 2017 in 16:06 The situation on the Korean Peninsula should be resolved only through the diplomatic means, Federation Council Chairman Valentina Matvienko said, reminding that "Russia has never stayed out of solving this problem." She noted … Russian Federation Council comments on restrictions on issuance of US visas 21 Aug 2017 in 14:25 Russia should give a "mirror" response to the move by the US Embassy and consulates limiting their visa operations as they prepare for staff cuts by September 1, the head of the commission on state sovereignty protection of the Russian … Russian senator comments Iran's threat of exiting nuclear deal Russian senator, first deputy chairman of the Federation Council's foreign affairs committee Vladimir Dzhabarov said that rapid diplomatic efforts are needed to address Iran's threat of exiting the two-year … Federation Council refutes reports on transfer of Iran's hardware to Russia First deputy chairman of the parliament's upper chamber's Defense and Security Committee, Russian Senator Frants Klintsevich, refuted a media report claiming that Iranian military hardware had been allegedly sent to … Matviyenko: upcoming presidential elections in Russia should consolidate society 25 Jul 2017 in 17:00 Presidential elections, which will be held in Russia in 2018, should consolidate the country's society, not cause tension, the Speaker of Russia’s Federation Council Valentina Matviyenko said. "It is … Russian senators ready for dialogue with Georgia Russia is interested in restoring good-neighborly, friendly relations with Georgia, and the Federation Council is ready to join this effort, Russian Federation Council chairperson Valentina Matvienko said. Georgian … Interim head of Russian Federation Council defense committee appointed Russian Federation Council defense and security committee members voted on Tuesday to elect Yevgeny Serebrennikov acting committee head, the Previous head of the defense and security committee Viktor Ozerov … Matviyenko: painstaking efforts needed to revive global interest in Russian language 6 Jun 2017 in 14:15 Attempts to force Russian language out of some of the former Soviet states cause concern, Russian Federation Council Speaker Valentina Matviyenko said. Addressing the Third International Livadia Forum, Matviyenko said … Matviyenko: anti-corruption fight is Russia's state policy 23 May 2017 in 10:40 Fight against corruption in Russia regardless of rank is not a timeserving trend, but a long-term state policy, Russian Federation Council Speaker Valentina Matviyenko said. "We see a thorough and difficult job to … Matviyenko: improvement of Russia-US ties requires time and patience There are grounds to believe that the Russian-US ties will improve if given time, patience and dialogue, Chairperson of the Russian upper house of parliament Valentina Matvienko said. "I want to express my personal …	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3273
__label__cc	0.645735	0.354265	Bonnet Parade-Happy Easter Fine Easter Bonnets Time to Wear Your Very Own Which One Will It Be? Snack Time-Camera Critters White Bird at Shem Creek Searching for a Little Snack Reflection Eats Too?? Go here to see more Camera Critters Circular Church The Circular Church A Diverse Community Building and Graveyard History : The members of Circular Congregational Church are proud to be one of the oldest continuously worshipping congregations in the South. Among highlights of our history are: Charles Towne's original settlers founded this protestant, or dissenting, church about 1681. The graveyard is the city's oldest burial grounds with monuments dating from 1696. The first meeting house on this site gave Meeting Street its name. The third structure here, a vast, circular hall built in 1804, burned in 1861. Bricks from "Old Circular" were used in building the present sanctuary in 1890. Pineapple Fountain Waterfront Park Pineapple Fountain and Pool Delight of Children Undercover Girl Gradually she emerges... What fun at the beach! Kayak-ABC WEDNESDAY "K" Shem Creek common sight Canoes absent from the scene Many kayaks glide by Go here to see what other bloggers posted for "K" Beads on Cannon Jo owns Beads on Cannon in Charleston, SC. The shop originated as a jeweler and watch maker's store in 1850 so it is appropriate that it now should hold Jo's well-stocked shop for customers interested in making jewelry. Her amazing inventory contains beautiful beads from all over the world as well as vintage gems from the 30's and 40's. After a professional career as a middle school librarian, Jo entered this business and went back to school and studied Chinese for 3 years to make it easier to talk to vendors from Asia when she was at market, looking for more beads for her store. Born in New Jersey, she has lived in Charleston for 30 years...guess she likes it here! Barbara the Blogger Friends are Everywhere Charleston Blogger We Met for Coffee Despite appearances Barbara, the Charlestonian photo blogger and I REALLY did meet for coffee at Cafe Medley on Sullivan's Island! Two Birds-Camera Critters is Worth Two in the Bush! To see more Camera Critters, go here. Sweetgrass Baskets The Sweetgrass Baskets Purchased for Family Heirlooms Gullah Culture Gifts History: Sweetgrass basket making has been a part of the Mount Pleasant, SC community for more than 300 years. Brought to the area by slaves who came from West Africa, basket making is a traditional art form which has been passed on from generation to generation. Basketmaking has always involved the entire family. As a custom, men gathered the materials while women weave the baskets. Material: Baskets are made with Sweetgrass, Bulrush or Marsh, Long Leaf Pine Needle, and Palmetto Leaves. Baskets can be cleaned with mild soap using a cloth or soft brush. A simple design can take 6-12 hours and a more creative, complex design can take as long as 5 days. "Jammin" with Steel Drums Two days ago I showed you a portrait of a story-teller whom I met at an event at Pinckney National Historical site. A group of Lincoln Middle School students entertained us with their music. A very talented group!! The Vernal Equinox-Theme The unfolding of the Vernal Equinox is like the unfolding of the petals of a floral blossom The flower gradually reveals its beauty until it reaches the apex of its form. At which time the perfect shape and vivid hues balance one another much like the balance of day and night of the equinox. Then the flower slowly fades and decay begins the process that leads to the death of the flower. The days lengthen to accommodate nature and balance the life and death of the blossom: the gradual and inevitable natural cycle of birth, decay, and rebirth. Sharing with City Daily Photo’s “Festival of the Equinox” extra theme day. To see other interpretations, go here. Added later: I probably should have labeled it in my narrative as a camellia since some viewers thought it was a rose. JABULILE- ABC WEDNESDAY-"J" I recently visited Pinckney National Historical Park because of an outdoor program of story-telling and steel drum music. I met and talked at length with Carolyn E. White who is a folk-life historian with a wonderful wit and wisdom on Gullah life and culture. Some of her travels have taken her to several African countries, and it was in South Africa that she was given the Zulu name Jabulile. Go here to see more ABC WEDNESDAY posts from bloggers across the globe! This lovely woman from India is diminutive but dynamite. While visiting South Carolina several states and miles from home, Dr. Swapna, used all of her medical knowledge to both placate and cure me when I became ill. Her professionalism and personal charm is just what one needs in a doctor when far from one's own primary physician. Wish I could take her home with me, but I doubt that I could persuade her to leave the Charleston area where she and her husband and two children have found a home that she loves outside of India. Fred , a former attorney, is the owner of the The Wreck, short for The Wreck of the Richard & Charlene, an unusual seafood restaurant in Mount Pleasant, SC. At first glance the name appears to refer to the waterfront restaurant's look, topped off with a shabby, screened-in porch. (In actuality, the Richard and Charlene was a trawler that slammed into the building during a hurricane in 1989.) But looks aren't the thing here—it's all about the food.The Wreck with its fantastic menu rose like a Phoenix after Hurricane Hugo on September 21, 1989 laid waste to Shem Creek and the area. Prior to the hurricane the shack on the property sold fresh shrimp, but it evolved into this restaurant that the locals love and the tourists find after someone takes kindly to their quest for good food. Fred showed us around the empty restaurant one afternoon, informing us that it wasn't open 'til 5:00 pm for dinner. We returned and had great seafood and the best She Crab Soup that I have tasted anywhere. The scallops, oysters and shrimp weren't bad either! If you're in the area, I'd advise a visit! Since it's St. Paddy't Day, I chose Fred's photo because he looks like someone from "the oulde sod!" A Day at the Beach-Camera Critters I Could Live Here. Just give me a little home on the ocean I'd be in Fort Moutrie 1776-1947 Palmetto Palm Logs The Original Building A Waterway Fort The original Palmetto log fort was begun in 1776 and only partially completed when attacked by a squadron of British warships. Col. William Moultrie and his men staved off the assault in the Battle of Sullivan's Island. The current structure was completed in 1809. Union soldiers abandoned the fort in December 1860 for the stronger Fort Sumter. Following the surrender of Fort Sumter, Confederate forces fortified Moultrie as one of a string of batteries and forts protecting Charleston's harbor. In February 1865, Confederates evacuated the city leaving the fort behind, hidden under a band of sand that protected its walls from federal shells. The interior of the fort has been restored to reflect the story of American seacoast defense through World War II, and a visitor center is located near the fort. The National Park Service administers the fort. How do you like dem apples? A wonderful student sculpture in the students' gallery at the Halsey Institute of Contemporary Art. ABC WEDNESDAY-I-INCREDIBLE BLOOMS Incredible blossoms in Cypress Gardens, South Carolina. To see more ABC WEDNESDAY posts that represent the letter "I" go here. Useful on Land or on Sea Colorful Shem Creek Follow me to see more ABC Wednesday photos. Future technician With the exception of a short time in Jacksonville, Florida, which she loved, Ericka has been a lifelong resident of Charleston. I went into Paolo's on John Street to buy a chocolate gelato. The shop was out of that flavor, but, despite all the other delectable selections, I decided to pass until another time. Ericka and I chatted and I learned that she is now attending Trident Technical College, studying to become a pharmacist technician. She hopes to transfer to the College of Charleston, and after graduation return to Jacksonville, With that million dollar smile and sparkling personality, I think she'll succeed! Saleswoman Par Excellence I visited Beads on Cannon, a very well-stocked bead store in Charleston. Not knowing much at all about making or repairing jewelry, I asked for help and Lissa gave me friendly and expert advice. She even fixed my two pairs of earrings herself. Talk about service! Lissa has been working at this particular shop for six months but has had many years of experience with beading and jewelry.. After living in the Bronx she moved to Charleston for the warmer weather and because she was "tired of shoveling snow." Can't say that I blame her. Lissa also gave me great advice for a nearby restaurant serving shrimp and grits, my current favorite dish! What service!! Butterflies are Free- Camera Critters "Just living is not enough," said the butterfly, "one must have sunshine, freedom and a little flower." ~Hans Christian Andersen An Important Day, 2013 Open 7-days a week, Mount Pleasant Seafood is the place to go. For ALL your seafood needs. There are recipes in their store and on their website, too. Renting a kayak for exercise is another option! Shrimpers Preferred! Shem Creek Hosts All Boats Yachts, Sailboats and Kayaks, too Shrimpers are Preferred! Shrimpers Preferred! Shem Creek Hosts All BoatsY... US Custom House-ABC WEDNESDAY 'H' Rainbow Houses-ABC WEDNESDAY "H" Meet Maggie Brown Sailing Over the Cooper-Sunday Bridges WHO?? Cafe Chairs-March, 2013 Theme Day	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3279
__label__wiki	0.833274	0.833274	canadianorglist.com Find Canadian business: Health in White Rock List of Health businesses in the city of White Rock (British Columbia) Health in cities of British Columbia, Canada: 1115 Vidal St, White Rock, British Columbia V4B 3T4, White Rock, British Columbia, V4B 3T4 Contacts Map Opening times Reviews Pamper Me Beauty Ctr Ltd 14889 Marine Dr, White Rock, British Columbia V4B 1C2, White Rock, British Columbia, V4B 1C2 Health Express Inc 1550 Johnston Rd, White Rock, British Columbia V4B 3Z7, White Rock, British Columbia, V4B 3Z7 Synergy Staying Fit Pilates 13434 16th Ave, White Rock, British Columbia V4A 1P5, White Rock, British Columbia, V4A 1P5 InterFit Studio , White Rock, British Columbia V4B1C2, White Rock, British Columbia, V4B1C2 Alzheimer Society Of Bc 15240 Thrift Ave #102, White Rock, British Columbia V4B 2L1, White Rock, British Columbia, V4B 2L1 Red Cross Canadian 1480 Foster St #40, White Rock, British Columbia V4B 3X7, White Rock, British Columbia, V4B 3X7 1550 Foster St, White Rock, British Columbia V4B 3X8, White Rock, British Columbia, V4B 3X8 Balance Point Studio 15151 Russell Ave, White Rock, British Columbia V4B 2P4, White Rock, British Columbia, V4B 2P4 Trainers Personal Training Ctr 15782 Marine Dr #1, White Rock, British Columbia V4B 1E6, White Rock, British Columbia, V4B 1E6 Diva Fitness Inc Harmony Health Care Ltd 1548 Johnston Rd #104, White Rock, British Columbia V4B 3Z8, White Rock, British Columbia, V4B 3Z8 Quantum-Mind Wellness Ctr 14857 Buena Vista Ave, White Rock, British Columbia V4B 1X3, White Rock, British Columbia, V4B 1X3 Provinces Select Yukon Prince Edward Island Alberta Manitoba Northwest Territories Newfoundland Saskatchewan Nova Scotia Ontario British Columbia Nunavut Quebec Category Select Last updates: Updated: 07/14/2019 10:41 am White Rock Operations Dept Government Offices in White Rock (British Columbia) Updated: 07/15/2019 10:52 am SEO Small Business Internet in White Rock Last reviews: Review of Affordable Services By Quinte by Felix Could I have a statement, please? http://ampland.fun/ ampland In his ruling, Sontchi said the FDIC could make a claim forthe amount of the refund aga... Felix 06/30/2019 5:25 am Review of Affordable Services By Quinte by Noble I'm originally from Dublin but now live in Edinburgh http://al4a.fun/ al4a.com The losses on Wall Street stocks revived some safehaven bids for bonds... Noble 06/30/2019 4:15 am Review of Canada National Parole Board by AntioneUncow Hi there! tricare online pharmacy beneficial internet site. AntioneUncow 06/30/2019 2:57 am Home Reviews Categories Provinces © canadianorglist.com 2014 — 2019 7 / 0.037	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3281
__label__cc	0.674696	0.325304	2019 Spring Seminar List From Lecospa Editing 2019 spring Seminar List == Spring 2019 LeCosPA Cosmology and Particle Astrophysics Seminars == Location : Room 7S1, LeCosPA center, NTU Time : 11:00 am - 12:00 am, Thursday Organizers : Tsungche liu and Rio Saitou Feb/26 (Special seminar at AM812) Ippei Obata Axion Dark Matter Search with Optical Cavity Experiment The outline of this talk is mainly based on our recent paper 10.1103/PhysRevLett.121.161301. In this talk, I will present a novel experimental approach to search for axion dark matter which does not need a conventional strong magnetic field but use an optical cavity. This new method aims to measure the difference of phase velocity between two circular-polarized photons which is caused by the coupling to axion dark matter. The experimental sensitivity is in principle only limited by quantum noise which enables us to probe tiny axion-photon coupling g_{aγ} <~ 10^{−11}GeV^{-1} with axion mass range m_a <~ 10^{-10}eV, which is competitive with other experimental proposals. ICRR,Tokyo university Mar/7 Pisin Chen Tabletop analog black holes to investigate the information loss paradox LeCosPA, NTU Mar/14 Aniket Agrawal Tensor Non-Gaussianity from Axion-Gauge-Fields Dynamics I will talk about an inflation model in which a spectator axion field is coupled to an SU(2) gauge field and produces a large three-point function (bispectrum) of primordial gravitational waves, on the scales relevant to the cosmic microwave background experiments. The amplitude of the bispectrum at the equilateral configuration is characterized by $B_{h}/P_h^2=\mathcal{O}(10)\times \Omega_A^{-1}$, where $\Omega_A$ is a fraction of the energy density in the gauge field and $P_h$ is the power spectrum of gravitational waves produced by the gauge field. These gravitational waves are chiral, and can have a scale-independent power spectrum over a large range of wavenumbers, necessitating the measurement of TB and EB cross correlations along with measurement of non-Gaussianity to claim quantum fluctuations of the metric. ASIAA File:Tensor ng from inflation.pdf Mar/21 Shohei Aoyama Dust grains in Cosmological simulations The distribution of dark matter is one of the important issues of cosmology. However, because dark matter cannot be observed directly by electromagnetic observatory, galaxies are used to trace the dark matter distribution. Hence the optical property of galaxies is important for cosmology. In galaxies, dust grains play an important role in the star formation and the modification of intrinsic spectral energy distribution. For former, dust grains are an efficient catalyst of molecular hydrogen formation. For latter, dust grains absorb ultraviolet photons, which originates young and massive stars, and reemit the infrared light. Because the absorption efficiency highly depends on the grain size distribution and spatial distribution of dust grains, we have to predict both of them theoretically. In order to realize the prediction, hydro-dynamical simulations are a powerful tool. In order to complete the simulation within reasonable timescale, we implemented two-size model (Hirashira 2015) into GADGET3-Osaka code. By considering the size distribution, we have been able to treat grain-grain interactions such as coagulation and shattering, which are growth and destruction process of dust grains, respectively. We obtained grain size distribution at every spatial point and radial distribution of dust grain around massive galaxies, which is comparable to that in observation. In addition to the spatial distribution of dust grains, we calculated the radiation transfer by Mie theory, we obtained the luminosity function of infrared luminous galaxies. At z=0, we roughly realized observed luminosity function taken by Herschel satellite. ASIAA Mar/28 Yen-Wei Liu Acausality in Transverse-Traceless Spin-2 Gravitational Waves The transverse-traceless (TT) portion of the metric perturbations has been widely used to study the physical observables in gravitational wave physics. However, through an explicit calculation of the relevant Green's functions, we show that, in both Minkowski background and spatially-flat cosmologies with constant equation-of-state, the TT gravitational waves receive contributions from the source(s) outside the null cone of the observer, which therefore prevents the TT perturbation from being a standalone observable. In this talk, I will demonstrate this acausal character and discuss how the other gauge-invariant variables must be incorporated to ensure strictly causal gravitational tidal forces, and, being intimately related, the violation of micro-causality for the quantum operators associated with free massless spin-1 and spin-2 states will also be pointed out. NCU File:LeCosPA 0328 - Yen-Wei Liu.pdf April/11 Kai-Feng Chen Explore the universe with big Data at LHC Phys, NTU April/25 Laurent Baulieu On the Stochastic Quantisation of Quantum Gravity, and its physical predictions for the early cosmology CNRS and UNESCO. LPTHE Sorbonne Université Paris May/2 Rampei Kimura Are redshift-space distortions actually a probe of growth of structure? Although multiple cosmological observations indicate the existence of dark matter and dark energy, cosmological tests of interactions between them have not yet been established. We point out that, in the presence of a coupling between dark matter and dark energy, a peculiar velocity of total matter field is determined not only by a logarithmic time-derivative of its density perturbation but also by density perturbations for both dark matter and baryonic matter, leading to a large modification of the physical interpretation of observed data obtained by measurements of redshift-space distortions. We reformulate a galaxy two-point correlation function in the redshift space based on the modified continuity and Euler equations. We conclude from the resultant formula that redshift space distortions provide us information on the coupling between dark matter and the scalar field by combining weak lensing measurements. We will also discuss future prospects of constraining specific models using future surveys. May/6 Yi Yang The AMS experiment and it's latest results Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer (AMS-02), led by the Nobel Prize winner Professor Samuel C. C. Ting, is an international collaborative research project in experimental high energy physics. AMS-02 is a general purpose particle detector mounted on the International Space Station (ISS) since May 19 2011, and is expected to operate with the ISS in taking high energy cosmic ray data. The main purpose of the AMS-02 experiment is to collect and to measure the relevant high energy particles originating from deep space, such as electrons, positrons, protons, anti-protons, and so on. To this end, we might be able to explain some of the most important mysteries of Universe, namely, the asymmetry in the ratio of matter and anti-matter and the origin of dark matter. I will introduce the AMS-02 experiment and present it's latest results. NCKU may/23 Mustafa Amin TBD Daniel R. Terno Macquarie University Sydney Privacy policyAbout LecospaDisclaimersPowered by MediaWiki Retrieved from "http://wiki.lecospa.ntu.edu.tw/index.php?title=2019_Spring_Seminar_List&oldid=974" About Lecospa	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3283
__label__cc	0.516629	0.483371	The Winterwind Papers The Winterwind Archive Content is written, or roughed outlines skected in some cases, but when the three people involved all work the 9-5 grind... well, we haven't found time to actually started filming yet. We hope to. I'd hoped to have at least the first video, the "introduction to Winterwind" in the proverbial can by now but sometimes life has other plans. Or, you're just drained from the day job. Soon, folks, soon. The site received a minor tweak today. I made new logo/banner for consistency on our Facebook, Twitter and YouTube pages and then figured consistency meant using the same artwork here on the site. Which then clashed with the old dark grey colour scheme. So I had to do a little searching and replacing of the old colour code. This isn't the revamp. That's still coming. This is more of a quick coat of paint to brighten things up in the meantime. The tortoise and the hare... Winterwind is slowly getting the attention it missed for five years. The content is being reorganised, there'll be another tweak to the look of the site coming later this spring, there'll be a Youtube channel launching so, again, stay tuned. Winterwind is pleased to announce further details of an upcoming project - A Guy & His Gretsch is the story of a lonely drifter (kind of like the Littlest Hobo only walking on two legs instead of four) drifting from town to town righting wrongs with a magic guitar... that shoots lasers and stuff! With music by Hot Karl & the Alabama Donkey Punchers featuring their soon to be smash hit "Your Laundry (The Ballad of Thursday Afternoon)". Something stirs... The 2018 winter solstice would have been Winterwind's 15 year anniversary. The first 10 years had a few highs, a few more lows, a revolving cast of characters and ultimately proved to be unfulfilling. Paying the annual hosting for five years for a stagnant site was unfulfilling too so... Today is Winterwind's Ten Year Anniversary. Yay for Winterwind! We've had some highs and lows and some long pauses here and there but it's ten years today that we've been online. To mark this event we have six pieces today for your enjoyment. Emily Thorburn examines the confused feminist message in Lily Allen's "Hard Over Here" track. Amy Van De Casteele takes a look at the dark nature of the work of Ed and Lorraine Warren. Jon Arnold gives us his reasons why he finds Best Of and Year End lists to be really rather useless. Both William LJ Galaini and Nathan Frederick Garden return with the latest entries in their respective columns, Gamer on a Budget and The Fitba and our Assistant Editor, Michael S. Collins treats us to a short story that has us visiting Séance Booth Four. Since our re-launch in the summer we've been on something of a lovely roll, publishing more in the past six months than we have in the past two years and we look forward to bringing you more in the future. So please, read, enjoy, like, share, tweet... and tell your friends! Also, as always, we are looking for submissions and contributions. Articles, reviews, artwork, photography, anything that fits under our umbrella of arts, pop culture and social issues. We had hoped to have the ezine re-coded and ready to go for this special event. Unfortunately... well, the chap that was supposed to do that didn't and disappeared on us... such is the way of things sometimes but we soldier on. Still... ten years... wow. The Winterwind Team Issue 19 of the Winterwind Papers Welcome to the 19th Issue of the Winterwind Papers: click the image below to visit the ezine December 21st 2013 - Lily Allen – Help or Hindrance? by Emily Thorburn December 21st 2013 - A Dark Calling – The Story of Ed and Lorraine Warren by Amy Van De Casteele December 21st 2013 - List Off by Jon Arnold December 21st 2013 - Gamer on a Budget Review - Surgeon Simulator 2013 by William LJ Galaini December 21st 2013 - The Fitba - The Caledonian Cup Final by Nathan Frederick Garden © Copyright 2003 - 2019 Winterwind Productions - About - Privacy - Contact Winterwind	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3285
__label__wiki	0.732903	0.732903	Worcester Holds Off Nashua Worcester, MA- The Worcester Bravehearts were able to pull out a victory despite a late inning surge by the Nashua Silver Knights. Worcester had a seven run lead going into the 8th inning, but managed to escape by a final score of 8-6. Sebastian Gruszecki continued the Bravehearts streak of dominant starting pitching going 7+ innings in his first home start with the team. Despite allowing 10 hits, the righty out of Florida Gulf Coast only allowed 3 runs, two of which came across the plate after he was done pitching. Because Gruszecki allowed the runners to reach base, he was responsible for 3 earned runs. He also managed to strike out seven batters. "It was everything I imagined" exclaimed Gruszecki when asked about pitching in front of the Worcester crowd. Sebastian credited part of his success to his team's offense. "They were huge today, it kept me dialed in the whole game”. The Worcester offense got going early, scoring 3 runs in the second inning. John Friday led off the second with a walk followed by a Pat Demarco single and a Brett Coffel walk. Dante Ricciardi got the first run of the game in with a sacrifice fly. His brother Mariano continued with a base hit scoring another run. A second run managed to score on the same play after a throwing error by the left fielder Luke Tyree. Worcester continued in the very next inning. After Greg Kocinski singled and Friday reached on an error, Joe Caico hit his league leading ninth home run of the year, extending the Worcester lead to 6-0. Worcester extended their lead after Kevin Doody scored on a passed ball in the fifth. Doody scored the Bravehearts' eighth run of the game on a Joe Caico sacrifice fly in the seventh. Going into the eighth, Worcester enjoyed an 8-1 lead. However, that lead was trimmed dramatically after Gruszecki was pulled from the game. After giving up a double, then a single, Gruszecki was pulled in favor of Kendall Pomeroy. The righty from UMass-Lowell struggled, giving up 3 hits and a sacrifice fly in the four batters he faced. He was credited for 3 earned runs. Cody Laweryson managed to get the final two outs of the eighth, both by way of the K. However, the Hearts' found themselves only up 8-6 by the end of the inning. Frank Moscatiello asserted his dominance as the Worcester closer, pitching a perfect ninth inning to earn the save. Worcester takes tomorrow off before heading off to Pittsfield on Sunday. First pitch will be at 5:00 pm.	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3289
__label__wiki	0.561068	0.561068	Council Member — Duplicate of Stockton City Council District 5 Christina Fugazi High School Science Teacher and City... Crime Reduction & Police Staffing Protect neighborhoods & Libraries and Recreation The Stockton Record Dyane Burgos Medina Charitable Org VP, Medical Social... Reduce crime and retain police officers. Address our city's growing population of homeless,... Improve access to economic opportunity for all Stocktonians... San Joaquin County Democratic Central CommitteeCentral Valley Stonewall Democratic ClubAssemblywoman Susan Talamantes EggmanMayor Michael TubbsSupervisor Kathy MillerCouncilwoman Susan LofthusCouncilman Dan WrightTracy City Councilwoman Rhodesia RansomCouncilman Jesus Andrade Mark L. Stebbins BUSINESSMAN/GENERAL BLDG CONTRACTOR... OPEN GOVERNMENT AND INCREASE CITIZEN PARTICIPATION IMPROVE THE WELL-BEING OF STOCKTON RESIDENTS REMOVE BARRIERS TO ECONOMIC GROWTH WOMENS REALTY COMPANYSOUTH STOCKTON IMPROVENT ASSOCIATIONJACKYE MUMPHREY REALTY GROUPENERGY SYSTEMS RETROFITTING GROUPC. JENNET STEBBINS Trustee San Joaquin Delta CollegeBLANTON MOSES, CEO City Councilmember/Teacher Email - fugazi2017@gmail.com Email - ckfugazi@gmail.com Charitable Organization Vice-President Address our city's growing population of homeless, substance abusers, and people with mental health issues. Improve access to economic opportunity for all Stocktonians including housing, jobs, and quality child care. Profession:Charitable Org VP, Medical Social Worker, Mom Stockton City Councilmember, Stockton City Council District 5 — Appointed position (2013–2014) District 1 Representative, San Joaquin County Democratic Central Committee — Elected position (2012–2013) Laurence Drivon School of Law - Humphreys University — Juris Doctor, Law (2013) California State University, Stanislaus — Master of Social Work, Social Work (2010) University of California, San Diego — Bachelor of Arts, Human Development (2006) Dyane Burgos Medina grew up in Stockton and graduated from Bear Creek High School. Dyane was voted “Senior of the Year” for her work in community service and with children, as well as her achievements in sports and academics. Upon graduation from high school, Dyane moved to San Diego to attend the University of California, San Diego. During her time there, she studied Spanish and human development. Dyane would ultimately receive her Master of Social Work from Stanislaus State University. Immediately upon graduation from graduate School, Dyane knew she wanted to continue her education in the legal field to become a true advocate for the people she wanted to help. She applied and was immediately accepted to the Laurence Drivon School of Law where she graduated in May 2013. In November 2012, Councilmember Susan Eggman was elected to the California State Assembly, leaving a vacancy on the Stockton City Council. Dyane applied with the belief that working on the city council would be a valuable way to give back to the community by lending her social work and legal perspective to the City of Stockton. Although many other qualified citizens applied, Dyane was chosen to fulfill the two-year vacancy. Dyane’s passion for our community’s youth is exemplified in both her work and service to Stockton. Dyane has a long career working with neglected and abused children, mentoring youth through Big Brothers Big Sisters, as the Vice President of a charitable organization played a key role in securing over a million dollars over the next five years for mental health services to reduce bullying, crime, and homelessness. Dyane is currently a clinical social worker for St. Joseph’s Medical Center and is assisting our sick and dying community members and ensuring they have the resources needed to maintain a dignified quality of life. She also serves on the Stockton Public Schools Foundation board, the Midtown/Magnolia Coordinating Committee, and is Vice President of the San Joaquin Pride Center. Dyane and her husband Gustavo proudly call Stockton home where they are raising their daughter, Delilah Grace. San Joaquin County Democratic Central Committee Central Valley Stonewall Democratic Club Assemblywoman Susan Talamantes Eggman Mayor Michael Tubbs Supervisor Kathy Miller Councilwoman Susan Lofthus Councilman Dan Wright Tracy City Councilwoman Rhodesia Ransom Councilman Jesus Andrade Email - dyane.burgos@me.com 562 votes (14.95%)Check Profession:BUSINESSMAN/GENERAL BLDG CONTRACTOR / ELECTRICIAN General Building, Electrical Contractor, notary public, real estate agent, Stebbins of Stockton (1985–current) Stockton City Councilman, stockton city council — Elected position (1983–1984) Washington State University — Bachelor, English, Mathematics and Chemistry (1969) Ministerial Lay Leader, St Mark's United Methodist Church (2016–current) I graduated from washington state university earning a B.A. Degree in English and mathematics on a Chemistry Scholarship. I worked for Boeing Company as a Template layout Technician. i was trained in various phases of tool and die construction and fiberglass construction. I organized the community garden project as an employee of University of California Cooperative Extension in Stockton. I have been a community volunteer, an organizer, and an employer in this South Stockton District as a UHaul rental equipment Dealer, Notary Public, Real Estate Agent, General Bldg and Electrical Contractor: I've taught electricity, speech and nutrition in the 4-H Program. I speak Spanish and English. I am also a co-founder and president of the South Stockton Merchants Association. WOMENS REALTY COMPANY SOUTH STOCKTON IMPROVENT ASSOCIATION JACKYE MUMPHREY REALTY GROUP ENERGY SYSTEMS RETROFITTING GROUP C. JENNET STEBBINS Trustee San Joaquin Delta College BLANTON MOSES, CEO My philosophy is to insure that money obtained for South Stockton is used in our community. Support job readiness programs for youth. Support businesses in developing jobs for our community. Email - stebbinsmark007@comcast.net	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3290
__label__cc	0.732497	0.267503	Bees! I hate bees. I’m partially convinced by the position of the environmentalist lobby that bees somehow contribute to the good of all humanity. That being said, we should recognize that pollination but like global warming, evolution, and gravity, is a THEORY meaning that it may or may not be true. Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow, and all that. At the same time, I’ve become interested in the use of marginal landscapes in the Western Argolid for bee keeping, and keep my eye out for evidence of these practices on the Western Argolid Regional Project. On Monday, we encountered a bee keeping complex on the northern slope of the Inachos valley above the village of Lyrkeia. There was evidence for long term olive cultivation and the neglected remains of broad terraces serve as reminders of grain cultivation. Today, however, the olives are mostly neglected and the grain has gone wild, but bees continue to be kept and honey harvested. There were a few active hives near the compound (I didn’t get too close!), but it looked like the area was mostly used for the preparation of hives with bee food, broken down hives, and various storage containers in evidence. The compound was filled with empty bee hives, metal lined covers, and the metal racks where the honey comb develops. The wood on many of these abandoned hives is beginning to rot, but the metal frames and hinges will stay behind long after the wood disappears. The Inachos river is another marginal landscape. It is seasonal and during the dry summer months, it serves as a road, dumping ground, and temporary apiary! Further up on the slopes, discarded be hives litter an open field. The frames in some were intact, although the metal lined covers had been largely removed. I suppose in a few years, when all the bees are gone, all we’ll have left to show their impact on these marginal landscapes will be scraps of metal. The apotheke One thought on “Bees and Marginal Landscapes in the Western Argolid” Nancy Caraher says: I really like Greek honey! You can bring some back for me! It is great on Greek yogurt!	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3299
__label__cc	0.517339	0.482661	Gerhard Damm Reviews Peter Flack’s Hunting the Spiral Horns – Kudu, the top African Antelope Peter Flack is well known to the readers of African Indaba and he has contributed frequently since the inception of the newsletter more than a decade ago. As an accomplished author of books, like Heart of an African Hunter, Tales of a Trophy Hunter in Africa, Hunting Icons of Africa and The South African Conservation Success Story as well as articles on African Hunting beyond count, Peter became a household name for anybody interested in conservation and hunting in Africa. The Kudu book reviewed here is the first in a five-book series covering the 27 recognized phenotypes of the endemic African spiral horn antelope family. Peter’s affinity to the spiral horns in general and to the African Kudu in particular is well-known; the initiation of the Spiral Horn Antelope Club several years ago as an information exchange platform for spiral horn enthusiasts was but a first step. In this Kudu book, Peter brings together the deans of Kudu hunting – all of them hunting legends on their own: Anthony Dyer, Brian Herne Robin Hurt, Alain Lefol, James Mellon, Tony Tomkinson, Jason Roussos, amongst others. Altogether over 400 photographs, most of them never ever published before complement the authoritative chapters. Apart from giving in-depth information on each of the six Kudu phenotypes (including of course the grey ghost of East Africa, the Lesser Kudu), Flack provides insight into the historic context of the early explorer accounts of the Kudu, its hunting then and now, the life history and habitat of the different phenotypes, appropriate hunting rifles, ammunition, techniques and glances into the box of tricks of successful kudu hunters – altogether a wealth of information never before presented in a single book. With typical Flack-tongue-in-cheek, Peter Flack goes about the taxonomic Kudu re-classifications of recent years. Apparently, the scientific world is coming to similar conclusions like the eternally practical Peter regarding the now rather exasperating raising of subspecies to species rank. In particular in connection with the ungulate taxonomy of Groves and Grubb, mentioned by Peter on page 22 of the book, I have read peer comments that it is seen “as a step backwards for both taxonomy and conservation” (see also Frank Zachos et al., Species inflation and taxonomic artifacts—A critical comment on recent trends in mammalian classification Mammal. Biol. 2012). Kevin ‘Doctari’ Robertson, author of “The Perfect Shot” opines that the book contains a treasure trove of valuable information and anecdotes, destined to become a classic. Rolf Baldus, a co-editor of African Indaba, and editor of the iconic book “Wild Heart of Africa, The Selous Game Reserve in Tanzania” writes about Peter’s Kudu book … “[this] well written and visually appealing book is to become required reading for all spiral horn hunters, in general, and kudu hunters, in particular, for many years to come.” I may be permitted to add that it also should be mandatory reading for non-hunting African conservationists and wildlife managers from the public and private sectors, as well as the students of African wildlife. Hunting the Spiral Horns – Kudu, the Top African Antelope was officially launched at the Dallas Safari Club Convention on 4 January 2013. Hunting the Spiral Horns – Kudu, the Top African Antelope edited by Peter Flack. ISBN Number 978-0-9814424-8-8, published by Rowland Ward Publications (2012). Standard Edition: Hardcover with dust jacket, 292 pages with 400 colour photographs. Price: US$65.00 / ZAR535.00. Available from Rowland Ward Publications (South Africa) and Safari Press (USA) Review: Gerhard Damm	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3310
__label__wiki	0.777611	0.777611	She was what we used to call a suicide blond - dyed by her own hand. Previous Title - For Richer or Poorer Return to Full Title List Next Title - Forrest Gump For Your Eyes Only [1981] (1 disc) Director: John Glen Writer: Michael G. Wilson Richard Maibaum Composer: Bill Conti Sorting Category: Action Ultimate 007 Collection DVD Set - Roger Moore - Vol. 2 Click here to see list Click here to hide list Synopsis: Agent 007 is assigned to hunt for a lost British encryption device and prevent it from falling into enemy hands. Reaction: It's okay. Not a lot that stands out here for me, but it's enjoyable enough. John Glen => Director Michael G. Wilson => Writer / Greek Priest at Wedding (uncredited) Richard Maibaum => Writer Bill Conti => Composer Ian Fleming => Stories Carole Bouquet => Melina Havelock Cassandra Harris => Lisl Charles Dance => Claus Desmond Llewelyn => Q Eva Reuber-Staier => Rublevich (as Eva Rueber-Staier) Geoffrey Keen => Minister of Defence Graham Hawkes => Mantis Man Jack Hedley => Sir Timothy Havelock Jack Klaff => Apostis James Villiers => Tanner Janet Brown => The Prime Minister Jill Bennett => Jacoba Brink John Hollis => Ernst Stavro Blofeld (uncredited) John Moreno => Ferrara John Wells => Denis Thatcher John Wyman => Erich Kriegler Julian Glover => Kristatos Lois Maxwell => Miss Moneypenny Lynn-Holly Johnson => Bibi Dahl Michael Gothard => Locque Paul Angelis => Karageorge Robert Rietty => Ernst Stavro Blofeld (voice) (uncredited) Roger Moore => Ian Fleming's James Bond 007 Sheena Easton => Herself - Singer in Title Sequence (uncredited) Stefan Kalipha => Hector Gonzales Toby Robins => Iona Havelock Topol => Milos Columbo Walter Gotell => General Gogol First and only [Bond] film in the official series not to feature the M character. It was the first [Bond] film not to feature Bernard Lee as M, who had played the role in the previous eleven films in the series. Lee died of stomach cancer on January 16, 1981, after the filming of "For Your Eyes Only" had started but before his scenes were shot. Although Bernard Lee was dying of stomach cancer, he did try to film at least one scene in the movie, but in the end it was too much for him and he had to bow out. He died not long after. As a result, Q's role in the film was slightly expanded to fill the gap. As such, a number of scenes originally intended to include M were re-written with Q, e.g. the confessional scene. As a mark of respect, producer Albert R. Broccoli refused to recast the role, changing the script to say that M was on leave. The tele-movie Climax!: Casino Royale (1954) also did not feature the M character. Roger Moore was not happy about the scene where he cold-bloodedly kills Locque by pushing his teetering car off a cliff. Although Moore acknowledged that this was a Bond thing to do, he didn't feel that it was a Roger Moore Bond thing to do. Julian Glover, who played Aristotle Kristatos, was a candidate to play James Bond in the sixties and was on the short-list as a possible replacement for Sean Connery and George Lazenby prior to the role going to Roger Moore. The previous [Bond] film, Moonraker, was a huge financial success but fans and critics complained that the series had become too focused on wild gadgets, outlandish plots, over-the-top villains and screwball comedy. As a result, producers decided to return to a more realistic storyline in 'For Your Eyes Only', using previous [Bond] films From Russia with Love and On Her Majesty's Secret Service as models. Therefore, this film contains many story elements similar to those films; the ATAC is similar to the Lektor, Kriegler is similar to Grant, Columbo is similar to Kerim Bey and the winter sports sequences are similar to those in On Her Majesty's Secret Service. The reason the underwater close-ups of Carole Bouquet had to be faked was that the actress had sinus trouble that made it impossible for her to dive or remain underwater. When Bibi flirts with Bond (Roger Moore), she states that Aristotle Kristatos (Julian Glover) is much older than Bond, and while Bibi pursues Bond, she later tells Kristatos that Kristatos is "too old for her". The Kristatos character is also a 1939-1945 War veteran. In fact, Glover was born in 1935 and is eight years younger than Moore. Steven Spielberg was very much interested in directing a [James Bond] film and did have talks with Albert R. Broccoli to direct this film, but Broccoli told him he only wanted British directors to helm the [Bond] series. Shortly afterwards George Lucas offered Spielberg an iconic hero of his own in the form of Raiders of the Lost Ark. This was the first [Bond] film to be based on one of Ian Fleming's short stories (instead of one of his novels). Interestingly, there are several scenes in this film lifted from other Fleming tales. Examples: The assault on the smugglers' boat and warehouse is lifted intact from a short story entitled "Risico", and the sequence featuring Bond and Melina being dragged through the coral is actually lifted from the climax from the book, "Live and Let Die". The Identigraph appeared in slightly different form in the book, "Goldfinger". A line of dialogue had to be cut from the opening helicopter sequence due to legal reasons involving [?] Kevin McClory. The bald man could not be called Blofeld as [?] Kevin McClory had won a court case some years previous and owned the rights to the use of SPECTRE and Blofeld. Disposing of Blofeld so early was producer Albert R. Broccoli's way of telling McClory that the success of 007 did not depend on him. McClory later released a rival [Bond] movie, Never Say Never Again, featuring the Blofeld character. Blofeld has not appeared in EON productions since this movie. The third consecutive [Bond] film where Bond's mission takes him to Italy. Bond wouldn't return there for another 25 years until Casino Royale. The character of Countess Lisl was played by Cassandra Harris who, at the time of filming, was married to future Bond actor Pierce Brosnan. Brosnan would be offered the part just five years later but be unable to appear as Bond in The Living Daylights due to [Remington Steele] commitments. In the movie, James Bond rejects Bibi's (played by Lynn-Holly Johnson) advances, presumably due to her being too young for him. Bond later has a relationship with Melina (played by Carole Bouquet). Melina is presumably much older than Bibi in the movie. In reality, the two actresses are only a year apart in age. Bond mentions a Chinese saying: "Before setting out for revenge, you first dig two graves". That particular quote is indeed Chinese and attributed to the Chinese philosopher Confucius. Carole Bouquet was dubbed. However, she dubbed herself in the French version.	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3317
__label__cc	0.526705	0.473295	Why college hoops is the best of the major "amateur" sports Why college hoops trumps college football 1) There is no mythical national champion. There's no debate about who the champ is. No one with 'credentials' gets left out in college basketball. 2) Rankings make more sense. Recent example- Auburn is ranked ahead of Arkansas in the polls despite getting blasted by the Hogs at home and both having one loss. 3) More teams have a realistic chance to win it all. Every year in college football there's about 10 teams that realistically have a chance to win the MNC. In college hoops you can expand that to 25 teams. Heck, Florida was preseason unranked last year and we know how that turned out. Try being preseason unranked in college football and have thoughts of a MNC. 4) Seats... all seats are chairbacks indoors. College football... not so much. Why college hoops trumps college baseball 1) DING! The fingernails on the chalkboard sound of an aluminum bat. It's like playing wiffleball with newspaper stuffed in the wifflebat. 2) The best players 18-22 are already in the minor leagues. There are exceptions, but for the most part I'm right. That makes college baseball the equivalent of watching Class A baseball. Someone counter with the NBDL... I'll counter that with no one watches that anyways. (g) Some of this is tongue in cheek, some of this is not... I'll let you decide. USA Today/ESPN preseason ranking out We're #12... about where I expected us to be. Of those ahead of us I believe Duke, UCLA, and Arizona are waaaay overrated. We're #12 Damn me for saying this, but I think Tennessee is ranked a little low to start the year. I suspect they'll be top 15 to end the year. As long as we're better than the puke Orange I'll be happy. :) SEC Men's Basketball Preseason Awards Announced BIRMINGHAM, Ala. -- The Southeastern Conference unveiled its third annual men's basketball coaches preseason All-SEC first and second teams, Monday, to tip off another great season of SEC men's basketball. Florida led all schools with four selections. Alabama's Ronald Steele, Florida's Joakim Noah, LSU's Glen Davis and Tennessee's Chris Lofton were unanimous selections. The coaches preseason All-SEC first and second teams consist of a minimum of eight players on each squad, voted on by the SEC Head Men's Basketball Coaches. No ties were broken and no predicted order of finish was made. Steele and Davidson preseason 1st team How can there be 8 first team players? Shouldn't it be 5? There's one ommission IMO... Steven "Mango Salsa" Hill C Arkansas. I figure on D alone he's a 2nd teamer. I suspect he'll be in the running for defensive player of the year. For your reading pleasure...national links about Alabama SI's 20 burning questions- Can anyone turn this Tide into a three-point machine? I think Alabama is going into the season mildly underrated. The Tide have arguably the best guard in America in Ronald Steele, and the inside tandem of 6-foot-10 senior Jemareo Davidson and 6-8 sophomore Richard Hendrix is formidable. Still, last year 'Bama ranked ninth in the SEC in made threes per game (5.61) and was seventh in three-point percentage (34.5 percentage), and that inability to bomb from long range proved to be its undoing. Jean Felix, who made only 31.6 percent from behind the arc but went for a season-high 31 points in the NCAA first-round win over Marquette, is gone. There is no obvious replacement, and Alabama needs to find one soon Click here for the rest. Free preview of Alabama on espn To step up, says the Mirriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary, is "to succeed in meeting a challenge [as by increased effort or improved performance]." What better way to describe Alabama basketball in 2005-06? Even coach Mark Gottfried might have feared the Crimson Tide's season was spiraling southward on the morning of Jan. 8, when he got word that his leading scorer and best low-post player, Chuck Davis, was lost for the rest of the year after blowing out his knee in a loss to Ole Miss the night before. And if he didn't think Alabama was doomed just then, Gottfried might have come around to that line of thinking two weeks later, when guard Justin Jonus, one of the team's few remaining perimeter scoring threats, abruptly quit the team, leaving Gottfried with just seven scholarship players. Not that Jonus was any world beater. But his departure, coupled with transfers and academic problems that cost the program four other players before the season began, left the Tide two foul outs and a twisted ankle away from finishing games with walk-ons. That's a scary proposition in any league, let alone the Southeastern Conference. But at the height of Gottfried's despair, the Tide's luck began to change. Those foul outs and ankle injuries never happened. And several players, their roles drastically altered by the loss of Davis, began to succeed in meeting a challenge (as by increased effort or improved performance). In other words, they stepped up. From CBS Sportsline- A Gary Parrish writeup. You've been warned. When the Crimson Tide do start playing games (Jackson State visits Nov. 10), what you'll find is that this is a team capable of being featured prominently on that One Shining Moment video next April. Who knows if they can win it all? But if you're compiling a list of teams with a legitimate shot to advance to the Final Four, this is one that must be on it. Alabama has the best point guard in the nation in Ronald Steele, plus a dominant big man (Davidson) and bruising power forward (Hendrix). Granted, the Crimson Tide could use a proven shooter and some experienced depth, but when a team starts practice trying to establish its fourth-best player while identifying reserves, that's a team in good shape relative to most of the competition. "I don't know if we're top 10 right now," Steele said, downplaying the expectations. "But we have a chance to be pretty good." How good? Consider the chant at the end of practice. 1-2-3 ... A-T-L! Click here to read the rest. Quick comments on the articles linked SI- Gee and Steele will take the bulk of the 3s for us early on. Hopefully someone steps up as a 3rd beyond the arc threat. ESPN- probably the best national preview of the team I've seen. It's a long read, but well worth it. CBS- We really should've hyped up opening practice. I don't think the casual Alabama fan realizes how special this year could be. A little help from our SID (ha) and some marketing could've gone a long way to promoting the team. Otherwise a fair article from Parrish. Gottfried reigns in hoop title hopes I'm not sure why he wants to downplay it, but he is.... seems silly to me. "The writers and editors who are picking our team high need to go on vacation for a while," he said. Immediately, Gottfried starts jutting out fingers and listing the major obstacles for his club. "The first thing, in this league you have Florida, who returns everyone from the national championship team. And in the SEC West, LSU returns three starters and the SEC player of the year (Glen Davis) from a conference championship team. I don't think there's any question the rest of the league is chasing those two." Click here to read the rest of this. More al.com links 2 starting spots open according to this piece. I disagree... Gee has secured a spot IMO. Let the battle begin for the final slot. Another Steele article talking about him being an Iron Man and the expectations of this team. Finally, practice begins Friday at 7:30PM CST (I have to put CST as I'm an EST dweller). Even more love for Steele- ESPN article Why he'll make news: Steele is considered one of the top point guards in the country -- and also may be its most important. Talk to any coach in the SEC and they'll single out Steele as the point guard they'd love to have on their team. Steele did a little bit of everything for the Tide last season and his role will only expand with the departure of Chuck Davis. Steele's name should be known nationally by midseason. It's already a common name within basketball circles, but he'll be written about, talked about on air and surely shown in highlights as he leads the Tide toward an SEC West top-two finish. The rest can be read here Let's enjoy Steele this year as it'll be his last season in Crimson. He'll be a top 10 draft pick barring unforseen circumstances. Scoring options Posts on another board got me to thinking... who are our scoring options. My list from 4 to 1: #4- Richard Hendrix He's a cog in the middle, a rebounder, picks up the "garbage" points off misses, and plays decent D. However his offensive skills are limited as he hasn't shown a midrange jumper (yet). #3- Alonzo Gee The only reason he's #3 is the guys ahead of him have senority. He's a slasher, rebounds well, an outside threat. He'll be our go to guy next season. #2 Ronald Steele As of right now he's our best shooter, he penetrates, dishes, and even rebounds if the D is asleep at the wheel. He's the best at creating his own shot on the team, but he's #2 as his main job is still to distribute the ball. If he doesn't play 40MPG (and if he does it's borderline criminal) he'll be the go to guy down the stretch. He's going to make some NBA franchise really, really happy. #1 Jamereo Davidson 2 years ago he was a shot blocker, last year he was a force in all aspects fo the game. This is going to sound bad, but Chuck Davis going down for the year gave him an opening to shine and he did in fact shine. JD has a nice low post game, medium range jumper, great defender, and is obviously a tremendous rebounder. Steele and Hollinger will feed hm early and often. My only concern is now that JD has the spotlight on him can he handle double teams and find the open man on the perimeter or slashing to the basket. I think the answer is yes. His stats might not look any better than last year, but I believe he'll be a more complete player. CBS Sportsline top PGs of 2006-07 Steele tops the list in this article. 1. Ronald Steele (Alabama): The best point guards are the ones who can get a basket when their team needs a basket but do not necessarily need to get baskets to feed their egos. You follow me? In other words, a great point guard is a guy good enough to be selfish, yet unselfish in every way. That's why Steele (14.3 points and 4.3 assists per game last season) tops this list. He's a 6-foot-3 playmaker who just might lead the Crimson Tide to the Final Four. The rest of the article can be found here: Steele best PG according to article Bobby Brown is #9... who knew he had eligibility left? Who's the best NBA player to play at Alabama? Just to clarify what I'm asking... I'm looking for a former player that's excelled in the NBA. I was going through a bunch of names... Buck Johnson, McKey, Benoit, Sprewell, Horry, McDyess, Wallace, Mo Williams, Darby Rich (just checking to see if you're paying attention) and none of them jump out at me. If we go by who has the most rings then it's Horry by a mile. That won't work as Horry has been a role player his entire career (and a damn good one at that). McDyess was on fire with Denver and Phoenix, but injuries slowed him down... otherwise I'd go with him. Buck Johnson was a workhorse, but a role player. McKey... very similar to Horry minus the rings. It's too early to give Mo or Gerald Wallace the nod... and truth be told I doubt either can be regarded the best to play at Alabama. Benoit probably overachieved the most... making it undrafted, but he was another role player. In the end I have to go with Sprewell. His pro career outshines his collegiate one. He averaged at least 15 PPG up until his final year in Minnesota in 2004, was a multiple time All-Star, and was part of that surprising '99 NY Knick team that somehow made it to the finals (as an 8 seed). Note- I'm dating this back 20 years to 1986. Why college hoops is the best of the major "amateu... For your reading pleasure...national links about A...	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3319
__label__cc	0.595159	0.404841	Alex R. Hey Author/blogger/amateur poet Alex R. Hey has had his work featured on TheBatmanUniverse.net, Catholic365.com, and EpicPew.com and in The Eagle Democrat (Warren, AR) and The Argus Leader (Sioux Falls, SD). His books can be found on Amazon.com and BarnesandNoble.com. Originally from Maple Grove, MN, Mr. Hey has lived in Sioux Falls, SD since 1995. Outside of writing, his other interests include: Following hockey and Minnesota sports teams, Batman, detective stories, community theater, and improv. Mr. Hey is a member of Catholics Online, a group of Catholic Social Media Influencers. Click the logo above for more information. Writing Highlights Eugène de Mazenod: A Saint for Today Poems I Found in My Prayer Journals Brainthoughts EpicPew.com: December 2014–Present Blogging/writing articles http://epicpew.com/author/ahey/ Eagle Democrat (Warren, AR): Fall 2014 Sports Reporter/Photographer for Minnesota Vikings' games TheBatmanUniverse.net: April 2014–April 2015 Reviewed episodes of Cartoon Network's Beware the Batman Reviewed episodes of FOX's Gotham Reported on DC TV News Copy writing for musicians Argus Leader (Sioux Falls, SD) Two guest editorials published between in 2012 and 2016	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3322
__label__cc	0.505516	0.494484	WHY VALLARTA? LOCAL PROFILES PV ART GALLERIES VALLARTA ART TALK RESORT LIFESTYLES VALLARTA WEDDINGS SHOP UNTIL YOU DROP 101 HOTTEST FOR 2007 Vallarta Living \| Art Talk Modo Foto: Developing Photographers in Mexico Kathleen Harris - BanderasNews.com Click HERE to see the Modo Foto Video. For more information, visit the Modo Foto Vallarta website. Puerto Vallarta, Mexico - I've known my friend Brad Wollman for 13 years, and during that time he has done a lot of different jobs: YMCA director, real estate agent, concierge, tour company operator, blogger, musician, honorary yogi and photographer. So I'm never surprised when his life takes another "right turn, Clyde." With his usual ability to tune into a subject's core energy, Brad has landed himself smack in the middle of some of the most interesting model photography happening in Mexico. Welcome to the wild and wacky world of Modo Foto, a loose collective of model photographers, amateur and professional, who clicked powerfully when they met at Ujena Jam events. After this year's Jam some of the photographers wanted to continue working together, so they decided to gather at various locations around Mexico, invite local models and photograph them. The energy and enthusiasm their efforts generated attracted the focus of one of the best photographers in the country, David Eisenberg. David Eisenberg, one of three Canon-sponsored photographers in Mexico, with numerous Playboy and Rolling Stone covers to his credit, is now directly involved with the group. For the last two years in a row David won the Cosmic Award for Best Editorial Photographer in Mexico. He has photographed presidents and celebrities, written books on the art of model photography, and is regularly featured in such magazines as Lideres Mexicanos, Día Siete, and Mexico Desconocido, among others. The concept and format of Modo Foto is creating opportunities for several photographers to shoot all at once, in their various styles, which not only gives the models an instant and diverse portfolio in a single day, but also creates community among photographers who rarely have the opportunity to shoot together. Additionally, these events focus a spotlight on the models, the designers' creations, and shooting venues, giving all involved a chance to be part of the nightlife and glamour associated with going out with a group of models. The enthusiasm and generosity inherent in this format has provided the Modo Foto gang with a first class technical learning environment as well as remarkable trips through Mexico during which the whole group has more fun than perhaps should be allowed. So where has this mad circus of photo hotshots clicked lately? They have shot in Mexico City, San Miguel de Allende, Puerto Vallarta, Yelapa, Pizota, Cabo Corrientes and Guadalajara. Recently, group member Alex Picazo, from Vera Cruz, invited them to come to his home town and shoot, so they rendezvoused in Mexico City - staging another impromptu shoot there - then headed off to Vera Cruz to enjoy Alex's hospitality and valuable input. A master photographer himself, Alex has created some backstage videos of the Modo Foto group for Canon Mexico which can now be seen on YouTube and will soon be on the Canon Mexico website. Future Modo Foto events in the planning stages include Miami in 2011 and Las Vegas in 2012. They will also hold impromptu events in other locations, including the Bay of Banderas. Modo Foto Vallarta, Brad's newest project, is a collective of local photographers and models of varying levels of experience that offers photo shoots, classes, events, a model database and fantastic networking opportunities. So, if you are a photographer or model who wants to have fun creating amazing images in exotic locations, these events are going to thrill you. For more information check out the Modo Foto Vallarta website. Tell a Friend Site Map Print this Page Email Us Top the included information for research and educational purposes © 2011 BanderasNews ® all rights reserved	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3327
__label__cc	0.739988	0.260012	Gary Moreno When I saw the e-mail that the Bermuda Sun will cease publication as of today, I was at first angry. Angry that such a powerful and unbiased voice that often told the stories that would perhaps otherwise have gone un-heard, was being silenced. My anger turned to concern for my colleagues at Elliot Street and what would become of them. Would they continue to practise their craft, since for them to stop doing so, would mean the loss of a “talented, loyal and exceptionally conscientious group of journalists”, to quote Bermuda Sun Editor-in-chief Tony McWilliam. A loss this country can ill afford at this difficult time in its continued development. While we may not have attended Friday night fish fries, I did have an excellent working relationship with more than a couple of reporters at the Bermuda Sun, such was the trust and respect that I had for them. It’s unclear whether residents fully understand the serious implications of the loss of the Sun. Not only is there less “Sunshine” of public scrutiny by which to hold our politicians accountable, but we are now left with one newspaper. One which has too often been described as not always enjoying the trust of the wider community. And so the Sun was relied upon to provide readers with the big picture and a clear perspective, allowing us the opportunity to better form our opinions for or against any particular issue. Speaking with one former Bermuda Sun reporter, it was suggested that this may in fact be a blessing in disguise, an opportunity for some enterprising soul to begin a new local news entity, whether it be physical or virtual. I remain hopeful, since, at the risk of engaging in melodrama, the island’s democracy depends on it. By the way, Danny McDonald, you owe me a cold beverage. I still aim to collect. News Director, ZBM	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3332
__label__cc	0.692329	0.307671	Cover Reveal and Giveaway: My Lady, My Spy by Sheridan Jeane by Sheridan Jeane Secrets and Seductions #4 Publication Date: June 21, 2016 Genres: Adult, Historical Romance He’s a spy— Certain truths aren’t his to share… London, 1854 ~ Frederick Woolsy is Queen Victoria’s finest spy. His mission at the Russian Embassy’s annual ball is one of the most critical ones of his life, but his careful plans end in disaster. The book he was assigned to secure has been stolen and now England and Russia are on the brink of war. Even worse, the love of his life has caught him in another lie (he’s a spy, certain lies are expected). However, in this case, it might mean he’ll lose her forever. She’s a lady who demands honesty– above all else The nights Lady Josephine Harrington spent with Frederick in her bed were glorious… enough to tempt her to consider abandoning her independence as a wealthy widow to spend her life with him. Tonight, he canceled their plans to attend the Russian Embassy’s ball, saying he would be otherwise engaged. Now he’s shown up at the event with his brother. She’s not sure what he’s up to, but she’s going to find out…if she doesn’t eviscerate him first. Secrets and lies… He lives in a world of shadows. She values truth and integrity. If they want to find a future together, something has to change. Fast. EXCERPT - MY LADY, MY SPY Josephine finally escaped the crowded ballroom and entered the foyer. She looked around, but found no sign of Frederick or his brother. They’d both disappeared. Movement above her on the balcony caught her attention. Was that Frederick? When he spotted her, he ducked out of sight, but she’d seen him. Of that she was certain. Why had he gone up there? Was he merely curious about the building’s renovations? She dismissed the idea. There was more than mere curiosity driving his actions. She moved toward the staircase, intending to follow him, but a large footman stepped in front of her, blocking the way. “Upstairs area is restricted,” the man said in a thick Russian accent. “No guests allowed.” Josephine glanced at the balcony again, but couldn’t spot Frederick. She knew better than to mention his flouting of the rules to the footman. Frederick must have evaded him by taking an alternate route upstairs. She acquiesced and stepped away, glancing around the grand foyer. She spotted a door on the far side of the room leading toward the embassy offices. It wasn’t guarded. Perhaps she’d find another staircase back there. A children’s choir began singing. The other guests around her moved. As a group passed between her and the man guarding the staircase, Josephine slipped through a side door and found herself in a corridor lined with embassy offices. There should be another, less opulent staircase nearby. The office doors were all closed, but about halfway down the hallway she noticed one standing slightly ajar. She hurried closer to open it and when she discovered a servants’ staircase, she grinned. Frederick must have taken this route. Josephine lifted the hem of her skirt and crept up the stairs. Her night around would end in disaster if she ran into one of the embassy’s servants. Those Russian footmen looked intimidating. She paused when she reached the landing. The door leading to the corridor was closed, but she heard someone just outside. She paused as she tried to identify the odd shuffling sound that seemed to be moving away from her. Cautiously, she edged open the door and peeked into the hallway. A man was sliding a cloth along the floor with his shoe, wiping up what appeared to be water. Not just any man. Frederick. She pushed open the door and stepped through. At the sound, he spun to face her. His jaw dropped as his piercing blue eyes widened in surprise.“Josephine? What in blazes are you doing up here?” “You canceled our plans for tonight. Imagine my surprise when you strolled through the ballroom.” She gave him a cold smile. “I thought I’d give you an opportunity to explain yourself before I set the dogs on you, so to speak.” Also in the Secrets and Seduction series... Buy (#FREE with #KindleUnlimited): Amazon It Takes a Spy... by Sheridan Jeane Secrets and Seduction, #1 Publication Date: November 1, 2014 Genres: Historical, Romance Synopsis: In 1851, Cecilia Paring has serious reservations about marrying her fiancé, Devin Montlake. Gone is the boy who could capture her heart with a word or a glance and in his place is a man who has made it clear that to be a proper barrister's wife, the exciting and impulsive Cecilia must change as well. Although Devin Montlake loves his orderly life as a barrister, he's determined to follow his roadmap to achieve his goal of becoming a judge. His biggest obstacle seems to be convincing his headstrong fiancée to fulfill her social obligations with a modicum of propriety. But when the jewelry collection belonging to Cecilia's family is stolen the night before it is to be auctioned off and Devin is framed for the crime, he discovers that following his much-loved rules won't solve this particular problem. He'll need the inventiveness of his irrepressible fiancée to catch the thief. Lady Catherine's Secret by Sheridan Jeane Secrets and Seduction #2 Publication Date: December 1, 2014 Genres: Historical, Romance Synopsis: London, 1853 Despite Lady Catherine's love of fencing, she needs to stop pretending to be a boy and fraternizing with men…but not until after the fencing tournament! Her mother plans to marry her off by the end of the season, so this will be her last chance to enjoy her freedom. When she impulsively puts her reputation at risk to save the life of a dashing competitor, all seems lost when he sees through her disguise, but he vows never to reveal her secret. Thank goodness for gentlemanly honor! Daniel, Marquess of Huntley, wants to overcome the rumors of his father's madness so that he can be embraced by London society. His plan is to marry the most proper woman who will have him, and then raise stable, respectable children. He certainly isn't interested in some hoyden with a penchant for masquerading as a boy and flaunting society's rules. In fact, he'd prefer to keep his distance. When an obsessed suitor discovers Catherine's secret and threatens blackmail, the only path out of social ruin is marriage. But what kind of protection does matrimony provide when a vengeful suitor is plotting the ultimate revenge? Buy: (#FREE with #KindleUnlimited) Amazon Once Upon a Spy by Sheridan Jeane Secrets and Seduction #3 Publication Date: November 17, 2015 Genres: Adult, Historical, Romance, Suspense Synopsis: London, 1854 ~ Robert, Earl of Wentworth, isn’t a spy, and he never wants to be one, but when his brother is injured and needs his help stealing an important book from the Russian embassy, he can’t refuse. Antonia has lost everything. If she wants her life back, she needs that book. The problem is, Lord Wentworth just stole it from the Russian Ambassador. The reluctant spy and the daring thief find themselves at cross-purposes. Who will win in this dangerous game of nations— especially when their hearts are at stake as well? Note: Although this is the third book in the series, it can be read as a standalone novel. For those who have read the first two books, you'll rediscover characters from both of them. ABOUT SHERIDAN JEANE Sheridan Jeane writes exciting and emotion-packed historical romances set in the Victorian Era that confront issues of trust and conformity. With the advent of the industrial age, life was changing. Many people tried to hold on to the old ways of life while others embraced the new opportunities open to them. Join Sheridan as she explores the clash between the old and the new. Sheridan has always loved books, history, and stories about amazing people who blaze new trails. Despite naming their daughter Sheridan because they thought it might someday look great on the cover of a book, Sheridan's parents urged her in a more practical direction for college. Sheridan earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Science with a minor in English. Website \| Blog \| Facebook \| Twitter \| Goodreads \| Newsletter \| Amazon Author Profile	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3339
__label__wiki	0.881714	0.881714	Sridevi Biography, Husband, Family, Boyfriend, Cause & Extra February 27, 2018 February 27, 2018 Jyoti Comment(0) Sridevi Wiki, Family, Caste, Brother, Sister & Boyfriend Sridevi was a versatile Indian actress who was known to be the women superstar of Indian film industry. She operated in different languages like Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, and also Kannada. She was the Highest Paid Actress in 1990s. Look Into Sridevi Wiki, Age, Boyfriend, Family Members, Other Half, Children, Bio, Facts & A lot more. Sridevi Born \| Father \| Age \| Awards Sridevi was born as Shree Amma Yanger Ayyapan on 13 August 1963 in Sivakasi, Tamil Nadu, India. She was honored with the Padma Shri in 2013 by the Government of India and also got this honor from the Head of state of India Pranab Mukherjee. She was well-known for her acting abilities and got various famous honors for her payment to the film sector. Throughout her acting occupation, she collaborated with so many prominent actors like Jeetendra, Kamal Hassan, Rajinikanth, Nagarjuna, Dharmendra, Sunny Deol, Amitabh Bachchan, Sanjay Dutt, Anil Kapoor, E.t.c. Sridevi Family, Caste, Brother, Sister & Boyfriend Sridevi came from a Hindu family and was birthed to legal representative Ayyapan Yanger as well as Rajeswari Yanger. She has two stepbrothers Anand & Satish and also a sister Latha. In 1985, she obtained wed to Indian film star Mithun Chakraborty to which she divorced in 1988. Sridevi Re-Married on 2 June 1996 to film producer Boney Kapoor. She has two daughters actress Jhanvi Kapoor as well as Internet celeb Khushi Kapoor. She likewise has a step-daughter Anshula Kapoor and also a step-son Arjun Kapoor, that is a star occupation. Father: Ayyapan Yanger Mother: Rajeswari Yanger Spouse: Mithun Chakraborty(1985–1988), Boney Kapoor(1996–2018) Daughter: Jhanvi Kapoor, Khushi Kapoor Brother: Satish Yanger Sister: Srilatha Yanger Sridevi Career She made her initial on-screen look when she was just 4 in 1967 in the Tamil film Thunaivan, where she played the function of young Lord Muruga. Her performance as a kid musician in the Malayalam movie Poompatta (1971) provided her a substantial popularity and also got the Kerala State Film Honor for the classification of Best Kid Artist. She operated in many renowned movies in different languages as a child musician like Nam Naadu (Tamil, 1969) Maa Nanna Nirdoshi (Telugu, 1970) Badi Panthulu (Telugu, 1972) Vasantha Maaligai (Tamil, 1972) Prarthanai (Tamil, 1973) Bhakta Kumbara (Kannada, 1974) Julie (Hindi, 1975) She made her acting debut as an actress in 1979 with the Bollywood movie Solva Sawan. The movie is the remake of Tamil movie 16 Vayathinile (1977 ), in which she starred other Kamal Hassan and also Rajinikanth. After a marital relationship, she paused for around 6 years from the film sector and made her returned in 2004 by including in the Hindi TELEVISION serial Malini Iyer. In 2005, she judged the TELEVISION program Kaboom. In 2008, she began working as a style design and did a number of modeling assignments. In 2009, she together with her other half Boney Kapoor appeared on the Salman Khan’s prominent fact game show 10 Ka Dum. In the very same year, she appeared as Showstopper in the HDIL Couture Week 2009 for a number of developers like Queenie Dhody, Neeta Lulla, and Priya-Chintan. In 2012, she appeared in an Indian TELEVISION talk show Satyamev Jayate, organized by Aamir Khan. Throughout that program, she authorized a letter to the government for passing a law versus crooks who sexually abuse children. Sridevi Death Cause On 24 February 2018, Sridevi died in Dubai, UAE because of unintentionally sank in the bathtub of her resort space at the Jumeirah Emirates Towers. She went there in addition to her hubby Boney Kapoor and little girl Khushi Kapoor to participate in the marriage of her nephew Mohit Marwah.Find here Sridevi’s Last Pictures From Mohit Marwah’s Wedding Watch Online Sridevi Last Video. Sridevi Superhit Movies Solvan Savan (1978) Himmatwala (1983) Mawali (1983) Toufa (1984) Naya Kadam (1984) Masterji (1985) Maksad (1985) Nazarana (1987) Mr. India (1987) Waqt Ki Awaz (1988) Chandni (1989) Find Here Sridevi Box Office Analysis of Sridevi Hit and Flop All Movies List. Sridevi Superhit Song and Movies Name Hawa Hawai – Mr. India Mere Haathon Mein – Chandni Main Teri Dushman – Nagina Morni Baga Mein – Lamhe Kate Nahi Kat-Te – Mr. India Naino Mein Sapna – Himmatwala Har Kisiko Nahi Milta – Janbaaz Kabhi Main Kahoon – Lamhe Na Jane Kahan Se Aayi Hai – Chaalbaaz Navrai Majhi – English Vinglish 2013 – Padma Shri India’s fourth highest civilian award from the Government of India 2013 – Filmfare Special Award for Nagina and Mr. India 1992 – Filmfare Best Actress Award for Lamhe 1990 – Filmfare Best Actress Award for ChaalBaaz 1991 – Filmfare Best Actress Award (Telugu) for Kshana Kshanam 1982 – Filmfare Best Actress Award (Tamil) for Meendum Kokila 1977 – Filmfare Special Award – South for 16 Vayathinile Tagged Sridevi Awards and Honors, Sridevi Biography, Sridevi daughter Name, Sridevi Family Background, Sridevi First Husband Name, Sridevi Movies Career, Sridevi Old Boyfriend, Sridevi Sister, Sridevi Superhit Movies, Sridevi Superhit Song List, Sridevi Wiki Sridevi Brother Sherlyn Chopra Confession \| Shocking Controversy Pics May 28, 2016 April 13, 2017 Jyoti Want create site? Find Free WordPress Themes and plugins.Sherlyn Chopra Confession: Sherlyn Chopra explains her tweet ‘sleeping with people for money’. Sherlyn Chopra says she won the title of Miss Andhra when she was nineteen and how she was absolutely fascinate by the glamour. Sherlyn Chopra Confession \| Shocking Controversy Pics Hot Actor & model […] Kangana Ranaut: Pure love exists February 15, 2017 Jyoti Want create site? Find Free WordPress Themes and plugins. Kangana Ranaut Love Relationship Kangana Ranaut: Pure love exists: Kangana Ranaut talks about her Love Relationship for a change and says she believes in shooting straight from her heart. She believes she knows how to deal with love, emotions, and heart breaks and we can see this […] Photos: Sunny Leone Launches Her Own Emojis! March 3, 2017 Jyoti Want create site? Find Free WordPress Themes and plugins.Hot Sunny Leone Launches Her Own Emojis! Pic Photos Sunny Leone Launches Her Own Emojis Bollywood Popular hot Sunny Leone has partnered with Emojifi to release her series of sticker emoticons which can be used across chat applications i.e. whats app, fb messenger, hangout, hike, etc. All […] Sonu Ke Titu Ki Sweety Box Office Collection Day 3 Viral Photoshoot of Sridevi Daughter Khushi Kapoor Private Pics	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3340
__label__cc	0.700867	0.299133	Victory! Preferred Popcorn Nixes Bee-Toxic Neonics By: Larissa Walker, Pollinator Program Director http://www.centerforfoodsafety.org/files/victorypreferredpopcorn_15407.jpg This farmer-owned company’s commitment to protect pollinators is POPPIN’! There’s more good news in the pollinators and popcorn world, and it’s just in time for National Popcorn Poppin’ Month. We’re excited to share that a third company, Preferred Popcorn, a fully farmer-owned company that provides popcorn to popular popcorn brands and movie theatre concessions, has taken bold steps toward removing bee-toxic insecticides from their popcorn supply chain. As many consumers are aware, the most widely-used class of insecticides, neonicotinoids (neonics for short), are harmful to both bees and the broader environment. That’s why exactly one year ago CFS launched a new market campaign, and with the help of our members, we’ve been encouraging popcorn companies to phase out the use of neonicotinoid seed coatings. Only a couple of months after launching this campaign, we were thrilled that two of the leading companies saw value in the idea – Pop Weaver and Pop Secret both committed to phase out their use of neonics in order to help protect bees, other pollinators, and the environment. The momentum has continued to grow over the past year, and we’re now happy to applaud Preferred for not only agreeing to completely remove neonics from their supply chain by 2017, but also for their leadership in launching the addition of a certified organic popcorn line to their inventory. Today’s news about Preferred Popcorn’s commitment is significant for a couple of reasons – for starters, it’s an indication that companies are listening to consumers and building a strong sense of corporate social responsibility. Beyond that, Preferred’s leadership is unique because the company is fully farmer-owned, and these farmers have agreed to nix neonics out of concern for bees and the environment. An unfortunate trend that I’ve noticed in the years that I’ve been working on pollinator issues is that farmers are often unfairly blamed for problems with pesticides and bees. I think that Preferred’s commitment is a strong counter to that narrative and is an important reminder of the critical role farmers can play in efforts to protect pollinators and the environment. Along those lines, it’s important to point out that in many cases, especially with corn seed, the monopolistic agrochemical and seed companies leave farmers with no choice but to use pesticide-coated seeds. This extreme lack of farmer choice is a direct result of the fact that the four largest agrochemical and seed companies control nearly 60 percent of the global patented seed market, and as such, they have a vested interest in coupling seed sales with chemical sales. Unfortunately, the market is set up to promote the use of the chemicals, regardless of need or consequence…and sadly, in the case of bees, there are certainly consequences. Seed coatings are a common but relatively new method of applying pesticides to crops. The seed is covered with the pesticide or pesticide mixture (fungicide and insecticide combinations are common), allowing the chemicals to be taken up into the plant as it grows – ultimately rendering the whole plant toxic. Yet, depending on the crop, only five percent of the active chemical applied to the seed actually enters the plant, leaving the remaining 95 percent to enter the environment through seed dust off, soil contamination, or water runoff. Bees are exposed to the chemicals in flight and via the toxic dust that is released during seed planting. The dust can settle on nearby wildflowers and pose additional threats to bees when collecting pollen and nectar. A significant amount of the chemical on the seed is also absorbed into the surrounding soil and groundwater, allowing wildflowers and trees near crop fields to absorb the chemicals from the soil and present yet another route of toxic exposure for bees. The chemicals that persist in the soil also pose a significant threat to native bees, as 70 percent of native bees build their nests in the soil. Needless to say, these chemicals are having harmful impacts, which is why we should both celebrate when companies like Preferred step up to the plate, and continue to fight for much-needed changes to the system. To date, the largest popcorn company, Orville Redenbacher’s, has refused to take action for bees and phase out uses of neonic seed coatings. Want to take action and help save bees? Here are a few options to get you started: Join us in keeping the pressure on Orville Redenbacher’s to do the right thing for bees by signing the petition here. Vote with your dollar when shopping by supporting popcorn companies that are bee-friendly and don’t use neonics in their growing practices. You can check out some of these popcorn brands in our popcorn guide here. Visit our popcorn campaign website to learn more about the issues and help us raise awareness. Share the popcorn guide with your family and friends. Learn about other simple steps you can take to help pollinators, starting in your homes and backyards. Preferred Popcorn Moves to Protect Bees and the Environment Farmer-Owned Company Commits to Removing Bee-Toxic Neonicotinoids from Supply Chain WASHINGTON— Center for Food Safety (CFS) today congratulated Preferred Popcorn, a full… On National Honey Bee Day, Helping Pollinators Can Be As Easy As Choosing the Right Popcorn It’s no secret that bees and other pollinators are facing a crisis – the ‘bee-pocalypse’ and ‘the plight of the honey bee’ headlines are hard to miss these days.	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3349
__label__cc	0.570854	0.429146	Blog Tour: The Duke I Once Knew by Olivia Drake (Excerpt) December 31, 2018 By AnnMarie Leave a Comment The Duke I Once Knew (Unlikely Duchesses, #1) by Olivia Drake Published by St. Martin's Press on December 31, 2018 Purchase: Amazon, Barnes & Noble First love is always the sweetest. For years, Abigail Linton devoted herself to caring for her aging parents and the children of her siblings. Now, eager to make her own life, she takes a position as governess on the neighboring estate. It shouldn’t matter that her absentee employer is Maxwell Bryce, the Duke of Rothwell, the infamous rake who once broke her youthful heart. Surely he’s forgotten her, for he hasn’t set foot on his estate for fifteen years. At least, that is, until he arrives unexpectedly. Max is incensed to meet his sister’s new governess. But why does Abby appear just as displeased to see him when it was she who’d rejected him all those years ago? Why is he so drawn to the independent spinster she has become? And why is there a sparkle in her beautiful blue eyes that suggests they might have a second chance at love? The sounds of cooing and kissing mortified her. Good heavens, would they never stop? Anyone might walk into the library! They ought to have the decency to take their amorous activities upstairs to a bedchamber. But, of course, Rothwell did not possess a shred of decency. It made her cringe to recall that she herself had once fallen prey to his allure. She risked another look over the edge of the table. Her eyes goggled. The duke was delving beneath the hem of his paramour’s gown, sliding his hand up her ankle and out of sight. The ladybird squirmed and squealed in a frisky attempt at evasion. He leaned down and silenced her playful protests with a masterful kiss. Abby sank back down again. Her pulse pounded and a blush heated her inside and out. She oughtn’t be so scandalized. Rothwell had a reputation as a notorious rake. Over the years, she had heard many a tale whispered among the neighbors of his disgraceful doings. Yet it was one thing to listen to idle gossip and quite another to actually witness him in the throes of depravity. And here she was, trapped. What was she to do? If she made her presence known, the duke would find out that Miss Abigail Linton was the new governess. She could not be absolutely certain that he had forgotten her. And if he did remember, he surely would dismiss her on the spot, for he wanted nothing to do with her. Her spirits fell into a fit of the dismals. That would mark the end of her little adventure out into the world. Oh, she could apply for a position elsewhere, but who would hire her if she’d been summarily discharged from her previous post? She would be forced to return to her brother’s house and resume her predictable life as the maiden aunt, growing withered and gray, shuttled between relatives, with no real say in her future. The very thought was suffocating. Nevertheless, she could not continue to crouch here while the two lovers were smooching and whispering. What if their intimate activities escalated? What if they did the deed right here, right now? The horrid prospect spurred Abby to action. She must try to sneak out of the library unobserved. It was her only hope. Dropping to her hands and knees, she crept along the carpet, weaving a path between the tables. Her long skirts hampered her progress, forcing her to inch along at a snail’s pace. Rothwell’s black boots were visible through a forest of chair legs. At least he was too distracted to notice her, judging by the amorous sounds emanating from across the room. To be safe, she made a wide berth around the couple. Feverish plans raced through her head. If only she could reach the door and slip out, then all might be well. Perhaps she could convince Lady Gwendolyn not to mention the new governess to her brother. And what of Lady Hester? Was there a chance that she could be persuaded to bide her tongue, too? Should Abby confess the truth and enlist her help? Was it possible to stay out of sight until he departed the Court? Sweet heaven, how long did he intend to stay? In the midst of her meditations, she couldn’t help over- hearing the syrupy drivel of their tête-à-tête. “Your Grace, you are too bold! Such a naughty boy you are!” “I left boyhood behind long ago. Shall I demonstrate?” “Mm, no. You mustn’t . . . ah, yes. Yes!” Abby grimaced under a tide of acute embarrassment. As she crawled closer to the door, she glared in the direction of the lovers. She could just see Rothwell’s legs pressed against a froth of cream skirts. Blast him and his debauchery! He was the worst of rogues, the king of scoundrels. A more wicked man had never been born—! Too caught up in remonstrations to watch where she was going, Abby bumped her hip hard against a mahog- any pedestal. A little squeak escaped before she could clap her hand to her mouth. At the same instant, a faint clanking noise drew her attention upward. The globe atop the pedestal wobbled precariously. As she watched in horror, the sphere toppled from its perch and clunked onto the floor, where it rolled straight past the chairs and tables to land at Rothwell’s heels. “What the devil—!” Frozen in concealment, Abby watched wide-eyed through the maze of table legs as his boots shifted around. A large male hand flashed down to stop the spinning of the globe. Any faint hope that he might assume it had fallen of its own accord vanished in a millisecond. Rothwell strode forward, his footfalls sharp and decisive. He came straight to her. To her great consternation, she found herself gazing at the polished black leather of his boots only a few inches away. “Who are you?” he demanded. “What are you doing in here?” Abby raised her chin only slightly, keeping her face averted. It was best that he didn’t gaze fully at her—or hear the normal pitch of her voice lest it trigger his memory. “I’m just a servant,” she whispered, “tending to my duties.” “Speak up! Why did you not make your presence known at once?” His dictatorial tone shredded her better judgment. “I was trying to leave discreetly,” she flared. “It didn’t strike me as wise to interrupt your tryst.” She paused, then added in a more servile tone, “I do beg your pardon, Your Grace.” She felt his gaze boring down like a physical force that threatened to smother her. She wanted badly to look up, to glare into his face and tell him in no uncertain terms exactly what she thought of him. But that would be highly imprudent. With lightning swiftness, he clamped his hands around her upper arms and hauled Abby to her feet. She found herself staring up into a pair of wintry gray eyes set in a face of unabashed masculinity. Although a dissipated life had hardened his expression and etched faint lines on either side of his mouth, he was more disturbingly handsome than ever. He also seemed taller and tougher, his chest broader and his shoulders wider. She hated that he still had the power to make the breath catch in her throat. Worse, she hated that he had the authority to dismiss her with a snap of his arrogant fingers. As she racked her beleaguered brain for a way to convince him not to do so, something flickered in those icy eyes. “Abby?” About Olivia Drake Olivia Drake is the author of the Cinderella Sisterhood series (Seducing the Heiress, Never Trust a Rogue, Scandal of the Year, If the Slipper Fits, Stroke of Midnight, Abducted by the Prince, Bella and the Beast, His Wicked Wish, and The Scandalous Flirt). She has been a member of Romance Writers of America since 1981, and her novels have won the Golden Heart Award, Best Historical Romantic Suspense and Best Regency Historical from Romantic Times. She has also won the prestigious RITA award. She currently resides in Houston, TX. Website \| Twitter \| Facebook \| Goodreads By Olivia Drake Author Visit: To Love a Scandalous Duke by Liana De la Rosa (Excerpt & Giveaway) Book Blast: A Walk On The Wild Side by Eileen Dreyer (Excerpt & Giveaway) Author Event: The Duke of Danby’s Mistletoe Madness by Rose Gordon, Jerrica Knight-Catania & Aileen Fish (Excerpts & Giveaways) Blog Tour: To Entice an Earl by Naomi Boom (Guest Post, Excerpt, Review & Giveaway) Blog Tour: Lucky Charmed by Sharla Lovelace (Excerpt & Giveaway) Author Visit: The Scandalous Flirt by Olivia Drake (Excerpt & Giveaway) ARC Review: Bella and the Beast by Olivia Drake	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0005.json.gz/line3353

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