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__label__wiki	0.576385	0.576385	Monash University > Publications > 2014 Handbooks > Courses Undergraduate - Course4425 - Bachelor of Journalism and Bachelor of Commerce Students who commenced study in 2014 should refer to this course entry for direction on the requirements; to check which units are currently available for enrolment, refer to the unit indexes in the the current edition of the Handbook. If you have any queries contact the managing faculty for your course. This course entry applies to students commencing this course in 2014 and should be read in conjunction with information provided in the 'Faculty information' section of this Handbook by the Faculty of Business and Economics Managing faculty Partner faculty BJourn/BCom CRICOS code 074397F Total credit points required Standard duration of study (years) 4 years FT, 8 years PT Study mode and location On-campus (Clayton) Admission, fee and application details http://www.monash.edu/study/coursefinder/course/4425 Tel: 1800 MONASH (1800 666 274) Web address: http://artsonline.monash.edu.au or visit http://www.buseco.monash.edu.au/contact.html Unit codes that are not linked to their entry in the Handbook are not available for study in the current year. Journalism studies require attendance at the Caulfield campus. The course provides a professional education in a range of commerce disciplines combined with preparation for the professional practice of high quality journalism. There is a strong emphasis on constructing conceptual frameworks and using these to analyse complex issues in the corporate sector, government and the professions. Refer to the outcomes for the single degrees 4042 Bachelor of Journalism and 0179 Bachelor of Commerce. Refer to the Faculty of Business and Economics Professional recognition of coursesProfessional recognition of courses (http://www.buseco.monash.edu.au/professional-recognition/) page in this Handbook. The course has four main components: a set of core units which provide an introduction to the key areas of commerce a commerce major with all units taken as part of the major must be from Clayton campus a journalism major a journalism studies specialisation. Actuarial studies Business modelling Econometrics and business statistics Financial and insurance mathematics International commerce Journalism studies Students must complete 32 units over a maximum of 10 years as follows: Journalism component (a.) 16 units (96 points) from the Faculty of Arts as follows: (i.) a journalism major* (48 points) (ii.) a journalism studies specialisation (36 points): ATS1901 News media and society ATS1902 News media and social theory ATS2784 News and power ATS2785 Journalism and the law ATS3802 Journalism: Practice and discourse one other journalism studies unit (iii.) two elective units (12 points) Elective units can be identified using the browse units toolbrowse units tool (http://www.monash.edu.au/pubs/handbooks/units/search) in the current edition of the handbook. The level of the unit is indicated by the first number in the unit code; undergraduate units are those that commence with the numbers 1-3. * Refer to 'Areas of study'. Commerce component a.) 16 units (96 points) from the faculty in the Bachelor of Commerce at the Clayton campus as follows: (i.) six compulsory common core units (36 points): ACC1000 Principles of accounting and finance BTC1110 Business law ECC1000 Principles of microeconomics ETC1000 Business and economic statistics MGC1010 Introduction to management MKC1200 Principles of marketing (ii.) a major of eight units (48 points):* the major must come from the approved majors listed under 'Areas of study' at least two units (12 points) must be completed at each of second and third-year levels * Note: Depending on the major chosen, one or more of the units in the major may have already been studied as part of the group of common core units - where this is the case, students will complete additional units/s as detailed below. (iii.) additional units from the faculty in the Bachelor of Commerce at the Clayton campus to reach the required minimum of 16 units (96 points) Additional degree requirements: a maximum of 10 first-year level units (60 points) a minimum of six third-year level units (36 points), of which at least four units (24 points) must be from those offered by the faculty at the Clayton campus in addition to specific unit prerequisites, second-year level units require the successful completion of three first-year level units and third-year level units require the successful completion of two second-year level units. Award(s) Bachelor of Journalism Maintained by: Curriculum and Publications.	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6261
__label__wiki	0.784454	0.784454	CINEMA TIMES Belfast Cinema Times Dublin Cinema Times Limerick Cinema Times Galway Cinema Times Cork Cinema Times 2016 Homepage Austin Butler Cast As Elvis in Baz Luhrmann’s Biopic Samuel L. Jackson to Star In Chris Rock's SAW Reboot GEORGE R.R. 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Check out the official trailer below. Isabel (Michelle Willi... 1.0Super Bad Venom (USA / 15A / 112 mins) In short: Superbad Directed by Ruben Fleischer. Starring Tom Hardy, Michelle Williams, Riz Ahmed, Jenny Slate. The Plot: Hack journalist Eddie (Tom Hardy) is always looking for ... Michelle Williams to Play Astronaut Christa McAuliffe in THE CHALLENGER Michelle Williams, who hits Irish cinemas this week with ‘Venom,’ has signed on to play astronaut Christa McAuliffe in director Martin Zandvliet’s drama about the 1986 space shuttle Challenger accident. Per Deadline, the Jayson Rothwell-scripted feature wil... New VENOM Trailer Offers First Look At Riz Ahmed’s Riot “Eyes, lungs, pancreas. So many snacks. So little time.” On October 5th, one of Marvel’s most enigmatic, complex and badass characters comes to the big screen. Check out the latest trailer for VENOM, starring T... COMPETITION – Win I FEEL PRETTY movie goodies To celebrate the release of new comedy I FEEL PRETTY in Irish cinemas on May 4th we have some cool movie merchandise to giveaway, keep reading for your chance to win! ABOUT THE MOVIE Amy Schumer stars as Re... Must Watch: VENOM Symbiote Revealed in New Trailer One of Marvel's most enigmatic, complex and badass characters comes to the big screen, starring Tom Hardy as the lethal protector Venom. VENOM lands in Irish cinemas October 5, 2018.... Amy Schumer Overflows With Confidence in I FEEL PRETTY Trailer What if you could change everything without changing anything. The directorial debut of screenwriters Abby Kohn and Marc Silverstein (‘Never Been Kissed,’ ‘The Vow,’ ‘How To Be Single’), the comedy sees A... Watch: VENOM Trailer Introduces Tom Hardy As The Lethal Protector "Everyone's got their thing. Maybe it's a breakup, a death, an accident...whatever it is, you used to be one thing. Now, you're something else." First footage from Ruben Fleischer's much-anticipated anti-superh... 3.0Thrilling but slow ALL THE MONEY IN THE WORLD (USA/15A/133mins) Directed by Ridley Scott. Starring Charlie Plummer, Christopher Plummer, Mark Wahlberg, Michelle Williams, Romain Duris. THE PLOT: Paul Getty III (Charlie Plummer) was kidnapped in Rome in 1973. As the grandson ... ALL THE MONEY IN THE WORLD – Fletcher Chase Featurette J. Paul Getty had a fortune. Everyone else paid the price. New featurette for the Ridley Scott-directed crime thriller sees Mark Wahlberg discuss his character of Fletcher Chase. ALL THE MONEY IN THE WORLD is r... 2.0Forgettable THE GREATEST SHOWMAN (USA/PG/109mins) Directed by Michael Gracey. Starring Hugh Jackman, Michelle Williams, Rebecca Ferguson, Zendaya, Zac Efron. THE PLOT: Based on the life of circus creator P.T Barnum (Hu... ALL THE MONEY IN THE WORLD Trailer Swaps Christopher Plummer For Kevin Spacey New trailer for Ridley Scott’s Oscar hopeful offers first look at Christopher Plummer as J. Paul Getty after replacing Kevin Spacey. ALL THE MONEY IN THE WORLD follows the kidnapping of 16-year-old John Paul Getty III (Charlie Plummer) and the desperate a... Hugh Jackman Is P.T Barnum In THE GREATEST SHOWMAN Trailer "No one ever made a difference by being like everyone else.” Starring Hugh Jackman, Michelle Williams, Zendaya, and Zac Efron, THE GREATEST SHOWMAN tells the story of P.T Barnum, the legendary circus impresari... Michelle Williams Joining Tom Hardy’s VENOM Michelle Williams (‘Manchester By The Sea,’ ‘Wonderstruck’) is reportedly in talks to take the female lead opposite Tom Hardy in Sony's eagerly awaited ‘Venom’ movie. The Ruben Fleischer-directed project, wh... WONDERSTRUCK – New Trailer for the Todd Haynes-Directed Children’s Movie Based on the illustrated children's novel by Brian Selznick, WONDERSTRUCK is the story of Ben (Oakes Fegley), a young boy in the Midwest told simultaneously with a tale about Rose (Millicent Simmonds), a young girl in New York from fifty years ago as they both... Trailer for Ridley Scott’s ALL THE MONEY IN THE WORLD "We look like you, but we're not like you. It's like we're from another planet." First footage from the star-studded crime thriller about the infamous kidnapping of John Paul Getty III, the heir to the Getty oi... Teaser Trailer for Todd Haynes’ WONDERSTRUCK Based on Brian Selznick’s critically acclaimed novel, Ben (Oakes Fegley) and Rose (Millicent Simmonds) are children from two different eras who secretly wish their lives were different. Ben longs for the fa... First Look at Hugh Jackman as P.T. Barnum in THE GREATEST SHOWMAN Trailer "Every one of us is special, and nobody is like any one of us. That's the point of my show." Roll up, roll up. The first official footage from the P.T. Barnum musical starring Hugh Jackman, Zendaya, and Zac Efron has arrived. The directorial debut of visu... Chris Pine and Michelle Williams Eye ALL THE OLD KNIVES British filmmaker James Marsh (‘The Theory of Everything,’ ‘Man on Wire’) is talks to take the helm for the spy thriller ‘All the Old Knives’ with Chris Pine ('Wonder Woman') and Michelle Williams ('Manchester ... 4.0Funny & moving MANCHESTER BY THE SEA (USA/15A/137mins) Directed by Kenneth Lonergan. Starring Casey Affleck, Michelle Williams, Ben O'Brien, Kyle Chandler, Mary Mallen THE PLOT: Lee (Casey Affleck) is a Boston handyman who ... MORE ARTICLES TO CHECK OUT Animals (UK / Australia / Ireland / 16 / 109 mins) In short: Loses its voice Directed by Sophie Hyde. Starring H... Austin Butler (‘Once Upon a Time in Hollywood,’ ‘The Dead Don’t Die’) has been tapped to play Elvis Presley in Baz Luhrm... "There are other ways of doing your duty." Discover the origins of the very first independent intelligence agency in Mat... The Lion King (USA / PG / 118 mins) In short: Hakuna matata! Directed by Jon Favreau. Starring Donal Glover, Chi... 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__label__wiki	0.831278	0.831278	The Jonas Brothers’ Dad Is Teaming Up With A Conservative Evangelical University Why Dutee Chand’s ‘coming out’ is more complicated than it seems \| India in: Politics, War & Conflict Star Indian sprinter Dutee Chand recently made global headlines for the second time in her competitive career, when she announced to the press that she had found her life mate. Before that, Dutee was also in the international news in 2014, when she was disqualified from competing in the Commonwealth Games because her testosterone levels were deemed elevated, as per the rules of the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF). Dutee challenged the IAAF rules on “hyperandrogenism” and succeeded in having them temporarily suspended in 2015. Earlier this month, those rules came freshly to light when the South African runner Caster Semenya’s challenge was rejected. There are many things that make Dutee’s announcement a momentous one, arriving not only on the heels of the Semenya ruling but also on the eve of an Indian election that has expectedly brought back a conservative Hindu nationalist government. The Modi government has been no friend to the queer and trans community, let alone Indian minorities or the poor who form the most vulnerable of India’s “LGBTQ” population. At the same time, it has successfully peddled myths of development and modernity to much of the Indian electorate, including some segments of the Hindu queer community. Dutee has been widely hailed in the Indian press as “the first Indian sports star to acknowledge being in a same-sex relationship”. The international press meanwhile has dubbed her India’s “first openly gay athlete”. Notably, “gay” is an identity that the non-English-speaking Dutee has not herself invoked, although she has tapped into a global discourse of gay rights in other ways. Dutee claimed she felt compelled to come out after facing extreme harassment and blackmail from her older sister Saraswati. She credited last year’s landmark judgment by the Indian Supreme Court decriminalising homosexuality, for emboldening her to do so. Coming from a woman of an impoverished rural background, Dutee’s comments suggest a belief in the potential of the court ruling to impact a wider class of Indian citizens, beyond the urban, upper-caste men of the elite (and more rarely women and transgender people) who have been coming out in India with some regularity now. Dutee’s announcement represents yet another spectacular moment where an Indian woman has asserted her volition against her family’s control of her choice of partner. In some ways Dutee’s case echoes the case of Hadiya, a young woman from Kerala, whose Hindu parents moved the courts, alleging that their adult daughter’s conversion to Islam and marriage to a Muslim man was a product of “brainwashing” and “psychological kidnapping”. Dutee’s sister Saraswati sought to activate a similar protectionist discourse as she claimed that Dutee was being blackmailed by her partner: “Dutee’s life and property are in danger. That’s why I request the government to provide protection and security to Dutee.” While in India the move towards normalising gay unions into existing caste structures with familial blessings is well under way, Dutee’s announcement remains a challenge to such structures, which, as a number of anti-caste intellectuals have argued, rely on the institution of heterosexual and endogamous marriage for the literal reproduction of caste boundaries. While a simple parallel between cross-communal and queer relationships would overlook the complex intersections of the two, Indian scholars of sexuality have nevertheless suggested that the two are linked by the potential disruption they pose to “existing lines of social authority”. Dutee’s announcement is also significant in light of the pervasive historical and contemporary understanding, across medical and popular fields, that heterosexual identity is a prerequisite for being counted as a “proper” man or woman. In her book Sexing the Body, feminist biologist Anne Fausto Sterling provides a fascinating look into the early history of medical management of intersex babies in the US and Europe. Throughout the 1950s, “When doctors chose to assign a definitive sex to an ambiguously sexed child, then, it was not enough that the child become psychologically male or female. For the treatment to count as successful, the child had to become heterosexual,” Fausto Sterling writes. Contemporary society-wide attitudes also hold that to be a real woman, one must desire the “opposite sex”. For Dutee, as someone who has spoken about the psychological cost of having her gender publicly placed in question, speaking out about loving a woman may well mean renewed exposure to the charge of not being one herself. On the other hand, paradoxically, her “coming out” perhaps compels recognition of her as definitively a woman – after all, to be in a same-sex relationship, one has to unambiguously be of a particular sex. Last week, Dutee spoke of her sister’s blackmail and her own fear: “ki public mujhey kya kahega mere body ko lekey, merey mind ko lekey?” (what will the public say about my body, about my mind?). The fear of having her body re-judged in the public eye is close at hand. And yet she has spoken out, refusing to allow current norms of gender to determine the expression of her sexual/romantic identity. This is a significant refusal on her part to accept the terms of gender currently on offer. It is tempting, and perhaps not unreasonable, to celebrate Dutee’s coming out as a win for love, against a politics of hate that has returned a resounding mandate for the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Many may also be heartened by the media celebration of her as an Indian “first” – the first “gay” Indian athlete – as her coming out presents an alternate face of India, one that appears modern and forward-looking. It would be a mistake, however, to overlook how such a celebration also puts her inadvertently to work performing symbolic labour for a nation that remains deeply invested in claims to modernity as a way of securing its majoritarian and imperial vision of a Hindu state. In a moment where Dalits, Adivasis, Muslims and Kashmiris face a heightened threat of state-sanctioned violence, we might want to look beyond the spectacular appeal of such moments of self-disclosure. Even as we celebrate the personal courage and symbolic appeal of someone like Dutee, we might keep in our sights those gender and sexual minorities within disempowered communities whose vulnerabilities are exacerbated by the violence their communities face and are often least visible to us. The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeera’s editorial stance. fbq('init', '320402738661210'); fbq('track', 'PageView'); Tags:chandcomingcomplicatedduteeindiaseems Previous : Jeremy Lin Says Security Didn’t Recognize Him, Stopped Him From Boarding Raptors Bus Next : What to Read by Edmund Morris	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6265
__label__cc	0.596621	0.403379	Review & Giveaway: The Confessions of Young Nero by Margaret George The Confessions of Young Nero by Margaret George Berkley Hardcover The New York Times bestselling and legendary author of Helen of Troy and Elizabeth I now turns her gaze on Emperor Nero, one of the most notorious and misunderstood figures in history. Built on the backs of those who fell before it, Julius Caesar's imperial dynasty is only as strong as the next person who seeks to control it. In the Roman Empire no one is safe from the sting of betrayal: man, woman or child. As a boy, Nero's royal heritage becomes a threat to his very life, first when the mad emperor Caligula tries to drown him, then when his great aunt attempts to secure her own son's inheritance. Faced with shocking acts of treachery, young Nero is dealt a harsh lesson: it is better to be cruel than dead. While Nero idealizes the artistic and athletic principles of Greece, his very survival rests on his ability to navigate the sea of vipers that is Rome. The most lethal of all is his own mother, a cold-blooded woman whose singular goal is to control the empire. With cunning and poison, the obstacles fall one by one. But as Agrippina's machinations earn her son a title he is both tempted and terrified to assume, Nero's determination to escape her thrall will shape him into the man he was fated to become, an Emperor who became legendary. With impeccable research and captivating prose, The Confessions of Young Nero is the story of a boy's ruthless ascension to the throne. Detailing his journey from innocent youth to infamous ruler, it is an epic tale of the lengths to which man will go in the ultimate quest for power and survival. Praise for The Confessions of Young Nero “Margaret George has performed about the most audacious act imaginable for a historical novelist—an epic work of fiction not merely sympathetic to Nero, but told largely in his own voice. I applaud. And so, I imagine, does that connoisseur of the arts Nero, watching from Elysium.”—Steven Saylor, author of Roma: The Novel of Ancient Rome “[George] brilliantly recreates past eras and bygone civilizations.”—Sharon Kay Penman, author of A King’s Ransom “A wonderful novel, from the riveting first scene to the breathtaking finale.” —Jennifer Chiaverini, New York Times bestselling author of Fates and Traitors and Mrs. Lincoln’s Dressmaker “Wow! Margaret George—the reigning queen of historical fiction—is back with this epic saga that vividly re-imagines the life of young Nero in all its operatic, dramatic glory.”—Stephanie Dray, New York Times bestselling author of Lily of the Nile "Margaret George has an incredible talent in that she can stand in the shoes of her protagonist and speak in his or her voice.”—Barbara Taylor Bradford, author of The Cavendon Luck and A Woman Of Substance Margaret George writes biographical novels about outsized historical characters: Henry VIII, Mary Queen of Scots, Cleopatra, Mary Magdalene, Helen of Troy, and Elizabeth I. Her latest, The Confessions of Young Nero, will be published in March. All six of her novels have been New York Times bestsellers, and the Cleopatra novel was made into an Emmy-nominated ABC-TV miniseries. She especially enjoys the research she has done for the novels, such as racing in an ancient Greek stadium, attending a gladiator training school in Rome, and studying the pharmacology of snake poison. Readers of this blog are well-aware of my love for author Margaret George, so it should come as no surprise that I'm ending my reviewing hiatus just to share my love for her latest novel, The Confessions of Young Nero. Ms. George is the author who drew me into the Historical Fiction genre when I picked up Mary, Queen of Scots and the Isles years ago and she continues to slay me with her amazing writing and fascinating historical characters. I love the way she chooses figures from history that are maligned or controversial. George now tackles Ancient Rome and the early life of the legendary Emperor Nero. From being nearly drowned by his uncle, Caligula, to his volatile relationship with his mother Agrippina, his marriage to Poppaea, Rome's battle with Queen Boudicca, his meeting with the Apostle Paul, and the burning of Rome, readers are swept back into history and given a front row seat. Beyond Nero's political dealings, George delves into Nero's personal side as well. His love of the arts and music, and his inner turmoil of being an Emperor and the nefarious things he had to do along the way. George paints Nero as a flawed man, but one that knows he is flawed. I look forward to George continuing Nero's story in her next novel, which she is currently working on now. I remember hearing somewhere that she is also thinking of writing a book on Queen Boudicca and I sincerely hope that she does. I wanted to hear more about Boudicca's battle with Rome. I highly recommend you checking out The Confessions of Young Nero, it's a fascinating look at a real, yet flawed, Emperor Nero! May I note as well, the hardcover copy is absolutely gorgeous and has a deckle edge, which I love! Passages to the Past has one copy of The Confessions of Young Nero up for grabs! To enter, please leave a comment below and be sure to include your email address or alternate way to contact you should you win. Giveaway is open to US residents only and ends on March 21st. Labels: 2017 Release, Historical Fiction, Margaret George, Nero, review MaryKate March 7, 2017 at 1:31 PM I cannot wait to get my hands on this novel! And I see from your review that I probably will not be disappointed :). Margaret George was one of the first authors to get me interested in historical fiction as well! My first novel of hers was Helen of Troy and I can't even describe the disappointment I felt when I finished reading it and remembered that Helen wasn't a real, historical figure! George brings her and the other characters to life in that novel (and in her others) in a way that almost no one else can do. Thank you for this giveaway :). marykate (dot) sullivan711 (at) gmail (dot) com Karen Essex March 7, 2017 at 2:31 PM Go Amy! Nice to have your voice back in the historical fiction world. Congrats to Margaret on what sounds like another page-turning bestseller. Can't wait to read! Vicky Alvear Shecter March 7, 2017 at 5:21 PM I can't wait to read this! rubs hands with anticipatory glee Colleen Turner March 8, 2017 at 7:16 AM Yay, so happy you are back to reviewing! This sounds amazing!! I love knowing that there is a follow up novel to come that will continue the story as well. Nero's life seems ripe for excitement and drama so I'm excited to see how he comes across in Ms. George's hands. Thanks for the giveaway!! Colleen (candc320@gmail.com) Kathleen Kelly March 8, 2017 at 4:30 PM Sounds like a book that is well researched of a great historical person. Margaret's novels are always a treat! Thanks Amy! momkelly2003@gmail.com! kim_cree March 8, 2017 at 5:50 PM I can't wait to read this! Thank you for the chance!! kim_cree@yahoo.com Michelle Miller March 9, 2017 at 3:23 AM I'm so excited that she wrote this book! I've never read any historical fiction about Nero. Can't wait to read it. Thanks for the giveaway! truebookaddict(at)gmail(dot)com Audra March 9, 2017 at 11:28 AM All hail the Queen of HF! Thank you for the giveaway! unabridgedchick at gmail.com I know she is an amazing author, but I haven't read her yet. This book is really a tempting place to start! sllingky@gmail.com Kara S March 16, 2017 at 11:06 PM I love Margaret George -- just encountered her work this year in her book on Elizabeth I and Mary Queen of Scots. I'm blown away. I would treasure a copy of this book. If lucky, shamy at post harvard dot edu...best to you, Amy -- Kara Carly March 19, 2017 at 12:50 PM Love Margaret George, and would love to win! carlyasilver at gmail dot com Blog Tour Kick-Off: The Varangian by Bruce Macbain... The Enemies of Versailles Blog Tour & Giveaway Philippa Jane Keyworth's Fool Me Twice Blog Tour &... Review & Giveaway: The Confessions of Young Nero b... Amalia Carosella's Daughter of a Thousand Years Bl... 2017 Release: The Outcasts of Time by Ian Mortimer... 2017 Historical Fiction Reading Challenge: March R...	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6274
__label__cc	0.629538	0.370462	Sony MDR-J20 Stereo Headphones Inexpensive stereo headphones with a elastomer hanger. Inexpensive and easy to find. Average sound quality that doesn't make the top end unlistenable. Clean across the board, but could use some meat in the lower midrange and upper bass. Very comfortable to wear when working out. Not as good as the $10 JVC HA-F120s. Bass could use some meat. The elastomer clips are comfortable but why couldn't they fit from the rear and not be visible. Better options are only $20 more. An average pair of headphones that won't give you a headache, but won't give you musical orgasms either. Rather comfortable and easy to travel with. Cable is thick, long, and unlikely to rip. Sony MDR-J20 Stereo Headphones: Not Your Father's Sony Comfortable inexpensive headphones from Sony that don't sound bad and stay in place in the gym. Sony is a company on a mission. It is trying very hard to regain the powerful position that it once held. Something foul took hold of the electronics giant and distracted it from its core; designing the best and most innovative audio/video products in the world. For many people, the Sony brand always represented the best of the best. You were “somebody” if you could afford the top television or stereo component from the “one and only”. That really has not been the case for many years. Sony has been pummeled by Samsung, Panasonic, and Pioneer in the world of home video. It has been beaten to a pulp by Apple and other portable media device makers, and the importance of that should not be lost on people. Sony invented the world of portable audio and has been struggling to catch up ever since. As a kid, I owned more than my fair share of headphones. My family worked in radio for almost three decades, so more than a few pairs of studio cans were liberated and brought home. AKG and Koss were my brands as a kid, and I still really enjoy my AKG K 601s. Sony made decent headphones, but they were never really my preferred brand. To its credit, Sony has not sat on its hands during the iPod-era and has expanded its headphone line-up to over 70 models, many of which are very listenable. They do face some rather stiff competition from Sennheiser, Grado, AKG, Bose, and others, but the number of Sony headphones being sold is rather substantial. At the entry-level, Sony has a number of good models such as the MDR-J20 that serve their purpose quite well; Easy to wear for extended periods of time, well-made, and easy to travel with. Sonically, the MDR-J20 are a tad bright on top, but not enough to kill a recommendation. The midrange is rather warm, almost pleasantly so. Sam Cooke’s voice on “Lost and Looking” was full of the soul that made Sam the great singer that he was, and I could handle the sound for long durations. I did not find these headphones to be fatiguing at all. The bass was somewhat thin while listening to the Who, which was disappointing, but I will take thin over bloated any day of the week. My recent favorites, the JVC HA-F120, were more to my liking on almost every track, which only reinforces my feelings towards them. The Sony are decent for $20, but no giant killers. Model: MDR-J20 Type: Open air, dynamic Driver unit: 13.5mm dome Power handling: 50mW Impedance: 16 ohms at 1 kHz Sensitivity: 104 dB/mW Cord length: 48 inches Plug: Gold plated stereo mini-plug See the Amazon website for Sony MDR-J20 Stereo Headphones Filed Under: $1 - $50, Ear Buds, Sony Tagged With: Sony MDR-J20, Sony MDR-J20 review, Sony MDR-J20 Stereo Headphones	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6279
__label__cc	0.687633	0.312367	On The Cusp Fitness Studio Studio Services Online Training Testimonials Training Packages Contact Us Studio ServicesOnline TrainingTestimonialsTraining PackagesContact Us Personal Belief System Juvenal stands on the cusp of greatness. Experienced, knowledgeable, and above all-passionate about the power derived from living a healthy lifestyle. Juve's (Pronounced Hoo-vee) work ethic has helped him become an inspiration for clientele of all ages and demographics. The first of his family born in the United States, hailing from Willows, CA, Juve entered the health field following his passion for teaching. His education at California State University, Chico infused his enthusiasm for health and wellness with adequate knowledge to help Juve earn a Bachelors Degree in Exercise Physiology while simultaneously sparking his appetite for Sports Nutrition. Juve has been outlining the pages for his own text for years now and plans on producing a streamlined Sports Nutrition text early in his professional career. It is this quest for knowledge and education that makes Junvenal an invaluable asset to Advanced Body Dyanmics. Juve has an eclectic client profile. He has trained SWAT Team applicants, NPC Bodybuilding and Physique competitors, Senior Aquatic participants, acute post rehabilitation aquatic therapy clients, and maintains an ever changing circuit training program. His 7 years of interest in bodybuilding has led Juve to compete in two bodybuilding contests, while having trained dozens of competitors by fine tuning their stage presence and posing. Certifications and Honors American College of Sports Medicine Certified Personal Trainer Bachelors Degree in Exercise Physiology from California State University, Chico Bilingual- Fluent in English and Spanish Sports Nutrition Specialist "The doctor of the future will give no medication, but will interest his patients in the care of the human frame, diet and in the cause and prevention of disease." -Thomas Edison 1390 E 9th St. juvesandoval@onthecuspfitness.com	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6280
__label__wiki	0.798552	0.798552	Scottish Festive Traditions Involving Food and Drink By: The Scotsman Food and Drink Staff We take a look at some of the history surrounding some of Scotland's most popular - and obscure - festive traditions involving food and drink. Scotland is a land of romance and history, with some customs and traditions stretching back thousands of years. The Scots’ love of traditions can only be rivalled by their love of food and drink and when the two meet, well you can see how some of them last for such a long time. These customs really come to the fore as we approach autumn and winter beginning with Halloween. The Eve of all Hallows has been celebrated (or feared) in Scotland since the medieval times, with many of the traditions associated with it originating from around that time when the Gaelic festival of Samhain ushered in the start of the winter season and marked the end of the harvest months. Of course everyone knows of the more famous Scottish Halloween traditions such as ‘Guising – which saw children dress up to disguise themselves from the souls of the dead, who it was said on this liminal time, came into our world and were appeased with offerings of food and drink – and ‘Dookin’ for apples. One of the more obscure Scottish Halloween customs involved single people, who would take an apple and peel the skin using a knife in one continuous motion, then toss the whole skin over their shoulder. The shape the skin took was said to predict the first letter of the name of a future love. Another odd tradition was the giving of nuts to a recently engaged couple. The nuts would be thrown into a fire – if they burned quickly the marriage would be a happy one. but if they spat or hissed it would be a sign of a turbulent pairing. Scottish Christmas traditions are a little on the sparse side. The reasons for this are varied but they can mainly be pinned down to the Reformation, and the Kirk’s disapproval of Christmas as a celebration because of its perceived association with the Roman Catholic Church, which they dismissed as a “Popeish festival”. In 1640, an Act of the Parliament of Scotland made the celebration of “Yule vacations” illegal. This led to Scots rarely celebrating Christmas and instead focusing their attentions onto the more accepted festivities surrounding Hogmanay. After the Celtic celebrations and medieval feasts, something of a festive void took hold for around 400 years. The Victorian era heralded a revival in festivities which has lasted until the present day. One tradition that stood the test of time in Scotland was festive desserts, including Christmas puddings or clootie dumplings. However, the most famous – and the most synonymous with Christmas – is the humble mince pie. The early mince pie was a far cry from the recognisable pastry offerings hitting supermarket shelves in early November these days. Although still containing fruits and spices, leftover meat was also baked in the pies. It has been suggested that the reason mince pies are the size they are today was that it made them so much easier to hide from the prying eyes of the protestant church who would frown on such activities. Christmas Eve is still referred to in many parts of Scotland as “Sowans Nicht” which is thought to refer to “sowans” – a dish made from oat husks and fine meal steeped in water for several days until sour. This dish was prepared and then shared on Christmas Eve. A far more popular holiday in Scotland – mainly due to the restrictions placed on Christmas celebrations – Hogmanay is widely celebrated across the country. The reasons for the naming of new year’s eve as Hogmanay are lost to the past with many disputed claims as to its origins. One of the more popular ones is that it derives from the Norse word ‘Hagg’, meaning to kill or cut and ‘Hoggonott’ which referred to the slaughtering of animals to be eaten at the Yule feast. Traditions at this time of year maintain strong links with Viking and Gaelic celebrations of Yule time, or ‘Daft Days’ as they are known in Scotland. One still-popular custom is first-footing, which traditionally saw the first visitor to set foot in the household bring a gift such as coal, shortbread, salt, black bun or whisky. These days the gifts are more likely to be restricted to just whisky and shortbread. Another traditional day for Scots is Handsel Monday, typically the first Monday of the New Year and a day in which handsels (supposedly derived from the Saxon word for ‘gift in the hand’) or small gifts – traditionally coins and items of food such as cakes or pastries – were given out. It soon became synonymous with Lairds, or Ladies, of a household giving them to their staff. This tradition was eventually overtaken by the English custom of giving boxed gifts to your employees on ‘Boxing Day’ in Victorian times. Scots have always found great reason to celebrate during long winters, including Burns Night in late January. The anniversary of the birth of the poet Robert Burns, in 1759, this day is now celebrated worldwide by those of Scottish descent and involves a “Burns Supper” in which copious amounts of haggis, neeps and tatties are served, along with oatcakes and a dram or seven. Burns Night celebrations can be small, informal occasions, or they can be large-scale formal dining experiences. Although the ceremonial part is taken very seriously – including the recital of the poem Address to a Haggis – the night is usually a light-hearted affair. Labels: #DuncanLacroix, #GrahamMcTavish, #Outlander, #RichardRankin, #RikRankin, #SamHeughan, #Scotland By Maureen Ferrier, Fife Today Filming for the first series of Outlander took place in Falkland. Cameras will be rolling in Falkland early next year when the Outlander film crew rolls into town. Householders in Falkland areas affected by the planned filming of series two of the saga have already been sent a newsletter which outlines the programme of events including street closures during filming and security. Filming is scheduled for January and February, but this is subject to change – the weather could particularly affect the schedule. Initially filming will be confined to Brunton Street, and the centre of the village around High Street, the Bruce Fountain and the Palace. As happened when the first series was filmed in Falkland, the film company is doing everything possible to co-operate with residents and businesses, with phone numbers available to deal with any concerns. Outlander follows the story of Claire Randall, a married combat nurse from 1945 who is mysteriously swept back in time to 1743, and stars Caitriona Balfe, Sam Heughan and Tobias Menzies along with a host of well know Scottish actors. It is adapted from a series of eight books – so far – by American author Diana Gabaldon, and has been filmed at locations across Scotland. Sam Heughan, Caitriona Balfe and Lotte Verbeek at Doune Castle ("Castle Leoch") Season 1 Caitriona Balfe in Falkland, Fife ("Inverness") Falkland, Fife (Inverness") in Season 1 Labels: #CaitrionaBalfe, #DianaGabaldon, #JonGarySteel, #Outlander, #OutlanderSeason2, #RichardRankin, #RikRankin, #RonDMoore, #SamHeughan, #Scotland, #TobiasMenzies Outlander First Look: From Kilts to Couture - See Sam Heughan and Caitriona Balfe in Costume for Season 2 of the Starz Drama By: Lynette Rice, Entertainment Weekly Image Credit: Starz It’s not just about the kilts in the second season of Outlander. In preparation for the drama’s action-packed year on Starz, costumer designer Terry Dresbach set aside the heavy tartans to make way for lots of sumptuous silks, like these exquisite togs that Claire (Caitriona Balfe) and Jamie (Sam Heughan) wear to the King’s stables in France. Here, Dresbach talks why it was necessary to almost break the bank to costume Claire and Jamie, who infiltrate opulent French society this season in an effort to stop the Battle of Culloden. “It’s a massive season. We figured out recently that we’ve made over 10,000 items for season 2 and acquired another 5,000 shoes. Knowing that was in front of us … it was a monumental task. We started thinking about it halfway through season 1. It’s a completely different kind of clothing. In Scotland, there is not a ton of research out there about what they wore. It was a rough place. But France [in the 18th century] was one of the most well-documented periods of fashion in the world, so you better get it right. There is no wiggle room. Everything has to be sumptuous and lavish and every inch is beaded and embroidered. This is why I came back into the business to do this show. Getting to do 18th century French court is a designer’s dream. It’s fabulous.” (For more details about Claire’s luscious dress – and where Dresbach found the fabric – pick up the latest issue of Entertainment Weekly, on stands now). ‘Outlander’ Season 2 Spoilers: Sam Heughan and Caitriona Balfe Hint Episode 1 Will Be Heartbreaking Posted by: Reality Today "Outlander" Season 2 will be premiering in spring of 2016 and fans are already being advised to keep a box of tissues right next to them as they prepare for the Starz time traveler series' upcoming season. In a recent interview, Caitriona Balfe hinted that the show's premiere episode will be "so heartbreaking for the audience." Sam Heughan, on the other hand, revealed that Jamie and Claire will have so much more challenges this season. Warning: Spoilers ahead! Read on if you want to learn more about the details of this story. "Outlander" Season 2 is getting closer and closer to its return on TV, as the show recently released a sneak peek of its upcoming season. While fans are slowly closing in on the so-called "Droughtlander" phase, it looks like fans and viewers will have to brace themselves with a dramatic premiere episode. In an interview with Parade (via Express), actress Caitriona Balfe revealed that the show's first episode will be very heartbreaking. "There are some scenes in Episode 1 that, I think, are going to be so heartbreaking for the audience. They are really beautiful and it was fantastic material to work on," she said. The 36-year-old actress further noted that "Outlander" Season 2 will be "different visually," but it will still hold the same elements as the first season, with the show's lead characters, Jamie Fraser and Claire Randall at its core. Meanwhile, Sam Heughan spoke to Gold Derby and said that love definitely brings out the best in people. The 35-year-old Scottish actor described Jamie as a "young man who has no responsibilities;" all these changed when Claire came into his life. Heughan also shared some interesting details about "Outlander" Season 2 and said that Jamie will have a lot more to take on aside from moving on from the trauma he experienced from Black Jack (Tobias Menzies) last season. Jamie and Claire will travel to Paris to stop the Jacobite Rebellion, and at the same time, they are preparing to be parents. Labels: #CaitrionaBalfe, #DianaGabaldon, #Outlander, #OutlanderSeason2, #RichardRankin, #RikRankin, #RonDMoore, #SamHeughan, #TerryDresbach, #TobiasMenzies ‘Outlander’ News: Sam Heughan Hints Season 2 Premiere Date Announced Soon? Reported in Fashion & Style (Photo : STARZ/Outlander's Official Facebook Page) "Outlander" star Sam Heughan recently hinted that there is a chance that STARZ could announce the season two premiere date very soon while the network posted a new promotional image of Claire Fraser in Paris, France on Twitter. "Outlander" star Sam Heughan recently confirmed that season two is almost done and hinted that STARZ will make an announcement regarding the premiere date very soon. "Outlander" was named the Radio Times TV Show Champion of 2015 this week and Heughan thanked fans for making sure that their favorite show won the competition. The actor added that the results were the best Christmas present he could have received, notes Radio Times. "The award is due to all the cast and crew who work so hard in every weather condition," he said. "Season two is almost complete and #Droughtlander is almost over. Thanks again to our extended clan of Outlander fans, we make the show for them." Given the fact that Heughan noted the cast is almost done filming the second season, it is possible that STARZ will announce the premiere date sometime in late January or even early February. Aside from "Outlander" being named TV Show Champion 2015 by Radio Times, STARZ also released a new season two promotional picture on Twitter just in time for the holidays. The image shows Caitriona Balfe as Claire Fraser and she is wearing a gorgeous purple dress. The caption reads "Claire is not one to sit still" and given the determined look on her face, the new picture hints that she is about to confront someone. It is possible that she is looking for Jamie or might even have to negotiate with someone at the French court. Finally, "Outlander" star Caitriona Balfe took to Twitter to voice her support for the Malala Fund. She retweeted a post and urged her fans to support Malala Yousafazi's campaign to make sure that young women all over the world receive 12 years of education. Balfe also posted a Huffington Post article that explores how investing in young women has the greatest impact in creating strong communities and building peaceful societies all around the world. "Outlander" season two will air sometime in 2016, so keep checking back with Fashion&Style for the latest news about the show! Caitriona Balfe as Claire Fraser Labels: #CaitrionaBalfe, #DianaGabaldon, #Outlander, #OutlanderSeason2, #SamHeughan, #TerryDresbach For Your Christmas Reading Pleasure: the Answers to our 1st Annual 12 Days of Outlander Trivia Contest! #OLC12Days Thanks to all of you who played along with us during our 1st annual 12 Days of Outlander Trivia Contest! It was a lot of fun to do, and judging by the wonderful response we got, you all enjoyed it, too. We hope ye all learned a thing or two that ye didna know before...we certainly did! (WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD IN THESE ANSWERS. IF YE HAVENA READ ALL THE BOOKS AND DON'T WANT TO KNOW WHAT HAPPENS, STOP NOW) We will announce the winner of our Grand Prize tomorrow, Dec. 26th at 11 pm EST, 8 PM PST 1. During WWII, Frank meets a distant relative of Jamie's. Who is it? During his time in the British Secret Service, Frank encounters Brigadier Simon Christopher Joseph Fraser, better known as Simon Fraser, The 15th Lord Lovat Simon Fraser, 15th Lord Lovat (b. 9 July 1911 in Beaufort Castle, Inverness, Scotland – d. 16 March 1995 in Beauly, Inverness-shire, Scotland) was the 25th Chief of the Clan Fraser of Lovat and a prominent British Commando during the Second World War. His friends called him "Shimi" Lovat, an anglicised version of his name in the Scottish Gaelic language. His clan referred to him as MacShimidh, his Gaelic patronym, meaning Son of Simon. Simon is the favoured family name for the Chiefs of Clan Fraser. While the 15th Lord de jure, he was the 17th Lord Lovat de facto, but for the attainder of his Jacobite ancestor who was executed in 1747. He was also 4th Baron Lovat in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. (source: Wikipedia) In fairness, since we didn't specify "blood relative" we gave half credit to those of you who answered Jerry MacKenzie, Roger's father, Jamie's relative by marriage. 2. There are several sets of twins in the book series. Name two of them (last names are fine). Josiah & Keziah Beardsley William and Robert Murchison (aka Wee Billy and Wee Bobby) Janet and Michael Murray David and Daniel Rawling Some of you were verra industrious and came up with several other sets of twins, but these were the 4 sets that we were thinking of. If you gave us any two sets of twins, we accepted those answers. 3.What does Jamie give Claire as a wedding present on the first day after their marriage ceremony (be specific!)? A 14 inch trout! "There was a sudden explosion of motion. Everything happened so fast I couldn’t see what actually did take place. There was a heavy splatter of water that sluiced across the rock an inch from my face, and a flurry of plaid as Jamie rolled across the rock above me, and a heavy splat as the fish’s body sailed through the air and struck the leaf-strewn bank. Jamie surged off the ledge and into the shallows of the side pool, splashing across to retrieve his prize before the stunned fish could succeed in flapping its way back to the sanctuary of the water. Seizing it by the tail, he slapped it expertly against a rock, killing it at once, then waded back to show it to me. “A good size,” he said proudly, holding out a solid fourteen-incher. “Do nicely for breakfast.” He grinned up at me, wet to the thighs, hair hanging in his face, shirt splotched with water and dead leaves. “I told you I’d not let ye go hungry.” He wrapped the trout in layers of burdock leaves and cool mud. Then he rinsed his fingers in the cold water of the burn, and clambering up onto the rock, handed me the neatly wrapped parcel. “An odd wedding present, may be,” he nodded at the trout, “but not without precedent, as Ned Gowan might say.” “There are precedents for giving a new wife a fish?” I asked, entertained. He stripped off his stockings to dry and laid them on the rock to lie in the sun. His long bare toes wiggled in enjoyment of the warmth. “It’s an old love song, from the Isles. D’ye want to hear it?” “Yes, of course. Er, in English, if you can,” I added. “Oh, aye. I’ve no voice for music, but I’ll give you the words.” And fingering the hair back out of his eyes, he recited, “Thou daughter of the King of bright-lit mansions On the night that our wedding is on us, If living man I be in Duntulm, I will go bounding to thee with gifts. Thou wilt get a hundred badgers, dwellers in banks, A hundred brown otters, natives of streams, A hundred silver trout, rising from their pools…” And on through a remarkable list of the flora and fauna of the Isles. I had time, watching him declaim, to reflect on the oddity of sitting on a rock in a Scottish pool, listening to Gaelic love songs, with a large dead fish in my lap. And the greater oddity that I was enjoying myself very much indeed. When he finished, I applauded, keeping hold of the trout by gripping it between my knees. “Oh, I like that one! Especially the ‘I will go bounding to thee with gifts.’ He sounds a most enthusiastic lover.” Eyes closed against the sun, Jamie laughed. “I suppose I could add a line for myself—‘I will leap into pools for thy sake.’ ” 4. Dougal MacKenzie has 4 children. What are their names? Dougal had 4 (legitimate) children with his wife, Maura: Molly, Tabitha ("Tibby"), Margaret & Eleanor He also had two illegitimate children (that we know of): Hamish MacKenzie (with his sister-in-law Letitia) and William Buccleigh MacKenzie (with Geillis Duncan) Since we didna specify legitimate vs illegitimate in the question, we accepted any 4 of the 6 and gave bonus points if ye gave us all 6! 5. When trying to describe Claire to Jocasta, to what or whom does Phaedra compare her? Print by Carol Cavalaris Phaedra describes Claire to Jocasta, who is blind, as a "tiger with those big whisky eyes" from an illustration she saw in a book. 6. Brianna has a birthmark. What does it look like and where is it located on her body? Brianna's birthmark is "...a wee brown mark, shaped like a diamond. Just behind her left ear." No, we dinna have inside info! No confirmation yet if Amber Skye Noyes has been cast as Brianna (we just like the look of this lass for Brianna!) 7. Jamie has a son,Willie. What is his full name (careful...we're looking for ALL of his names!)? Lord William Clarence Henry George Ransom, Viscount Dunsany, Viscount Ashness, Baron Derwent, 9th Earl of Ellesmere. Bonus point if you also gave us his "stinking papist" baptismal name given to him by Jamie: William James 8. Who is Jem’s father and how was his paternity determined? Roger is Jem's father, which was proven definitively when Jem showed that he was unable to "roll" his tongue (in The Fiery Cross). Claire is explaining about dominant and recessive genes. Both she and Jamie can roll their tongues, but they passed the recessive gene to Bree, who cannot. Likewise, Roger has only the recessive "tongue-rolling" gene, because he cannot do it either. Therefore, since Jem could only get the recessive genes for this from his parents, if he CAN do it, then Roger could not possibly be Jem's father. Ye dinna have to be a wizard like Harry Potter to roll yer tongue Most of you answered that both Roger and Jem could "hear the stones" or that both had nearly identical birthmarks on their heads. Both of these things are indicative of paternity, but not definitive genetic proof. (We know, this was a tough one...we gave ye partial credit for the other answers!) Here is part of the passage: "Roger looked up at Bree, and something seemed to pass through the air between them. He reached down and took hold of Jem's other hand, momentarily interrupting his song. "So, a bhalaich, can ye do it, then?" "Frère <he's singing Frere Jacques here>...do whats?" "Look at Grand-da," Roger nodded at Jamie, who took a deep breath and quickly put out his tongue, rolled into a cylinder. "Can ye do that?" Roger asked "Chure." Jenny beamed and put out his tongue. Flat. "Bleah!" A collective sigh gusted through the room..." Then there's a hilarious scene involving balls (testicles) between Jamie, Roger and Jem, which ye all must read! 9. At what university did Brianna get her degree and what was her field of study? (Be specific, please!) Brianna received her degree in Mechanical Engineering from M.I.T. (after changing her original major, history). 10. What do Roger and Bree find in 1968 that contains Claire’s signature from the 18th Century? Bonus if you can tell us what it was used for. The Deed of Sasine. This document deeds ownership of Lallybroch from Jamie (JAMMF) to Jamie Murray (Young Jamie), a minor, in order to protect it from seizure by the English. It is pre-dated to July 1745, before Jamie's (forged) signature appeared on the Charles Stuart declaration which marked Jamie as a Jacobite supporter of the Bonny Prince, and thus branded him as a traitor in the eyes of the English. As such, any property he owned would be subject to forfeiture to the Crown. It is signed by Jamie, and witnessed by Claire and Murtagh, whose signatures also appear on it. 11. How many times was Geillis married (that we know of)? (Bonus points for each husband you can name and cause of death). Geillis mentions being married 5 times (although, knowing her, it could have been more); In 1968 she was know as Gillian Edgars, married to Greg Edgars, whose throat she cuts and then sets on fire at Craigh na Dun (so she has both a blood and a fire sacrifice, which she believes is necessary to travel through the stones). She arrives in the past in 1733. Before arriving in Cranesmuir, she is known under the last name of Isbister. We don't know for sure if she was married to Mr. Isbister, but he did end up hanging from a tree. Ye can draw your own conclusions... In Cranesmuir, she marries Arthur Duncan, the town fiscal. She has an affair with Dougal Mackenzie, who shares her Jacobite sympathies. She is slowly poisoning Arthur to get him out of the picture, but speeds up the process with saltpetre when he discovers that she is pregnant...and not by him. She is rescued from burning after the witch trial by Dougal, who helps her escape to France after she gives birth to their child, William Buccleigh Mackenzie. While in France, she is known as Lady Melisande Robicheaux. Again, we don't know for sure if she just took that name to hide her identity or if she married someone named Robicheaux. We do know that she had a "relationship" with the Comte St. Germain, but they never married. She later traveled to Jamaica, where she married Barnabas Abernathy, who later died 'under mysterious circumstances" (poisoning was the suspected cause of death). Here's a wee bit of food for thought relating to the fascinating topic of Geillis: Does anyone else think that Claire's friend Dr. Joe Abernathy was a possible descendant of one of Geillis' plantation slaves at Rose Hall in Jamaica? It was common practice for slaves to be "given" their owners names. And, it's also curious that Geillis' skeleton is brought to Joe and Claire (in 1968) in Voyager for them to examine by the guy from the Anthropology department. Claire "knows" what happened to the woman behind the skeleton, but she doesn't realize it's Geillis because it hadn't happened yet (at least not when Claire was present). DG!! You're making our wee heads spin! 12. What does Jamie find on the land that will become Fraser’s Ridge that he takes as a good omen? Bonus if you can tell us why he thinks that! Strawberries, emblem of Clan Fraser. In Drums of Autumn, he tell Claire: “The Frasers’, I mean,” he explained. One large, blunt finger gently prodded the berry. “Strawberries ha’ always been the emblem of the clan—it’s what the name meant, to start with, when a Monsieur Fréselière came across from France wi’ King William that was—and took hold of land in the Scottish mountains for his trouble.”... It’s a rare plant,” he said, touching the sprig in my open hand. “Flowers, fruit and leaves all together at the one time. The white flowers are for honor, and red fruit for courage—and the green leaves are for constancy.”... “And the fruit is the shape of a heart,” he said softly, and bent to kiss me. And finally, a 5 point extra Bonus Question (just for fun):What is the BEST kind of Christmas Tree? A Fraser Fir, of course! (but we gave bonus points for all of the lovely answers we received for this question!) Fraser Fir Christmas Tree in the Banquet Hall at Biltmore Estate, Asheville, NC Fraser Firs in the Tapestry Gallery at Biltmore Estate, Asheville, NC From the Wee Lasses at Outlander Central Labels: #CaitrionaBalfe, #DianaGabaldon, #GrahamMcTavish, #Outlander, #RichardRankin, #RikRankin, #SamHeughan, #TerryDresbach, #TobiasMenzies Dressing The Romance of Outlander – The Genius of Terry Dresbach by Margaret Gardiner, HFPA Starz & Terry Dresbach It’s easy to see why Outlander, nominated for three Golden Globes, it's a fan favorite with its romantic Scottish backdrop, a time traveling heroine caught in the 18th century, and strapping men in kilts. Created and executive produced by Ronald D. Moore and based on the best selling series of books by Diana Gabaldon the story follows Claire Randall (Caitriona Balfe), a nurse and feminist in the 1940s who is on a second honeymoon with her husband, Frank (Tobias Menzies) in Scotland. A quirk of fate plummets her back in time to the Jacobite rising where loyalists are waging a rebellion against the English. There’s lots of action, drama and love, as Claire falls for brawny Jamie Fraser (Sam Heughan) and her 1940s husband takes the form of a psychopathic villain in 1745 Scotland. It fell on the capable shoulders of costume designer Terry Dresbach -who’d worked on such shows as Carnivale and The Shield - to clothe the actors of the series, in a way that met and exceeded readers imagination. This is no small challenge. Claire in the 1940s - her wardrobe reflecting the freedom women were achieving. Starz & Terry Dresbach Clothing reflects the times in which the characters live and both shapes and expresses their behavior and emotions - and Outlander straddles two very different eras. Terry explains that the clothing in the 1940s reveals the mindset of a nation that has survived the bombing of London in WWII, the emancipation of women as they filled the gap in the workforce of men gone to war, the scarcity of fabric, and the padding of the time – almost like armor for what had been endured. As a counter, she’s had to create practical 18th century garb, shot in candlelight, replicating fabric, in many cases, that is hard to access, and having to creatively solve the void, not to mention dealing with Scottish weather that in the summer can hover at a chilly 50 degrees Fahrenheit. “When I first got the job, I created a portfolio for the characters and the hundreds of extras, from my kitchen in Los Angeles. Once we got to Scotland I had to toss it all because the climate requires heavier clothing to prevent hypothermia for the actors – there’s a lot of outside shooting.” The Scottish weather required warmer materials and a rethink of the wardrobe. Authenticity is key in Dresbach’s work. “Often there is no place to source what we need, so we make it.” Given that hundreds of extras have to be clothed too, and that they can’t really bring anything from their own wardrobe, her task is immense. "We make 12 – 15 costumes for each of our leads, often in multiples of 6. We estimated that we made close to 5,000 items for Season One.” Sketches of Sam Heughan's outfits that had to be replicated 12 - 15 times. Starz & Terry Dresbach The new season – which premieres next April - has doubled Terry’s challenge. In the 18th century changing numerous times a day was a way to demonstrate that you had the wealth to wear lush gowns. Each gown is made of brilliant silks, richly embroidered to catch the candlelight. Woman sewing appliqué onto grey silk jacket. Starz & Terry Dresbach “It’s a fashion show. I’d check with Ron, ‘Are you sure you want me to go that far? It’s going to be over the top?’ He’d always say, ‘Take it as big as you possibly can.’ And it is big and bold. I’ve designed a color palette that was quite brilliant. One of the things we learned about shooting in dark, candlelit rooms, is people can become floating heads very quickly. I wanted colors that come out of the darkness.” The solution? “I created clothes that are brilliant and rich and actually look edible when you see them.” Since you can’t buy 18th century fabric we have to make it. “We employ a team that just does embroidery, we hand-paint fabric, and, we make buttons, trims, even lace. Bare in mind – we made 900 18th century extra’s costumes.” -Terry Dresbach Her team consists of two assistant designers who each have an assistant themselves, and then a design group of 30 people. The day I visited the set in Scotland, one group was busily embroidering the beautiful silk fabric with intricate petals, while another group was hand soldering Red Coats and tarnishing buttons to depict musket fire for heavy fighting in an upcoming scene. Margaret Gardiner/HFPA The labor is intensive as they prep for the next week’s filming while completing the current week’s show. “Sometimes we’ll be in a production meeting and hear a character is going to be stabbed. My job is to understand that that will mean bleeding – and what that will do to the garment. How many replicas are needed, not only for the lead character, but for the stunt double too.” There simply may not be enough time to create the multiple facsimiles before filming. They cannot go to a costume shop to rent them, so the team has to create them.” It’s no wonder that Terry admits, “I’ve been known to lobby the character gets hit over the head rather than be stabbed, because a stabbing means more costumes that we might not have time to create.” Labels: #CaitrionaBalfe, #DianaGabaldon, #Outlander, #OutlanderSeason2, #RonDMoore, #SamHeughan, #TerryDresbach, #TobiasMenzies OLC Editor's note: This interview was published in the Scotsman last May. We thought it was a nice way to "get to know" our new Roger Mac! By: Janet Christie, The Scotsman Richard Rankin stars in the television series The Syndicate Glasgow actor Richard Rankin has already won the lottery, flown a helicopter and trained as a field surgeon, writes Janet Christie. What’s next for the versatile star of stage and screen? Richard Rankin is posing for pictures, the photographer prompting him for a variety of expressions. Scots actor Richard Rankin. Picture: Robert Perry “You have a look of Gerard Butler there,” he tells him. “Only slimmer.” Ouch, sorry Gerry. “Gerry Butler, I’ll take that,” says Rankin, who has moved on from his beefcake pose and is now working something that fellow actor Anne-Marie Duff has taught him. “She says it’s a ‘who me?’ red carpet look,” he says. “You swing round to the camera and do this.” He swings and presents a quizzical, engaged look that does indeed do the trick, then laughs. “The beard’s new,” says the photographer. “You suit it.” “I think I’m the only person that doesn’t like it,” says Rankin, stroking his chin. “Makes you look kind of Russian tsar-y,” observes the snapper. “Yes, I’m wondering how much opportunity there is going to be to play that Russian tsar. But the beard’s growing on me, ha, ha. It’s for From Darkness because I’m playing much older than my age.” From Darkness is a four-part BBC1 drama filmed in Manchester and Scotland to be aired towards the end of this year that Rankin has just finished filming. He co-stars with Duff, who plays an ex-policewoman who has set up a new life in the Western Isles with her new partner Norrie and his daughter Megan. But today he’s back home in Glasgow to talk about The Syndicate, the latest and third series of Kay Mellor’s lottery winner drama that airs on BBC 1 on Tuesday. Rankin plays Sean, estate manager and gamekeeper in the six-episode series following the win of a syndicate of staff in a Yorkshire stately home. Five of them share £14 million and, with the staff suddenly richer than the struggling aristos, the scene is set for drama, romance and a whodunit. “You instantly have that Upstairs, Downstairs element and on top of that a lottery win with working-class staff becoming more wealthy than the aristocracy and that turns everything upside down.” “I loved doing The Syndicate. I was at the screening last week and was absolutely gripped. And I know what’s going to happen! Kay Mellor’s writing is just so brilliant and it’s a great theme. “When she interviewed people who had won the lottery it was common for them to have four to six days of euphoria, then the problems started. With money comes problems.” “I’d love to work with Kay again, her writing is so good,” he adds. “She knows exactly what she’s doing and to have that material to work with as an actor, it’s a real treat.” The compliment was returned by Mellor after she saw Rankin read for the part, and rewrote the Irish character of Sean as a Scot. “That was absolutely wonderful, it was an honour, because she puts a lot of care and work into writing these characters.” Rankin isn’t the only Scot in The Syndicate as Elaine C Smith appears behind the counter in the newsagent as the vendor of the winning ticket. “She was very surprised when I turned up,” says Rankin. “She said to the whole BBC drama department at the read through, ‘Oooh! He’s great, aye, I’ve seen him naked! I’ve seen him with all his kit off.’ I had to say it was in a play! I wasn’t just randomly naked with Elaine C Smith.” The naked play in question was Good With People with Blythe Duff and Rankin had no problem with nudity as it served the script. “It had a very definite purpose. It was a very poignant moment and had a lot of meaning, both metaphorical and literal, and furthered the richness of the story. Getting naked for something like that, I’m all right with, but to do it for any shock factor is pointless.” And does he hit the gym a bit before such shedding of costume? “Yeah, I do, yeah. As much as I’m all about the art, I still want to look all right when I do it.” Our chat inevitably swings to the perennial “what would you do if you won the lottery”. Would he jack in his job? “No! I wouldn’t stop working. I love acting. I’m very lucky to have a job I love but I understand people who quit – I’ve got friends that work 12-hour shifts in call centres. But if it was me, I’d take a chunk of the money and invest it in either theatre or TV or film production. And I’d like to start a scholarship for young actors who need extra help getting into training. And you’d give some to friends and family of course. “It would be so liberating, I would just go and do whatever the hell I wanted as an actor. It would only give me a bigger appetite to do a wider range of things and be more experimental.” Rankin is relaxed, amenable and chatty, with bright blue eyes and pleasing, leading man good looks. At 32, his career is going well, particularly on TV. Fresh from a role in last year’s First World War drama The Crimson Field and this year’s Silent Witness, in which he played Detective Inspector Luke Nelson opposite Emilia Fox, as well as The Syndicate and From Darkness, both BBC, he’s also just filmed a role as a US soldier in American Odyssey, an NBC series with shades of Homeland, starring Anna Friel. Rankin was born in Rutherglen in 1983 as Richard Harris but uses his mother’s maiden name to avoid confusion with the other actor. The son of a policeman and a hotel manager, he studied acting at Glasgow’s Langside College after switching from IT and first attracted attention in Burnistoun, the comedy sketch show broadcast by BBC Scotland from 2009-12. “I loved doing that and it’s still popular, especially on the internet. There was a big gap in sketch comedy and Scottish comedy in general because Chewin’ the Fat and Still Game had finished. I think it finished too early, but there might be a 45-minute special coming back, and it’s on live at The King’s in Glasgow too. There’s an appetite for sketch comedy that’s still there,” he says. As well as comedy Rankin has enjoyed a variety of roles and is keen to flex his acting muscles in both theatre and TV. “I’m taking the opportunity to establish myself as much as I can in TV and once that’s there, I’m dying to do more theatre,” he says. I don’t have a preference but something in me thinks theatre is where the real game is at because it’s so self-contained from start to finish. That’s essentially where the actor was born, in theatre.” Rankin is a self-confessed sponge when it comes to studying other actors and their approach. “I find it endlessly fascinating. They’re so diverse and you learn a lot when you’re on set with a lot of the big players. It makes you realise there’s no set way of acting.” Among those he has worked with, including Hermione Norris and Kevin Doyle in The Crimson Field, he’s found Anne-Marie Duff to be among the most helpful with advice, and not just about how to pose for pictures. “She’s the kind of person you can ask about the processes and she’s such a generous and giving actor. Others are more closed off. Some can sit and have a casual chat then when action is called, go straight into an emotional scene, others take all morning getting into it, or need a couple of gins…” Rankin is as big on research for his various roles as he is on studying the craft. For The Crimson Field where he played a First World War army medic he visited the army medical services museum in Surrey while for Silent Witness and Detective Inspector Luke Nelson, he did a lot of background work on the police and his character. “He had done archaeology and anthropology at Oxford, so I looked into that a bit,” he says. “But it’s a massive degree and there’s only so much you can do in a couple of weeks! Then I did research into the psychology of the character’s experience, because it really helps if you get your character a good solid history.” Also on hand to offer advice was his former policeman dad. “He’s the first to fill me in,” says Rankin. “‘Oh, that doesn’t happen. You wouldn’t get a DCI and a Detective Inspector out on the a case at the same time. Who’s in the office?’ Or, ‘why don’t you have a notepad?’ But no, he’s good on the relationships, the way people speak to each other, he’s helped a lot.” As Rankin looks back over his career to date, he brings up two seminal moments that have shaped it. The first was a chance encounter with the director or producer of the OC series in a hotel in Hollywood where Rankin and his then girlfriend had gone to celebrate his 21st birthday. At that stage Rankin had never considered acting. “He was there with the cast and we just got chatting. It was a random social encounter and he said you have a good look for an actor. I thought, yeah, yeah, right, whatever, but it was a seed planted and that bred an interest. There was nothing to say I couldn’t give it a go and once I got into it, I really got into it.” The second moment was when he was watching National Theatre of Scotland’s Black Watch. “I thought this, what I’m watching right now, is why I’m an actor. It was just one of the most powerful and beautiful things I’ve ever seen on stage. It made the hairs on the back of your neck stand up. So when I heard it was being recast I hounded my agent to get me in it.” His agent got on the phone while Rankin got down the gym and soon he was leaping about on stage in the role of Granty. “One night I ran on and everything just went into slow motion as in my peripheral vision I saw a sea of green and red. It was the Black Watch Regiment, in the theatre to see a play about the Black Watch. Not only were the Black Watch in the audience, but they were in uniform, with red hackles proudly on display across an entire seating bank,” he says. Fortunately, the Black Watch contingent was pleased with the play. “Yeah, we got a lot of interesting feedback. They loved it but there wasn’t enough f***ing swearing, and ‘what was a’ that dancin’ aboot?’ Well, actually that was us doing stylised fighting. They said, ‘Nah, we dinnae dae any o that pish. If you’re going to fight the guy, fight him, dinnae dance aboot wi him, eh?’ But they were a great bunch.” His latest military foray also contained a heart-stopping moment when the helicopter he was in unexpectedly took off and went off the edge of a canyon. “I was like, woah, ho! and said to the director, we’ll need to do that again, because my face is going to be… He pulls a Munch/Scream expression. “I’m only in two episodes but it’s a very nice foot in the door of the American casting market. I’d like to do more work there, but I’m in no hurry. There’s so much good work going on in the UK, I’d like to build up my career here. I’m really stubborn, one of those actors that is staying rooted in Scotland. “The American Dream is for those seeking fame and fortune but that’s not why I’m in the business. I’m not that interested in building up a massive fortune or being super famous. I’m genuinely in it for the love of doing it and am hungry to experience as much of the business as I can and develop as an actor. Then I’ve earmarked my forties for directing…” He laughs realising he is wishing his life away. “But being an actor you get to do everything. Win the lottery, be a policeman, be a First World War army surgeon, fly about as a special forces military officer. Other people don’t get to do that.” No, they don’t, not even lottery winners. Labels: #OutlanderSeason2, #RichardisRoger, #RichardRankin, #RikRankin	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6282
__label__wiki	0.658596	0.658596	Cade Swor scores significant win at Oakley rodeo by Matt Naber \| Jul 07, 2019 OAKLEY CITY, Utah – Tie-down roper Cade Swor scored his first big win since breaking his arm last summer with an 8.0-second run at the Oakley Independence Day Rodeo in Oakley City, Utah, July 6. Swor, 36, knew luck was on his side when he saw he’d drawn the same calf that Cooper Martin and Seth Cooke won first and third on, respectively, at the Strawberry Days Rodeo in Pleasant Grove, Utah, June 22. “We see those calves quite a bit throughout the summer and good ones stand out around Oakley,” Swor said. “Those are the kind (of calves) that we make a living on and you have to capitalize on it. I was roping for first and not taking any chances, and it worked out.” Swor broke his right arm while competing at the Sheridan WYO Rodeo, July 11, 2018, causing him to miss the two most critical months of ProRodeo competition. The Texas cowboy was sitting 22nd in the PRCA \| RAM World Standings with $34,880 when he broke his arm and ended the 2018 season ranked 31st with $45,400. But it’s a different year and he’s back in the saddle and reunited with his best mount, Floyd. “I started riding my good horse again and he is everything,” Swor said about his 17-year-old American Quarter Horse. “I get a lot of confidence out of that horse.” With more than $1.4 million won since his rookie year in 2002 and seven qualifications to the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo (2004-06, 2014-17), Swor’s done just about everything there is to do in ProRodeo but one thing – win a world title. “The only reason I still do this is to win a gold buckle,” Swor said. “I’ve been to all these rodeos and they’re cool, but if I’m going to be away from home that’s what keeps me going and driving all night and putting the effort in and giving it all I’ve got. “I don’t know how many good years I’ve got left, and winning a world title is what I set out to do 17 years ago when I started this. I don’t want to sound arrogant, but that’s what I’m here for, and Oakley is dang sure going to help me get a better position to start climbing the ladder.” Before winning $5,751 in Oakley City, Swor was 29th in the PRCA \| RAM World Standings with $29,714 – about $13,124 away from breaking into the Top 15. His Oakley City win was also worth valuable ProRodeo Tour points. “When we left home, I was quite a ways back from where I wanted to be,” Swor said. “I had a decent week up in Canada the week before, but I didn’t have a good Reno (Nev.) Rodeo and it didn’t start off like I’d wanted it to, so getting a win in Oakley City was a big deal to me. Anytime you win is great, but to get $5,700 is a lot of points.” Swor also picked up $5,739 by placing fifth at the Cody (Wyo.) Stampede, July 4. Between his win in Oakley City and the success he and his traveling partners Reese Riemer and Cooper Martin have had, he speculated that 2019 is turning out to be the most profitable Cowboy Christmas for his group with about $60,000 or $70,000 won among the three of them so far. “My confidence wasn’t where I wanted it,” Swor said. "But now that I’m riding my best horse again and I could feel it coming on, you know, I’m fixing to start winning. Other winners at the $176,335 rodeo were all-around cowboy Stetson Wright ($4,371, saddle bronc riding and bull riding); bareback rider Clayton Biglow (87.5 points on Bar T Rodeo's Bitter Times); steer wrestler Matt Reeves (3.9 seconds); team ropers Cody Snow/Wesley Thorp and Kaleb Driggers/Junior Nogueira (3.8 seconds); saddle bronc rider Ryder Wright (88.5 points on Bar T Rodeo's Ruby River); barrel racer Christine Laughlin (17.10 seconds); and bull rider Stetson Wright (90 points on Bar T Rodeo's Kamikaze).	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6285
__label__wiki	0.77752	0.77752	Our Rating System Home › News › Net Entertainment Announces New Branded Slot Net Entertainment Announces New Branded Slot Every year at the ICE Totally Gaming trade show, gaming software providers showcase some of their most exciting plans for the next year. ICE Totally Gaming 2015 took place in London earlier this month, and players are certainly excited by the announcements that were made. Net Entertainment announced a new branded slot game that is expected to be very popular when it is released into online and mobile casinos later this year. While most would expect that a branded slot will be using a popular movie theme, Net Entertainment has gone in a slightly different direction, and is planning to bring players a top quality branded Guns N Roses slot game. The game will be brought to players now that a partnership agreement has been inked between Net Entertainment and Geffen Records. The slot game is set to be launched in the last quarter of 2015. Guns N Roses Branded Slot It had been announced that Per Eriksson, the Chief Executive Officer and President of Net Entertainment, would be at ICE 2015, and would be showcasing the new branded slot game. There were a number of people that had gathered around the Net Entertainment stand, and after a few words, an introduction for the new slot was played. Those who know Guns N Roses, the popular 80s rock band, recognised the music straight away. Since the release date for the Guns N Roses slot game is still far in the future, there are no specific details about the game itself. It is likely that the band's logo will be used for a special feature, and it is probable that the band members will also be found on the reels. There are likely to be teasers later on in the year, somewhat before the slot itself is released. There will definitely be some great songs that will be played during the slot game, although the number of special features, and what they will be, is still a mystery. About Guns N Roses Guns N Roses is a popular rock band that hit the music scene in 1985. The band's original members were Axl Rose, Slash, Steven Adler, Duff McKagan, and Izzy Stradlin. In 1987, the album Appetite for Destruction reached the number one spot, and the song Sweet Child o' Mine reached the number one spot as a single. Other popular songs include Paradise City, Welcome to the Jungle, and November Rain. Best NetEnt Casinos 2019 Quick Payouts 21Prive Casino USD 1,000 with 50 Free Spins Quickest withdrawals and service. USD 500 with 50 Free Spins Unlimited first deposit bonus. USD 200 with 100 Free Spins Excellent mobile casino - 200+ games. Slotplanet Casino Impressive in all respects. All round a very polished product. Fun theme and trusted operator. Instant E-wallet payouts. Most methods in 24 hours. Same day payment processing. Connor Lynch Connor Lynch is a big fan of Netent and stays right on top of any important news and events. Please contact him with questions or suggestions. Guts Casino Celebrates Five Years There are five iPhone 8s and five… NetEnt’s World of Wonders Promotion at Betsson The World of Wonders promotion can… Per Eriksson to be Replaced as NetEnt CEO The NetEnt Board of Directors is… Universal Monsters: The Phantom’s Curse at NetEnt Casinos NetEnt’s Mega Fortune progressive… Rainy Day Raffles at Guts Casino Guts Casino offers its new players… Related In-depth Articles Netent Licensing Jurisdictions and Responsible Gambling This article explores the stance on responsible gambling from… NetEnt High Limit Slots Slots for those high rollers with deep pockets. We review the… Bitcoin Casinos - How Do They Work? Since the crypto-currency launched into mainstream in 2011, many… Branded Slot Games by NetEnt Software giant, NetEnt AB has joined with a number of big brands… NetEnt 2015 Q1 Results and Outlook Netent's corporate and financial results for Q1 2015. For more than ten years, our team has worked tirelessly to put players first and present an unbiased and objective view of the online casino world. We don't just list a bunch of casinos. We objectively and critically judge and do not put our opinion up for sale. Up to date information with real, relevant depth. This is what makes us different. We are the leading fan site of NetEnt casinos and games and have no commercial relationship with NetEnt AB. There are five iPhone 8s and five iPads up for grabs in the Guts Casino prize draw promotion. The World of Wonders promotion can be played at Betsson Casino along with Mr Green Casino, Unibet Casino, and… The NetEnt Board of Directors is looking for a fresh boost for the company after a decline in profits. Copyright 2013-2019 PureNetEnt.com - All game graphics on this site are the intellectual property of NetEnt AB and used under license.	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6290
__label__wiki	0.887775	0.887775	Join Our Mailing List to Get Updates and Exclusive Offers! New LP/EP 7" 12" Soul/Funk Old School Clothing Merch CD Books/Mags Tapes/DVD Sale The Rap Pack Trading Cards - Wax Packs Premier Cards 1991 ORIGINALS Run The Jewels - Run The Jewels Tote Bag & Gold Pin Set Tote Bag £19.99 Add to basket El-P and Killer Mike continue to push their unique content game with this extra special package for record store day. Not only do you get a lush 8-screen printed tote bag and gold pin set of their “gun fingers” and fist logo but you get a download of their augmented reality app which does magical things when you point your device at the bag and gives you access to some magical exclusive content. The Shacks - Haze, SIGNED Poster A3 Poster £2.99 Add to basket The Shacks — equal parts Max Shrager and Shannon Wise singing in her soft whispered voice — sound like they’re playing alone with nobody watching. 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This poster represents their debut album "Haze" Raekwon - Only Built 4 Cuban Linx - 20th Anniversary Purple Tape Watch Box In collaboration with Raekwon we present the 20th Anniversary Only Built 4 Cuban Linx "Purple Tape Watch Box" deluxe reissue on cassette. - 20th Anniversary edition released in collaboration with Raekwon, who designed the set's look & feel - A Purple Cassette of Only Built 4 Cuban Linx is housed in a premium, "Watch Box" display case with white stitching, an embossed silver-on-black Raekwon logo, and a "The Purple Tape" silver placard on front - Full color outer box with wrap-around original cover artwork - Cassette only: repressing of the original famed "Purple Tape," with full audio from 1995 album - 118-page hardcover book, featuring lyrics to all songs and liner notes by Chris Faraone and Raekwon, plus photos and other visuals pertaining to album's 1995 release - Only 1,995 copies available worldwide for this 2015 Anniversary pressing Hip-hop fans who will salivate at this reissue likely already know some of the backstory: in 1995, worldwide Wu-Tang frenzy was at an all-time high. First, of course, there had been the Wu-Tang's epic 1993 debut Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers), which changed the shape of hip-hop to come, with ripples that still resonate today. Then the solo albums, all produced by Wu patriarch RZA: first was Method ManÕs Tical (late 1994), then Ol' Dirty Bastard's Return to the 36 Chambers: The Dirty Version (spring 1995). By the time Raekwon's debut was ready, fans were knocking each other over on album release day. And so, on August 1, 1995 as the legend goes, the first 10,000 cassette buyers ran home and opened their plastic cases to discover that the tape itself was an unexpected, stunning shade of lavender. The rest, as they say, is historyÉ and limited-edition history at that. After the initial purple versions, RCA Records switched to the usual clear plastic to house the legendary tape. The Purple Tape became an instant collector's item, a Holy Grail for Wu-Tang disciples, coveted by those who could claim to be the earliest devotees of Raekwon's lyrical genius. The album is still called "The Purple Tape" to this day, by Raekwon and other Wu-Tang members. Colors aside, though, letÕs not forget the album itself. Backed by arguably RZA's most wide-ranging, hard-hitting and at-times lush beats on any Wu-Tang family album before or since, Raekwon and co-MC Ghost Face Killer run the lyrical gamut, introducing "Wu-Gambinos" slang, dishing out "Ice Cream", and melting "Glaciers of Ice" along the way to influencing just about every MC who followed in their wake. Beyond Ghost Face (who shines on 12 out of the album's 17 tracks), guest appearances from Nas, Method Man, Inspectah Deck, Master Killa, RZA and the debut of Cappadonna (aka Cappachino) locked the album as an undisputed classic. ItÕs a record that hit hard in 1995 and continues to resonate with new fans to this day. As Raekwon explained in the original "Purple Tape Cassette Box" liner notes book (and in Brian Coleman's Check the Technique Volume 2): "A lot of rappers wasn't being creative [at that time] and we came with a potion that just shocked the game. We introduced shoes, we brought about different names and aliases. That record inspired maybe 95% of the game's lyrics [afterwards], and integrity on just making music, period. People from our era know how real it is. It's timeless." 20 years later, celebrate the majesty of Only Built 4 Cuban Linx with Get On Down's "Purple Tape Watch Box," a release you are sure to proudly display in your collection for decades to come. Stones Throw Tote Bag 14" x 16" canvas tote bag in black with the Stones Throw logo. Examples of the kinds of things that could fit in here: Short stack of records. Doom's mask. Yesterday's clothes. Small to mid-sized snake. Headphones. A human skull. Big Crown Tote Bag Black £11.99 Add to basket Red £11.99 Add to basket Perfect for records, perfect for shopping, perfect for the beach. Represent. Thud Rumble - Butter Rugs 7" Slipmats White £12.99 Add to basket The revolutionary slipmat design by Q-Bert. Q-Bert has done away from the traditional felt mat, and replaced it with a thin synthetic fiber fused onto a thin plastic layer. Lightweight and super-smooth, these mats produce little friction while offering the grip you need for scratching and back-cueing. Recommended. - comes as a pair - super slick, thin construction - designed for scratching & back-cueing The J Dilla Turntable - NOW IN STOCK! Contains an exclusive 7-inch single: J Dilla “The Sickness” feat. Nas, produced by Madlib. Vocal b/w Instrumental. Only available in this package. An official product of the Estate of James Yancey. This turntable was designed to be portable, but functions as a stand-alone record player and can plug into any stereo system that accepts an RCA jack or a USB input. It also allows you to record music directly into your computer (transcription software disc included in package). It also contains a 1/8? headphone jack and dynamic, full range stereo speakers. It comes with a replacement stylus and a 45 adaptor. Artwork by Mason London. 3 speed turntable (33 RPM, 45 RPM, 78 RPM) USB and RCA Outputs 1.8" Headphone Jack Contains 45 adapter and replacement stylus Transcription software disc included in package KMD - Bl_ck B_st_rds 2xCD, Book and 45 £49.99 Add to basket Limited to 2500. Near Mint - 360 Vinyl Cleaning Solution "There's always records to clean" Developed in the UK by DJ's, Record Collectors & Vinyl Enthusiasts. Near Mint has been specially blended to make sure your vinyl is cleaned to the highest standard. Using a greater percentage of integral ingredients and purified chemicals, Near Mint can offer the best results in cleanliness, ensuring no residue remains on your record. Near Mint is the most effective, chemically balanced & hard hitting record cleaning solution on the market to date boasting a double strength attitude. Near Mint - Microfibre Cloth 100% Microfibre Cleaning Cloth. To be used alongside Near Mint - 360 Vinyl Cleaning Solution. Martha Cooper: Postcards from New York City Martha Cooper offers 16 postcards of her very own New York. With her trusty Nikon, she has documented memorable moments in her beloved New York, from the 70s to the present. She was there when the town was bankrupt and the crime rate high, and had a front seat as graffiti and Hip Hop culture developed and Keith Haring began his career on the city streets. She remains in a gentrified New York, post-9/11 with the same love for the city, its culture and its people. Every picture says more than a thousand words, and Martha Cooper: Postcards from New York City is a journey through time, the development of street culture and the city's soul. The cards have been carefully selected from Cooper's thousands of pictures. Some come from her famous books, others are previously unpublished. Boogie Down Productions - Criminal Minded 7 Singles Boxset 5x7" £49.99 Add to basket One of the most influential and original albums in music history: Criminal Minded by Boogie Down Productions in a never before released form. One of the most legendary releases in the history of music is now available as a unique and collectable 7" box set. The entire original album is included across five 45s, housed in a durable box lined with two versions of the B-Boy Records logo. Each 45 is enclosed in a mini replica of the B-Boy 12" jacket. A true classic, Criminal Minded was included in Vibe Magazine's 100 Essential Albums of the 20th century. KRS-ONE's combination of street slang and Webster's dictionary knowledge backed by Scott La Rock s hard hitting, minimal beats helped set this album apart when it was originally released in 1986. With this now-classic debut album, BDP's hardcore stylings helped to redefine the New York rap music scene. Criminal Minded elevated the standards and proved that rap could be a dynamic and consciousness-raising medium. Since its release, KRS-ONE has gone on to become one of the most prolific and critically-acclaimed artists in Hip Hop history. This deluxe 7 inch box set is a new chapter in the storied history of one of recorded music s genuine treasures, Criminal Minded. Record 1: Side A: Poetry Side B: South Bronx Record 2: Side A: 9mm Goes Bang Side B: Word From Our Sponsor Record 3: Side A: Elementary Side B: Dope Beat Record 4: Side A: Remix For P Is Free Side B: The Bridge Is Over Record 5: Side A: Super-Hoe Side B: Criminal Minded Yo! MTV Raps Trading Cards (Pack Of 10) (Series 1) COLLECT THEM ALL!!!!! Pro Set Super Stars MusiCards Pack (10 Hot Photocards) Vinyl Solution Record Cleaning Spray 'Peace' Graffiti In New York's East Village Christmas Card with Envelope Photograph by Konstantino Hatzisarros NY Subway 1988 Greetings Card with Envelope Photograph by Jeff Prant Cruch City 2000 Post Card Photograph by Genevieve Hafner 45 Adapters - Glow In The Dark - Get On Down - DJ Equipment From the creative labs @ Get On Down, here's the world's first ever glow-in-the-dark 45 adapter cones ! The cone shape of the adapters allow for ease of placement of your 45's on the platter of your turntable. Activate the glowing feature by charging the adapters under a light source for a few minutes prior to use. The cones will glow green for an extended period of time under normal use. The phosphorescent properties of the cones will also glow brightly under black lights in a club setting. For a product demo, please visit our YouTube channel: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lmUDcYmdNBw Just-Ice - Back To The Old School Jigsaw Puzzle Just-Ice "Back To The Old School", considered by many to be a solidified classic, is honored in this special one-of-a-kind 100 piece puzzle. Puzzlers will recall some of their favorite Just-Ice tunes as they piece together this collectible part of Fresh Records history. Boogie Down Productions - Criminal Minded Jigsaw Puzzle - In Stock !! Boogie Down Productions "Criminal Minded", considered by many to be a solidified classic, is honored in this special one-of-a-kind 100 piece puzzle. Puzzlers will recall some of their favorite BDP tunes as they piece together this collectible part of B-Boy Records history. Kool G Rap - Live & Let Die Jigsaw Puzzle - In Stock !! Kool G. Rap & D.J. Polo "Live And Let Die", considered by many to be a solidified classic, is honored in this special one-of-a-kind 100 piece puzzle. Puzzlers will recall some of their favorite Kool G. Rap & D.J. Polo tunes as they piece together this collectible part of Cold Chillin' Records history. Puma Ed Dre Clyde Yo MTV Raps - Size UK 10 / US 11 / EUR 44.5 Very limited Ed & Dre Puma Yo MTV ! White - Lime Green - Beetroot Purple Brand New in the Box, and the box is signed by Ed Lover ! MF Doom - Operation: Doomsday (Expanded Edition Boxset) Remastered and Expanded 42 Track 2CD Set, Alternate Versions, B-Sides, Rare Originals and Instrumentals, 32-Page Lyric Book, Doomsday MCs Card Set, Unique Limited Metal Box Packaging. Check out the whole content on here: http://www.youtube.com/user/getondowntv Operation: Doomsday has floated in and out of print since its original 199 pressing on famed New York label Fondle 'Em, attaining mythical status amongst underground fans as one of the landmark releases of the decade, showcasing MF Doom's abstract wordplay, pointed wit, subtly subversive lyrics and alcohol drenched stream-of-consciousness flows over adventurous sample-based production. The album's impact steadily grew to alter the landscape of hip hop as it was then known, and its periodic cycles of unavailabilty seem only to have enhanced its mythical status. This new version presents it as a remastered and expanded double-disc set, featuring a 32-page lyric book plus 23 alternate versions, b-sides, instrumentals and acapellas, packaged in a 7" x 8" x 4" lunchbox tin, with handle and snap-lock clasp. San Francisco-based artist Jason Jagel, who provided the incredible painting for Doom's MMÉFOOD album, was enlisted to create both an updated version of the album's original iconic (copyright-infringing) comic-book artwork to cover the whole box, along with a sealed pack of Doomsday MCs trading cards, featuring MF Doom, Kurious, and others - 10 in total, one for each character featured on the album. Still as bold, creative and villainous as it was 12 years ago, only now it's louder and longer, you won't need a headful of chaos to figure out the lyrics or a bag to carry it home in, and you'll be the envy of your homies every time you get your sandwiches out. Hip Hop Pencils !!! Mad Props £1.99 Add to basket Sike £1.99 Add to basket Off The Hook £1.99 Add to basket Word Up £1.99 Add to basket Frosted Butter Rugs by DJ Q BERT Q Bert - Trip Mats Set of 2 £19.99 Add to basket Rap & Soul Mail Order	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6293
__label__wiki	0.791334	0.791334	IDL Repairs Get Underway Reportedby: Rebecca Smith Email: rsmith@fox23.com Last Update: 6/08 7:38 pm Tulsa, OK- City highways are getting a makeover. Monday marks day one of work to the Tulsa's Inner Dispersal Loop, the largest road project ever in the state, according to the Oklahoma Department of Transportation. For the next month, portions of Highways 51, 64, 75 and I-444 will be undergoing repairs and will be down to two lanes. During phase two, lanes going west will close on the north leg and lanes going south will close on the west leg. During phase three, all eastbound lanes of the north leg will close and so will all northbound lanes of the west leg. Drivers will then have to take a detour on the east and south legs. That doesn't make Dennis Reichert happy. The delivery man says he already wastes an average of 10 minutes every day fighting existing traffic, so even more means less time for him to make his stops. "Whew," said Reichert. "I better get started earlier in the morning." Other drivers agree- they don't want to be bothered. "I need to get there quick. I don't need to waste times sitting in a hot car." But, some Tulsa drivers say the repairs couldn't come at a better time. "It's a necessary evil. Gotta get the roads fixed" The project is funded through federal stimulus dollars and costs $75 million, according to ODOT. It's expected to be completed January or March of 2011.	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6297
__label__wiki	0.573472	0.573472	The Meatmen - Live At Europa, Brooklyn, NY August 31, 2012. Album Reviews (244) Comic Books (1348) DVD And Blu-ray Reviews A-F (1603) DVD And Blu-ray Reviews G-M (1494) DVD And Blu-ray Reviews N-S (1544) DVD And Blu-ray Reviews T-Z (756) Links Worth Checking (1) Live Music (76) Movie News (258) Music News (46) Theatrical (11) Ian Jane Tesco Vee and his latest incarnation of the three decade old Meatmen played Europa in Brooklyn on August 31, 2012. Taking the stage looking resplendent in his Flamenco style ABBA pants, a feather boa, light up devil horns and a blinking LED belt buckle reminding us that ‘YOU SUCK’ he thrust a giant inflatable cock into the crowd and showered them with confetti. There weren’t a lot of people in the club that night, the Friday of a long weekend when a lot of New Yorkers get the Hell out of town for a few days, but those who were in attendance were rowdy and enthusiastic enough to make up for it and Tesco and company didn’t short change anybody. Tearing though established Meatmen classicks like Pope On A Rope, I Want Drugs, Rock N Roll Juggernaut and War Of The Superbikes we were also treated to an updated version of One Down, Three To Go (now performed as Two Down, Two To Go since George Harrison shuffled off this mortal coil). Just as interesting were a few new tracks from the upcoming album Tesco informed us will be titled Lancing Liberace, the highlight being Kill Kunt Koulter, a touching ballad about Tesco’s obvious appreciation for everyone’s favorite horse faced right wing political commentator. As those familiar with the band would expect, we got a few interesting ‘Tesco rants’ as well. Given that the night after this show The Meatmen were playing the 2000 Tons TNT Festival in Hartford, a three day festival originally intended to include FEAR, Tesco didn’t mix words about why Lee Ving and company cancelled. Apparently in the midst of re-recording their classic album The Record with Dave Grohl at the helm, Tesco ranted about this for a few minutes before launching into two FEAR covers – Beef Bologna and I Love Living In The City (which was included on The Meatman Cover The Earth album). Plenty of goofy props and Tesco Rags, pre-printed mini-banners containing slogans and images relating to the songs from the set helped add to the fun. The stage, bathed almost continuously in ominous red light saw the night come to a close with a rousing cover of Venom’s In League With Satan – lots of audience participation during this one. The set was on the short side (at 11:30pm Europa turns from a punk rock club into a Polish disco - seriously!) but it was rowdy as Hell and Tesco, now fifty-seven years old, shows no signs of slowing down. The new stuff sounds good and is just as gleefully offensive as anything else they’ve done and the backing band touring with him are tight as tight can be and definitely in the right spirit to keep the band very much alive. All in all, a great night of raunchy punk rock performed by a man who may be very close to traditional retirement age and who thankfully refuses to grow up. Thanks to the guys at Scenic Propaganda, one of the coolest promotors in the city, for putting on the show. Tags : brooklyn, concert photography, concert review, europa, fear, lee ving, new york city, tesco vee, the meatmen Mark Tolch - 09-04-2012, 03:16 PM Great review, sad to hear that FEAR are indeed re-recording The Record. I'll have to check out the Meatmen live if they get up this way. Zachariah (Kino Lorber) Blu-ray Review I really liked this one. The soundtrack is cool- esp. the James Gang stuff. David H 07-14-2019 09:04 PM Six Swedes In Ibizia (Sechs Schwedinnen Auf Ibizia) The softcore cut is almost hardcore anyway. Its a shame though that ascot couldn't spend the money... Lalala76 07-12-2019 02:46 PM Savage Beach (Mill Creek Entertainment) Blu-ray Review It has them yeah, you can see them in some of the caps. Ian Jane 07-12-2019 08:14 AM "the disc is free of obvious compression artifacts." "obvious compression artifacts do appear... Fundi 07-11-2019 07:27 PM Watched this and Picasso Trigger on tuesday and was very pleased with the PQ on both. I had my... moviegeek86 07-11-2019 06:42 PM	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6299
__label__wiki	0.683876	0.683876	Revista mexicana de biodiversidad versión On-line ISSN 2007-8706versión impresa ISSN 1870-3453 Rev. Mex. Biodiv. vol.82 no.2 México jun. 2011 Community structure and floristic composition of Quercus fusiformis and Carya illinoinensis forests of the Northeastern Coastal Plain, Coahuila, Mexico Estructura y composición florística de los bosques de Quercus fusiformis y Carya illinoinensis de la planicie costera del noreste, Coahuila, México Juan Antonio Encina-Domínguez1, Efrén Mata Rocha1, Jorge A. Meave2 and Alejandro Zárate-Lupercio1 1 Departamento Forestal, Laboratorio de Sistemas de Información Geográfica. Universidad Autónoma Agraria Antonio Narro, Calzada Antonio Narro, Núm. 1923, Buenavista, 25315 Saltillo, Coahuila, México. Correspondent: juanencina@gmail.com 2 Departamento de Ecología y Recursos Naturales, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, 04510, México D.F., México. Recibido: 09 marzo 2010 Aceptado: 13 septiembre 2010 In order to describe community structure and richness in oak and walnut forests occurring along the San Rodrigo, San Diego, Escondido and Arroyo de las Vacas rivers on the Northeastern Coastal Plain (NE Coahuila, Mexico), we established 30 1 000-m2 circular plots, where we measured diameter at breast height (DBH) and tree heights. Tree regeneration and herb and shrub stratum were assessed in 5 2-m2 quadrats per site. A total of 48 species distributed in 29 families were recorded. Families with the largest richness were Poaceae, Asteraceae, and Malvaceae. For the oak forest, tree stratum density and basal area values were 386 stems/ha and 24.36 m2/ha, respectively, whereas for the walnut forest the corresponding values were 302 stems/ha and 21.26 m2/ha. The species with the highest relative importance values were Quercus fusiformis (59.48%) and Carya illinoinensis (57.58%). Total tree richness was 14 species, the most common ones being Celtis reticulata and Diospyros texana, followed closely by C. illinoinensis and Q. fusiformis. Anthropogenic impact appears to result in a poor regeneration reflected as a low sapling density, as well as in the reduction and fragmentation of these communities; in turn, this process has led to intrusions of species typical of the xerophytic Tamaulipan Thorn Scrub. Further studies are needed on the regeneration of the dominant species of these forests in order to describe their dynamics and to promote their preservation. Key words: basal area, forest regeneration, oak forest, species invasions, tree density, walnut forest. Con la finalidad de conocer la estructura y la composición florística de los bosques de encino y nogal situados a lo largo de los ríos San Rodrigo, San Diego, Escondido y Arroyo de las Vacas en la planicie costera nororiental (NE de Coahuila, México), se establecieron 30 parcelas circulares de 1 000 m2 en las que se midió el DAP y la altura de las especies arbóreas; además, se evaluó la regeneración de las especies arbóreas y el estrato herbáceo y arbustivo en 5 cuadros de 2 m2 por sitio. Se registraron 48 especies, integradas en 29 familias, siendo Poaceae, Asteraceae y Malvaceae las de mayor riqueza. La densidad y el área basal para el estrato arbóreo del bosque de encino fueron 386 ind/ha y 24.36 m2/ha, mientras que los valores respectivos para el bosque de nogal fueron 302 ind/ha y 21.26 m2/ha. Las especies con los mayores valores de importancia fueron Quercus fusiformis y Carya illinoinensis, con 59.48% y 57.58%, respectivamente. La riqueza arbórea fue de 14 especies; las más frecuentes fueron Celtis reticulata y Diospyros texana, seguidas de C. illinoinensis y Q. fusiformis. El impacto antropogénico ha ocasionado que la regeneración y el arbolado juvenil tengan densidades bajas, y ha reducido y fragmentado estas comunidades, lo que ha permitido la colonización de especies xerófitas del matorral tamaulipeco. Es necesario realizar estudios sobre la regeneración de las especies para conocer su dinámica y garantizar la conservación de estas comunidades. Palabras clave: área basal, bosque de encino, bosque de nogal, densidad de los árboles, invasión de especies, regeneración del bosque. In the northern Mexican State of Coahuila, riparian semi-evergreen forests ('bosques subperennifolios ribereños' sensu Lot and Novelo, 1990) occur along riverbanks in the eastern watershed of the El Burro Range. Despite the lack of adequate cartography, these communities appear to have a very restricted and irregular distribution; they are dominated by Carya illinoinensis (Wang.) K.Koch (walnut or 'nogal' in Spanish), a very common species in deciduous forests of southeastern USA (Correll and Johnston, 1970). In Mexico, trees of this species are common in forest communities located in the vicinity of rivers in northeastern Coahuila (Johnston, 1944; Villarreal-Quintanilla et al., 2006), whilst in Nuevo León they have been reported to form part of temperate deciduous forests (Alanís et al., 1996), or of gallery forests (Treviño et al., 2001). Further common genera in these forests are Quercus, Morus, Platanus, Fraxinus, Juglans, and Prosopis (Villarreal-Quintanilla and Valdés-Reyna, 1992-93; Villarreal-Quintanilla et al., 2006). Similarly, the only region of Mexico where oak forests dominated by Quercus fusiformis Small occur is in northeastern Coahuila, where they cover less than 1% of the state's territory (Anonymous, 2001). These communities are also present on the Coastal Plain of Texas and on the Edwards Plateau, west of the Pecos River (Muller, 1951; Correll and Johnston, 1970; Fowler, 1988). Relict populations of this species are patchily distributed along intermittent creeks and ravines in Coahuila's eastern corner (Encina-Domínguez and Villarreal-Quintanilla, 2002), in central and northeastern Nuevo León (Valdés and Aguilar, 1983; Marroquín, 1985), as well as in the San Carlos Range, Tamaulipas (Briones, 1991). Rzedowski (1978) described low elevation (ca. 350 m) communities dominated by this species located to the southwest of Piedras Negras. The estimated total area occupied by these forest communities in Coahuila is 44 629 ha (equivalent to 1.84% of the state's territory), of which 23 039 ha (0.95%) correspond to oak forest, and the remaining 21 590 ha (0.89%) to riparian vegetation (Anonymous, 2001). Among the most important environmental services provided by these forests are erosion prevention and the filtering of sediments, nutrients, and pollutants, which ultimately improves water quality (Patten, 1998), along with their role as habitat for wild fauna (Solís and Jenkins, 1998). Unfortunately and in spite of these benefits, these forests are continuously subjected to irrational human practices, ranging from conversion into pastures for cattle raising, timber extraction, mining of construction materials, and the building of reservoirs (Villarreal-Quintanilla et al., 2006). Motivated by this situation, the aim of this study was to provide information on the structure, floristics, and diversity of oak (Q. fusiformis) and walnut (C. illinoinensis) forests growing in the northeastern Gulf of Mexico coastal plain, NE Coahuila. The ultimate goal was to provide a sound synecological basis for future studies examining their dynamics and to contribute to their conservation. The study area is located along the San Rodrigo, San Diego, Escondido, and Arroyo de las Vacas rivers in northern Coahuila, and it includes portions of Acuña, Jiménez, Piedras Negras, and Zaragoza counties (Fig. 1). This region is part of the Great North American Plains physiographic province (Anonymous, 1983), known in Mexico as the Gulf Coast Plain morphotectonic province (Ferrusquía-Villafranca, 1993). More precisely, it corresponds to the northern portion of the Northeastern Coastal Plain (Rzedowski, 1978), which includes the northern and eastern sectors of Nuevo León State, the whole territory of Tamaulipas State, northeastern Coahuila, and adjacent portions of Texas (González-Medrano, 1985). In Coahuila, the area included within this physiographic province is 25 665 km2; its northern limit is the Rio Bravo (known as Rio Grande in the USA) and to the west it abuts with the Sierra Madre Oriental; the region is characterized by wide-open plains, occasionally broken by scattered gently rolling hills with elevations ranging from 250 to 500 m asl. This zone is part of the RH-24 "Bravo-Conchos" hydrologic region, within the Rio Bravo-Piedras Negras Basin, which encompasses intermittent streams and a few isolated rivers that flow mostly from the El Burro Range (Anonymous, 1983). The climate is of the BS0h'(x') type, i.e., dry, warm to semi-warm, with mean annual temperature > 22ºC and wide thermal fluctuations (Anonymous, 2001); mean total annual precipitation fluctuates from 350 to 500 mm and is evenly distributed throughout the year. The oldest rocks found in the parental bedrock are associations of lutites-sandstones and limestone-lutites of Upper Cretaceous age. The clayey, alluvial soils are alkaline and they include a limestone layer in the subsoil; their color is brown or gray and they have low organic matter contents. The most extensive soil units are Calcic xerosols, Haplic xerosols and Calcaric regosols of medium texture; on the hills medium-textured Lithosols prevail that may be associated to varying degrees with calcaric regosols (Anonymous, 2001). From a floristic viewpoint, this region is considered part of the Northeastern Coastal Plain Province, which in Mexico covers almost the entire territory of Tamaulipas, the northeastern third of Nuevo León, and the northeastern sector of Coahuila (Rzedowski, 1978). Despite its northern location in the country, the region has strong links with southern floras, although it also hosts a considerable number of species with restricted distributions (Rzedowski, 1965). The Tamaulipan Thorn Scrub is the prevailing vegetation in NE Coahuila (Muller, 1945); however, in areas with higher moisture availability and deeper soils other plant communities occur, such as mesquite forests, riparian vegetation, and oak forests (Rzedowski, 1978; Villarreal-Quintanilla and Valdés-Reyna, 1992-93). We estimated community-level variables by sampling the vegetation at 30 sites: 9 of them were on the Arroyo de las Vacas river, 16 were along the San Diego river, 3 on the San Rodrigo, and 2 on the Escondido river (Fig. 1). At each site we established a circular plot with an area of 1 000 m2, within which individuals of tree species were tallied and their normal diameter (or diameter at breast height, DBH) were measured; individual tree heights were also recorded. For assessing dominant trees species regeneration (individuals ≤ 1.30 m tall) and characteristics of the herb and shrub stratum, we established 5 2-m2 plots, 1 at the center and 4 near the border of each circular plot, in the corresponding cardinal direction (Olvera-Vargas et al., 1996; Figueroa-Rangel and Olvera-Vargas, 2000). Taxonomic identities of the collected plant specimens were determined and the vouchers deposited at the ANSM herbarium (Universidad Autónoma Agraria Antonio Narro). Vegetation types were defined following Muller (1945) and Villarreal-Quintanilla and Valdés-Reyna (1992-93), and the structure of their tree stratum was analyzed by calculating the basal area and density of those species representing the adult tree community (DBH ≥ 5 cm). Density, frequency, and absolute dominance values were calculated by species; by adding the relative values of these variables we obtained a Relative Importance Value (RIV) for each species (Mueller-Dombois and Ellenberg, 1974); the abundance-dominance of species in the herb and shrub strata was assessed qualitatively (see Appendix 1). Site classification was performed by applying Ward's method or Minimum Variance method, which is a hierarchical, polythetic, agglomerative clustering technique (Manly, 1986; Digby and Kempton, 1987), using NTSYSpc ver. 2.0 (Rohlf, 1998) to a species/sites matrix containing density values of 13 tree species; between-cluster distance was computed as an increment in squared Morisita's index (Krebs, 1999) towards cluster centroid after fusion of 2 clusters (van Tongeren 1995). Floristic similarity between the 2 communities was assessed by calculating Jaccard's index (Magurran, 1988): where a and b represent species richness in each of the 2 examined sets, and j is the number of shared species. The criteria established in the Regulatory Appendix I (Method for Assessing the Extinction Risk of Wild Species) of the Mexican Official Norm NOM-059-SEMARNAT-2001 (Semarnat, 2002) were applied in order to locate 4 species (Quercus fusiformis, Carya illinoinensis, Ulmus crassifolia, and Platanus occidentalis) in the proper risk category; the selection of these species was based on their highly restricted distribution in Mexico. This procedure is based on the sum of the values given to 4 criteria that allow assigning each species to a risk category. These criteria are: (a) size of the taxon's range in Mexico, (b) habitat condition with respect to the natural development of the taxon, (c) intrinsic biological vulnerability of the taxon, and (d) impacts of human activities on the taxon. The maximum sum value for the 4 criteria is 14 points (4, 3, 3, and 4, respectively). A species is considered in risk of extinction ('peligro de extinción'; P) with sum values between 12 and 14 points, and threatened ('amenazada'; A) when they are between 10 and 11. Floristics. A total of 48 species belonging to 29 families were recorded, among which Poaceae, Asteraceae (5 species each), and Malvaceae (4) were prominent. Species distribution by growth form categories was characterized by the dominance of herbs (20 species; 41.66%) and trees (15 species; 31.25%), whereas shrubs (6 species, 12.5%) and climbers (7 species; 14.58%) were more poorly represented. Dominant species (and consequently the strongest contributors to physiognomy) in the tree stratum were Carya illinoinensis and Quercus fusiformis; in the subcanopy Celtis reticulata and Diospyros texana were dominant, but Bumelia lanuginosa, Acacia farnesiana, Salix nigra, and Prosopis glandulosa were also noteworthy. The most abundant herbs were Ruellia nudiflora, Sanvitalia ocymoides, Viguiera dentata, Allowissadula holosericea, and Malvastrum coromandelianum. The complete checklist of the flora is presented in Appendix 1. Site classification. The cluster analysis clearly separated 2 groups of sites (Fig. 2). Group 1 corresponds to oak forest and comprises 19 sites with a mean between-site similarity of 43%; this community encompasses 11 tree species, among which the most common ones were Quercus fusiformis, Celtis reticulata, and Diospyros texana. For this forest we distinguished 3 variants: stands dominated by Q. fusiformis (14 sites), others characterized by a co-dominance of Q. fusiformis and C. reticulata (4), and 1 dominated by species of xeric affinities like Prosopis glandulosa. Group 2 embodies the remaining 11 sites, for which a mean between-site similarity was 23%; they correspond to the walnut forest, which as a whole hosts a tree richness of 10 species, the most frequent ones being Carya illinoinensis, Q. fusiformis, and C. reticulata. For this community we were also able to distinguish 2 variants, 1 in which dominance corresponds to C. illinoinensis (9 sites), and the other dominated by Ulmus crassifolia (2 sites only). Eight species were shared between the 2 forest types, which produced a Jaccards's similarity index of 0.61 between them. Oak forest structure. This community thrives along the San Diego and Escondido rivers, as well as in areas south of Ciudad Acuña, at elevations ranging between 270 and 320 m. Quercus fusiformis (white oak) was the dominant species (RIV of 59.48%; density of 231 stems/ha); the trees of this species form a closed canopy 13 to 25 m tall. In this forest a second tree stratum was distinguished with trees measuring between 6 and 9 m tall, in which palo blanco (Celtis reticulata) dominates (RIV of 11.14%); further common species were Diospyros texana, Carya illinoinensis, and Bumelia lanuginosa (RIVs of 4-10%). Although Ulmus crassifolia was scarce (3.68 stems/ha), the size of their individuals is noteworthy (mean DBH of 29 cm), which led this species to attain a RIV of 1.68% (Table 1). In sites where canopy was open the occurrence of Prosopis glandulosa (mesquite) and Acacia farnesiana (huizache) trees was observed (RIV of 4.64% and 1.16%, respectively), along with shrubs such as Opuntia lindheimeri, Leucophyllum frutescens, and Celtis pallida with heights between 1 and 2 m. In the herb stratum, whose height ranges from 10 to 35 cm, Allowissadula holosericea, Croton fruticulosus, Pavonia lasiopetala, and Siphonoglossa pilosella were dominant. Smilax bona-nox and Vitis cinerea were frequent climbers. In this forest we recorded a total density of 386 stems/ha in the tree stratum, with tree heights ranging between 6 and 25 m, and mean DBH as large as 44.17 cm, which accounts for its total basal area of 24.36 m2/ha. A large fraction (21.90 m2/ha; 89%) of this value was contributed exclusively by Quercus fusiformis, whereas all associated trees combined (10 species) accumulated a basal area < 2 m2/ha (Table 1). We did not record any juveniles, so that sprouting was the only regeneration form observed. The community-level diameter frequency distribution in this forest showed an inverted J shape (Fig. 3). Two thirds of all trees (255 stems, 66%) had DBH values between 5 and 15 cm; this fraction was accounted for mainly by Diospyros texana, Celtis reticulata, and Carya illinoinensis. The former species had its highest density (40 stems/ha) in the 5 cm centered diameter class, whilst the latter 2 were more abundant in the class centered on the 10 cm mark (16 and 6 stems/ha, respectively). The large DBH categories were dominated by Quercus fusiformis, whose diameter frequency distribution had a sigmoid shape, with its highest density (41 stems/ha) in the class centered on 15 cm (Fig. 3). Walnut forest structure. The Carya illinoinensis community thrives on the banks of the San Diego, San Rodrigo and Arroyo de las Vacas rivers, at elevations ranging from 250 to 300 m. This species was physiognomically and structurally dominant (RIV of 57.58%; density of 230 stems/ha), followed by white oak (Quercus fusiformis) with 13 stems/ha and a RIV of 13.39%. Together, these 2 species make up the upper stratum, which is 12 to 18 m tall (Table 2). In the lower tree stratum (6 to 8 m tall) Celtis reticulata, Platanus occidentalis, and Morus celtidifolia were common (RIV of 4-9%); M. celtidifolia and P. occidentalis were only recorded along the San Rodrigo river, both with low densities (16 and 8 stems/ha, respectively). Ulmus crassifolia occurred exclusively in those open-canopy C. illinoinensis communities located near Ciudad Acuña, with a low density (5 stems/ha) but a rather robust growth, illustrated by a mean diameter of 47.25 cm (allowing this species to reach a RIV of 4.06%). Bumelia lanuginosa, B. celastrina, and Diospyros texana were uncommon, only recorded in habitats with less water availability. In areas with low forest cover, seedlings and juveniles of Acacia farnesiana and Prosopis glandulosa were frequent, together with xerophytic shrubs like Opuntia lindheimeri and Celtis pallida. Climbers like Vitis cinerea, Smilax bona-nox, and Toxicodendron radicans were common. Plant height in the herb stratum ranged between 5 and 60 cm; in this stratum the most abundant species were Viguiera dentata, Sanvitalia ocymoides, Carex schiedeana, and Abutilon incanum. Total density in the tree stratum of this community was 302 stems/ha. Tree height ranged between 6 and 18 m, and maximum DBH mean was 64.96 cm. Total basal area was 21.27 m2/ha, of which over 89% (18.92 m2/ha) was accounted for by Carya illinoinensis and Quercus fusiformis (63% and 26%, respectively). Basal area values of the remaining 8 species were < 1 m2/ha (Table 2). Seedlings and juveniles of C. illinoinensis were scarce and apparently restricted to the most humid sites. As was the case for the oak forest, diameter frequency distributions of the various species of this forest also exhibited inverted J shapes (Fig. 4). More than one half of all trees (178 individuals; 58%) had DBH values between 5 and 15 cm. The largest density in these categories was contributed by Carya illinoinensis, whose population diameter distribution matched that observed for the whole community. The large DBH categories exclusively contained C. illinoinensis and Quercus fusiformis individuals; in fact, for the latter species we recorded the largest diameter (150 cm) in the entire sampling. The most important species in the lower tree stratum were Platanus occidentalis and Celtis reticulata, whose highest densities fell in those categories centered on the 15 and 5 cm marks, respectively (Fig. 4). Proposal for the protection of tree species. By applying the criteria of the Regulatory Appendix I of the Mexican Norm NOM-059-SEMARNAT-2001, we propose that Quercus fusiformis, Carya illinoinensis and Ulmus crassifolia be classified as 'In danger of local extinction', whereas Platanus occidentalis corresponds better to the 'Threatened' category'. These standings were based on the criterion of the restricted ranges of these species to Mexico and to Coahuila State. Forests dominated by Quercus and Carya species of northeastern Mexico are essentially restricted to humid ravines of mountainous regions, in temperate areas with elevations ranging from 900 to 2 600 m, and shallow soils (Briones, 1991; Muller-Using, 1994; Eckelmann, 1995; Encina-Domínguez, 2003). The Quercus fusiformis and Carya illinoinensis forests typical of the Coastal Plain of Coahuila greatly contrast with them due to their occurrence at much lower elevations (250-350 m), their strong preference for humid locations near streams, and their occurrence in temperate and semiarid habitats with deeper soils. Moreover, these forests may represent relict communities (Rzedowski, 1978), and indeed they can be viewed as an outstanding plant community, as it is the only one in the country that is composed of species with clear temperate climate affinities that occurs within a semiarid environment. In southeastern USA Carya illinoinensis dominated forests are common (Bonner and Maisenhelder, 1974; Peterson, 1990; Fowler, 2005), but the southernmost limit of this community's range is found in our study region; further south this tree species only occurs as an isolated component of riparian vegetation and oak forests of central Coahuila (Villarreal-Quintanilla et al., 2006), south central Nuevo León (Muller-Using, 1994; Treviño et al., 2001), and central Mexico (Pérez-Calix, 2001). Floristic composition and phytogeographical affinities. Total species richness recorded in the oak and walnut forests of Coahuila is lower than that reported by Villarreal-Quintanilla et al. (2006) for the Sabinas and San Rodrigo rivers (243 taxa), and the same was true for tree species richness (22 species versus 15 recorded by us). In spite of these differences, both studies coincide in pointing out the prevalence of the Asteraceae and Poaceae families. Tree richness in forests of the Eastern Sierra Madre fluctuates between 3 and 6 species (Briones, 1991; Muller-Using, 1994; Encina-Domínguez, 2003), which is less than our records for the Quercus fusiformis (11 species) and the walnut (10 species) forests, and less than figures reported for gallery forests of the Ramos and Cabezones rivers in Nuevo León, where Treviño et al. (2001) tallied 16 and 21 species, respectively. In the forests studied by us, the tree stratum is dominated by genera of Nearctic affinity (Rzedowski et al., 2001), and only at sites with a more open canopy is there presence of Neotropical trees, such as members of Acacia and Prosopis. Conversely, in the herb and shrub strata Neotropical elements often dominate (Rzedowski, 1965). The fact that Asteraceae and Poaceae are the most speciose families in the herb stratum of the oak forest agrees with observations from other Mexican oak forests (Rzedowski, 1978); however, as in broadleaved forests of central Texas, malvaceous species dominate such strata (Fowler, 2005). The high similarity between sites representing the oak and walnut forests demonstrates their large share of common species, probably due to similar ecological requirements among their floristic sets (Johnston, 1944; Villarreal-Quintanilla et al., 2006). Also, it leads to the conclusion that these 2 forests represent a single community with 2 variants, differentiated by the respective strong dominance of Carya illinoinensis and Quercus fusiformis, whilst the variation in their composition and the discontinuity in their distribution is largely an outcome of the anthropogenic activity in the region. Ecological factors affecting vegetation. The segregation of sampling sites in 2 variants of a single oak-walnut forest is not only due to subtle differences in floristic composition and to the higher densities of some species in either variant, but it is also related to overall ecological differences between them. The variant recognized by us as walnut forest is preferentially found on river banks, at higher altitudes and more northern latitudes, and its range includes a clear temperature gradient, whereas the geographical range of oak forest stretches more to the south where temperatures are higher; this latter forest can develop near or far away from rivers, as long as there is a shallow water table (Rzedowski, 1978), and it often forms isolated clusters, locally known as motas, scattered across the Tamaulipan thorn scrub. Zavala (2001) reported similar ecological properties for other Quercus species and emphasized that oaks are drought-tolerant, whilst they cannot withstand flooding and excess soil moisture. Forest composition and distribution are largely determined by temperature and humidity; the distributions of Carya illinoinensis, Morus celtidifolia, Platanus occidentalis, and Ulmus crassifolia, all of them typical walnut forest species, are limited to the most humid sites within the area. Conversely, the remaining species appear to be more tolerant to variable temperate and water conditions, as they were recorded in most sampling sites. Forest structure and regeneration. Oak forests of northeastern Mexico are usually dominated by 2 or 3 tree species reaching heights of 8 to 10 m, with diameters of 19 to 22 cm and densities between 220 and 240 stems/ha (Briones, 1991; Muller-Using, 1994; Baca, 2000; Torres, 2000; Encina-Domínguez, 2003). These forests differ from the communities studied by us because of the clear single-species dominance in the latter, whose individuals generally grow to larger sizes (DBH and mean height of 44.17 cm and 15 m, respectively), despite similar values of mean density. The likely cause for the larger sizes of trees (and forests) in the Coastal Plain of Coahuila is a higher productivity derived from a higher nutrient and moisture availability compared to environmental conditions in mountainous regions; this possibility would also strengthen the argument for the suggested mature and relict condition of these forests. Basal areas estimated by us were slightly higher in the oak than in the walnut forest. This finding may be related to a combination of a higher stem density with larger stem diameters of Quercus fusiformis in this forest, relative to the same variables measured for Carya illinoinensis in the walnut forest variant. The diameter class distributions of both communities had inverted J shapes, which in principle could be interpreted as a sign of good forest regeneration (Kormondy, 1985). Nonetheless, only the densities of 2 out of the 5 most important species peaked in the 5 cm DBH class, namely Carya illinoinensis and Diospyros texana, whereas the remaining ones were poorly represented in that category, suggesting an insufficient or poor regeneration (Bongers et al., 1988; Godínez-Ibarra and López-Mata, 2002; Ajbilou et al., 2003; Ayerde-Lozada and López-Mata, 2006). In many oak populations facing difficulties to regeneration from seeds, a situation resulting not only from human intervention but also from a combination of many factors such as herbivory, exotic grass invasions, and summer drought (MacDougall et al. 2010), sprouting becomes the only regeneration alternative (Zavala and García, 1997; Johnson et al., 2002). However, sprouting does not necessarily guarantee a healthy regeneration, as shown by significant grazing on sprouts by goats and white-tail deer in Quercus fusiformis central Texas populations (Fowler 2005). Anthropogenic disturbance. Anthropogenic impact is a further factor capable of exerting a considerable influence on community structure and composition. Human influence on the studied forests is manifold: grazing of cattle, sheep, and horses; selective logging of oaks and other species; land used change to establish agricultural areas; diversion of rivers; construction of reservoirs and the mining of river banks (Arriaga et al., 2000; Anonymous, 2001). Its action has resulted in the fragmentation and reduction of the range of these oak-walnut forests and the promotion of significant modifications in their structure and species composition, similar to changes reported for temperate and riparian forests of western USA (Norton, 1996; Dwire and Kauffman, 2003). In Coahuila, human activities include the cutting of young trees (mostly of Quercus fusiformis and Celtis reticulata) for fence construction and charcoal production, and overgrazing (unpub. obs.); interestingly, these were also recognized by Ajbilou et al. (2003) as the main reasons for the poor regeneration of Quercus forests in Marocco. Overall, Q. fusiformis and Carya illinoinensis seedlings are scarce and concentrate under the canopies of seeding trees, a pattern also shown by Quercus rugosa along a disturbance gradient that includes varying levels of canopy openness (Bonfil and Soberón, 1999). Our data suggest a higher impact on the regeneration of oak than of walnut forest; moreover, there seems to be an intrinsic reason for the overgrazing of this forest variant, since recently flushed oak leaves are more palatable than those of walnut (Andersson, 1991) and therefore grazed more intensely. In oak forests of Nuevo León (Mexico), cattle grazing concentrated on 67% of Quercus cupreata and Q. prinopsis resprouted stems, whereas Carya myristicaeformis seedlings were the least affected by cattle (Eckelmann, 1995). Moreover, in the Coahuilan forests C. illinoinensis displays a better seed reproduction than oaks (pers. obs.). Human-induced changes in canopy structure are related to diversity losses and species invasions (Hobbs and Huenneke, 1992). In our study area, sites with low canopy cover appear to be gradually colonized by species from the neighboring thorn scrub, with Prosopis glandulosa and Acacia farnesiana acting as disturbance indicator species (Sttubbendieck et al., 1992). Prosopis glandulosa was recorded by us in almost one fifth of all oak forest sites, where past tree extraction was evident. Such changes warrant the suspicion that regional xerophytic communities are increasingly replacing these forests. An analogous deteriorating process was observed in the mountains of Chiapas, southern Mexico, where human-disturbed oak forests are being gradually replaced by pine-dominated stands (González-Espinosa et al., 1995a, b). In southeastern USA, reservoir construction and mining in open-air quarries have triggered the transformation of riparian forests into scrub vegetation (Busch and Smith, 1995; Everitt, 1998; Shafroth et al., 2002). The negative effects of human activities are not exclusively seen in the upper canopy, as our results provide evidence of species richness reductions in the lower tree stratum: sites showing stronger human impact consistently had fewer species in this stratum, and in extreme cases mature oaks and walnut trees were the only plants occurring at the site. Human-caused floristic richness reductions have also been documented for cloud forests of Chiapas (Ramírez-Marcial et al., 2001). If current management practices were to continue, these communities are highly likely to disappear in the long run. Implications for oak and walnut forests protection. The region where we conducted this study hosts a relatively large biodiversity; consequently, it was included in the Priority Terrestrial Regions for Conservation Nos. 73 and 74 defined by the Mexican Government, named Sierra El Burro-Rio San Rodrigo, and Cinco Manantiales, respectively (Arriaga et al., 2000). Worldwide, the area devoted to temperate forest protection is notably scant (Norton, 1996). Protection of these Coahuilan forests started in June 18, 1940, with the publication of the official ordinance that created the Los Novillos National Park (Gómez-Pompa et al., 1995), a 42-ha nature protection area located along the Arroyo de las Vacas river, 65 km southeast of Ciudad Acuña (Anonymous, 1993). Obviously, this small area cannot guarantee the conservation of these forests, considering the minute representation of their total area (0.09%), the regeneration problems faced by most species, and the numerous factors threatening their permanence. Therefore, the protection of oak and walnut forests of the Northeastern Coastal Plain must be decidedly promoted, as in the entire territory of Mexico this is the only region where they occur and, even there, they only cover 1.84% of Coahuila State (Anonymous, 2001). Further criteria supporting the need to conserve these forests are their insular condition within a semiarid ecosystem dominated by the Tamaulipan Thorn Scrub (Villarreal-Quintanilla and Valdés-Reyna, 1992-93), and the consideration of at least one of the variants (i.e., the Quercus fusiformis forest) as a relict of formerly more extensive forests (Rzedowski, 1978). Ultimately, conservation of these uncommon and particular Coahuilan forests will rely on an adequate management through rational forest exploitation, as well as on an active research program aimed at understanding the dynamics of their dominant species. We thank 2 anonymous reviewers for their critical comments on an earlier version of this paper. We are grateful to the ANSM herbarium for the support provided to this research. José A. Villarreal kindly determined herb species collected during the project, and Miguel A. Carranza made available to us his collecting logbook for the study area. We thank Felipe N. Hernández for drawing figures 1 and 2. Literature cited Ajbilou, R., T. Marañón and J. Arroyo. 2003. Distribución de clases diamétricas y conservación de bosques en el norte de Marruecos. Investigación Agraria, Sistemas de Recursos Forestales 12:111-123. [ Links ] Alanís, G., G. Cano and M. Rovalo. 1996. Vegetación y Flora de Nuevo León: una Guía Botánico-Ecológica. 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Thesis, Facultad de Ciencias Forestales, Universidad Autónoma de Nuevo León. Linares. 78 p. [ Links ] Treviño, G. E., C. Cavazos and O. Aguirre. 2001. Distribución y estructura de los bosques de galería en dos ríos del centro sur de Nuevo León. Madera y Bosques 7:13-25. [ Links ] Valdés, T. V. and M. L. Aguilar. 1983. El género Quercus en las unidades fisonómico-florísticas del municipio de Santiago, N.L. México. INIF-SARH. México. Boletín Técnico No. 98, Secretaría de Agricultura y Recursos Hidráulicos, Mexico City, D.F. 94 p. [ Links ] van Tongeren, O. F. R. 1995. Cluster analysis, In Data Analysis in Community and Landscape Ecology, R. H. G. Jongman, C. J. F. ter Braak and O. F. R. van Tongeren (eds.). Cambridge University Press, Cambridge. p. 174-212. [ Links ] Villarreal-Quintanilla, J. A. 2001. Listados florísticos de México. XXIII Flora de Coahuila. Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Mexico, D.F. 139 p. [ Links ] Villarreal-Quintanilla, J. A., M. A. Carranza, E. Estrada and A. Rodríguez. 2006. Flora riparia de los ríos Sabinas y San Rodrigo, Coahuila, México. Acta Botanica Mexicana 75:1-20. [ Links ] Villarreal-Quintanilla, J. A. and J. Valdés-Reyna. 1992-93. Vegetación de Coahuila, México. Revista de la Sociedad Mexicana de Manejo de Pastizales 6:9-18. [ Links ] Ward, J. 1963. Hierarchical grouping to optimize an objective function. Journal of the American Statistical Association 58:236-244. [ Links ] Zavala, F. 2001. Introducción a la Ecología de la Regeneración Natural de Encinos. Universidad Autónoma de Chapingo, Chapingo. 94 p. [ Links ] Zavala, F. and E. García. 1997. Plántulas y rebrotes en la regeneración de encinos en la Sierra de Pachuca, Hidalgo. Agrociencia 31:323-329. [ Links ] Circuito exterior, Ciudad Universitaria, Del. Coyoacán, México, Distrito Federal, MX, 04510, (52-55)5622-9167 falvarez@ibiologia.unam.mx	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6313
__label__wiki	0.518344	0.518344	Senate President Pro Tempore Martin M. Looney Representing New Haven, Hamden & North Haven Follow Senator Looney: Senate Republicans Choose Lobbyist Money Over Working People Reacting to the Connecticut Senate Republicans blocking legislation to raise the minimum wage, Senate President Pro Tempore Martin M. Looney (D-New Haven) and Senate Majority Leader Bob Duff (D-Norwalk) today released the following statements: “Today, we learned that the detached and divided public spirit of President Donald Trump is alive and well right here in Connecticut, as the Connecticut Senate Republicans’ first official act under our new, bipartisan power-sharing agreement was to turn their backs on some of the hardest working and most needy people of Connecticut by dividing the Labor and Public Employees Committee to block the Senate version of the minimum wage bill. Fortunately, the House version was adopted on a party-line vote with all Democrats in support and all Republicans opposed.” said Senator Looney. “Thousands upon thousands of Connecticut families work minimum wage jobs. For parents trying to make ends meet, for the blue collar workers hanging sheetrock or changing your oil, for single moms working two or three jobs to provide the basic necessities for their children, there may be no more important and pressing issue than earning a fair, adequate and more ‘livable’ hourly wage. A sufficient minimum wage for the working people of Connecticut is not some sort of luxury—it is an absolute necessity,” Looney continued. “Year after year, the public’s voice on this matter has been made crystal clear; now Republicans have turned a deaf ear,” said Senator Duff. Senator Duff continued, “Today is not a proud day for the Connecticut General Assembly. In fact, it is a very sad day. Senate Republicans have failed their first real test of leadership for the people of Connecticut who they claim to represent: Republicans have put pure political calculation ahead of a popular and demonstrable public need. “If this is the Connecticut Republicans’ definition of leadership, if these are the public policies that they will kill and dismantle if given some greater opportunity to govern, then Connecticut residents face a very sad and dismal future.” Poll after public poll has shown deep and bipartisan public support for minimum wage increases in Connecticut. A March 2016 poll showed 61 percent of Connecticut residents supported increasing Connecticut’s minimum wage to $15 an hour by 2022. The measure was especially popular with unaffiliated voters, women, and people under age 50; they argued that employees who are paid wages too low to live on often end up relying on government assistance, and that means that every single Connecticut state taxpayer ends up personally subsidizing the profit margins of private corporations that pay poverty-level wages. An April 2012 poll showed 90 percent of Democrats, 70 percent of unaffiliated voters and half of Republicans supported increasing in Connecticut’s minimum wage from $8.25 an hour to $10.10 an hour. 80 percent of residents with incomes less than $50,000 a year—and 80 percent of residents with income exceeding $100,000 a year—supported increasing the minimum wage. Three-quarters of women in that poll supported increasing Connecticut’s minimum wage. READ MORE RELEASES FROM SENATOR LOONEY	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6335
__label__wiki	0.926478	0.926478	Breaking from the outside post as the youngest among ten starters, odds-on THERAPIST ($308,725) won Belmont’s $100,000 New York Stallion Spectacular Bid Stakes by two lengths under top weight in 1:21.07 for seven furlongs on turf on Sunday, June 24, giving the FREUD colt his second stakes record of 2018. Therapist had to race five-wide down the backstretch to secure a reasonable position on the turn, where he threaded between rivals before overtaking the front-runner, setting a six-furlong fraction of 1:08.79 and drawing clear. His winning time broke the Spectacular Bid stakes record – held since 2013 by a multiple stakes winner of $657,285 carrying four pounds less than Therapist – by nearly three-fifths of a second. A homebred for Lynn and Richard’s Leahy’s Oak Bluff Stables and co-bred by winning trainer Christophe Clement, Therapist was the only May-foaled 3-year-old among the event’s ten sophomores. Clement, who also had trained Therapist’s dam – a two-time winner who was not a stakes producer prior to being bred to Freud – observed that Therapist has “a great turn of foot.” Clement also acknowledged that the colt had been “a touch flat” in his previous start 22 days earlier while coming off a nine-week layoff (“a little more anxious than what we like, but he’s a pretty busy horse mentally”). Clement pointed out that Therapist belonged to a small group of standouts produced from Oak Bluff Stable’s “amazing breeding program,” adding, “I’m just lucky to train for (them).” Therapist was conceived when Freud’s multiple graded-winning LUBASH ($1,515,139) was being trained by Clement. Winning jockey Irad Ortiz Jr., who had piloted Therapist to a stakes record mile in 1:33.42 in Gulfstream Park’s $127,500 Cutler Bay Stakes on March 31, had “a lot of confidence” in Therapist: “The way he was feeling today, I thought he was going to run the way he ran.” Therapist is the third son of Freud to win the Spectacular Bid, following DARRIN’S DILEMMA for Michael Dubb and Bethlehem Stables LLC in 2011 and CLOUD CONTROL for owner-breeders Chester and Mary Broman in 2016. The Spectacular Bid marked Therapist’s fifth victory in seven starts and fourth stakes tally. He is Freud’s 12th Northern Hemisphere 2018 repeat winner, which leads all New York-based sires. Therapist was Freud’s sixth Northern Hemisphere winner within a nine-day span (June 16-24), beginning with Daniel J. Feiss’ stakes-winning DR. SHANE ($412,271), who came within about a fifth of a second of Belmont’s seven-furlong course record while scoring his first turf victory in 1:19.44 on June 16. Favored among eight in a $70,000 Belmont allowance optional, Dr. Shane led gate-to-wire, setting a 20.97 intermediate quarter-mile split (for a half-mile fraction of 43.57) and winning by 4¾ lengths. Winning 5½-furlong allowances at Finger Lakes by daylight margins on June 23 were Freud’s new six-figure-earning son, FREUD’S AFFAIR, and four-time winning daughter, AQUARIUS. Freud’s Affair, campaigned by owner-breeder Lisa Ann Reed under the care of trainer and co-breeder Christopher John Progno, beat odds-on runner-up and co-topweight BAVARO ($180,440), a stakes-winning son of Freud owned and trained by Jeremiah C. Englehart. Aquarius, another Freud homebred for Patricia L. Moseley, scored by almost two lengths. Tallying by almost two lengths at seven furlongs on Evangeline Downs dirt on June 20 was Freud’s stakes-placed Louisiana-bred son, JUST STORMIN ($189,445), who races for Charles Carlton. Easily winning a Finger Lakes 5½-furlong maiden special for open fillies and mares by eight lengths in her debut on June 18 was May-foaled 3-year-old Freud filly RISKY ANALYSIS, a homebred for Chester and Mary R. Broman and the only first-time starter – as well as the youngest – among seven. In South America, four Freud fillies scored in Argentina, Peru, and Uruguay during June 18-24, highlighted on June 24 by 3-year-olds LA BOMBON going 1,900 meters (about 1 3/16 miles) on Monterrico turf in Peru and CHIA F going 1,000 meters (about five furlongs) on Maronas dirt in Uruguay. La Bombon, an Argentine-bred racing for Agustin Gabriel Stable, tallied by almost two lengths against 13 rivals in 1:56.11 and now has two wins on turf and one on dirt in six starts in 2018. Chia F, a Uruguayan-bred racing for Rincon del Rey Stable, romped by six lengths against six rivals in her one-turn outing, clocking 57.34 on the tight-turn track to come within less than a second of the track record in her fourth victory. Breaking their maidens on dirt at Buenos Aires-area tracks in Argentina were Argentine-bred Freud fillies GOING FREE at 1,400 meters (about seven furlongs) in her second start on June 18 at Palermo and ARTISTAS FASHION at 1,100 meters (about 5½ furlongs) at San Isidro on June 20. Going Free, a homebred for La Pesadilla Stable, broke from the outside post among 13 and won by two lengths in 1:22.96, improving significantly from her second-placed debut among 13 in February. Artistas Fashion, a 3-year-old filly owned by Mamina Stable, won by a length and a half against 11 rivals with a big stretch run in the final quarter-mile. Placing in black type events on June 16 and June 24 were Freud’s stakes-winning Argentine-bred sons MUST GO ON ($329,154 in U.S. equivalent earnings) at Palermo and CHARPENTIER at Monterrico respectively and 3-year-old New York-bred daughter MENTALITY ($111,834) at Belmont on June 24. Must Go On, a Group 1 winner on turf owned by Tata Y Tigre Stable, placed second among ten in Palermo’s Group 2 Clasico General Belgrano at 2,500 meters (about 1 9/16 miles) on dirt in his second start (and second group-placing) off a one-year layoff. Charpentier, a 4-year-old multiple listed winner at Monterrico for Dona Licha Stable coming off a 12¼-length listed tally three weeks earlier (on June 3), placed third in the Group 2 Clasico OSAF at 1,600 meters (about a mile) on dirt after having led most of the way. Mentality, owned by Lindy Farms, gained her first black type by placing third among 11 in Belmont’s $100,000 New York Stallion Cupecoy’s Joy Stakes after having finished less than a length behind the winner of Aqueduct’s $100,000 Mizdirection Stakes for open 3-year-old fillies going six furlongs on turf in April. Mentality 29 days earlier had beaten the Cupecoy’s Joy winner by 2¼ lengths in a seven-furlong Belmont turf allowance (in 1:20.82) at equal weights, but she was spotting four pounds to that same rival in the Cupecoy’s Joy and placed a length behind her.	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6336
__label__cc	0.536418	0.463582	tv American History TV CSPAN June 25, 2016 9:45pm-10:01pm EDT more energy paid to women and this agricultural programming provision. enoughdn't have done that women could qualify in the same way. >> i am taken with that marvelous quote of ronald reagan. can you tell the context and from the theme of the quote is reagan continued to espouse an open immigration policy. champion of irca in 1986. and continue to talk about it up until the time he left office. i find it interesting. when people talk about what reagan meant. what were its long-term events -- fx? championship of it. he was proud of having signs the provision. wasn't that statement consistent with his speech before the berlin wall. politicians are not always consistent. >> there not? [laughter] they wanted to cross the border from doing so. if we had to have walls, make sure they are big enough. those never thought about two coup. >> since you are talking about immigration of women, can you comment on the current numbers of women and children crossing the border from the northern triangle. my most recent article is coming out now. it talks about women and children and how the government put them in jail. this is this perspective of women. what i talk about specifically is how our rhetoric of immigration has changed so profoundly in the last 30 years. we have the most formidable of violence. are fleeing it is the way in which we respond to them. the retest the way they are supposed to be reaching us. that is what asylum law is all about. it is interesting to note how this gender perspective doesn't favor the person here. thank you very much. [applause] >> on july 1, 1976. the national air and space museum opened its doors to the public. friday marks the 40th anniversary of the museum. seeill tour the museum and one-of-a-kind aviation and space artifacts. plus live events at the front of the building. you can join the conversation as we will be taking your phone calls and 20. , lifeth anniversary friday evening. next on american history tv, talks about the life and career of patsy takemoto mink. colors the first woman of to be elected in this way. they interviewed her at this .nnual meeting this is 10 minutes. who was patsy takemoto mink? judy wu: she was the first elected colored member of congress. she served for 24 years. she is best known for protecting title ix. she died in 2002. that had the vaccinations a lot of people tend to have nowadays. i think they found the >>ckenpox were needles -- how old was she? my math. how did you get involved in politics in the first lace? she took part in the democratic revolution in hawaii. eventually it was native her ryan's -- hawaiians. they dominated the social life. they try to organize democrats and really reached out to the people who were the have-nots. they doubled the democratic party. that is still the dominant political force in hawaii. she was a recently graduate and was the mother of a young child. she went knocking at all of these law firms. back,, she ended up and herup her shingles science was actually poor. she tried to make a place for herself as a professional woman. she also got involved into politics. then host: she ran for office. did she have any qualities that made her successful as a candidate? judy wu: he seems to have been a very charismatic speaker. she participated in debate in college and high school. she has that ability to move people. also committed to liberal values. she wanted to make sure they had equal access and he will writes. -- equal rights. to grow -- grew up under fdr. i think she really took that to long with her experience about being a ration allies woman. she becomes a celebrity. she from hawaii, a relatively young age. as likedescribe her humor. fromas this exotic women -- white. she is able to form some of that. she was stylish. that.nted to go beyond host: how did she end up working on behalf of title ix. before even going to , she wasffice advocating for equal pay for women area advocating for child the and realizing ways state and federal government could report this initiative. she is part of the labor committee assignment and title ix comes out of those committees. sure women areke not discriminated against. she is really part of that generation. what would you describe her other compliments? she was critical about going into vietnam. i think her issue about antiwar had no do with her being from hawaii. i think she was very aware of the impact of that type of militarization. that was one of her key initiatives to try to copy against military initiatives in the amount. i can see her being concerned about the land and the water. she tries to pass legislation against redlining. she tries to pass legislation against nuclear testing. that was also a key issue for her. she is also very supportive of civil rights and then when she first gets to congress, it is being debated. she is a part of these liberal initiatives that we have now said to be defining elements of the party. --is also a stretch interesting best prospective in 1990's and a lot of these .rograms are subject to attack .he's trying to defend welfare she is at the height of liberal they were at aso point where they were on the road to decline. the two of you are working on a book about this woman. judy wu: everyone says you have to talk to wendy. the assertion started conversation but patsy wanted this. she was unsure about how to proceed with that. it's fantastic to be able to get access to someone like her. she grew up around the house of representatives. she would just roam the halls of congress. they were very political families so they would sit and talk about vietnam and welfare and the environment. at your research influenced all how you study women's politics? i'm going to be talking about though one of what's making it for me is i tend to look at grassroots politics. a lot of this is focused on these grassroots organizations. i think that is a very important story to tell. this is now shifting our gaze to the capital. had to be summit and ideas shape policies? host: thank you very much. judy wu: thank you for the opportunity. >> interested in american history to be? visit our website. [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2016] [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy. visit ncicap.org] smithsonian's national air and space museum is open to the public on the national mall were years ago. next, president gerald for remarks.urth's was provided by the gerald r ford presidential library. >> <div class="tv-ttl">American History TV<div>CSPAN June 25, 2016 9:45pm-10:01pm EDT</div></div> Hawaii 4, Judy Wu 4, Vietnam 2, Wendy 1, Patsy 1, Gerald 1, Patsy Takemoto 1, Ronald Reagan 1, Berlin 1, Nted 1, Fdr 1, Irca 1	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6339
__label__wiki	0.638716	0.638716	Book A Writer / Our Writers Adeline Foo Adeline Foo is a bestselling author, with 28 published books, three children’s and young adult TV series, and a fourth TV series in the works, a historical drama currently in development. A MFA graduate of New York University’s film school, Tisch Asia School of the Arts, Adeline completed her studies on a Media Development Authority scholarship in 2011. The Diary of Amos Lee series remains Singapore’s phenomenal publishing success, with more than 240,000 books sold to-date. Adeline has won the Red Dot Book award in 2009, three Popular Readers’ Choice Awards in 2011, 2014 and 2015, and the inaugural Asian Children’s Book Award in 2017. 2016 – The Travel Diary of Amos Lee: Quokking in Australia! (Singapore: Epigram Books, 2016) 2015 – The Travel Diary of Amos Lee: Seoul Searching! (Singapore: Epigram Books, 2015) 2014 – The Travel Diary of Amos Lee: Monkeying in Malaysia! (Singapore: Epigram Books, 2014) 2017 – AFCC Asian Children's Book Award 2015 – Popular Readers' Choice Award WORKSHOPS BY ADELINE FOO LIGHTS, CAMERA, SUPERSCRIBE! For: upper pri., lower sec.; 25-30 pax Availability: 2-3 hours per session; single session Description: In this fun and interactive workshop involving role playing and dramatised readings, Adeline Foo will lead students through the elements of a screenplay including scene, action, character and dialogue. Students will be shown and encouraged to create their own scenes, imagining different conflicts the characters are facing, and offering solutions to resolve the conflict/drama. Having worked on three highly rated MediaCorp TV shows, The Diary of Amos Lee, Two Boys & A Mermaid and Whoopie’s World, Adeline has had her share of gaffes and missteps writing for TV. Hear her stories in this workshop! Learning Outcomes: understand the various elements that go into a script; how to piece these elements together into a single, compelling narrative. Book A Writer is Sing Lit Station's workshop-for-schools programme, featuring a roster of Singapore's most important writers at work today. Do you want to Book A Writer? For enquiries on Adeline Foo's availability and workshop rates in Sing Lit Station's Book A Writer programme, do fill in the form below. Messages should take no longer than 2-3 days for a reply. Name of School / Educational Institution	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6347
__label__cc	0.613744	0.386256	Stage 3 Consultation Responses Local Letters Secretary of State Scoping Opinion Meeting With The Planning Inspector Sizewell B Relocation Consultation 2019 Submissions and Reports TASC Response to EDFE Stage 3 Consultation for Sizewell C 4th Jan to March 29th 2019 TASC is strongly opposed to the building of Sizewell C. But we feel it is our duty to respond to the 3rd Consultation a) Many of our members have lived in East Suffolk all their lives. It was so obvious to TASC at Stage 1 consultation that a building project of this magnitude in the proposed situation on the coast at Sizewell was going to cause massive environmental, societal and untold disruption in and around East Suffolk. b) However we had no idea then of the magnitude of what is now suggested for our area. In trying to make the project fit and pacify people who have quite rightly shown concern we believe the 3rd Consultation has shown us all exactly what devastation is to be foisted upon us. Disrupting everyone’s way of life, rural roads, beach and coastline, walks and bridleways, the special environment and the tranquillity which people who visit from far and wide require for their health and well being. c) We have no doubt that EDFE have considered some aspects of the 10 to 15 year building project and the eventual impact of 2 nuclear reactors on the Heritage Coast and we recognise the work undertaken over the past two years to present the latest round of Consultation. d) EDFE has tried to paper over all their cracks and have failed dismally. In trying to make the project fit into this unsuitable area the project has spread over a much larger area. EDFE know, as do the Government and our elected leaders, exactly what devastation is to befall us, having seen the problems and disruption at Hinkley Point C. The propaganda is all about selling the project and we hear over and over again of the economic benefits, the well paid jobs, apprenticeships, but very little of the environmental destruction or of the damaging effect and problems it will have on the local population for 12 years. TASC is more convinced than ever that the Sizewell C potential site is totally unsuitable and the list of environmental and societal dis-benefits far outweighs any perceived benefits. We are aware that BEIS is consulting on a revised NPS EN6. Since its first publication in 2008 there has been a great deal of development in alternative means of generating electricity and the cost of wind and PV solar are continuing to reduce. Notwithstanding the SZC location is nominated as a potential site in the existing EN6, why is EDFE pursuing such a profoundly sensitive site at Sizewell with its many environmental hurdles, in such a remote spot in an AONB and Heritage Coast with unsuitable means of transport? SZB spent nuclear fuel is stored at Sizewell, We are very concerned at the prospect of additional spent nuclear fuel being stored from SZC for the lifetime of the plant and beyond. It would appear that EDFE wish to go ahead with their plans however impossible, and the existing population and environment will have to live with the total disruptive consequences if Planning Consent is eventually given by the Secretary of State. Category: Stage 3 Consultation Responses Read more: TASC Response to EDFE Stage 3 Consultation for Sizewell C Suffolk Coastal Friends of the Earth SZC stage 3 response E: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.www.scoastalfoe.com Download a pdf of the response here Members’ responses to Sizewell C Stage 3 consultation 1. SIZEWELL C PROPOSALS OVERALL Friends of the Earth are opposed to civil nuclear power because of its association with nuclear weapons and because there is still no satisfactory answer to the problem of the waste, some of which will not degrade for 240,000 years – far longer than modern humans have walked this planet. It is not possible to ‘dispose’ of nuclear waste. There are many other reasons for objecting to Sizewell C, some of which are described below. Chapter 3 of volume 1 Stage 3 Consultation refers to the planning policy context and the need for nuclear power. However, the government’s energy policy as stated in EN-6, published in 2011, is now out of date and this is currently being revised. Since then renewable forms of energy have overtaken nuclear in terms of cost and speed of construction, showing that nuclear is now old-fashioned. The government’s statement that the need for nuclear power is ‘urgent’ is clearly false, as the lights have not gone out. The reality is that there is no need for nuclear. Nuclear power is hugely expensive and it is our belief that the public should not have to pay for it through subsidies, guarantees and insurances. Decommissioning and storage of waste need to be factored in. It is still unclear how EDF and CGN will raise the funds to pay for Sizewell C. We cannot believe that it is possible to build a copy of Hinkley Point C at Sizewell at 20% less the cost, bearing in mind that the site for the reactors is a marsh as opposed to a rocky foundation. Having to create a curtain wall and go down to a depth of at least 35m is surely extremely expensive. Read more: Suffolk Coastal Friends of the Earth SZC stage 3 response Stage 3 SZC Liaison Group-S.A.G.E. Monitoring Response to EDFE Sizewell C Stage 3 Consultation from: SZC Liaison Group-S.A.G.E. Monitoring A pdf of the response can be downloaded here The observations in this consultation response are based mainly on Chapters 1,2 & 3 of Volume 1 in the full Stage 3 Report, with additional specific comments on Questions 1, 2 & 15. There are four areas of principled concern: 1 The suitability of the project for the site and the amenity of host communities 2 The necessity/relevance of the project 3 The sustainability of the project, including legacy values for the impacted communities 4 Consultation standard & public interests Drawing on these, we present arguments and recommendations about the consultation process and the energy policy context of the project, about the project's economic legacy values and, thirdly, about the overall approach to nature protection duties revealed in the Stage 3 Report. We argue overall that a comprehensive and final Stage 4 consultation is needed to fulfil EDFE's duties of consultation. Read more: Stage 3 SZC Liaison Group-S.A.G.E. Monitoring Waveney Green Party Response to Stage 3 Consultation Sizewell C Stage 3 Consultation Submission on behalf of the Waveney Green Party 29/03/2019 1)What are your views on EDF Energy’s proposals to build a new nuclear power station, Sizewell C, and associated development The Green Party oppose plans to build new nuclear power plants in the UK. Nuclear power is an outdated technology that is unsuitable and dangerous for a world facing the unpredictable consequences of climate change. In the stage 3 pre application document, EDF sets out the government legislation that was developed a decade ago in order to justify the need for nuclear power. At that time the government was hoping that a new nuclear renaissance would fill the looming energy gap forecast to hit as old nuclear power stations were shut down and coal phased out in order to enable the UK to meet its legally binding targets in reducing CO2 emissions. It is now abundantly clear that with long lead times, nuclear power plants are not going to be built in time to fulfil our obligations to reduce CO2 by deadlines set under the Climate Change Act. In fact, because of the huge capital costs and construction time, nuclear power is a hindrance to us reaching those targets rather than a solution. As Steve Holliday, a former CEO of National Grid,said in 2015: “This industry is going through a tremendous transformation. We used to have a pretty good idea of what future needs would be. We would build assets that would last decades and that would be sure to cover those needs. That world has ended.”i Read more: Waveney Green Party Response to Stage 3 Consultation Stage 3 Consultation Response - Peter Lux Nuclear Power: Systemic Risk And Climate Change Humanity faces a large number of challenges in future decades including increasing population leading to increased competition for dwindling resources and climate change. These challenges could lead to ‘collapse of civilisation’ i.e. the complex system of exchange of good and raw materials, energy, food and water would be susceptible to shocks or many even collapse altogether. The nuclear industry is unique in the danger it poses from systemic shocks or collapse. Without of power supply, fresh water and human expertise it creates the risk of reactor core meltdown and/or a spent fuel fire which could release massive amounts of radioactivity with catastrophic results. Although the consultation document has taken into account a possible scenario of a 3.2m sea level rise (SLR): 2.12.63. The main platform would be at a level of 7.3m AOD, which is similar to the 1 in 1000 annual probability extreme still water levels in the year 2110 for the worst credible H++ climate change scenario (3.2m SLR, including land motion). The H++ scenario identified in UKCP09 is beyond the likely range, but within physical plausibility. The main platform would therefore be safe and resilient for its whole operational life against the worst credible climate change predictions.1 only the direct risk from the sea level rise in the vicinity of the power plant has been taken into account. However, it is necessary2 to take into account indirect risks from such a sea level rise and associated climate change factors outline in the H++ scenario. The full response to the consultation can be found here. GEH Sizewell Stage 3 Consultation response EDF SIZEWELL C 3RD CONSULTATION- Chris Wilson	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6353
__label__cc	0.656537	0.343463	taylor_uwa This site uses cookies. In order to continually improve this site, we remember and store information about how you use it. Find out more. Ask a question Apply now Education in Australia Your pathway to UWA Why study at Taylors College Perth? Why study at UWA? Student results UWA Foundation Program Diploma of Commerce Diploma of Science Academic English Preparation (AEP) Before you arrive in Australia Arriving in Perth Supporting under 18's Student visa for Australia Our courses / UWA Foundation Program / subjects summary Academic Skills (ASK and Employability Skills (ESK) units (compulsory for all students) Employability Skills (ESK) units (compulsory for all students) ESK will focus on generic skills required for all graduate employees such as; ability to work in a team, business/commercial awareness, communication skills, interpersonal skills, the ability to plan, organise and prioritise work, problem solving skills, digital skills. It will also look at specific skills required for your chosen career (e.g. Law – ability to reflect critically, Media Studies – creative, innovative and imaginative skills). ESK will make you aware of your own strengths and weaknesses in context of career ambitions, and help to improve your personal presentation in the workforce (CV, digital footprint, personal statements, and interviews). Please note that you must the ESK units in order to progress to your undergraduate degree at UWA. Extended Program EL1: Fundamentals of Academic English Engage with a variety of texts, mostly about issues in contemporary Australia, to enhance your English language and academic literacy skills. These skills include Harvard Referencing, research, oral presentations and essay structure. Learn to understand key cultural concerns in Australia and the importance of academic ethics. EL2: Information and Cultural Literacy Study various communication and culture models, and critically analyse their application in today’s ever-changing technological world. Carry out extensive research to develop and apply your understanding of cross-cultural and intercultural theories. EL3: Advanced Research A This unit is an introduction to report writing. You will learn how to write annotated bibliographies, research proposals and correct report structure. EL4: Advanced Research B Complete a research project over a 10-week period. The specific subject for the project will be chosen by you based on a broad topic set by the teacher. You will given guidance as you progress through the report and will also present the scope and content of your research to the class. AC1: Financial Accounting – Classification and Presentation This unit presents Financial Accounting using a spreadsheet and transaction approach. You will prepare financial reports and learn the elements of the Accounting Equation – specifically current assets, non-current assets, current liabilities, non-current liabilities and owners equity (including revenue and expenses). This unit contains no debits and credits as it is not a bookkeeping course. AC2: Financial Accounting – The Accounting Records This unit is about the bookkeeping elements of accounting. The topics are presented using the general journal, T-accounts with debits and credits, in the general ledger. Learn about retail businesses, specifically assets, liabilities and owner’s equity. You will also learn about service businesses, specifically revenues and expenses, and the profit and loss account. You will also learn about trial balances and profit and loss accounts before preparing financial reports – income statements and balance sheets. AC3: Management Accounting – Planning and Control You’ll look at the value of accounting information to managers. Explore cost-volume-profit relationships and break-even analysis. Take an in-depth look into cost accounting, and planning and budgeting. You’ll focus on manufacturing, and compete in companies (teams) in an online manufacturing simulation. BI1: Cell Structure and Processes All living organisms are made up of cells. Cells vary greatly in size, structure and function. Yet, all are microscopic factories, bustling with the activities of life. Explore the fascinating and intricate world of the cell. You’ll learn about the structure and function of cells, and how cells harness matter and energy, transforming one chemical substance into another. BI2: Reproduction and Genetics Genetics is the study of heredity – the transmission of characteristics from parents to offspring. Geneticists are interested in learning about the similarities and differences between parents and offspring. BI3: Interactions and Change Learn about ecology, the study of how organisms interact with other organisms and their physical surroundings. Explore the theory of evolution and investigate the mechanisms proposed to account for evolutionary change and the evidence put forward in support of evolution. CH1: Atomic Structure and Bonding Learn the fundamentals of chemistry. Investigate atomic structure, the periodic table, solutions, the mole concept and stoichiometry, chemical reactions and chemical bonding. Gain experience of practical experiments. CH2: Physical Chemistry 1 Learn about the fundamentals of chemistry. Look into kinetic theory, thermochemistry, chemical kinetics and equilibrium. Gain experience of practical experiments. CH3: Physical Chemistry 2 and Inorganic Chemistry Learn about the fundamentals of chemistry. Investigate electrochemistry, oxidation and reduction theory, and acids and bases theory. Gain experience of practical experiments. CS1: Business Applications Learn about commonly used business applications programs, including word processors and presentation managers, and their effectiveness. You will use Microsoft Word and Microsoft PowerPoint. CS2: The Internet and Spreadsheets Learn about spreadsheets, a commonly used business applications program. You will use Microsoft Excel. You will also look at the key features of the Internet – important in a business computing environment. EC1: How Markets Work Examine the study of economics, including the problem of relative scarcity, choice and opportunity cost; the production-possibilities curve; and productive efficiency. You’ll also look at alternative economic systems, discuss firms and households, and consider the concepts of supply and demand. Study the price mechanism in terms of how market equilibrium is achieved and resources are allocated. EC2: Organisation of Markets Investigate the theory of the firm and decision making by the firm. Compare the economist’s concept of profit with the accountant’s concept of profit. Examine product curves and cost curves. You’ll focus on structure, conduct and performance under: EC3: Macroeconomics in a Global Economy Understand and learn to influence the pace of economic growth, fluctuations in economic activity, unemployment and inflation. Investigate how government can take advantage of the multiplier process to design counter cyclical policies to stabilise economic activity. Examine international trade theories based on absolute and comparative advantage. SC1: Investigating Science Learn the skills needed to plan and carry out scientific investigations. Design investigations, collect data and analyse the data using standard scientific procedure. You’ll focus on the skills needed for investigating in Chemistry, Biology (including Human Biology) and Physics. GE1: Population Study the form and structure of Perth and the processes shaping the city. Investigate planning strategies/issues for Perth and one other capital city. Look into the distribution of the world’s population; how populations vary in different parts of the world; how and why the world’s population is changing in number; how and why governments are trying to influence these changes and investigate aspects of population migration. GE2: Economic Systems Focus on economic systems in a global, national and local context. Investigate an economic activity in the primary sector in a local context focusing on Bauxite mining in the South-West. Develop an understanding of economic development and the widening gap between rich and poor nations. Focus on globalisation and the benefits and problems it creates for world economies. Investigate and understand the dynamic and complex interactions of politics and economic and social systems. GE3: Coastal Environments Learn geographical terminology; the location and geographical characteristics of places studied, their external relationships and how those places are changing; the processes responsible for the development of the characteristics of places and environments, the interaction and relative importance of these processes; geographical concepts, principles and theories and the interaction between people and their environments. HI1: History – The Cold War Gain knowledge and skills relevant for progression into undergraduate history courses at UWA. Focus on issues of world conflict and conflict resolution within the context of the Cold War. HI2: Immigration History of Australia Gain knowledge and skills relevant for progression into undergraduate history courses at UWA. Focus on the social, economic and political shaping of the Australian nation through its history of immigration. HB1: Control and Coordination Learn how the systems work, and how both systems cooperate to provide the body’s internal communication. Learn about the structure and function of the specialised receptors for vision, hearing and balance, smell and taste. HB2: Regulation and Defence Learn how humans adjust to changing environmental conditions, maintaining relatively constant chemical and physical conditions around the cells (homeostasis). Learn about immunity, the ability of the body to resist organisms and chemicals that could damage tissues. HB3: Movement and Nutrition The survival of any multicellular organism depends on it having some means of regulating and coordinating the activities of its cells. Explore the operation of the nervous system and the endocrine system and how both systems cooperate to provide the body’s internal communication. You’ll also learn about the structure and function of the specialised receptors for vision, hearing and balance, smell and taste. LI1: Language and Society Explore the role of language as a tool of communication among humans and as a symbol for human exchange. Learn the anthropology of spoken language and how it has changed over time. You’ll focus mainly on English, and occasionally other languages, to address the most important questions. LI2: The Sounds of a Language Focus on key areas in phonetics and phonology and theoretical principles underpinning the study of speech production. Develop an understanding of sound systems and their function in language. Learn about the sounds of the world’s languages. Examine the articulation of vowels and consonants, as well as complex articulations, airstream mechanisms and laryngeal features, and their use in languages. You’ll also focus on fundamental theoretical issues in phonology through the practical examination of phonemes and allophones, distinctive features, syllables, word stress and intonation. MK1: Marketing Management Gain an introduction to marketing and the significance of marketing to sales. Learn components of consumer behaviour. You’ll use marketing tools such as SWOT analysis and marketing plans. MK2: Marketing Research This unit is an introductory unit in the study of marketing. Examine the importance of informed marketing research. This includes the process of segmenting markets prior to sampling and collecting market data. MK3: Developing Products and Promotions Strategy Learn about the important role of promotion in business. You’ll be introduced to new product and service development in business and learn to identify and use different promotional strategies and tools. MA1: Mathematical Techniques Gain an introduction to geometry, sequences and series, probability and trigonometry. It is suitable for students who only wish to study a variety of mathematical techniques at a less complex level. However, it may also form the basis for more advanced work. MA2: Predictive Mathematics Gain an introduction to statistics, matrix algebra and linear programming models. Study the calculation and analysis of statistics in one and two variables; the properties and applications of matrix algebra; linear inequalities and their application to solving optimisation problems; and the calculation and analysis of statistics within the context of time series data. MA3: Mathematical Modelling Gain an introduction to functions and their graphs; index and logarithmic laws; solving equations involving indices and logarithms; modelling probability distributions using random variables. Study various polynomial functions, exponential, logarithmic and reciprocal functions with an emphasis on the transformation of functions and the resulting graphs; the basic index and logarithmic laws and how to apply these laws when solving indicial equations; and discrete and continuous random variables and their application to various probability models. MA4: Calculus Gain an introduction to trigonometrical ratios in the unit circle; trigonometrical equations and graphs with associated transformations; first principles differentiation and integration and the basic rules of differentiation and integration; the Fundamental Theorem of Calculus; and simple applications of differentiation and integration. MA5: Applied Mathematics Gain an introduction to advanced techniques of integration and further calculus applications including rectilinear motion; the algebraic representation and manipulation of complex numbers; the geometrical representation of complex numbers; and vector geometry and its applications. MC1: Print Media and Advertising Focus on the publishing of books, newspapers and magazines and understand the technology and content involved in those industries. You will also focus on media ethics, media literacy and learn practical skills using Adobe Creative Suite Design Premium. MC2: Broadcasting Focus on the mediums of television and radio; theories of media influence; the language of production and media analysis; and movie editing skills using Adobe Premiere Pro. MC3: Digital Media: Film Focus on the key technological and cultural aspects of film. Learn about innovations and ownership structures of the film industry and concepts of genre and file theory. Study the role of the audience and address issues around censorship, consumer behaviour and film classification. During the practical component of the course, you will apply your knowledge to producing short film texts using Adobe Premiere Pro. PH1: Waves Learn about the mechanics of waves and their application to sound and light. You’ll study reflection, refraction, diffraction and interference. PH2: Mechanics This unit covers kinematics; dynamics; the concepts of momentum, energy, work and power; and the study of the fundamental force of gravity. PH3: Electricity and Magnetism This unit covers the fundamental concepts of electricity, magnetism and electromagnetism. It introduces the quantitative formulae which transform the concepts into everyday applications. Prepare for the Standard Foundation course by developing your written and verbal analytical skills. The extended program can help you gain confidence to communicate more effectively within a university environment. You’ll pay particular attention to improving your English language skills. English Skills Specially designed for students for whom English is a second language. You’ll get better at academic tasks and assessments in English, and develop speaking and writing skills using vocabulary you will use at university, and by doing sequenced tasks similar to those you will do at university. IT Skills now forms part of English Skills in the Extended Program. Introduction to Mathematics Simulate chance events using technology. Calculate and interpret probabilities for chance events that occur in two or three-stages. Expand your knowledge of coordinate geometry, represent information in networks, and interpret network diagrams. Study and apply functions in their graphs. Explore patterns, make conjectures and test them. Use trigonometry for the solution of right and acute triangles. Plan random samples, collect and analyse data from them, and infer results for a population. Use mental and written methods and technologies where appropriate. Introduction to Commerce Commerce is the whole system of an economy that constitutes an environment for business. The system includes legal, economic, political, social, cultural and technological systems that are in operation in any country. We concentrate on the introductory level, which provides a firm foundation for any further studies in commerce. This unit is divided into Physical Sciences (Chemistry, Physics) and Life Sciences (Biology, Human Biology). Physics is the science that deals with matter, energy, motion, and force. Chemistry provides a broad introduction to chemical science and laboratory work. Biology is the science of life and living organisms, including their structure, growth, origin, evolution and distribution. In the study of Human Biology, you’ll examine the various systems in the body. These units provide an essential base for further studies in the Sciences. Apply now Contact Download brochure Apply Contact Download Brochure Provider: Study Group Australia Pty Limited trading as Taylors College. CRICOS Provider Code: 01682E. ABN: 88 070 919 327. Provider: The University of Western Australia, CRICOS Provider Code: 00126G	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6354
__label__wiki	0.819333	0.819333	Showing 1-6 of 18 items. The Price of Alliance The Politics and Procurement of Leopard Tanks for Canada’s NATO Brigade By Frank Maas The Price of Alliance balances high politics with military requirements in the first major reappraisal of Pierre Trudeau’s controversial defence policy. Mike’s World Lester B. Pearson and Canadian External Affairs Edited by Asa McKercher and Galen Roger Perras A major reassessment of a man synonymous with Canadian foreign policy, this book explores the complicated actions and legacy of Canada’s foremost statesman. Dominion of Race Rethinking Canada’s International History Edited by Laura Madokoro, Francine McKenzie and David Meren Challenging well-entrenched ideas and mythologies, this book shows how race has informed Canada’s international history and is woven into the fabric of understandings of Canada in the world. Canada and the United Nations Commission on Human Rights By Andrew S. Thompson Documenting six decades of Canadian engagement within the UN human rights system, this book offers insights into the complexity and nuance of Canadian diplomacy as well as the evolution of UN’s universal human rights project. The Harper Era in Canadian Foreign Policy Parliament, Politics, and Canada’s Global Posture Edited by Adam Chapnick and Christopher J. Kukucha The first comprehensive analysis of Canadian foreign policy during the Harper era. The Call of the World A Political Memoir By Bill Graham UBC Press, On Point Press In this fiercely intelligent memoir, Bill Graham – Canada’s minister of foreign affairs and minister of defence during the tumultuous years following 9/11 – takes us on a personal journey through a period of upheaval in global and domestic politics, arguing that global institutions based on international law offer the best hope for a safer, more prosperous, and just world.	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6356
__label__wiki	0.653465	0.653465	Tag Archives: Mercedes C63 AMG tuning Mulgari tunes the Mercedes C63 AMG Mulgari may seem a quite new name in the tuning industry but their new performance kit for the Mercedes C63 AMG is certainly worth mentioning. The Mulgari 510 kit is capable to increase the total output of the 6.2-liter V8 powerplant to 510... Mercedes Tuning By rikk on Oct 16th, 2013 KTW Tuning restyles the Mercedes C63 AMG Coupe KTW Tuning comes yet again in our attention with a program developed for the Mercedes C63 AMG Coupe. The new tuning package brings a suite of styling improvements but also few tweaks under the hood. At the exterior, the German company offers... By rikk on Mar 31st, 2013 Mercedes C63 AMG gets serious power hike from PP-Performance PP-Performance takes the Mercedes C63 AMG to a new level in terms of performance by upgrading the stock 6.3-liter V8 engine able to deliver 451hp and 600Nm of torque in standard form. By replacing the intake manifold, camshaft, crankshaft and... By rikk on Feb 20th, 2013 2013 Hyundai Elantra GT price announced… on Twitter Toyota to make an electric car with a twist 2013 Toyota Auris revealed prior Paris Maserati Alfieri takes center stage at Geneva Fiat has an excuse for why they weren’t a big hit in Paris	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6358
__label__cc	0.507729	0.492271	Towards zero rabies in Viet Nam The Emergency Centre for Transboundary Animal Diseases (ECTAD) FAO Viet Nam and Department of Animal Health (DAH) within the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development launched a rabies advocacy and training film “Towards zero rabies in Vietnam” and “Eradication of Rabies in Viet Nam”, respectively. The films have been produced with the support and collaboration from General Department of Preventive Medicine, World Health Organisation, Sub-department of Animal Health in Thai Nguyen Province and World Animal Protection. “Eradication of Rabies in Viet Nam” serves as one of the key training tools for animal and public health professionals, especially for those who conduct outreach training to district and commune based animal health and public health workers. It provides practical demonstrations and detailed explanations about cross-sectoral collaboration, effective dog capture & vaccination techniques, as well as demonstrating proper wound washing and post-exposure vaccine. The advocacy film “Towards zero rabies in Vietnam” inspires local authorities, donors, technical and development agencies to provide political support and assistance for an integrated rabies control program in the spirit of One Health. In this film senior government officials and international organization representatives provide well-expressed insights on how government agencies and partner organizations can best coordinate to establish effective rabies control strategies. “The films were made by capturing footage from the rabies training of trainers program implemented by FAO and DAH in Viet Nam, with support from rabies experts from the Indonesian government and FAO. This program assisted the Government of Vietnam with efforts to increase dog vaccination coverage and decrease the number of rabies-related human deaths. Our main interventions include capacity building, joint sector communication and advocacy for greater political commitment to fight against rabies” said Dr. Scott Newman, ECTAD Senior Technical Coordinator. Bilingual education is a gateway to Sustainable Development Clipper race crew visit UNICEF supported children's centre What does child-sensitive planning mean for equitable advancement? Viet Nam, 20 years after the Beijing Declaration 40 years with the children of Viet Nam Breastfeeding at work (animation)	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6359
__label__cc	0.697459	0.302541	Meaningful Shopping 100% of the profits from sales are reinvested to fund academic and poverty-reduction projects in Nomathamsanqa, South Africa. THREE WAYS FOR YOU TO LIGHT ONE CANDLE or MANY CANDLES UBUNTU GREETING CARDS, TEES, and TOTES YOU SHOP. THEY RISE. IT’S ALL GOOD. UNDERSTANDING UBUNTU. Ubuntu is a Xhosa philosophy that translates to mean, “I am because of you.” It is an embedded way of living that seeks to forgive and to bridge, rather than to harbor grudges and to create division. Ubuntu is at the heart of all UP does and all whom UP serves. Scroll down to learn more. Ubuntu Red on White $8.00 USD Ubuntu Orange on White $8.00 USD Ubuntu Light Pink on White $8.00 USD Ubuntu Sparkly Blue on White $8.00 USD Ubuntu Purple on White $8.00 USD What better way to celebrate the mothers in our lives than by giving them an UBUNTU card! UBUNTU means, “I am because of you,” which is literally true for our mothers! In addition to recognizing your mother - or other impactful women in your life - you would also be supporting a women’s crafting project and educational initiatives in Nomathamsanqa, South Africa. Supplies are limited. Act fast, so we may get them in the mail for you in time for Mother’s Day! Thank you. Enkosi kakhulu. TEES & TOTES Ubuntu Tote $10.00 USD Ubuntu Tee Short Sleeve (M) $20.00 USD Ubuntu Tee Short Sleeve (L) $20.00 USD Ubuntu Tee Short Sleeve (XL) $20.00 USD Ubuntu Tee Short Sleeve (2XL) $20.00 USD Ubuntu Tee Long Sleeve (L) $30.00 USD Ubuntu Tee Long Sleeve (XL) $30.00 USD Ubuntu Tee Long Sleeve (2XL) $30.00 USD Ubuntu Totes are light tan in color and a beautiful way to spread the message of Ubuntu while caring for the environment. The Earth is part of the Ubuntu chain, and returning its gifts are essential to our survival. The handle is 13” long, and the bag is 14” tall by 14.5” wide. The Xhosa mask is not included! Ubuntu Tee-shirts are white in color and 100% cotton with Ubuntu printed across the chest. Sizes range from Medium to 2XL. What we wear is a reflection of what we value, so we hope you will celebrate compassion and connection by proudly wearing this tee. UBUNTU Everyone we have ever encountered, anywhere, everywhere, makes us who and what we are. That is Ubuntu: I am because of you. Danny, an Uber driver in Johannesburg, who – upon learning of Universal Promise and our efforts in his homeland - said, “The best gift you can give is to be a blessing in someone else’s life.” That is Ubuntu. So, in honor of the thousands of souls UP serves and loves in the heart of Nomathamsanqa, in honor of those who fought and died for the right of opportunity, in honor of those who continue to suffer at the hands of ignorance, fear, bluster, and discrimination, in honor of those who taught us that quitting is not an option, in honor of those who listen to the voices of the oppressed and believe their stories, and in honor of those who strive to come as close as they possibly can to living in another human being’s skin, without judgment, without defensiveness, but with understanding, we thank you for embodying the spirit of Ubuntu. I am because of you – we thank all of you, and all who have ever been, for being a blessing in someone else’s life.	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6364
__label__wiki	0.606321	0.606321	El-Nino Still Holding Grip on Monsoon Estimate: Monsoon 2010 ! How is this year's Monsoon going to behave ? This unknown factor is of utmost importance today. 2009 was disastrous, (see Oct 7th. post in this link),with -23% rains, one of the lowest in Indian history. and we certainly cannot afford another scarce monsoon, leave alone a deficient one. For guaging the initial development of the current of the ensuing monsoon, whether it will achieve the required momentum, at this stage today, we should primarily keep track on the El-Nino. El-Nino strenght/Weakness will help us then chase and monitor the other parameters that develop subsequently in April/May. March is the time of year when existing El-Nino events are often in their waning phase, and should either dissipate or persist for up to a maximum of two more months. This year, it seems most likely that El Niño conditions will persist at least through April 2010. IRI forecasts-"Presently, the models and observations taken together indicate probabilities of about 85% for maintaining El Niño conditions and about 14% for dissipation to ENSO-neutral conditions for the Mar-Apr-May season in progress. Going forward, probabilities for El Niño decrease to approximately 50% by Apr-May-Jun." Reason given by BoM:- Sea surface temperatures across the central tropical Pacific have shown little change over the past fortnight, and hence remain at levels typical of an El Niño event. Trade winds in the tropical Pacific have remained weak, allowing the Pacific to remain warm and hence slowing the decay of the El Niño event, and the SOI has also remained at El Niño levels. The latest approximate 30-day value of the SOI is −8. The SOI has remained steady over the past week, after increasing in value after a rapid fall during February. When compared with two weeks ago, NINO3 has cooled by approximately 0.2°C, while NINO3.4 and NINO4 have remained similar in value. Another important factor are the trade winds.They are slightly weaker than normal across most of the tropical Pacific. However, most international computer models are predicting a return to neutral conditions during the coming months. Next update on El-Nino on 3rd.April. More feedbacks and cross references always welcome on this crucial and important topic. By rajesh at March 30, 2010 No comments: Trivandrum recieved a massive 183 mm of rain in a day on 27th. March. This amount of rain is unprecedented, for the city, for a day's rain for the month of March. Previously, in 2008, Trivandrum had recieved 84mms in a day on the 23rd. of March. Now, this record has been broken in leaps and bounds, and may hold on for quite a many years . This considering the fact that the normal rain for March for this city is 40mms. The rains might linger on off the Kerala coast for the next couple of days, bringing some more thundershowers to the south Kerala coast. But, the months total this year is 183mm, this being the first rains of the month. The highest total for March is 315mms , recorded in 2008. This sudden cloudburst may be the result of an intense heat wave, the city has been through for the last 10days. Highs in Trivandrum had shot to 37.5c on a couple of days last week, a whisker short of the all time high for March of 37.7c. The rain map shows the rains in Kerala and Tamil Nadu, and almost all of Sri Lanka. Most probably a short lived easterly wave. If New Moore island appeared 50 years ago and got bigger, doesn’t that mean that that sea level dropped ? News Report from A.P. recently hit the headlines, and as usual merged it with Global Warming.- (Oh no not again !) "New Moore Island in the Sunderbans has been completely submerged, said oceanographer Sugata Hazra, a professor at Jadavpur University in Calcutta. Its disappearance has been confirmed by satellite imagery and sea patrols, he said. “What these two countries could not achieve from years of talking, has been resolved by global warming,” said Hazra. If only Mother Nature could solve all our border disputes so peacefully. Now, this claim that global warming induced sea level rise has submerged the island, does not make sense, nor stand to reason. Its a bad try to boost the GW factor again, after a mighty fall ! Temporary estuary islands and sandbars appear and disappear all the time worldwide. Sometimes it can take a few years, sometimes a few centuries. Most of the area near South Talpatti Island is only 1-3 meters above sea level anyway, which means that such low lying islands made of mud and sand are prone to the whims of tide and currents and weather. Low lying islands are modified by nature on a regular basis. In fact, NOAA’s nearest tide gauge, at Vizag, shows sea level rising in that region at 0.54 mm / year, which means that would take nearly 2000 years for sea level to rise one meter. Sea level rises and/or land subsides, estuary flows change, and sandbars appear and disappear. In this case of a tiny sandbar/island near the Ganges/ Brahmaputra delta, it has nothing to do with global warming. So in a choice between a sand bar in a river being washed away or the sea, presumably very, very locally, having suddenly risen over six feet, alarmists want us to believe the latter. Correct? It’s probably been washed away by the deluge of Himalayan glacier water as 2035 fast approaches :) And looking further back in time, islands have disappeared before: A pic from the from the Sarasota Herald - May 29, 1937. Marine scientists say archaeological remains discovered 36 metres (120 feet) underwater in the Gulf of Cambay off the western coast of India could be over 9,000 years old. The vast city – which is five miles long and two miles wide – is believed to predate the oldest known remains in the subcontinent by more than 5,000 years How much co2 were they discharging 9,000 years ago? Its an April Fools joke played early. Extreme Heat Wave prevailed over Gujarat, Rajasthan, Vidharbh and the Northern States of India on 20/21/22/23 March. Himalayan states of Kashmir, H.P.and Utteranchal were under intense heat, unusual and uncharacteristic for the terrain. Srinagar, Simla, New Delhi and Dehra Dun, are all 1 degree away from the March all time high. During the current heat wave period, Delhi reached 39.5, Srinagar and Simla reached 26c. In Gujarat, Ahemdabad was 42.5c, and Idar highest at 43.6c. In Vidharbh it was Chandrapur at 43.9c. (Have mentioned some more highs in my previous blogs). 21/22/23/ March 2010: Some of the extremely High and Very Much above Normals of the past 2 days. Hissar: 42 (+10) 25 (+10) Srinagar: 26 (+12) 11(+8) Simla 16 (+11) Palanpur 30 (+10) 18 (+8) Dharamsala 30 (+8) Ambala 38 (+8) Dehradun 36 (+8) Keylong 14 (+7) 3 (+5) Now, as per our blog discussion on 22 March,the abetment of heat has already commenced, and the day temperatures have reached around +7c above normal now. With a couple of W.Ds approaching the Northern region, one can surely expect a further fall in the temperatures, and be back to normal levels, at least. For sure, the ridge in the North-West plains (mentioned in my previous blog) has moved away, and this should make it easy for the W.D.s to move into the Northen states, rather than move away over Kashmir, as has happened so far this month. And, the perfect condition for good monsoon forecast would be rains precipitating northwards of Rajasthan, and keeping the Northern Peninsula dry in March. Mumbai is back to reasonable day temperature regions.And at 31c in the day, we have no reasons to complain about "heat". As mentioned, Mumbai will see a range of 34/35c in the day and 25c at night thru this month. No grumbling after seeing the figures of the other cities. 42/43...whew THATS HOT !! A quick look at the current El-Nino position: Active and persistent. The Monthly SOI from May to Dec 2009, is -5.1, -2.3, 1.6, -5.0, 3.9, -14.7, -6.7, -7.0, and for the JAN/FEB 2010 -10.1, -14.5. Negative figures in June, and August last year indicate the emerging El-Nino. Now, the 30-day Southern Oscillation Index [SOI] to 20 March was -10. What we need a positive SOI from May onwards for a healthy monsoon. Normally, regions affected by El Nino weather pattern are Myanmar, Laos, Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, Singapore, northern Sumatra, Sarawak and Sabah. India 's monsoon link to El-Nino has never been proved. But I would say for certain that all drought years were El-Nino years,though all El-Nino years did not prove drought years. Sure, El-Nino years did give sparse rains and a deficit monsoon. The typical impacts of El Nino over the Southeast Asian region come in the form of unusual and prolonged dry conditions: this is particularly the case in the Indonesia region and Borneo Island. Even though El Nino started sometime duringJune 2009 as announced by established global climate centres, the periodic dry of the weather continues into Feb 2010.It is forecasted to be over by May. Mauritius and Polar Bears Safe Now ! Much of the record breaking loss of ice in the Arctic ocean in recent years is down to the region’s swirling winds and is not a direct result of global warming, a new study reveals. About half of the variation in maximum ice loss each September is down to changes in wind patterns, the study says. Stop the GW hysteria, and open the door to different hypotheses to be studied. Another example of why we need more research–not panic. Sub_Continent Heat Wave may subdue a bit: The Heat Wave in the Southern Asian region has today shifted focus on Northern India and Sindh. The highest today, 22nd March, was at Nawabshah (Sindh), recording 44.5c. The highest in India was at Nagpur, 42.5c. The map has the distribution of today's highs. Ok, marginally less, but at Hissar, which saw 41c, it waqs +9c ! That is, instead of 33c, it was 41c ! The IMD anomaly map shows the red region in the Northern Indian areas. Of-course not much relief, as the entire country is in the above normal range. Just for comparisons, and to subdue the din of Global Warming",, I am attaching a map of 22 March 2004. Equally hot ! Maybe more ! So lets not jump to any conclusions (about GW) now. :) This early heat is mainly due to the fact that a high, a ridge, in the 500hpa height, stationed itself over Sindh/Gujarat initially, and then is moving east, and gradually weakening. This has pushed the jet streams further north, and in simple terms,pushed the W.D.s,and cooler fronts far northwards. Somewhat Good sign: The ridge is weakening, in the next few days. And, at the most, Northern regions may not see temperatures 7/9c above normal....but, a little less above the normal! I would have made a lot of ''Monsoon Predictions" if this heat wave was to happen in say..sometime in the 2nd. week of April. I would have predicted a faster seasonal low over Rajasthan, and quick heating of the seas to create a pre monsoon low.BUT, all these pre monsoon predictions cannot be made in March. In short, these heat waves and ridges have to make a repeat performance, say after a month, for a proper build up to the monsoon. Hopefully, we should not recieve heat convection rains in central/north-west India now in March. This would dampen the real build up of heat required next month. Mumbai's northern suburb S'cruz suddenly reported a high of 38c today. A bit surprising, as the downtown reported 34.5c. A big difference in the two. Not very surprising though, as Thane, also north of Mumbai and about 40kms from downtown , saw a high of 39.5c on the AWS. Expect no respite for Mumbai..at least as far as I can see, that is till the end of march. The reminder of this month will be hot, arounf 35c, and a bit more stuffy and hot on Thursday, 25th, maybe at 36/37c, and 26/27c at night. Thats warm, and normally should be our April end readings. Poll could end sooner than expected: Our 45c poll may not last too long. 50% have given an indication of the 45c touching after May 15th. Well Well. Lot of rethinking required the way cities in the west are heating up ! Gujarat, everything ok there ?? 43.1c (+7) at Baroda, 43.0c (+8) at Bhuj, 43.0 (+7) at Rajkot, and 42.9c (+7) at Surat. These are the top temperatures in India on the 19th, March. Hotspot Rajasthan and Vidharbh cities are highest at 40c. And across in Sindh, 44c at Chorr was the highest in Asia on the 19th. But, lets not judge or jump to any conclusions or estimates on the monsoon. Too early, we have April to go through still ! Come tropical Thunderstorms, and heat waves just vanish ! IMD anomaly map for 19th. still shows the west-east heat wave. El Nino may weaken and its impact on the monsoon may wane: The occurance of the El-Nino weakening ,could be a “positive sign” for India’s monsoon and a repeat of last year’s drought could be unlikely. The driest monsoon rainfall last year in more than three decades caused a drought in half the country and forced record imports of sugar, pulses and cereals. Event of a normal rainfall will aid crops, and help control inflation from the highest level in 16 months. “The year following an El Nino year (i.e. this year) is considered to be favorable for Indian monsoons,” Siddhartha Sanyal and Dipti Saletore, economists at Edelweiss Securities Ltd., said in a report today. El Nino “had been one of the main reasons for the occurrence of three droughts in India in the recent past.” Current Condition in Brief: -Central Pacific sea surface temperatures remain warmer than the long-term average. -The sub-surface water of the tropical Pacific also remains warmer than the long-term average. However, the sub-surface water in the central Pacific has cooled over the past two weeks. -The SOI has remained steady over the past week after increasing in value after a rapid fall in February. The latest approximate 30-day value of the SOI is -8. -Trade winds are slightly weaker than normal across most of the tropical Pacific. -Cloudiness near the date-line remains well above average. Cloudiness near the date-line across the equatorial Pacific is another important indicator of El Niño conditions, as it typically increases near and to the east of the dateline during these episodes. Cloudiness near the date-line has increased over the past fortnight and remains well above average -Most international computer models are predicting a return to neutral conditions during the initial begining of the Northern hemisphere summer. In short, current conditions favour an active El-Nino, but, The El Nino condition over the Central Pacific Ocean was expected to fade out from July onwards, according to model forecasts. Heat Wave East & West !: Just yesterday I had written that soon Gujarat and Rajasthan will heat up to 42/43c range. But, in less than 24hrs of finishing my blog..or just "before the ink dries", Gujarat is going ahead in full swing, with almost all cities touching the level today. No, I wasn't so enthusiastic about it ! Take todays highs: Baroda 42.7c, Bhuj 42.6c, Ahemdabad 42.5c, Surat 42.2c and Rajkot 42.2c ! And Bhuj is +8c above normal and rest 6/7c above. And in adjoining Sindh, Chore 44c and Karachi 42c. Thats a heat Wave (IMD Map) in the Eastern and Western corner of India! As I write this, I am beginning see summer transition in "postings" For those of you living from Delhi to Mumbai down South, it's really heating, up as the westerlies shift south and high pressure builds across the border, and in the Arabian Sea. Fortunately for many, winter is not quite done yet, as snow remains on the hills, albeit lighter in the H.P.and Utteranchal states, but on the higher reaches, and in Ladakh, decent snows remain and will likely remain there until April. Days are heating up, we aren't breaking above normal temps records as yet, for the time of year,but, we're remaining above normal, These are the readings of the hottest days in Asian Cities today, 17th. March. Chhor (Pakistan) 42° Ahmadabad Airport ( India) 41.5° Rajkot (138 m, India) 40.5° Bhuj ( India) 41° Jaisalmer ( India) 40° Kurnool ( India) 40° Jodhpur ( India) 40° Al Ahsa Airport ( Saudi Arabia) 40 Now going into the 42s, our poll target of 45c seems a few weeks away! Anyway, with no rainfall or W.D.in sight, we see a marginal heating this week in Rajasthan and Gujarat regions, with the highs going upto 42c in Ahemdabad, Rajkot, Bhuj and Baroda, and in some cities in rajasthan. A.P. may see a 41c in Kurnool or Tirupati. Map of todays highs in the Sub-continent. El-Nino Still Very Much Active: El Niño expected to continue at least through the Northern Hemisphere Spring 2010 A moderate-to-strong El Niño continued during February 2010, with sea surface temperature (SST) anomalies exceeding 1.5oC in parts of the equatorial Pacific Ocean at the end of the month. The 30-day Southern Oscillation Index [SOI] to 6 March was -11. Contributing pressure anomalies are +1.3 hPa at Darwin and -1.0 hPa at Tahiti. The 30-day mean SOI reached the lowest value since 12 March 2005 of -23.8 on 12 February. The SOI remained negative since 11 October 2009. The monthly SOI for February was -14. Indications of an effective El-Nino. Graph shows almostreaching '98 levels. In Southeast Asia, millions of people are likely to remain without water for the drought caused by the arrival of Nino. In the Mekong River region, where more than 65 million people live, the water level is at its lowest level in over 30 years. In Thailand, the biggest exporter of rice in the world, the drought has affected 36 provinces out of 76. These are all located near the Mekong River; most of the crops of rice and sugar are concentrated. The drought has reduced water reserves by 15% and 4 million people have already been forced to ration water. In Indonesia and Malaysia the entire palm oil industry is in danger. The situation even more serious in the Philippines.The drought has already caused more than 25 million euros in damages and the lack of water in the hydroelectric power plants has thrown the country into a severe energy and food crisis. Nearly all models predict decreasing SST anomalies in the Niño-3.4 region through 2010 . The majority of models predict the 3-month Niño-3.4 SST anomaly will drop below +0.5oC by May-June-July 2010, indicating a transition to ENSO-neutral conditions near the onset of Northern Hemisphere summer. El Niño impacts are expected to last through the Northern Hemisphere spring, even as equatorial SST departures decrease, partly in response to the typical warming that occurs between now and April/May. Expected impacts during March-May 2010 include drier-than-average conditions over Indonesia. Predicting when El Niño will dissipate and what may follow remains highly uncertain. Should be observed for our South-West Monsoons. The South_East Asia region is the originating area for our Bay branch of the Monsoon. The Bay lows form from this region ! Quick report @10p.m. on Friday. Hails in Aurangabad. Thundershowers in Maharastra. Pune 13mms, Akola and Aurangabad (10 mms) recieve thundershowers along with most regions in Marathwada and Vidharbh. Due to line of discontinuity. Temperatures in central regions should drop for a few days. More details tomorrow. Weather Snippets for February and March: -8 Mar 10: Barcelona hit with heaviest snowfall in 25 years -A foot of snow in France. - Snowfalls of up to 50 cm (20 inches).With snow falling at the rate of one to two inches per hour at times, upwards of a foot of snow fell at Perpignan, France. snowfall in Barcelona - 7 Mar 10:Hailstones the size of grapefruit pummel Melbourne .The Bureau of Meteorology reported severe wind gusts and hailstones up to 10cm wide (the size of a grapefruit) - 7 Mar 10: Heavy snowfall in Germany - Heavy snowfall in parts of Germany triggered a deadly avalanche and caused thousands of accidents, -2 Mar 10: Heavy rains in the Gulf desert state of the United Arab Emirates caused flooding, traffic jams, car accidents and school closures, after four weather-related deaths at the weekend. Some residents of the emirate of Sharjah were trapped in their homes by high waters - 1 Mar 10: Coldest UK Winter in 30 years - The UK has had its coldest winter in over thirty years, according to statistics just released by the Met Office. Ireland had its coldest winter in 50 years. Unless you're of a certain age this winter has been a real shock to the system. -22 Feb 10 - With heavy snowfall since Friday, the Russian capital was blanketed with a record-breaking 63cm of snow yesterday, the regional weather centre said, breaking the record 62cm set in 1966. Record snowfall blankets Moscow- 17,000 snowplows removing snow - So far this month, almost 50cm of snow has fallen, three times the monthly average. Is the number of earthquakes increasing? An Interesting Analysis, worth sharing. According to the United States Geological Survey, no. Technology has increased the amount of earthquakes that are detected and reported. Today, there are thousands of stations, compared to about 350 in 1931. The increase of stations has allowed scientists to detect earthquakes that would not have been decades ago. Rapid improvements in global communications have enabled news of an earthquake to spread almost instantly. Several decades ago, the USGS said, it could take weeks after an earthquake to make the newspapers, often landing on the back pages. Population booms are also contributing the the perception that there are more earthquakes. Many of these population increases are in earthquake-prone areas, so there is a higher possibility of more casualties when a major quake strikes. "We have not seen any statistical increase in the number of earthquakes if you look back over the tens and hundreds of years," said Paul Earle, a USGS seismologist. "However, unfortunately the recent earthquakes have impacted populated areas, which brings them into the news, and people become more aware of the earthquakes." In 1960, Haiti had a population of 3.87 million, according to the World Bank data finder. Since then, it has more than doubled to 9.84 million as of 2008. Based on records kept since 1900, the USGS expects a yearly total of 17 major earthquakes and one great earthquake. Major earthquakes are those between 7.0 and 7.9 on the Richter scale, while great earthquakes are classified as 8.0 and above. Since 1990, the amount of major earthquakes has stayed relatively constant. This estimation of 17 quakes has not been exceeded, with the highest number of 16 major quakes occurring in 2009. (Taken from AccuWeather.com's Gina Cherundolo) Most convincing and a "To the Point" write-up on so called Global Warming or Climate Change. Mark has put up something I could not convey in 10 blogs ! Read at : http://markvoganweather.blogspot.com/2010/03/probabilistic-forecasting-will-and-is.html or see lonk in this blog. Maximum Temperatures on 8th.March: Tak ( Thailand) 41° Phetchabun ( Thailand) 40° Bhumibol Dam (Thailand) 40° Kosumphisai ( Thailand) 40° Thong Pha Phum ( Thailand) 40° Monywa ( Myanmar) 40° Prome ( Myanmar) 40° Lampang ( Thailand) 40° Nang Rong ( Thailand) 40° Loei (, Thailand) 40° Ramgundam ( India) 40° The Far East heat is rising, with the 41c in Thailand today (8th.March), and 7 other 40s in Thailand, and 2 in Myanmar. Indian sub continent heat was milder on the 8th, and with one 40c. The "below normal" day temperatures have now covered most of northern and central regions (IMD Map). Though the rest of the regions are still marginally above normal. Across in Pakistan, temperatures in the day were moderate, with Nawabshah highest at 35c. However in India, the nights are still warm. Major portions of the country show above normal temperatures, indicating no nip, nor winter coolness at nights. The coolest night in the plains of the country was at Amritsar, 10.8c and the minimum of 25.6c at Kolkatta Airport was 6c above the normal ! This anomaly NOAA map, of the 1st week of March, shows the extent of heat in the sub continent last week ! Only the extreme South is spared. Some relief and "Feel Good" Himalayan temperatures; Lowest in Ladhak today: -26c, Lowest in Himachal today: -8c Keylong. Lowest in Asia: Ojmjakon (Russia) -49c, Lowest in Europe:( besides Russia): Samedan Airport, Switzerland -24c. Shall catch-up next week on the El-Nino scene. First 40c of this summer touched in India: Its Anantpur ! On 5th. March,this city is the first to touch 40c, 40.2 to be precise, in India. This temperature for Anantpur,is 4c above normal for this day. The 2nd.nearest city, seen as rounded to 40 on the map, is Kurnool,at 39.5c. So our poll closes today, with none of the assumed cities getting to the mark, and the "others" category reaching the mark. Though some of the cities did threaten to reach the mark last week. We had 14% vote for other cities, and 29% for Nagpur. Now, the map shows this as a sudden development. Just when things were cooling down a bit, and the W.D.promised some relief, 1 Indian city shoots into the 40s !The regions hitherto hot, and the areas around Anantpur and Kurnool, are still around 35-37c today. Just to compare, the first 40s of the last few years: 2009:Bhubaneshwar on 25th.Feb, 2008:Akola on 17th.March, 2007:Mumbai 16th. March and 2006:Akola 0n 22nd. February. 2 Febs in last 5 years ! And, all of a sudden,today, there are a spate of 40s in rest of Asia too ! Makkah (Saudi Arabia) 40° Anantapur ( India) 40° Monywa (Myanmar) 40° 4 countries recording their 40s today, and all except Thailand, their first of the season. W.D.Relief in March ? Days continue to be above the normal for early summer. But,after 8 days,as on today,4th March,we see shades of "below normal" day temperatures along the western region and North-West India. The progressive Northward push of the "Above Normal" heat has been halted. This is well noticed when anomaly maps of the 1st, ( in my previous blog), and 4th. are compared. And the respite factor can only be an effective W.D. Yesterday (3rd.), Asia reached its 40c mark, at Nang Rong,Thailand. Todays day temperature map from IMD shows Anantpur as the highest in India at 39.4c. Many of the cities which earlier threatened to touch 40c soon have come down to 35-37c levels. Today Nagpur was 38.6c, Akola 36.4 and Baroda 34.6c. This leaves my blog poll still open. Meanwhile, an IMD outlook indicates the arrival of a fresh western disturbance over the western Himalayan and Punjab regions. Hence, fairly good rains are expected in the north-Western India next few days. Ahead, there seems to be more releif in terms of summer heat creeping Northwards soon. ECMWF predicts another fairly effective W.D.over North India from the 12th. of March. So, right into mid-March, maximum temperatures are expected to fall thanks to the cloudiness brought about by the western disturbance Mumbai, which had shot up to 37.5c on 2 consecutive days on 27/28 February,and later climbed down to 35.5c on the 1st., was reasonably comfortable at 30c today. I dont expect sticky humid weather till mid-March at least. But February has been warm and hot for Mumbai. Right thru the month the temperatures have been above normal, and towards the fag end of the month, the hot red patch is bigger. Clicking on the diagram, will bring details like the mean departure for the month at +0.95c. Officially Summers here. In our region, the summer season starts 1st. March, from down south, and as explained before,slowly creeping its way Northwards. Well, this year, this process started early, about 10 days ahead of the normal date. And by 1st. march, as the IMD map shows, its already moved half way into India. The anomaly map shows the overheating from the last week of February. The highest in India, and Asia today,1st March, is Akola at 39.7c. But I will not enter it as the first 40c, as it is still 0.3c away from winning the poll.! Mumbai at 35.5c was a shade down from 37c yesterday. Lots of 37s and few 38s indicate the intensity. We also see the above normal area engulfing large portions of the country, more so the central areas. Across the border, days are heating up, with Nawabshah at 37c. El-Nino Still Holding Grip on Monsoon Estimate: M... Trivandrum recieved a massive 183 mm of rain in a ... If New Moore island appeared 50 years ago and got... Extreme Heat Wave prevailed over Gujarat, Rajastha... A quick look at the current El-Nino position: Act... Mauritius and Polar Bears Safe Now ! Much of the... Sub_Continent Heat Wave may subdue a bit: The Hea... Poll could end sooner than expected: Our 45c poll... El Nino may weaken and its impact on the monsoon ... Heat Wave East & West !: Just yesterday I had wr... Summer: As I write this, I am beginning see summer... El-Nino Still Very Much Active: El Niño expected... Quick report @10p.m. on Friday. Hails in Aurangab... Weather Snippets for February and March: -8 Mar ... Is the number of earthquakes increasing? An Inter... Most convincing and a "To the Point" write-up on ... Maximum Temperatures on 8th.March: Tak ( Thailan... First 40c of this summer touched in India: Its A... W.D.Relief in March ? Days continue to be above ... Officially Summers here. In our region, the summe...	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6366
__label__cc	0.516486	0.483514	Criminal Minds 306: About Face This week’s episode opens with a compelling image – the beauty of nature, serene and idyllic as birds take wing. Then their reverie is interrupted by the sound of a gunshot! One of the birds is killed, delivering a profound message – there is no situation so beautiful that it can’t be ruined by the evils of man. Oh, wait, maybe that’s not what they meant, since the duck hunter is played by Joe Mantegna, who’s replacing Mandy as the team’s lead profiler this week. Did they mean for Joe to be introduced representing evil? I’m guessing no. It seems Joe is a famous former profiler who’d long ago quit to use his gifts to sell books and get high-paid speaking engagements. If this sounds familiar, it’s because he’s playing a fake version of John Douglas, who would help found the BSU and then go on to write a series of books about it, while providing the inspiration for basically every profiler character in fiction. What’s interesting is that the show already has a ‘fake John Douglas’ character, played by Geoff Pierson in the Keystone Killer episode from the first season. Sadly, I guess Geoff wasn’t a big enough name to build a show around after Mandy had left. Also interesting? The fact that Joe’s old badge has a photo on it that barely resembles him. Anyhoo, Joe heads in to meet with the evil AD and demand his old job back. She has no no choice but to agree to Joe’s terms (he wants a job, and nothing else), because he’s so damn famous and skilled that she’d look foolish trying to hold him back when the team needs help. Personally, I suspect that he’s just joining the team so that he can use its resources to solve his pet case: Before heading into the office he pockets that charm bracelet. What little girl could it belong to? I’m guessing that his daughter disappeared some years earlier, and he’s been haunted by his failure to catch the culprit all this time. With any luck, we’ll see if I was right by the end of the episode! Speaking of episode, isn’t it about time for a murder? So this woman in Texas is heading home, and she discovers a missing persons flyer of herself on her front door: Alarmed, she calls a detective, who she knows personally, but he assures her that it’s probably just a pre-Halloween prank. But that night when he swings by the house to check up on her the woman has disappeared - and the inside of her house has been papered with the fliers! Also the killer left an incredibly creepy mask which suggests that, for a first-time killer he’s got an incredibly elaborate MO. Time for the opening credits, which I’m actually really interested to see this week. For the past three episodes since Mandy’s departure Greg has been headlining the show – now that Joe’s going to be in first position, will Greg be fine with going back to second? Also, did anyone take this opportunity, like JJ back in season 2, to update their picture in the group shot? We’ll find out after the opening credits! Turns out Greg made the daring move to the end of the opening credits, getting an ‘And Greg’ billing. He’s also standing right next to Joe in the group shot, actually clipping into him in a way that doesn’t make sense. Here it is! Now let’s compare it to last week’s group shot- Wow, everybody got a new pose – and it’s much more attractive looking as well. It’s not so dark and compressed any more. Great work, opening credits photoshop guy! Except for the cutouts, which sucked. And the weird fact that Greg is in front of Joe, but Joe is closer to the camera. Which is also bad. You know what? From now on I’m going to make sure to check the group shot at the beginning of every season. Or whenever there’s a cast change. Whichever comes first. It’s Halloween at the BSU, and Reid is extremely into it. Derek, not so much. Emily refuses to take a stance. This is all just a distraction until Joe arrives to meet with Greg and officially join the team. They go over the notes on their first case together – the woman who disappeared was brutally raped and had her face removed! They try to figure out what the significance of the mask and removed face is, but don’t come up with the obvious ‘he’s anonymizing them, and therefore has identity issues’ solution. While the team is on the way to the city another woman finds the death-poster on the fence outside her house. What will become of her? Well, since she’s out in public, I’ve got to assume she’ll run to the nearest house, call 911, and then go into protective custody until the killer is caught. Oh, wait – that’s what a human would do in this situation, as opposed to the actions of a character who exists only to be murdered by a serial killer. Whoops. They’re not wasting any time with the ‘charm bracelet’, either. I’d figured they would tease this out over a couple of episodes, but nope – on the plane Joe has flashbacks to a crime he wasn’t present for, where something brutal happened while three children were huddled in the corner: So they saw their parents get killed, and were unrelated to David. I was really wrong about that one, it seems. When the team arrives at the city, they find that the new woman is missing. Yup. She didn’t run for help. You know, unless she was grabbed right when the scene ended, this is madness. It’s a puzzling situation at the various crime scenes. No one can figure out how the killer could have A: stalked victim 1 in a suburban neighbourhood, or B: postered victim 2’s face all over a fence in broad daylight, without being noticed. Derek and Emily theorize that he stalked her from the bushes behind her house, which is a great idea, except it still leaves the question of how he got her out of the house and to his car – which he parked where? Was he walking to her house to stalk her? Back at base the team gets some information from Garcia – supposedly victim 2 bought a shotgun 12 hours after she was kidnapped! But then it turns out she wasn’t kidnapped at all, she’s just holed up in a motel room in Dallas with the shotgun, waiting to kill anyone trying to abduct her. She calls the cops and tells them she can’t stay awake much longer, so she needs rescuing now! The cops rush over there, but when they arrive (it can’t be more than ten minutes later), she’s already gone! Wait, what? In the ten minutes after she got off the phone, she fell asleep, the killer somehow knew this, and had time to kidnap her without being seen and set this up in the motel room? Here’s the bigger question: why did she get off the phone at all? In that situation, where a person is afraid for their life and worried about falling asleep, and you’re just 20 minutes from rescuing her, wouldn’t one person keep her on the phone to make sure she was safe until the cops got there? I’ve only had to call 911 once in my life, for a friend who had cut himself in a moderately embarrassing accident – and in that situation the operator kept me on the phone talking me through the injury support until the ambulance arrived. Isn’t this a profoundly more serious situation that more clearly demands constant monitoring? Speaking of, why did she go to this motel alone? Who doesn’t know to go to a public place in this situation? God, this is a stupid show sometimes. There had better be one hell of an explanation for how the killer is able to abduct people without being noticed. It’s not like disappearing into a crowd. You’re lugging a body around. While the team works the profile Joe calls Garcia for some help on his own personal case. Which leads to an entire scene set in Garcia’s office that doesn’t result in a single glimpse at her murderboard. Damn you, Criminal Minds. The gist of their profile is that the guy feels ignored, especially by the women he covets. This sequence suggests that he spends ages stalking the women in question, which conflicts pretty severely with the fact that he grabbed victim 2 just hours after victim 1’s body is discovered. In the world of Criminal Minds, all killers are spree killers. Hoping to trigger the ire of the identity-obsessed killer, Joe releases the existence of the masks to the media, with instructions to spread the word around that the killer is impotent. Greg objects to the plan, but it winds up going really well, as the killer phones Joe. Also useful? The fact that both women have a connection to a single local workplace. Which is the same place he’s calling Joe from! Joe makes fun of him over the phone, hoping that they’ll trigger him into making a public fuss. The team heads over to the building to look for him, and Joe is sure that he’ll be in the lobby, watching the cops. While they’re searching the place Reid finds out the killer’s identity, which, conveniently, turns out to be the shiftiest looking guy in the lobby! Shifty pulls a gun and is quickly shot to death, and victim number 2 turns out to be hidden away in his home. Questions left unresolved at the end of the episode include, how did the killer drive into the people’s neighbourhoods without his car being noticed, how did he get their unconscious bodies to said car without being seen in A) the early evening and B) the middle of the day? ‘He was plain looking’ doesn’t really cover those extreme situations. And that’s not even getting into the second victim’s near-suicidal stupidity. Oh, and Joe and Greg have a confrontation about how the team is being run now. I’m guessing they’ll all be the greatest of pals in a week or two, so this isn’t worth noting. What is worth noting: Just how long will it be before Joe gets to solve the case of the brutally murdered parents? I’m guessing they’ll save that one for close to the season-ender, or thereabouts. Somewhere around 318 or after. I doubt it’ll end the season because they like to do two-parters and event television, and I don’t see three kids with murdered parents the kind of case you devote more than an hour to. It absolutely was. It’s possible that they were just raising the bar for Joe’s first episode, and we’re looking at disappointment next week, but his manipulation of the killer’s psyche to get him to contact the authorities definitely falls under the ‘profiling’ umbrella. Oh, definitely. They very quickly discovered a connection between the two victims, and simply asking around the office which of the people who works there gives off the biggest ‘serial killer’ vibe would have no doubt nabbed them the man they were looking for. 5/10 – Maybe I’m being generous and grading this a little too high, but I don’t care – it’s been so long since we’ve seen anything approaching psychology on the show that they deserve some credit. Here’s the point every week where we check to see if they gave us another look at Penelope’s murder map, and compare it with the one I’m keeping. So, did we see the map? Why am I not surprised? It’s a little annoying that we actually saw her office this time and still missed out on the map, though. Come on, director-of-the-episode, don’t you know an opportunity when you see one? Here’s how our map looked last time: And now let’s just tag Carrolton, Texas on there- And look, we’ve got an updated map! Yaay! Soul of Knit said... It's kind of ironic that Joe is introduced by shooting a bird, when Mandy was the bird enthusiast. Not ironic. Literally what the writers intended. It was a huge deal when Mandy left, and they wanted people to forget about him. What happened to the damn dog? That’s my biggest question. Now, on a serious note- Criminal Minds 309: Penelope The Twenty-Third-Greatest Panel in the History of ... Criminal Minds 308: Lucky Criminal Minds 307: Identity The Twenty-Second-Greatest Panel in the History of... Tales from the Darkside 110: Djinn, no Chaser Programme 11 (7-May-77) Tales from the Darkside Episode 109: A Case of the...	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6367
__label__cc	0.614205	0.385795	Wednesday March 6, 2013 Edition: #4935 Our Sheet Don’t Stink! Late comedian Bob Hope (1903-2003) was a legendary real estate investor as well as a legendary performer, as witnessed by the new listing of one of his Palm Springs, California properties, a 24,000-square-foot mega-mansion that’s capable of entertaining up to 300 guests (it’s yours for – ouch! – $50 million) . . . Filmmaker Andy Wachowski & his transgender sister Lana are facing a $300-million lawsuit from screenwriter Thomas Althouse, who alleges they stole the premise for their 2 sequels to “The Matrix” (“The Matrix Reloaded” and “The Matrix Revolutions”) from ideas in a script he submitted in 1993 (and yes, he claims he just recently noticed) . . . Will Smith’s celebrity spawn Jaden Smith is “Keeping Up With the Kardashians” in his own way, reportedly dating K-family kid Kylie Jenner (he’s 14, she’s 15 – think it’s serious?) . . . Actor and all around busy guy James Franco says he’s still planning to release his 2010 documentary on the behind-the-scenes workings of “Saturday Night Live” (hasn’t “30 Rock” thoroughly picked over this carcass already?) . . . Actress Halle Berry has confirmed she’ll be reprising her role as ‘Storm’ in the next “X-Men” movie (thereby increasing the cast membership to 4,373) . . . Actor Jason Ritter (“Parenthood”) & former “Gilmore Girls” star Alexis Bledel will play a marriage-challenged couple in the new FOX comedy “Friends & Family”, an adaptation of the UK series “Gavin & Stacey” (Brit comedies often flourish when they cross the pond) . . . And just when we thought sorta-singer, sometime-actress Miley Cyrus’ hair couldn’t get any more wacked, she’s upped and dyed it blue (how desperate for attention are we?). • “American Idol” (FOX/CTV) – The male semifinalists perform. • “Homeland” (Bravo Canada) – Premiere of a rebroadcast of the award-winning series beginning at Episode 1 – Pilot. (Season 3 debuts September 29th on Showtime.) • “Jimmy Kimmel Live” (ABC/CityTV) – Luke Bryan (“Spring Break … Here to Party”). • “Last Call With Carson Daly” (NBC) – Tift Merritt (“Traveling Alone”). Rerun. • “Late Night With Jimmy Fallon” (NBC/CTV2) – Avett Bros (“The Carpenter”). Rerun. • “Late Show With David Letterman” (CBS/NTV/Omni1) – David Byrne & St Vincent (“Love This Giant”). Rerun. • “Tonight Show With Jay Leno” (NBC/CTV2) – Rodriquez (“Searching For Sugar Man”). Rerun. • “The View” (ABC/CTV) – Lea Michele (“Glee”). • The Band Perry – Their new album, due April 5th, will be titled “Pioneer”. It will feature a dozen tracks, including their #1 hit “Better Dig Two”. • Drake – Pictures of him at Cameo Nightclub in Charlotte NC, winging dollar bills around at exotic dancers, have surfaced online. When all was said and spread, observers estimate he blew $50,000 in cash at the strip club. Classy. • Justin Bieber – London’s O2 Arena is under pressure to provide refunds after he showed up 2 hours late for his Monday night gig there then finished the show at midnight, later than the school-night curfew of many of his young fans who were forced to exit early. The Biebs claims the advertised start time was incorrect, so he was only 40 minutes late. • Linkin Park – They’ve designed a bracelet to benefit Haitian victims of last October’s Hurricane Sandy. Released via the Music for Relief Foundation, it features a black adjustable band with interlocking circles engraved ‘Music For Relief’. • Michael Jackson – His sister LaToya has signed his 3 kids – Prince, Paris, and Blanket – to her talent agency and is said to be pushing them to do a reality TV show. Prince recently made his TV debut as a correspondent on “Entertainment Tonight” and will soon appear on “90210”. Paris is scheduled to make her bigscreen acting debut shortly. • Status Quo – Tonight in Manchester, England the classic rockers begin a reunion tour that runs through March 17th at London’s Wembley Arena. The original members recently reformed 30 years after they split over legal disagreements. While they only logged a single North American hit (1968’s “Pictures of Matchstick Men”), they notched up dozens of chart hits throughout the 1970s and ‘80s in Britain. SHOULD YOU GO TO WORK WHEN SICK? So there you are. Sick. But there’s a looming deadline at work, you’re overwhelmed with projects, pressures from the boss. Sick leave is exhausted, and you can’t miss a day’s pay, so you soldier on, incurring loathing from co-workers who treat you like you have a contagious disease … which, it just so happens, you do. And the great debate rages on: Do you go to work sick or stay home? Medical experts seem to agree: Stay home! Here’s why … • You know you don’t like it when someone else shows up sniffling and coughing all over the place. So don’t do it to them. • Your level of productivity drops significantly when you’re under the weather. • Taking cold or flu medications can impair cognition, leaving you foggy-headed. • It’s critical for contagion control to avoid the domino effect by staying away from people. • No matter what your job is, the world will not stop if you don’t go to work. • You’ll get much better much faster if you stay home. (Obstinately working while sick is known as ‘presenteeism’, opposite of ‘absenteeism’.) – Condensed from “Oakland Tribune” FROM THE BS POLL VAULT: A statistical look at who we are and the things we do … • 55% of Baby Boomers don’t exercise at all, compared with 17% of the previous generation. • 52% of 18-to-34-year-olds say that overwhelming worries have disrupted their sleep in the past month. • 33% of drivers say they’ve lost control of their car because of a sneeze. • 27% of us believe that ‘Sherlock Holmes’ was a real person. • 25% of us experience ‘office rage’ or anger at work. • 24% of women say it’s attractive when a man shaves his legs. WIRELESS REVOLUTION’S NEXT PHASE: What’s called ‘Machine-to-Machine Communication’ is getting a lot of buzz at this year’s “Mobile World Congress” wireless trade show in Barcelona, Spain. The first wave of wireless technology was all about getting people to talk to each other on cellphones. The next wave will be getting things to talk to each other, with no humans in between. Some experts believe these connections will outgrow the traditional phone biz in less than a decade. A few proposed applications … ✓ A car that tells your insurance company how you’re driving. ✓ Bathroom scales that automatically chart your weight online. ✓ A meter that warns your air conditioner when electricity gets more expensive. – AP BS BUZZWORDS: New terms leaking into our lingo … • ‘BYOD’ – Standing for ‘Bring Your Own Device’, it’s the use of a personally owned mobile device, such as a laptop, smartphone, or tablet, to access a workplace network. The company wins by saving on hardware; the employee wins by avoiding lugging around 2 devices; but IT people are stuck adapting everyone’s personal hardware for work use. • ‘Selfie’ – A photograph taken of oneself, often for the purpose of posting it on a social networking site. Ever since Madonna joined Instagram, all she posts are selfies. But she’s got nothing on Rihanna, who seems to crank out time-lapse selfies. • ‘Sick-Lit’ – A new literary genre that features individuals dealing with fatal or devastating diseases. Many of today’s novels written for teenagers deal with themes of death, fatal disease, and psychological disease such as anorexia. LET’S GET SMALL: While other phone companies are going larger with ‘phablets’, Japanese telecom provider Willcom has just announced the ‘Phone Strap 2’, which it says is the world’s smallest and lightest phone. It measures just 32 x 70 x 10.7 mm (1.25 x 2.75 x 0.4 ins), and weighs only 32 grams (1 oz), a ridiculously tiny handset when compared to its contemporaries. The handset is intended to ‘strap’ onto a larger handset or tablet, providing basic calling, email, and text messaging. It will be available later this year in white, pink, or black … but only in Japan. (Good luck pressing those itsy bitsy keys!) – TheVerge.com CLASSIC QUOTES RE-IMAGINED FOR THE MILLENNIAL GENERATION: ✳ “Life is what happens when you’re making other plans.” … “Life is what happens while you’re looking at your smartphone.” ✳ “It’s better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all.” … “It’s better to have GIFed and lost than to never have GIFed at all.” ✳ “Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.” … “Beauty is in the eye of the executive producer.” ✳ “Two roads diverged in a wood and I took the one less traveled by.” … “Two roads diverged in a wood and I took the one less Tweeted about.” ✳ “You are what you eat.” … “You are what you download.” ✳ “The revolution will not be televised.” … “The revolution will be Tweeted, liked, and shared.” ✳ “The pen is mightier than the sword.” … “The send button is mightier than the sword.” ✳ “What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger.” … “What doesn’t kill you makes you wish it did.” ✳ “Art imitates life.” … “Life imitates high school.” ✳ “Keep your friends close and your enemies closer.” … “Keep your friends close and your profile info closer.” – Buzzfeed.com WE’RE ALL PLAYERS: One of the newest methods for spurring self-improvement is to turn every task into a game. So-called ‘gamification’ apps keep score of real-life situations to promote certain behaviors – whether it’s taking out the trash, going for a run, or complimenting someone. Yet this system has its problems. Users must be actively involved, sometimes wearing a device or manually inputing data into a smartphone app. These tasks can intrude upon everyday life, turning the entire process into a painstaking chore. (And besides, an app can’t tell when you’re lying.) – “Popular Science” BS AMAZING FACT: In North Korea, women are ‘encouraged’ to choose from 18 officially sanctioned hairstyles. Men have 10 options. – “Daily Mail” 1946 [67] David Gilmour, Cambridge UK, classic rock singer/guitarist (Pink Floyd-“Wish You Were Here”, “Another Brick In the Wall”) 1947 [66] Rob Reiner, Bronx NY, movie producer/director/writer (“The Bucket List”, “A Few Good Men”)/ex-TV actor (“All In the Family” 1971-78) 1972 [41] Shaquille O’Neal, Newark NJ, retired (1992-2011) NBA player (Boston Celtics, Cleveland Cavaliers, Phoenix Suns, Miami Heat, LA Lakers, Orlando Magic)/15-time All-Star 1984 [29] Chris Tomson, NYC, indie rock drummer (Vampire Weekend-“Cousins”, “A-Punk”) • “Dentist’s Day”, honoring the professionals who help us maintain a big, toothy smile … for a big fee. The business of dentistry has an average profit margin of about 17%, higher than any other industry. • “Frozen Food Day”, commemorating the first ‘Individually Packaged Frozen Foods’, created by Clarence Birdseye in Springfield, Massachusetts 83 years ago (1930). He got the idea after seeing Canadians thawing and eating naturally frozen fish. • “Headache Relief Day”, marking the patenting of ‘Aspirin’ on this date in 1899 by the Bayer Company of Germany. ‘Aspirin’ is a much easier way of asking for acetylsalicylic acid. • “Learn What Your Name Means Day”, as “Celebrate Your Name Week” continues. You can find out what yours is all about here … NET: http://www.meaning-of-names.com • “Southern Drawl Day”, a good excuse for y’all to talk funny like yer from America’s Deep South. Might we suggest … ✓ “He was grinning like a possum eating persimmons.” ✓ “That was so good it would bring a tear to a glass eye.” ✓ “That was slicker than snot on a doorknob.” ✓ “She’s as purdy as a speckled pup.” ✓ “He’s wound tighter than a Gibson guitar.” ✓ “Well, butter my butt and call me a biscuit!” There’s a whole mess more here … NET: http://dofb.com/misc/encyclopedia-of-southern-expressions/ 2000 [13] With his induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame as a solo artist, Eric Clapton becomes the 1st to be so-honored 3 times (also as a member of Cream and The Yardbirds) TODAY’S FIRST . . . 1912 [101] 1st ‘Oreo’ cookie sold (over 491 billion have sold since) 1938 [75] Thomas Garson of Chicago IL eats 22 hamburgers and 2 quarts of ice cream in 25 minutes to win a bet [Thurs] Be Heard Day [Thurs] World Maths Day [Thurs] Cereal Day [Fri] “Dead Man Down”; “Oz The Great & Powerful” open in movie theaters [Fri] International Women’s Day [Fri] “SXSW” begins (Austin TX) [Fri] Middle Name Pride Day This Month Is … Cataract Awareness Month BS TIPS TO AVOID HAVING YOUR CAR STOLEN: • Only drive cars made before 1993. • Add a sporting-looking racing stripe along each side … using duct tape. • Get a vanity plate that reads ‘BAIT CAR’. • Deter interest in your vehicle AND help the environment by composting used baby diapers in your trunk. • Install the new ‘Steering Wheel Laser Cannon’ from Ronco. • Only park beside extremely expensive, unlocked cars. – Adapted from BennyDesk.com I am their leader, which way did they go? BS U-PICK TRIVIA: • 31 years ago today (1982), Susan Birmingham set the world record for the loudest what? a. Belch. b. Shout. [CORRECT. 120 decibels.] c. Fluffy. – HistoryOrb.com • According to a survey of doctors, which is ‘the most painful type of pain’? a. Kidney stones. [CORRECT] b. Giving birth. c. Hangnail. – “Focus” ☎ Are our household appliances getting too complicated? What are some of the hi-tech features you’ve never used (or maybe don’t even understand) on your dishwasher, refrigerator, clothes dryer, washing machine. What pretentious settings do they have? (‘Reduced Crease’, ‘Allergy’, ‘Hand Wash’, etc). Question: Retail stats show that, by far, more of THESE are sold in the month of March. Answer: Home pregnancy tests. If at first you don’t succeed, you’ll get lots of advice.	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6375
__label__cc	0.546489	0.453511	The G-Man Album of the Year 2011 : Top 10 Posted by The G-Man on January 25, 2012 The G-Man's top 10 2011 albums of the year are : 10. Apocalypse by Bill Callahan It's not fair (or accurate) to say the artist formerly known as Smog found his identity on his 2009 release Sometimes I Wish We Were an Eagle - which made the first ever "G-Man Best of" back in 2009 Albums of the Year">2009 - but it might strike closer to the bone to say Callahan at least became more comfortable with his self, casting off the need for an alter ego in the process. This confidence and surety permeates through every pore of Apocalypse, another masterpiece from the Maryland genius. 9. The Harrow & The Harvest by Gillian Welch It has taken me quite some time to come to terms with missing Gillian Welch and Dave Rawlings multi-encored performance last November in the Grand Canal Theatre (Dublin). The new year started well but after listening to The Harrow & The Harvest a number of times in the past week it looks like my heart has gone and break itself again. 8. Feel It Break by Austra Katie Stelmanis' mix of electronica and operatic virtuosity left me quite speechless way back in July (click here for a review). The feat was repeated when I caught Austra again in September at End of the Road. The only worry I had about Feel It Break was could the bouncing energy of the likes of 'Lose It' and 'Beat And The Pulse' be recreated live. If not I may have had to ask myself can I still include the record in the top 10. Fortunately that question never needed to be asked. 7. Helplessness Blues by Fleet Foxes Robin Pecknold and his wonderfully hairy chums were always going to come under serious scrutiny with the release of the follow up to their surprisingly smash hit, eponymous debut. A slight tweak to their successful mix of folk, harmonies and complicated song structures resulted in Helplessness Blues, an - although not groundbreaking - excellent second record. 6. Kiss Each Other Clean by Iron And Wine The fourth full length studio album released as Iron & Wine sees the man from South Carolina take the last few steps in the direction of a fuller band sound as opposed to the sparse, acoustic solo efforts that introduced Samuel Beam to us nearly ten years ago. The transition is traditionally a rocky road but the quiet man seems to have navigated the terrain quite magnificently. Although released a year ago to the day I still smile every time I hear the saxophone in 'Me And Lazarus'. 5. W H O K I L L by tUnE-yArDs On first listening to W H O K I L L I simply thought : "Wow. That's mad.". On that same listen I also knew I absolutely loved it. Any album that blends folk and afro-beat deserves a listen. Any album that can successfully combine the ukulele, electronic samples and scatting deserves some sort of medal. Even better live. 4. C'mon by Low Album opener 'Try To Sleep' alone should get this record on any "Best Of 2011" list. Even on Low's "happy" album there runs an underlying dark which creates the perfect balance of tension and melody that Parker, Sparhawk and Garrington seem to arrive at effortlessly. 3. Bon Iver by Bon Iver Bon Iver's outstanding For Emma, Forever Ago was as raw folk as it gets these days but the Wisconsinites (yes I made that up) have gone down a very different path with the follow up. If you have listened to Bloodbank - which acts as a kind of bridge between the 2008 debut and last year's Bon Iver - this will come as no surprise as you will already have heard the electronic elements barging in on top of glorious songwriting. What I like most about the album is that there can now be no mistake that Bon Iver is a band (quite a well populated band at that) and not just an alter ego for Justin Vernon which the guy never intended in the first place it must be said. A personal highlight on the recording is when the drums kick in on 'Towers'. Lovely. 2. Let England Shake by PJ Harvey For nine months of 2011 there was not a shadow of doubt in my mind that, come December/January, Let England Shake would be sitting handsomely on top of the pile. As brilliant as the idea was audacious (the horrors of war - more specifically World War I), Harvey has produced an album with so many layers your eyes will water if you try to peel them away. It feels ridiculous attaching the number 2 to such a staggering collection of songs including 'The Words That Maketh Murder', 'The Last Living Rose' and 'All and Everyone'. I may have to go back to religion so I can rightfully burn in hell where I belong. 1. If Then Not When by King's Daughters & Sons At the beginning of November I decided to have a nosey on Rachel Grimes' official website in hope that The Rachel's pianist would treat the good folk of Cork (or at least Ireland) to a repeat performance of her mesmerising appearance in Jurys back in 2009 (see here for more details). On that front I would have no luck but what I did stumble across was the first mention of King's Daughters & Sons, a relatively new project that saw Grimes involved in a rather tasty collaboration. In 2008 and 2009 Todd Cook, Kyle Crabtree (both Shipping News), Joe Manning, Michael Heineman and Rachel Grimes gathered to record parts for some of the most beautiful songs I have heard in years. The reason for the delayed release date is that, until the heroic Chemikal Underground stepped up to the plate, the five struggled to find a label to release what would become If Then Not When but however long it took to get here I just thank the gods it did. "I will be there, call me by my name I will volunteer Even though I've strayed from every other promise I've ever made" Read The G-Man interview with King's Daughters And Sons here. To see the rest of the Top 50 click here. 2009 Albums of the Year Albums of the Year Albums of the Year 2011 Austra Bill Callahan Bon Iver Fleet Foxes Gillian Welch Iron and Wine Kings Daughters and Sons Low PJ Harvey tUnE-yArDs	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6379
__label__wiki	0.670191	0.670191	String of law-enforcement failures culminates in multiple stabbings by H. Clay Aalders \| While the level of ineptitude exhibited by the Broward County Sheriff and the FBI in the Parkland, Florida spree-killing will likely remain the Gold Standard, Palm Beach police and area FBI agents had another “known wolf” whom they did nothing to stop. After multiple interactions with police over several years, despite a raft of social media threats, and clear indications that Corey Johnson was becoming a radicalized muslim convert, they sat on their hands, refusing to ever file charges over the Johnson’s threatening behavior when a case could clearly be made. Now they have the blood of multiple stabbings, one fatalm on their hands. From Michelle Malkin (via Ammoland.com)- A sickening act of youth violence in Florida glinted across the news headlines last week, and then disappeared from view.There will be no CNN town halls or student walkouts over the lost life and preventable tragedy, because there are no guns to blame. Only dropped balls. As the exploiters of crisis know full well, bureaucratic screw-ups don’t make good fodder for partisan fundraisers and hipster T-shirts. According to a probable cause affidavit filed by the Palm Beach County police, 17-year-old Corey Johnson bought a knife last Sunday and brought it with him to a sleepover at longtime friend Kyle Bancroft’s house. At 4 a.m., he decided to kill Kyle’s mother, Elaine, his brother, Dane, and Dane’s friend, Jovanni Sierra Brand. Johnson repeatedly stabbed Jovanni in his bed and slit his throat. Then he attempted to murder Elaine as she approached the boys’ bedrooms in response to Jio’s last gasps. Dane rescued his mom and sustained 32 stab wounds. Both were hospitalized and survived. Jio was buried last Friday — less than a week after celebrating his 13th birthday at a pizza party attended by Johnson. The accused killer told police he “stabbed the victims because of his Muslim faith,” watched videos of “Muslim jihadists” on his cellphone, and “was reading the Quran from his phone just prior to the attack to give him courage to carry out his intentions.”… …Johnson’s brutal attack was no bolt out of the blue, no unexpected incidence of sudden jihad syndrome. Local school officials and police in Palm Beach County, along with federal and international law enforcement authorities, had encountered more red flags in their years of dealing with Johnson than at a Communist May Day parade in Havana. In middle school, Johnson had reportedly stalked a student and sexually harassed her. She told school police. Nothing happened. He dabbled in white supremacy, anti-Semitism and gay-bashing, and then immersed himself in radical Islam — rising at 5 a.m. daily to pray and revere the Syrian flag. Johnson’s online jihad agitation, physical abuse and addiction to ISIS beheading videos prompted his sister in 2016 to confide in a school therapist, who contacted the local sheriff’s office. Johnson’s mom, the sister told school officials, was in denial. The sister so feared for her life she slept with a knife under her bed. Law enforcement officers at the Jupiter Police Department and Palm Beach County Sheriff’s office convened at Johnson’s high school last January to investigate the self-radicalized teen’s contact with ISIS as he sought to join the terror group. The FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force became involved after European intelligence counterparts told them Johnson had used Instagram to issue security threats to a Catholic high school in England. The threats “were so severe in nature,” local officials discovered, “that up to 100 students were removed from the school fearing some kind of attack.” One of the messages threatened: “By Allah, we will kill every single Infidel student at this school.” Johnson told FBI agents he “was supportive of known terrorist Anwar al Awlaki” — the spiritual patron of lone-wolf jihadists. The FBI’s plan of action? Inaction. The agency watched and waited and wanly admonished Johnson to knock it off because authorities “believed a redirection approach would be the most beneficial regarding his conduct.” “Redirection” is akin to the alternative social justice strategies school officials and police used in Parkland, Florida, before 17 innocent students and teachers died at the hands of teen shooter who was a walking neon sign for a mental health catastrophe. No referrals, no charges, no records, no problems. Except for the fact that Johnson ignored the FBI and continued his Islamic instigation online. After nearly a year of foot-dragging, the FBI gathered enough evidence to bring federal charges against Johnson for his social media terror threats. According to records released by the Jupiter Police Department, local officials were told the charges would be brought in the summer of 2017. But on the early morning of the jihad stabbings at Palm Beach Gardens last week, the FBI and U.S. Attorney’s Office had yet to take action on a known radicalized threat who had menaced his family, his schoolmates and innocents abroad. The levels of incompetence are staggering. Yet these are the same people who want us to surrender our weapons to them, and they promise to protect us. Personally, I am going to keep my guns, my freedom, and most importantly, my dignity. Thank you very much. (h/t DR) Sam L. says: A “Florida Youth”. I guess it’s the heat and the humidity that does that to them. What’s the excuse for the FBI and police? How many other deranged young or older people are out there, that the FBI and or local authorities know about but will do nothing to stop them because of “Political Correctness” Our schools have become indoctrination institutions for creating “Progressive Sheep” trained to not think for themselves, just to blindly do whatever they are told to do by their Marxist teachers. Parents who want their children to grow up to be able to rationally think for themselves, need to Home School their children, to prevent the children’s indoctrination.	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6384
__label__cc	0.682335	0.317665	Seeing Red Episode 3: Robinson Arrives, ESC Chat The latest episode of Seeing Red is up this evening. Mark, Dave and Nat discuss Carl Robinson's arrival in New York and what it might mean for Seth Stammler, chat with Corey Vezina of the Empire Supporters Club about the move to Red Bull Arena and the ramifications for the club's major fan groups, and ponder Juan Pablo Angel's potential goal output for the coming season, among other topics. You can also subscribe to the Seeing Red podcast via their new iTunes page. Labels: New York Red Bulls, Seeing Red TVN on Twitter The Viper's Nest on Facebook A Beautiful Numbers Game American Soccer News Beau Dure's Sports Myriad Soccer Blog Big Apple Soccer Big Soccer New York Red Bulls Forum Can't Anybody Here Play This Game? 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__label__wiki	0.851835	0.851835	washingtonpost.com > Metro > The District What is RSS? \| All RSS Feeds A Field Grows in Washington New Sod Transforms the Old Stadium for Nationals' Arrival By David Nakamura Saturday, March 19, 2005; Page B01 Strip by strip, day by day, workers on their hands and knees meticulously laid sod at Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium until they were ready yesterday afternoon to cover the final patch of dirt in right field. Roger Bossard, chief consultant overseeing the effort, dropped his rake and beheld his creation: Under clear, cool skies, the field -- for months a swath of mud -- was a burst of lush green, behind which rose a large outfield wall that workers were painting a shade called "tall evergreen." The field at Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium is nearing completion for its Washington Nationals debut at an April 3 exhibition game. (Nikki Kahn -- The Washington Post) To onlookers, the image delivered an unmistakable message: For the first time since the early 1990s, when an exhibition game was played there, the venerable old stadium looked fit for baseball. "It's like a mini-Green Monster," Tony Robinson, spokesman for the D.C. Sports and Entertainment Commission, joked of the evergreen-colored wall. He was referring to the landmark 37-foot-high left field wall in Boston's Fenway Park. At RFK, the tall wall will not be in the playing field: A smaller fence will be constructed in front so bullpens can be built in between. For the Washington Nationals, the grass also holds a promise. In its previous life as the Montreal Expos, the team played home games on Olympic Stadium's artificial turf, an unforgiving surface commonly believed to contribute to injuries. "Turf takes its toll on you. Guys end up with nagging injuries at the end of the year," Jamey Carroll, a Nationals infielder, said yesterday at spring training in Viera, Fla. "Grass is easily better for your body. We're glad we're playing on grass." As the final patches of grass were laid, other workers were busy installing new lights, mounting electronic ribbon boards and wiring a hydraulic pitching mound that can disappear into a hole in the earth when the D.C. United soccer team takes the field. The Hall of Stars, once a collection of large placards bearing names of Washington sports legends along the second-deck facade, will be reborn as one large banner on the outfield wall, officials said. The pitching mound, packed clay on a steel plate, weighs 18,000 pounds, and officials nixed their original idea of having it lifted by a crane into a trailer before soccer games because the enormous equipment could damage the field. So a team of engineers, architects, electricians and even NASA scientists created the hydraulic lift. It will be operated from a box in the third base dugout -- a box that will be locked during games, lest an opposing team's manager gets a crazy idea while a Nationals pitcher is at work. "When they lower the mound, we have a platform that conforms to the mound. Then we put two inches of sand on it and lay the sod over that," said Lane Welter, an architect for HNTB, which designed the renovation effort. "When they play soccer, you won't even know [the hole] is there." Although not quite as high-tech as the mound, the sod has its own story. Officials had planned to buy the product at a nearby farm, but recent cold weather prevented the grass from growing lush. So Bossard, chief groundskeeper for the Chicago White Sox, who is overseeing the process at RFK as a consultant, chose to buy the sod from Southern Turf Nursery in Tifton, Ga. For the technically inclined, the sod is 111,000 square feet of sand-based hybrid Bermuda grass overseeded with perennial rye. In layman's terms, that means the rye, which is green during cooler weather, will burn out in the hot summer months and give way to the brilliance of the Bermuda, Bossard said. Yesterday, sprinklers kept the grass moist, and Bossard was implanting ammonium nitrate into the soil to add four to five degrees in temperature to reach the ideal of roughly 63 degrees. Soon, the same kind of clay used by the Baltimore Orioles, manufactured by Egypt Farms in White Marsh, Md., will be spread on the base paths, and the white bases will be anchored. By the time the Nationals take the field, Bossard said, groundskeeper Jimmy Rodgers will have put on the final touch: a signature cut design in the grass. "Every groundskeeper has his own style," said Bossard, who favors a straightforward striped pattern. "Jimmy has his own pattern, but I can't tell you what it is yet." Staff writer Barry Svrluga contributed to this report from Viera, Fla. Permission to Republish	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6395
__label__wiki	0.861555	0.861555	By : Wire Report Tags:ban, bills, business, civil rights, discrimination, equality, fight, gay, good, issue, lawmakers, lesbian, lgbt, love, Nebraska, patty, proposals, school, supporters LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Nebraska lawmakers introduced three bills Jan. 21 that would ban discrimination against lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender residents, but even supporters noted they face a tough fight in gaining approval for the proposals. About 100 supporters of the bills, displaying blue and yellow equal sign stickers, rallied at the Capitol as legislators explained why they back the changes. “It’s a civil rights issue that I think at some point soon will become an embarrassing memory of our past,” said Sen. Patty Pansing Brooks of Lincoln, who co-sponsored all three bills. However Brooks acknowledged gaining passage of the bill wouldn’t be easy. “I pledge that I will continue to take a stand and continue to fight the battle with my colleagues,” she said. The bills would prohibit employers from discriminating based on sexual orientation or gender identity; allow two adults to adopt a child jointly, regardless of marital status; and bar sexual orientation or gender identity discrimination when placing children in foster care Representatives from ConAgra Foods and independent record label Saddle Creek Records, of Omaha, attended the rally. “Workplace equality is no-cost no-hassle policy for us that fosters open atmosphere which truly allows everyone to stay focused on their jobs and their performance, rather than be distracted by the fear of being fired for who they are, or who they love,” said Jeff Beck, finance director at Saddle Creek Records. Chris Kircher, vice president of corporate affairs of ConAgra and president of ConAgra Foods Foundation, said offering equal benefits for LGBT employees and adopting anti-discriminatory policies simply made sense. “It’s the right thing to do, and it also makes good business,” Kircher said. Barbara Baier and Lin Quenzer of Lincoln discussed the need for the child adoption bill, noting the challenges of raising a 15-year-old without such a law. Baier is the legal parent of her son, but Quenzer isn’t allowed to also adopt him. She calls herself a “legal stranger” who can’t sign papers at his school or take him to the dentist. Under current laws, if Baier died, Quenzer would not be guaranteed custody of the child they raised. Sen. Jeremy Nordquist of Omaha, who sponsored the foster care bill, said Nebraska is in a welfare crisis and more than 4,000 children need out-of-home placements. “We need to make sure that all available placements that can protect and support these vulnerable children should be welcomed and affirmed in our state, not set to the side,” he said. A similar bill was voted out of committee last year but died in the Legislature. Wire Report New year, new venues for TIGLFF screenings Baker faces complaint for refusing anti-gay message on cake Local LGBT protections barred by Arkansas law New York attorney general warns Boy Scouts on discrimination Committee hears bills to ban LGBT discrimination in Nebraska Ken HarringtonI worked with Joel at Disney for several years in the 80's and part of the 90's. Always optimistic and... Jul 15, 8:05 PM	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6397
__label__wiki	0.85588	0.85588	UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres visits Indonesia quake, tsunami survivors Friday - October 12, 2018 10:46 am , Category : WORLD Jakarta Oct 12 (IANS) UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres on Friday visited the survivors of the earthquake and subsequent tsunami that hit the Indonesian island of Sulawesi killing 2 073 people. Accompanied by IndonesiaÂ´s Vice President Jusuf Kalla Guterres examined the damage caused by the September 28 disaster in the city of Palu reports Efe news. More than 75 per cent of the 2 073 fatalities according to the latest official data occurred in this city where giant tsunami waves caused havoc to areas located hundreds of meters from the coast. The UN chief also plans to visit Palu s Balaroa neighbourhood where thousands of homes were swallowed up by land liquefaction a phenomenon that occurs when a strong shaking such as that of an earthquake liquefies soft soil making the affected terrain sink and release waves of mud. According to local estimates some 5 000 people remain missing in Balaroa and the town of Petobo. On Thursday the authorities extended the search and rescue mission for survivors for another 24 hours which will conclude at the end of Friday. A team of 15 rescue personnel will remain in the area waiting for local requests to evacuate victims Yusuf Latif spokesperson for the national search and rescue agency in Palu told Efe. Rescue teams have not found a single survivor under the rubble for more than a week. Indonesian authorities said they will turn the areas most affected by the quake into memorial parks. The catastrophe on Sulawesi Island is the worst experienced by Indonesia since the tsunami swept the western province of Aceh in 2004 killing 167 000 people. The Indonesian archipelago is situated within the so-called "Pacific Ring of Fire" an area known for its intense seismic and volcanic activity which produce about 7 000 earthquakes each year most of which are of moderate magnitude.	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6403
__label__cc	0.500357	0.499643	weather fish soca grime hip-hop radio synthesis tronic UK breakcore one-drop film cumbia jazz meta theory drone algerian guitar avant reggaeton football mashup folk media raggo screw voice soap-opera congo mixed suriname reportage apocalypse karaoke techno 日本 raves manele house bassbin new_bass field-recordings dub linkdump sensory weapons Posted by Chris on September 29, 2009 at 10:26 am as many of you may know, the G20 meeting in Pittsburgh last week saw the first deployment of a LRAD (‘long range acoustic device’) in America. this is not the first time it had been used. previous tests/deployments have occurred/are occurring in Prison Camp Bucca, Iraq, off the Somali coast against pirates/fishermen and by the Israeli army to break up a demonstration against the separation wall. Kode9 talks about sonic weapons in relation to fear, the psychological and nervous reactions to sound: “We all know that a siren, an alert siren, an air raid siren, or your alarm clock, we all know what they mean, but there’s a level at which they just directly get on your nerves, they’re frequencies that are there to get on your nerves and to make you act, to make you alert, and to take action immediately. Because they’ve either woken you up or they’re a signal of danger. So there’s a direct immediacy of sound, getting under your skin, on your nerves, making you respond to danger, in a fight or flight… basically reflexive or autonomic response.” via he cites Israeli jets systematically breaking the sound barrier by night over Gaza, blitzkrieg (screaming dive bombers over Britain in world war two) and a horn used by Maroons in Jamaica to signal/anticipate an attack on the English. the G20′s LRADevice marks a shift from this through its brutal physicality. the maximum volume is 146db (at a range of 1 metre). the human pain threshold for sound is 120-140db and this volume can permanently damage hearing. here, the sound itself becomes the object of fear rather than the thing it is co-conditioned with. here is some footage from Pittsburgh (be careful, it’s quite loud). what is particularly disturbing to me are the forensics of this idea. the police, army or a ship from the other side of the world, whose crew is willing to use it can effectively possess you by breaking down the barrier between an external and internal threat, co-opting your senses and using them against you. it doesn’t stop at sound; the following sensory devices are currently under development or on order (these below and much of this post borrowed from here). Raytheon Corp.’s Active Denial System, designed for crowd control in combat zones, uses an energy beam to induce an intolerable heating sensation, like a hot iron placed on the skin. It is effective beyond the range of small arms, in excess of 400 meters. Company officials have been advised they could expand the market by selling a smaller, tripod-mounted version for police forces. The Penn State facility is testing a “Distributed Sound and Light Array Debilitator” a.k.a. the “puke ray.” The colors and rhythm of light are absorbed by the retina and disorient the brain, blinding the victim for several seconds. In conjunction with disturbing sounds it can make the person stumble or feel nauseated. Foreign Policy in Focus reports that the Department of Homeland Security, with $1 million invested for testing the device, hopes to see it “in the hands of thousands of policemen, border agents and National Guardsmen” by 2010. and the sonic ones in full: Long Range Acoustic Device or “The Scream,” is a powerful megaphone the size of a satellite dish that can emit sound “50 times greater than the human threshold for pain” at close range, causing permanent hearing damage. The L.A. Times wrote U.S. Marines in Iraq used it in 2004. It can deliver recorded warnings in Arabic and, on command, emit a piercing tone…”[For] most people, even if they plug their ears, [the device] will produce the equivalent of an instant migraine,” says Woody Norris, chairman of American Technology Corp., the San Diego firm that produces the weapon. “It will knock [some people] on their knees.” CBS News reported in 2005 that the Israeli Army first used the device in the field to break up a protest against Israel’s separation wall. “Protesters covered their ears and grabbed their heads, overcome by dizziness and nausea, after the vehicle-mounted device began sending out bursts of audible, but not loud, sound at intervals of about 10 seconds…A military official said the device emits a special frequency that targets the inner ear.” In “Non-lethal Technologies: An Overview,” Lewer and Davison describe a lengthy catalog of new weaponry including the “Directed Stick Radiator,” a hand-held system based on the same technology as The Scream. “It fires high intensity ‘sonic bullets’ or pulses of sound between 125-150db for a second or two. Such a weapon could, when fully developed, have the capacity to knock people off their feet.” Tagged :: reportage Pingback from wayneandwax.com » Sounds Physical on October 7, 2009 at 2:54 am [...] See also: wordthecat on “sensory weapons” [...]	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6409
__label__cc	0.61209	0.38791	Home / Politics / Opinion / When politics dwarfs the law When politics dwarfs the law May 14, 2019 Opinion NELSON Chamisa’s adversaries across the broad political spectrum ululated at the pronouncement of the High Court ruling trashing the legitimacy of his presidency last week. The High Court rubbished the appointments previously made by the party founding president, the late Morgan Tsvangirai. Tsvangirai, at the height of his cancer battle, appointed Chamisa and Elias Mudzuri as his deputies. Perusing through the High Court ruling, it evinces disdain for Chamisa’s presidency in a number of ways although arrayed in legal terms. The ruling precisely means that the appointment of Chamisa and his subsequent appointments are null and void at law. Justice Edith Mushore’s ruling was primarily anchored on the revered principle of constitutionalism, which is fundamentally strict adherence to the MDC constitution itself. Under the circumstances, the process that saw Chamisa’s ascendency to the MDC vice-presidency was declared ultra-vires the MDC constitution. Invoking the legal machinery, the judge principally accused the MDC of trampling upon the tenets of its very constitution. This is precisely the crux of the matter. In the MDC constitution, Article 6.4.4.1, it is clarified that every member of the National Standing Committee (this includes the deputy presidents), should all be elected at the party’s congress. On the contrary, Chamisa and Mudzuri were appointed by Tsvangirai, with an endorsement from the party’s National Council. Justice Mushore’s verdict was therefore premised on limitation of power by a Supreme Court which it did. However, there are plenty interesting things emanating from this ruling. It is evidently a battle of politics and the law. In the legal field, there is something called misdirection. Misdirection occurs in matters of law or matters of fact. In misdirection on matters of law, material to the issue, whatever may be the nature of the case, the verdict will be set aside. Misdirection as to matters of fact will, in some cases, be sufficient to vitiate the proceedings. It appears, for those criticising Justice Mushore’s ruling, the attacks have been mainly based on law and to a lesser extent rooted on fact because there seems to be unanimity as to the facts of the case. This whole matter cannot be dissociated from politics. The ruling has been savaged from different angles and the most compelling argument from those arguing that this is a calculated part of a broader strategy to enfeeble the official opposition in Zimbabwe stems from the contradiction between two rulings from the same court: the current one versus the previous one. Let’s rewind to the 2017 case of Patson Murimoga and Another vs Morgan Richard Tsvangirai N.O and 4 others HH635/17. Murimoga and another MDC member were the very first people to challenge the appointments of Chamisa and Mudzuri as vice-presidents of the party. The High Court then, ruled that the two members who were challenging the appointments lacked locus standi (legal standing) to challenge the appointments. This effectively means the court did not specifically deliberate on the matter but dismissed those who were raising the matter. The current ruling naturally raises a stink, because the matter pertaining to legal standing remains dispositive of the preceding matter of Murimoga and others who initially challenged the ruling. It is precisely this part of the whole matter, which, to the critic, smacks of a political underhand. Both matters should have been, with similarity, dismissed as they, in essence, emanate from the same. Of course, it can be argued legally that the High Court is not bound by its previous judicial rulings, but this, in my view, gives credence to those who believe there is a ploy to emasculate the MDC. Under the circumstances, it is inevitable not to scrutinise the matter through both political and legal lenses. Critics of the judgment have been bundled under the same accusation of shunning legality in favour of political populism. However, like I continue to highlight, the matter cannot be divorced from politics. Coming to political analysis of the matter, away from the legal jargon, one thing is clear; even though the law stands supreme, here the law will substantially be dwarfed by Chamisa’s popularity which is undeniable. It is even vexatious that, under the ruling, Thokozani Khupe, who is deemed the rightful leader of the opposition MDC, can call for an MDC Congress yet her own party has already held such a congress. Going by numbers, Chamisa is two worlds ahead of the rest of the opposition in Zimbabwe. A leader is a leader not through the courts but by their popularity. An example would be one of a biological father to a child. In real terms, any man can be declared a father by virtue of being able to procreate but being a father transcends the nocturnal biological role. A father is one who looks after the child; takes them to school; feeds them and provides mentorship. In the same vein, politics will dwarf the court judgment because Chamisa is simply the most recognisable name in Zimbabwean politics and no amount of legal tomes can undo the fact. Even if Chamisa were to form a new party today, he would still command the massive following he has. Indeed, this is a case of the will of people triumphing over a court ruling. There are simply some things which the law cannot do.` Previous Mtetwa’s exciting debut offering Next Editorial Comment: Our leaders must spare us a thought Correcting Zimbabwe’s human rights record a tough call Reforms without leadership renewal futile Children need quality climate education The perfect storm is brewing I DO not know what we have to say or do to get those in … Lumala Will Be Key Against Zimbabwe – Coach Desabre Children’s fund: Panacea to climate change effects Take Charge of Your Bills Kadewere Makes His Mark in Sweden	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6417
__label__wiki	0.561822	0.561822	Worldwide Boy Gladiators Part 15 By istari copyright 2007 by istari, all rights reserved This story contains scenes depicting sexual acts and various other extreme humiliations involving minor males. This story is intended for adult audiences only, and is a work of complete and total fiction. If you should not be reading things like this, then don't. Story, characters and content are copyright 2007 by istari. Do not repost without permission of the author. Comments are welcome and can be directed to Half a world away from Gladiator Island, Samuel 'Shaka' Nguni hurried along the streets of suburban Johannesburg, his backpack slung carelessly over his right shoulder. The eleven-year-old's pleasant light brown skin stood against his white school shorts and khaki socks. His blue and yellow striped tie had been loosened the second he stepped off school grounds, and he'd undone the first three buttons of his light blue shirt. He'd stuffed his cap into his bag. The boy kept his hair in dreadlocks, the fashion for upper-class South African boys these days, and he hated wearing that stupid school hat. He was tall for his age, with a lean sinewy frame perfect for swimming and running, at both of which he excelled. The boy was eager to get home today to catch the latest tape-delayed broadcast of Worldwide Boy Gladiators. Like most of the black ruling class in South Africa, he got a particular thrill from seeing lowly whites being humiliated and tormented for his entertainment. But he knew there was more to it that just that. He liked watching the boy's nude bodies, watching their cocks flopping about as they ran and jumped and strained and struggled. He always ended up with a raging boner in his shorts. As he ran home, he passed a work brigade of slave boys, all white, all under the age of thirteen and all naked except for the iron collars around their necks. They were chained together by their collars, sweeping the dirt and trash from the curbs. Two overseers, young black men in official government uniforms were supervising the boys, with shock sticks at the ready. The two men tipped their caps to Samuel as he went by. Samuel returned the gesture and smirked at the six white boys. His eyes paused briefly at the chastity pods that encased their genitals. The boys on WBG also wore things like those. He wondered what it would feel like to have his penis locked away forever. Just the thought was enough to make his boyhood jump to life in his shorts. Now with a plainly visible erection, the young eleven-year-old turned through open gate of his family's walled estate. "Good evening, Mister Samuel," his family's white gardener said to him as the boy strode up the walk toward the sprawling single story mansion. Sam knew that once upon at time the gardener's ancestors probably lived here, but today in South Africa whites were kept strictly in their place. Samuel acknowledged the man with indifference and scampered under the colonnades of the main house. "Pieter!" he called out rather impatiently when he reached the hallway. His voice was just showing the first signs of puberty. "I'm home . . ." Seconds later, a nude white boy scurried into the hall. He was roughly the same age as Samuel, a few months older perhaps, but several inches shorter, with firm little muscles reflecting a life of hard work. He had blonde hair and blue eyes and a sweet round freckled face. An iron collar was welded around his neck, and a small ID tag hung from the steel ring in front of it. His genitals were somewhat small for a boy soon to be twelve. He had plump grape-sized testicles stretched low by a two-inch wide metal band locked tightly around his scrotum. It was a rather painful adornment that he'd received when he was nine. The result was that his balls now formed a swollen purple mass at the end of the shiny metal band. Simply touching them was enough to make the boy wince. The boy had a slim two-inch long, tightly circumcised penis, the end of which was pierced with a thick heavy steel ring. Except for the shoulder-length hair on his head, his body was completely hairless. He'd sprouted a few pubic hairs in recent months, but they were always removed before they could thicken or spread. "You're supposed to be waiting for me," Samuel almost pouted as the white naked white boy took his backpack. "I'm sorry, Master," Pieter replied with his head bowed. "Well, you should be . . . and why aren't you wearing your belt?" Pieter normally wore a wide leather belt around his slender waist. The ring at the tip of his tightly skinned cock would be clasped to a ring in the center of the belt, holding his cock up toward his stomach. Pieter's frequent erections were generally ignored, and he was strictly forbidden to touch himself. The belt served as a humiliating and constant reminder of his status in the Nguni household. Pieter gave Sam an embarrassed look. "The missus, Master Sam, she was washing me this morning . . . I had a couple of hairs down there that had to come out . . . " he winced at the memory of the mistress' tweezers. "She sent me out to work in the garden, Master Sam, till you got home, Master Sam. She said she didn't want the belt to get dirty . . . " Pieter was generally not allowed to say much more than variations of 'Yes, master' or 'No, master', and so he stumbled awkwardly over his words. Like Samuel, his voice was just beginning to change. "Oh," Sam smiled. "Well, we should go find it. You know you're not allowed to have your thing hanging free like that." Pieter gave his master a shy grin and gazed down at his soft penis. "I know, sir. It feels weird." "Let's hurry," Sam said, attaching a chain leash to Pieter's collar. "Gladiators is on at six. If you make me miss it, I'll have your ass whipped." Pieter van der Merwe, eleven years and nine months old had been a slave in the Nguni house since he was five. He and his young master had grown up together. It could be said that they were friends, up to a point, but Samuel never let the white boy forget that he was a slave, his slave. Pieter knew the treat of an ass whipping was not an empty one. He still had a hard time sitting down from the one he got the week before at Samuel's command. Pieter was always kept naked, even in public, and so his perpetually red and bruised rear end was always on display for everyone to see. At five minutes to six, Pieter was once again properly secured in his belt and the two boys were in Samuel's big room on the cool south side of the house. "Turn the television on," Sam said as he took off his clothes and rummaged through his drawers to find a pair of shorts. Pieter had seen Samuel naked since they were little, and of course Pieter himself could not remember ever wearing clothes at all. Still, on the cusp of puberty, seeing Sam's smooth brown skin and his long thick penis, considerably larger than his own, caused him to get a weird tingly feeling between his legs. He turned on the liquid crystal HD set and programmed the right channel. He enjoyed Gladiators just as much as his master did, and for the next two hours, he and Sam would shout and giggle and cheer like best boy friends, rather than boy-master and boy-slave. Sammy pulled on a pair of white cotton shorts, adjusted the ample contents hidden inside them and sat down on his soft floor cushion. "Go get me a snack," he ordered. "Hurry or you'll miss something." Pieter took off toward the kitchen. Sam picked up the remote and adjusted the volume. He slid his right hand absent-mindedly into his shorts and fondled his dick. He was fully erect by the time the WBG logo flashed on the screen and the 'Olympics'-style theme music began. He was stroking himself slowly when Pieter returned with sodas and cold sandwiches for them both. Sam grinned shamelessly and pointed to the obvious and rather large tent in his shorts. "You can take care of this for me after the show." "Yes, Master Sam," Pieter replied, handing his master, and his only friend in the whole world, his noticeably larger share of the early evening snack he'd sneakily procured from the pantry. Back on the island. Christopher remained in the training room with Bruce and Lance well into the evening. At the moment he was hanging upside-down, suspended by his slender ankles, a large thick dildo shoved deep into his rectum and a nasty metal clamp on his foreskin. His two temporary masters were beating the soles of his feet with bamboo canes. Already there were livid red stripes on the soft pads of his cute and not-so-little boy-feet. Walking, or even standing, was going to be very difficult for the next few days. The boy was exhausted, but he still managed to shriek and whimper each time they hit him. Even gentle Lance was starting to get into it more and more, enjoying the rare sensation of total power over another human being. Of course, strictly speaking, thirteen-year-old Chris was not a human being. Slaves, even indentured ones, were commodities, often valuable ones to be sure, but they were simply objects to be bought, sold, traded, used and abused as their owners saw fit. There were precious few rules regarding their treatment, and with that great freedom, naturally, came great excess and extraordinarily inventive cruelty. Thus, it was easy enough for Lance (still legally a slave himself) to believe that the naked, crying and suffering boy was getting exactly what he deserved. Any sympathetic understanding that may have existed between the young man and the young teen had gradually faded away as the hours of torment went by in the training room. Ironically it was Bruce who finally had to grab his young partner's hand and put a stop to Christopher Andrews' ordeal. "There are rules here about how much pain we can inflict on the boy's feet," Bruce told Lance. "If he can't walk, he can't compete. I don't want to get stuck with an extra fee for damaging the kid." Lance dropped the cane and gazed at the sobbing upside-down boy. The soles of the thirteen-year-old's feet were a mess. "Oh, god," Lance whispered. "I didn't mean to . . . " "Now you're starting to understand," Bruce said. "Help me get him down." When Chris was lowered to the cold concrete floor, he curled into a defensive little ball. He was covered in welts and bruises from his shoulders all the way down to his feet. His foreskin was still clamped and the end of the large thick dildo was still sticking out of his butt. His cock hadn't been hard in hours, in fact it was small and shriveled, looking more like it belonged to a little ten-year-old. He felt Bruce's hand on his shoulder and he immediately flinched and tensed, fearing another beating was about to begin. Instead he felt the dildo being slowly pulled from his rectum. It hurt every bit as much coming out as it did going in, but Chris no longer had any strength left to scream. He felt all raw and sore and very wide open back there, and he could feel something wet trickling out of him. "Roll over, son," Bruce then said in a surprisingly gentle voice. "I can't take that clamp off you dick if you're all curled up." Chris wasn't sure if he should trust Bruce or not. Maybe this was just a trick. But he really, really, wanted that clamp off his foreskin. It was hurting so bad. With a soft whimper the young teen straightened his legs and rolled onto his back, wincing when his well-punished butt touched the floor. Chris gasped sharply went the clamp came off and the blood rushed back into his foreskin. He looked down at his cock and saw how shriveled and pathetic it looked, and red and sore the tip of his foreskin was. "You're gonna be hurting for a while," Bruce told him, gently stroking the young teen's soft four-inch penis. "But we didn't break the skin, so I don't want to hear you complaining. Now, on your feet. We'll get you cleaned up once we get back to the room." Chris had a hard time getting his legs to work at all, and when he finally did, the pain in his feet made it impossible for him to stand up. He tried twice while Bruce and Lance watched him, but there was no way he was walking out of this room. "I can't do it," the boy mumbled as he dropped to his knees. He was ashamed and humiliated and deathly afraid that this would only result in even more punishment. "You can crawl then," Bruce announced, attaching the leash to the boy's collar once more. Lance gathered up all of the extra gear, including Chris' chastity cage, and the two men led the boy out of the training room. Chris got no relief from his exhaustion as he was again harnessed to the cart, this time on all fours, and made to pull them back to their luxury suite on the other side of the island. It was painfully slow going. Bruce was at least lenient with the whip. The sun had already gone down when Chris brought the cart and its passengers back to their room. He was quickly released from the harness, leashed again, and led back into the cool air-conditioned opulence of the VIP quarters. A glass of cold water, a piece of fruit and an hour locked in the cage helped the boy regain a little of his strength. Chris actually felt rather strange as he lay curled up in the cage. The young teenager was growing accustomed to always being the center of attention. At the moment however, he was being largely ignored. Lance and Bruce were watching various clips and tape-delayed action from other parts of the island. Chris caught a glimpse of the black room. There was Josh, covered from head to toe in black latex and leather. Chris had no way of knowing if Josh was actually still being punished or not. Seeing his brother that way actually made his sore tortured penis twitch and swell and become half hard. Blushing and ashamed of himself, the boy looked away managed to get in a quick cat nap before the unlocking of the cage door woke him. Chris was given the luxury of twenty minutes to shower, all by himself. He was, of course, under strict orders not to touch his genitals, except to get them clean, but given his recent ordeal in the training room, he had no desire at all to play with himself. His nice teenaged cock hung soft between his smooth shapely legs as he stood under the warm stream and let all the sweat and dirt and blood wash away down the drain. He washed his hair, and then took great care in scrubbing his sore and aching genitals. Chris' balls were still red and swollen, and his penis hurt when he pulled back his foreskin to get clean. With two minutes to spare, his hair still wet, his flanks still dripping, Chris presented himself to Bruce and Lance. He was no longer particularly modest about being naked around them, or anybody for that matter. He served them their dinner that night and once again got the privilege of feasting on their unwanted scraps. He then helped them pack their bags for their return home in the morning. "Too bad we can't take you with us, boy," Bruce said, running his hands over Chris' taut abdomen and playfully flicking the thirteen-year-old's soft dangling penis. "We've got a nice big dungeon we could keep you in." Chris wasn't sure if Bruce was serious. He didn't know anything about the legal details of his indenture. Maybe he could be sold. Either way he knew he wouldn't have any say in the matter. He decided it was best just to keep his mouth shut and keep working. Bruce smiled privately, seeing the fear in the young boy's eyes. He'd been thinking about acquiring a new slave boy, now that Lance was a young man, and Chris certainly fit his preferred criteria, intelligent, blond, muscular, and fairly well hung for a boy of thirteen. Naturally he knew young Christopher Andrews was not for sale. His indenture made him untouchable where that prospect was concerned. But perhaps it was time. And there were hundreds of suitable boys to choose from at the regional processing centers. That hadn't been the case back when he'd bought Lance. Lance had been sentenced to slavery as an orphaned juvenile delinquent, as most boys were in the earliest days of the Child Enslavement Act. The court system was originally the only real source of new stock for the boy slave markets. That was ten years ago. Things were very different now. Boys from all levels of society were finding their way into the processing centers or the sweltering slave pens, some sold by their parents, some seized by creditors in payment for their parents' debts, some still sent there by the courts, and, increasingly a number of boys who had 'volunteered' to become slaves, in much the way the Boy Gladiators had signed their own indentures. Bruce would have no problem finding the perfect boy to keep locked in the dungeon. But he did decide that before he left the island, he would get young Christopher's home address. A visit to the boy's parents might just be in order. Chris, for his part, spent the rest of the night naked at Bruce and Lance's feet, being a quiet, submissive little slave boy, fetching them food and drinks, sucking their cocks whenever they demanded it. He was free of his chastity device, and in spite of its recent ordeal his teenaged penis managed several strong erections. He was learning to ignore them, and Bruce and Lance made no further comments about it, nor did they touch it whenever it was hard. The two men took the boy with them into their bed and set the cute young teenager between them as if he was their beloved pet. Chris' cock-cage remained on the table in the living area. Bruce gave him a stern lecture. "I'm not going to put that cage on your dick tonight, boy. But you are not to touch yourself, and I don't want to wake up to hear you humping the mattress like some dog in heat, got it?" "Yes, sir," Chris answered sleepily as he stretched his slim lean torso across the silken sheets. It was the first night Chris had spent in a real bed in almost four weeks. With the two men pressed against him, the exhausted boy drifted off to sleep. He was awakened once, to the not unpleasant feeling of Lance slowly entering him. The younger man fucked the boy gently, came quickly, and withdrew his cock from the boy's well-used hole. They were both asleep again in a matter of minutes. In the barracks the next morning, eight boy gladiators were all lined up in the showers, washing their slim athletic bodies down under the watchful eyes of the guards. The matron wasn't here this morning, which meant that the boys' erect or semi-erect penises went for the most part unnoticed. Still, all the boys were careful not to touch themselves, and their hard boycocks wagged comically back and forth as they scrubbed and rinsed. "Wow, Danny," Gabe said to his partner as they showered side by side, "I think your dick is actually getting smaller." "Stop teasing me, Gabe," the twelve-year-old redhead replied. His was the only penis not currently in some state of erection. Gabe's on the other hand was presently at full mast, a nice thick five-and-one-half inch boy-boner proudly on display. Danny blushed when he once again noticed the huge difference between himself and his partner. "I know. I know its small, ok, I get it." Gabriel's expression turned serious. "I'm not kidding, Dan. It really does look smaller." He pointed at Daniel's little undersized organ. Danny looked down at himself and surveyed his meager endowment. It did look smaller, even accounting for the effects of the ice cold shower. It wasn't even two inches long. The boy swallowed hard and stared back up at Gabriel in dismay. "See what I mean?" Gabe asked. "I think your balls are smaller too." Dan lifted his soft little wiener out of the way and took a hard look at his balls. "Oh, god, they are smaller!" the boy almost shrieked. "What's happening to me?" By now the other boys had joined the conversation. "Maybe it's the pills they give us every morning," David suggested. "But that's supposed to make our dicks bigger," ten-year-old Miles observed, wiggling his slender hips and showing off his presently rock-hard little pickle, all two and three-quarter inches of it. "Yeah, but they changed Danny's a few days ago," David replied astutely. "They're a different color than the rest of us get, so they must be giving him something different . . . something to make his dick and balls shrink." Danny just stood there with a dumbfounded and rather horrified expression on his face. He already had a tiny little dink between his legs, now they were giving him pills to make it even smaller. "Oh, man, this sucks," he said, resting his hands on his hips and once again staring down at his genitals. "If they get any smaller, I won't have anything down here at all." David, as the oldest, took on a brotherly role and laid his hand gently on Danny's shoulder. "I think that's kind of the idea, mate," he said sympathetically. Danny wiped his eyes. It was totally unfair. If any boy needed help to make his dick grow bigger it was him, and instead they were going to make it smaller. He didn't have time to complain about it though, as the guards turned off the water, lined the boys up and proceeded to roughly scrub the boys' genitals, leaving eight sets of sore red penises and scrotums ready to be locked away in chastity devices once more. After breakfast, Calvin Mayfair escorted Danny to the medical department. As always, Danny was required to run at full pace all the way there. Calvin trotted along behind, enjoying the site of the cute muscular naked boy in front of him. Danny had a great set of legs, and all the running was toning them up even more. And the kid's butt was simply fantastic, firm, tight and smooth as silk. Calvin could see the blunt end of the plug sticking out as the boy ran ahead. Doctor Trench welcomed the young gladiator with a clinical smile and quickly put him on the scales. "You're at your ideal body weight, Zero-Five. Excellent." She then went through the normal quick check-up routine, listening to his heart and lungs, then checking his eyes, ears, nose and throat. "Any problems keeping your food down?" she asked the boy. Nausea was a common side-effect of testroxil treatments. Danny shook his head. "No, ma'am," he answered softly, keeping his eyes at his feet. "Good. Now, let's get that belt off you and have a look. I'm going to give you a very thorough examination, and you'll be getting several injections today. You're going to be a big boy and behave for me, right?" "Yes, ma'am." Calvin handed over the keys to Daniel's chastity belt and the doctor quickly removed it and set it aside. Danny remained silent and perfectly still, with his hands clasped behind his head. Immediately Doctor Trench could see that the testroxil was beginning to have the desired effect. The boy's penis was noticeably smaller than the last time she'd examined him, and his testicles were beginning to shrink nicely too. "What's happening to me, ma'am?" the twelve-year-old red-head summoned the courage to ask. "Whatever do you mean, Zero-Five?" Trench replied, knowing full well the urgency of the boy's question but relishing in watching him squirm and curl his little toes in apprehension. "My . . . umm . . . my dingle-dangle, ma'am . . . I think it's getting smaller . . .so are my, you know . . . my balls." The boy's face was a red as the hair on his head. Trench smiled. "A boy your age is old enough to use the right term," she scolded him, gently flicking his circumcised penis with her forefinger. "From now on, in this office, you will refer to it as your penis. Although, it won't even be a dingle-dangle when we're finished with your treatments. I'm sure you've noticed that you're getting a different pill from the other boys. Danny nodded his head. "I didn't at first, ma'am. But yesterday I saw it was a different color, ay." "That's right. Your little parts were so small, we've decided to make them even smaller." Young Daniel gulped and looked down at his little boy package. "How . . . how small are they gonna get, ma'am?" "Well," the woman explained in a kindly, matter-of-fact way, "for the most part your penis will disappear entirely. Your little acorn head there will still stick out, but that's it. That should happen by the end of next week. Your balls will take longer to shrink, but they'll end up the size of marbles. Your scrotum will shrink too." Danny had never really had much interest in that stuff between his legs, but it was still a devastating blow. He started to tear up almost immediately. "Oh, it's not that big a deal," Alison Trench told him. "You'll be happier being castrated. Trust me." Danny's green eyes shoot up at her in panic. He'd heard that word before and he knew what it meant and he knew slave boys often got their boyparts removed. "You're . . . you're gonna cut my balls off?!" he nearly shrieked he was so distraught. "No, silly. We don't need to. The chemicals are doing the same thing. You'll still have everything down there, they just won't work anymore." "Is it . . . is it gonna be, like, forever?" "No, Daniel," the doctor replied, using his real name for the first time. "Once you stop taking the pills, everything will start to grow back. But the company is going to keep you like this for your entire indenture." Danny wiped his eyes. It was still terrible, but at least he knew it wasn't permanent. "When was the last time you had an erection?" the doctor asked as she examined the boy's testicles and gave them a firm squeeze. The twelve-year-old boy wrinkled his nose in thought. "Don't know, ma'am. It's been a few days, ay. I guess when Josh 'n me were wrestling." "And your little penis hasn't been hard since?" Danny shook his head morosely. "Not really, ma'am. It kinda swells up in the morning, just a bit." "Rub it for me. Let me see if you can give yourself an erection." By now, the doctor's assistants had gathered round the naked boy. Danny blushed fiercely and wrapped three fingers around his soft limp little penis. After ten minutes of intense pumping and pulling and yanking, he'd managed to make it red and sore, but it was still perfectly soft. "Good," Doctor Trench announced after ordering him to stop. "No sign of an erection. You won't be having any more of those for a long time. Now, climb up on the exam table and put your feet in the stirrups. I need to administer an injection into your testicles. This is really going to hurt. Strap him down, ladies." Once Daniel was on the table, Anna tightened the leathers straps over the boy's thighs and locked his ankle shackles to the stirrups. Karin fitted the chest strap snuggly and secured it in place beneath the table. Together they moved the stirrups out and up, spreading the twelve-year-old's legs painfully and embarrassingly wide. Danny's little parts were now utterly defenseless. Anna then buckled a thin leather strap around the boy's scrotum, forcing his balls out from his body. Doctor Trench had meanwhile prepared the syringes for injecting a concentrated dose of testroxil directly into the boy's testicles. Curious in spite of his terror, Danny watched as the first needle was pressed against his right testicle. The doctor held it there for a few seconds. Danny winced at feeling of the cold thin sharp point. Then, with wide bewildered eyes, he watched as the three-inch long needle was pushed half way into his testicle. He opened his mouth to scream in pain and panic, but no sound came out, just a shocked and desperate little squeal. Trench pressed the plunger, injecting the clear fluid. Danny's eyes grew even wider and he winced sharply. "You'll feel a little burning at first, then it will go numb for a while." She pulled the needle out and set it aside, picking up the second one. "Now let's do the left one." Again Danny endured the horror of having the thin sharp needle jabbed into one of his testicles. It was all over in an instant, but from the boy's perspective it seemed to take forever. Anna and Karin released the straps and got him back to his feet. The leather strap around his balls remained cinched tightly in place for another five minutes while the doctor continued her examination. "Bend over and grab your ankles. Keep still now." Danny's butt-plug was removed and he was given a thorough prostate exam. A few clear drops of prostatic fluid dribbled out of his soft little dick. "His prostate seems healthy," she informed Calvin and her assistants. "It's going to become extraordinarily sensitive over the next few years, a rather wicked side-effect of the drug. He won't have a single erection or orgasm, and he won't produce any sperm, but he'll be leaking almost constantly." "How humiliating," Karin said in mock sympathy, playfully fondling the twelve-year-old's now dormant genitals. "We're done here for now, Cal," Trench told the boy's trainer. "We'll get him plugged and you can take him on his way." She picked up the boy's chastity belt and handed it to Calvin. "I don't think he'll be needing this anymore," she observed, "but rules are rules, aren't they?" Calvin nodded and quickly locked Daniel back into the chastity belt, making sure the metal genital plate was as tight and snug as possible. "Come on, limp-dick," he said, tugging at the ring on the boy's collar, "you've got weight training this afternoon, and I want you to do some laps in the pool first." Danny nodded, embarrassed at this turn of events, but determined that he was still going to kick everyone's ass on this island. "You know the rules, boy. Run to the pool and wait for me. I'll be along in a few minutes. Don't go in the water unless there's another trainer there, got it?" "Yes, sir," Danny said, all too happy to run from the medical center as fast his gorgeous muscular twelve-year-old legs could carry him. Josh was released from medical at mid-morning. Hannah collared him and shackled him and hung the heavy chain from his neck once more. Just as the boy had feared, she decided to make him keep wearing the diaper. "You wear this," she said, playfully squeezing the eleven-year-old's oversized bulge beneath the thick cotton padding, "or the chastity belt." Josh wasn't sure he was actually being given a choice, but he hated that belt. It made his balls go up inside him and he hated having his penis pinned down between his legs. At least in the diaper his dick could get hard if it wanted to and no one would say anything about it. "Besides, you look adorable. Spaceships, huh? I liked the bunnies better, but boys will be boys. Come on." "Where are we going, ma'am?" Josh asked politely as Hannah lead him by his chain out into the warm humid tropical morning. "I'm taking you back to the barracks. We need to get some solid food in you before you do anything else. Then Michella and I have something nice planned for you and One-Zero this afternoon." Josh didn't much like the sound of that, but his growling stomach and the promise of real food, even slave food, was all he could really think about. At that same moment, Chris was just waking up in the big soft luxurious bed. His body was stiff and sore, his head hurt, and for the first time since he could remember he didn't have a raging morning boner between his legs. He actually reached down and flicked his soft penis with his fingers. It still ached from being pierced with all those needles. 'No wonder it won't get hard,' Chris thought, thinking back to yesterday and the horror of the training room. He moved around under the silken sheet and arched his back and let out a big yawn. Lance was still there in bed beside him. Bruce could be heard moving around out in the living area. Chris managed to sit himself up on one elbow. He gazed at Lance's sleeping face and allowed his eyes to trail down the young man's lean and superbly muscular torso. Rather naturally or artificially, Lance's body was just as hairless as his own, except for that dark patch of pubic hair crowning his cock. Chris' sleeping penis finally seemed to wake up and swelled to a semi-erect state. The thirteen-year-old boy blushed. He felt sort of embarrassed. He'd never looked at a grown man, even though a very young one, this way before. As if it had a mind of its own, he found his hand slowly running down Lance's smooth chest. 'Oh, god, what am I doing?' the boy thought as his young heart raced. But he didn't stop. Instead he moved closer and continued his explorations until his hand reached Lance's abdomen. Lance opened his eyes and smiled at him. "I . . . uh . . . I was just . . . umm . . ." "You're curious. It's okay. I was a gay boy myself . . . not too long ago." "Can I . . . you know . . . " Chris pointed to Lance's erection. "Can I suck it?" "Hmmm, a sexy thirteen-year-old boy wants to suck my dick," Lance said with a grin. "What should I say?" Chris smiled back shyly. In that moment, with sleep still in his eyes and his hair mussed from tossing and turning, he looked considerably younger than his proud thirteen years. He curled himself up slowly, his bruised and aching body making him wince. He stroked Lance's penis with his left hand first, then, timidly, he took the young man's sex into his mouth. Chris was quickly becoming quite adept at this task, but this was the first time he'd initiated it. It actually felt rather dizzying. "Don't ever be ashamed of who you are, Chris," Lance whispered, gently stroking the young boy's back, careful to avoid the painful welts that remained from the night before. It didn't take Chris long to make Lance cum, and the boy dutifully swallowed all of the young man's seed. Thirty minutes later, without breakfast and with a growling stomach, Chris was standing at the entrance to the barracks, once again locked in his chastity device, plugged, and wearing all of the leather gear he'd started off in. His body was bruised and sore, his back, buttocks and the backs of his thighs were covered in welts. The soles of his feet still hurt a lot. He was glad this latest ordeal was over, but he was also scared. He'd missed two days of training, and the next round of competitions was coming up. He knew he wasn't going to be ready. Bruce swatted the boy on the rump after signing him back over to the guards at the gate. "See you around kid," he said. "We'll be back next year." Lance didn't say anything at all. He gave the boy a kindly glance then turned and walked off with his partner toward the airstrip. The guards marched Chris inside, removed all of the leather and replaced it with the iron collar and shackles the boy had now become accustomed to wearing. To his delight, there was a breakfast tray waiting for him on the table. It had gone cold some time ago, but he didn't mind at all. He sat down gingerly on his sore tender butt and ate ravenously, occasionally raising his head to look around. The barracks were deserted this morning. He assumed all the other boys were out practicing and training. His eyes fell to the lighted scoreboard which was now a permanent fixture on the far wall. The points and standings for the new week so far were up there. Being out of action for two days, Chris only had the demerits he'd gotten on Sunday, and no bonus points at all. That put him squarely in the middle of the pack, which really wasn't a bad place to be when it came right down to it. 'Could have been worse,' he thought to himself. He saw that his brother was no longer in last place, although he was very much in the red. Illya was leading once again. Generally well-behaved and demonstrating amazing athletic prowess and endurance the shy Russian lad, who seldom opened his mouth, was quickly becoming the boy to beat in the early days on the island. The rest of the boys were spread out evenly. He was surprised to see little Miles in the top three. 'That'll change,' he thought smugly. All the boys liked Miles, but they didn't consider him to be a real Boy Gladiator like they were. He was just a little kid after all, what competition could he possibly be to them? Chris had just returned his attention to his breakfast, now even colder, when he heard a soft and familiar voice behind him. "Hey, Chris." It was Josh. Chris turned and saw his little brother for the first time in several days. Actually this was just about the longest either of them could remember ever being totally separated. Chris immediately noticed Josh's diaper but decided not to say anything for the moment. He was too happy to see him. He got up from the table and the two boys hugged, something they almost never did. "Are you ok?" big brother asked. "Yeah, I'm good," little brother answered and the two of them sat down to talk. "What was it like in that room?" Josh tried to put on a brave front for his older brother, but Chris could see the fear that flashed into the younger boy's eyes at the mere mention of it. "Aw, it wasn't that bad," Josh lied. "The suit they put me in felt weird, like another skin or something . . . the hood sucked . . . and they put this tube thingy in my dick . . . still kinda hurts when I pee . . . " "What's with the diaper, Joshie?" "They said I needed that when they took me outta there. I was kinda out of it for a while. Now Hannah thinks I look cute in it, so I gotta wear it 'til she says." Chris had to admit his little brother did actually look adorable in the puffy white diaper with the colorful spaceships. If he hadn't been so tired he'd have teased him about it mercilessly. Josh looked down at his cotton-clad middle and pointed to the ships. "At least these are kinda cool. When I woke up, they had me in bunnies!" "Bunnies!" Chris laughed. "Yeah, for serious, man, like I'm some little kid or . . . or like a girl or something." "There's boy bunnies too," Chris giggled and nudged his little brother in the leg. "Duh, I know that. What happened to you? You look like total shit." "Thanks, bro. I . . . uh, . . . I got rented, for two days . . . " "Rented? Oh, you mean . . . " "Yeah." "What did they do to you? Did they, you know, make you do sex stuff?" "Yeah," Chris said with a sigh. Thinking back it was so hard, the things Bruce and Lance did to him and made him do, and yet some of it was really kind of exciting. As proof, his abused cock twitched inside its cage. "Yeah, sex stuff . . . lots of that . . ." Josh was full of questions. "Did they, um, put their, uh, thingies inside you?" "You mean did they fuck me?" Josh smiled and blushed. It was weird hearing his brother say that word. They weren't allowed to use words like that at home. "Yeah, that." "Lots of times. My butt still hurts. I had to suck their dicks too." "Bet you liked that part, didn't you?" Chris was shocked. "You don't know anything about that, so shut up." "Oh, come on, Chris. I've known you were gay for as long as you've known you were gay. What's the big deal?" "I am NOT talking to my little brother about this, ok? Period." "K. Just want you to know its cool with me . . . you know . . . how you like boys 'n stuff. You think I'm cute?" "Shut up, Josh," but Chris said it with a smile and the Andrews brothers spent the next few minutes joking and teasing just like they did back home. Hannah then came for Josh, and Jason arrived for Chris shortly thereafter. "Damn, kid, you look like hell. What did those guys do to you anyway?" Chris didn't bother to answer. He just stood there stoically as Jason attached his chains. "Better go easy on you today. We'll start in the weight room and go from there." "Yes, sir," Chris replied with a glum and worried expression. He knew he was in no shape to lift weights, or do anything. He just wanted to sleep, but that would obviously have to wait. In Special Training Room One, Joshua and David were presently on their knees in front of Hannah and Michella who were seated side by side. The two women had tied the boys' hands behind their backs with rope. Josh had lost his diaper and David was temporarily freed of his chastity cage. The eleven and fourteen-year-old boys had their heads between the legs of their boy-hating lesbian trainers and were learning, rather awkwardly, how to pleasure them. "Mmmm," Michella moaned, turning her gaze to Hannah. "I never thought I'd get so much fun out of a naked little boy . . . " she paused to kick David in the thigh. "Let me feel your tongue you stupid brat." "You've got him hard," Hannah said, observing David's throbbing, leaking erection. "Can't say the same for dick-boy here. Get it up, Zero-Two. I want that big thing nice and hard. Get it hard for me." At eleven, Josh really didn't have too much control over when his penis got hard and when it didn't. He knew it seemed to misbehave at all the wrong times, and now, when Hannah wanted him to spring a boner, he couldn't get one. "Five demerits, Joshie," Hannah said with relish. The boy whined plaintively, but did not dare stop using his tongue between the woman's legs. "You know, Mich, we really should look into buying a boy. If we went in together, we could get a real cute one just like these two." Michella leaned back and panted for a moment. David was clearly doing a much better job at his assigned task than young Joshua. "What was that . . . oh, a boy. I've thought about that too. You don't think Durand would object, do you?" "What business is it of his what we do in our free time? Keep going, Josh, this doesn't concern you. Durand keeps that pet boy of his, parades him around the island like a trophy. Let's save up and do it." Michella smiled and gasped again. "Good boy, David. Don't stop . . . mmmm . . ." "We can check the on-line brokerage firms tonight after the reception and see what they've got. Just think, Mich, a little piece of boy-meat all our own . . . we could do things to him we can't do with these two . . . " Michella however was getting close to an orgasm and wasn't really paying her partner much attention. She grabbed the back of David's head and pressed the boy closer. The fourteen-year-old was now groaning and struggling to somehow get his bound arms to reach around to his desperately hard dick, but there was no way he could do it. With the plug constantly massaging his over-active adolescent prostate and his penis normally encased in a stainless steel cage, to say he was frantic for an orgasm was a mild understatement. "Don't you worry about that little thing between your legs, Davy," Michella said in her most evil manner. "You have a session with the milking machine as soon as we're done." David moaned again and flinched at the mere mention of that terrible machine. He clearly remembered the last time, the humiliation of being up on that table on his hands and knees, his balls dangling between his thighs, his cock imprisoned in that steel tube, and the exquisite ecstasy and agony of being milked dry by the relentless, merciless machine. William Durand was interrupted from reading the latest financial reports by Trevor's timid knock at the study door. "Yes, Trevor," he said rather impatiently. The boy had been cleaning the house today and not being terribly quiet about it. "I'm sorry, master, but Jason Sanborne is in the hall. He . . . um, well, he said he'd knock me silly if I made him wait on the porch. He's . . . he's got one of them with him . . . one of the gladiators, sir." Durand raised his right eyebrow. He had established strict rules about who could be admitted into his private mansion, and the ten Boy Gladiators were most definitely not on the list. "I think he's really mad about something, sir . . . " Trevor continued, nervously wiggling his toes. "Really?" "Quite pissed, I'd say, sir," the small slender fourteen-year-old replied with a worried look. "Watch your language, Trevor. Why don't you go down to the beach while I take care of Mister Sanborne. I'll join you later." Trevor's eyes lit up and he promptly stripped off his skimpy thong (a pink one today) revealing his smooth lean body and his tiny almost non-existent genitals. He could get to the beach through the glass doors of the study and he quickly ran through. "Thank you, master," he managed to shout as his feet hit the wooden deck. Durand gazed after his prize boy for a moment, then rose, straightened his designer shirt and walked purposefully into the hall. He found Jason standing there with an angry scowl on his face and next to him, wrists and ankles in chains, just as Trevor had reported, was one of the boy gladiators. He stared at the lad for a moment and recognized him as the older Andrews boy. "Good afternoon, Jason." He did not bother extending a greeting to the naked indentured boy. "I don't suppose it occurred to you to leave that little animal chained outside." "He's the reason I'm here, sir," Jason said, trying to contain his mounting anger. Chris was simply a mess at the moment. Too sore and exhausted and too mentally distressed from his ordeal to focus on his training. He was going to be useless during the weekend competitions, if he could compete in them at all. That meant demerits, lots of them, and even though Jason had no particular hesitation to see the boy punished in extraordinary ways, the fact was that Christopher's performance, good or bad, reflected directly on him. If Chris lost, Jason lost, in a manner of speaking. "Look at him, Bill." Durand was no fool. He knew from the first that the boy must have been badly used in the last few days. His lithe thirteen-year-old body was covered in bruises and welts and even extra food and a warm shower had done little to erase his haggard appearance. "Do I need to explain it further?" Jason asked. "How in the hell do you expect me to get this boy ready to compete, or keep him in proper training, when he's spending his days with our sadistic clients?" "I certainly agree that Bruce got a bit carried away. He has that reputation." "That's not really the point," Jason continued, letting got of the chain attached to Christopher's collar. It dropped against the boy's chest. "I have no problem with seeing this boy suffer, that's part of the arrangement, I knew that when I signed on, and so did he for that matter," he swatted Chris on the butt. "But we make money and get ratings when our boys are on camera and when they're competing. It's just bad for business if I can't get this kid into the arena." "He won't be competing this weekend?" Jason shrugged his shoulders. "Certainly not in some of the events. He can barely walk, let alone run. Show him your feet, Zero-Seven." Chris obediently turned around and raised his left foot then his right, revealing the nasty livid stripes that still made each step painful for him. "Oh, dear. That is serious," Durand replied. "You are damn right it is, Bill. These boys represent a huge investment in time, energy and money. They're animals, yes, but thoroughbreds. We need to be more careful with them." Durand was not an unreasonable man. He hadn't become the head (and owner) of the world's most influential multi-media empire without listening to good advice when it came his way. "What do you suggest, Jason? That we stop offering the boys' services to our clients? I am sorry, but that option is just too lucrative to abandon. We made half-a-million this week from those two boys." "Just tone things down a bit, Bill. Twelve hours, twenty-four max, and certain body parts that would affect their athletic performance must be off-limits from now on." "That is a sensible compromise. We can't have them laying in medical when we go live on the weekends, can we?" "That won't be good for the project, sir." "I agree. We'll discuss changing the rental options at our staff meeting tomorrow. Acceptable?" "Perfectly." "Good. I'll see you at the reception this evening. Our newest group of visitors should start arriving later this afternoon." Jason grabbed the chain attached to Chris' collar and gave the boy a firm tug indicating it was time to go. "Oh, and Jason. If you ever bring one of those filthy little beasts into my home again, you will be on the next plane out. Understood?" "Perfectly." By evening, all ten boys were together again for the first time in several days, just in time for the latest reception for the incoming group of VIPs and special guests. It was only Wednesday, but now that the show had officially begun, guests had started arriving throughout the week in accordance with their own private schedules. The regular weekly reception was thus moved up to ensure that those who arrived earlier in the week had something to look forward to. This would mark the first week of the normal competition schedule as well, with the boys engaged in intense training on Thursdays and a new round of events and ordeals starting first thing Friday morning. The boys of course were not specifically told about these changes. It was none of their business after all. It was their job to go where they were told, do what they were told and not ask questions. As before they were dressed in their short skin-tight sleeveless tunics and their even shorter and tighter white shorts which revealed ten cute boy-bulges, some very large, a few very small, but all incredibly adorable. The boys' chastity devices had been removed for the evening, and they remained under the strict rules of not touching themselves or having orgasms without permission. Once again the floor of the main arena played to host to the island's new arrivals. Some had boys with them, invariably clad in a wide array of chains, irons, leather and latex, others seemed to be alone, but all of them were sharply dressed. The boy gladiators stood at attention in the midst of this gathering of well-to-do men and women of power and influence. Showered, scrubbed and all now with nicely bronzed skin, they each turned slowly in a circle so everyone could get a good look at them. Five pairs of muscular berry-brown boy legs were on display, ten firm adorable little butts, presently clad in tight white shorts. Their hair had started to grow in some and by popular demand it had been decided that all the boys would be wearing their hair long. The boys' tunics were all embarrassingly short, revealing their taut toned abdominal muscles and their adorable and highly kissable navels. The guests applauded their appearance. The gladiators knew their roles this evening without being told and immediately went to the serving tables to pick up their trays of food. They moved about quickly from guest to guest and group to group, having formed a silent pact that speed and agility might help them avoid having their cocks and balls played with. All of them remembered their punishments for having unauthorized orgasms at this same event the week before. The spanking machine was already set up at the far end of the arena to chastise any boy whose penis misbehaved. Chris alone amongst the boys could not keep up with their swift pace. While the others, including his little brother danced and dodged playfully around the guests, the thirteen-year-old was a boy in slow motion. His feet hurt so bad, and his joints were stiff. As the only easy catch, he was the first of the boys to be relieved of his shorts, forced to walk around nude from the waist down with his nice long teenaged cock swinging provocatively between his legs. Of course, the boys' plan to avoid prodding and probing hands backfired on them. By swirling and skipping and dashing around the arena, they only incited more excitement and interest from the crowd. Catching one of the boys long enough to fondle the contents of his shorts became each guest's principle objective. The trainers all looked on with wry smiles. "Little shits thought they were going to get away with something, didn't they?" Roger Bramley said to young Sergei Casparev, Illya's big brother. Sergei himself, being only seventeen, was receiving quite a bit of attention from certain elements of the crowd too. Those who preferred older boys found him to be rather irresistible, but Sergei wisely turned down their many offers. As the junior-most trainer he had to watch his step, but he was not above flirting and teasing. On several occasions Illya came over to him in an attempt to get away from the grasping hands of the VIPs. The boy had so far managed to keep both his shorts and his tunic, but his enormous semi-erect penis, trapped inside the tight white shorts made a tempting target. Sergei showed a rare moment of mercy, allowing his little brother to stand close to him for a few minutes while he pretended to decide which finger-food he should select from the boy's tray. "Thanks, Serge," Illya whispered before he was sent back into the fray. By the time the food was consumed to everyone's satisfaction, Chris, Philippe, and David were completely nude. Danny and Gabe had lost their tunics but not their shorts. Ian, Josh, and Alexei were missing their pants but still had their tunics, and by some miracle, little Miles and tall muscular Illya were still fully dressed, if that term could be applied to those skimpy uniforms. As a special bonus, the boys were all returned to the center of the arena where a low platform had been set-up by the mules. The gladiators all stood there together wondering what was going to happen next. "I hope everyone has brought their cameras," William Durand announced. "The boys are now available for photographs. But first I think the ones who are still wearing clothes should take them off, don't you?" The guests shouted in agreement and soon chants of "Strip! Strip! Strip!" were being directed at the partially dressed boys. Moments later all ten boy gladiators were standing there under the harsh lights in all their pre-teen and teenaged glory. Being so exposed naturally induced erections in several of the boys and that's when the flashes from the digital cameras began. For the next hour, the boys were subjected to an embarrassing photo session. They had to pose in lewd and provocative positions, bending over and spreading their butt-cheeks, having their genitals photographed from close-up, being forced to kiss one another, masturbate one another to the brink of orgasm, the older boys made to lick their pre-cum off their cocks with their fingers. One group had taken Gabe and Miles (the two British boys) aside and were making Gabriel insert his penis into Miles' little butt. Of course Miles had been plugged and had dildos shoved up there since his arrival, just like the older boys, but Gabe's was the first real penis that had been forced inside him. It hurt a lot and the little boy screamed and cried and begged for Gabe to take it out. Gabriel wanted to, but strong adult hands on his slender waist held him firmly in position as frame after frame of Miles' rough deflowering by an older boy was captured and would soon be in private collections all around the world. This of course was the first time twelve-year-old Gabe had put his five-inch erection into anyone or anything and he couldn't believe how great it felt. He came inside the crying ten-year-old's butt a few minutes later. He tried not to, but it just felt so incredibly good. He clenched his eyes closed, tensed his muscles and shot his milky not-quite-teenaged seed into the little boy's rectum. Miles was humiliated and sobbing and he collapsed on the floor when the adults finally let Gabe pull out. The older boy knelt down beside him and patted him on the back. "I'm sorry, Miles, I really am," he whispered before being led away to the spanking machine. For having an orgasm without permission, Gabriel would soon discover that he was indeed very, very sorry. By the end of the evening, only half of the boys had spent time on the Boy-Spank 350, but all of them were rather worse for wear. The march back to the barracks was a dead silent one. They were allowed to shower again, given a small snack and a glass of milk, locked into their chastity devices once more and secured in their cells for the night. The second week of live competition would start on Friday. Tomorrow they had a full day of harsh physical training to look forward to. "I can't believe they took all those pictures of us," Josh said to David as the two boys settled onto their bunks. Happily he was not in a diaper. Unhappily, his cock and balls were once again confined by the metal plate of his chastity belt. "I mean can't they just watch us on TV like everyone else?" David, for his part, got a rather strange thrill from showing off his body for camera. He was a well-built kid, with a lithe body perfectly proportioned and toned for swimming. He was proud of the way he looked, and happy about how much stronger he'd gotten since he'd been on the island. "I don't know, mate," he replied thoughtfully, his adolescent voice cracking, "I thought it was kinda nice. The way they look at us, you know . . . " "I don't like the way they look at me, they tease me about my big dick." "So do I," the fourteen-year-old replied with a crooked grin. "That's different. You're my friend, and I tease you about yours too." "Mine isn't really that small, Josh. Yours is just way too big." "Shut up, Davy," the younger boy said, mimicking Michella's sweet sarcastic tone when saying his name. David was across the space between the bunks instantly and on top of Josh a split second later. "Wanna wrestle me, huh?" Josh asked, squirming under the bigger boy's weight. The two boys laughed and grappled for a few minutes before David called it off and returned to his bunk. "Night, mate. Let's kick ass this week, ok?" "Totally," Josh said, curling onto his side and drifting off to sleep. Thursday was a mad whirlwind of activity. It was now September, and the tropical hurricanes had started. The first one of the year was passing well to the east, but it brought torrential rains to the little island, adding to the boy gladiators' collective misery as they were driven along from activity to activity. By mid-day they had gotten used to being soaking wet. At least the strong winds helped keep them somewhat cool. Still sore and tired from his ordeal with Bruce and Lance, Chris stubbornly struggled through the day, resisting Jason's offers of leniency. "Kid's got balls," Ian's trainer Anthony observed as he stood beside Jason watching his own boy power through a set of push-ups. "Not going to do him much good tomorrow," Jason replied. Somewhat frustrated he called to boy over to him. Chris stood in front of his trainer with a defiant look in his otherwise tired eyes. "What?" the boy snapped, forgetting his place. Jason reminded him with a sharp slap to the face. "Don't speak to me that way, boy." "Sorry, sir," Chris lowered his eyes and seemed to lose his teenaged bravado. "Are you a complete idiot?" Jason asked. "No, sir," Chris answered, feeling hurt and ashamed. "I don't understand, sir. I'm supposed to try my best all the time, right? I'm behind, you know . . . I gotta catch up . . . " Jason's tone softened, as did his expression. He liked Chris. He really did. For all sorts of not entirely objective reasons. He reached out and laid a hand on the boy's shoulder. "That's true, but what's going to happen to you if you wear yourself before tomorrow even gets here?" "I'll lose for sure." "That's right. So take it a little easy on yourself. No one gets points for being first today." Chris raised his head and gave Jason a quick smile. That really did make sense. He was glad Jason was thinking about stuff like that all the time so he didn't have to. It was hard enough just being a slave. With a pat on the rump the boy was sent on his way once more. Thursday ended for all the boys with an unusually large if not necessarily tasty dinner, and they were all locked in their cells early that night, with strict instructions not to stay up talking. At eleven o'clock the next morning the blue and white flags with the WBG logo were fluttering above the high outer walls of the hippodrome, indicating an event was about to begin. Inside the stands were empty, but only because the large crowd was instead gathered along the edges of the two straightaways. Five small wooden sledges were positioned at the start-finish line. With the loud blaring of the Worldwide Boy Gladiators theme over the speakers, the ten young warriors, fresh from breakfast, ran out of the tunnel in military lockstep. Their regular slave collars had been exchanged for thicker, heavier ones with sharp spikes. They were wearing their wrist and ankle shackles, as always, but they were not chained. The boys' various chastity devices had been removed and replaced with tight-fitting cock and ball harnesses that induced erections, or at least obvious swellings in all the young penises. Even Daniel's was hanging longer and thicker than normal, simply because of the blood trapped inside it by the steel rings of the harness. He wasn't hard. By now Daniel knew that he would not be able to have an erection again for the next four years. He wasn't sure exactly how he was supposed to feel about that, but at the moment he had the latest upcoming event to occupy his mind. Josh, much to his relief, was not wearing a diaper. He stood there in the tropical sun with his hard oversized penis jutting straight out and bobbing rapidly with the beat of his pulse. With his punishment and his time spent in medical, the eleven-year-old had missed the whole week of training, and even though his joints were still stiff and sore he was eager to get back to competing. Everything else about the island and being a slave totally sucked, but he liked the thrill of competition, of pitting himself against the bigger, older, stronger boys. He promised himself he'd never chicken out, no matter what they did to him. A little snarl came to his lips as the crowd cheered. As a group they ran a single lap around the track, to be sure everyone on both sides got a chance to see them. Then, as with the start of each live competition, the boys formed a straight line in front of the spectators and saluted. They all smiled sheepishly at each other, giggled as if they shared a secret, then in unison they shouted: "We are BOY GLADIATORS! We've got muscles, we've got cocks, we're brave and strong . . . and we don't wear socks . . ." Young Ian, who came up with this new chant at breakfast, then shouted in his high unbroken voice, "We don't wear anything!" All ten of them then struck various poses and wiggled their boy-cocks and cute little butts at the spectators. The crowd laughed. The trainers frowned. William Durand, from his luxury box, smiled. His boy gladiators were definitely becoming stars. With the preliminaries out of the way, and Mike Brussard's camera teams ready, the first of the day's events was set to start. The oldest boys were prepared first. They were made to sit down on the wooden sledges bearing their respective numbers. The sledges were completely flat with two metal rings on each side. The trainers quickly attached their boy's wrist and ankle shackles to these rings, ensuring that the young gladiators would not be able to get off the sled until the event was complete. The boys were sitting up straight, with their arms slightly behind and their legs bent up and spread wide in front of them, their harnesses and excited genitals on lewd display. Thirteen-year-old Illya's freakish eight-inch erection drew gasps of amazement and some laughter from the crowd. The biggest of the boys just barely fit on the sledges. All of them still had their butt-plugs in, so they were squirming uncomfortably on the hard flat wooden surfaces. Their discomfort only increased when the trainers attached large heavy clamps to their nipples. Poor Chris' nipples were already sore and swollen from being pierced and tortured by Bruce. He screamed and wailed and bucked like a wild horse when the hard merciless steel clamps went on. Of course he wasn't the only boy who shouted, but he was the loudest. "It can't be that bad, Zero-Seven," Jason told him, "all you've got to do for this one is sit and hold on to the sledge, so stop your whining. I've got even bigger clamps I could use, if you make me look like a fool out here." That threat was enough for Chris to behave himself. With wet eyes he nodded and tried to regain his composure. A long thick chain was attached to the end of each clamp. Two more chains of similar weight and thickness were clasped to the d-rings embedded on either side of the boys' cock and ball harnesses. The five older boys now had four heavy chains connected to the most sensitive parts of their young bodies. All the chains were momentarily allowed to lie upon the ground, while the younger boys were prepared for their part in this latest spectacle of pain and suffering. The little ones were first put into knee pads and chest harnesses, then they too received nipple clamps like the ones already bringing tears to their older counterparts' eyes. The five youngsters were given all of thirty seconds to get used to the merciless clamps on their tiny boy-nips. "Alright, sprouts," Jason shouted, "get down on your hands and knees so your trainers can hook you up to your partners." The nature of the event suddenly became dreadfully clear to the boy gladiators. A reverse of the positions in the chariot race, with the younger boy pulling and the older boy riding, only this time the boys were chained together by their genitals and their nipples. Ten pairs of young eyes bore very worried expressions. The trainers finished hooking the boys together. One final chain connected the back of the younger boy's harness to the front of his partner's collar. "Twice around the track, boys," Jason shouted over the rising noise of the crowd. "Winning team is excused from the next event . . . and trust me, you want to be the winning team." With a signal from Jason, Roger Bramley blew his whistle to start the contest. The five youngest gladiators crawled forward, groaning in distress as their genitals and nipples were pulled harshly by the chains. Their older partners joined them almost instantly. After moving forward only a few feet, all ten boys were shouting and blinking tears out of their eyes as their most tender parts were yanked away from their bodies. This wasn't going to be an event of speed, but rather simple endurance. Chained to the sledges, the older boys were basically helpless dead weight, all they could do was sit there and shout encouragement, or curses, at their younger partners. Pulling the sled proved to be a particularly difficult challenge for Miles and Ian. Miles because he was by the far the smallest boy, and Ian because his partner Illya was the biggest. "We are not finishing last, mate!" David shouted at Josh through clenched teeth. His cock and balls had been stretched a good two inches from his hairless groin. His nipples were in much the same painful state. "Go faster!" "That's easy for you t'say," Josh snapped back. His genitals were now being tugged painfully behind him, his big long oversized penis swinging from side to side as he crawled along. His nipples felt like they were on fire. They were currently in the middle of the pack, but all five teams were within a boys-length of each other, and the pace was slow. Every time one of the little ones tried to speed up and crawl faster, it put more tension on the chains, yanking harder on both of them. And so a team would briefly surge ahead, only to fall back a moment later with both boys screaming their heads off. The boys were absolutely forbidden to stop. The trainers walked or jogged along beside them, delivering incentives with their shock sticks to any pair of boys who looked like they might stop moving forward. All the while the sun blazed down mercilessly upon the anguished naked sweating boys. The crowd cheered and hollered and pelted the young gladiators with pebbles and small stones picked up from the dirt track. It was, in all, the most painful, cruel, horrible ordeal the boys had yet suffered as a group, but still each team struggled forward, all five of them finishing within a few feet of each other. Danny and Gabe were the winners. Miles and Philippe came in last. This event was particularly unfair to the littlest gladiator. Unlike the chariot race, where the carts were specifically weighted to ensure that each of the pony-boys was pulling roughly the same weight, the sledges were all identical. Small ten-year-old Miles, just barely over four-feet tall had to pull fourteen-year-old Philippe around the track. It was a testament to the little boy's will and endurance that he managed to finish at all, but last was last, and both boys lost five points for being the final team to cross the line. This left Miles in tears, much to the delight of Mike Brussard who panned in for a close-up as the boy cried. Of all the boys, Miles had had things relatively easy so far, but life on Gladiator Island was harsh and unfair in the most cruel and calculated ways, and things were about to get worse for the ten brave boys who now stood under the hot tropical sun, under the glare of a crowd that was here for the sole purpose of watching them suffer. पराये मर्द ने मामी की चुत चाटी ओर चोदा asstr jake cabin boy Gyrating my ass on my sons hard bulge fiction porn stories by dale 10.porn.com Kleine Fötzchen im Urlaub perverse geschichten बचपन में खूब चूचे दबाये ma ko chutathe pakda the pleasure of words by kysa braswell daddy needs to rape cache:XypYOJqvnYAJ:awe-kyle.ru/~LS/stories/baracuda1967.html lil girl dripping wet gushing pussy asstr txt cache:zkdOhXZEycAJ:awe-kyle.ru/~Olivia_Palmer/oop-aa001.html Alvo Torelli stories hajostorys.com cache:Fnul4n9keMYJ:awe-kyle.ru/~SirSnuffHorrid/KelliPaine/The%20Men's%20Club.html Aunt/nephews/niece/uncle/mother/father. 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__label__wiki	0.767065	0.767065	Te Ohanga me te Tāone Nui Te Tāone Inner-city living Kōrero: Inner-city living Early inner-city living and its decline City flats Inner-city revival Inner-city people Whārangi 1. Early inner-city living and its decline Merchants’ homes Slum-like living Wellington YMCA hostel (1 o 2) Flatting The inner city refers to the central business district (CBD) and immediate surrounding residential areas – a total of about 2 square kilometres. Before the advent of large-scale public transport, most city dwellers lived within walking distance of their workplaces. The exception was the wealthy élite, many of whom rode in carriages from their homes in the outer suburbs. The introduction of cheap public transport in the late 19th century gradually allowed middle-class families to also live outside the city. With ample space for gardens and safe outdoor play, suburbs were considered to be the best place to raise children. Decline in living conditions As middle-class families left for the suburbs, investors bought up vacated houses and rented them to working-class families and the poor. Large houses were often converted into multiple dwellings, which were individually leased. Conversions were usually rushed and makeshift – thin walls and ceilings meant there were few secrets between neighbours. High rents encouraged overcrowding and the subletting of rooms. The speculative nature of such housing meant that despite profitable returns, few landlords maintained their properties properly, and many buildings fell into disrepair. By the 1920s there was a zone of boarding houses and run-down dwellings between the CBD and suburbs. This area included ethnic enclaves, such as Wellington’s Chinese community. Boarding and lodging houses Boarding and lodging houses were concentrated near inner-city ports and railway stations, where they could cater for new arrivals – mostly single men. Many of these establishments were the converted former homes of wealthy city merchants. Bedrooms were let to individual tenants and bathroom facilities were shared. Homes of despair Often home to the despondent and desperate, boarding and lodging houses were scenes of many suicides. In 1867 Elizabeth Irvine hanged herself in a Whanganui lodging house. Having recently migrated from Ireland expecting to marry, she arrived to discover her fiancé had taken another wife – ‘too common’ a story, regretted the Evening Post.1 In 1886 former Royal Navy officer Theodore Berhew ‘blew his brains out’ in an Auckland boarding house after failing to prosper in New Zealand.2 Boarding-house meals were cooked by the landlady and served in a common dining room. The living room, also shared, was a place to read, converse or play cards. This communal emphasis distinguished boarding houses from lodging houses, where meals were not provided and lodgers cooked for themselves in a shared kitchen. Usually there was no common living space, forcing the residents to stay in their rooms or go out on the town. Because boarding houses provided meals, they had a higher status than lodging houses. For new arrivals and city visitors, boarding houses were respectable places to stay. Tenants were mostly men, but couples and single women also took rooms. However, lodging houses were considered cheap accommodation for the working class and poor. With less oversight of comings and goings, they were also suspected places of ill repute. In the 1920s boarding and lodging houses became seen as equally unwholesome. Wealthy tenants deserted boarding houses for more fashionable blocks of flats. Women left too – the decline of live-in domestic service and the rise of clerical and professional work saw women move to inner-city hostels, away from places where they were vulnerable to sexual advances. St Elmo’s rise and fall The grand St Elmo Boarding House in Christchurch’s Worcester St suffered a loss in status over time. As late as the 1920s it was advertised as providing ‘superior private accommodation’, but by the early 1930s it had been demolished. In its place rose St Elmo Courts, a seven-storey block of one- and two-bedroom flats for the city’s affluent. Hostels were similar to boarding houses, but were institutionally rather than privately operated. Often run by welfare organisations, they were segregated into men’s and women’s accommodation. They catered for young people beginning their careers, and staff took a mentoring role, warning fresh-faced arrivals from the country about the pitfalls of city life. Hostels gave new arrivals immediate access to social circles – groups often went out to movies, dances or sports games. They also provided opportunities to meet a partner among the other residents or their brothers, sisters and friends. Hostels declined in popularity in the 1960s, when flats – shared-house accommodation – became the preferred lodging of young people. Ki mua Tō muri mai: Whārangi 2. City flats Whai muri Evening Post, 13 March 1867, p. 2. Back Grey River Argus, 7 December 1886, p. 2. Back Philip Morrison and Ben Schrader, 'Inner-city living - Early inner-city living and its decline', Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, http://www.TeAra.govt.nz/mi/inner-city-living/page-1 (accessed 17 July 2019) Story by Philip Morrison and Ben Schrader, published 11 Mar 2010 Basten, Alice Henrietta Gertrude, 1876-1955 Begg, Jean, 1886-1971 Bellamy, Elizabeth, 1845-1940 Hallam, Clara Evelyn, 1885-1976 Ngā tāone nui	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6425
__label__wiki	0.765754	0.765754	Integration key in CA’s approach to change management By Stephen Swoyer When CA purchased Niku in January 2005, it announced plans to weave Niku’s Clarity IT-MG software into its existing help desk (CA Unicenter Service Desk) and change management (CA Harvest Change Manager) apps. CA closed its Niku acquisition in August. This week, CA officials are touting what they describe as the first fruits of the Niku acquisition—in this case, the integration of Niku’s Clarity portfolio and project management assets with its existing service desk and software lifecycle management solution stack. The result claims Jose Mora, director of Clarity marketing for CA, is gestalt: a change management product family the integrated whole of which is greater than the sum of its parts. “All of these solutions exist today. They’re individual solutions. But IT continues to work in these silos. The applications are ‘siloed.’ The individuals are ‘siloed.’ The groups are ‘siloed.’ The asset manager doesn’t know what the groups are working on, for example,” he argues. “Part of what we’re hearing from the market place is that we need better integration between these silos.” CA’s competitors in the change management market—BMC Software, IBM, and Mercury Technology Optimization, among others—will undoubtedly take issue with CA’s claim of unprecedented integration in its portfolio. There’s a sense, however, in which CA’s strategy—punctuated by the $350 million in cash it plunked down early last year for Niku—helps underscore the central importance of the unified change management stack. These technology areas have traditionally been silo-ed, and it wasn’t until relatively recently that CA and other companies started thinking seriously about integrating and extending them. It isn’t that the service desk, project and portfolio management, and software lifecycle management disciplines need to be integrated with one another, it’s rather a question of why shouldn’t they be—especially if (as seems likely) obvious benefits will accrue from doing so. What’s more, CA and other vendors have a blueprint for integration and interoperability: the hyper-connected service-oriented architecture. “Most of the systems [customers] have today are disconnected. So the overall cost of change is unknown, and it’s critical that they get that under control,” Mora argues. In the integrated model, says Mora, compliant apps automatically generate error reports with Unicenter Service Desk (via CA’s embedded Service Aware control). Back at Service Desk, a support analyst reviews the incidents that have been reported against an app or apps. If need be, Service Desk can combine multiple instances into a single problem. Problems are in turn resolved through Requests for Change. At this point, the Change Request creates a Project or Task in the Clarity environment. Meanwhile, in the Harvest environment, a package is created to manage the RFC request. From that point, the dev lifecycle is controlled by workflow, says Mora. As code moves from dev to test to production, Clarity and Service Desk are automatically updated. “You’ve got this entirely seamless process that’s taking place, with information that’s very complex, but because it’s integrated, the information doesn’t have to be manually changed,” he concludes. CA’s change management suite became generally available earlier this month. The Virginia Farm Bureau has already replaced Microsoft’s Project, Systems Management Server (SMS) and Visual Source Safe with CA’s trifecta, according to Mora. Ditto for an unnamed company that CA describes as a retail grocer and the eighth-largest privately-held company in the nation. In both cases, Mora claims, customers expect to realize additional value by virtue of the linkages and automation CA has built into its Clarity, Service Desk, and Harvest products. Stephen Swoyer is a contributing editor for Enterprise Systems. He can be reached at stephen.swoyer@spinkle.net.	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6427
__label__wiki	0.83801	0.83801	Pervasive PSQL Certified for Windows 2008, Adds Linux Support By Michael Domingo Pervasive Software said the beta version of its Pervasive PSQL Summit 10.10 has been certified for use on Windows Server 2008 64-bit, and will support Windows Vista SP1 and Red Hat and SuSE Linux variants. Pervasive PSQL Summit 10.10 is a data management and development environment. The company says that developed applications can be deployed on all manner of form factors, from desktops to PDAs without heavy reconfiguration. The live version of the solution will include enhanced Xtreme I/O, support for the Eclipse Rich Client Platform 3.3 framework, and support for highly available Linux-HA clustering. Pervasive PSQL Summit 10.10 beta can be downloaded here. Michael Domingo is executive editor, new media, and editor of MCPmag.com. You can contact Michael at mdomingo@1105media.com.	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6428
__label__cc	0.55098	0.44902	Adventures In Historyland Adventures In The Land of History Posted on October 15, 2016 by Josh Provan Book Review: The Thames by John F. Winkler. Publisher: Osprey Publishing (17 Nov. 2016) https://www.amazon.co.uk/Thames-1813-Northwest-Frontier-Campaign/dp/1472814339 Frontier warfare in the 19th century was a pitiless, callous affair. Winkler an expert in the field is quite at home with the subject. And gives an authoritative outline of the events of the campaign making good use of contemporary accounts, which makes it entertaining and anecdotal. It would be hard not to given the story is full of Cooper esque names, each of whom is some kind of household name in the epic of the frontier. Beginning with the confused back and forth struggle that followed the fall of Detroit, the book winds up at the battle of the Thames A recurring theme of this campaign was the use of indians, and to both sides the operative word was use, although the British hoped to create an Indian super state as a buffer between USA and Canada, they depended implicitly on the strength, fear and fighting prowess of their native allies, without whom nothing would have been achieved. The loyalty and trust put in them by Chiefs like Tecumseh, who repeatedly urged their people to continue supporting the British is remarkable, and instructive as to how bitter the divide had grown between the indigenous tribes and the new Americans since 1783. Typically The cruelty of some of the indians was to be a hallmark of the fighting and prisoners and civilians suffered terribly, with the British senior officers unwilling or powerless to stop atrocities. It is clear no one in the British camp had any real influence over the tribes as they had during the Revolution and 7 years war. The legend that is Tecumseh, being one of the Chiefs who displayed a humane bearing. For it is noted than many had given up the practice of torture, nevertheless there is a cold indifference to human suffering displayed by Kentuckian militiaman and Indian warrior alike. The campaign was the faltering attempt to carry on the impetuous of Brock’s successes. However General Proctor proved unable to keep the initiative and after the vicissitudes of a typically muddled frontier campaign, found himself pursued by General Harrison’s much better adapted army, mostly composed of Kentucky militia. Though the Americans had at first faltered in the wilderness of the northwest, they had come of age and learned how best to deploy their militias. By comparison Proctor had a very indifferent army to carry through a wilderness fight, and he was a worse judge of ground and his enemy. Tecumseh emerges as the only voice of confidence, and it is notable that British Indian allies at this time could field as many as 3,000 warriors. At the Thames the Indian contingent far outnumbered the single battalion of redcoats and supporting Canadians. Artwork is colourfully provided, in rich autumnal tones and energetic scenes by Peter Dennis. I cannot help but look at the scene of the charge of Kentucky militia against the 41st Foot and think of the painting by Don Troiani a few years ago. And in doing so one instantly notices a discrepancy. The author is certain that the British infantry were wearing stovepipe shakos, but indeed there is contention as to what type of headgear any British soldier wore post 1812. Troiani, however has a international reputation for forensic accuracy in his paintings. He put the 1812 “Belgic” shako on his 41st foot, having consulted the archeological record and experts Jim Kochan and Rene Chartrande he is confident the regiment wore the Belgic. This of course puts him at odds with Winkler. The three double page spreads are imaginatively composed, especially that of the dismounted militia withdrawing through the swamp. Some of the musket brass and belt parts seem a touch unfinished, and in the scene of Tecumseh’s Attack, the woods become slightly muddy, however they evoke a strong sense of atmosphere and place. In terms of tactics and ferocity, The Battle of the Thames was a small affair and quite unspectacular except for a few points. It saw a successful charge of irregular, militia cavalry through forest. The death of Tecumseh and the loss of Upper Canada to the British. It ended up being the pivotal frontier battle of the war of 1812. For though the British and indians would win other battles before the peace of Ghent, all hopes were dashed at Plattsburg in 1814. More than that it was something of a last hurrah for the tribes, who without strong charismatic leaders saw their influence and independence dramatically reduce on both sides of the border. CategoriesBooks TagsBattle of the Thames, John. F. Winkler Previous PostPrevious Book Review: Wellington’s Dearest Georgy by Alice Marie Crossland Next PostNext Masters of Battle: Elizabeth Butler part 4 American History. American Indian History. Random. The Week in History. Book Review: The First Anglo Sikh War by David Smith When Britain Almost Invaded México. Guest Post: Who were the most powerful people in Ancient Rome? Book Review. Killing Napoleon by Jonathan North. Book Review: Richard the Lionheart by W.B. Bartlett. Battle of Culloden Battle of iSandlwana Bonnie Prince Charlie Famous Canadians Frank Dikötter Golden Age of Piracy Iroqouis Confederacy Jacobites Logwood Cutters Pirates of the Carbbean Richard the Lionheart Texas Revolution The Alamo The Romanovs Zulu account of iSandlwana © Copyright Adventures in Historyland 2012 - 2018	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6429
__label__wiki	0.689797	0.689797	Tables turned "'Saudi Arabia was betting on advantageous military developments in Syria when in reality tables were turned against Riyadh & allies!'" We never get quite enough good information - reporting from Syria is bad even by the abysmal standards of modern 'journalism', not to mention the fact that it is all Jew-centric propaganda - but is it fair to say that the tide turned for Assad - and the tide certainly has turned - when Hezbollah started helping him in a big way? The Jews must be wondering if they are again too clever by half - they are giving Hezbollah fighters a tune-up for when the Jews inevitably illegally invade Lebanon yet again to steal land and water, and they have turned the once mediocre Syrian army into a first-rate modern fighting machine. "‘Uncle Ruslan’ aided terrorists from CIA official’s home" by Daniel Hopsicker "New questions on Boston bombing suspects’ ties to US intelligence" Note the technique. Uncle Ruslan is your George de Mohrenschildt character, one of those guys who exist everywhere with multiple irons in the fire and connections to all walks of life, particularly in, but not limited to, his own ethnic community. He is tied through a transparently obvious intermediary to 'al Qaeda' in Chechnya (and note the use of a 'charity'/NGO), through his family to the patsy brothers, and to the CIA through his business connections, in particular to a 'retired' Lansdale type using the Rand Corporation as a cover. The CIA's sloppiness is using the same central character to fight a proxy war against Russia using 'al Qaeda' and a false-flag war against the American people in Boston. Having said that, note how much more successful the Boston terror conspiracy was than the Benghazi clusterfuck, where the American ambassador, without the use of any cut-outs, tried to secretly move weapons from Libya to 'al Qaeda' in Syria. 'Lefties' for 'al Qaeda' "Solidarity with Syria" I'm sorry to see Ilan Pappé on the list. "Islamist Rebels Create Dilemma on Syria Policy" (bearing in mind that this is one axis of the Jewish billionaire propaganda system, albeit correct in this case; my emphasis in red): "Across Syria, rebel-held areas are dotted with Islamic courts staffed by lawyers and clerics, and by fighting brigades led by extremists. Even the Supreme Military Council, the umbrella rebel organization whose formation the West had hoped would sideline radical groups, is stocked with commanders who want to infuse Islamic law into a future Syrian government. Nowhere in rebel-controlled Syria is there a secular fighting force to speak of." "The Islamist character of the opposition reflects the main constituency of the rebellion, which has been led since its start by Syria’s Sunni Muslim majority, mostly in conservative, marginalized areas. The descent into brutal civil war has hardened sectarian differences, and the failure of more mainstream rebel groups to secure regular arms supplies has allowed Islamists to fill the void and win supporters. The religious agenda of the combatants sets them apart from many civilian activists, protesters and aid workers who had hoped the uprising would create a civil, democratic Syria. When the armed rebellion began, defectors from the government’s staunchly secular army formed the vanguard. The rebel movement has since grown to include fighters with a wide range of views, including Qaeda-aligned jihadis seeking to establish an Islamic emirate, political Islamists inspired by the Muslim Brotherhood and others who want an Islamic-influenced legal code like that found in many Arab states." Progressives - real progressives - in the 20s, 30s, 40s, 50s and even 60s (although things started to go wrong in the 60s) never had this muddle-headed problem in figuring out what they were really promoting. In this case they are unquestionably promoting the human rights standards of the Middle Ages. Flailing around Ruslan has become a little too hot (the CIA connection), and 'Misha' comes to us via Ruslan. so they've dropped 'Misha' and replaced him with a dead Canadian boxer and the mother. Of course, in a pinch, there is always 'self-radicalization'. Boston to Russia to Syria Cryptome has zip files of various materials relating to the connection of the Tsarnaev brothers through their uncle Ruslan to the CIA. The denial. Sibel Edmonds had previously identified Fuller as one of her "American Deep State rogues", i.e., exactly the kind of fellow who would be involved in this kind of deception. Golden Rule of conspiracy theory: if you are following a story and you run into one of these Lansdale types, there are no more 'coincidences'. Btw, Edmonds has a truly appalling theory that the US will give the Russians carte blanche to clean up their Muslim problem in exchange for the Russians throwing Assad under the bus. This is ridiculous as: the Russians have never accepted the (American) idea that they have to wait for anybody's permission to clean up their own backyard (especially on a ludicrous - coming from the Americans - 'human rights' pretense!), and in fact committed, and continue to commit, the most horrible human rights abuses against the Chechens with nary a whimper from Washington (the neocons sometimes mention this as part of a general program of encouraging American militarism - as American militarism is 'good for the Jews' - but never really had their heart in complaining as they really, really, really like the mass slaughter of Muslims, even if they aren't the ones doing it); and although we hear assertions to the contrary every month from the Jews, the Russians have never given up on Assad, and, unless they want to see American proxy armies of Sunni radical Islamists tearing their country apart, would be foolish to give up on Assad (Russian foreign policy is based on Russian self-interest, an idea American can't comprehend, as their foreign policy has to always be based on what is 'good for the Jews'). The ridiculous American half-assertion - coming directly from Israeli lies, naturally - of Assad's use of chemical weapons comes as Assad's army is making major gains against the foreign interlopers, and is merely a warning that they want him to stop before total victory so he can sit down to 'negotiations', i.e., instructions from the Jews on how to weaken himself for Israel's benefit. Assad has benefited greatly from the fact that World Jewry - which instructs the Americans on what their foreign policy is to be - is greatly torn on the issue of Syria. The old-fashioned Jewish billionaires follow the most basic Jewish idea that gentiles ought to be tricked into fighting each other, and that Syria should be broken up into little statelets (Oded Yinon's Zionist Plan for the Middle East). The more modern Jewish billionaires - Soros, etc, the ones who now hold Barry's chattel slavery papers - recognize that Assad has been so ineffectual that he is actually 'good for the Jews', and whatever might arise after Assad is very likely to be more dangerous to Jewish interests. The original primary goal of removing Assad was to break up the Iran-Syria-Hezbollah axis, and disrupt military supply routes to Hezbollah so that the Jews can have a better shot at stealing southern Lebanon and the water of the Litani River (that water is the preoccupation of the Israeli 1%). A ruined Syria will allow for excellent smuggling routes, and Hezbollah shouldn't have any trouble receiving supplies, leaving the primary goal as unachievable. World Jewry is best off now with a weakened Assad ruling a ruined country, so that is how Barry will be instructed, and that is the result we can expect to see. The only possible conclusion "After Attack, Suspects Returned to Routines, Raising No Suspicions" "Boston bombers’ uncle married daughter of top CIA official" Read these two articles. How do you deal with the amazing 'coincidences' in the life of the uncle? How do you deal with the combination of no attempt at disguise, suspects leading perfectly normal lives the day after, and then a crazed frenzy at escape (not to mention the amazing series of outright lies told by American authorities)? You just can't. If you have an IQ over 75, you can only reach one possible conclusion - false flag. The lifespan of a patsy We've reached the point in any false flag, when the authorities, perhaps giddy from all the seemingly successful lying, start to lay it on a bit thick (the brothers obviously weren't even prepared to get out of Boston, but I guess Bloomberg was feeling ignored). American officials lied about there being other bombs (or they covered them up - the fire at the JFK Library was some coincidence - as they did on 9/11), they probably lied about the details of the stolen car (in order to cover up the fact the brothers used Tamerlan's car), they lied about the 7-11 robbery, they outright murdered Tamerlan and lied in blaming it on Dzhokhar, and they lied about Dzhokhar having a gun so they could justify their attempt to murder him (his survival, after over an hour of police bullets, is a miracle). Now we are supposed to believe a series of increasingly ridiculous lies to cover up the false flag. It is extra ironic that Tamerlan's CIA trip to Dagestan is being used to explain how he was 'radicalized'. As Lee Harvey Oswald knows, the lifespan of a patsy after an operation is very short. It is likely Tippet was supposed to kill Oswald, and when that failed Oswald was supposed to die 'resisting arrest' in the Texas Theater, until they had to send in Jack Ruby to do the job. Both brothers were supposed to end up dead. I was a little worried when the Jew-controlled media started to boast he was being treated by Israeli doctors (and that the Boston hospital was able to look after the victims of the blasts because they were trained by Israelis, and how this never would have happened if the United States used Israeli security methods, and how immigration reform should have a Muslim exception . . . . ). The death penalty, on the table because of the ludicrous assertion the brothers used a Weapon of Mass Destruction, is being used to force a plea bargain which will involve a gag order. Forty years from now, when Dzhokhar is released, it won't matter what he has to say. American authorities need to explain how the brothers had so much money and no visible means of support: "Drugs sales may have financed Boston terror plot" 'May have' - no real evidence, but they need an explanation other than the CIA. Also a complete reversal of their lies on the shootout: "Also, two U.S. officials say Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, the surviving suspect, was unarmed when police captured him hiding inside a boat in a neighborhood back yard. Authorities originally said they had exchanged gunfire with Dzhokhar for more than one hour Friday evening before they were able to subdue him." In actual fact, they just kept shooting at Dzhokhar for more than an hour, with no return fire ("Officials: Boston suspect had no firearm when barrage of bullets hit hiding place"), and it is completely clear he wasn't supposed to survive. Remember, they also shot Tamerlan to death, and made up a really tall tale that he died due to being run over by Dzhokhar. By the way, wasn't every single police action by the Boston police and FBI on this matter a complete and utter fuck-up? Intelligence-wise though, they are still champs: "CIA pushed to add Boston bomber to terror watch list" If you read this carefully, you can see how the CIA and FBI can play these 'terrorist lists' like a violin to get their assets in and out of the country and then set them up as patsies. Another list of discrepancies: "Orwell does America": "What the day-long delay in Dzhokhar's arrest indeed made possible was to turn Watertown into a monster dry run for urban martial law - euphemized as ''lockdown'' - in a very near future. As total militarization of civilian life goes - featuring, for instance, Homeland Security running amok with hundreds of armored vehicles - this was a major success. Meanwhile, on the ''legal'' front, the White House and the Justice Department are firmly on track to finally suppress the Miranda warning; that went into effect already two years ago, when an Obama secret executive order ruled the Miranda warning would not apply to suspected terrorists. Dzhokhar is a ''suspected'' terrorist - now charged with using and conspiring to use a weapon of mass destruction, yet already convicted by corporate media. Welcome to Police State USA - where at least everyone still has the right to go out shopping. For now." The neocon wheel keeps turning "Pentagon Officer Created Phony Intel on Iraq/al-Qaeda Link": "Newly released documents confirm that a Pentagon unit knowingly cooked up intelligence claiming a direct link between Iraq and al-Qaeda in order to win support for a preemptive strike against the country. A report prepared by the Defense Department's Inspector General for Carl Levin, the Democratic Chairman of the Armed Services Committee, explicitly shows how former Under Secretary of Defense for Policy Douglas Feith used his defense department position to cook intelligence claiming a connection between the terrorist organization and Saddam Hussein's regime." Ledeen: "Lopez: Why should I think “Iran” when I hear “al Qaeda”? Ledeen: Because they’ve been working together since 1994, and we are now up to our uvulas in evidence showing Iran’s support for al Qaeda in Iraq. The 9/11 Commission — as Tom Joscelyn has written for years — found striking evidence of the al Qaeda/Iran partnership, starting with the sensational discovery that Imad Mughniyah, the operational chief of Hezbollah, was on the plane that took some of the 9/11 terrorists out of Saudi Arabia, en route to the Twin Towers and the Pentagon. Lopez: So does bin Laden and crew work for Iran? Have they always? Ledeen: I don’t know about “always.” Certainly they have worked closely with Iran for quite a while. I think the Iranian domination of al Qaeda started when we destroyed al Qaeda in Afghanistan. The key leaders ran to Iran and have mostly been there ever since. Lopez: Was Iran involved in 9/11? Ledeen: I don’t know. It’s possible, but certainly unproven. The most tantalizing factoid is the story of Ramzi bin al Shibh, the logistics officer for the 9/11 operation. He went to Iran for a month in late December, 2000, and then he returned to Iran less than a week before 9/11." "Bush Floats War Against Iran" by Ted Rall (there were tradecraft reasons for using Iran as a via point): "According to a Newsweek report about the new 9/11 Commission Report, "Iranian officials instructed their border inspectors not to place Iranian or Afghan stamps in the passports of Saudi terrorists traveling from Osama bin Laden's training camps through Iran." Calling this "the strongest evidence yet of a relationship between Iran and Al Qaeda," the report notes that "eight to ten of the 'muscle' hijackers of the September 11 plot" crossed through Iran from Afghanistan, "undoubtedly help[ing] the 9/11 terrorists pass into the United States without raising alarms among U.S. Customs and visa officials...the report raises new, sharper questions about whether the Bush Administration was focused on the right enemy when it decided to remove Saddam Hussein." The invasion of Iraq was preceded by similar trial balloons in the press. Should Bush remain in office this November and the "we invaded the wrong Ira-" argument catch fire among a complacent and compliant media, we may be fighting a third unwinnable war against a Muslim state a year from now. There's even less evidence of a link between Al Qaeda and Iran than between Al Qaeda and Iraq--but that's not stopping E-Z Boy warriors like Cheney and Rumsfeld. First and foremost, there's no reason to believe that Afghan or Iranian visa stamps would have caused alarm at the U.S. border. My passport is thick with stamps from countries in Central Asia and the Middle East, including those issued by both the Taliban and Northern Alliance governments of Afghanistan. Only two countries, France and Israel, have asked me about them. Even after 9/11, U.S. Customs never examined them. Furthermore, Iran doesn't stamp Saudi passports for good reason: the Saudi government, dominated by Wahhabi Sunni extremists, despises Shia Iran. Viewing Shiites as pseudo-Islamic heretics more contemptible than infidels, the Saudi regime takes a dim view of those who travel to Iran--a fact that Iranian customs takes into account when welcoming Saudi visitors so they don't get into trouble back home. Another mystery: Why does the December 2001 National Security Agency memo cited by Newsweek mention Afghan visa stamps? Iran has no more ability to issue Afghan visas than Mexico has to issue American ones. The big reason to doubt an Iran-Al Qaeda connection is historical. In one of many events unknown to most Americans, Taliban forces under Mullah Mohammad Omar seized the Iranian consulate at Mazar-e-Sharif in 1998. After the Afghans murdered ten Iranian diplomats and one journalist there, Iran massed troops on the border and threatened war against Afghanistan. (The crisis passed when the Taliban apologized and turned over the bodies.) To say the least, it's extremely unlikely that Iran would have formed a cozy alliance with Mullah Omar's bosom buddies in Al Qaeda just two years later in 2000, as the Bushies now claim. In fact, despite having no diplomatic relations with the United States, Iran provided back-channel assistance to the Bush Administration during the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan in 2001, including turning over Al Qaeda suspects and offering to rescue American pilots shot down near the Iran-Afghanistan border. "It's definitely the case that there was no love lost between Iran and the Taliban," John Pike, director of the defense think tank Global Security, said in 2002. " "Stupendous hostage rescue was simply ransom payoff." "US behind Canada’s anti-Iran allegations to cover up al-Qaeda ties" "Iran denies link to Canada train 'al-Qaeda plot'" "Toronto terrorism plot takedown helps Conservatives sell anti-terror measures: Tim Harper" "Conservative anti-terror bill and arrests match up beautifully, don’t they: Mallick": "How odd. The week after the Boston bombings, the Conservative government had MPs suddenly debating an anti-terror bill that had long been hanging around with its hands in its pockets. The very same day, conveniently, the RCMP arrested two alleged terrorists. They had a tip from an imam, the cops said. They got it a year ago. Call me cynical. I’m not, I am hopeful credulity itself, but the anti-terror bill is shameful and the arrests dubious. The police press conference consisted of a dozen white male cops — and a token female — in a variety of uniforms congratulating each other and offering next to no information." Reminds me of how the anthrax attacks directed at American politicians occurred when the neocons were having trouble forcing through the Patriot Act. The threat of death for voting the wrong way worked like a charm (the analogy is perfect, as Canadian politicians get free train travel, and the attack is said to be against the rail system, meaning the threat of the attack can be felt directly by the politicians). Camel Club to the rescue. Missing the obvious explanation "The Tsarnaev Family: More And More Evidence Of Asylum Fraud" The racist right sees an opportunity on the immigration reform front, but misses the more obvious American intelligence connections. Reminds me of all those American visas handed out in Saudi Arabia in the early months of this millennium. I note that Steve Sailer, who usually hides the racism behind a Pioneer-Fund-style academic facade, is foaming at the mouth in attacks on Chechens. Nobody tells the Big Turk what to do "Turkey Criticizes Kerry Over Request to Postpone Visit to Gaza" Erdogan's job is to make money for the Turkish 1% by doing deals with the Jews - particularly the upcoming gas deals - while pretending to be a good Muslim for the Turkish voters. The visit to Gaza is just fluff, as Erdogan doesn't give a flying fuck about the Palestinians. To give Erdogan a propaganda helping hand, Kerry requests he postpone his Gaza visit, thus giving Erdogan the opportunity to prove his Turkish manliness by defying the United States. Pure theater. For you non-Canadians: Big Turk Tamerlan’s imaginary friend Get ready for a whole lot of manufactured back-story: "Boston Bombing Suspect Tamerlan Tsarnaev Influenced By Mysterious Radical" This entire story still requires considerable propping up just to get over the guffaw threshold. Ruslan continues to earn his keep. 'Respectable' people have nothing to say about any of this "The 11 Most Mystifying Things the Tsarnaev Brothers Did" "Something's Rotten in Boston - Who's Investigating the FBI Investigators?": "Then there’s the money thing. We’re told that Tamerlan had dropped out of community college because of money problems, right? Community college? That costs almost nothing to attend. That’s the whole point of community colleges: everyone can afford them. And he was reportedly only going part-time! But then, the two brothers are driving around in a Mercedes and wearing fancy clothes? We’re talking about two brothers, both in school, with a father who was ill and living in Dagestan, who had worked as a curbside mechanic while in the US, and a mother who had a home beauty salon business, and these lads somehow were stylish dressers and drove around in an expensive car -- expensive to buy even used, and terribly expensive to maintain, too. Where did all that money come from? We don’t know. Tamerlan was reportedly working at things like delivering pizza during that period This while living with his wife and caring at home for their young daughter, now three. Tamerlan’s wife was said to be supporting the struggling family by working “60-80 hours a week” as a home health care aide, one of the lowest-paying jobs you can find, often paying less than minimum wage." "And then there’s a jarring interview on a Boston-area radio call-in program called the Dennis & Callahan Morning Show from a woman named “Linda,” who says she witnessed the shootout between the two brothers and police in which Tamerlan was killed. The woman, who says she was staying over at her boyfriend’s house on Watertown’s Dexter Street, claims they “rushed to the front” of the house when they heard the commotion and “saw the suspect get hit by a Police SUV, and then after he was hit, get shot multiple times.” Clarifying, under questioning from the radio host, she says he was hit first by the police, and then adds, “from what we saw early this morning I’d be hard pressed to think he was actually pronounced dead at the hospital, I mean from the injuries that he incurred in the street I would say he was probably dead when he was put in the ambulance.” She goes on to suggest that Tamerlan may have been executed by police: “I just remember him get shot multiple times.” Of course, “Linda” could be a complete fake, but her story, completely at odds with the official one that has a ruthless and uncaring Dzhokhar running over his own brother in the firefight, dragging him 30 feet down the road before escaping himself from a police cordon on foot." "Dzhokhar himself, the 19-year-old younger brother of Tamerlan, currently being held under tight security in Boston’s Beth Israel Hospital where he is in serious condition with two bullet wounds and is being reportedly questioned by the FBI, is lucky to be alive at all. When he was discovered, weakened from blood loss, hiding inside a trailer-mounted pleasure boat in a retired New England Telephone employee’s driveway, police called to the scene by the owner, David Henneberry, initially pumped bullets into the boat trying to kill him, until they were told to stop firing by a supervisor. It is not known whether the bullet that hit Dzhokhar’s neck, producing a wound which now reportedly prevents him from talking, was one of those fired by police at that time." "Boston frames surveillance debate" "Peter King, again, touts Kelly and calls for a focus on Muslims in America" (King has nothing against terrorism, just Muslims) "Bloomberg Says Interpretation of Constitution Will ‘Have to Change’ After Boston Bombing" Connections make the patsy "Was Boston Bombers ‘Uncle Ruslan’ with the CIA?" by Daniel Hopsicker - family connections in all sorts of interesting directions, both high-level Americans and local gangsters. "Craig Murray: ‘Official Tsarnaev Story Makes No Sense’" "Boston Marathon bombing: Tamerlan Tsarnaev may have met Dagestan rebels" The Russians must have known and let Tamerlan in for a visit as part of this cat and mouse game they are playing with the Americans (better to let him in and leave doubt in the Americans whether he can be trusted). "Chechen Terrorists and the Neocons" by Coleen Rowley Tamerlan was a high-level boxer who would have needed steroids and so ran with local gangster drug dealers: "MA - Waltham Triple Murder, 12 Sept 2011" "“Boston Bomber's” Former Friends Suspect Him In Triple Murder" "The Reported 'Best Friend' Of The Dead Boston Bombing Suspect Was The Victim In Brutal Unsolved Murder Two Years Ago" "Owners of 'Terrorista #1' BMW taken into custody over Boston bombings AGAIN: Feds arrest two men 'who were friends with suspect for immigration violation'" It is amusing how absolutely classic Tamerlan's background is for him to end up as the patsy of an intelligence agency. Round peg in thin rectangular hole We are still in a situation where the only evidence against the brothers is the photo analysis performed by American government officials. And yet if you look at the photos something doesn't click: "Boston Bombing Suspect Charged": "Authorities claim both brothers used pressure cookers packed with metal and ball bearings rigged to explode. How they fit in their back packs wasn't explained. Ones they wore weren't large enough." I've been looking at my pressure cooler and thinking exactly the same thing. A pressure cooker is a cylinder. If you managed to squeeze it into such a backpack - and I don't think you could - it would form a noticeable shape in the backpack. A pressure cooker filled with shrapnel would also be very heavy and there is no evidence of heaviness in the photos. Even the 'Craft' backpacks which are bigger would not have been big enough. You would need something like a duffel bag, and the heft of it would be obvious in the gait of the person carrying it. The problems with the ridiculousness of the Official Story are starting to appear, although the usual suspects with their usual Islamophobic motives are also doubling down on the crazy. "Boston bombing suspects: Tsarnaevs' motive in attack sought": "Bettencourt, the University of Massachusetts student, said he saw Dzhokhar Tsarnaev at the campus gym the day after the bombing. “I talked to him about it like he was a regular kid,” Bettencourt said. He recalled Dzhokhar Tsarnaev saying, “tragedies happen.”" "The two brothers displayed an amateurish modus operandi, failing to disguise themselves from cameras, suggesting they were motivated by feelings of social alienation as immigrants in the U.S., said Philip Mudd, a former CIA deputy director in the agency’s Counterterrorist Center. “They didn’t have an after-action plan,” Mudd said on CNN’s “Fareed Zakaria GPS” program Monday. “This looks more to me like Columbine than it does like al-Qaeda,” Mudd said on “Fox News Sunday,” referring to the 1999 high school shootings in Columbine, Colo., by two teenage boys that killed 12 students and a teacher, and wounded 21." Authorities have quietly reversed themselves on the 7-11 robbery, probably realizing that the brothers' desperate need for money and their complete unpreparedness for any kind of escape makes a mockery of the Official Story. "The FBI Boston-Chechnya charade" The elder brother probably wasn't radicalized in Chechnya, he was probably spying for the Americans. "Bad Reporting on Boston Marathon Attack" Here comes the sleeper cell: "Boston bombers: FBI hunting 12-strong terrorist “sleeper cell” linked to brothers Tamerlan and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev" On a lighter note: "Kerry Compares Boston Victims, Marmara Terrorists" Note how American authorities managed to enforce martial law over the entire city of Boston, with not only nary a peep of protest from 'civil libertarians', but with actual cheering by the populace for the police. This will be an excellent precedent for the American government. Note also the big deal made about the 'emergency exception' to the reading of Miranda Rights. This connects to the American right-wing fantasy, now swallowed whole by American 'progresssives', of the '24' scenario - I have to say served up directly from Israel - of imminent terrorist danger requiring immediate questioning, an outright lie in this case as we later found out that Dzhokhar was on death's door, physically unable to speak or communicate in any way. Still, they had to reinforce the idea of terrorism always trumping civil rights, an idea beloved by both right and 'left'. The family business? "Brothers in Marathon bombings took two paths into infamy": "The Tsarnaev brothers were ethnic Chechens, born in the former Soviet Republic now called Kyrgyzstan. Whether they ever lived in war-torn Chechnya is unclear. Their father, Anzor Tsarnaev, was described by family Friday as a former Russian amateur boxing champion. While the family was living in Kyrgyzstan, Anzor Tsarnayev said in an interview Friday by the Russian agency lifenews.ru, they had trouble with government authorities. “In Kyrgyzstan we were oppressed,” the father said. “We wanted a quiet life. I was afraid for my kids and tried to save them.” By 2001, the family had taken refuge in Makhachkala, the capital of the predominantly Muslim Russian region of Dagestan, which borders Chechnya. There, the brothers briefly attended grade school. Anzor’s sister Maret Tsarnaeva told reporters that she wrote the refugee petition in April 2002 for the father, mother and youngest son, Dzhokhar, to receive asylum in the United States. The three other children, Tamerlan and his sisters, Alina and Bella, joined the family later." Ethnic Chechens, started somehow in Kyrgyzstan, where they were 'oppressed'. Moved to Dagestan. From there, sought and received asylum in the U. S. Family breaks up, father returns to Dagestan, sons seem to have lots of money and no obvious means of support (my emphasis in red): "Family members said that the Tsarnaevs did not spend any time in Chechnya after the region declared itself independent in 1991. But Tamerlan evidently wanted people to think he had a connection: He told a newspaper in 2004 that he had been born in Grozny. In 2011, Dzhokhar contacted a history professor at UMass Dartmouth who teaches a history course on Chechnya to learn more about Chechen history. In the past 10 years, Moscow has consolidated its control over Chechnya, with the help of a local administration that has also been accused of repression and the slayings of several prominent journalists and human rights activists. Though some sporadic violence continues in Chechnya, said Simon Saradzhyan, a researcher at Harvard’s Belfer Center, the radical Islam that fueled the separatist movement has migrated to neighboring, predominantly Muslim regions in the Caucasus. These include Dagestan, where the Tsarnaevs’ father now lives and which both brothers visited last year. “[The Tsarnaevs’] ethnicity doesn’t matter very much here,” said Masha Lipman, a political analyst at the Carnegie Moscow Center. “They don’t have a history of fighting in the mountains against Russian troops.”" "Russia warned FBI about terror suspect two years before attack at Boston Marathon" Do you think the Russians really wanted an answer to that question, or was asking the question part of a counterintelligence operation intended to mess with the CIA? Does this make any sense at all? From USA Today: "The brothers' acts continue to befuddle authorities, family and friends. Students at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, where Dzhokar was a student, say they saw him on campus following Monday's bombings. During the overnight and early-morning pursuit of the brothers, a federal official familiar with the case said authorities recovered a handful of improvised explosive devices (IEDs), including one in the possession of Tamerlan Tsarnaev. All of the devices appeared to be homemade explosives, including pipe bombs. Several were detonated by police Friday afternoon. " "The brothers carjacked a Mercedes SUV between 12:15 and 12:30 a.m, holding the driver at gunpoint for a half hour before he was shoved from the car unharmed. A federal law enforcement official, who was not authorized to comment publicly, said the men allegedly told the driver that they were the Marathon bombers. The official said the suspects' allegedly acknowledged their roles in the Marathon bombings to both intimidate the driver and brag about the bombings." So you walk around the future crime scene with no attempt to disguise yourselves (with one brother appearing in public after the bombing). You've created an arsenal of homemade bombs in order to defend yourselves from the police afterward. But you have made no effort to secure a vehicle in which to escape - thus necessitating stealing a car after the bombing with simply bizarre bragging - and you have made no effort to have cash on hand in order to be able to flee, necessitating a very risky robbery of a 7-11. Does this make any sense at all? "FBI interviewed Boston Marathon bombing suspect Tamerlan Tsarnaev, 26, for possible extremist ties two years ago but found no incriminating information" "So The FBI Investigated "The Marathon Bomber" ..." "Obama thanks Putin for help in Boston" That is when the older brother was recruited as a possible asset by the FBI, and Barry had to thank Putin for not letting the cat out of the bag before the FBI had a chance to spin the story. Or possibly recruited even earlier: "Some of the suspects’ associates will come under panopticon scrutiny. Some won’t. Keep your eye on them." "‘This is nothing we would ever expect,’ friends say of Boston suspects" Despite all the spinning, there is not one shred of evidence of 'radicalization' of either brother. ""Contractors" at Boston Marathon Stood Near Bomb, Left Before Detonation" Lucky that they moved from right beside the blast site to out of range before the bomb went off! American authorities are lucky Americans are so stupid and blinded by Islamophobia, as the Official Story doesn't even begin to hang together properly. Too far-fetched "Friend Reached Out To Suspect After FBI Presser, Fearing He’d Be Falsely Accused (VIDEO)": "Kanno-Youngs admitted that he saw resemblance to his friend when the FBI released photos and videos of Tsarnaev and his older brother, 26-year-old Tamerlan Tsarnaev, at a Thursday evening press briefing, but he didn't connect the dots because it seemed too far-fetched. In fact, Kanno-Youngs said he reached out to Dzhokhar Tsarnaev out of fear that his friend might be falsely accused." It is starting to look like the patsy-making machine blew this one by not ensuring that the patsies were plausible 'terrorists'. No matter. The media will swallow it whole and concentrate on the Muslim angle. Strange 'terrorists' "Strange 'terrorists': One dreamed of career and money, and second one to play for U.S. at Olympics" "Father of Tsarnayev brothers: 'My children framed'" "Bombing suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev became an American citizen on Sept. 11, 2012." "Boston Marathon explosions: Show us the evidence, says Toronto aunt of bombing suspects" Strange inconsistency There is already a strange inconsistency in the Official Story of the Boston bombers. It would have been so easy to wear sunglasses, pull down their caps, and keep their heads down. Simple as this is, it makes an excellent disguise. Instead, they walked around as if they didn't care if they were identified. They acted like they weren't doing anything wrong. Yet, once identified by the pictures, they didn't lay low, but acted rashly, almost as if they were attempting suicide by cop. One explanation for the change might be that they realized there was really no hope, that they were well and truly set up, and chose death over spending decades in the hell that is Guantanamo or the hell that is the American kangaroo court system for 'terrorists'. Perhaps they had been told that they were helping the authorities by leaving the bags at a spot where there was a security drill (I notice the right-wing kooks have identified possible undercover officials in the crowd pictures). They would naturally think there was nothing but weights in the bags, and the drill was simply for the officials to identify the possibly dangerous unattended bags. That is a perfectly good patsy scenario, and explains the huge shift between happy-go-lucky bag carriers and crazed fugitives, but I don't understand what Barry - or even neocons working behind Barry's back - gets out of a false-flag from Chechens. I know we'll soon get a back-story from the Jew-controlled media that these completely normal seeming guys were actually crazed Islamofascists who hated the American way of life, thus justifying Jews killing Muslims and stealing their land, blah, blah, blah. Still, it seems rather elaborate for just another excuse to feed hillbillies the same old crap. Who are you going to bomb? Chechens are being fingered (the Bonnie and Clyde way they appear to be choosing to go out indicates they may actually be guilty, but who knows). The Jew-controlled media can, and will, spin the hell out of this, and stir up the hillbillies, but it is hardly optimal. Who can the Jews wail for Barry to bomb? More on some earlier lies: "Other Boston Terror Suspects Turn Themselves In … Appear Innocent" Nobody will pay any price for any of this warmongering lying, and the same 'experts' will no doubt be hard at work maximizing the propaganda value for their violent group collective. Until Americans realize the real reason for this consistent pattern of lying - and no, it is not sloppiness, negligence, or even jingoism - the United States will continue down its swift decline. Seeing what we want others to see "Steve Emerson Bungles It Again: Saudi National Not Being Deported" "Chris Matthews suggests that Boston suspects are Arabs" As difficult as it is to say what an Arab looks like, the pictures that have been released don't look like Arabs to me. "Is the New York Post Edited by a Bigoted Drunk Who Fucks Pigs?" "Did Reddit’s Boston Bomber Sleuthing Actually Turn Up a Decent Piece of Evidence?" The authorities didn't appreciate the 'help'. In these days of internet sleuthing, and the possibility of Photoshop, it is even possible that a co-conspirator working anonymously on a forum might actually work to confuse the investigation. By the way, the guy in the white cap not only made no effort to disguise himself, he seemed to be trying to stand out in the crowd. Appalling There is a full-fledged and simply appalling campaign by the usual suspects to increase Islamophobia in the United States so that Jews can continue to kill people and steal their land, and so that Americans can continue to be deceived into fighting Wars For The Jews. "Steve Emerson Gets It Wrong–Again" "Why is Steve Emerson still a “terrorism expert”?" Note the deportation story: "Exclusive: Saudi National Once Considered ‘Person of Interest’ May Be Deported on ‘Security’ Grounds — And How It’s Supposed to Be Framed" Geller I think he would be prudent to get out of the country as the Jews are firing up the American yahoos, putting his life in danger. "Relive It (CNN’s 90 Minutes of Awesome)" "The Post’s ‘Person of Interest’ Is a Local High-School Track Runner" Needless to say, they focused on the Moroccan-American. The fertilizer plant explosion isn't being connected as a fertilizer plant near Waco at the twentieth anniversary of the Waco siege doesn't fit the desired narrative. CSI USA: Work backwards from the political goal Incidents of 'terrorism' are generally pretty easy for the FBI. They simply check the database of their patsies for the city in question, and round up the young Muslim males they have been setting up for just such an occasion. The fact they are having trouble is an indication that this is one of those rarest of occasions, a real attack by people not working for the FBI. In the United States, a country which has never had a legitimate 'terrorist' attack by Muslims - every single fucking one of them is obviously hinky - these attacks are usually by 'patriot'/militia types (of course, many of the militia attacks are also tricks, going back to Oklahoma City). The time of the year, the fact the race was said to honor the Newtown massacre (the attack may have actually been directed at the relatives, seen as tools of the gun-grabbers), the fact it was in liberal Boston - everything points to the radical right. Even the absence of anybody taking credit - the absolutely necessary aspect of real terrorism, which is pointless unless the political goals of the attack are made public - points to 'patriot'/militia types, who tend to see violence against civilians as part of an actual war, and not terrorism, as they (probably correctly) don't believe the government cares enough about civilians to make terrorism effective (these guys believe that there are no civilians, particularly in a city like Boston, as everybody not on the radical right is a traitor and therefore a legitimate target of war). Whoever it should turn out to be, it is instructive to watch the American reaction. The 'left', which realizes the country can simply not afford another War For The Jews (and no doubt thinks a 'patriot' attack would resuscitate gun control legislation), is publicly hoping the authorities don't pick up Muslims. The right doesn't need an arrest to conclude it was Muslims, and thus it is time to nuke all Muslims (they also hope this will help them in their current cause, fighting American immigration reform). The Jew-controlled media is foaming at the mouth in its efforts to remind Americans of Islamophobia while pretending it is just reporting the 'news' by making up stories about Muslim perpetrators. It is a circus all around. If we assume that ninety-some per cent of all American 'terrorist' incidents are false-flags run by the American government - not an unreasonable assumption - we can conclude that whoever is arrested will satisfy the current American foreign policy goals. Out of sheer economic necessity, I believe Barry and his Jewish billionaire owners are currently against expansion of boots-on-the-ground Wars For The Jews, which is why I think it unlikely Muslims will be fingered for this. Still, there are a lot of WarsForTheJews-mongers around, and there may actually be a battle going on regarding who will be arrested. The very strange confusion yesterday over the announced, then un-announced, arrest may be a thwarted attempt to pin it on Muslims, something Barry had to nip in the bud. It is funny that the only proper way to analyze American crime investigation is war politics. Pot o' gold "Gold Crashes Most in 30 Years … What Does It Really Mean?" If you scroll down, you'll see that this mystery is no mystery at all. The American government did it, by suddenly taking a short position on the equivalent of 15% of the world's annual gold mine production. Are they anticipating some big hit against the American dollar? Meanwhile, the police pretend to look for the Boston Marathon bombers, while Wolf Blitzer drools. Venezuelan elections and yet another coup attempt "Venezuela: What Is the White House Up To?" by Mark Weisbrot Polling in Venezuela showed that the race was not close, and Nicolas Maduro would win easily, the result you would expect given the obvious emotional outpouring of grief over the death of his political mentor. The reported results were much, much closer than any poll predicted (funny how a crypto-Jew - note the 'conversion' in prison - does so well in a country supposed to be so solidly 'anti-Semitic'). The Americans immediately stir the pot by hinting that the election results are illegitimate. Of course, 'spontaneous' violent protests start to occur. This is a textbook psy-ops destabilization exercise. Coupled with the fact that the Venezuelan government had to expel American diplomats for destabilization activities prior to the election, and the Wikileaks evidence of hand's-on pro-opposition activities by American diplomats and NGOs, and the recent history of real American coup attempts, there is no doubt that there is actual regime change in the works. Electronic ballot boxes were used. Alter the votes, stir up some phony protests at the alleged cheating by the winner, and you have the basis of a new coup. Venezuela is a really big deal for the Americans, as they are terrified at the success of the alternative social and economic model created by Hugo Chavez. They want either a coup, or at least the opportunity to insist that nothing Nicolas Maduro does is legitimate. We're already hearing the term 'weak mandate' - of course, a similar win in an American Presidential election gives the winner the right to do whatever the hell he wants. Hasbara Central "French chief rabbi resigns in wake of plagiarism scandal" Boring. But the reporting at the NYT is both very odd and what we've come to expect: "plagiarism and anti-Semitism". Since group supremacists can do no wrong, what else can noticing a failing in a prominent Jew be but 'anti-Semitism'? The last paragraph of the NYT reporting makes as much sense as a paragraph discussing the hummingbirds of South America, but this kind of nonsense is so ubiquitous in the Jew-controlled media that they think we don't realize what is going on. So much of this crap - not to mention all the outright lying in aid of various Wars For The Jews - over the decades has completely wrecked the reputation of the NYT, to the point where it is unusable as an effective hasbara vehicle. World Jewry plans to consolidate its propaganda arm around Bloomberg's company once Bloomberg passes the torch of mayor of New York City to Anthony Weiner: "Bloomberg View Hires Jonathan Landman, Expands Jeffrey Goldberg's Role". Bloomberg's company has not lost its reputation for reliable reporting and will take over the New York Times to serve as hasbara central. "Saudi Arabia was never against the existence of Israel" "Saudi Arabia follows US orders on opposition to boycott of Israel" "We don’t intend to build nukes, Israel told US in 1975" "Would you believe that the United States tried to do something that was not nice against Hugo Chávez?": "Freedom House is one of the oldest US government conduits for transitioning to “democracy”; to a significant extent it equates “democracy” and “human rights” with free enterprise. Development Alternatives Inc. is the organization that sent Alan Gross to Cuba on a mission to help implement the US government’s operation of regime change." "WikiLeaks: Vatican Dismissed Pinochet Massacre Reports As 'Communist Propaganda'" "Wikileaks-exhumed cables reveal how the U.S. resumed military aid to Duvalier" "U.S. Army cut material linking haredi Orthodox with KKK, al-Qaida" As a humanitarian "PIPES: The argument for Assad" ('as a humanitarian'!!!; my emphasis in red): "Analysts agree that the erosion of the Syrian regime’s capabilities is accelerating, that it continues to retreat, making a rebel breakthrough and an Islamist victory increasingly likely. In response, I am changing my policy recommendation from neutrality to something that causes me, as a humanitarian and decades-long foe of the Assad dynasty, to pause before writing: Western governments should support the malign dictatorship of Bashar Assad. Here is my logic for this reluctant suggestion: Evil forces pose less danger to us when they make war on each other. This keeps them focused locally, and it prevents either one from emerging victorious and thereby posing a greater danger. Western powers should guide enemies to a stalemate by helping whichever side is losing, so as to prolong their conflict." "On the happy day when Mr. Assad and Tehran fight the rebels and Ankara to mutual exhaustion, Western support then can go to non-Baathist and non-Islamist elements in Syria, helping them offer a moderate alternative to today’s wretched choices and lead to a better future." The Zionist Yinon-esque plan is to help the rebels just enough so that Assad and the rebels are both damaged enough for Israel to step in and steal some more land, with the Syrian central government left so weakened that it poses even less of of threat to Israel than it does now. Pipes is saying that this is the time to stop rebel support, as the central government has been weakened enough, and the danger is that continued support will lead to an Islamist government in Syria which will be closely allied with the strengthened Turkish government. The trick here - and there is always a trick with the neocons - is that 'the erosion of the Syrian regime’s capabilities is' NOT 'accelerating', and it is not retreating, and Pipes must know that. Pipes is also remarkably upset with the 'increasingly rogue Turkish government', especially as the 'increasingly rogue Turkish government' prepares to enter into huge gas and gas pipeline deals with the Jews. I assume that the Zionists have concluded that the Syrian civil war has weakened Syria enough, and its continuation is weakening the Jewish gas bargaining position with the Turks. If so, watch for the Americans to use this bizarre 'al Qaeda' merger announcement as an excuse to back out of physical support for the Islamists, leaving the husk of Syria behind. Sorry I can't go out with you tonight but I'm too busy washing my hair "What’s Annoying the North Koreans?" Barry's sabre rattling is so ridiculous even the 'journalists' who are paid to pretend to take him seriously are having trouble controlling their smirks. Anyone who reads this blog would immediately recognize that this is a phony war that Barry can raise with the Jewish Billionaires in order to provide an excuse for why there aren't more Wars For The Jews. "Navy to pull aircraft carrier from Persian Gulf over budget worries" "Who exactly ordered those destroyers against Korea?" (apparently nobody ordered any of this - it just happened!): "Also, the U.S.S. Decatur, which was on its way home from the Persian Gulf to San Diego, was told to hold in place before it crossed the Pacific, in a separate location from the McCain." "Hagel: Israel’s nukes a threat, not Iran's": "Someone was asking me the other day about a nuclear exchange in the world, where that would come from. I said well I’ll give you a scenario that’s very real. If Israel gets backed up enough into a corner and Israel uses a tactical theater nuclear weapon, you want to talk about seeing some things unravel in the world. The United States shouldn’t even be thinking about options of bombing Iran or anybody else. I mean we got our hands full right now. And we’re in such a hell of a mess." Meanwhile, to keep the Jewish Billionaires appeased, Kerry dredges up the old Saudi peace plan in order to give the Israelis an instant out from the necessity of entering negotiations. What is the opposite of panic? "Elite Panic" It seems to be generally accepted now that the social progress that occurred in the 100 years or so up to, well, Thatcher, was caused by this fear in the elites of an uprising by the 99%. This fear obviously no longer exists, as demonstrated by the sheer gall of the ongoing program of additional taking successfully proposed by the politicians who work for 1% (e. g., Barry has no fear at all, and not even the slightest embarrassment, with his cat food idea). It has been a sort of social experiment - see what outrages they can get away with before the riots start. Since the riots never really started, the experiment continues, accelerating. 'Progressives' are professional cheerleaders for the experiment. The craziest ideas that they get away with become the new normal: "RBC replaces Canadian staff with foreign workers" "Ottawa admits it approved request for foreign workers to replace RBC employees" "RBC’s Nixon says bank puts ‘very high priority’ on Canadian jobs" Canadians should put a ‘very high priority’ on boycotting RBC (but they won't). "'Only the little people pay taxes'" I can't get this to work. "Margaret Thatcher and misapplied death etiquette" "'Tramp the Dirt Down'" by George Galloway "Ken Loach Wants Thatcher's Funeral Privatized" Just float the coffin in a sewage pond and fire a rocket propelled grenade at it. Funeral, cremation, and fireworks all at once. Send the bill for the grenade to the 1% she worked for. "Why We Are Not Turning Over the Offshore Files to Government Agencies" So now we have confirmation of all the shenanigans but nothing will be done about it as the various revenuers can claim they lack information. "New WikiLeaks cable reveals US embassy strategy to destabilize Chavez government" "French secret service accused of censorship over Wikipedia page" "Streisand effect" "So that's what Assange has been doing inside the embassy! WikiLeaks releases 1.7m US diplomatic and intelligence reports covering every country in the world" "Plus D" Nothing new, but the database should be useful. "Chiquita Brands (CQB), going bananas to stop public disclosure of its ties to Colombia terrorism" #OpIsrael "Hacker group ‘#Anonymous’ takes down hundreds of Israeli websites" "Anonymous launches massive cyber assault on Israel" "'Anonymous' hackers launch cyberattack on Israeli sites" Boasting that Anonymous lacks skills has usually not worked out well for the target. "#OpIsrael Backfires" "#OpIsrael #Anonymous LIVE COVERAGE" "Parastoo OpIsrael Pre-Release" Unusual to see mention of the JFK assassination. "Israel’s navy gears up for new job of protecting gas fields" Impossible. Lots of nice new targets for Hezbollah, and another distraction for Israel which will protect the assets of its 1% before it can protect itself. The use of technology by empires creates the need for more and longer supply lines, and more and more resources employed to protect the supply lines, until the empire is bankrupted by the costs associated with the technology. The cost of attacking the supply lines is many orders of magnitude less than the cost of protecting them. The Leak It is starting to look like the publication of Mossad records is important, and a big problem for the Jews. First, there has been an almost total news blackout on this matter by the Jew-controlled mainstream media. The hive has instructed the worker bees to keep quiet. Secondly, the only exception to this blackout has been an easily refuted half-assed attempt at damage control by Forbes (and more obvious Israeli damage control here). The length of the list means it is not Mossad agents, but Mossad assets, some of whom have just signed up to deliver the occasional package, serve as a mail drop, or perhaps lend an identity. Again, we encounter the unusual propensity of members of a violent group supremacist collective to all pitch in to serve perceived violent group supremacist goals. Our inability to understand this - as we wouldn't do it - leaves us very open to being deceived by Jews both inside and outside Israel. The leak causes three big problems: operationally, all these names have been blown and are now on all the intelligence databases in the world, rendering them unusable for most purposes by Israel; the failure to control the data is yet another in the long, long record of Mossad incompetence; most importantly, the failure to keep these names secret is going to make future recruitment much more difficult, particularly in light of the Israeli state murder of Ben Zygier, killed for having a conscience. "The death of peak oil" Unfortunately, 'peak whatever' theories never die. "Detailed Political Quizzes" Concentrated truth. Can you imagine what would happen if all American high school students had to take these quizzes? "The Alleged MLK Murder Rifle" The infamous Himmmm on the Natalie Wood death (from this discussion): Very good article on the Original Night Stalker/East Area Rapist (see also here and here). Peak behind the curtain "Secret Files Expose Offshore’s Global Impact" "Leaks reveal secrets of the rich who hide cash offshore" "Massive data leak exposes offshore financial secrets" Ever wonder why politicians seem to act so frequently against the interests of voters?: "Another Solomon Dwek – Hasid Finds Corrupt Pols For Feds, Rocks NYS Politics" "Moses “Mark” Stern Allegedly Kept Dirt On Pols To Blackmail Them" "Understanding Syrian conflict" "MI6 'arranged Cold War killing' of Congo prime minister" "The Role of the Israel Lobby in the Growth of “Christian Zionism”" Ever wonder why one of the most distinctive aspects of Christian Zionism is that all its beliefs and tenets could not be any less Christian? "Camp Nama: British personnel reveal horrors of secret US base in Baghdad": "However, one peculiarity of the way in which UK forces operated when bringing prisoners to Camp Nama suggests that ministers and senior MoD officials may have had reason to know those detainees were at risk of mistreatment. British soldiers were almost always accompanied by a lone American soldier, who was then recorded as having captured the prisoner. Members of the SAS and SBS were repeatedly briefed on the importance of this measure. It was an arrangement that enabled the British government to side-step a Geneva convention clause that would have obliged it to demand the return of any prisoner transferred to the US once it became apparent that they were not being treated in accordance with the convention. And it consigned the prisoners to what some lawyers have described as a legal black hole." "Canada often successful at nipping homegrown 'radicalization' in bud: Kenney" Note how peculiarly nervous the Canadian government is about this, as if they fear inadvertently uncovering a false-flag operation. High school pals from different religious backgrounds all convert to Islam and head off to Algeria to become Islamist terrorists? Well of course! Added: Note the attempt to limit the damage - and the ridiculousness/implausibility - by focusing on just two leading to the very end of the story (my emphasis in red): "CBC’s sources also indicated two or more friends from the same school attended by Katsiroubas and Medlej travelled overseas with them. Their names and whereabouts are unknown." You know how this works. One of them - probably the Muslim, encountering a new 'friend' who had just recently appeared at the mosque - was approached with a business opportunity to make some cash with an adventurous trip to Algeria. All he had to do was gather up a few friends for some fun and money. "CNN spreads lies against Iran, Syria: Ex-correspondent" "Berezovsky's girlfriend doubts suicide" "The mysterious death of an Orthodox Jewish millionaire – murder or suicide?" (see also 'Martin Schlaff'). "The Rothschild They Murdered" "The mystery of Maxwell's death" "U.N. Treaty Approved - Aims to Limit Arms Exports to Rights Abusers, Will it be used to stop arms sales to Israel?" "The Staggering Cost of Israel to Americans" Had to be updated to account for the staggering increase in the staggering. More 'War For Oil' nonsense "Why the war in Iraq was fought for Big Oil" This is nonsense, and very pernicious nonsense, as it allows the same tricksters to pull the same trick again. The truth is available with little looking. "Iraqi oil: Once seen as U.S. boon, now it’s mostly China’s" (note all the excuses by the 'experts' for why China is so much ahead!): "Ten years after the United States invaded and occupied Iraq, the country’s oil industry is poised to boom and make the troubled nation the No.2 oil exporter in the world. But the nation that’s moving to take advantage of Iraq’s riches isn’t the United States. It’s China. America, with its own homegrown energy bonanza, isn’t going after the petroleum that lies beneath Iraq’s sands nearly as aggressively as is China, a country hungry to fuel its rise as an economic power. American oil companies, in the meantime, are “barely active” in Iraq, said Robin Mills of Dubai-based Manaar Energy Consulting. There’s Exxon Mobil, which is locked in a dispute with the Iraqi government and is looking to sell at least some of its stake in the giant West Qurna-1 oil field, with the state-owned PetroChina discussed as likely buyer. The other U.S. firm operating in Iraq is Occidental Petroleum Corp., Mills said, a company that has just a minority, non-operating stake in the Zubair oil field." "Big Oil's hassle with Iraq is China's gain" (more excuses!): "U.S. oil companies seem to be losing interest in Iraq, which a decade ago was seen as the big prize in the global energy business with the world's fifth largest oil reserves and low production costs. This is largely due to growing disenchantment with the Shiite-dominated Baghdad government of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, its bloated, corrupt bureaucracy and America's own energy boom that lessens its dependence on Middle Eastern oil. The disenchantment coincides with Washington's dismay at Iraq's unrelenting political and sectarian turmoil and Iran's growing influence, particularly since the U.S. withdrawal in December 2011. In the meantime, China's moving in to lay claim to much of Iraq's known oil reserves of 143.1 billion barrels, which it needs to feed a burgeoning economy." "China Will Soon Be Drilling A Third Of Iraq's Oil" The experts are able to mislead us by fudging the term 'Iraq'. There is American oil development in the pseudo-state of Iraqi Kurdistan, part of Iraq that acts as a separate country. Of course, once Iraq gets its act together and moves to reincorporate Iraqi Kurdistan into Iraq, the civil war will gravely disrupt any oil operations. I hate to keep repeating myself, but it was not a War For Oil. It was a War For The Jews. Fools "Drone Industry Fears Public Crackdown" No, not really. In this progressive-less world, things like drones, fracking, and the Panopticon security apparatus proceed with no real opposition. Alternative explanations for Cyprus are often gassy: "EU Caught Playing Dirty and it’s all about Russian Gas" "Turkey and Israel about to change the Cyprus gas game?" "‘Our money's not in Cyprus’ oligarchs say" "Cyprus Crisis: A Triumph For Russian Isolationists". If the Europeans were truly concerned about a Russian monopoly on energy supplies to Europe: why would they be so keen to sign on to the Zionist boycott of Iran?; and why would they set up a situation where the Russians had a chance to bail out Cyprus by taking control of the Cyprus gas fields? Also, if you feel uncomfortable about a Russian monopoly, just wait until you are dependent on Israel for your energy! Just wait for the taps to be tied to European consent to Jewish human rights abuses. Milk and honey news: "Israeli Gas Field Opens, Setting Stage for Energy Boom" "Israel Starts Tamar Gas Production" "Lobby’s effort to exempt Israel from sequester gets ‘Israel first’-ers into the lexicon" "AIPAC takes on the latest threat to Israel — sequestration" They claim they will spend their new wealth on social programs, which in Israel means illegal settlements and murdering Palestinians. "'Liberating Iraqis', Limb by Limb, Life by Life, Home by Home, Gene by Gene" (or here). Modern karma is that you pay for this shit by giving your government permission to do the same thing against you, something Americans are already starting to see. 'Respectable' people have nothing to say about any... Sorry I can't go out with you tonight but I'm too ...	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6430
__label__wiki	0.784203	0.784203	Very sad news: the main rescuer of Nepal is dead KATHMANDU: On a day of double celebration in Nepal -- Bhai Tika or Brother's Day, and the start of the Newari new year 1131 – tragedy struck in the Himalayan ranges in the north as a helicopter rescue operation for two Japanese climbers ended in a crash at 6000m above sea level, killing both the pilot and his companion. While Nepal was celebrating its four-day Tihar holiday, Nepali pilot Sabin Basnet and technician Purna Awale were scouring the upper ranges of Mt Ama Dablam – meaning mother's necklace – a Himalayan range whose main peak juts up to 6812m above sea level. They had been sent by domestic airline Fishtail Air to airlift two Japanese climbers who had fallen ill. After successfully rescuing the first climber, the two men went back for the second when high winds buffeted the aircraft and caused it to crash while trying to land. Two other helicopters sent to locate the missing chopper and its crew had to search the area for hours before they could locate the wreck and the bodies. Fishtail officials said they have now started the difficult operation of bringing the bodies down from the inaccessible mountain range. This is the second air accident since August that resulted in casualties. In August, an aircraft crashed near Kathmandu valley, killing all 14 people on board, including a Japanese tourist. Last month, three Japanese climbers and their Nepali guide were swept away by an avalanche while climbing Mt Dhaulagiri, the seventh highest peak in the world. The best high-altitude pilot, a real pioneer of rescue above 7000 m - Sabin Basnet With swiss team after Lantang flight to find Tomas Humar After epic Dhaulagiri rescue withh his swiss teachers Makalu climb. With helicopter to BC and back Ascent of Manaslu Peak (8156m), Nepal, with a helicopter to/from Base Camp. Full service. High-altitude Sherpas - 1.5 per member	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6434
__label__wiki	0.543081	0.543081	Property Search Control Min $250 $500 $750 $1000 $1250 $1500 $2000 $2500 $3000 $10k $20k $30k $50k $100k $130k $150k $200k $250k $300k $350k $400k $450k $500k $550k $600k $700k $800k $900k $1M $1.1M $1.2M $1.3M $1.4M $1.5M $1.6M $1.7M $1.8M $1.9M $2M $2.5M $3M $3.5M $4M $4.5M $5M $5.5M $10M $20M Max $250 $500 $750 $1000 $1250 $1500 $2000 $2500 $3000 $10k $20k $30k $50k $100k $130k $150k $200k $250k $300k $350k $400k $450k $500k $550k $600k $700k $800k $900k $1M $1.1M $1.2M $1.3M $1.4M $1.5M $1.6M $1.7M $1.8M $1.9M $2M $2.5M $3M $3.5M $4M $4.5M $5M $5.5M $10M $20M Beds/Baths: -- 1+ 2+ 3+ 4+ 5+ -- 1+ 2+ 3+ 4+ Other Search Criteria: For Sale; $300,000+ Basic Options For Sale For Rent All Listings Square Feet: Any 250+ 500+ 750+ 1000+ 1250+ 1500+ 1750+ 2000+ 2250+ 2500+ 2750+ 3000+ 3500+ 4000+ 5000+ 7000+ 10000+ Lot Size: Any 0.25 acres 0.50 acres 1.0 acres 2.5 acres 5.0 acres 10.0 acres 20.0 acres 40.0 acres Year Built: Any 2019+ 2018+ 2017+ 2016+ 2015+ 2014+ 2013+ 2012+ 2011+ 2010+ 2009+ 2008+ 2007+ 2006+ 2005+ 2004+ 2003+ 2002+ 2001+ 2000+ 1999+ 1998+ 1997+ 1996+ 1995+ 1994+ 1993+ 1992+ 1991+ 1990+ Condos Lofts and Townhouses Returned listings must match at least 1 of the selected Horse Property options At least 1 location must be added before you can choose keywords Listing Service: All (co-mingle permitted) CACRMLS FAR RETS Office: -- All -- North Fork Oakhurst Yosemite Lakes Park Enter MLS ID: ⇓ More Search Options ⇓ Sort by: Price: Low to High Price: High to Low Date: Last Updated Age: Newest First Age: Oldest First 37768 Charnal Circle, Oakhurst, CA Request a Showing \| Save Property \| Virtual Tour MLS ID: FR19154258 42763 Badger Circle Drive, Coarsegold, CA 41801 Loch Lomond Lane, Oakhurst, CA 36540 Mudge Ranch Road, Coarsegold, CA 1167 Silvertip Lane, Fish Camp, CA 1858 Nutter Ranch Road, Ahwahnee, CA 40852 Indian Springs Road, Oakhurst, CA 40416 Jean Road East, Oakhurst, CA 4926 Hirsch Road, Mariposa, CA 35699 Spanish Oak Lane, Coarsegold, CA Information provided is for consumers' personal, non-commercial use and may not be used for any purpose other than to identify prospective properties consumers may be interested in purchasing. No properties matched your search criteria. Your property search took too long to complete. You may want to try changing your search criteria.	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6437
__label__wiki	0.756761	0.756761	Observations of anthropogenic global warming Anti-AGW papers debunked Index to paperlists AGW Observer RSS feeds RT @RasmusBenestad: Geographical Distribution of Thermometers Gives the Appearance of Lower Historical Global Warming - Benestad - - Geoph… 1 day ago RT @ClimateFdbk: Non-peer-reviewed manuscript incorrectly claims natural cloud changes explain global warming Many blogs covered this paper… 3 days ago Problem with global warming vs. global cooling: you can always add more clothes but there's a limit how much clothes you can take off. 4 days ago RT @KenCaldeira: New paper in @nature by @DanTong12, @SteveDavisUCI, @zheng_yixuan and others. Existing infrastructure enough to take us o… 2 weeks ago RT @RasmusBenestad: Our new study shows that the global warming since the preindustrial time has been underestimated by about 0.1C https:… 2 weeks ago Follow @AGWobserver List of Papers on Global Warming Hiatus, v2.0 (308 papers) Papers on California wildfires Global warming hiatus paper list, version 1.0 (224 papers), part 2 Papers on changes in Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation Flaws of Lüdecke & Weiss Some curious things about Svensmark et al. reference list Papers on the warming hole of the United States Global warming hiatus claims prebunked in 1980s and 1990s Is AMOC Running Amuck? \| Climate Denial Crock of the Week on Papers on changes in Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation Ari Jokimäki on Papers on 1940s dip in atmospheric CO2 Cathy Trudinger on Papers on 1940s dip in atmospheric CO2 What does ‘mean’ actually mean? \| Climate Lab Book on Global warming hiatus paper list, version 1.0 (224 papers), part 1 ankush on New research – climate models and projections (August 16, 2016) Ari Jokimäki on Flaws of Lüdecke & Weiss qwertie on Flaws of Lüdecke & Weiss Some curious things about Svensmark et al. reference list on Papers on the non-significant role of cosmic rays in climate Ari Jokimäki on Some curious things about Svensmark et al. reference list Galactic cosmic rays \| …and Then There's Physics on Some curious things about Svensmark et al. reference list oldbrew on Some curious things about Svensmark et al. reference list Atomsks Sanakan on Papers on tropical troposphere hotspot RULES OF DISCUSSION Adaptation & Mitigation AGW evidence Climate claims Global warming effects A.R.I. (my astronomy blog) Arskan ympäristö (in Finnish) From a Glaciers Perspective Ilmastotieto (in Finnish) SkepticalScience The Science of Doom ThinkProgress – climate « Papers on CO2-temperature correlation Underground temperatures as indicators of surface temperatures – part 1 » Papers on temperature reconstructions from boreholes Posted by Ari Jokimäki on February 24, 2010 This is a list of papers on temperature reconstructions from boreholes. Emphasis is on global analysis so there’s not much papers on single locations. The list is not complete, and will most likely be updated in the future in order to make it more thorough and more representative. A late Quaternary climate reconstruction based on borehole heat flux data, borehole temperature data, and the instrumental record – Huang et al. (2008) “We present a suite of new 20,000 year reconstructions that integrate three types of geothermal information: a global database of terrestrial heat flux measurements, another database of temperature versus depth observations, and the 20th century instrumental record of temperature, all referenced to the 1961–1990 mean of the instrumental record. These reconstructions show the warming from the last glacial maximum, the occurrence of a mid-Holocene warm episode, a Medieval Warm Period (MWP), a Little Ice Age (LIA), and the rapid warming of the 20th century. The reconstructions show the temperatures of the mid-Holocene warm episode some 1–2 K above the reference level, the maximum of the MWP at or slightly below the reference level, the minimum of the LIA about 1 K below the reference level, and end-of-20th century temperatures about 0.5 K above the reference level.” [Full text] Borehole climate reconstructions: Spatial structure and hemispheric averages – Pollack & Smerdon (2004) “We demonstrate the consistency of GST warming estimates by showing that over a wide range of grid element area and occupancy weighting schemes, the five-century GST change falls in the range of 0.89–1.05 K. We examine the subhemispheric spatial correlation of GST and SAT trends at various spatial scales. In the 5-degree grid employed for optimal detection, we find that the majority of grid element means are determined from three or fewer boreholes, a number that is insufficient to suppress site-specific noise via ensemble averaging. Significant spatial correlation between SAT and GST emerges in a 5-degree grid if low-occupancy grid elements are excluded, and also in a 30-degree grid in which grid element means are better determined through higher occupancy. Reconstructions assembled after excluding low-occupancy grid elements show a five-century GST change in the range of 1.02–1.06 K.” [Full text] Optimal surface temperature reconstructions using terrestrial borehole data – Mann et al. (2003) “We derive an optimal Northern Hemisphere mean surface temperature reconstruction from terrestrial borehole temperature profiles spanning the past five centuries. The pattern of borehole ground surface temperature (GST) reconstructions displays prominent discrepancies with instrumental surface air temperature (SAT) estimates during the 20th century, suggesting the presence of a considerable amount of noise and/or bias in any underlying spatial SAT signal. The vast majority of variance in the borehole dataset is efficiently retained by its two leading eigenvectors. A sizable share of the variance in the first eigenvector appears to be associated with non-SAT related bias in the borehole data. A weak but detectable SAT signal appears to be described by a combination of the first two eigenvectors. Exploiting this eigendecomposition, application of optimal signal estimation methods yields a hemispheric borehole SAT reconstruction that is largely consistent with instrumental data available in past centuries, and is indistinguishable in its major features from several published long-term temperature estimates based on both climate proxy data and model simulations.” [Full text] Climate from Borehole Data: Energy Fluxes and Temperatures since 1500 – Beltrami (2002) “Here I apply singular value decomposition (SVD) Here I apply singular value decomposition (SVD) inversion methods to 826 temperature-depth profiles distributed world wide, in order to reconstruct ground surface temperature histories (GSTH) and surface heat flux histories (SHFH) from the temperature and heat flux anomalies detected in the shallow subsurface. Inversions yielded a mean ground surface temperature and surface heat flux histories flux histories for the Earth’s continents for the last 500 years. Results indicate that the global average ground temperature and ground heat flux have increased an average of 0.45 ° K and 18.0 $mWm^{2}$ respectively over the last 200 years, and 0.9 ° K in the last five centuries.” [Full text] Earth’s Long-Term Memory – Beltrami (2002) “Two methods-multiproxy and geothermal-are commonly used to reconstruct Northern Hemisphere climate of the last 500 to 1000 years. Both show warming in the 20th century, but in earlier centuries the temperature curves diverge strongly. In his Perspective, Beltrami investigates the reasons for these discrepancies. He explains the difficulties that arise in trying to compare the two types of records and calls for integrated analyses in which all models are interpreted jointly.” Mid-latitude (30°–60° N) climatic warming inferred by combining borehole temperatures with surface air temperatures – Harris & Chapman (2001) “We construct a mid-latitude (30°–60° N) reduced temperature-depth profile from a global borehole temperature database compiled for climate reconstruction. This reduced temperature profile is interpreted in terms of past surface ground temperature change and indicates warming on the order of 1°C over the past 100 to 200 years. The combination of an initial temperature (the primary free parameter) with the last 140 years of gridded surface air temperature (SAT) data yields a synthetic temperature profile that is an excellent fit to observations, accounting for 99% of the observed variance and a RMS misfit of only 12 mK. The good correlation suggests that this reduced temperature profile shares much information with the mean SAT record over large areas and long time-scales. Our analysis indicates 0.7°±0.1°C of ground warming between pre-industrial time and the 1961–1990 mean SAT.” Climate Reconstruction from Subsurface Temperatures – Pollack & Huang (2000) A review article. “Temperature changes at the Earth’s surface propagate downward into the subsurface and impart a thermal signature to the rocks. This signature can be measured in boreholes and then analyzed to reconstruct the surface temperature history over the past several centuries. The ability to resolve surface temperature history from subsurface temperatures diminishes with time. Microclimatic effects associated with the topography and vegetation patterns at the site of a borehole, along with local anthropogenic perturbations associated with land use change, can obscure the regional climate change signal. Regional and global ensembles of boreholes reveal the broader patterns of temperature changes at the Earth’s surface. The average surface temperature of the continents has increased by about 1.0 K over the past 5 centuries; half of this increase has occurred in the twentieth century alone.” [Full text] Temperature trends over the past five centuries reconstructed from borehole temperatures – Huang et al. (2000) “Here we use present-day temperatures in 616 boreholes from all continents except Antarctica to reconstruct century-long trends in temperatures over the past 500 years at global, hemispheric and continental scales. The results confirm the unusual warming of the twentieth century revealed by the instrumental record, but suggest that the cumulative change over the past five centuries amounts to about 1 K, exceeding recent estimates from conventional climate proxies.” [Full text] Climate Change Record in Subsurface Temperatures: A Global Perspective – Pollack et al. (1998) “Analyses of underground temperature measurements from 358 boreholes in eastern North America, central Europe, southern Africa, and Australia indicate that, in the 20th century, the average surface temperature of Earth has increased by about 0.5°C and that the 20th century has been the warmest of the past five centuries. The subsurface temperatures also indicate that Earth’s mean surface temperature has increased by about 1.0°C over the past five centuries. The geothermal data offer an independent confirmation of the unusual character of 20th-century climate that has emerged from recent multiproxy studies.” [Full text] Late Quaternary temperature changes seen in world-wide continental heat flow measurements – Huang et al. (1997) “Analysis of more than six thousand continental heat flow measurements as a function of depth has yielded a reconstruction of a global average ground surface temperature history over the last 20,000 years. The early to mid-Holocene appears as a relatively long warm interval some 0.2–0.6 K above present-day temperatures, the culmination of the warming that followed the end of the last glaciation. Temperatures were also warmer than present 500–1,000 years ago, but then cooled to a minimum some 0.2–0.7 K below present about 200 years ago. Although temperature variations in this type of reconstruction are highly smoothed, the results clearly resemble the broad outlines of late Quaternary climate changes suggested by proxies.” [Full text] Geothermal Evidence from Permafrost in the Alaskan Arctic – Lachenbruch & Marshall (1986) “Temperature profiles measured in permafrost in northernmost Alaska usually have anomalous curvature in the upper 100 meters or so. When analyzed by heat-conduction theory, the profiles indicate a variable but widespread secular warming of the permafrost surface, generally in the range of 2 to 4 Celsius degrees during the last few decades to a century. Although details of the climatic change cannot be resolved with existing data, there is little doubt of its general magnitude and timing; alternative explanations are limited by the fact that heat transfer in cold permafrost is exclusively by conduction. Since models of greenhouse warming predict climatic change will be greatest in the Arctic and might already be in progress, it is prudent to attempt to understand the rapidly changing thermal regime in this region.” Underground temperature and inferred climatic temperature of the past millenium – Cermak (1971) “Any change at the surface is propagated downwards, and it is shown that the detailed record of temperature with depth can be used to trace the past climatic history. The theory of climatic correction of heat flow is used, and the data is obtained from two boreholes in northeastern Ontario. After analysis the measured underground temperature clearly confirmed the notably warm climate that lasted a few hundred years around A.D. 1000–1200 and the following cold period after 1500. … The results presented indicate for the Kapuskasing area a surface temperature during the Little Climatic Optimum at least 1.5°C higher than the reference value; the mean temperature during the Little Ice Age was about 1°C below this reference value. A remarkable increase since about 1850 reaches value in excess of 3°C.” Analysis of Heat Flow Data—I Detailed Observations in a Single Borehole – Beck & Judge (1969) “Heat flow data from a 600-m deep diamond drilled borehole has been used to estimate how short a section of borehole will give a valid heat flow value, to test for recent and ancient climatic changes, underground water-flows and the variation of terrestrial heat flow with depth. Temperatures were repeatedly measured at 3-m intervals; measurements of thermal conductivity, density and porosity were made on specimens sampled at approximately 4-m intervals along the length of the hole. The mean heat flow for the whole borehole before applying any corrections is 0.76 h.f.u. while after correcting for the Wisconsin glaciation the mean value is 1.17 h.f.u., but in both cases some 30 to 100-m sections of the borehole differ by ±20 per cent from the mean values. The differences cannot be entirely explained as being due to structure, topography, climatic changes or underground water-flows.” Postglacial Time Calculations from Recent Geothermal Measurements in the Calumet Copper Mines – Hotchkiss & Ingersoll (1934) “The retreat of the glacial sheet a number of thousand years ago and the subsequent long-period surface temperature variations must almost certainly have left their impress on the geothermal curve. An attempt has been made to find such an effect and to interpret it in terms of past surface temperatures by subjecting to mathematical analysis a series of geothermal measurements recently made in the Calumet and Hecla conglomerate mine. The results indicate that the glacial epoch ended for this region 20,000-30,000 years ago, and that it was followed by a period with ground temperatures distinctly warmer than the present, succeeded in turn by one cooler, and lasting until comparatively recent times.” This entry was posted on February 24, 2010 at 9:08 am and is filed under AGW evidence. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6443
__label__wiki	0.909176	0.909176	Chris Janson Admits ACM Video of the Year Win Totally Shocked Him Courtney Carr Frazer Harrison, Getty Images for ACM Chris Janson got a major surprise backstage at the 2019 ACM Awards on Sunday night (April 7). The country artist was hanging out backstage when he heard Reba McEntire coming down the hallway to, as he soon found out, present him with the Video of the Year trophy. "I was totally taken by surprise," Janson admitted to The Boot and other outlets in the media room backtage. "I am so un-surpriseable usually, but my whole team knew, including my wife, which I cannot believe she didn’t tell me." Janson's "Drunk Girl" music video won him the 2019 ACM Video of the Year honor. He says the moment "was exactly, if you could ever have planned it, it was exactly how I would have wanted it to be." "I was standing backstage and I heard Reba coming down the hall, in typical Reba fashion, loud proud and ready to be there, and it was awesome," Janson shares. "She changed our life once again ... It really meant a lot to me; it really did ..." Janson's Video of the Year trophy is his first ACM. Previously, he's been nominated three times: once for Single Record of the Year and twice for New Male Vocalist of the Year. "I used to tell people -- before I won an ACM, or any other award for that matter -- I used to say I got into this for music and songs, and I truly did, and I still stand by that," Janson adds, "but once you win a trophy, it is hard to beat. It really is.” Janson's "Drunk Girl" intersperses the story of a woman who deals with abuse and mistreatment throughout her life finding someone worthy of her affection with shots of the country star performing the song at a piano in the middle of a deserted Broadway in Nashville. Ben Skipworth produced the clip, which was directed by Jeff Venable and filmed very late (or very early, depending on how you look at it) on the Music City party street. Top 10 2019 ACM Awards Moments The Secret History of the 2019 ACM Awards NEXT: More From the 2019 ACM Awards Source: Chris Janson Admits ACM Video of the Year Win Totally Shocked Him Filed Under: ACM Awards, Chris Janson, Editor's Picks, Reba McEntire	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6447
__label__wiki	0.962367	0.962367	7 Unbelievable CMA Awards Winners (and 3 That Came Close!) Steve Wood / Joe Kohen / Ethan Miller, Getty Images Who has more lifetime CMA Awards wins: country singer and radio staple Chris Young, or the actor who played George Costanza on Seinfeld? Jason Alexander is just one of a number of unexpected CMA winners in the show's 50-plus-year history. He's one of four actors with more CMA wins than Young, Clay Walker, Rosanne Cash and about a dozen more hitmakers. Two pop singers and a country legend that died 14 years before the first CMA Awards also make this list of shocking CMA winners. We expanded this list to also include a few surprising nominees. Did you know Snoop Dogg was nominated for a CMA Award? He didn't win, and neither did rocker Bon Jovi. Alas, Hollywood has a better track record of sending CMA winners to Nashville than the rock world. Flip through the seven shocking CMA winners we found since 1967 (and a few other modern celebrities who didn't win but gave it a good shot). In 2018, Bebe Rexha would qualify as the non-country candidate who could win a CMA Award with her hit song "Meant to Be" with Florida Georgia Line. See 7 Unbelievable CMA Awards Winners (and 3 Who Came Close): Source: 7 Unbelievable CMA Awards Winners (and 3 That Came Close!) Filed Under: Hank Williams, Kelly clarkson	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6448
__label__wiki	0.562145	0.562145	Box Office Movies Search results for "1983" Heart Like a Wheel Shirley Muldowney is determined to be a top-fuel drag racer, although no woman has ever raced them before. Despite the high risks of this kind of racing and the burden… Yor, the Hunter from the Future A warrior seeks his true origins in a seemingly prehistoric wasteland. Country: Italy, Turkey Peasants escaping mindless labor and a murderous Guatemalan government head to America in hopes for something better. A troubled man gets released from prison and starts taking out his sadistic fantasies on an unsuspecting family living in a secluded house. Genre: Drama, Horror, Thriller Traumatized by her mother’s death, young Susan is becoming possessed by the same demon that possessed her mother before she died. More and more her husband and psychiatrist are noticing… The Deadly Spawn Alien creatures invade a small town and four teenagers, along with a young boy, attempt to escape from them. Genre: Horror, Sci-Fi 30 min min A bumbling bionic police inspector stumbles about on his cases, while his niece and dog secretly do the real investigative work. Country: Canada, France, Japan, Taiwan, USA Genre: Action, Adventure, Animation A young man, armed with a magical bow and arrows, embarks on a mystical journey through a mystical land to rid it of all evil and joins forces with an… Country: Italy, Mexico, Spain Strand of documentaries on wildlife and the environment. Hardcastle and McCormick 42,60,45 min A retired judge and his last defendant follow up on cases that were dismissed due to technicalities. Investigative journalist documentaries. When aliens come to Earth to ask for our help, a few suspicious humans discover their horrific true intentions and prepare to resist. A variation on The Dating Game, this game show introduced a bachelor or bachelorette to three prospective dates, each of whom gave a self-introduction. The audience would select the … Genre: Reality-TV, Romance Thelma Harper and her spinster sister Fran open their home to Thelmas recently divorced son Vinton and his teenage son and daughter. Its quite an adjustment for everyone, especially the… A horror anthology series where the viewer is taken through ghost stories, science fiction adventures and creepy, unexplained events. Genre: Fantasy, Horror, Thriller The adventures of the various inhabitants of an underground civilization. Country: Canada, Denmark, Norway, UK, USA The most powerful man in the universe, He-Man, goes against the evil forces of Skeletor to save the planet Eternia and to protect the secrets of Castle Grayskull. Four Vietnam vets, framed for a crime they didnt commit, help the innocent while on the run from the military. Little House: Look Back to Yesterday Albert Quinn Ingalls wants to be a doctor. But soon he discovers that he is fatally ill. He decides to spend the rest of his life in Walnut Grove. Meanwhile… Genre: Drama, Family, Romance, Western Sex, Lies and Renaissance Happily engaged to her handsome fiance, Charles, Fanny is soon hit with one misfortune after another until she is forced to become a prostitute to survive. This is the story,… Country: UK, West Germany Daffy Duck’s Movie: Fantastic Island Daffy Duck and Speedy Gonzales find a treasure map that leads them to a wishing well, which for a penny will grant any wish (through old cartoon footage). Daffy sets… Genre: Animation, Comedy, Family Curse of the Pink Panther Inspector Clouseau disappears, and the Surete wants the world’s second best detective to look for him. However, Clouseau’s enemy, Dreyfus, rigs the Surete’s computer to select, instead, the… Frightmare – Alptraum Drama students decide to pay tribute to their favorite horror star by stealing his body from his crypt for a farewell party. They fail to realize their violation of the… The Devonsville Terror Dr. Worley investigates a 300-year-old witch’s curse in the New England town of Devonsville. Three liberated, assertive women move into town, which angers the bigoted, male-dominated town … Educating Rita In London, the twenty-seven year-old hairdresser Rita decides to complete her basic education before having children as desired by her husband Denny. She joins the literature course in an … Of Unknown Origin A man who recently completed rebuilding a townhouse becomes obsessed with a rat infestation until it becomes an interspecies duel. Scalps A group of archeological students venture on Indian land for a dig. Unfortunately, they release an evil spirit who possesses one of them and starts killing the others. An American engineer in London, who is helping to dismantle the London Bridge to be transported to Arizona, strikes up an acquaintanceship with a young British woman. Several years later… Country: USA, West Germany Genre: Crime, Horror, Mystery R.H.I.N.O.; Really Here in Name Only An isolated, overweight girl with a penchant for shoplifting, gets pushed from pillar to post as the authorities struggle to know what to do with her. To inherit his mother-in-law’s colossal fortune, a hard living, gambling addict must change his unhealthy ways before it gets the best of him. Three U.S. journalists (Nick Nolte, Joanna Cassidy, Gene Hackman) get too close to one another and their work in 1979 Nicaragua. Nati con la camicia Mason is driving a truck when he takes on his lorry Rosco a hitchhiker. Traffic police stop them for a control but they are confused for two robbers. They manage… Genre: Action, Adventure, Comedy Jaws 3-D This third film in the series follows a group of marine biologists attempting to capture a young great white shark that has wandered into Florida’s Sea World Park. However, later… Genre: Adventure, Horror, Thriller James Bond returns as the secret agent 007 one more time to battle the evil organization SPECTRE. Bond must defeat Largo, who has stolen two atomic warheads for nuclear blackmail…. Aiming to defeat the Man of Steel, wealthy executive Ross Webster hires bumbling but brilliant Gus Gorman to develop synthetic kryptonite, which yields some unexpected psychological effects in the third… Genre: Action, Comedy, Sci-Fi After getting a green card in exchange for assassinating a Cuban government official, Tony Montana stakes a claim on the drug trade in Miami. Viciously murdering anyone who stands in… Johnny Smith is a schoolteacher with his whole life ahead of him but, after leaving his fiancee’s home one night, is involved in a car crash which leaves him in… Genre: Horror, Sci-Fi, Thriller In a small American town, a diabolical circus arrives, granting wishes for the townsfolk, but twisted as only the esteemed Mr. Dark can make them. Can two young boys overcome… Genre: Fantasy, Mystery, Thriller When two poor greasers, Johnny, and Ponyboy are assaulted by a vicious gang, the socs, and Johnny kills one of the attackers, tension begins to mount between the two rival… Eddie and the Cruisers Michael Paré stars as Eddie Wilson of the rock band Eddie and Cruisers. The band is at the height of their career in the 1960s when front man Eddie drives… Genre: Drama, Music, Mystery R123Movies Yo Movies Ads Free Sites 123gostream Copyright 123Netflix – Watch Movies Online Free 123movies © 2019. All rights reserved. Theme Design by 123Movies / PsyPlay 1.1.7	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6449
__label__cc	0.744323	0.255677	Healthcare & Wellness All Healthcare & Wellness Programs Cardiology Technology Early Childcare Assistant Intra Oral Level I & II Dental Assistant Medical Laboratory Assistant Technician Medical Office Administrator Personal Support Worker Physiotherapist and Occupational Therapy Assistant Physiotherapist Assistant Business & Supply Chain All Business & Supply Chain Programs Accounting & Payroll Administration Logistics & Supply Chain Operations Immigration & Law All Immigration & Law Programs Law Enforcement / Police Foundations Student Lines of Credit Out-of-Province Students Do you see yourself working in a school or early learning centre, caring for and empowering little ones to be their best? Then you have the compassion and drive to be an Early Childcare Assistant. Full Time: 37 weeks In-class schedule: Monday to Friday Practicum Duration Various payment options. Financial assistance may be available to those who qualify. National Association of Career Colleges (NACC) Curriculum EARLY CHILDCARE ASSISTANT DIPLOMA As an Early Childcare Assistant, you will have the opportunity to work closely with children, parents, child educators, and other childcare providers. Assisting and participating in the day-to-day operations of a childcare center, you will contribute to a nurturing environment in which young children can thrive. While working with children, you provide support and supervision as they play, encouraging socialization and enhancing children’s self-esteem during daily activities. Beyond child interaction, you will assist with record keeping, attend staff meetings to discuss progress and opportunities for growth and support and maintain the daycare equipment and environment. The program is 37 weeks, including a 14-week practicum with on-the-job training, offsite with potential employers. Our Early Childcare Assistant Diploma program is designed to equip childcare workers with the essential knowledge, skills, and experience to provide positive and professional interactions with parents, guardians, team members, and children. It includes two practicum sessions: one with infants and one with toddlers where you will be able to incorporate classroom theory into a real work situation. Not only will you learn various playtime activities for toddlers and infants that will help them develop senses, and the operations of a childcare facility but we integrate various skills into training such as health and safety, child development, ethical standards, guidance and nutrition. Beyond our industry-expert instructors, easy-to-use training materials and a hands-on learning environment for you to experience what it feels like to work in a childcare facility – what sets us apart, is a community of support, sharing your interests and goals for creating a life-changing career path, one that will become like a family as you navigate your way to success. FROM CLASSROOM TO LIFE Gain real-time knowledge and best-practices onsite from our industry-expert instructors and offsite through practicum with childcare employers Work within our fully equipped childcare training centre Learn with your fellow classmates, through materials and practice, how to provide exceptional childcare support and be part of a professional team WE’RE IN IT WITH YOU Contact us to talk with one of our Admissions Experts. We’ll walk you through the details of what you’ll need and how to apply, the details of the program curriculum and the next steps to get you on your way to your first, or next, successful career. Scroll down to see who your industry-expert instructors will be, and the experience they have to share with you. Fill out the form below, and we will get back to you. It all started with a visit to Anderson College! … I moved to Canada and visited their downtown campus and that’s when I realized … “enrolling here is my 1st choice”. Being an Early Childcare Assistant student under the supervision of the most kind and thoughtful teacher was a great opportunity. The faculty and admin at Anderson College are very cool … and approachable. With my classmates, we felt like we were one big family. … I was so excited to attend my class every day – as they say, “it’s a lot of fun to be in the ECA class”! Your education is still your own responsibility but having instructors that help you in any way they can is very special. The atmosphere and sense of community is incredible. Thank you for shaping everyone who comes here into such loving people … never, ever stop changing people’s lives by helping them understand how important education is for our future. Joanna M. G. Brigitte L. “I love teaching at Anderson College because our students also teach me so much! Our students bring a great deal of diversity and energy into the class; to teach them is a great honour. I look forward to meeting you next!” Brigitte has 20 years’ experience in early childhood education, working with special needs children and teaching ages 0-14 years in private Montessori Schools and child care centres across the Greater Toronto Area. Her previous roles include Summer School Director, children’s in-home-tutor, and Parent Workshop Leader. She combines her interior design background with the childcare field to ensure children, families, and her students have inspiring educational environments to learn from. Brigitte holds a diploma in Early Childhood Education, is a Registered Early Childhood Educator (with the College of Early Childhood Educators), and completed her Montessori Casa training in 2015. She is also a qualified Interior Designer. Zeynab A. “Playing a significant role in building and developing an individual’s educational foundation has always been a dream of mine. It is truly my passion and honour to observe students learn, develop, and apply all the skills I teach them.” Zeynab is a dynamic and engaging educator with over 15 years’ experience in childhood work and education. Throughout her career she has developed extensive experience in various settings like universities, daycares, and elementary schools. Zeynab is well-versed in industry standards and ensures she is aware of significant changes in the industry. In the classroom, her aim is to deliver a holistic educational experience around both the theoretical and practical branches of childcare to all her students. Along with professional training in Childcare, Zeynab has also obtained education in the fields of English Literature and Physical Education from the University of Toronto and Sheridan College. “I love sharing my passion for and hands-on experience in the field. I use various methods to teach adult learners, which will enable them to thrive in class and on placement. I absolutely love seeing students blossom into confident, capable, passionate, and hardworking individuals who make a difference in children’s lives and in the community.” Ruth has worked in early childhood education since 2001, beginning her career by working with children in a variety of settings, teaching various curriculums and styles. Her passion for enriching new neighbourhoods and families’ needs later led her to take on supervisory and administrative roles, opening new classrooms, childcare facilities and family centres before transitioning to a career in adult education, where she facilitated workshops for parents and caregivers. Ruth has a diploma in Early Childhood Education and is a registered member of the College of Early Childhood Educators of Ontario. Want Help Navigating All the Options? No need to do it alone. Contact a member of our Admissions team and we’ll work with you to match your interests and goals to a program and walk you through the steps that lead to start-day and career success. For 40 years Anderson College has been a partner to thousands of students overcoming career challenges and transitioning to the next phase of their lives. We understand, first-hand, how stressful and frightening it can be to establish a career in a new country or to build a career in a country you’ve spent years in. With 5 locations in Toronto, Mississauga and Hamilton, we’re recognized for our high-caliber faculty, hands-on, real-life career training and supportive culture. At Anderson College we are more than our programs and facilities; we are a team of caring individuals who are deeply committed to helping our students become skillful, confident and in-demand employees. 180 Bloor Street West, Suite 400 Toronto, ON M5S 2V6 20 Eglinton Ave E, Suite 200 Toronto, ON M4P 1A9 31 King Street East, Suite 200 Hamilton, ON L8N 1A1 165 Dundas Street West, Suite 300 Mississauga, ON L5B 2N6 5734 Yonge St, Suite 100 North York, ON M2M 4E7 © 2019 Anderson College of Health, Business and Technology. All rights reserved. Not all programs are available at each location. Why Anderson? 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__label__cc	0.736071	0.263929	Semantic analysis of a sentence. Reflections about the meaning of the meaning and the Artificial Intelligence Analysis of the meaning of a sentence, based on the knowledge base of an operational thinking machine. Reflections about the meaning and artificial intelligence First published at bgit.net and the e-zine “Sacred Computer” Оригиналът на български: http://artificial-mind.blogspot.com/2008/02/2004.html Анализ на смисъла на изречение въз основа на базата знания на действаща мислеща машина. Мисли за смисъла и изкуствената мисъл. Една от основополагащите ми статии от тийнейджърските ми години. Тази е от късните, продължава с два дълги коментари, добавки, включващи и размисли върху принципи на ученето с подкрепление (reinforcement learning) Included in “Unverse and Mind 4": a search of the meaning (http://eim.hit.bg/razum, in Bulgarian only yet) Finally I started to translate my old articles, including my teenage Theory of Mind and Universe - all were milestones of my AGI research. I wrote this particular one as a 19-year old freshman in Computer Science at Plovdiv University. Being kind of too serious back then, this is my favourite picture from the time... :-P Tosh in 2004 Natural Language Processing, NLP. An example of a search through the linguistic knowledge base of the author. Many different meanings of "meaning" defined for different uses. Quasi-formal semantic analysis - from words to chunks (expressions) to clauses to complex sentences. A search for relations, links. Criticism of the usage of short ambiguous sentences as a way to explain the "impossibility" of creation of an AI and machine translation; the lacking context is filled by human imagination and could be filled with machine's imagination. A discussion about the artificial prunning of the set of interpretations that humans are doing when translating or interpreting, and the implicit denial of expecting unknown meanings. Thought experiment of how a 3-year old toddler interprets unknown sentence (tme flies) and how does it searches for a meaning and maps meanings to his senses. Told as a real story, what he knows, what he experiences and what he would experience if... The style in not really academic, there are some dialogues, discussions with a virtual opponent, when this is appropriate to display human biases. Continues with long comments with additions about reinforcement learning and other topics (to be translated and linked) Part 1 (и български):(This Post) Semantic analysis of a sentence. Reflections about the meaning of the meaning and the Artificial Intelligence Some of the conclusions: More complex (smarter) the system – More Meaningless the Meaning Because the interpretation depends more on the system. „What is possible to be done with” is yet another meaning of the concept of “meaning”. Happy reading and enjoy the story of the little Johny and the flies that are flying around the watch... ;) BEGIN... This article starts with the definition of “meaning” of a friend of mine, Ilian Georgiev, we shared thoughts an year ago. Meaning/Sense (Ilian Georgiev's definition): Meaning of a sentence (a thought) is a function that searches for controversy between the knowledge base of the evaluator (the one who thinks) and the thought being analyzed. All elements from the knowledge base and their connections are juxtaposed with the new thought, the one that is analyzed. If any of the elements of the thought has a connection with another element, and the connection cannot be found in the knowledge base, then the sentence is classified as a non-sense (has an error). Using this definition, let's search for the meaning of a weird sentence, that I made up don't know how. I'll use also a made-up semi-formal syntax of NLP analysis, that you'll grasp on-the-fly. (The original paper is in Bulgarian, and the author is not a native English speaker; it is possible that there are some mistakes in some of the senses used.) SENTENCE = “The cat drank the stone and flew out under the uphill.” ИЗРЕЧЕНИЕ == "Котката изпи камъка и литна под нанагорнището." SENTENCE == SENTENCE_1 + SENTECNE_2 (clauses) SENTENCE_1 == "The cat drank the stone" - Agent_1 == The cat - Action == drank - Object == the stone SENTENCE_2 == "Литна под нанагорнището". - Agent + Preposition + Object -- - Agent_2 == Agent_1 - Preposition == under - Object == the uphill Basic syntactic parsing check passes. Moving to the Semantic Analysis. This is a quasi-formal sample semantic analysis, using author's personal linguistic knowledge base An improvised approach 1. Word-by-word semantic analysis "Котката изпи камъка и литна под нанагорнището." The cat drank the stone and flew out under the uphill. Do I know what does mean: -- the cat -- :: YES, a defined “cat”, I know what “cat” means -- drank -- :: YES, pass tense of the verb “to drink” -- the stone -- :: YES, Noun, ... -- и -- :: YES, Conjuction -- flew out -- :: YES, Verb, past tense -- under -- :: YES, Preposition -- the uphill -- :: YES, Noun This stage passes, connections are found in the knowledge base. 2. Chunks, Expressions, Multi-word Semantic Analysis 2.1. Two words, except cases where the first word is Noun and the second is a Conjunction. – the cat drank ...- YES (AGENT + VERB) -- (Someone) drank the stone - YES (AGENT + VERB + NOUN/OBJECT) -- and flew out -- YES (CONJUNCTION + VERB) -- flew out under -- YES (VERB + PREPOSITION) -- under the uphill -- YES (PREPOSITION + NOUN/OBJECT) Passed. 3. Semantic analysis of the clauses and the whole sentence. Let's analyze all the clauses, this would give clues for the meaning of earlier clauses and the whole sentence. „The cat drank the stone” Is "the cat" linked to the verb “to drink”? What are the links? - Usually “to drink” is linked with objects, which are linked to liquidity or semi-liquidity of a substance. In general, in the definition of an object, that is linked to the verb “to drink”, usually there's a morpheme or semantics of liquidity. “Liquid” is linked to: 1. Flow 3. Stream down 4. Roll down 5. Trickle down 6. Pour out 7. Pour into 8. Infuse „To Drink” is linked specifically with: 1. To drink + water. 2. To drink + juice. 3. To drink + tea. 4. To drink + cold tea. 5. To drink + alcohol. 6 To drink + beer. 7. To drink + wine. 8. To drink + scotch. 9. To drink + vodka. 10. To drink soup. The examples are checked easier if they are put down in a unified way: Verb + Object/Noun for quick comparisons. I don't know whether to check the general concepts/meanings first (like liquidity), or after all specific cases are checked first (as colocations, like “drink vodka”). „Drink” is used in some other cases, where the object is not a liquid. 1. Drink some poison. 2. Take a pill. (Take == Drink) 3. Take a medecine. (Take == Drink) In this cases the object is: 1. On the surface of a liquid. 2. Floats in a liquid. 3. Dropped in a liquid. 4. Sunk in a liquid. 5. Absorbed in a liquid. The most common meaning of “to drink” is linked with an AGENT which is a living being. Living beings have a throat, where the drunk object passes. The liquid assists the object to pass through the throat, when the object is not a liquid itself. I recall an idiom (Bulgarian, this is a literal translation) "A duck has drunk his sense." So, what about the linkage between “to drink” and the object “stone”? Stone has direct links to verbs as "to throw” and “to crack” and similar, “to kick” and others. Direct links are examples of usage which I have ever encountered in texts or speeches. „Stone” can play different roles: AGENT (subject) or an object, that clarifies/specifies an ACTION, done by another AGENT. Is it possible to drink a stone? One can assume also, that if something is said, then this is a special kind of stone. If a meaning should be found in any price, it is possible for the searcher to invent meaning that matches the given sentence. It is possible also to add additional sense, using experience, so that the sentence that is “meaningless” up to now to get its explanation. This point will be discussed again later. STONE, without a preposition 1. Kick a stone 2. Throw a stone 3. Push a stone. 4.... Lift, Roll, Hit, Crack, Break, Catch, Leave, Heat, …. Etc... but “To drink a stone” is lacking. However, this doesn't make the sentence meaningless, yet, because it was found above, that “drink” could be linked to objects which are not liquid, and in this sense, “to drink something” is a reference to “to swallow something” (to pass it through the throat) Drink == Swallow Therefore: “The cat drank the stone” == “The cat swallowed the stone” Therefore this clause makes sense according to my KB. Next clause: "...flew out under the uphill" Cat + fly?... No basic connections... Cat + jump, scratch, bite, drink, eat, … push, walk, run, fall, hide, pull, climb, jump over, hit, meaow, stalk, ... „Jump”, “Jump over” and “fall” captured my attention: "Jump” is an action where the AGENT reaches to a state, where its body doesn't touch the ground. It is the same for “Fly”. Therefore, “to jump” partially covers the meaning of “to fly”. Besides, I know examples of “flying” where to fly is used with the sens of “to jump” - directly or implicitly suggested by the context. “Air Jordan” (in Bulgarian - "Въздушният Майкъл Джордан.") The basketball plyyer Michael Jordan jumps and stays in the air for long enough to impress people more than the typical jumpers, this has caused his jumps to be linked with the morpheme “air”, which is used in words for flying (airplane, airforce). Therefore “(the cat) flew below the uphill” can be interpreted as: (the cat) jumped below the uphill. Now, is it possible “jump” to be used with “below”. Can you jump below? To.. - Jump over s.t. - Jump into - Jump out No “jump below”, but it doesn't mean that this expression is meaningless. (Actually there is jump below something, but say, not jump below the uphill) „Jump” has other meanings, like: doing something faster than usual, or moving fast. So... “[The cat] flew below the uphill” may mean: [The cat] jumped below the uphill? Is it possible to jump below an uphill? Why not? Uphill is an object, it can be located in а mountain, but we can imagine it to be any other object, over which somebody can move “up”, walking on. This “uphill” object can be made of wood or metal and can have a hollow inside, where a cat can hide. The cat jumped under the thing, that had an uphill over itself... The whole sentence can turn to: "The uphill had a hollow inside. The cat swallowed the stone and jumped below it. The additional clause fills up the uncertainty in the scenario. Another interpretation, based on “to fall” could turn: "...flew below the uphill" to “..felt below the uphill". Also, “below the uphill” may mean below the part of the uphill, that is steep, i.e. just before the uphill starts to climb. Then: "The cat swallowed the stone and felt below the uphill." This gives a rise of another interpretation – stone is often linked with “heavy”. There is a proverb (Bulgarian) “Hang a stone on my neck”. Then: "The cat was climbing the uphill, but it swallowed the heavy stone - it threw it down below the uphill...” While the cat was climbing the uphill, weird little balls felt down from the sky. They seemed like meet balls and smelled the same way. The poor cat was tired of hunger and the hard walk, and she bit one of the sky meet balls. A moment after she was frightened – the meet ball appeared to be as heavy as a stone. The cat was rolling down, until she stopped on the flat land under the uphill. When searching for a meaning in very short pieces of information, such as single sentences, it is expected for the mind to invent, to imagine in order to fill up what is unknown with probable sets of circumstances. If the source doesn't deny, we can invent any plausible imagined circumstances. Short sentences as a way to deny creation of AI Actually, one very rarely meets single sentences in the reality, out of context to constraint and direct translation or interpretation of the meaning. However, short “nonsenses” – which one cannot interpret unambiguously or are often used to disprove the possibility of creation of an AI. Let's check out a classic from the NLP. "It's so hard to translate to another language!” How would we translate it in Bulgarian? "Времето лети" (Vremeto leti - The time is flying) or „Времеви мухи" (Vremevi muhi - Flies which are related to time) Or another way - "time" doesn't mean only “time”, and “flies” doesn't mean only the little flying bug. These are just the first two items that came up to my mind! The search was obviously had been pruned up to two items, two possible interpretations. This kind of unconscious pruning, limitation of the number of variants, will be discussed below. Virtual Colleague: “The time is flying” is the correct translation. There's neither such an expression as “flies, related to time”, nor any other. Author: Why do you think so? V.Colleague: The other translations doesn't make any sense. Me myself, I would translate it that way, I think I'm good enough in English. Check out my personal web page. Author: And why would you translate it that way? Colleague: Because... I haven't heard of an expression meaning “flies, related to time”... Author: Therefore you have excluded the possibility to hear a new sentence, where this expression is used in a meaning that was unknown for you before? Colleague: Well, I think so... Author: Who did tell you that sentence? Colleague: I'm not quite sure... You? But... Well... It is possible that this is an idiom. Can you explain it to me? Maybe this is a special kind of flies? Or more likely... (What a SF fan I am not to guess this one!) Flies through time! Time travel! The ambiguity is caused by the lack of a criterion for pruning. Until the moment when an action is executed – an action caused by the input data, which are said to be ambiguous – the ambiguity is not an issue. The system can remember the whole sentence, word-by-word and until the moment of action, a decisive single action, it is known that all interpretations are possible. And when the action should be done, e.g. a robot to capture the right cube or the middle cylinder – then the system should use an additional feature in order to disambiguate, to choose. However, since the input is not decisive, but ambiguous, then turning any of the interpretations to action is not a “mistake”, regarding the input. Perhaps the Natural Language, or as the author calls it – The Language of Mind – allows ambiguity, because there are many “correct” possibilities. There are many cases, where each of the possible solutions/interpretations is “right” in the sense that the device (human) who took the decision continues to function after executing in effect, for real, an action, caused by the given interpretation. So, if a given system continues to function – according to a given definition of “functions”, e.g. its heart continues to work at least for so-and-so long period after executing the given action – then this action was “right”, i.e. this action is assumed to have had followed laws that don't lead to malfunction. More complex control units have larger space of correct decisions, they have wider “freedom”, i.e. possibilities for future actions, after which they will continue to function right. (see … @ qyote “Conception for the Universal Predetermination”, a.k.a. “The Universe-Computer” or “The Mind and Universe”) По-сложните управляващи устройства (виж "Схващане за всеобщата предопределеност": http://eim.hit.bg/razum). I think that everything makes sense, colleagues. One can always find meaning/sense, i.e. a connection between items. The meaning is the connection between things. (The relations between things) The easiest thing to do is to redraw an already known, drawn line, and this is what is done initially when one is doing a semantic check – whether precomputed links/connections/relations with the given expression do exist. If such links do exist, they are saw like “gray lines”, which mind can darken, one can do it when given a piece of paper with gray lines and is being told to draw lines without thinking a lot or planning. This is what the virtual colleague did above, he rejected the possibility that “time flies” has meanings, that are yet unknown to him, and need to be computed, “drawn” in his memory. Let's overview a case with the same sample expression in another case. Time Flies... A three year-old little native English speaker – Johny. He knows, that “a fly” means the flying bug (something little, black, that is flying and when it land on your face it's !!! гъделичка and you're trying to let it go by waving your hands. Johny knows how to create a multiple of fly – flies, but he doesn't know that “a fly” means also “a fly of an airplane”. For Johny, “time” means just “a watch”. Johny knows, that “a clock” and “a watch” have similar meanings – something circular, with a long things, that are rotating... and the longer things are rotating faster than the shorter and the thicker; the thicker ones sometimes appear not to move at all, but after you have played for a while with your toy cars and look to them – they seemed to be at another place... All the times when Johny has heard talks about time, he has seen clocks or watches. Johny has heard his father saying “I don't have time, we have to hurry up!” and when his father has told that, he has looked to his watch. That way, the conception of “time” is linked to the image of “watch”, when hearing time, he sees a watch, no abstract concepts. Johny himself doesn't have a watch. Now let's assume that we put on our hand a big and shiny colourful watch and go to play with Johny on the playground. What he is going to do, if we tell him “Time flies!” and he hears this for the first time in his life? Colleague: Perhaps he will look to our shiny watch and will search for flies around it... Author: Exactly! Can you imagine what he would do if we didn't have a watch on our wrist? Colleague: Maybe he would look to our hand, searching for a watch and flies... If he has remembered the pattern of watches being on the left wrist, he may first check there, or he may check both... The images Johny has for “time” and “flies” are recalled, and Johny searches the expression of these images in the environment, accessible by his senses. The specific mean is not important. The machine needs an external environment, where to search for meaning and senses – MATCHES of images, names, features, coincidences, patterns. Author: What Johny is going to do, after realizing that there are no flies around the watch, or even there is not a watch? Colleague: It depends what behavioral models have been developed so far. He could remember the expression "time flies" as an image that represent what he has thought then - “flies which are flying around a watch”, but not to do anything further; Johny could wait, expect to face usage of this expression in an environment, which is richer of details and features, so that he would be able to extract or approve the meaning. Details, specific cases are what limits the space of search, the domain. Details are forces for pruning... Author: Johny may also not make any conclusion, but just taking the expression as a non-sense so he wouldn't remember it. Also, he can ask us immediately: - What does “time flies” mean? The machine should also be able to do like that, as we do, it will need teachers and supervisors, while it develops. Our explanations and the degree of trust he has to what we explain to him will determine how the child is going to limit the space of search, but also how he will expand the space, by adding possibilities which he didn't thought of before. If one explains to Johny, that “time flies” means “time is never enough”, the child may remember this explanation as a whole sentence, without interpretation. Just a reference, a link: “time flies” redirects to “time is never enough” and then he would search for a meaning for the new sentence. On the other hand, one can also explain to Johny, that “flies” means also “to fly”, to move like birds or like Superman or so (recall that he didn't know the verb; it's strange not to know it, but that's the assumption), but not explaining him about the abstract concept of time. In this case, Johny could keep linking “time” to “watch” and may start to imagine “time flies” as “the watch flies”. He may look around, searching for a watch that is flying – generally, this is a search of features, input data/senses which could confirm the link that was made. Or... just anytime he hears “time flies” Johny would imagine a flying watch and would ask himself “Whether the flying watches have wings or they are magically flying?” Imagination is a the point here. When searching for a meaning, we should be able to imagine, to fantasize. That means, one kind of inputs/senses to cause other kinds of inputs/senses. The primary may be “real”, taken from raw data from the reality, linked to what the machine or human takes for “Reality”; while the secondary input/sense could be imagined, fantasized, unreal. Talking about reality, humans usually take for “real” input channels such as vision, hearing, touch, taste, smell; when he is receiving data at the maximum possible rate (max resolution, raw data). Vision is a primary sensory input, when we're sensing images, where we can recognize individual pixels. Letters, numbers and any symbols come from a secondary sensory input, because from the primary sensory input, containing raw pixels, each one containing an independent value, are extracted data with a smaller size (in raw bits) – letters, digits, geometric shapes etc. In order a system to find a meaning and make sense of things, it is very useful the system to have at least two different kinds of sensory inputs, and each of them to be able to invoke, to link to the other one. The images and relations between images (e.g. motion); sounds and relations between them can “generate” words: interpretations, which are described with smaller quantity of bits. When Johny hears “a watch”, he can imagine, somehow to see the image of the watch and what is possible to be done with it. „What is possible to be done with” is yet another meaning of the concept of “meaning”. There is no sense in meaning, if you can't do anything with it. Actually, everything “makes sense”, or “has a meaning”, in the sense that it causes something to be done. It is so, because even the so called “non-procedural knowledge/data” are only “non-procedural”, non-active, in the sense that they are not causing a type of action that is formally defined as “procedural”. In a computer, an information processing system, any data cause actions. Data defines what happens in the machine's “mind”. For example, the descriptive data of a page of text determines what exactly the machine is supposed to do, while it's CPU is reading the data from the memory, processes it, displays it, prints the page. The meaning is the action, that the “thing” which is evaluated invokes/causes/turns, and this meaning can be different, depending how deep we are searching and more – how and what. How and What we do the search is more dependent on our past experience, than on the short input being evaluated. Finally... Let's assume that the meaning of a message/sentence is an action to be taken, assuming that it was caused by the meaning that was found (if another meaning was found, another action would be taken). Higher the complexity of the system, higher the weight of memories/experience in the decision how and what to search, therefore – what could be found. It's a paradox, but: More complex the system – More Meaningless the Meaning Smarter the system – Meaningless the meaning Because the system - the Artificial Intelligence or human - can more freely search and find meaning – links between the items, things, phenomenons, events, messages, memories, objects, images, sounds or whatever. Continues with long comments after the article, about reinforcement learning and other topics... (to be published, when translated) Labels: Analysis , Articles , Artificial Intelligence , NLP , Изкуствен интелект , Изкуствен разум , Обработка на естествен език ▼ Jan 14 ( 1 ) Semantic analysis of a sentence. Reflections about...	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6463
__label__wiki	0.846816	0.846816	At home with Susan Cianciolo An intimate interview with the fashion-designer-turned-artist, whose work is now on view at the South London Gallery – from the archive By Ross Simonini Sculpture Park As Frieze Sculpture opens its 2019 edition, let’s remember what Mark Rappolt had to say about how ‘public’ these gardens and sculptures truly are By Mark Rappolt Tales of the Unexpected: the Singaporean Mace How a small report in a 1953 issue of ArtReview hid a big history Deepa Bhasthi on the Tulu script By Deepa Bhasthi Notes from Madras: India’s Justice System Charu Nivedita on a jailed kidnapper-turned-playwright who found the road to reform By Charu Nivedita We disavow! Ahead of Donald Trump’s inauguration, J.J. Charlesworth finds symptoms of delusion in the US artworld By J.J. Charlesworth Next Friday 20 January is President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration day. Observing from this side of the Atlantic, it’s hard to recollect a more rancorous lead-up to a US president taking office, with allegations flying about Trump’s dealings with Russia and Trump himself embroiled in spectacular fallings-out with the US ‘intelligence community’ and the news media over what he sees as their bias against him. Nobody (apart from, I guess, the 62.9 million Americans who voted for him) seems to like Trump very much, not least the US artworld, which has spent the last couple of months finding every way to express its opposition to Trump’s election. There’s been the Halt Action Group’s ‘Dear Ivanka’ campaign, fronted by an open letter published in Artforum, in which curator Alison Gingeras, gallerist Alissa Bennett, and psychoanalyst Jamieson Webster mock Trump’s art-collecting celebrity daughter Ivanka with a slew of psychosexual innuendo about absent mothers and incestuous fathers. There’s the growing J20 campaign urging arts and cultural venues to close in protest on inauguration day. And as these have gathered pace, artists have become increasingly vocal about wanting nothing to do with Trump, or his children; Ivanka’s received the brunt of the attention, since her high-profile use of contemporary art as a backdrop the luxurious interiors she inhabits has rankled a good few artists now furiously trying to dissociate themselves and their work from Ivanka’s entirely unremarkable art collecting habit. Oh, and of course, by extension, from her dad. Most prominent of these has been Richard Prince, who this week confirmed that he had returned the $36,000 paid by Ivanka for one of his Instagram paintings, this one drawn from Ivanka’s own incontinent Instagram feed. As Prince told the New York Times, “It was just an honest way for me to protest… It was a way of deciding what’s right and wrong. And what’s right is art and what’s wrong is not art. I decided the Trumps are not art.” While it’s not clear whether Prince is in a position to retrospectively disavow the authenticity of the work, the artist explained that “It’s a way of me saying to them I don’t want my work in your possession. I don’t want anything to do with your family.” It’s hard not to conclude that many in the artworld – with their wild prophesies of American (and European) democracies on the brink of fascism – are suffering from their own form of 'collective fantasy' The J20 art strike and the various gestures to withdraw work are claimed at acts of protest against a presidency that is now regularly referred to as a ‘toxic mix of white supremacy, misogyny, xenophobia, militarism, and oligarchic rule’. But the extreme hostility directed at Trump, and – perhaps more vindictively at Ivanka – reeks of exaggeration, and – if we wanted to borrow from psychoanalytic theory, just for the hell of it – disavowal. Because what’s really behind the intense hatred for Trump and family is really a more profound contempt for those who voted for him. As ArtNEWS’s deputy editor M.H. Miller could chuckle of Ivanka’s ‘mediocre taste', long before Trump got himself elected; ’you know, Ivanka Trump’s father could possibly be ushered into the executive office on a platform of nativism, sexism, general hatred for that which the lowest common denominator doesn’t understand, etc.’ The ‘lowest common denominator’ being, perhaps, the stupid, (probably) white people who populate the rest of America, those people still living in a world of out of date, conservative values. People who themselves are deluded or victims of a strange fantasy. After all, as Gingeras and her ‘Dear Ivanka’ co-writers put it to Ivanka: ‘The family is sick. It’s not just your family, Ivanka. It’s the family! We live in an age where we know deep down that the mythos of the family is over. It just doesn’t work. But despite this painful truth – our divorce rates, the spike in single parenting, the ossification of the concept that marriage is a viable mechanism for policing reproductive and social morality – some of America still wants a Daddy. And you and your Dad are the last dying breath of our collective phantasy.’ Gingeras and her colleagues no doubt think of themselves as impervious to the influence of ‘collective phantasy’. (spot the Freudian spelling!) Yet it’s hard not to conclude that many in the artworld – with their wild prophesies of American (and European) democracies on the brink of fascism – are suffering from their own form of 'collective fantasy'. What’s truly condescending about the various gesture-politics of cultural withdrawal – of the galleries rolling down their shutters on 20 January, of the artists sniffilly demanding that their art no longer be placed in the collections of the ‘wrong type of collector’ – is that it refuses to engage with the complicated mess of disillusion and frustration that meant that, in fact, a lot of Americans simply gave up on eight years of Obama’s Democrats. Easier to come up with cranky theories about how 50 per cent of American voters just want a strong father figure. Easier to engage in virtue-signaling disavowal than real engagement. The artworld has a long way to go before it escapes its own particular echo chamber, and it’s going to be a long 2017... Artist calls on Trump to commission artwork by Christo instead of ‘racist wall’ Art activists attacked as they leave New York non-profit Artists Space LISTEN UP YOU LOSERS! The shoutiest candidate for US President will make the New York artworld great again – as told to Jonathan ‘The Donald’ Neil J.J. Charlesworth Can art challenge the rise of Italy’s rightwing populism? Mike Watson zooms in on some of the art initiatives battling for social inclusion By Mike Watson ‘Not even the gods can save us any more’ Chennai-based novelist and ArtReview Asia columnist Charu Nivedita despairs over the landslide for Hindu nationalism at the Indian general election Vincent Fecteau The San Francisco-based artist is revisiting a show from 1995 at Matthew Marks in New York – last year, he spoke to Ross Simonini... Art Market, meet Blockchain J.J. Charlesworth reports from the Christie’s Art + Tech Summit: Exploring Blockchain, and finds an art market desperate for digital disruption The art gallery: a cut-throat business Commercial galleries should start taking their cue from the business world, argues Jonathan T.D. Neil By Jonathan T.D. Neil Peepholes in Happyland #3 Thai novelist Prabda Yoon on how political cartoons are testing the sense of humour of Thailand’s ruling junta By Prabda Yoon Christian Viveros-Fauné zooms in on four artworks that confronted the monstrous By Christian Viveros-Fauné Rituals, sex and gender identity in India Charu Nivedita’s ‘Notes from Madras’	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6465
__label__cc	0.590542	0.409458	Politics & Government Politics Why do people hate michael moore? BEFORE YOU ANSWER!!! i have looked up this question (it's been asked several times) and read the answers by other people but people don't cite any evidence. they just put things like "because he lies" or "because he doesn't show both sides" or "because he edits things"... show more BEFORE YOU ANSWER!!! i have looked up this question (it's been asked several times) and read the answers by other people but people don't cite any evidence. they just put things like "because he lies" or "because he doesn't show both sides" or "because he edits things" or just "because he's an arrogant liberal"... but no one ever actually puts WHAT he lies about and then inserts information about the "truth". no do people attempt picking on one of his points and then pointing out the other side. no has anyone put a link of something like the original film and the places that he edited out etc etc.. i know what people are trying to say.. but DO THEY know where they got it from? from some other person that said something that they heard from yet another person? can someone answer my question about why do you hate michael moore and then provide evidence to you claims instead of a half * answer? thank you Update: primo... your answer is the reason why i posted this question.. you say that he lies.. yet you don't provide any evidence.. i hate that you are considered a top contributer with your half * answers Best Answer: He embarrasses prominent people by exposing the truth about them, and they in turn vilify him to make themselves look better RE · 9 years ago people don't like him because he is not afraid to say what is wrong with America. People are instilled with the belief that the actions of the united states are never wrong at a very young age and it is these people that hate him. There was some controversy as to the validity of the evidence he found for his film "Fahrenheit 911," but nothing to the extent that some people have posted above. I also don't believe that he is unbiased, but his bias is not outrageous, it is the bias of an educated citizen. Some people just don't like fat people though. Michael Moore = fat Leona · 3 years ago Keep in mind how many people love him also. This is a politically bipartisan country so when you make movies that strongly take a side on controversial issues you will draw strong emotions from both sides of the spectrum. Nicholas J · 9 years ago I don't have the time to list the lies, try google and you'll get a few million examples. If you're too lazy to do your own research, don't berate us for not doing it for you. He lies. He cuts his movies in such a way as to imply something that isn't true. He rails against tax credits when he himself benefited from those very same tax credits. He's intellectually dishonest. Fact. Now take 5 minutes, use google, and educate yourself. Jay · 9 years ago Should a 400 lb man advise us on the evils of over-consumption? Should the resident of a million-dollar apartment claim to be a poster boy of the working class? Should a person who thought that Enron was a great investment, that Ralph Nader, Wesley Clark and John Kerry would win, and that North Korea's Kim Jong was changing for the better, advise us on ANYTHING? He is thought to be a tool of the left, when in fact, he uses the left as HIS tool to further his agenda. Remember that this man preaches about the evils of capitalism while laughing his a off all the way to the bank. If he thought capitalism was pure evil, he would have distributed his last movie making that point exactly for FREE. Smooch The Pooch · 9 years ago The extent of his lies -- most of those are BY OMISSION and thus harder to nail -- is documented extensively. Do a Google search. For one example his praising of Cuba's health care completely omits the fact, that the wonderful hospital showcased in the movie is located in a pre-revolutionary building (Castro's regime is not building such things) and houses the TOP hospital of the country -- to which only the elite have access. That the real Cubans have to bring light-bulbs and toilet paper to a hospital with them (and, of course, the clean sheets, etc.) is not mentioned either. The man's agenda is anti-Capitalist, and free people tend to dislike that rather strongly... Source(s): http://www.nydailynews.com/opinions/2007... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cvmQHo8I9... http://www.slate.com/id/2102723/ http://www.debbieschlussel.com/9886/lies-damn-lies-michael-moore-cinema-polemics/ http://www.hardylaw.net/Truth_About_Bowling.html Міша · 9 years ago Because Michael Moore thinks facts are subjective, skews the truth, misleads and takes things out of context, lies, and uses the very capitalist system he is so critical of to gain obscene amounts of wealth. Not to mention he's a huge hypocrite (see below). "Capitalism: A Love Story, exposes the lie that it is. And the great thing is, you can see it for only nine dollars at your local cinema." Okay, so he didn't really say that. But you see what I mean? Desert Rose · 9 years ago Here is a site that talks about 56 lies in F 9/11. The fact that people dislike him (I don't care about him enough to hate him) is because he is nothing more than a propagandist who gets the unintelligent riled up and the rest of us have to deal with angry idiots who fall for his crap. I don't under any circumstances think that he believes the crap he spews, he just deposits the checks. Source(s): http://www.davekopel.com/terror/fiftysix... Although entitled to his opinion he hate America and the capitalist way that has brought him his own wealth. He is hypocritical and obnoxious. He is unkempt has no manners and is crude. He laid off his staff when there was no work for them yet he made millions bashing companies for laying off workers when there was no work for them. He is a pig. He plays conspiracy theory games. I.e. Fahrenheit 911: Drawing a link between Bush and Osama Bin Laden was an irresponsible and deceptive thing to do, and it was used to draw a speculative conclusion about motive, and by extension, guilt. Using Micheal Moore's logic, since I got an inheritance when my grandmother died, I must have killed her. I admire what he's trying to do most of the time, he's fighting the good fight, but he's doing it the wrong way. Vito1964 · 9 years ago Because hardly any of his "facts" are facts at all. Just pieced together statements and video clips twisted and turned to look worse than they actually are. They're aimed at an audience whose mind is already set in that direction so any little piece of "evidence" provided by him is all too easily eaten up and taken as gospel. He is criticized so much because the people on the outside who see his movies for what they really are think it's laughable that anyone would actually believe his BS. Right-wing nutjob · 9 years ago Does everybody hate Michael Moore? Why does Michael Moore hate America so much? JebHillaryPutinTrumpBiden? Isn't democracy a real long-shot? with a privatized press & media? Republicans, is a fetus a person? Hey LIBS!! How genius was it of Trump to force the Dems to back and endorse the squad of 4? Moving the whole party very far left? Why does Trump treat Kim Jong Un, the Dictator that kills his own people better than minority women in the US Congress? Why do people think Donald Trump is racist? Do you believe that Trump was racist when he criticized the 4 congresswomen? (Alexandria Ocasio Cortez, Rashida Tlaib, Omar, and Pressley)? True or false, Trump is a decent human being? Is Pelosi right about Trump wanting to "Make America White Again" with Census question? Is Hillary Clinton proof that moderates aren't electable anymore? Should Ilhan Omar be the first female president of these United States?	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6470
__label__wiki	0.524696	0.524696	15 Jun 2013 18 Jan 2016 ~ Anthony Sacramone There’s a moment in this film when Kansas farmer Jonathan Kent, caught in the path of a tornado, shoots a look at his adopted son, Clark, who could easily save him from certain doom. Just as Clark is about to do what only a super man can do, and thus expose his otherworldly origins to a terrified crowd unaware that a creature from another planet is standing in their midst, the elder Kent raises his hand—not so much to say “Stop,” but rather, “Not now. Later.” That was lump-in-the-throat time. For Jonathan Kent (Kevin Costner) has spent Clark’s entire life teaching him to wait, not to exploit his strange and confounding powers, not to fight back when taunted, to turn the other cheek, because the damage he is capable of inflicting is incalculable and would betray too much too soon to a people unprepared to be in the presence of real power. (“You fear me because you cannot control me,” Superman tells an Army general. “And you never will.”) Jonathan is convinced that Clark was brought to Earth for a larger purpose: not to strike back at bullies, or even to play supercop. What that purpose is would reveal itself in time. But Clark is growing impatient. I was strangely moved by Man of Steel, this science-fiction re-imagining of the Superman origin story. Of course, our tale begins on Krypton, which is as doomed as old media. “Artificial reproduction control” and the exhaustion of natural resources has left Krypton vulnerable to the forces of decay, and Jor-El (Russell Crowe), a scientist, and his wife (Ayelet Zurer), having defied convention by reproducing naturally, decide that the only hope for Krypton is their newborn son. Just as General Zod (Michael Shannon) launches a military coup, determined to bring all “parliamentary” debate about public policy to an end and make the hard (read lethal) decisions necessary to save Krypton, Jor-El launches Kal-El into space. To earth the Kryptonian baby goes, bearing the hope of both his parents and his people, as well as a mysterious “codex” that Zod believes is the key to Krypton’s survival. Zod’s rebellion is put down, and he and his cohorts are launched into a phantom zone to serve out a sentence for treason. But Krypton is not long for the universe, and soon vaporizes like the conscience of the New York Times. Cut to a strapping young man by the name of Clark Kent trying to find his way in the world. Floating from job to job, trying to fit in, trying not to be found out as some kind of extraterrestrial freak, he eventually coincides with Lois Lane (Amy Adams), who, as a reporter for The Daily Planet, is investigating some strange ship-like machine lodged in ice at the top of the world. The crystal palace, of course, is Kal-El/Clark’s homing device, where Jor-El’s “consciousness” appears and reveals Clark’s true identity and the story of his people. Clark finally learns his purpose: “You will give the people an ideal to strive towards,” Jor-El tells him. “They will race behind you, they will stumble, they will fall. But in time, they will join you in the sun. In time, you will help them accomplish wonders.” In short, Superman is to ensure that earthlings never become enthralled to utilitarian calculations, He will model for them their inner potential. Superman, in short, is our only hope against all manner of determinisms: genetic, political, technological. But Zod is to be heard from again. Once Krypton had gone kablooey, he and his morbid band of radicals were freed from their bondage. In hot pursuit of Jor-El’s “codex,” which Zod is convinced holds the key to the “resurrection of Kyrpton and its people,” the general lands on Earth and informs its inhabitants that they are harboring a stranger from another planet who must surrender within 24 hours or else the third planet from the sun will look like Carrot Top’s movie career. What to do, what to do. There isn’t much moral ambiguity in Man of Steel, but there sure are a lot of dilemmas. It unashamedly waves the banner of truth, justice, and the American way, but no matter what choice Kal-El/Clark/Superman makes, a lot of people stand to die. Trying to decide whether to hand himself over to Zod, whom he knows not to trust, or stay and fight for Earth, whose people he’s having a hard time learning to trust, he seeks the advice of a minister. Sitting in a church pew with a stained glass image of Christ in Gethsemane over his shoulder, Clark agonizes over his fate. And what does the minister say? “What does your gut tell you?” Right. A very American minister, he. No other otherworldly advice does he offer. I mean, Clark may be from Krypton, but he was raised by Kansans, and his earth Mom (Diane Lane) has that cross around her neck. SOME talk of another kind of savior must have reached earshot in his 30-plus years… Nevertheless, one could say that Clark does the Christ-like thing and allows himself to be handed over to the authorities, a prisoner who can summon, if not angels, sufficient muscle to escape his bonds at will. But allowing himself to be manhandled is a necessary part of his plan to save humanity from a fate worse than death—namely Zod. Man of Steel strives to be more than just a fun summer shoot-em-down; it’s the story of two destinies: one of a warrior bred for one thing, to save his people, whatever the cost; the other of a king among mortals, born for one thing—to save everyone, or at least everyone who trusts that he is for them and not against them, and this at the cost of only himself. While I found myself captivated by this flick, it’s far from perfect, and its reach may be just beyond its grasp. The science talk is laughably daft, with blather about “black holes” and “singularities” that will leave real scientists giggling uncontrollably. Director Zach Snyder’s spaceship chases and mass destruction can be overwhelming at times (however well-realized), but the supporting cast, mainly the wonderment that is Amy Adams, play their roles with their souls written on their faces such that even brief interactions between them and Superman immediately reignites the more down-to-earth concerns, restoring a sense of human urgency that keeps this film moving at a very fast clip. And the final showdown between Superman and Zod is, to say the very least, underwhelming. (I was admittedly left going, “Really? That–wha? Hah? After ALL THAT? He just–wha?”) Lawrence Fishburne, a favorite of mine, is underutilized as Perry White, perhaps necessarily so. I hope we see more of him in the next iteration. Kevin Costner plays the human dad with just the right dollops of Midwestern stoicism and Christian empathy. But British actor Henry Cavill steals the Man of Steel. A more human, and American, Kryptonian we could not have asked for. When all is said and done, I’d tamper down the enthusiasm for the Christian signposts that decorate the script. Yes, there is a lot of Western Unioning about self-sacrifice, etc. And there is the ever-present theme of adoption, bringing “the other” into the family, echoing our adoption into the family of God. And, as it turns out, Superman bears within his breast a new race, a new “Adam,” as it were. One could also throw in a Markan messianic secret (but what superhero doesn’t have a secret?). But keep in mind that there is never any mention of God, or what possible purpose God might have in all this. (OK, OK, it’s a comic book about space aliens and laser beams and planet building. But the writers started it…) There is a grin-worthy moment, however, one that will warm the cockles of every Bible Belting evangelical. One of Zod’s warriors tells Superman that the Man of Steel has developed “morality,” which is a weakness, whereas Zod and his people have evolved beyond good and evil. “And evolution always wins.” Except, of course, when it doesn’t. Cue rousing theme music. Why my enthusiasm for Man of Steel? Because it transcends the typical summer superhero movie, in that it isn’t just about Superman. When Zod and his army, attempting to draw out the Man of Steel and find that damn codex, are breaking up “a great metropolis” (read New York City), it plays unsettlingly like 9/11 and the response of rescue workers and ordinary citizens. Perry White and a Daily Planet reporter risk their lives to save a colleague trapped beneath rubble—because every life counts, and what gives our life meaning, at least in this film’s philosophizing, is the extent to which we aid our neighbor in time of need. Yes, individuals matter, but we are not alone. Man of Steel is a potent reminder that the call to heroism can come at any time to anyone. And just as important: Man of Steel brings home the message that Superman isn’t great because he has X-ray vision and flies like an eagle and can withstand bullets. He’s great because of the old-fashioned values he learned from his adoptive parents on a farm in Kansas. He’s our hero not because he’s strong but because he’s good. And that goodness is manifested in a certain humility, a restraint, a sense of limits even when it would be so easy to pull out all the stops. It’s knowing how to use power. This message, admittedly, sits uneasily with the one Jor-El delivers, a sort of extraterrestrial “Your Best Life Now” spiel. It’s a flaw in the script, and bespeaks the overreaching I mentioned before. But maybe, just maybe, it’s a tension between that earthy, anti-utopian Kansas wisdom and what a creature from another planet knows is still possible. The question is, will Clark Kent/Superman remember the true story of Krypton: a cautionary tale about refusing to acknowledge limits by ruthlessly rejiggering nature—whether by controlling reproduction through technology to concoct a more “useful” race; or by exploiting resources rather than cultivating, tilling, and stewarding them. The Kent family, five generations of farmers, didn’t exploit nature, like the Kryptonians did. They learned to nourish and be nourished by it. When you outrage nature because you think you’re above it, you outrage nature’s God, who will quickly show you who the true author of life is. Now tell me, when was the last time you went to a blockbuster popcorn-muncher and were left even thinking about these things? (That the screenplay was cowritten by Christopher “Dark Knight” Nolan may be one reason it has so much dense matter on its mind.) So wave the flag, cheer for the good guys, and remember: that reporter for The Daily Planet is NOT Superman. How do I know? He’s wearing glasses. Do you think Superman needs glasses? ‹ PreviousThe Deep Dark Secrets of Return of the Jedi Next ›A Strange Review: Kumare 11 thoughts on “A Strange Review: Man of Steel” kcmcginnis says: SPOILER ahead: What about the kiss? Ugh, that kiss. It just KILLED the movie for me. It was ill-timed, I will grant you. Hint at the attraction, sure — but wait, for goodness sake… JEH says: I guess this is almost a SPOILER but not really. DON’T READ THIS aiejafidshflakehfuihdlsf adsf ejfdfadsf jlka sjdfl kadjf j43 klrjasdjfl adsfkl asdf fjasdfjadsfjoei I was likewise a little miffed by the end of the Superman/Zod battle. My first reaction was, “why is he so upset about it after perhaps hundreds of thousands of other innocent people have been brutally killed either directly or indirectly, and perhaps not a few of them owing to Superman’s own actions (for example, why battle in the middle of a town street…)” Honestly I thought it was just silly. asldkjfeioje39898adf laskdjfklasdfjlkdsjflkf ajlkd fjads flajdsflkja f a dslfkjadl skfjeoiajds flkadjf alksfdj alksdfj alkdsf Next, I thought the high points of the film were the depictions of Clark Kent, not of Superman (particularly the childhood scenes). And for the millionth time, can we quit sending a small handful of infantry out to do battle with invincible super-villains???????? I appreciate the involvement of the military, but where are the big guns? Can’t Superman lure the bad guys into a field so we can actually nuke them or something? The battle scenes were simply unoriginal. (and endlessly long, repetitive, and bland). I also thought the 9/11 rehash was poorly done. There was a lack of humanity to it. What, like 3 people were affected by it? I kind of cringed at that scene. It didn’t even make sense. Was she implying that all Kryptonians were amoral, or that Zod’s race only had become amoral? It was so ham-fisted. It didn’t even fit in that fight scene, because at the time all they were doing was beating each other up, and destroying buildings and maybe hurting a lot of townspeople. Morality has nothing to do with who can punch harder. But it wasn’t a terrible movie 😀 Fortunately, my home theater finally decided to offer an IMAX showing WITHOUT 3D. I hope they continue offering IMAX 2D (when 3D is available), because 3D is a complete waste of resources and money. I hope in the coming years we will learn to reject 3D as a gimmick. When you get past the idea that this is a film about a guy from another planet who flies around in his pajamas and who no one recognizes the minute he dons glasses, “silly” becomes a relative thing. As for the evolution bit, I think it related to both Zod’s original eugenics plan but also the final showdown between Zod and Superman. That scene only makes sense if Superman was holding back all this time, not wanting to do what he finally did. It’s still anticlimactic, but I’d like to think there was something more going on than the fact that the writers had run out of ideas. ZZ says: You know what I liked? When US Colonel Whatsisface crawls out of the crashed chopper to face Alien Subcommander Whatsername, and empties his whole magazine at her, stares at her in disbelief, pulls out his sidearm, empties THAT at her, stares in disbelief, and THEN? What does he do? Give up and die? HECK NO. Like a real American warrior, he pulls out his KNIFE, raises it into a combat stance, knowing full well this is totally futile against this superhuman chick, and lunges at her ANYWAY. Superman then saves him, but it was cool anyway. I liked Meloni’s character, but in that scene I couldn’t help but think of Sean Connery’s line in The Untouchables… Based on the low Rotten Tomatoes reviews, I was going to give this a pass, but your review and the film’s relatively high cinemascore (A-) changed my mind. I liked the first 1.5 hours, kind of hated the last hour. I assume it was an hour, felt like forever. Whenever it was that Zod showed up on earth and the showdown began. There must have been an hour’s worth of explosions – in the farm fields, the small towns, Manhattan, etc. The good will I’d had for the movie up to that point evaporated and I just wanted it to be over. I thought the General Zod character was a good idea, none too successfully executed. That is, if I understood what they were going for, they were creating a villain who could conceivably be considered as being motivated by good – he wants to save Krypton, that’s not bad, in itself. (I’m not familiar enough with the comics to know how true to them this characterization is.) What really bugged me, though, was that they managed to make Michael Shannon (Gen. Zod) boring. This should be an impossible feat and they shouldn’t be proud they achieved it. He shows up on earth to kidnap/kill Superman, but stops for a good three minutes to provide exposition about the destruction of Krypton – and we watched that backstory in Act I and Clark heard about it in the fortress of solitude – so, why do we need this? But, more importantly, what villain worth his salt comes to do bodily harm – but first, a history lesson! (Okay, a lot of H’wood movies, come to think of it, but it still kills the drama.) I wish they’d chopped off about 15 minutes worth of the final fight and expanded Act II where the Man of Steel is introduced to the public, the Army arrests him, etc. To my mind, this was under-written – just a scene or two – and the movie would have benefited from more time exploring the impact of the public and the powers that be learning of Superman’s existence and showing his character as he responded. Plus, the invulnerability of Superman (and Zod) has its liabilities. When the two were duking it out (SPOILER, I GUESS) 50 floors high – crashing into skyscrapers and then ricocheting off and smashing onto other buildings, you knew neither of them would be stopped, so, to quote Hillary, WHAT DIFFERENCE DOES IT MAKE? None. Please, just get to the point. I did like the first 1.5 hours – liked the setup on Krypton, like the way Superman’s early life on earth was presented. I agree, we admire Superman and are on his side because he’s good, not powerful, and I loved that the script made that so clear. I’ll take your word for it on Amy Adams, who I think is a good actress, but I have my reservations about Henry Cavill. He’s super-humanly (sorry) good looking but from time to time he’d get this sort of nerdy/ironic expression on his face, like he was trying to figure out some quantum physics problem and, gee, don’t these non-superhuman folks ask the silliest questions or doesn’t Gen. Zod present a an abstractly interesting question about space/time…to me, it drained the impact of some of the scenes. Some director should tell him not to furrow his brow…he looks dorky and un-superhuman. Given what you’ve written about your father here and other places, I’m not surprised that you were “strangely moved” by this move, in particular, some of the father/son moments. Pingback: Thumbs up for “Man of Steel” maidrya: I agree with your critique of Cavill’s expressions. It wasn’t exactly bad, but it was a little off/out of place for Superman. He reminded me of Spock too much. ZZ: Yep, I was similarly impressed. The thing I wished would happen was for some soldier to do SOMETHING to the villains. I’d rather see a soldier die actually inflicting wounds than to watch incredulously as the villains just sit and wait for their own demise. (The ending would qualify as the villain simply wanting to die) Jango says: This article is horribly written. It jars the reader constantly with pop culture referrences like Carrot Top and then nonsensical similes about the “old media”. Rather thacoming off as a mature discussion about the movie, its plot and various other devices, it reads as pretentious claptrap. I could not agree more. I stopped reading it after the third paragraph.	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6471
__label__cc	0.55409	0.44591	Sculpture by Lee Badger Victorian Clock Tower 10' x 10' x 32' (L x W x H) The Victorian Clock Tower was designed to display a giant historic clock, an E. Howard Company #3 in the collection of the Sanfilippo Foundation in Barrington Hills, IL. The tower combines more than 11 tons of hand forged elements, castings, stampings, ornamental and structural steel. It was designed for the owner by architect Lee Pharr. Decorative pressed steel sheet used in the tower’s capitals and cornices came from the W.F. Norman Company’s 1909 “Hi-Art” catalog still available today. Six other specialty services and suppliers provided parts and pieces for the project. The tower was assembled in eight sections including three upper frames, four column assemblies and the base. After ten months in construction the tower was assembled and the clockworks were installed by experts on the foundation staff. Operational fittings and adjustments took another year before the historic clock was restored to working order. A specialist on the Foundation staff designed and applied the elaborate painted and gilded finish. Equally ornate and unusual mechanical antiques surround the tower in its permanent setting. The tower is a notable example of versatility, collaboration, and cooperation with numerous technical and professional specialists in the fabrication of a very large, technically complex structure. A description of this project appeared as a "Tips & Tactics Case Study" in Fabricator Magazine, the official publication of the National Ornamental and Miscellaneous Metals Association (NOMMA), Jul-Aug, 2011. The Victorian Clock Tower was published in "Ironwork Today 2: Inside and Out" (p. 253-4 - Schiffer Publishing- December, 2008)	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6473
__label__wiki	0.861825	0.861825	Solitary Pumas Turn Out to Be Mountain Lions Who Lunch Published 10/11/17 in The New York Times by Douglas Quenua Pumas have long had a reputation as loners, studiously marking their territory, hunting individually and tolerating one another only when it’s time to mate. But the animals — also known as mountain lions, cougars or panthers — may be more social than previously thought, according to a new study published Wednesday in the journal Science Advances. To study puma interactions, researchers tagged 13 of the animals with GPS trackers and filmed their behavior at Wyoming feeding spots from 2012 to 2015. The film showed pumas with overlapping or adjacent territories repeatedly sharing elk carcasses that were too large for one puma to consume. The shared feeding sometimes lasted days. Based on the feeding visits, the researchers were able to map complex social networks of puma reciprocity. This typically consisted of a single male and multiple females. Though the animals were rarely caught interacting on film outside of eating together, the researchers believe they were also sharing land and water sources, and the networks helped determine which pumas would mate with each other. Male pumas may also have been providing protection for females with kittens. The findings challenge conventional wisdom not just about pumas, but about supposedly solitary mammals in general, said Mark Elbroch, lead scientist for the puma program at Panthera, a wildcat conservation group, and an author of the study. Perhaps, he said, researchers simply had to take the longer view when deciding just how gregarious less-social animals really are. “Mountain lions interact infrequently — in our study about once every 11 to 12 days during winter,” he said. More social animals like meerkats, wolves and chimpanzees interact consistently throughout the day. But that didn’t mean they were all loners. “To document reciprocity among mountain lions, we needed to step back and assess behaviors over longer time spans,” he said. By taking the longer view, “we captured the patterns of behavior that have no doubt been occurring among mountain lions all along.” Dr. Elbroch said he was compelled to perform the research after observing two female pumas share a carcass in 2012 in a forest near Grand Teton National Park. Though he had initially assumed the two animals were sisters, later study revealed them to be unrelated. “So many questions exploded in my head that I just had to pursue some answers,” Dr. Elbroch said. In the current study, the puma communities were determined largely by the territorial boundaries of the males, said Dr. Elbroch. “Males acted like governors of fiefdoms, structuring how all mountain lions across the landscape interacted with each other,” he said. Though pumas are found throughout the Americas, hunting and human development have reduced their footprint in North America, where they are now found mostly in Mexico, southern Florida and the Western United States. Though they are listed as an endangered or protected species in many areas, hunting is still allowed in many parts of the U.S. If pumas are living in communities, it raises new questions about the impact that hunting, especially adult males, may have on the animals, said Dr. Elbroch. “What are the influences of trophy hunting on the social fabric of mountain lion society?” he said. “There is so much more to learn.”	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6481
__label__cc	0.742301	0.257699	sprigs how we farm we are lovers of fine food Yes, we’re farmers, but first and foremost we are lovers of healthy, nutritious food. Our goal is to change the way people know food by providing the highest quality of produce that’s local and organically grown. We started our indoor vertical farm in early 2018 out of a love of food and healthy living. We recognize the importance of eating organically grown produce that is non-GMO and pesticide free, so we imagined back40growers as a state-of-the-art indoor controlled environment farm centrally located near our home in Burlington, Ontario. From farm to table, all year long Our dream is now a reality. We grow consistently flavourful, micro greens, herbs and specialty items that are fresh-picked daily. Our produce is just as bright and crisp in February as it is in June. support local farmers, reduce environmental impacts We’re passionate about supporting local businesses and locally grown food. Well before back40growers launched, our family always went to great lengths to buy local. We like supporting local growers, eating healthy and reducing environmental impacts. Did you know that the average meal travels 1,200 kilometres from farm to plate? Grapes from Chile and garlic from China can hardly be called fresh. After an odyssey of several weeks on trucks, ships and more trucks, produce may still be good looking and well-preserved, but fresh it’s not. Food grown close to consumption is not only fresher—it incurs fewer transport emissions and requires less refrigeration. But food miles only make up a portion of a food item’s carbon footprint. The way that food is grown accounts for about 80 percent of its impact. That’s huge! Aquaponics: most sustainable practice on earth Over the course of 12 months in 2016//2017, the Government of Canada’s Nutrition North Canada program subsidized the cost of groceries air-shipped to far northern communities to the tune of $69,670,235. Over 1/3 of that cost went to subsidizing perishable fruits and vegetables. Ancient Egypt farmed using aquaponics at the banks of the Nile river. Southeast Asia has been farming rice this way for millennia. Aquaponics is the ultimate in sustainability. It uses aquaculture, or fish farming, to provide nutrition for vegetable crops. The only inputs are sustainably sourced fish food, filtered air, filtered water, and light. Discover how aquaponics provides optimal flavour, optimal nutrition, and minimizes carbon inputs. DISCOVER AQUAPONICS Subscribe to our mailing list for the latest back40growers news. We’re an indoor vertical aquaponics farm, located in Burlington, Ontario and we love healthy, nutritious food. From farm to table, all year long, we are growing beyond organic! Copyright © 2018 back40growers. All Rights Reserved. site by graphicallyc	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6485
__label__wiki	0.826792	0.826792	Archive for the ‘Iadya Mo Kami’ Tag 89th Oscar Foreign Language Film: What Should the Philippines Submit? 6 comments It’s the time of the year! By September, the Film Academy of the Philippines will submit one movie to the Academy of Motion Pictures, Arts, and Sciences (AMPAS) that will be our bid to the Best Foreign Language Film category at the 89th Academy Awards. This will be our 28th participating year and we are yet to receive a nomination. To qualify as an eligible submission, the Academy’s rule states that “The motion picture must be first released in the country submitting it no earlier than October 1, 2015, and no later than September 30, 2016, and be first publicly exhibited for at least seven consecutive days in a commercial motion picture theater for the profit of the producer and exhibitor.” Currently nine countries have already announced their submissions with our likely winner, Germany’s Toni Erdmann, in the longlist already. So which film will be our best bet to advance forward? I’ve divided them in three different categories. DISCLAIMER: It has to be cleared that this ISN’T the final shortlist from the Film Academy of the Philippines yet, and are just mere speculations and recommendations. FRONTRUNNERS: ANINO SA LIKOD NG BUWAN Director: Jun Lana Screenplay: Jun Lana Cast: LJ Reyes, Luis Alandy, Anthony Falcon Philippine Release Date: July 20, 2016 Amidst conflict between the military and communists, three people are confronted with a difficult dilemma. Jun Lana, no stranger from Oscar representative (he directed our 2012 submission Bwakaw), is in contention yet again for his latest effort which is a one-long two-hour take staged just like a play with only three characters interacting all throughout the movie. The film also has participated alongside many different international festivals both in Asia and Europe (though none in the Big 4 major film festivals). That said, the film is unanimously considered as one of the best from 2015 among local critics. FELIX MANALO Director: Joel Lamangan Screenplay: Bienvenido Santiago Cast: Dennis Trillo, Bela Padilla, Gabby Concepcion Philippine Release Date: October 7, 2015 Felix Ysagun Manalo is a sprawling historical epic that traces the origin of Iglesia Ni Cristo (The Church of Christ) which is established in the Philippines from its humble beginnings in 1914 through the present day. Definitely one of the most divisive films of last year, Felix Manalo is epic in its landscape detailing one of the most important personalities among Iglesia ni Cristo’s history. This almost three-hour movie boasts so much of its lavish production design and staging, that it would tick all boxes in an “baity Oscar film” checklist. But beyond the grandeur is a straightforward storytelling, and one that was considered as “weak” and “safe” by most critics. That said, never underestimate the taste of the FAP to include this in the shortlist, as they’re one easily swayed by buzz regardless if those were organic or fabricated. HELE SA HIWAGANG HAPIS Director: Lav Diaz Screenplay: Lav Diaz Cast: John Lloyd Cruz, Piolo Pascual, Susan Africa Philippine Release Date: March 26, 2016 In the midst of revolution, a young poet and the man that ruined his life travel through the jungle in search of safety. At the same time, a grieving widow encounters mystical beings on a mountain while searching for the body of her beloved revolutionary. Winner of the Alfred Bauer Prize at the Berlin Film Festival earlier this year (with jury president Meryl Streep awarding them), there’s no doubt that this is one of the two most-buzzed films we have in world cinema for this year. Imagine if we submitted this and have Oscar winner Meryl Streep and Oscar nominee Clive Owen campaign this right? But let’s not get ahead of ourselves as that’s a bit of a reaching. The thing with Hele is that we have already attempted to submit a Diaz film back in 2014 via Norte which is half the running time of this one and arguably his most universal effort thus far, and yet the Academy didn’t give in to it. HONOR THY FATHER Director: Erik Matti Screenplay: Erik Matti, Michiko Yamamoto Cast: John Lloyd Cruz, Meryll Soriano, Tirso Cruz III Philippine Release Date: December 25, 2015 A family is caught in a financial ruin after being involved in a ponzi scheme. With an Erik Matti film in contention yet again, it reminds me of probably the biggest miss we had not submitting On the Job back in 2013. What made that more infuriating was the committee’s response that they don’t want to submit a film that shows a negative image of the Philippines. Yeah, right. Anyway, Matti is back again this time with the MMFF entry Honor Thy Father which made its premiere a year ago at the Toronto International Film Festival. Honor‘s best shot is that I can see the film appealing to the Western crowd with its theme and execution. That said, the film feels bit of an after thought by now, but with every controversy that the film has encountered, it just ended up soaring higher. Maybe, FAP atones to Erik Matti this time around? IGNACIO DE LOYOLA Director: Paolo Dy, Cathy Azanza Screenplay: Paolo Dy Cast: Andreas Munoz, Javier Godino, Julio Perillan In 16th Century Spain, a soldier born of nobility gives his life of luxury to become a pilgrim devoted to God and his people. Watch out Felix Manalo, there’s another religious biography in contention. Kidding aside, I can already imagine the FAP members creaming themselves over this one. For one, the casting of a foreign star in lead role will make them think it can add extra buzz to our own entry (this isn’t an Oscar rule after all. Lots of foreign actors starred in films from other countries which ended up as submissions. Case in point: French star Emmanuelle Riva in Austria’s Amour, Mexican actor Gael Garcia Bernal in Chilean film No, and even our own Angeli Bayani in Sinagpore’s Ilo-ilo). Plus, the religious theme somehow gives it more importance and a “good image” per se in representing the country (which apparently is an unwritten rule; see: On the Job again in 2013). Director: Brillante Mendoza Screenplay: Troy Espiritu Cast: Jaclyn Jose, Andi Eigenmann, Julio Diaz, Felix Roco, Jomari Angeles Philippine Release Date: July 6, 2016 A poor family scrambles to find the money to pay off the corrupt policemen that have arrested the parents for dealing drugs. Sure it was one of the least buzzed entries at Cannes main competition this year, until the great Jaclyn Jose earned the coveted Best Actress win and the rest, as they say, is history. Ma’Rosa is currently participating now at Toronto International Film Festival and I think it has the most buzz for any Filipino film competing for this year when it comes to foreign exposure. And at this stage, after all his trips to Cannes and Berlin and Venice and TIFF, isn’t Brillante Mendoza overdue for a Filipino Oscar submission? I lobbied that Taklub was our best shot last year, but they can make up for it with Ma’Rosa this year. PAMILYA ORDINARYO Director: Eduardo Roy Jr. Screenplay: Eduardo Roy Jr. Cast: Ronwaldo Martin, Hasmine Killip, Sue Prado, Moira Lang Philippine Release Date: August 31, 2016 Jane and Aries are teenage parents. They make a living out of stealing on the streets… until fate hits back at them. After sweeping major awards at the recently concluded Cinemalaya Independent Film Festival including wins for Best Picture, Best Director for Eduardo Roy Jr., and Best Actress for newcomer Hasmine Killip, this runaway favorite is getting an instant cinema release in time for the Oscar cutoff. Add the fact that it’s also heading to Venice under the “Venice Days” sidebar (think of it as their answer to Cannes’ Directors Fortnight section), and it’s on the right track. This also has the makings to appeal to an international audience, POTENTIAL SHORTLIST MENTIONS: Don’t be surprised to see any of these films in this group make it in the final shortlist. DUKOT Director: Paul Soriano Screenplay: Froilan Medina Cast: Enrique Gil, Ricky Davao, Christopher de Leon, Shaina Magdayao With Paul Soriano helming it (one of the producers of our 2013 Oscar submission “Transit“), this suspense drama about an abducted son also brags of an ensemble composed of some of the biggest names in the country both newbies and veterans. ANG HAPIS AT HIMAGSIK NI HERMANO PULI Director: Gil Portes Screenplay: Enrique Ramos Cast: Aljur Abrenica, Louise delos Reyes, Enzo Pineda, Menggie Cobarrubias Philippine Release Date: September 21, 2016 In the tradition of our love for hero films — some of which are deserved (last year’s Heneral Luna), some of which are good (Supremo), and some which are just flat out terrible (El Presidente), let’s say hello to Hermano Puli. MAGTANGGOL Director: Sigfreid Barros-Sanchez Screenplay: Henrie Enaje, Henry dela Cruz, Sigfreid Barros Sanchez Cast: Dina Bonnevie, Ejay Falcon, Joonee Gamboa, Tom Rodriguez Philippine Release Date: June 8, 2016 Only because of its serious topical theme (with them even doing special screening this National Heroes Day), I can see this political themed film making a (not so) surprise appearance in the shortlist. Think of how Kamkam by Joel Lamangan made it to the Top 4 in 2014. A SECOND CHANCE Director: Cathy Garcia-Molina Screenplay: Henrie Enaje, Henry dela Cruz, Sigreid Barros Sanchez Cast: Carmi Raymundo, Vanesssa Valdez, Cathy Garcia-Molina Philippine Release Date: November 25, 2015 We have that one slot, almost always reserved to those box office hits that tackle more serious topics than the usual. Not to say that they aren’t deserving since most of them actually are, but they happen to end up in the shortlist. Examples include 2008’s Caregiver, or 2010’s Sa’yo Lamang, maybe even last year’s That Thing Called Tadhana can somewhat be considered. Director: King Palisoc Screenplay: Zig Marasigan Cast: JM de Guzman, Nico Antonio, Rochelle Pangilinan Philippine Release Date: February 17, 2016 As for starters, the producers of this film were also the producers of our previous submission Heneral Luna, so if anything, they;d sure be willing to campaign. This film got good to great reviews with solid performances from the leads, but if you compare it to other entries, it’s a tad low-key (in terms of buzz and not of film quality). And if it’s already low-key here, can you imagine how it would fare to the foreign market? WALANG FOREVER Director: Dan Villegas Screenplay: Paul Sta. Ana Cast: Jennylyn Mercado, Jericho Rosales, Lorna Tolentino For an MMFF film, this one got solid reviews and even swept the Gabi ng Parangal of last year. This is also from the Dan Villegas and Jennylyn Mercado team-up, which reminds us that English Only Please, was part of the short-list that year. ELIGIBILITY ISSUES: So these movies have appeared in different indie film festivals but haven’t fulfilled the seven-day commercial distribution yet. This does not mean that these movies are bad obviously they’re not because there have been buzz for some of them to be submitted. Well, they still have the whole month of September to book a screening if they plan to be considered eligible. Or they can wait for next year instead. For what it’s worth, some films who made it in the shortlist the previous years aren’t from the same year where they participated in festivals. As for examples, the 2008 Cinemalaya film Boses only got a commercial screening in 2012, and thus was included in the shortlist for the 2012 Oscars. Same goes for Ian Lorenos’ Alagwa which gave Jericho Rosales his Urian in 2012 but was in the 2014 shortlist. For this year, I think we can trim it down to three films which would all be decent submissions by any means. For starters, there’s the John Lloyd starrer Hele sa Hiwagang Hapis with its Berlin victory, but is simply hindered by the 8-hr running time. Not that Lav Diaz needs Oscars anyway to validate his impressive work; it’s just that sometimes the Academy just doesn’t fit into a certain director’s style. Then there’s the other John Lloyd starrer Honor Thy Father, which I can see a scenario with it connecting to a foreign audience, if they’re gonna push it hard and run aggressive with it. That’s a big if, by the way. In the end, maybe Jaclyn Jose’s Cannes win can also be Brillante Mendoza’s first RP submission to the Academy. It’s doing its assignment by participating in TIFF and its Cannes win, but us submitting a Mendoza film for once won’t do us any harm, regardless of the end result if it gets in or not. Share your thoughts with me! You can follow me on Twitter: @nikowl Posted August 27, 2016 by Nicol Latayan in Awards, Films Tagged with A Second Chance, aljur abrenica, Ang Hapis at Himagsik ni HJermano Puli, angeli bayani, Anino sa Likod ng Buwan, Ari My Life with a King, bea alonzo, brillante mendoza, Carl Papa, cathy garcia molina, Dan Villegas, dennis trillo, Dukot, eduardo roy jr, elizabeth oropesa, enrique gil, erik matti, Felix Manalo, foreign language film, gil portes, Hasmine Killip, Hele sa Hiwagang Hapis, Honor Thy Father, Iadya Mo Kami, Ignacio de Loyola, Jaclyn Jose, jennylyn mercado, jericho rosales, jm de guzman, joel lamangan, john lloyd cruz, jun lana, King Palisoc, Lav Diaz, lj reyes, Ma'Rosa, Ma'Rosa Oscars, Magtanggol, Manang Biring, MRS., Ned's Project, nico antonio, nora aunor, oscars, oscars best foreign language film, Pamilya Ordinaryo, paul soriano, philippines oscar, philippines oscar best foreign language film, Philippines Oscars, piolo pascual, Ronwaldo Martin, Sigfreid Barros Sanchez, Sinag Maynila, Tandem, Tuos, Walang Forever	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6486
__label__cc	0.720634	0.279366	Directed by Todd Douglas Miller Starring Buzz Aldrin, Joan Ann Archer Rated G \| Runtime 1 hours & 33 minutes From director Todd Douglas Miller (Dinosaur 13) comes a cinematic event fifty years in the making. Crafted from a newly discovered trove of 65mm footage, and more than 11,000 hours of uncatalogued audio recordings, Apollo 11 takes us straight to the heart of NASA’s most celebrated mission—the one that first put men on the moon, and forever made Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin into household names. Immersed in the perspectives of the astronauts, the team in Mission Control, and the millions of spectators on the ground, we vividly experience those momentous days and hours in 1969 when humankind took a giant leap into the future.	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6494
__label__cc	0.675735	0.324265	For My Home Explore Incentives Find Energy-Efficient Products Energy-Saving Resources For My Business Instant Incentives Business Forms Library Business Symposium Become a Program Ally Existing Residential Program Allies Portal Existing Business Program Allies Portal Installer Certification Residential Forms Library Missouri Energy Efficiency Programs Energy Savings Center Home For My Home Explore Incentives Heating and Cooling Incentives Everyone wants to have a comfortable home that also saves money on energy costs. Improving energy efficiency is the easiest way to ensure your home heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) equipment provides long-term savings for you. The Ameren Illinois Energy Efficiency Program provides discounts and incentives that can save you hundreds of dollars on energy-efficient products and improvements, such as: Electric air-source heat pumps Central air-conditioning units High-efficiency gas furnace blower motors Smart thermostats (when part of a qualifying heating or cooling project) Air-source heat pump water heaters Available Incentives Central Air Conditioning Incentives Standard Replacement: $400 Replacement of an existing central air conditioning unit with a new central air conditioning unit Unit does not meet qualifications for Early Retirement New central air conditioning unit must be rated 16.0 SEER or greater Early Retirement: $650 Replacement of a WORKING central air conditioning unit with a new central air conditioning unit Current central air conditioning unit must be verifiably operable and have a nameplate SEER rating of 10.0 or less Air-Source Heat Pump Incentives Standard Replacement: $600 (replacing air-source heat pump) Replacement of an existing air-source heat pump with a new air-source heat pump New air-source heat pump must be rated 16.0 SEER or greater and 9.0 HSPF or greater Early Retirement: $850 (replacing air-source heat pump) Replacement of a WORKING air-source heat pump with a new air-source heat pump Current air-source heat pump must be verifiably operable and have a nameplate SEER rating of 10.0 or less Early Retirement: $1,200 (replacing electric furnace or baseboard heat) Replacement of a WORKING central air conditioner with a new air-source heat pump, which would become the primary heating and cooling source for the home Current A/C unit must be verifiably operable and have a nameplate SEER rating of 10.0 or less Home must currently be heated with an electric-resistance heat source (electric furnace or baseboard heat) Gas Furnace Blower Motor Incentives High-Efficiency Blower Motor: $150 Installation of a high-efficiency blower motor, which uses significantly less power and adjusts the motor's speed to ensure optimal airflow New blower motor must be part of a system with a new gas furnace A furnace AHRI certificate must be submitted with the application NOT AVAILABLE in combination with air-source heat pump incentives Thermostat Incentives Smart Thermostats: $100 Installation of a smart thermostat, replacing a manual or programmable thermostat (limit 1 per household) Must be part of a heating or cooling project For stand-alone thermostat replacement incentives, visit AmerenIllinoisSavings.com/Smart Must be smart (ENERGY STAR certified), internet-enabled, and learning capable Must be connected to a working Wi-Fi connection Must be purchased between Jan. 1, 2019 and Dec. 31, 2019 Must be replacing a manual or programmable thermostat Must be used with a primary heating source supplied by an Ameren Illinois fuel, gas or electric Air-Source Heat Pump Water Heater Incentives New Air-Source Heat Pump Water Heater: $500 Installation of a new air-source heat pump water heater Must be replacing an existing electric water heater NOT AVAILABLE for replacement of an existing heat pump water heater To qualify for these discounts, your contractor must be a registered Program Ally and follow our energy efficiency guidelines for both the new equipment and the equipment you are replacing. Expand For More Details You must be an Ameren Illinois residential gas or electric customer. Equipment must be purchased from and installed by a registered HVAC Program Ally. IMPORTANT: Self-installed equipment does not qualify for home heating or cooling discounts. Existing unit(s) must be removed by a registered HVAC Program Ally. To qualify for the Early Retirement incentive, your Program Ally must verify that your current equipment is in working condition and gather additional required information about the unit(s). For this reason, only your Program Ally may remove the existing unit(s). All projects require program approval prior to project start date. All program paperwork must be submitted within 30 days of the installation date or by Dec. 31, 2019, whichever comes first. Jim Barnard When elevator contractor, Jim Barnard, and his wife, Sandy, moved from Virginia to Illinois, they made major renovations to make their new house a home. Among the improvements were updates to make their home as energy-efficient as possible. With the help of incentives from Ameren Illinois, the Barnard's installed an air-source heat pump to improve the comfort of their new home and save energy. It's made a difference they can not only feel in their home but also see on their monthly bill. Why You Should Consider an Air-Source Heat Pump Is an air-source heat pump right for my home? In the right situation, heat pumps can be the most energy-efficient and cost-effective way to heat a home. Find out if heat pumps are the best energy-saving solution for your home. Big name in small energy bills: You see the ENERGY STAR® name all over the place these days. Learn more about the ENERGY STAR program. Contact an Ameren Illinois Program Ally to receive recommendations and find out how much you can save upfront on equipment upgrades. Find a Program Ally Copyright © 2019 Ameren Illinois. 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__label__cc	0.727051	0.272949	Posted tagged ‘David Cameron’ A ‘common’ sense of identity! “…All major speeches whether or not they contain new policy should be sent for checking… the draft speech should be completed and cleared with the Shadow Chief Secretary two days before the speech…” Angela Eagle MP – Shadow Chief Secretary to the Treasury Latest this month, the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA) will publish a report by Leslie Kossoff entitled: “Reputation – why it matters and how you can manage it.” To suporrt the publication, Bodyproject will be debating the role of reputation in relation to high performance and growth. Bodyproject’s Advanced Stakeholder Management (ASM) methodology supports organisations in protecting and promoting reputation. In our second article we look at one of the three elements that contribute reputation – identity. David Cameron certainly ‘raised a few eyebrows’ with his decision to appointment a number of his ex Conservative Party colleagues to Civil Service positions. Of course this is not new and whether it be Tony Blair, Barack Obama or your average chief executive, you can be sure that each of them will feel the need to assign close allies as part of their ‘top’ team. Yet, what punctuates the appointments and make them interesting, politics aside, are the respective roles that Cameron created. Two of them are portrayed with the use of the words image stylists. Tory party brand stylist Anna-Maren Ashford or go give her a title – Head of Conservative brand communications; and Samantha Cameron’s personal stylist, Isabel Spearman given the designation of special adviser to help ‘Sam Cam’ into her new role. What created the greatest reaction and ultimately back tracking is the appointment of personal photographer Andrew Parsons and cameraman Nicky Woodhouse to civil service positions through short-term contracts without competitive tender. Whilst the appointments are considered by some as rewarding partisan loyalty they are in fact recognition by the Prime Minister of what really matters in creating success. No longer is it about the tangible aspects of high performance or achieving growth but more about the promotion and protection of reputation. In our previous article we argued that there are three dimensions to business success. The first two performance and growth are tangible and by definition measurable and manageable. But there is a third dimension we call reputation that has a value and potential liability that is great, almost infinite in some respects. We believe that reputation consist of three elements: identity, image and personality. Cameron’s appointments are less about image and more about the control of identity. Identity is the reputational element that we can all understand. We are all aware that identity is an important facet of human existence. Its something we take care of or sometimes if we are not functioning or face problems perhaps lose control of. We all develop a sense of identity. Whilst genetics and our human frailty can conspire against us, the way we look, dress, talk, carry ourselves is all about identity. The same is true of an organisation. The name of our business, its logo, colour schemes, tone adopted, language, imagery and values all establish our identity. The word we most often use in this context is brand and in its traditional role brand is defined as ‘the corporate promise.’ Chris Fill, co-author of Managing Corporate Reputation sums it up perfectly when he describes brand as: ”how a company wants to be seen.” So any business to protect and promote its reputation must spend a considerable amount of time ensuring its identity is absolutely right. Of course there is a fine line to be drawn. When Bodyproject recently worked with a major football club they went to extraordinary lengths to protect their identity providing their own photographers, TV footage and approved words to be attributed to their key spokesperson. Of course, they as a global brand are in a unique position to dictate this. The support team for the singer Rhianna at a recent Christmas Lights ‘switch on’ event not only told the journalists present what questions they would not be able to ask but also what questions they could. Such control of identity is never far from the news. Whether it be the control exerted over entertainment shows such as X Factor, the appointment of an entourage to support our Prime Minister and his agenda or the long running trademark dispute between Apple Corps and Apple Inc that resulted in the withholding of The Beatles catalogue from iTunes; identity is a subject of constant scrutiny. There is a fine line between the protection and promotion of identity that has perceived and real honesty and integrity and straying towards the area of ‘spin’ or propaganda. Of course, some of this is cultural. Nazi Germany had a Ministry of Volk Enlightenment and Propaganda. The Soviet Union had the Department for Agitation and Propaganda. But, all governments make propaganda. As Ian Buruma in the New York Review of Books recently said: “The difference between totalitarian governments propaganda and the democratic kind is that the former has a monopoly on the truth; its version of reality cannot be challenged. “Past, present and future are what the rulers say they are”. Succesful organisations understand that identity is important but that a balance has to be struck as go to far and what becomes apparent is that identity becomes self-serving. And that is why reputation is not made up of one element alone – it also consists of image and personality – we will explore those elements more in our next article. The control of identity by the coalition government makes an interesting case study. Step out of line and you are pounced upon as Lord Young the enterprise tsar found to his cost when saying we have never had it so good. Some commentators have rightly pointed out that he may be saying what a lot of his fellow politicians might be thinking but he was not following the identity set by his political party and the government of the day. In some ways, we almost like to deny we are controlling identity. It was amusing to hear Roger Tooth Guardian head of photography, a person in the business of identity, comment about the Cameron appointments: “The surprising thing about the coalition appointing its own photographer is that its leaders feel the need for that much extra control.” Is it so surprising? Of course not! For more information about Bodyproject and our Advanced Stakeholder Management methodology that helps organisations promote and protect reputation call 0151 709 2288 or e-mail nicktaylor@bodyproject.co.uk Tags: Angela Eagle MP, Anna-Maren Ashford, Barack Obama, Bodyproject, brand, Chartered Institute of Management Accountants, Chief Executive, Chief Secretary, CIMA, civil service, communications, company, Conservative Party, corporate, David Cameron, enterprise, global brand, growth, high performance, identity, image stylists, Isabel Spearman, Leslie Kossoff, liability, logo, Lord Young, loyalty, management, organisations, personality, photographer, policy, politics, Prime Minister, propaganda, reputation, Samantha Cameron, special adviser, speeches, spin, stakeholder management, success, Tony Blair, Tory party, Treasury, values	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6515
__label__cc	0.691294	0.308706	Focus on Fire Safety: Grilling and Campfires Every year Americans look forward to summer vacations, camping, family reunions, picnics, and the Fourth of July. Summertime, however, also brings fires and injuries due to outdoor cooking and recreational fires. Annually, there are almost 3,800 Americans injured by gas or charcoal grill fires. (Source: CPSC) Summertime should be a time of fun and making happy memories. Knowing a few fire safety tips and following safety instructions will help everyone have a safe summer. Safety Tips for Grilling and Campfires Position the grill well away from siding, deck railing, and out from under eaves and overhanging branches. Keep children and pets from the grill area: declare a three-foot "safe zone" around the grill. If you own a propane grill, check the cylinder hose for leaks before using it for the first time each year. A light soap and water solution applied to the hose will reveal escaping propane quickly by releasing bubbles. Avoid using soft wood, such as pine or cedar that will likely pop and throw sparks, in a fire pit. Use of seasoned hardwood is suggested. Don’t build a campfire at a site in hazardous, dry conditions or if the campground, area, or event rules prohibit campfires. California Fire News 2012 Posted by Bob Blogger at 5/31/2012 11:48:00 AM No comments: Links to this post 2012 CALIFORNIA MOBILIZATION GUIDE / IMT OP GUIDELINES 2012 CALIFORNIA MOBILIZATION GUIDE 2012 California IMT Operating Guidelines California Mobilization Guide Cover Chapter 10...Policy and Objectives Chapter 20...Administrative Procedures Chapter 30...Organization Chapter 40...Cooperation Chapter 50...Emergency Operations Directory Chapter 60...Personnel Chapter 70...Supplies and Equipment Chapter 80...Aircraft Chapter Dividers ENTIRE MOB GUIDE NOTE: The California Mobilization Guide is in .pdf format Download free Acrobat Reader here Standard Firefighting Orders Keep informed on fire weather conditions and forecasts. Know what your fire is doing at all times. Base all actions on current and expected behavior of the fire. Identify escape routes and safety zones and make them known. Post lookouts when there is possible danger. Be alert. Keep calm. Think clearly. Act decisively. Maintain prompt communications with your forces, your supervisor, and adjoining forces. Give clear instructions and insure they are understood. Maintain control of your forces at all times. Fight fire aggressively, having provided for safety first. 18 Watchouts Situations Fire not scouted and sized up. In country not seen in daylight. Safety zones and escape routes not identified. Unfamiliar with weather and local factors influencing fire behavior. Uninformed on strategy, tactics, and hazards. Instructions and assignments not clear. No communication link with crewmembers/supervisors. Constructing line without safe anchor point. Building fireline downhill with fire below. Attempting frontal assault on fire. Unburned fuel between you and the fire. Cannot see main fire, not in contact with anyone who can. On a hillside where rolling material can ignite fuel below. Weather is getting hotter and drier. Wind increases and/or changes direction. Getting frequent spot fires across line. Terrain and fuels make escape to safety zones difficult. Taking a nap near the fire line. Memorial Day Weekend Safety Tips The 2012 version of Memorial Day is upon us. For many, it represents the first days of Summer. With that, comes: first exposure (or maybe just over-exposure) to the sun, first cook-outs or BBQs on the grill (or over-exposure to the grill..yes, too much to eat) and the first time back into the refreshing waters of the ocean or pool. You may spend the Holiday Weekend at home with your family or a small group. You may opt to travel by air, road or rail and spend it with the masses or perhaps with a huge group that just happens to resemble your family. However you choose to spend it, please take a look at a few safety tips that may ensure a long and very pleasant Memorial Day Weekend... despite those distant relatives that all decided to visit from the East Coast. (Of course we're kidding!) These Memorial Day Weekend Safety Tips are provided with help from our friends at the County of Los Angeles Public Health and a few of our own, we thought were worth mentioning: Cook, grill or BBQ intelligently. Use clean plates, store food properly and prepare it correctly. Avoid prolonged sun exposure and sun damage. Wear sunscreen. Apply it generously and often. Be aware of changing weather conditions. Find or tune into a news source. Be aware of changing traffic conditions, road closures and other delays. Pool safely and always have someone watching the water. If you take to the mountains for somehiking or biking, don't go alone. Hike/bike during daylight hours. Hydrate and pack a snack. Don't underestimate the terrain. And if you have one, take a mobile phone with you and make sure it's charged. If you choose to imbibe, don't drink and drive! We all know the sobering statistics. Appoint a designated driver, use a designated driver service (there are many) or call a cab. Enjoy the weekend. Enjoy family and friends. Enjoy foods and libations (in moderation.) And enjoy the freedom and liberty that was made possible by those the men and women who served and do serve in theUnited States Armed Forces. Please take pause, if only for a moment, and give thanks to those who have had the courage to enlist, shown the strength and commitment to serve and to those who gave it all. This weekend especially, we remember! LAFD Mourns Passing of Active Duty Fire Inspector Jerald L. Coates Public Memorial Service for LAFD Inspector Jerald L. Coates Dear Friend of the LAFD, It is with a heavy heart that we announce the passing of a highly respected member of the Los Angele Fire Department. Fire Inspector Jerald L. Coates left us suddenly on Sunday afternoon, May 20, 2012, while off-duty and in the comfort of his own home. He was an active-duty, 25-year veteran of the Department, having been appointed to the LAFD in 1987. In his nearly three decades of service to the people of Los Angeles, the 59 year-old Coates held a variety of demanding assignments. In 2001, he was promoted to the Fire Prevention Bureau, where he specialized in "underground tanks." He then joined the Brush Clearance Unit in 2010. As a member of this small team of 13 inspectors, Coates helped supervise brush clearance issues of nearly 180,000 parcels, citywide. He truly enjoyed educating the community about the dangers of wildfire and was routinely lauded by residents for his firm, but fair handling of difficult situations. And by all accounts, he took great pride in personalized public service. We kindly ask you to keep Inspector Jerald L. Coates and his loved-ones in your thoughts and prayers. He is survived by his longtime girlfriend, Donailah and his 25 year-old son, Oryan. The public is invited to join the LAFD and the family and friends of Inspector Jerald L. Coates, as we together, will mourn his passing. DATE: Friday, June 1, 2012 LOCATION: Divine Saviour Catholic Church, 610 Cypress Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90065 INTERMENT: Private VIEWING: Private DONATIONS: IN LIEU OF FLOWERS, PLEASE SEND DONATIONS TO: Widows, Orphans and Disabled Firemen's Fund 815 Colorado Blvd, 4th Floor, Los Angeles, CA 90041 Official Source: http://lafd.blogspot.com/2012/05/lafd-mourns-passing-of-active-duty-fire.html "Serving with Courage, Integrity and Pride" California, USA 610 Cypress Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90065, USA CA-MVU- Banner 5,321 acres and is 100% Incident Name/Type: CA-MVU-Banner 2000 5-29: CA-MVU-5400 Shelter Valley, Cal Fire IMT #9 (Zombro) Fire has burned 5,321 acres and is 95 % contained. No expected fire spread this operational period. 0800 5-26: 4,100 acres at 30% contained, Equipment mishap sparked the conflagration early Thursday afternoon in the Cigarette Hills area, near Banner Grade and southwest of Scissors Crossing, according to Cal Fire. 1330hrs 5-25: 3,100 acres. 20% contained. Residents at an RV park are being forced to evacuate due to a flare-up of the wildfire in an area east of Julian. Mandatory evacuations in a trailer park and closing S2 right now. Wind driven with uypslope gust's to 36 mph. http://hpwren.ucsd.edu/cameras/L/hpwren-iqeye4.jpg 1200hrs 5-25: CALFIRE - ICT #9 took command. 0800hrs 5-25 : Fire is 2,500 acres at 20% contained 1740hrs 5-24: Cal Fire reporting 1200 acres. Now 40 engines and 8 crews 1630hrs 5-24: Fire is 1000-2000 acres with rapid ROS going up Granite Peak per Banner AA, IC just ordered 6 T3 ST's, 10 T1 Crews, 4 WT's, 6 additional Div Sups, 2 Branch Dirs. and County GIS 1530hrs 5-24: 150 acres S.O.reverse 911 for Mandatory Evacuations for Shelter Valley Evac Site is Borrego Springs HS. CA-MVU- Banner 2,000 acres, 20% Location: Fire is located off HWY. 78 west of Scissors crossing on Cigarette Hill, Fire is an area just north of last years 2000 acre Grade Fire. Acres: 4+ ROS: Not Provided ROC: Strike teams enroute for structure protection. Has some wind on it.Fire will run out into Anza-Borrego Desert and sparse fuels. Structures threat: Yes Special Hazards: One ST from CNF (6631-C) & one Cal Fire MVU (9330-C) for Structure protection Currently CNF has responding(some of the engines are part of the ST) BC31, DIV3, E30, E32, E331, E334, E35, E36, E38, E39, WT3 Plus two tankers and 2 helicopters Radio Frequencies: Weather Info: Temp 67 Humidity 55 % Wind Speed W 10 G 15 MPH Maps: http://www.scribblemaps.com/maps/view/scissors Twitter map from MVU at about 1930 https://twitter.com/CALFIRESANDIEGO/.../photo/1/large Online Scanner: http://www.radioreference.com/apps/a...wp&feedId=9733 Web Cams: http://hpwren.ucsd.edu/cameras/L/sy-av8185-1_3.jpg Mt. Laguna Cam: http://hpwren.ucsd.edu/cameras/L/hpwren-iqeye4.jpg California, USA Julian, CA 92036, USA LA COUNTY FIRE EVALUATE LIFEGUARD DRONE LA COUNTY FIRE LIFEGUARDS EVALUATE NEW REMOTE-CONTROLLED MARINE VEHICLE NAMED “EMILY” EMILY being tested a Zuma Beach LOS ANGELES – May 24, 2012 – The Los Angeles County Fire Department Lifeguard Division has been working closely with Hydronalix Corporation in evaluating a remote-controlled marine vehicle that lifeguards may use to aid potential struggling swimmers who may be caught in rip currents or other ocean hazards. The initial test craft has been dubbed “EMILY” in memory of 13-year-old Emily Rose Shane, who was tragically killed by a car while walking along Pacific Coast Highway in Malibu in 2010. Hydronalix President Tony Mulligan, decided to name his project after Shane, who was a close friend of his daughter’s, and was known for always wanting to help others, which is what this project is all about. Hydronalix wisely approached the world-renowned Los Angeles County Lifeguards for input on the potential to use this technology for lifesaving purposes. “EMILY will never replace ocean lifeguards,” Mulligan commented, “but it may be able to get to drowning victims quickly enough to buy time until trained lifeguards arrive.” EMILY will need to be controlled by a qualified lifeguard who is trained to recognize hazardous ocean conditions, such as rip currents, in which swimmers may be inadvertently caught. EMILY may also have a future application in assisting in locating missing swimmers, as well as finding downed aircraft or sunken vessels. This project is in a limited, prototype phase that will require more research and development before being routinely seen on local beaches. However, Lifeguard Division Chief, Mike Frazer, noted that, “We owe it to the taxpayer to explore potential technology that could assist public safety and well being.” STRONG RIP CURRENTS CONTINUE THROUGHOUT LOS ANGELES COUNTY BEACHES LOS ANGELES COUNTY LIFEGUARDS MADE 12,768 OCEAN RESCUES DURING THE LAST 12 MONTHS. Your L.A. County Fire Lifeguards want you to safely enjoy the sun and beach this summer by following a few safety tips; Always swim by an open lifeguard tower Swim between the orange flags Use a leash and fins when body-boarding Keep young children close at hand When in doubt about any aspect of your beach experience, ask a lifeguard for direction. www.fire.lacounty.gov Posted by Bob Blogger at 5/24/2012 11:43:00 PM 2 comments: Links to this post California, USA Los Angeles County Fire Dept Heliport, Malibu, CA 90265, USA Dry Conditions Require Caution for Memorial Day Weekend Significant Fire Increase Has CAL FIRE Officials Concerned Sacramento – Memorial Day Weekend is often the kick-off for summer vacations and outdoor activities. However, CAL FIRE is urging caution this holiday weekend due to the increasing fire danger throughout “Recent fire activity including a 7,000 acre fire just over the border in Nevada, really serves as a reminder, that the conditions are ripe for wildfires,” said Chief Ken Pimlott, director of CAL FIRE. “CAL FIRE crews have already responded to over twice as many fires this year compared to last year at the same time.” The lack of rainfall across California has set the stage for an increased potential of major wildfires. Coupled with this weekend’s increase in outdoor activities, firefighters will be on high alert. CAL FIRE is asking Californians and visitors to the state to be extra vigilant while recreating in the outdoors. CAL FIRE would like everyone to remember these important steps this holiday: Obtain necessary permits needed for campfires Clear away grass, leaves and other debris within a 10-foot perimeter of any campfire Have a responsible person in attendance at all times Ensure all campfires are completely extinguished before leaving When barbequing, never leave the grill unattended Wildfires are not the only danger posed by the outdoors; drownings also dramatically increase during the Memorial Day weekend. In California, drowning is the leading cause of death among children under 14, and every year CAL FIRE responds to water rescues across the state, many of which tragically claim the lives of both adults and children. In the Water: Always wear a life jacket! Children should always be supervised by a responsible adult Never swim alone Drinking and swimming is just as dangerous and drinking and driving. Posted by Bob Blogger at 5/24/2012 02:40:00 PM No comments: Links to this post CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER WARNING: IMPERIAL COUNTY AND EASTERN RIVERSIDE COUNTY. CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER AREA: AFFECTED AREA IN CALIFORNIA IMPERIAL COUNTY AND EASTERN RIVERSIDE COUNTY. WINDS: SOUTHWEST 20 TO 30 MPH WITH GUSTS UP TO 45 MPH. TIMING: STRONG GUSTY WINDS WILL DEVELOP THROUGH THE MORNING WITH THE STRONGEST WINDS EXPECTED IN THE AFTERNOON. RELATIVE HUMIDITY: AS LOW AS 13 PERCENT. IMPACTS: FUELS ARE VERY DRY AND FIRE DANGER IS HIGH. THESE CONDITIONS COMBINED WITH LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITY AND STRONG WINDS WILL LEAD TO WIDESPREAD HAZARDOUS FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS. PLEASE ADVISE THE APPROPRIATE OFFICIALS AND FIRE CREWS IN THE FIELD OF THIS FIRE WEATHER WATCH. Area: CALIFORNIA FIRE WEATHER ZONE 232IMPERIAL COUNTY AND EASTERN RIVERSIDE COUNTY- Affected Counties or parts of: Riverside, Imperial Sent: 2012-05-24T02:53:59-07:00 CAL FIRE Dedicates New Creston Fire Station CAL FIRE, the San Luis Obispo County Board of Supervisors and Creston community members held a dedication ceremony at the new location in the 6000 block of Webster Road. Starting June 1, the new Creston Fire Station will be staffed 24 hours a day, seven days a week by full time CAL FIRE personnel, as well as volunteer firefighters. Firefighters at the Creston station cover 135 square miles, but before the new station was built, personnel and offices were housed in two modular buildings. A detached metal building was used to store the fire engine. Source: ksby.com - Link California, USA 6000 Webster Rd, Creston, CA 93432, USA RED FLAG WARNING FOR GUSTY WIND AND LOW HUMIDITY MONO COUNTY Red Flag Warning in effect from 2 pm monday to 2 am pdt Tuesday for gusty wind and low humidity for Mono and Eastern alpine counties below 9000 feet THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN RENO HAS ISSUED A RED FLAG WARNING FOR GUSTY WIND AND LOW HUMIDITY WHICH IS IN EFFECT FROM 2 PM MONDAY TO 2 AM PDT TUESDAY. THE FIRE WEATHER WATCH IS NO LONGER IN EFFECT. AFFECTED AREA: FIRE ZONE 273 MONO-EASTERN ALPINE COUNTIES BELOW 9000 FEET. WINDS: SOUTHWEST 15 TO 25 MPH WITH GUSTS TO 40 MPH BY LATE MONDAY AFTERNOON. WINDS WILL CONTINUE INTO THE EARLY MORNING HOURS TUESDAY BEFORE WEAKENING. HUMIDITY: FALLING TO 8 TO 15 PERCENT FOR THE AFTERNOON AND EARLY EVENING BUT ONLY RISING TO NEAR 20 PERCENT BY AROUND MIDNIGHT. IMPACTS: THE COMBINATION OF GUSTY WINDS AND LOW HUMIDITY WILL CREATE CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS. A RED FLAG WARNING MEANS THAT CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS WILL OCCUR.CONTINUE TO CHECK WEATHER.GOV/RENO FOR UPDATES. Area: MONO-EASTERN ALPINE COUNTIES- Affected Counties or parts of: Modoc, Plumas, Placer, Mono, Lassen, El Dorado, Nevada, Sierra, Alpine LACoFD: CA-TF2 USAR EVALUATED BY UN TEAM (INSARAG) URBAN SEARCH AND RESCUE TEAM EVALUATED FOR INTERNATIONAL DEPLOYMENT AS “HEAVY TEAM” WHO: Los Angeles County Fire Department’s Urban Search and Rescue Team (CALIFORNIA TASK FORCE 2) known internationally as USA-2 An eight-member multinational evaluation team from the International Search and Rescue Advisory Group (INSARAG), operating under the United Nations umbrella and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). WHEN: Sunday May 20, 2012, 9:00am- 12:00pm WHERE: Del Valle Regional Training Center – TB 4549 C-3 28101 Chiquito Canyon Road, Castaic, CA 91383-4640 WHAT: The Los Angeles County Fire Department Urban Search and Rescue Team will undergo an evaluation of its ability to mobilize, deploy, and operate in a manner consistent with the United Nations International Search and Rescue criteria. The evaluation will be conducted by a United Nations-appointed classification team who will score the operation based on standards adopted by the International Search and Rescue Advisory Group (INSARAG). These standards classify international rescue teams based on their capacity and capability to perform sustained rescue operations. The high standard that is maintained by the LACoFD/USAR team is referred to as a “Heavy Team” classification. LACoFD public information officers will be available to facilitate media tours from 9:00am-12:00pm. CONTACT: Please direct all inquiries to the Public affairs office at 323-881-2411. California, USA 28101 Chiquito Canyon Rd, Castaic, CA 91384, USA CA-TCU: CAL FIRE Declares start of fire season The California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE), Tuolumne-Calaveras Unit (TCU) announces the opening of the 2012 fire season within the state responsibility areas of Calaveras County, Tuolumne County, Eastern Stanislaus County and Eastern San Joaquin County. The declaration of fire season allows TCU to start the process of opening and staffing fire stations on a 24-hour basis to help protect California’s wild lands. The Columbia Air Base is also open and staffed with a helicopter. Unit Chief Brian Kirk stated “Burn time hours will remain open so citizens can continue working on their defensible space.” Burn permits are required. Weather conditions will continue to be monitored on a daily basis and when it becomes necessary burn time hours will be restricted or burning will be suspended. Each year there is a potential for devastating fires which could have been prevented. Is your home ready for wildfire? Visit us at www.readyforwildfire.org for tips on how to make your home safe this fire season. Chief Kirk encourages citizens to consider alternatives to burning by recycling, composting or chipping your defensible space debris. By protecting your home, you protect your neighbors’ home as well as the community we live in. California, USA Tuolumne Ave, Angels Camp, CA 95222, USA LACFD - 2012 Valor Awards on May 21 Los Angeles County Fire Department HONORS EXTRAORDINARY ACTIONS Los Angeles – May 16, 2012 – Almost 57 years after he was killed in an “explosion of fire” while trying to save fellow firefighters during the Hacienda Brush Fire in 1955, Los Angeles County Fire Captain Glenn Rockey will be posthumously awarded the Medal of Valor by Fire Chief Daryl L. Osby. Rockey will be among 25 members of the Los Angeles County Fire Department and 16 citizen heroes honored at the 2012 Valor Awards on May 21, at 7 p.m., at the Pasadena Convention Center. As a special tribute, Randolph Mantooth and Kevin Tighe, best known to audiences as Los Angeles County Fire Department Paramedics Johnny Gage and Roy DeSoto in the beloved 1970s television show “Emergency!,” will attend the award ceremony as special guests. Highlights of this year’s awards program include the crew of West Hollywood Fire Station 7 for assisting the City of Los Angeles Fire Department during a house fire and bravely working to free veteran LAFD Firefighter Paramedic Glen Allen from entrapment inside the collapsed home, suffering major injuries in their attempts. In other emergency incidents, ordinary citizens who stepped up in extraordinary moments of bravery to assist firefighters or perform rescues themselves are also being honored. Many of these heroes are teenagers who took quick actions and rescued victims from the ocean, a backyard pool, a remote motorbike trail, and also during the highly publicized stabbing of a South East High School student last September. The award categories, which include Unit Citation, Certificate of Valor, and the celebrated Medal of Valor, will be presented for 20 separate incidents. According to Fire Chief Osby, “The Medal of Valor is the highest honor bestowed upon a member of Department. It is given to those members who have exhibited courage above and beyond the call of duty, risking their own lives to save another under conditions that place them at extreme personal risk. I am proud to announce that five members of our organization will go home with this prestigious award next Monday night.” The Los Angeles County Fire Department is an international leader of the fire service and one of the largest emergency service agencies in the world, providing fire protection and life safety services to more than four million people living and working in the County’s 2,300-square-mile area, and around the globe whenever needed. Visit www.fire.lacounty.gov, or find them on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. On September 2 1955, Los Angeles County Fire Captain Glenn E. Rockey was killed on this La Habra Heights hillside during the Hacienda Fire, which also took the young lives of five members of the Los Angeles County ProbationForestry Camp 5-1, and severely burned seven others. Fire investigators mark the spots where some of the men were killed. (Los Angeles County Fire Department Historical Archives) California, USA Pasadena Convention Center, 300 E Green St, Pasadena, CA 91101, USA YNP: Yosemite Park Prescribed burn tonight Wawona Northwest Prescribed Fire Scheduled for Tuesday Evening, May 15, 2012 Yosemite National Park fire managers are planning the 846 acre, Wawona Northwest Prescribed Fire, to begin on the evening of May 15, 2012. An air quality variance has been requested for marginal air conditions for Tuesday’s ignition. Improving air dispersion is predicted to begin Wednesday and continue through the end of the week, allowing good smoke dispersion. Please Note – these are predictions only, and if stagnant air develops or persists over the Sierra Nevada region, fire managers will postpone the prescribed fire. An objective of the project is to conduct ecosystem restoration by applying fire to this fire adapted landscape. Prior to the exclusion of fire over 100 years ago, fire was a natural process that played an integral role in shaping the landscape of Yosemite each year. Densities of shade tolerant tree species, such as white fir and incense cedar, and forest litter and duff have accumulated to unnatural and unaccepted levels in the absence of fire. Through the application of fire, a more natural vegetation composition can be achieved that would likely support a surface fire, but less likely to support crown fire. Another important objective of the prescribed fire is for the direct protection to the community of Wawona from an unwanted wildfire. This project will take advantage of the 2007 Jack Fire perimeter and reduce hazardous fuel loading in the Wawona Wildland Urban Interface area. Burning this segment will form a barrier to the community of Wawona from the spread of unwanted wildfire approaching from Turner Ridge to the north and partially from the South Fork Merced River drainage to the northwest. This project ties together multiple and historical research, natural and prescribed fires, and mechanical thinning. Community members and visitors have seen equipment and crews moving into the area as they prepare the fire perimeter for fire ignition and operations. A test fire, blackline, will be conducted near the top of the ridge to determine if overall prescribed fire objectives can be met. The blackline is critical to the success of the project by reducing the overall risk to firefighters for an escape along the steep, and difficult, eastern fire line. Smoke will be present during the prescribed fire, particularly during the early morning hours. Fire managers are working with Mariposa and Tuolumne Counties, San Joaquin Valley, and Great Basin Air Pollution Control Districts (APCDs), daily to time the project to coincide with favorable weather that will facilitate good air quality, and move and disperse smoke into the atmosphere away from the community. A burn permit will be issued to the park by Mariposa County APCD, and air quality measuring devices are being moved to local communities. It is suggested that community members that are sensitive to smoke close windows and doors and/or they may wish to leave the area during active ignition of the project. This fire segment is identified in the 2004 Yosemite Fire Management Plan/Environmental Impact Statement and re included in the Multi-year Strategic Fuels Management Plan. The goals and objectives for this project conform to the park’s General Management Plan and Vegetation Management Plan. More updates will be published through the duration of the prescribed fire project. For additional Information: Yosemite Fire Information and Education Office: gary_wuchner@nps.gov - (209) 375-9574 or 372-0480 Yosemite Fire Management Website: http://www.nps.gov/yose/parkmgmt/rx-fire-projects.htm Yosemite Air Quality Web Page: http://www.nps.gov/yose/naturescience/aqmonitoring.htm Yosemite Fire Twitter: http://twitter.com#!/YosemiteFire Yosemite Fire Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Yosemite-Wildland-Fire/124632964255395 Posted by Bob Blogger at 5/15/2012 08:15:00 PM 1 comment: Links to this post California, USA Yosemite National Park, Northside Dr, Yosemite National Park, CA 95389, USA NWS: RED FLAG WARNING THUNDERSTORMS / DRY FUELS FIRE ZONE 284 NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN MEDFORD HAS ISSUED A RED FLAG WARNING FOR SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS WITH DRY FUELS FOR FIRE ZONE 284 WHICH IS IN EFFECT FROM 6 AM TO 11 PM PDT MONDAY. SISKIYOU COUNTY FROM THE CASCADE MOUNTAINS EAST AND SOUTH TO MTSHASTA. RED FLAG WARNING FOR DRY LIGHTNING AFFECTED AREA: FIRE WEATHER ZONES 284. FROM THE CASCADE MOUNTAINS EAST AND SOUTH TO MTSHASTA TIMING: ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS COULD BEGIN AS EARLY AS MONDAY MORNING. THUNDERSTORM COVERAGE IS EXPECTED TO INCREASE TO SCATTERED MONDAY AFTERNOON THROUGH MONDAY EVENING. RAINFALL POTENTIAL: THUNDERSTORMS WILL PRODUCE LITTLE OR NO RAINFALL INITIALLY. HOWEVER AROUND A TENTH OF AN INCH OF RAIN IS POSSIBLE UNDERNEATH THE CORES OF THUNDERSTORMS BY MONDAY EVENING. IMPACTS: IN ADDITION TO LIGHTNING POSSIBLY STARTING FIRES IN DRIER LOCATIONS GUSTY AND ERRATIC WINDS ARE LIKELY NEAR THE STORMS. THIS WILL INCREASE THE POTENTIAL FOR FIRE SPREAD IF FIRE STARTS OCCUR. A RED FLAG WARNING MEANS THAT CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS ARE EITHER OCCURRING NOW OR WILL SHORTLY. THESE CONDITIONS WILL CREATE THE POTENTIAL FOR EXPLOSIVE FIRE GROWTH. Area: SISKIYOU COUNTY FROM THE CASCADE MOUNTAINS EAST AND SOUTH TO MTSHASTA Affected Counties or parts of: Modoc, Siskiyou California, USA Mt Shasta, Shasta National Forest, California, USA Red Flag Warning: Owens valley parts of Inyo, San Bernardino Counties THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN LAS VEGAS HAS ISSUED A RED FLAG WARNING FOR STRONG WINDS AND LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITY WHICH IS IN EFFECT FROM NOON TO 8 PM PDT MONDAY. A LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM MOVING ACROSS NORTHERN CALIFORNIA MONDAY WILL BRING GUSTY SOUTH WINDS TO THE OWENS VALLEY AND ESMERALDA COUNTY. Discussion: AS THE LOW MOVES INTO NORTHERN NEVADA TUESDAY... WINDS WILL LIKELY BECOME FAIRLY STRONG ACROSS NORTHWEST ARIZONA. AFFECTED AREAS: CALIFORNIA: FIRE WEATHER ZONE 226 OWENS VALLEY/SOUTHERN INYO FOREST. NEVADA: FIRE WEATHER ZONE 460 ESMERALDA AND NYE COUNTY DESERTS/CNC DISPATCH. TIMING: WINDS WILL INCREASE MONDAY MORNING AND WILL BE STRONG THROUGHOUT MONDAY AFTERNOON AND EARLY EVENING BEFORE DIMINISHING BY 8 PM. WINDS: SOUTH 20 TO 30 MPH WITH GUSTS NEAR 40 MPH. HUMIDITY: 5 TO 10 PERCENT MUCH OF THE DAY. IMPACT: COMBINATION OF GUSTY WINDS AND LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITY COMBINED WITH DRY FUELS WILL CREATE CONDITIONS THAT ARE FAVORABLE FOR EXTREME FIRE BEHAVIOR. A RED FLAG WARNING MEANS THAT CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS ARE EITHER OCCURRING OR ARE IMMINENT. A COMBINATION OF STRONG WINDS... LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITY... AND WARM TEMPERATURES WILL CREATE EXTREME FIRE GROWTH POTENTIAL. Area: OWENS VALLEY/SOUTHERN INYO FOREST-ESMERALDA AND NYE COUNTY DESERTS/CNC DISPATCH- Affected Counties or parts of: Inyo, San Bernardino California, USA Owens Valley High School, Independence, CA 93526, USA Fire Weather Watch: Dry Lightning - Modoc, Siskiyou Counties Fire Weather Watch remains in effect from Monday morning through late Monday night for scattered thunderstorms for fire zone 285 in northeast California AFFECTED AREA: FIRE ZONE 285 TIMING: THUNDERSTORMS COULD BEGIN AS ISOLATED STORMS EARLY MONDAY MORNING. THUNDERSTORM COVERAGE IS EXPECTED TO INCREASE TO SCATTERED BY EARLY MONDAY AFTERNOON THROUGH MONDAY EVENING. RAINFALL POTENTIAL: THE THUNDERSTORMS WILL PRODUCE LITTLE OR NO RAINFALL AT THE BEGINNING. HOWEVER UP TO A TENTH OF AN INCH OF RAIN IS POSSIBLE UNDERNEATH THE CORE OF THE STORM BY MONDAY EVENING. IMPACTS: IN ADDITION TO LIGHTNING COVERAGE GUSTY AND ERRATICWINDS ARE LIKELY NEAR THE STORMS. A FIRE WEATHER WATCH MEANS THAT CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS ARE FORECAST TO OCCUR. LISTEN FOR LATER FORECASTS AND POSSIBLE RED FLAG WARNINGS. Area: MODOC COUNTY EXCEPT FOR THE SURPRISE VALLEY- CZU 2008 Summit Fire Trial Delayed Channing Parker Verden Los Gatos contractor accused of starting the May 22, 2008 Summit fire Summit Fire Trial Date Still Pending Public defender representing Los Gatos contractor accused of starting massive inferno in May of 2008 is asking for six months to prepare, prosecutor says he'll object to such delay. The trial for the Los Gatos contractor accused of starting the May 22, 2008 Summit fire could take several months to begin due to the appointment of a public defender who's unfamiliar with the complicated case and is asking for extra time to prepare. Channing Parker Verden's trial setting hearing on May 9 got postponed one more week until May 16 since Santa Clara County Deputy District Attorney David Boyd could not appear at that time. "They've informed me that they would like six months before they'll even tell the court when they're ready," Boyd said Friday. "We'll know their final decision next Wednesday ... but we're not going to agree to that." Santa Clara County Deputy Public Defender Javier Rios is now representing Verden. On Friday he said he intended to ask Superior Court Judge Rise Jones Pichon for more time to carefully review the case to be ready for trial. Rios said the case is complicated with many witnesses, reports to study and photographs to examine. "I want to make sure that I'm doing everything I can to prepare the case for my client," he said. Verden's previous attorney, Michael Hingle, withdrew from the case in February due to what Boyd said was the defendant's inability to pay for counsel. Verden, who has been present during the hearings, is said to be heavily burdened by the charges brought against him stemming from Cal Fire investigators allegations that he left burning piles of debris at a home located at 31000 Summit Road owned by Los Gatos resident Andrew Napell, causing the fire. Cal Fire has said the Summit fire burned 4,270 acres, began at 5:17 a.m., destroyed 35 residences, 64 outbuildings, caused 16 injuries and cost more than $16 million to fight. A Google map on Cal Fire's website shows how the inferno engulfed many mountainous areas in Los Gatos and came dangerously close to Highway 17, 10 miles roughly from the center of town, according to Cal Fire spokesman Daniel Berlant. Boyd said Verden has been charged with unlawfully causing a fire that causes an inhabited structure or property to burn, an allegation of causing multiple structures to burn and a misdemeanor health and safety code violation alleging negligently causing a fire. If convicted, Verden could be sentenced to up to seven years in prison or receive probation or no jail time, Boyd said. It's possible, however, that Verden could receive probation, Boyd said. Source: Article at Los Gatos Patch: Link California, USA 24298 Summit Rd, Los Gatos, CA 95033, USA CAL FIRE Hollister Air Attack Base is now staffed CAL FIRE Hollister Air Attack Base ready New Air Attack Officer takes command S2T air tanker in action. / Photo credit U.S. Forest Service In a sure sign that fire season is here the CAL FIRE Hollister Air Attack Base is now staffed with an air tanker and an air tactical reconnaissance and coordination airplane. Two S2T air tankers will be assigned to Hollister ready to drop fire retardant on any wildfires breaking out statewide, CAL FIRE said in a news release. As of Monday one air tanker and the air tactical plane were ready to go. The twin-engine, highly maneuverable S2Ts are former U.S. Navy patrol planes that have a capacity to carry 1,200 gallons of retardant. With longer, warmer days and drier conditions fire danger starts to increase, said CAL FIRE. “The recent rains, while beneficial, did not make up for months of below average precipitation in the San Benito and Monterey County areas where we are in moderate drought condition,” said the news release. The Hollister base is under the command of newly-appointed Battalion Chief Josh Nettles. Nettles, who took over on April 30, has been in the fire service since 1998. He is a certified Air Tactical Group Supervisor and has a private pilot’s license. CAL FIRE has operated an air attack base at the Hollister Municipal Airport for 50 years. The base has living quarters, a retardant mixing base, control tower and mechanical shop. New fires in California can be reached within 20 minutes with 23 air tankers placed strategically around the state, CAL FIRE said. Source: The Californian - Link Sierra LaMar case: Red VW linked to missing teen found A red Volkswagen Jetta with a black hood is associated with the disappearance of Sierra LaMar, the 15-year-old South Bay girl who has been missing since March, Has been recovered by the Santa Clara County sheriff's office. Updated Breaking News: Santa Clara County Sheriff's Office have located the red Volkswagon Jetta that investigators believe is associated in the disappearance of missing Morgan Hill teen Sierra Lamar. The sheriff's office would not say when or where the vehicle was found, or the circumstances that led to its discovery. "It's still an open investigation," Sgt. Jose Cardoza said. "They don't want to compromise the investigation." Investigators are still asking to speak with anyone who may have seen the VW Jetta or had contact with the occupants in south County around the time Sierra disappeared on the morning of March 16. She was last seen at her home in unincorporated Morgan Hill, located near Palm and Dougherty avenues. "They need information from people who saw it just before, during or after," Cardoza said. "They need people to come forward." Authorities were seeking a car similar to this red 1990s Volkswagen Jetta, but with a black hood. Courtesy Santa Clara County Sheriff Anyone with information can contact sheriff's investigators at 408-808-4500, the anonymous tip line at 408-808-4431 or email tips@sheriff.sccgov.org. California, USA Morgan Hill, CA, USA Sierra Lamar Case: Suspect car Red 1990s Volkswagen Jetta, Black Hood Sierra LaMar case: Red VW linked to missing teen A red Volkswagen Jetta with a black hood is associated with the disappearance of Sierra LaMar, the 15-year-old South Bay girl who has been missing since March, Santa Clara County sheriff's investigators said Monday. Sierra is 5 feet 2 inches tall with a thin build, dark hair and an olive complexion. Update: Santa Clara County Sheriff's Office have located the red Volkswagon Jetta that investigators believe is associated in the disappearance of missing Morgan Hill teen Sierra Lamar. Authorities are seeking a car similar to this red 1990s Volkswagen Jetta, but with a black hood. Authorities released a photo of a red 1990s, four-door Jetta, which they said resembles the one they are looking for. Unlike the car in the photo, the one being sought has a black hood, investigators said. Sheriff's Sgt. Jose Cardoza said investigators had focused on the car from witnesses' descriptions and by viewing surveillance video from homes, businesses and buses in Sierra's neighborhood. The Jetta was seen in the general area of where Sierra lives near Morgan Hill and where her belongings were found after she vanished, said Cardoza, who declined to elaborate. Her mother, Marlene LaMar, said she last saw Sierra at home about 6 a.m. March 16 before the girl was to leave to catch a bus to school at nearby Palm and Dougherty avenues. A day later, search teams found her cell phone off the side of the road near Santa Teresa Boulevard and Scheller Avenue, in the opposite direction of the bus stop. The day after that, they found her Juicy Couture-brand purse near Santa Teresa and Laguna Avenue, a short distance from where her phone was found. Inside were a neatly folded pair of pants, undergarments and gray San Jose Sharks sweatshirt her family believes she may have been wearing the day she disappeared, authorities said. Also found near the bag were Sierra's schoolbooks, Sheriff Laurie Smith said. The purse and books were "wedged between a building and a big cactus" or bush, Smith said. Dive teams have searched several reservoirs as well as smaller percolation ponds in the Morgan Hill area. The sheriff's office also said Monday that an empty handcuff box and used condoms found within 2 miles of the teenager's home were not related to Sierra's disappearance. Investigators had initially thought there might be a connection when the items were found March 29. Anyone with information on Sierra LaMar is asked to call sheriff's investigators at (408) 808-4500 or an anonymous tip line at (408) 808-4431, or text (408) 421-6760. People can also e-mail the sheriff's office at tips@sheriff.sccgov.org, or find more information on the Facebook page Find Sierra LaMar. Source: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2012/05/07/BADD1OEFRN.DTL#ixzz1uGRzX41T California, USA 9075 Village View Loop, San Jose, CA 95135, USA	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6533
__label__wiki	0.750235	0.750235	Counter to the Clear Air Bylaw – The VCBC responds to Island Health VCBC Celebrates 23 years of operation! ‘The Box’ at the VCBC CBD and Sleeping Disorders U.S. Investigators Listening in on Cell Calls Digest Admin Feds’ New Cell Phone Spying Device Raising Privacy Concerns By Clarence Walker Blocked by a Supreme Court decision from using GPS tracking devices without a warrant, federal investigators and other law enforcement agencies are turning to a new, more powerful and more threatening technology in their bid to spy more freely on those they suspect of drug crimes. That’s leading civil libertarians, electronic privacy advocates, and even some federal judges to raise the alarm about a new surveillance technology whose use has yet to be taken up definitively by the federal courts. The new surveillance technology is the StingRay (also marketed as Triggerfish, IMSI Catcher, Cell-site Simulator or Digital Analyzer), a sophisticated, portable spy device able to track cell phone signals inside vehicles, homes and insulated buildings. StingRay trackers act as fake cell towers, allowing police investigators to pinpoint location of a targeted wireless mobile by sucking up phone data such as text messages, emails and cell-site information. When a suspect makes a phone call, the StingRay tricks the cell into sending its signal back to the police, thus preventing the signal from traveling back to the suspect’s wireless carrier. But not only does StingRay track the targeted cell phone, it also extracts data off potentially thousands of other cell phone users in the area. Although manufactured by a Germany and Britain-based firm, the StingRay devices are sold in the U.S.by the Harris Corporation, an international telecommunications equipment company. It gets between $60,000 and $175,000 for each Stingray it sells to U.S.law enforcement agencies. [While the U.S.courts are only beginning to grapple with StingRay, the high tech cat-and-mouse game between cops and criminals continues afoot. Foreign hackers reportedly sell an underground IMSI tracker to counter the Stingray to anyone who asks for $1000. And in December 2011, noted German security expert Karsten Nohl released “Catcher Catcher,” powerful software that monitors a network’s traffic to seek out the StingRay in use.] Originally intended for terrorism investigations, the feds and local law enforcement agencies are now using the James Bond-type surveillance to track cell phones in drug war cases across the nation without a warrant. Federal officials say that is fine—responding to a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request filed by the Electronic Freedom Foundation (EFF) and the First Amendment Coalition, the Justice Department argued that no warrant was needed to use StingRay technology. “If a device is not capturing the contents of a particular dialogue call, the device does not require a warrant, but only a court order under the Pen Register Statute showing the material obtained is relevant to an ongoing investigation,” the department wrote. The FBI claims that it is adhering to lawful standards in using StingRay. “The bureau advises field officers to work closely with the U.S.Attorney’s Office in their districts to comply with legal requirements,” FBI spokesman Chris Allen told the Washington Post last week, but the agency has refused to fully disclose whether or not its agents obtain probable cause warrants to track phones using the controversial device. And the federal government’s response to the EFF’s FOIA about Stingray wasn’t exactly responsive. While the FOIA request generated over 20,000 records related to StingRay, the Justice Department released only a pair of court orders and a handful of heavily redacted documents that didn’t explain when and how the technology was used. The LA Weekly reported in January that the StingRay “intended to fight terrorism was used in far more routine Los Angeles Police criminal investigations,” apparently without the courts’ knowledge that it probes the lives of non-suspects living in the same neighborhood with a suspect. Critics say the technology wrongfully invades technology and that its uncontrolled use by law enforcement raised constitutional questions. “It is the biggest threat to cell phone privacy you don’t know about,” EFF said in a statement. ACLU privacy researcher Christopher Soghoian told a Yale Law School Location Tracking and Biometrics Conference panel last month that “the government uses the device either when a target is routinely and quickly changing phones to thwart a wiretap or when police don’t have sufficient cause for a warrant.” “The government is hiding information about new surveillance technology not only from the public, but even from the courts,” ACLU staff attorney Linda Lye wrote in a legal brief in the first pending federal StingRay case (see below). “By keeping courts in the dark about new technologies, the government is essentially seeking to write its own search warrants, and that’s not how the Constitution works.” Lye further expressed concern over the StingRay’s ability to interfere with cell phone signals in violation of Federal Communication Act. “We haven’t seen documents suggesting the LAPD or any other agency have sought or obtained FCC authorization,” she wrote. “If the government shows up in your neighborhood, essentially every phone is going to check in with the government,” said the ACLU’s Soghoian. “The government is sending signals through people’s walls and clothes and capturing information about innocent people. That’s not much different than using invasive technology to search every house on a block,” Soghoian said during interviews with reporters covering the StingRay story. Advocates also raised alarms over another troubling issue: Using the StingRay allows investigators to bypass the routine process of obtaining fee-based location data from cell service providers like Sprint, AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile and Comcast. Unlike buying location data fro service providers, using StingRay leaves no paper trail for defense attorneys. Crack defense attorney Stephen Leckar who scored a victory in a landmark Supreme Court decision over the feds’ warrantless use of a GPS tracker in U.S.v. Jones, a cocaine trafficking case where the government tracked Jones’ vehicle for weeks without a warrant, also has concerns. “Anytime the government refuses to disclose the ambit of its investigatory device, one has to wonder, what’s really happening,” he told the Chronicle. “If without a warrant the feds use this sophisticated device for entry into people’s homes, accessing private information, they may run afoul of a concurring opinion by Justice Alito, who ruled in U.S.v Jones whether people would view unwarranted monitoring of their home or property as Constitutionally repugnant.” Leckar cited Supreme Court precedent in Katz v. U.S.(privacy) and U.S.v. Kyllo (thermal imaging), where the Supreme Court prohibited searches conducted by police from outside the home to obtain information behind closed doors. Similar legal thinking marked February’s Supreme Court decision in a case where it prohibited the warrantless use of drug dogs to sniff a residence, Florida v. Jardines. The EFF FOIA lawsuit shed light on how the U.S.government sold StingRay devices to state and local law enforcement agencies for use specifically in drug cases. The Los Angeles and Fort Worth police departments have publicly acknowledged buying the devices, and records show that they are using them for drug investigations. “Out of 155 cell phone investigations conducted by LAPD between June and September 2012, none of these cases involved terrorism, but primarily involved drugs and other felonies,” said Peter Scheer, director of the First Amendment Center. The StingRay technology is so new and so powerful that it not only raises Fourth Amendment concerns, it also raises questions about whether police and federal agents are withholding information about it from judges to win approval to monitor suspects without meeting the probable cause standard required by the Fourth. At least one federal judge thinks they are. Magistrate Judge Brian Owsley of the Southern District of Texas in Corpus Christi told the Yale conference federal prosecutors are using clever techniques to fool judges into allowing use of StingRay. They will draft surveillance requests to appear as Pen Register applications, which don’t need to meet the probable cause standards. “After receiving a second StingRay request,” Owsley told the panel, “I emailed every magistrate judge in the country telling them about the device. And hardly anyone understood them.” In a earlier decision related to a Cell-site Simulator, Judge Owsley denied a DEA request to obtain data information to identify where the cell phone belonging to a drug trafficker was located. DEA wanted to use the suspect’s E911 emergency tracking system that is operated by the wireless carrier. E911 trackers reads signals sent to satellites from a cell phone’s GPS chip or by triangulation of radio transmitted signal. Owsley told the panel that federal agents and U.S.attorneys often apply for a court order to show that any information obtained with a StingRay falls under the Stored Communication Act and the Pen Register statute. DEA later petitioned Judge Owsley to issue an order allowing the agent to track a known drug dealer with the StingRay. DEA emphasized to Owsley how urgently they needed approval because the dealer had repeatedly changed cell phones while they spied on him. Owsley flatly denied the request, indicating the StingRay was not covered under federal statute and that DEA and prosecutors had failed to disclose what they expected to obtain through the use of the stored data inside the drug dealer’s phone, protected by the Fourth Amendment. “There was no affidavit attached to demonstrate probable cause as required by law under rule 41 of federal criminal procedures,” Owsley pointed out. The swiping of data off wireless phones is “cell tower dumps on steroids,” Owsley concluded. But judges in other districts have ruled favorably for the government. A federal magistrate judge in Houston approved DEA request for cell tower data without probable cause. More recently, New York Southern District Federal Magistrate Judge Gabriel Gorenstein approved warrantless cell-site data. “The government did not install the tracking device—and the cell user chose to carry the phone that permitted transmission of its information to a carrier,” Gorenstein held in that opinion. “Therefore no warrant is needed.” In a related case, U.S.District Court Judge Liam O’Grady of the Northern District of Virginia ruled that the government could obtain data from Twitter accounts of three Wikileakers without a warrant. Because they had turned over their IP addresses when they opened their Twitter accounts, they had no expectation of privacy, he ruled. “Petitioners knew or should have known that their IP information was subject to examination by Twitter, so they had a lessened expectation of privacy in that information, particularly in light of their apparent consent to the Twitter terms of service and privacy policy,” Judge O’Grady wrote. A federal judge in Arizona is now set to render a decision in the nation’s first StingRay case. After a hearing last week, the court in U.S.v. Rigmaiden is expected to issue a ruling that could set privacy limits on how law enforcement uses the new technology. Just as the issue of GPS tracking technology eventually ended up before the Supreme Court, this latest iteration of the ongoing balancing act between enabling law enforcement to do its job and protecting the privacy and Fourth Amendment rights of citizens could well be headed there, too. [box type=”info” style=”rounded”]This article was originally published on <www.stopthedrugwar.org> and reprinted using the Creative Commons Attribution License[/box] LegalRightsUSWire Tap Previous article No Hemp Yet? Next article Maritime Crackdown Updates, Warnings and Suggestions # 44 Ted Smith·April 29, 2015 Dispensaries and the New Legalization in Canada Judith Stamps·July 2, 2018 Cannabis and the Foundation of Civilization Ted Smith·December 17, 2014 6 Reasons Why You Should Give My Friend Owen Your Money Dean Schwind·February 7, 2015 Cannabis and Drugs – VCBC Excerpt Digest Admin·July 1, 2014 Islam and Hashish Ted Smith·August 31, 2014 A Note From the UK Connection : Social clubs bringing acivists together Digest Admin·November 4, 2012 Legal Medical Marijuana – 5 Social Impacts Ted Smith·October 14, 2014	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6536
__label__cc	0.736119	0.263881	Monthly Archive for November, 2018 : November, 2018 By Jordan on November 30, 2018 at 6:10 AM Over on the Wallingford / Fremont Facebook page, Denys Howard posted this old photo of a poster from a cabaret that used to sit along the Wallingford / Fremont border: This photo is the northwest corner of N 36th St and Woodland Park Ave N, in Ea… Holiday Sales (and an Iron Bull update) We’re heading into gift-buying season (or, you could say we’re already deep into it, for Black Friday, Cyber Monday and Chanukah-celebraters.) Either way, though, it’s nice to shop local, so each year we try to do a round-up of local artists and … Free Extra Yard Waste Collection Through November 30 By Jack on November 26, 2018 at 6:00 AM If you’ve taken advantage of the nice weather in the early part of this month to rake some leaves, then you may have built up a real backlog. All this month, SPU has been taking extra containers of yard waste for free for customers that already s… Wally Coyote Returns Seattlekit writes: this coyote has been seen in a 1-mile radius around the zoo for about 2 months now, mostly to the east and south (Wallingford). So I’d like to offer the official name for this male coyote of “Wally Coyote”, as a take-off on Wil… Green Lake Way Redesign Goes from Back Asswords to Meh By Eric on November 21, 2018 at 6:00 AM As covered previously, SDOT was planning to throttle Green Lake Way N and waste a lot of money by putting in a bike crossing at N 52nd and Green Lake Way N, eliminating parking on the East side of the street. Pretty much everyone said “no please”… Playfield Renovation Is Underway I’m beginning to feel a bit like the Chief of Wallyhood’s Playground Bureau. Just a couple of weeks ago, I reported that the transfer station playground is being redone by the contractor due to some deficiencies in the original construction. And … On Monday the 19th, Learn Something New About Our Neighborhood By Katy on November 16, 2018 at 6:00 AM Local historians Paul Dorpat and Jean Sherrard have a new book out, titled Seattle Now & Then: The Historic Hundred. They are touring in support of their book launch, and next week Wallingford residents will have a chance to catch one of thei… 40th Street Bike Lane on Hold The Green Lake and Wallingford Paving and Multi-Modal Improvements project (new name!) is the city’s official name for work to be done up by Green Lake, but also includes a host of improvements and renovations along 40th St. These include additio… Transfer Station Playground Is Getting a Redo I passed by the transfer station one dark night several days ago, and was surprised to see the playground fenced off and under construction. Most of the walking paths were dug up, and some of the landscaping seemed to have been removed – among ot… Prospect: Wallingford to SXSW By Jordan on November 9, 2018 at 6:00 AM There is an alien world in western Wallingford. Co-writer/director team Chris Caldwell and Zeek Earl, along with producer Brice Budke, created Prospect, a short film that was well-received at SXSW back in 2014. Encouraged, they captured funding f…	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6543
__label__wiki	0.504057	0.504057	Sage Enterprise Management (Sage X3): ERP Software for Pharmaceutical Manufacturers By Abe Farhan August 3, 2016 There are several ERP systems on the market designed to address the specific challenges facing pharmaceutical manufacturers. When you're.. Manufacturing, UDI, Sage X3, Sage Enterprise Management, All An ERP System for Pharmaceutical Companies By Abe Farhan July 6, 2016 Choosing the right cost effective pharmaceutical manufacturing enterprise resource planning (ERP) solution is necessary for any.. Life Sciences, ERP, UDI, All 6 Ways Sage Enterprise Management (Sage X3) Can Help Your UDI Implementation By Abe Farhan March 15, 2016 To remain FDA compliant, all medical devices must have labels that contain a unique device identification (UDI) – a number that makes.. UDI, Sage X3, Sage Enterprise Management, All 5 Things to Consider When Defining Your UDI Strategy By Abe Farhan March 8, 2016 The FDA has passed legislation requiring all medical devices to have a unique device identification (UDI) number to make them.. UDI, All What You Need to Know About a UDI Implementation Strategy By Abe Farhan February 29, 2016 In 2007, the government passed the Food and Drug Administration Amendments Act (FDAAA). This act required the Food and Drug.. Medical Device Manufacturing Software System Requirements to Consider The FDA, regulatory compliance requirements, challenging timetables, and strict quality assurance needs are only a few of the hurdles .. Medical Device Tracking Software Made Easy with Sage Enterprise Management (Sage X3) By Abe Farhan January 28, 2016 The United States has the largest medical device market in the world, spending more than $150 billion dollars on medical devices each.. What's Unique Device Identification Implementation & Compliance? As a medical device manufacturer, you're faced with some of the most challenging demands in business. Then, if you factor in the need to.. What You Need to Know About Dietary Supplements and the FDA By Jaleidy Tannenbaum September 2, 2015 The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) requires certain businesses to meet strict regulations to ensure consumer safety. Businesses that.. Life Sciences, UDI, All	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6545
__label__wiki	0.612555	0.612555	George Orwell (English 246: Fall 2011) Orwell’s List Final Essay Questions Entries categorized as ‘Orwell and Spain’ Orwell: Inside or Outside the Whale? November 11, 2011 · Leave a Comment After an informative presentation on Orwell’s essay and Thompson and Rushdie’s two responses, one issue that the class focused on was Orwell’s true fit amongst these various proposed ideologies. Despite writing convincingly that authors should remain inside the whale, insulated from politics and silenced from prescribing solutions to the problems of the world, Orwell himself seems to defy this categorization. His previous works written before the Spanish Civil War–Burmese Days, The Road to Wigan Pier, and others–completely immerse themselves into the political realm, offering stringent critiques of poverty, capitalism, imperialism, and other social ills of 20th century British society. Orwell makes no attempts whatsoever to take on the passive point of view that accepts a position of futility that he advocates in “Inside the Whale.” So where does Orwell himself fit in relation to this whale? However, as we discussed at multiple points in class, Orwell’s harrowing experience in the Spanish Civil War was a huge turning point in his life, both literary and otherwise. While he entered the conflict with a praiseworthy and hopeful attitude towards the proletarian-egalitarian society emerging in Barcelona in 1936, his return and subsequent experience of the May Days dashed all his dreams of such a society existing and thriving. Even in the midst of a brutal conflict in the streets of Barcelona, Orwell had never felt more futile, useless, and demoralized. This immense personal loss of ideals powerfully affected Orwell and his post-Spanish Civil War writings and became a major motivation for his ideas in “Inside the Whale.” In order to more fully understand the effect of this shift in Orwell’s life, we must read more of his post-war material to grasp the nuanced changes in his point of view, tone, and style. In fact, I have already started to sense a subtle shift in Orwell’s attitude and tone in the beginning of Coming Up for Air, first published in June of 1939. The oblivious main character, George Bowling, remains secluded in his own life of worries, with his most politically-oriented thought manifesting itself as a vague worry of impending bombs and war with Germany. Bowling also harbors an intense nostalgia for the simple, quiet summer days of his childhood in a rural town. Bowling, as well as his dwindling family, seem utterly stuck inside the whale, revealing Orwell’s possible shift into a viewpoint of pessimistic futility towards social criticism. But the question still remains whether Orwell will come to unveil such a critique in some subtle way, or whether he will continue in the sober vein of his character study of George Bowling. Categories: Inside the Whale · Orwell and Spain Looking Back on the Spanish Civil War October 24, 2011 · 20 Comments In 1943, three years into WWII, Orwell wrote “Looking Back on the Spanish Civil War,” a long meditation on his memories of his experience in the first half of 1937 which he wrote about later that year. Compare and contrast Homage to Catalonia and “Looking Back.” Pay attention to the different emphasis in both works. What is the intention behind writing “Looking Back” and what does he aim to achieve by writing it? How have his attitudes changed? Is the essay a reconsideration? A recollection? Lastly, how and why does he rework his earlier encounter with the Italian militia man in poetic form? What does he mean by the “crystal spirit” in the last stanza of the poem? Categories: Orwell and Spain Tagged: Spain Inside the Whale Orwell and Culture Orwell and England Orwell and Spain Orwell's Politics Richard Rorty on Orwell Learned Helplessness? Nussbaum: The Death of Pity and the Role of the Family Robert Anderson, Leigh Finnegan, Ian Palm, and Spencer Stolle’s Presentation on Wigan Pier Diaries, Left Book Club, Orwell and the Intellectual (Collini) Kate Giuliano on Christopher Hitchens Robert Anderson on Christopher Hitchens William Miller on Orwell: Inside the Whale Robert Anderson on Inside the Whale Marcie King on Inside the Whale Stephanie Franco Gutierrez on Inside the Whale Presentation Madhuri Vairapandi on Keep the Aspidistra Flying Felicia Charles on Keep the Aspidistra Flying Kalli Krumpos on Keep the Aspidistra Flying Jonathon Munoz on Keep the Aspidistra Flying Professor Rubin 3:30–4:30 MW in 401 New North, Animal Far Coming up for Air Communism Gender hitchens Homage to Catalonia Intellectuals Language Lion and the Unicorn Literary Language Martha Nussbaum Nineteen Eighty-Four Novels Orwell Orwell and defeat Orwell on the Air P.O.U.M Panopticon Politics and the English Language Politics and the Novel Rorty Sexuality Socialism Spain the Novel Zizek Dialectic of Enlightenment Land and Freedom (Dir. Ken Loach)	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6548
__label__cc	0.565573	0.434427	Naked & Not Afraid: Talking… Yvette Evans-Wiggins is the Director of Nursing at The Villages on MacArthur, a Stonegate Senior Living supported community, where Helen lives. She explains the situation this way: “Helen’s family member doesn’t believe the relationship is a good idea for Helen. ‘It’s not ladylike,’ the relative says. ‘Can we put Helen on medication so she doesn’t have these urges?’ “People often think that after a certain age, sex isn’t something that seniors need,” Evans-Wiggins says. “But sexual health is just as important as physical, mental, and spiritual health – at any age. Senior living communities are often a setting that reawakens this part of a senior’s life.” Ensuring Privacy “Disease processes such as Alzheimer’s are hitting people at an earlier age, and our resident population is getting younger and younger,” Evans-Wiggins says. “Sexual urges are often still intact. “Residents in senior living settings need to be supported in making their own decisions about sexuality. Intimacy may be conveyed in several ways, from holding hands to having sexual intercourse. We want to ensure residents have the privacy they need to express themselves sexually, if they want to.” Privacy is easier to ensure in assisted living communities, where the doors to rooms lock. For residents in memory care communities, rehabilitation centers, nursing homes, and skilled nursing facilities (SNFs), doors do not lock so that staff can reach residents quickly in case of a medical emergency. “The challenge in these communities is to ensure staff respect privacy when the door is closed – and to allow plenty of time before entering the room.” Sometimes romances are brief. For example, two residents in short-term rehab may “hook up” and end the relationship when one or the other returns home. Or long-term residents may form relationships and later break up. “It’s not much different than what goes on in the world at large,” Evans-Wiggins says. Educating Staff Staff are specially trained in how to handle sexual issues with residents. If a staff member accidentally walks in on a sexual encounter, procedures are in place for what to do next. A social worker and psychologist are part of the team to help staff navigate difficult situations. “Our goal is always to make sure that privacy, dignity, and safety are respected,” Evans-Wiggins says. “If we’re aware that two residents are having a sexual relationship, we make sure it’s consensual. Some residents may not be physically or cognitively able to agree to sexual activity. It’s also important that staff reinforce safe sex practices with residents, such as using condoms, to avoid sexually transmitted infections (STIs). “Safe sex campaigns have been prominent in recent years, but seniors are typically not part of the target audience,” Evans-Wiggins says. “Efforts to increase awareness are increasingly important for seniors, as STIs in this demographic are on the rise.” Enlightening Families Children of seniors may have trouble believing that a parent is still interested in sex or is sexually active, especially if their loved one is experiencing cognitive decline or physical issues. Talking it over with mom or dad may be awkward, but critical. “If you suspect that your parent is having an intimate relationship, it’s important to address sexuality issues in an empathic, nonjudgmental way,” Evans-Wiggins advises. “Ask questions with sensitivity – and help your parent make decisions on his or her own terms. For example, you might say, ‘Let’s talk about your new relationship. Are you getting the privacy you need to spend time together? Are you practicing safe sex?’ As you get more comfortable talking about what’s really going on in your parent’s life, you can be assured you’re helping them make the most empowering decisions about their sexual health and relational wellbeing.” https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa067423 https://www.aplaceformom.com/blog/9-21-15-aging-sex-through-the-eyes-of-a-psychologist/ https://www.nia.nih.gov/health/sexuality-later-life http://www.berkeleywellness.com/self-care/sexual-health/article/seniors-sex-and-stds Categories: Assisted living, Memory Care, Rehabilitation, Senior Care, Skilled NursingBy bcadmin May 2, 2019 Tags: Alzheimer’sassisted livingdementiaintimacymemory carenursing homeRehabilitationRehabilitation Centerrelationshipssafe sexSenior caresenior livingsenior sexsenior STIskilled nursingSkilled nursing facilitySNF Author: bcadmin PreviousPrevious post:An Alzheimer’s or Dementia Diagnosis: Navigating Family DynamicsNextNext post:Getting Better, Faster, and Stronger with Rehab Technology	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6553
__label__wiki	0.964963	0.964963	Hey, frost. It's June... please leave N. Minnesota alone Two Minnesota cities had record-breaking low temps this morning. Duluth set a record with all that snow And more is on the way. Metro Transit sets new ridership record, thanks to sports and the State Fair The all-time record State Fair attendance was set on Saturday Rare 'illegal' Prince album breaks record, sells for $15,000 This giant 131-pound fish is the heaviest ever caught in ND America just had its warmest winter on record It's official: Minnesota just had its hottest September on record After 1,350 miles, Duluth paddle boarder completes epic trip around Lake Superior Shorts weather! Record high temperatures predicted for Twin Cities on Sunday The best at wurst: Prescott grocer creates 152-foot brat North Dakota oil drillers shatter more records Twin Cities Zombie Pub Crawl sets Guinness world record A gathering of the walking dead in the Twin Cities last month has officially been dubbed the world's largest. Guinness World Records sent an email Monday to the organizers of the Minneapolis-St. Paul Zombie Pub Crawl to say they knocked off the New Jersey Zombie Walk in 2011 for most zombies in one gathering. Minn. State Lottery posts record sales Preliminary figures show the Minnesota State Lottery pulled in a record $520 million in lottery sales for the fiscal year that ended June 30. MPR reports that's roughly $16 million more than the record set last year, despite losing 20 days of sales last summer during the state government shut down. Dangerous heat bakes Minnesota, 100º possible A heat advisory is in effect until 9 p.m. Monday for most of Minnesota. The National Weather Service says Monday afternoon high temperatures are expected to exceed triple digits. Woodbury appears to be less thirsty despite scorching heat The July heat wave is proving the city's water-conservation efforts are working. So far, Woodbury officials tell the Pioneer Press water consumption is million of gallons less than the record set back in July 2007. That's despite the record breaking temperatures and about 6,300 more residents. Minnesota Zoo sets annual attendance record Zoo officials say 1,369,515 people visited the zoo in Apple Valley during the last fiscal year ending June 30. It's the highest attendance in the zoo's 34-year history. Memberships were also at an all-time high. North Dakota oil drillers set another production record Records from the state's Department of Natural Resources show North Dakota produced 18.3 million barrels of crude in April -- up from 17.9 million barrels in March. Minnesota's western neighbor has surpassed Alaska to take the No. 2 slot among the states. Natural gas production also set a record in April. Twin Cities had warmest spring ever It's official: This spring was the warmest on record in the Twin Cities, and it was the second-wettest, too. Temperatures during the meteorological spring -- defined as March through May -- averaged 54 degrees at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport, the highest since modern record-keeping began in 1873. DNR: Heavy rains affecting state trails and public accesses The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources is warning boaters, hikers and mountain bikers, that some forest roads and trails are closed after some areas received more than a foot of rain last week. Last month was the second-wettest May on record in Minnesota. 2011 exports beat previous record Increased demand for Minnesota-made goods in China, Japan, Canada, Mexico, South Korea, Belgium, Singapore and the Philippines helped boost exports in 2011 by $1.4 billion. North Dakota sets another record for crude oil production Mild winter weather helped boost activity. North Dakota produced more than 558,000 barrels per day in February. The oil rich region passed California in January to be the third largest oil producer and could soon overtake No. 2 Alaska. March heat wave continues to shatter records It's crazy. But it keeps happening. Insanely warm March weather broke records again this weekend. The Twin Cities had the earliest-ever 80-degree reading. Even the nation's icebox - International Falls - turned in a steamy 77 degrees, breaking the previous record for the date by 22 degrees. Duluth, Fargo, Rochester, St. Cloud, and Winona all set records, as well. Some much needed rain is expected late Sunday through Wednesday, with temperatures cooling down in the 60s for most of the work week. More record warmth this weekend... some locations could top 80 degrees The National Weather Service says we will continue to enjoy unseasonable warm temperatures for the next few days. A chance of rain and thunderstorms moves in Sunday night through Wednesday.	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6555
__label__cc	0.63923	0.36077	Chi Duly: Guest mix for Wacks Records casaswoop / June 18, 2014 Wacks Records, a new Deep House record label based out of L.A. and N.Y., gave us the unique opportunity to get a preview of their newest guest mix by Chi Duly, the deep house producer out of New York. He follows up his Balloons of Haus album with this new 22 track mix, and ooo boy are we glad he did. The mix (which is a standard 58 minutes long) is a deep house roller coaster that dances between different styles. Just to give you an idea, in the span of his mix, he goes from remixes of Logic to Kakkmaddafakka to Tchami to London Grammar. All of these different styles get put through this deep house lens and are in a sort of dialogue with each other. The entire mix really does a good job of incorporating “known” remixes (like Sasha’s remix of London Grammar’s “Hey Now”) with his own remixes like his very well done remix of Logic’s “We Get High.” That’s the sign of a good mix, when the tracks work well with each other, keeping the listener interested with some known tracks and then hitting them with one of your own movements. Obviously, with a 58 minute mix, it’s sort of tough to pinpoint the best individual moments, it’s more about transitions from track to track and the tone of the mix as a whole. In this sense, Chi Duly’s mix really tries to stay true to Deep House “core” elements by focusing on strong and bouncing bass lines and minimalist melodies. However, there are a few moments when he’ll incorporate a great vocal at an unexpected moment. I think that this mix is really indicative of the movements happening now in deep house around the U.S. in particular. I probably couldn’t say it better than Chi Duly himself when he said, “theres only so much time left until will.i.am puts out a deep house pop album and destroys everything.” Please give the mix a listen below and be sure to check out Chi Duly and Wacks Records ASAP!!! June 18, 2014 in New Swoops. Tags: Chi Duly, Logic, Sasha, Tchami, Wacks Records Interview Exclusive: cln. ← Montmartre – Inside of Me (Robotaki Remix) Alice Russell- Hurry On Now (French Kiwi Juice Remix) →	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6558
__label__cc	0.515494	0.484506	The Knocks- Classic (Le Youth Remix) casaswoop / October 11, 2014 I love both of these artists quite a bit and these two tracks are perfect representations of their respective styles. First, we have the New York based electrofunk duo, The Knocks, who have become known as feel-good dance producers. This track was released with Neon Gold Records, who represent artists like HAIM, St. Lucia, and Magic Man. “Classic” is no deviation from that system or pedigree, and that’s a good thing. The track uses a silky smooth bass track and highly rhythmic melodies in the guitar and the vocal to create a simultaneously chilled-out yet danceable mood. The piano and lead rhythm guitar lines drive the track and counteract the “sleepy” nature of the vocal. And what a vocal it is. Bringing Powers in to add her sexy vocal was a stroke of genius for The Knocks, giving this track an added layer of flavor over what is really simple musical support. The bass, guitar, and percussion isn’t very complicated, but it all develops into a well-blended track that is cohesive and doesn’t throw too much at you all at once. This element is also apparent in Le Youth’s interpretation in his remix, released on Sept 29th. Le Youth keeps the element of simplicity in his deep-house rendition of The Knocks’ original. Right off the bat, you have a standard cymbal/snare percussion beat and an even more standard deep-house bass line. What he’s really doing though, is taking the time to frame the vocal, as good as it is, before adding his own elements at the 0:50 second mark. Eventually, the track morphs into a well-blended set of piano chords, a progressive percussion, and of course the ever-present toned bass line. What never ends up going away, however, is the musicality of the lead vocal. The background (except for the piano) is relatively “tuneless” in that it’s more rhythm focused, as opposed to melody focused, so the vocal takes on most of that load. It ends up working pretty well because it still makes the track danceable when paired with the refreshingly complex drum line. Overall, both tracks are really well done and I hope you listen to both below and let us know what you think in the comments! October 11, 2014 in Remixes. Tags: De Hofnar, Le Youth, Magic Man, The Knocks Ghost Beach- Miracle (Le Youth Remix) The Griswolds- Mississippi (Magic Man Remix) ← Grizfolk- Hymnals (RAC Remix) Lido- Lost feat. Muri (Stwo Remix) →	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6559
__label__wiki	0.87921	0.87921	(official Walt Disney theatrical release poster) (movie still: Philip and Syrena, the mermaid) (Read an update about Sergio, the barista, after the critique.) I asked a young barista recently if he had seen the fourth adventure in the “Pirates of the Caribbean” saga. “No,” he answered, as he made my iced latte. “I heard it pushed religion on people.” Christianity is portrayed in a positive light in this film which is as rare as the sighting of a blue-footed booby in a cold climate. The entertainment industry sometimes sanctions very devout representatives of other religions — upstanding and compassionate people we would trust with our children as well as with our confidences — but Christians are largely non-existent or the butt of cheap stereotypes and stale jokes. So what’s a “Bible thumper” (Jack Sparrow’s terminology) doing in a pirate flick? It’s unusual for a film that runs longer than two hours (136 minutes) to pick up momentum halfway through, but the unexpected addition of a handsome Christian man lashed to the mast of a ship captained by the most loathsome of pirates — Blackbeard — introduces a startling plot twist. Philip (played by Sam Claflin) is extremely pious but is also allowed to be portrayed as chivalrous and brave. Not only does he rescue a captured mermaid (Astrid Berges-Frisbey) from a slow death as numerous other characters callously ignore her plight, he tenderly covers her with his shirt when, shivering, she begins to morph into a human after a forced separation from water. Later, he unhesitatingly wields a sword in battle. The main protagonist in “On Stranger Tides” is, of course, the “notorious and infamous” pirate, Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp). Audiences will probably never tire of his quirky but endearing mannerisms and quick wit, but ghastly underworld characters have worn out their welcome. The introduction of comely mermaids with angelic faces and well-modulated voices who speak intelligently and flatteringly to captivated sailors are a vast improvement. Even they, however, hiss like cats and flash razor-sharp teeth when irritated. (The two “zombified” sailors on Blackbeard’s ship are characters better suited for a low-budget flick.) In the film’s first scenes, Jack Sparrow is brought struggling before a British court. He’s a “pillager and highwayman” and his fate — death by hanging — is a certainty. However, when his black hood is removed, lo and behold, the face of his loyal first mate, Gibbs, emerges (Kevin McNally). Jack, who is busily impersonating a bewigged British judge, charges him with being “innocent of being Jack Sparrow.” Both Sparrow and Gibbs think they have extricated themselves from this charade but Jack is kidnapped and taken to the palace of King George II. “Your face is familiar,” quips Jack, whose arms are manacled to an ornate gold chair. “Have I threatened you before?” King George II grumpily informs him that Spaniards have discovered the location to the much-coveted Fountain of Youth, and promises him the protection of the Crown if he’ll lead the British Navy to the supernatural water first. Jack, who acquired a map to the Fountain in “At World’s End,” uncharitably escapes the King’s clutches. He performs several hair-raising stunts on the rustic streets of London and is rescued by his father (Keith Richards). Jack encounters an imposter wearing a disguise who’s been putting together a ship’s crew in his name and engages in a rousing sword fight — only to discover to his shock that his opponent is Angelica Malon (Penélope Cruz). He seduced her some years ago in a Spanish convent just before she was to take her vows. Angelica is consumed with hatred for Jack and a war of words ensues which monopolizes their relationship throughout the film. He accuses her of having hidden talents (snicker, snicker) before she met him. Angelica confides to Jack that the nefarious pirate, Blackbeard (Ian McShane), is her biological father. Jack is taken against his will to Blackbeard’s ship, and learns that he, too, is headed for the Fountain of Youth. Meanwhile, the “privateer” captain of the British Royal Navy ship turns out to be none other than the formidable Barbossa (Geoffrey Rush). He’s an antagonist-turned-protagonist in the “Pirates” franchise who, between films, lost a leg in an altercation with Blackbeard. Gibbs is also on board; he’s promised to lead King George’s men to the Fountain of Youth in exchange for his life. Who will arrive at the Fountain first? The Spanish Navy? The British Navy? Or Blackbeard? Who will be lucky enough to capture an elusive mermaid and force a tear to flow from her unwilling eye into a silver chalice? These are the secret ingredients needed to unlock the power latent in the mystic water. Unfortunately, the formula also requires a “victim”: someone who will sacrifice his life on behalf of the person insatiably seeking eternal life. Ian McShane, as Blackbeard, and Keith Richards, as Jack’s father, display great screen presence. You just can’t beat the Brits for good diction, depth and nuance. McShane, in particular, has the spectral blue eyes and controlled but simmering menace of an accomplished pirate. Although some film critics thought Johnny Depp was imitating a cross-dresser in the first “Pirates of the Caribbean” film, he confessed to imitating Keith Richards, the often-inebriated guitarist from the Rolling Stones. During a sword fight in this film in which Jack is greatly outnumbered, he remains true to character and stops for a moment to greedily drink wine gushing forth from a punctured wooden keg. After watching “On Stranger Tides,” some viewers have questioned whether a fifth installment in the “Pirates” franchise will transform the bickering Jack Sparrow and Angelica into lovers. However, there’s a dual cliffhanger: Can a besotted clergyman find eternal bliss with a good-hearted mermaid? Even more important than these questions: If “On Stranger Tides” doesn’t do well at the box office, will Hollywood throw Christian characters back to the lions? (Rated PG-13: sexual innuendos, sword fights, man burned alive, mermaids w/long hair covering breasts, heroic Christian man) (Written by C.E. Chambers and published June 2011.) (Note: Sergio, the dark-haired barista, and his boss decided to go see this film after all. They enjoyed it very much. In fact, Sergio, who is a Johnny Depp fan, plans to purchase the DVD once it’s released. He shared recently that he hasn’t tired of what I termed “ghastly underworld creatures.”)	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6567
__label__cc	0.594052	0.405948	Author Discovery Zone Emerging Authors Girly Book Club Book Club Package Book Bites Syndication Promo Upcoming Book Events Add Your Event! Summer Celebrations: The 6 Wildest Parties in Literary History By BookTrib Nerd Squad\|2018-09-14T14:46:51-04:00June 1st, 2016\|Fiction\| From music festivals to beach bashes, summer gives us the freedom to frolic outside and enjoy a margarita…or six. Summer really is all about the evenings of partying until the early morning with friends, or afternoons in the park, reading in the sun. We decided to combine these two fantastic summer activities by giving our take on the six wildest parties in literary history for you to fantasize about and maybe be inspired to throw your own summer bash. Matt’s Picks: The Acid Tests from Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test by Tom Wolfe (Picador Reprint, 2008) “Everything in everybody’s life is…significant. And everybody is alert, watching for meanings.” Journalist Tom Wolfe following a group of degenerate hippies searching for ‘truth’ through the use of LSD and other mind-altering drugs. Leading this band of “Merry Pranksters” is One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest author and counterculture icon Ken Kesey. They get on a bus and drive across the country. Throughout their travels they drink Kool-Aid laced with acid and throw insane parties while running into the likes of poet Allen Ginsburg, The Grateful Dead, and the motorcycle gang Hell’s Angels. If you’re into the path less trodden, these guys went totally off-road. Bilbo Baggins’s 111th Birthday Party from The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of The Ring by J.R.R. Tolkien (Mariner Books Reissue, 2012) “…they rather dreaded the after-dinner speech of their host…He was liable to drag in bits of what he called poetry; and sometimes, after a glass or two, would allude to the absurd adventures of his mysterious journey…” Turning 111 years old is something to celebrate in itself, let alone if you’re a hobbit living in The Shire: the chillest place ever. In this early stage of Tolkien’s masterpiece, the guests drink way too much and eat enough to bring down an Oliphaunt. But it wouldn’t be a wild party if you didn’t include a pot-smoking wizard setting off magical fireworks. Even better, Bilbo, the hobbit of the hour, disappears during his own birthday toast! That is a legendary get-together. Can’t you just imagine one of the Proudfoots asking the next morning, “Now, did Mr. Baggins disappear, or did I have meself too much honey mead?” Mad Hatter’s Tea Party from Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll (Dover Publications, 2014) “I knew who I was this morning but I’ve changed a few times since then.” That old cliché, two is company but three’s a party. Maybe you’re thinking this is too low key and not nearly crazy enough. But let’s take a look at this scene. You have a little girl who’s fallen down a rabbit hole to come upon a large dinner table with a man having a conversation with a rabbit dressed in Victorian attire. And let’s get one thing straight, there is no way they’re drinking tea. I don’t know what’s steaming in that kettle but if it’ll get me to engage in philosophical discourse with well-dressed rabbits, count me in. Katie’s Picks: Satan’s Springtime Ball of the Full Moon from The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov (Vintage, 1996) “Don’t be afraid, Queen, the blood has long run down into the earth. And on the spot where it was spilled, grapevines are growing today.” There’s nothing as metal as partying with Satan himself – and in this Russian classic, he goes all out. He expands a modest 1930’s Moscow apartment into a majestic ballroom filled with tropical forests, butterflies and birds of paradise. Champagne and severed heads are served up on platters, and notorious historical figures, like the Roman Emperor Caligula, are in attendance. It’s a pretty rancorous time, except that you should probably leave before clean-up, because all guests turn into powder as soon as dawn breaks. The Generations-Long Flying Party from Life, the Universe and Everything by Douglas Adams (Del Rey Reprint, 1995) “The longest and most destructive party ever held is now into its fourth generation and still no one shows any signs of leaving. Somebody did once look at his watch, but that was eleven years ago now, and there has been no follow up.” Imagine a cocktail party so singularly awesome that it continues for literal generations – that’s where intergalactic hitchhiker Arthur Dent finds himself in Douglas Adams’s third installment of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy series. Exotic aliens, evil robots and even the god of thunder, Thor, are among the guests at this floating interstellar mixer. Jay Gatsby’s Saturday Night Parties from The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald (Scribner, 2004) “And I like large parties. They’re so intimate. At small parties there isn’t any privacy.” The ultimate and most glamorous parties in all of literature, mysterious Gatsby’s Saturday night ragers are legendary. Full orchestras, chorus girls, endless (illegal) booze, and all manner of strange and exorbitantly rich people can be found in these Roaring 20’s bashes. As fantastic as these parties seem, they’re as loaded as they are shallow; Gatsby, of course, only hosts the parties to catch the attention of his long lost love Daisy, and all but two of his regular guests forget to attend his funeral. That may be a bummer, but Gatsby goes down in literary history as the definitive life of the party. About the Author: BookTrib Nerd Squad The Nerd Squad consists of the stalwart agents known only by their secret code names: Tech Nerd, Word Nerd, Her Awesomeness, the Bald Avenger, Sarcasm Slayer, the Fighting Foodie, the Scarlet Pencil and T.I. Benz. Together they patrol the farthest reaches of the galaxy looking for tempting geeky morsels and making the universe safe for Nerdkind.Thumbnail: Justice League #34 by Dale Eaglesham A Secret Society, a Civil War, and…a Funny Undertaker? Everyone is Someone’s Stranger: David Szalay’s Turbulence Take a Hike with “The Middle of Somewhere” Navigating War and Fate in “To the Waters and the Wild” Enter to win these books! BookTrib is for book lovers, introducing exciting authors and ideas for your next read. Mind Over Money: Creating a Millionaire Mentality 10 literary tattoos that are out of this world Novel Concept Episode 10: Mahtob Mahmoody Regal Children’s Books for Us Peasants Holiday Haul-A-Day Giveaway! — Day 2 — “Weird and Quirky” Brave Baby Orangutan Beats the Odds Fighting Magic Fire with Magic Fire in the Witches Protection Program AuthorBuzz Giveaway: Two Heart-Wrenching Romances BookTrib is a participant in the Amazon Affiliate program and as such may receive commissions from some books purchased on Amazon through this website. 2019 BookTrib, All Rights Reserved. Built by CONSTRUCT	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6570
__label__wiki	0.663178	0.663178	International, Travel Tips He said, she said: Japan by Kids Imagine, if you will, a child so completely fanatical about Japan that he was well versed in the history of feudal Japan before he understood basic addition, attempts to create DIY samurai armour from paper plates and egg cartons, has his heart set on a career as a ninja and swears he has ramen broth running through his veins. Imagine a second child. One who habitually dresses in a kimono then kneels on the floor to eat her cheese and crackers with chopsticks, thinks Hello Kitty should be beatified and is even partial to the occasional haiku. Now imagine the reaction when I told the aforementioned fanatics that I am heading to Osaka … without them. 10 points if you are visualising Oscar-worthy protests, melodramatic meltdowns, a couple of Olympic standard tantrums and even the odd early morning ninja attacks. To ease their pain, we’ve been turning a little Japanese in the lead up to my trip, so their high performance sulking has been interspersed with me cooking up their favourite Japanese dishes like Okonomayaki, Takoyaki and Gyoza, bingeing on Studio Ghibli movies and recalling happy memories of our previous adventures in Japan. It’s put them in such a Japanese frame of mind that they spent a week of their school holidays in their “dojo” compiling lists of why they fell so hard for Japan, and have once again decided to get their “He-said/She said” on to create this absolutely epic post on travelling in Japan by kids! 1. The People Politeness is Japan’s national pastime. Whether you are buying a train ticket or an a la carte meal, the service is incredible. And people are helpful to the point of stalking. Seriously all you have to do is hold a map and look confused and you’ll be immediately rescued by the nearest available random Japanese stranger who will not only point you in the right direction but virtually piggy-back you to your destination, even if it’s three blocks out of their way. He said: “The people in Japan didn’t speak much English but were so helpful and really kind which is lucky because between them my mum and dad can’t read a map to save themselves and we would have spent the whole trip lost. The Japanese are the most polite and nice people on earth. I really liked them”. She said: “I loved all the girls with coloured hair and pretty costumes. They let me be in pictures with them. I want to dress like them when I’m bigger. But the nicest person in the whole country was my friend Mayo”. From cheap eats on the street to Michelin starred magic, Japan gets food right every time. Almost. There is a fairly strong case to be made against shirako soup, made from cod semen. And Fugu, the sashimied flesh of a puffer fish that boasts a neurotoxin 1,200 times stronger than cyanide and occasional side effects like death. But with those few exceptions, Japanese food rocks their, and my, world. The big cities, including Tokyo, makes food easy to find too, with compartmentalised specialty food streets making it even easier to find what you’re looking for.While it would take me a day to write up a definitive list of the kids’ faves, I’d wager a guess that plump porky gyoza, bath tub size bowls of ramen, delicate sashimi and sushi, crispy ka’arage chicken, golden tempura, chubby strands of udon noodles, steaming shabu shabu, jiggly agadashi tofu, and all the yaki’s – Teri, Teppan, Okonomo Tako, would be top of their pops. But I’ll leave it to them to tell you more. He said: “I hope you have a while because they have a lot of food and it is awesome! I had so many favourites like gyoza, sushi, sashimi, udon and shabu shabu (a dish of raw beef slices that you cook yourself in hot broth). In Osaka I could have eaten takoyaki and okonomayaki all day long and gave it a good try. And don’t even get me started on the ramen, that’s a whole other topic. But the number one food experience I’ve ever had was going to Tsukiji Fish Markets with a super duper master sushi chef, Chef Oba. He took me shopping (and tasting) for the fresh ingredients for his restaurant. It was the coolest place I’ve ever been. Actually, the second coolest, Chef Oba’s restaurant just edged it out for first place because the food he made was so good it blew my head off.” She said: “I loved the udon noodles in Ise because they were so fat and yummy. And the gyoza. But I loved all the sushi most, because it is my favourite food”. 3. The Ramen OK, so technically this should probably fall under food, but eating ramen in Japan isn’t about scoffing a bowl of soupy noodles, it’s a national sport. And it’s complicated. There are around 26 regional varieties of the super soup, though most are categorised by broth types, shoyu (soy sauce), miso (fermented bean paste), shio (salt), and tonkotsu (pork bone) types. Whichever you opt for, they’re all amazing, super filling and meant to be eaten fast. And best of all you can buy it everywhere, from 7-Eleven to Tokyo Ramen Street in Tokyo Station, where we favoured a wee place called Rokurinsha and its tsukemen, a non-traditional ramen where the noodles are served separately to the steaming broth. He said: “Ramen broth runs in my veins. I love the stuff that much I really couldn’t live without it and in Japan it is everywhere. There are all different kinds and I had to try all of them. I even learned to make ramen. But my favourite spot for Ramen was Ramen Street. It’s cool because you buy the ramen from a vending machine and then collect the soup. My favourite was the no.1 tsukemen dipping ramen at Rokurinsha, its broth was so good I wanted to swim it.” She said: “I like the noodles from the ramen my daddy had because it didn’t have any soup on top, and I tried to eat them all. And I liked taking turns at putting money in the machines”. 4. The Quirky Cafes With all due respect, Japan is a batshit crazy mix of the conservative, cute and completely frigging bizarre and nowhere is this more obvious than in it’s many themed restaurants, most of which seem to be have been conceived during some kind of acid flashback. There are cat cafés where you pay a surcharge for cat hair in your coffee, a restaurant where you have monkey waiters and inexplicable hedgehog cafes. There are restaurants where you are served by ninjas, and others where patrons are handcuffed in a cell while they dine, and the most famously wacky of them all, the mind-bending Robot Restaurant. The only place I know of where you can watch as a giant shark ridden by a mermaid devours an armoured alien warrior while you eat your bento box. He said: “There were so many insane cafes and restaurants like Ninja Restaurant that had real ninjas and edible shuriken, but my favourite was Robot Restaurant which is the weirdest place I’ve ever been. There were crazy robot sharks and mermaids and battling pandas and more weirdness than I’ve ever seen in one place in my entire life. I wish we could have gone twice. She said: I liked the cat cafes. I made mummy and daddy stop every time we saw one. You don’t really eat food and you don’t eat the cats either you play with them. And they are real and soft and fluffy and I liked cuddling them and patting them”. 5. The Confectionary Japan has a serious sweet tooth. There are bakeries, dessert and cake shops literally everywhere. Shops selling delicate mochi and daifuku (sweet rice cakes) or freaky flavoured soft serve ice creams are located on every other corner and combinis (convenience stores) are packed full of sweet treats, including around ten thousand flavours of Kit-Kat. Not that we’re complaining! He said: “OMG! There are so many different flavoured chocolates and ice creams. They even have octopus flavoured soft serve. But my absolute favourite thing was the turbo charged Kit Kats that come in loads of different flavours like toasted cheesecake, raspberry and green tea. They even have mad flavours like wasabi and baked potato. The green tea ones are so epic we bought back about ten million packets of them”. She said: “I loved their Kit Kats and the pocky sticks. Raspberry and green tea were my favourite because they were so yummy”. 6. The Toilets Japanese toilets take taking the piss to a whole other level. Unlike the rest of Asia and their basic squat toilets, Japan’s elaborate and intuitive commodes come with a dizzying variety of features, like bum warming seats, auto flushing, turbo-arse spas and hoo-ha dryers. Something, it must be said, which is more than a little disturbing to the uninitiated. For the modest, some even produce music or white noise to drown out the sounds of any toilet action. There are buttons to deodorise, others to clean itself and a mysterious massage cleaning function, which is too frightening to even contemplate. There are myriad other functions that do God only knows what else… I wasn’t brave enough to find out. He said: “The first time I sat on a toilet in Japan I freaked out a bit. The seat was so warm I thought I’d wet myself. Then it squirted me with water, blew air up my butt and started singing at me in Japanese. Freaky! But once I got the hang of them I thought they were epic.” She said: “I loved the toilets because they were warm and they flushed themselves and they sang songs. And the one in the Hello kItty place had Hello Kitty toilet things”. 7. The Transport Japan’s efficient public transport is a feat of epic proportions with train stations that see upwards of 3,500,000 people pass through with ease in a single day. They are also clean, fast and punctual to the second. Then there are the Shinkansen bullet trains that run at speeds of close to 300km an hour and serve snacks and enough booze to turn peak hour into happy hour. And the whole system interconnects with local funicular railways, cable cars, buses and even ferries. Genius. Find out more about navigating Japan’s railway system here. He said: “The bullet trains are totally awesome. They look like snakes and go around 300 kilometres per hour, which is super fast. You can travel from one side of the country to the other really quickly and they serve food on them. Score!” She said: “The train stations in Japan were so big and there were so many people that I always held mama’s hand in case I got lost”. 8. The Temples & Shrines There are at least eleventy million Buddhist temples and torii-gated Shinto shrines dotted around Japan and every one of them is special in its own way. If I could have I would have visited them all but I was acutely aware of how quickly temple fatigue can set in with kids, so tried to keep templing to a dull roar. Turns out I needn’t have worried because the kids loved the stunning temples with their beautiful rituals as much as I did. He said: “Mum and dad were worried we’d get bored but the temples in Tokyo and Kyoto are way too cool for that. I loved Gotukji, the lucky cat temple in Tokyo, and the thousands of orange Torii gates at Fushimi Inari. But my favourite was actually a small temple next door to our hotel (Sanjusangendo Temple) that had one thousand life-size statues of a Thousand Armed Buddha. While I was there I got to choose a lucky charm from a basket. By chance I picked Benzaiten who symbolises wit, words and music, so she was kind of like a rock star. I was totally down with that.” She said: “The pretty Golden temple (Kinkakuji) was nice because it was so shiny but my favourite was the red one (Fushimi Inari) because there were lots of foxes and I got a fox mask to bring home.” 9. The Islands The four main islands of Japan are: Hokkaido, Shikoku, Kyushu and Honshu, the largest island, on which the capital, Tokyo, is located. But the island has over 6,000 smaller islands, of which only approximately 430 are inhabited. Some of the best for visitors are tiny Mikimoto Pearl Island in Ise, which exhibits pearls and pearl crafts, and fascinating shows featuring the famous ama divers, and gorgeous Okinawa, with its glorious beaches, incredible snorkelling and distinctly subtropical climate. But it is the cool and quirky animal islands we love best. There’s Cat Island, a few hours by train from Matsuyama, where cats outnumber the residents 6 to 1 and the super kawaii Okunoshima, the Rabbit Island, a curious enclave here over 1,000 bunnies run free, off the coast of Hiroshima, which can best be reached from Shin-Osaka or Hiroshima by Shinkansen. He said: “Japan is actually made up of a bunch of different big and little islands. I really love Hokkaido because there’s epic powder snow resorts like Hoshino Tomamu but the little island with cats and stuff are super cool too” She said: “I love the Bunny island because it has bunnies.” 10. The Warriors The samurai were the warriors of pre-modern Japan. While you aren’t likely to bump into many on the streets today, given they no longer exist, the influence of the noble warriors still manifests itself deeply in Japanese culture. Samurai heritage is still prevalent, meaning sociopathic boys like Raffles can easily get up close to as many bows, arrows, spears and swords as humanly possible. Then there are the ninjas, the stealthy assassins that acted as covert agents and mercenaries in feudal Japan, though their history is more shrouded in secrecy because, well… they’re ninjas. And though, like the samurai, they allegedly no longer exist I suspect the wily wee buggers are still everywhere, hiding in the shadows wondering how the hell they became mutant reptiles and why they are portrayed in the western world as noshing on pizza instead of sushi. He said: “I’m a bit obsessed with samurais and ninjas. In fact, I want to be a ninja when I grow up, even though I don’t think it’s an actual job. The best thing about Japan was that the pace is full of warriors. There were samurai theme parks (Edo Wonderland) and movie studios (Toei Studio Park) and a samurai training place (Samurai Kembu Theatre) where I got to learn the art of the samurai. And there are ninjas everywhere… but you probably won’t see them because they are that stealthy.” She said: “I like ninjas. I even saw girl ninjas at a show and they were really clever and had fire and did magic”. 11. The Puss The birthplace of Hello Kitty, the kawaii cat is inescapable in Japan. From themed snacks and plush, kimono-clad kitties in every other store, to Hello Kitty theme parks and hotel rooms, Sugarpuff was in Hello Kitty heaven. Raffles on the other hand was left heaving at the avalanche of Sanrio sweetness. He said: “OMG. You can’t say Hello Kitty without saying “hell”. Everywhere we looked was Hello Kitty. It made my sister really happy, which is good, but I kind of hated it. Except the Hello Kitty dumplings because I could eat them in the face.” She said: “I got to meet Hello KItty and cuddle her (at Universal Studios) and we got to sleep in a Hello Kitty room in Tokyo (Keio Plaza) and it was the happiest day of my life” 12. The Theme Parks Japan loves a theme park and, along with the world-renowned brand names like Disneyland and Universal Studios and Legoland, all of which are utterly fantastic in their Japanese incarnations, there are plenty that are unique to Japan. And by unique I mean weird. There are a few that are quite understandably themed around the samurai era and ninjas, like Edo Wonderland, Nikko Edomura and Toei Studio Park, each of which is fab fun. But then there’s Sanrio Puroland, a theme park entirely devoted to Hello Kitty and Shinyokohama Ramen Museum which doubles as a noodle-themed amusement park. But the most baffling of them all are the hula influenced Spa Resort Hawaiians, the Spanish stylings of Spain Mura, and recreation Dutch town, Huis Ten Bosch. He said: “There are loads of super cool ninja and samurai theme parks with cool obstacle courses and battling warriors. I really loved those but my favourite place was the Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal Studios. It was like being at Hogwarts and I got to drink butter beer and go to Ollivanders to buy a wand.” She said: “I loved meeting Hello Kitty at Universal Studios but I liked Disneyland Tokyo too because it had loads of fun rides and my favourite was the Buzz Light year ride because I got to ride in a cart and shoot Zorg’s machines with laser blasters”. 13. The Hotels There are plenty of Japanese accommodation that caters to families, but it is wise to keep in mind that Japan’s hotels are famous for their somewhat ambivalent view of anything resembling actual space. While location and price are what most families look for in a hotel, in Japan it’s wacky pop culture references! With quirky themed hotel suites dedicated to everything from robots and Godzilla to Snoopy, Hello Kitty and The Minions, they certainly can’t be accused of being beige or boring. A more conservative option is a Ryokan, a type of traditional Japanese inn that originated in the Edo period. These were a particular favourite with the kids who loved camping out on the floor mats. But not all Japanese hotels are so unusual. At the top end of town we experienced the Aman Tokyo, the ultimate in urban luxe offering fine cuisine and service that borders on the reverential. And we liked it. He said: “We stayed at some awesome hotels. I loved staying at a Ryokan, because we got to sleep n the floor like we were camping and play Ryokan shadow puppet theatre, which is a game we totally made up with a torch and the washi paper screens. But my favourite place we stayed was the Aman Hotel. Our room had views of the whole city and a toilet that had so many buttons and did so many tricks it was like being in Darth Vader’s bathroom. There were so many that I was scared I’d hit the wrong button and I’d launch the whole toilet into space. But I also loved it because being in the hotel felt like being inside a giant lantern and the swimming pool had glass walls that made it feel like we were swimming in the sky. Oh, and they had the best breakfast in the world and the staff were super nice.” She said: “My favourite hotel was the Hello Kitty one (Keio Plaza Hotel) because I was so happy because it was a big surprise from mama and when we opened the door everything was Hello Kitty even the walls and the carpet and they left me Hello Kitty cuddlies and there was a giant cuddly Hello Kitty that was bigger than me. I cried and cried when I had to leave.” Click here for even more tips on the best accommodation in Japan 14. The Toyshops Japan is renowned for creating some of the most cute, fun and utterly eccentric toys in the world and shopping for them is easy. The Japanese love a dedicated store and you’ll find dozens that obsessively stock toys specific to single characters or series, including the ubiquitous aforementioned puss and snoopy (who the Japanese seem to have a slavish devotion to) to the more techy Gundam, ethereal Ghibli characters and Poké everything. If you’re a pop culture fan, Akihabara Radio Kaikan has 10 floors of plastic models as well as rare and vintage collectibles. But the ultimate destination for toy loving kids is the Omotesando branch of Kiddy Land, a multi-level mecca of all the crap kids love best. He said “There were lots of gadgety toy shops selling cool roboty things and there are loads of shops selling things like Gundam models, which is totally epic because I love Gundam. But there was a toyshop in Harajuku (Kiddy Land) that was a zillion stories high and filled with the coolest gadgets and toys I’ve ever seen. We’d saved our pocket money for ages and ages just to go here and mum and dad let us buy whatever we liked with it. Booyah!” She said: “There were lots of Hello Kitty shops but my favourite place was the giant toy store that sold every toy ever (Kiddy Land). I got to buy a Hello Kitty and a funny singing ninja hamburger that really annoys my mama”. April 24, 2017 \| 14 Comments « Myanmar with kids: Parenting 101 at Novotel Yangon Max And it was all yellow: Minion Park at Universal Studios Japan » Celebrating Chinese New Year in Guangzhou with kids The 25 best things to do in Guangzhou with kids Cool and Quirky Harajuku with Kids He said, She said: Tokyo DisneySea by Kids Castle hotels in Edinburgh: Dalhousie Castle with kids Tags: family holidays, family travel, family travel tips, holidays with kids, Japan, Japan with kids, travel tips, travel with kids 14 Comments on He said, she said: Japan by Kids Japan is on the top of the list for me. I love their quirky culture, tech and cosplay. My kids are scratching to get there too. One day… BOYEATSWORLD May 8, 2017 at 10:38 am (2 years ago) Wait until Jestar have one of their amazing two for one ticket sales. You can get there for less than you think Jo @ You had us at hello Oh how lucky! I have a friend I’d love to visit in Osaka – she was our exchange student in 1988!! I was 12 and she was 16. I’ve met her husband but yet to meet her boys and she’s yet to meet my family. We’re still in touch so it’s on the cards for sure. Your post makes it all sound so tempting – I wanna book now!! Enjoy xx #teamIBOT OH how fabulous sit would be to stay with a friend. You should definitely try and get there. Renee Wilson Hello Kitty things in the toilets!!! That is the absolute bomb. I so wanted to go to Japan this year, but I got out voted by my husband. How rude. You guys have so much fun. I can’t wait to get over there some time soon. Maybe you should get him to read this and take it to a second vote? Hehe this is so cute and pretty much what I love about Japan too. I didn’t realise that Raffles didn’t like Hello Kitty but I did chuckle at this line, “because I could eat them in the face.” LOL! Then again he eats just about everything in the face LOLOL April 27, 2017 at 8:39 am (2 years ago) I’d love to visit Japan (if I had the money of course!). So great to hear about this country from a child’s perspective 🙂 This blog has always been about sharing their views and not just mine becasue it is interesting to hear it form their perspective. This is so cute – I wonder if they would have different experiences next time! I think they are always looking for something new and there is still so much we haven’t seen Paula, The Geeky Shopaholic May 3, 2017 at 4:54 pm (2 years ago) I’d never thought about visiting Japan but this post makes me want to! Even if just for the Raman! The Ramen is a worth reason for a visit in itself.	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6574
__label__cc	0.682931	0.317069	Breath.ru - Echinacea - popular, potent herbal Echinacea - popular, potent herbal Echinacea is America's favorite herbal extract. The purple coneflower, Echinacea purpurea, is one of the most popular garden flowers — a common wildflower of the Great Plains and the southeastern United States. It is one of the leading medicinal plants of Native American peoples and is a prominent medicine used in Europe. Echinacea is especially popular during the cold and flu season and is being increasingly recommended by doctors, including pediatricians, to help in the battle against colds, flu and other infectiojus diseases. Why is this Native American medicinal plant so popular and how can it help us improve health and longevity while lowering health-care costs? The reason is that echinacea stimulates the human immune system from a resting state into a state of heightened activity in which it can much more effectively fight off colds and flu, and it may be useful against more serious infectious diseases as well. During last year's flu season, the CBS television network aired a program about echinacea in which pediatrician Jay Gordon, M.D., discussed his experience using echinacea against childrens' colds. Following this report, the Los Angeles Times ran an article, one of many, about the popularity of echinacea. Meanwhile, some segments of the medical community, along with the ever skeptical Food and Drug Administration, insist that echinacea is an unproven and unapproved medicine and should not be allowed on the market if it is used for the treatment or prevention of colds or any other disease. Echinacea has never been reported to cause a single side effect, toxic reaction, overdose problem, or any other form of illness, despite its widespread use and popularity. This is by itself a good indicator of the safety of this herb, but such evidence is rarely accepted as valid by regulatory officials. However, echinacea has also been fed and injected in rodents in numerous scientific studies, which is just the type of research that American science and regulatory officials seem to demand. For documentation of efficacy, anecdotal evidence is even less compelling to the regulators and to most American scientists. But this plant and its extracts have been the subject of hundreds of scientific studies, including both lab studies and clinical research. Here is what those studies have determined. In 1992, German researchers reported on a double-blind, placebo, controlled study involving 180 volunteers. This study, published in a respected German scientific journal, Zeitschrift fur Phytotherapie, found that four droppersful of echinacea extract produced "good to very good" results. The compound used was a standard alcohol and water extract of Echinacea purpurea root, which was effective in relieving symptoms and reducing the duration of colds and flu. Patients in the study were both male and female, from 18 to 60 years old. While two droppersful per day of echinacea had some effect, four droppersful a day proved statistically significant in its effectiveness. Much of the laboratory research on echinacea has been done by M. Stimpel, et al. at the University of Munich. Through both in vitro (in glassware) experiments and animal research, scientists have shown that echinacea increases the number and activity of immune system cells in the body. They in turn strongly activate macrophages, important immune system cells, which consume invading organisms and destroy abnormal cells, including tumor cells. The most consistently proven effect of echinacea is in increasing phagocytosis, or the ingestion of invading organisms and abnormal cells, according to V.R. Bauer, et al. in Arzneimit' telforschung. Echinacea has also been shown to increase the body's production of important chemical mediators of the immune system's activity, including tumor necrosis factor, important in fighting cancer, and interleukins 1 and 6, important in fighting bacterial and viral diseases, reported the International Journal of Immunopharmacology. One important laboratory study involving serious blood infections of mice with Candida albicans was reported in Onkohgie in 1987. The results of this experiment were quite dramatic. One hundred percent of the untreated animals died within a few days. One hundred percent of the animals tested with echinacea were completely cured within a few days. The following excerpt is from an article by Chris Hobbs, one of the leading American experts on echinacea. His book, Echinaceat The Immune Herb, is a superb compilation of facts on the premier immunostimulant. HerbalGram No. 31 (Austin, Texas) includes his latest review of echinacea. Here is a listing of the actions which have been demonstrated for echinacea, but note that much of the research was on injected echinacea juice, which is not recommended for home use. 1) Inhibits hyaluronidase, an enzyme which slows wound healing and allows bacteria to invade cells. 2) Stimulates the production of new tissue. 3) Acts as a weak antibiotic. Note, though, that the effect of echinacea in stimulating our immune response surpasses the use of antibiotics in some cases. In fact, one study showed that antibiotics suppressed the immune system, compared to echinacea. 4) Demonstrates antiinflammatory effects, another important component of wound-healing activity. 5) Stimulates the adrenals. 6) Increases activity of the "complement system," another component of immune response. 7) Has interferon-like activity. 8) Enhances immune response nonspecifically; that is, increases the overall function of the immune system, rather than acting against specific disease organisms. As an example, results of studies involving echinacea conclude: 1) Increases number and activity of phagocytes, the cells which ingest bacteria and other foreign bodies. 2) Increases bacteria-killing capacity (chemotaxis), prosperdin levels and tumor necrosis factor. 3) Restores some immune functions (i.e., phagocytosis) suppressed by antibiotics. 4) Stimulates bone marrow. 5) Strengthens cell-mediated immunity against recurrent Candida infection and herpes simplex. 6) Helps counteract immune suppression from cancer chemotherapy. 7) Possesses antiviral activity (esp. herpes and influenza). With the impressive research results of echinacea and the widespread clinical use in Europe, as well as increasing use in the United States, you might ask, "What is the federal government doing to further research this remarkable plant?" The answer, of course, is absolutely nothing. In fact, there is currently no American research in progress on echinacea, and no encouragement of such research by the federal government, with the possible exception of the Office of Alternative Medicine, which, unfortunately, has only "homeopathic levels of funding," according to its director. The common cold and various forms of influenza are conditions which affect 100 percent of the American public. Many people may be tempted to say, "Well, it's just a cold and research priorities should be focused on lifethreatening disease." But respiratory disease is life threatening, especially for the elderly and sometimes for young children. It is, in fact, among our top five causes of death, because the elderly, with compromised immune function and reduced ability to recuperate, often find a simple cold or flu quickly progressing to life-threatening respiratory infections. With the potential for actual progress in preventing and treating the most common infectious diseases, our government's funding agencies simply take no action. Americans suffer every winter from colds and flu, and American business suffers substantial loss of employee productivity because of these simple conditions, yet it is simply not viewed as important by the federal government for one very simple reason. Echinacea is not patentable and, therefore, will not support the multi-billion-dollar drug industry, because it is insufficiently profitable. The only thing an herb like echinacea could do for the American public is prevent suffering, save billions of dollars and save lives of the elderly. Personally, I have never been a fan of conspiracy theories, and find it hard to believe that our public health agencies would actually orient their research priorities to the whims of the pharmaceutical industry. But what are we to make of the FDA's recent proclamations? The FDA has made it quite clear that its intention is to protect the profits of the drag industry. Its Task Force on Dietary Supplements made this extremely clear when it said it was concerned "that the existence of dietary supplements not serve as a disincentive to the development of new drugs." This is a curious statement indeed by the agency charged with the protection of public health. The future of echinacea is nonetheless bright because, regardless of what the government chooses to do or not do to with the herb, more and more people are discovering its usefulness. Нутрициология как методологическая основа медицины: Профилактические и реабилитационные аспекты Клинические аспекты питания все больше начинают выходить на уровень теоретической и методологической основы современной медицины. Этому много причин, прежде всего, реальности современной жизни с экологическими нарушениями, демографическими проблемами, истощением биоресурсов и т. д. Эволюционирует и сама наука о питании: общая и клиническая нутрициология. Здесь отмечается отход от традиционных установок на обеспечение калориями, все больше раскрывается этиопатогенетическая сущность алиментарно-зависимых заболеваний, заставляет больше обращать на себя внимание вопрос о безопасности пищи, о генно-модифицированных источниках и др. >>> Здоровье здоровых и центры здоровья. Ядром научно-обоснованной и утвержденной Минздравом России в 2003 году концепции охраны здоровья здоровых (разработана под руководством акад. А.Н.Разумова) является использование методов профилактической, восстановительной медицины и здорового образа жизни. Эти методы включают обеспечение здоровой среды существования и поддержание функциональных резервов организма на уровне, достаточном для успешной адаптации. Для повышения функциональных резервов решающее значение имеют регулярные личные усилия, реализующие здоровый образ жизни. >>> Expert Clinics - клиника антивозрастной медицины Первая и единственная клиника в России, развивающая направление anti-age в доказательной медицине – это Expert clinics. Клиника является членом RUSIAM- Российской Ассоциации Междисциплинароной Антивозрастной Медицины и ведет активную деятельность в продвижении направления anti-age в различных формах коллективного общения представителей медицинской науки и практики здравоохранения: конгрессах, съездах, семинарах. >>>	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6579
__label__wiki	0.575726	0.575726	You are here: Home / News / Paddling the Gap Paddling the Gap JOHNSTOWN — “The Kiski-Conemaugh Water Trail is one of our region’s best kept recreation secrets,” said Laura Hawkins, Greenway Coordinator for the Conemaugh Valley Conservancy. That water trail is currently nominated for River of the Year. But prior to its recognition the river caught the eye of the Community Foundation for the Alleghenies, something for which Hawkins is grateful. “The Community Foundation for the Alleghenies understands the role of low-impact recreation in the economic development opportunities for our region. Recreational access to the Conemaugh Gap holds tremendous potential, along with our other natural, historic, and cultural assets, for attracting and retaining our talented youth in the region,” said Hawkins. Hawkins recently applied for a grant through the Foundation to help fund the Conemaugh Gap River Project. They received $1,400 to help increase recreational use of the Conemaugh River, particularly the Conemaugh Gap between Johnstown and Seward, where there had not been an official take-out point when paddling through the gorge. ”The Conemaugh River is such a tremendous asset to our region, but in order for people to enjoy it they need to be able to access it,” said Angie Berzonski, Program & Communications Officer for the Foundation. “This is a great example of how a small grant can make a big impact for hundreds of people every year.” “The Conemaugh Valley Conservancy developed a public canoe-kayak take-out in Seward to encourage recreational paddling on the scenic Conemaugh Gap,” said Hawkins. “There are several places to access the Conemaugh River in Johnstown and with the new access in Seward people can paddle 15, 11, or 8 miles through the gorge. The launch area is primitive but provides a turnaround area as well as space to park a car for shuttling.” The access is located at the end of Pine Street in Seward, and although it is open for public use now, Hawkins said the CVC will officially introduce the site on the first day of their annual river sojourn on June 2, 2016. However, she adds that it’s already made an impact. “Aside from improving quality of life for residents, this project, and recreation on the Conemaugh, is part of many efforts CVC and others are making to help our area benefit from our considerable natural features,” said Hawkins. “I personally love this project and what it will do for the area.” According to Hawkins, the new access makes it easier for area residents and visitors to experience one of the deepest gorges in Pennsylvania, and one with a very storied past. To read more about Kiski-Conemaugh Water Trail click on river. To apply for a grant or for additional details, log on to the Foundation’s website or email Angie Berzonski. October 14, 2015December 22, 201500 By Angie BerzonskiIn NewsTags Cambria County, Grant, grantee, Make A Difference Patriot ParkVision2025 DCNR Grant Workshops Interns Announce New Funding Opportunities YPI Class of 2017	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6593
__label__cc	0.50927	0.49073	Equity MF inflow at Rs 9,079 cr in Nov: Optimistic investor environment Market experts attributed the inflow to positive climate in both equity and debt markets. Besides, slew of factors contributing to this buoyancy are better corporate results and smooth progress on GST Bill Updated: December 08, 2016, 16:29 IST New Delhi, Dec 8 () Equity mutual funds witnessed an inflow of Rs 9,079 crore in November mainly on account of optimistic investor sentiment. This also marks the eighth straight month of positive inflow in equity schemes. Prior to that, such funds had witnessed a pull out of Rs 1,370 crore in March. Also, monthly net contributions through SIP (systematic investment plans) led to higher positive net inflows in equity markets, they added. SIP is an investment vehicle that allows investors to invest in small amounts periodically instead of lump sums. The frequency of investment is usually weekly, monthly or quarterly. According to the data from Association of Mutual Funds in India (Amfi), equity funds, which also include equity- linked saving schemes (ELSS), saw net inflow of Rs 9,079 crore last month. In comparison, equity funds had seen net inflow of Rs 9,394 crore in October, which was the highest in 16 months. With the latest inflow, total mobilisation in equity schemes has reached Rs 40,706 crore in the current financial year (April-November). The robust inflow has pushed the assets under management (AUM) of equity mutual fund to Rs 4.68 lakh crore as of November-end. Mutual funds are investment vehicles made up of a pool of funds collected from a large number of investors. The funds are invested in stocks, bonds and money market instruments, among others. Equity Mutua Funds Sebi accepts most Kotak panel proposals, splits CMD post & slashes MF charges BSE extends window to submit Aadhaar for new MF investors IEX revises anchor investor allocation for ongoing IPO There may be a slowdown and financing challenges in the automobile industry but for auto-component major JK tyres the problem is not grave. Sethi will provide leadership to business incubation through alternate revenue streams in new ventures, the company informed in a release. Just 5 cases of tax credit availment by fake invoicing were detected by Central GST formations in the first year of the GST implementation involving an amount of Rs 12.67 crore.As many as two persons were arrested. L&T assures Mindtree shareholders of further impetus to long-term growth L&T became the new promoter of Mindtree after acquiring 60.06 per cent stake in the Bengaluru-based company. ET BFSI National Cooperative Summit 2019	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6594
__label__wiki	0.670202	0.670202	Home Entertainment Find Out More About the ‘Seo Sisters’: Seo Yu-na from AOA and... Find Out More About the ‘Seo Sisters’: Seo Yu-na from AOA and Seo-yool from Berry Good https://beritadrama.files.wordpress.com Siblings in K-Pop In this article, we will be discussing one of the famous siblings in the K-Pop industry, namely Seo Yu-na and Seo-yool, also known as the Seo Sisters. Actually, there are a lot of siblings in the Entertainment world, such as the famous Jung Sisters, namely Jung Soo-yeon and Jung Soo-jung, who debuted as members of two different girl groups under SM Entertainment. The relationship of siblings among the Korean idols is pretty tight since they always support each other in their career with their respective groups. An example of this is when two brothers are in different groups and the more successful one gives support to the one who is going through a tough time. Such are the Twin Siblings or Youngmin and Kwangmin from BOYFRIEND. Sibling relationships are pretty common in the Entertainment world, including Korean idols, who inspire each other, regardless if they are in the same or different group, they support and protect each other. Well, let’s get to know the Seo Sisters. Introducing the Seo Sisters! In an interview, Seo-yool, or the sister of AOA’s Seo Yu-na, said that she really wants a close relationship with Yuna, just like the Jung Sisters, or Jessica and Krystal. The close relationship of the Jung Sisters has really inspired many people. They do not hesitate to support each other and protect each other. Seo-yool also said that she is the biggest fan of her own sister, which can be easily seen from the fact that her gallery is filled with photos of Yuna, “I want to be a celebrity sibling like Jessica and Krystal,” Seo-yool said. AOA’s Seo Yu-na’s Profile http://analisadaily.com Name: Seo Yu-na Date of Birth: December 30th, 1992 Position: Main Vocalist, Keyboardist Zodiac: Capricorn Agency: FNC Entertainment Instagram: @yn_s_1230 Berry Good’s Seo-yool’s Profile https://static.asiachan.com/ Real Name: Seo Yu-ri Stage Name: Seo-yool or Seoyul Date of Birth: November 26th, 1997 Position: Main Dancer, Lead Vocalist Agency: JTG Entertainment Instagram: @y__s._.s__ Siblings in FNC Entertainment FNC Entertainment shows its artists who have a brother or sister by rotating for InStyle. CNBLUE’s Jungshin, AOA’s Yuna, and N.FLYING’s Jaehyun have participated in the photo shoot. https://www.soompi.com First, Lee Jung-shin posed with his brother Lee Yong-shin. Lee Jung-shin said, “One day, I hope I have a gallery taken in collaboration with my older brother.” Second, N.FLYING’s drummer Kim Jaehyun posed together with his older sister who is a former member of the girl group RAINBOW, Kim Jaekyung. Jaehyun showed his love for his older sister, revealing that he saved her number as Goddess in his phone contacts. He also admitted that during his middle school days, he folded 1000 paper cranes to give to Kim Jaekyung for her birthday. Last, Yuna posed with her sister Seo-yool. Yuna also shared how much she cares for her little sister. “When Seo-yool said he was going to follow the same path as me, as a singer, I was really worried because I know how difficult this profession can be,” Yuna said. Seo Sisters’ Moments Together https://i.pinimg.com On several occasions, Seo Yuna and Seo-yool have taken photos of them together and uploaded them on their social media, which indicates that they support each other, especially when AOA makes a comeback or Berry Good makes a comeback. Their cohesiveness is very appreciated by their fans, although they belong to different groups, they still support each other’s group. Yuna and Seo-yool have the same nose and eye shape. Both are very beautiful and extremely adorable. The two of them always capture moments together if there is a chance. At that time, AOA and Berry Good had the same time for a comeback, Yuna provided support for Berry Good and Berry Good provided support for Yuna and AOA, and they exchanged albums. https://static.asiachan.com Yuna and Seo-yool are also compact in doing selfies in the same style. They both look beautiful and charming with natural makeup. Even though Yuna is with short hair and Seo-yool is with long hair, the two of them look like twins. Well, what do you think? Good luck to AOA and Berry Good! All About Kim Jeong-hoon: Profile, Family, Songs, Dramas, and Latest News Sarah - September 8, 2018 K-Drama Review: ‘Tunnel’ Tells the Story of a Time Traveling Cop Solving Murder Cases Amira - April 2, 2019 Get Inspired from Lee Min-ho’s Hairstyle! nadiaputri - January 25, 2019 An American Actor Who Was Born In Korea, John Cho’s Profile: Height, Age, Wife,... annisa - June 27, 2018 Plastic Surgery Has Ruined Nam Gyu-ri’s Face? How Did This Happen and Let’s Look... ratih - January 15, 2019	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6596
__label__cc	0.587424	0.412576	Cronos Group Shares Jump After Appointing Chief Innovation Officer Shares of Cronos Group rose after announcing Mondelez International, Dr. Todd Abraham, will join the company as its Chief Innovation Officer. Cronos Group CEO, Mike Gorenstein, joined Cheddar to discuss. The State of Legal Marijuana in 2019 U.S. Congress held a landmark hearing this month called "Marijuana Laws in America: Racial Justice and the Need for Reform." It was the first congressional hearing in history explore ending cannabis prohibition at a federal level. Matt Schweich, of the Marijuana Policy Project, joined Cheddar to discuss the state of legal marijuana in 2019. S&P 500 Companies Warn on Lackluster Second Quarter Earnings Earnings season is just around the corner and Wall Street analysts are expecting to see a pretty steep decline in profit. Rick Pendergraft, Contributor at Seeking Alpha and Founder of Pendergraft Research, joined Cheddar to discuss. Inside the First Cannabis Company to List on Nasdaq Cronos Group started trading on the Nasdaq Tuesday. The vertically integrated company became the first marijuana company to join a major exchange in the United States. The company's CEO Mike Gorenstein explains how Cronos is capitalizing on the emerging market in Canada.	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6600
__label__wiki	0.562652	0.562652	GetYourGuide Not Worried About Airbnb Competition After $484 Million Funding Round Tourism startup GetYourGuide is raising a hefty $484 million in funding to help travelers discover and book experiences around the world. Johannes Reck, Co-Founder & CEO of GetYourGuide says he isn't concerned about Airbnb because the short-term rental giant's experience-based revenue is less than a tenth of his company's. Cybersecurity Firm Focuses on Rampant Issue of Email Phishing With an estimated 71% of targeted cyber attacks involving the use of spear-phishing emails, GreatHorn, which ensures email security, has raised $13 million to fight this rampant problem. Kevin O'Brien, CEO of GreatHorn, joined Cheddar to discuss how his firm stands above the crowded field. Will Workers be Replaced by A.I. That Scans Financial Documents? Ocrolus, which uses computer vision to scan financial documents, has just raised $24 million. Ocrolus Co-founder and CEO Sam Bobley joined Cheddar to discuss how his company's technology exceeds humans' ability. What Mobile Commerce Startup Button is Doing with its $30 Million Raise Mobile commerce startup Button has announced $30 million in funding. Mike Jaconi, CEO & Co-Founder of Button, joined Cheddar to discuss how the company positions brands to profit off of users' actions, instead of ads.	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6601
__label__wiki	0.692282	0.692282	This lesson plan is based on a Globe & Mail article entitled Facebook bans several Canadians for supporting white nationalism as Ottawa eyes new regulations for social platforms. Click here to view the article. Facebook bans several Canadians for supporting white nationalism as Ottawa eyes new regulations for social platforms Current Events , Social Studies \| Lesson Plans \| April 23, 2019 Key Question(s) to Explore Tamsin McMahon reports on Facebook’s recent ban on postings by extremist groups that promote hate, and on related concerns expressed by politicians in the United States, Britain and Europe Social studies, current events, media studies Key Question(s) to Explore: What types of content is Facebook banning, and why? White nationalism, white supremacy, Zionism Globe article As most of your students will know, social media are rife with controversial claims and postings that have no basis in fact, and many are designed to elicit negative feelings about targeted individuals and groups. Recently, Facebook acted to ban certain types of posts that they determined promoted hatred and white nationalism/supremacy. As social media users and concerned citizens, students can benefit from a lesson that focuses on Facebook’s ban and the reasons for it. They will work with a partner on a reading/comprehension exercise in which they critically examine a series of excerpts from the attached article. Introduce this activity by finding out: a) how many students are active on Facebook; b) whether they have encountered content they thought should be banned, and, c) whether they agree with Facebook banning content. Have students read the article individually, then have them work in pairs to complete the following. Rather than using the Internet for information, they are to provide their own opinions and/or guess at answers; these can be fact-checked during or following a general class discussion. Task Sheet For each of these excerpts from the article, in italics, respond to the questions or prompts that follow. Six months ahead of the federal election, the social media giant said on Monday it had banned several users for supporting white nationalism… What is the significance of including a reference to the (Canadian) federal election in this statement? How do you understand the term “white nationalism?” Do you identify yourself as white or non-white? Do you think this affects your understanding of white nationalism? Democratic Institutions Minister Karina Gould warned that social media companies are not doing enough to protect Canadian democracy ahead of October’s federal election and could face new regulations. How might activities on social media be a threat to Canadian democracy? Can you describe any instances where social media in Canada or another country were criticized for interfering with an election? In Canada, Facebook said it had banned the accounts for violating its policies against dangerous individuals and groups, which includes people who have been convicted of a hate crime, advocated violence toward identifiable groups such as visible or religious minorities, or organized an event with known hate groups. From your experience in social media, can you cite any examples of this kind of activity? Do you think this type of ban will be effective? Why or why not? If your page has been banned by Facebook, there is no appeal. Do you agree with this policy? “We’ve seen hate speech fuel the attack against Pittsburgh, at the synagogue, we’ve seen more recently in Christchurch, worshipers gunned down,” [Immigration Minister Ahmed Hussen] said. “This is real and it has consequences.” Why are the three attacks listed together, above? What do they have in common? We don’t see the words “terrorism” or “terrorist” used in this excerpt. What kinds of attacks usually involve these words? Should they apply here? [British] Prime Minister Theresa May, called for a regulator who could issue fines, shut down websites and make executives of social media firms personally liable for dangerous content on their platforms. How can content on social media be dangerous? Imagine an example. Should Facebook be held liable for hosting dangerous content? If so, how might this change Facebook activity? …[Facebook] said on Monday it had banned several users for supporting white nationalism, including Faith Goldy, [who responded] “I’ve committed no crime. I’m not part of any sort of hate group. And to label a young woman who makes YouTube videos from her kitchen table…a ‘dangerous individual’ is preposterous and laughable.” Do you think it’s possible to carry out dangerous activity by making YouTube videos from a kitchen table? Why does it matter, if it does, where videos are made? How can a video be dangerous? Did removing the phrase, “most of which just cite things like census data,” from the space between “table,” and “a ‘dangerous,” above, change how you understood Ms. Goldy’s excerpt and if so, in what way? Can you imagine a way that census data can be used to support white nationalism or white supremacy? Google [which owns YouTube] pointed to a four-minute video Ms. Goldy posted on YouTube that compared white Europeans to endangered animals and warned of “population replacement” by non-white immigrants in the United States. Do you think this type of content can be understood as promoting hatred, or white supremacist arguments? Explain. Finally, what is your opinion on the banning issue? Do you think it’s necessary? Do you think bans will work—that people won’t find ways to get around the ban? Do you think social media can be an anti-democratic force in society? Explain. When students have finished, discuss their work to see if there is a consensus on any of the questions. If you have students who identify as non-white, consider comparing their responses to the questions on white supremacy to those of students who identify as white. As a final exercise for a diverse class, ask the question, “When people first meet you, do they ask where you’re from?” Note differences between students who identify as white and those who don’t, and ask how they feel about being asked that question. Students discuss their work as a group. Students can describe the kind of content Facebook is banning and explain its rationale. Ask students to keep track of posts they find offensive. Introduce them to Facebook’s link for reporting offensive posts, should they decide to do so: https://www.facebook.com/help/www/181495968648557?ref=u2u Also in Current Events Questions: Current Events Quiz - February 2014 Quizzes \| February 20, 2014	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6604
__label__wiki	0.601745	0.601745	Everything You Need to Know About Why AMD Open Sourced the OpenCL Driver Stack for ROCm Introduction: AMD is a co-founder and member of the HSA Foundation. This article is excerpted and edited from a blog post by Vincent Hindriksen, founder of Stream HPC, a Netherlands-based software development company. Last May, AMD open sourced the OpenCL driver stack for ROCm. With this they kept their promise to open source (almost) everything. Earlier the hcc compiler, kernel-driver and several other parts were open sourced. Why this is a big thing? There are indeed several open source OpenCL implementations, but with one big difference: they're secondary to the official compiler/driver. So, implementations like PortableCL and Intel Beignet play catch-up. AMD's open source implementations are primary. They contain: OpenCL 1.2 compatible language runtime and compiler OpenCL 2.0 compatible kernel language support with OpenCL 1.2 compatible runtime Support for offline compilation right now - in-process/in-memory JIT compilation is to be added. Performance of ROCm was mostly on par with AMD’s closed source drivers, with a few outliers. A few months ago ROCm 1.6 was released, where again performance was noticeably improved. For the next release performance improvements are expected again. Why was it open sourced? There were several reasons. AMD listened carefully to their customers in HPC, while taking note of where the industry was going. Get deeper understanding of how functions are implemented It’s useful to understand how functions are implemented. For instance the difference between sin() and native_sin() can tell you a lot more on what's best to be used. It doesn’t tell how the functions are implemented on the GPU, but does tell which GPU-functions are called. Learning a new platform has never been so easy. Deep understanding is needed if you want to go beyond "it works". Debug software deeper Any software engineer has experience with libraries that don’t perform as promised or work as documented. Integration issues with “black box” libraries, are therefore a typical reason for big project delays. If the library was open source, the debugger could step in and give all information needed to solve the problem quickly. When working with drivers it's about the same. GPU drivers and compilers are extremely complex and inevitably your project hits that one bug nobody encountered before. With all open source drivers, you can step into the driver with the same debugger. Moreover, the driver can be recompiled with fixed code instead of having to write a less secure work-around. Get bugs solved quicker A trace now includes the driver-stack and the line-numbers. Even a suggestion for a fix can be given. This also helps reduce the time to get the fix for all steps. When a fix is suggested AMD only needs to test for regression to accept it. This makes the work for tools like CLsmith a lot easier. A bonus of open source projects is that over time the code quality becomes better than projects where code is never seen by outsiders, which also adds to quicker solving of bugs. Get low-priority improvements in the driver Popular software like Blender and the LuxMark benchmark can expect to get attention from driver developers. For the rest of us, we have to hope our special code-constructions are comparable to one that is targeted. This results in many forums-comments and bug-reports being written, for which the compiler team doesn’t have enough time. This is frustrating for both sides. Now everyone can help build a driver for everyone. Get support for complete new things Proprietary code needs official access and legal documents that have all kinds of restrictions, which open source code does not. More often there is opportunity in what is not there yet, and research needs to be done to break the chicken-egg conundrum. Optimized 128-bit computing? Easy complex numbers in OpenCL? Native support for Halide as an alternative to OpenCL? All up-to-date driver-code is available to make these possible. Nurture other projects Code can be “borrowed” from AMD’s projects and be used in (un)expected places. This ranges from GPU-simulators to experimental compilers. Currently the forks of the ROCm-driver are mostly used to fix bugs or are thousands of commits behind. Who knows what the future brings. Get better support in more Linux distributions It's easier to include open source drivers in Linux distributions. These OpenCL drivers do need a binary firmware (which were disassembled and seem to do as advertised). There is a discussion if firmware can be seen as hardware and can be marked as "libre", but fact is that AMD’s contributions to the Linux 4.x kernel do get accepted. Improve and increase university collaborations If the software was protected, it was only possible under strict contracts to work on AMD's compiler infrastructure. In the end it was easier to focus on the open source backends of LLVM than to go through the legal path. Universities are very important to find unexpected opportunities, integrate the latest research in, bring potential new employees and do research collaborations. Timour Paltashev (senior manager, Radeon Technology Group, GPU architecture and global academic connections) can be reached via timour dot paltashev at amd dot com for more info. It probably makes total sense to open source the drivers. Most notably key advantages include reduced costs and increased control due to easier debugging and bug-solving. AMD is now a modern hardware company that understands software is a crucial part of their products. They believe that open source software gives an edge over the competition and made this bold move to let everybody peek in their kitchen.	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6614
__label__cc	0.603776	0.396224	Inspiration Bathroom Modern Nanofiber Connects Light Particles and Atoms In Quantum Computer Advance by German Physicists Posted on May 25, 2010 by idan German physicists have created a quantum interface that connects light particles and atoms, an essential part of improving the capacity of quantum technologies. The interface may even bring physics one step closer to the realization of the first quantum computer. Findings from the research are published in the journal Physical Review Letters. In their paper, the scientists from the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz in Germany explain that both trapping and optically interfacing laser-cooled neutral atoms is fundamental to their use in advanced quantum technologies. The team managed to achieve both through the interaction of cesium atoms with a multi-color evanescent field surrounding an optical nanofiber. The Mainz quantum interface. With laser light, which passes through a tapered optical fiber, which are ultra-thin waist cesium atoms trapped in. The central part of the fiber is thinner than the wavelength of light itself, so that it protrudes from the fiber and the trapped atoms couple. Image credit: Johannes Gutenberg University Essentially, these atoms are trapped using laser light that travels through an ultra-thin, tapered glass fiber (so thin that it measures just one hundredth of the diameter of a human hair). The centre of the fiber is even thinner than the light itself. No longer restricted to the inside of the nanofiber, the light then extends into the space surrounding the fiber (creating the evanescent field) and couples to the trapped atoms. The result is a glass fiber-based quantum interface that can be used to transmit quantum information; it is an essential requirement for large-scale quantum communication schemes such as secure data transmission via quantum cryptography. The scientists also believe the interface is well suited to the realization of hybrid quantum systems that combine atoms with, for instance, solid state quantum devices. Research leader, Mainz University’s Dr Arno Rauschenbeutel, added that the interface ‘might also prove useful for the realization of a quantum computer’. While the computers we use today are based on transistors, the concept of a quantum computer relies on quantum mechanical phenomena. We are still far from realizing this goal, but large-scale quantum computers would revolutionize the way we work. Glass fiber networks, on the other hand, are already a fundamental part of modern communication (our telephones and the Internet rely primarily on optical data transmission using glass fiber cables). The light that travels through these networks consists of indivisible energy quanta or photons (a discovery made by Albert Einstein). Each photon is able to then transmit one bit of information (corresponding to two states, zero or one). As quantum objects, photons can exist simultaneously in both of these states. This property, for example, is behind quantum cryptography, which protects us against eavesdropping. To make full use of the possibilities that quantum communication offers, we must be able to store the quantum information that is encoded on each photon. Since photons are not suited to performing this particular task, physicists believe it would be better to transfer the quantum information to atoms. This, in turn, requires an interface between the photons and atoms that could be easily applied to glass fiber networks Contact and sources: Univ.-Prof. Dr. Arno Rauschenbeutel Quantum – quantum, atomic and neutron physics, Johannes Gutenberg University D 55099 Mainz Tel +49 6131 39-20203 E. Vetsch, D. Reitz, G. Sagu, R. Schmidt, ST Dawkins, and A. Rauschenbeutel Optical interface created by laser-cooled atoms trapped in the evanescent field surrounding an optical nanofiber Physical Review Letters , 21 April 2010, DOI: 10.1103 / PhysRevLett.104.203603 More Powerful Flexible GaAs Solar Cells Developed by National Chiao Tung University Researchers Timeline of Events in BP Oil Spill: Day by Day, April 20 to June 4 Method Of Making And Assembling Encapsulated Carbon Nanotube Nanostructures Disclosed by MIT Researchers Red Planet Mysteries Solved Method For Finding Sunken Oil Masses on the Bottom of Bays Following Oil Spill for Recovery Applications Developed by Miami Scientists ©2019 Inspiration Bathroom Modern \| Powered by WordPress & Superb Themes	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6615
__label__cc	0.701889	0.298111	Northern NM Health Grants Group For Grant Seekers CAHF Grantees NNMHGG Grantees Grantee Resources Beyond Grantmaking Aging in New Mexico Health Equity in New Mexico Healthy People, Healthy Places Nursing Diversity Partnership (NMNDP) New Mexico Heroes of Health Con Alma Health Foundation in the News Press Releases and Announcements Con Alma Health Foundation Receives National Grant to Monitor Health Care Reform 03/02/2015 Con Alma Health Foundation is proud to announce that it will help monitor the implementation of federal health care reform as part of a $200,000 grant from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation. The goal of the grant-funded project is to ensure that people in low-income communities and communities of color have health equity, which is an equal chance at living healthy lives, as intended in the Affordable Care Act. “We are pleased to partner with the Kellogg Foundation on this effort to inform and support New Mexico in how it can best implement the Affordable Care Act to address racial and ethnic disparities, increase health-care coverage and access and improve the quality of health care,” said Dolores E. Roybal, executive director of Con Alma. Specifically the two-year grant will allow Con Alma to: Identify organizations tracking Affordable Care Act implementation and determine how Con Alma can support and add to this monitoring Research and gather information about the challenges and needs of implementing specific provisions of the ACA focusing on health equity and develop strategies to address those needs Research and gather information on related health-equity issues, such as the African American Infant Mortality Program Examine policy implications and opportunities to strengthen the safety net for those who experience such barriers as financial, cultural or geographic that prevent them from fully benefiting from the opportunities provided through ACA and other health resources Bring together organizations and stakeholders around these issues Develop a report on health equity and the ACA in New Mexico, outlining successes, challenges and recommendations for improvement The Affordable Care Act includes provisions that focus on improving quality of care for racial and ethnic minorities. In New Mexico about 70 percent of children are of color, and almost a third of children live in poverty. Health Care Reform Press Releases and Announcements The Heart of the Matter Health Care Reform Heart of the MatterView All » Small and Mighty Rural New Mexico Con Alma Health Foundation is proud to share this field study of rural Northern New Mexico. The Rural Philanthropic Analysis Project at Campbell University in … Content Index Con Alma Health Foundation • 144 Park Avenue Santa Fe, NM 87501 • Phone: (505) 438-0776 • Fax: (505) 438-6223 • protected email Copyright © 2012 Con Alma Health Foundation Inc. All Rights Reserved. Site by Xynergy, Inc.	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6616
__label__cc	0.660373	0.339627	Mike McNamara: Technology Transformation on Tap at NRF’s Big Show Target Chief Information and Digital Officer Mike McNamara spoke this week at the National Retail Federation (NRF)’s annual Big Show in New York. In his keynote, Mike described how Target’s technology team is leading the way on transformation. Read on to hear from Mike about the change he’s leading, and some of the exciting technologies he saw at the Big Show. I’ve been attending the annual NRF show long enough to remember when there were as many vendors showing off the latest in shelves and fixtures on the expo floor as there were vendors selling technology. Today, NRF is a full-on technology show that attracts all the tech giants and a slew of startups. It’s a great show for engineers, like me, with a passion for retail and for dreaming up how new technologies can change the way consumers shop—and the way merchants operate. So I was honored to get to share a bit about Target’s journey at this year’s Big Show. Here are highlights of what I shared: When I joined Target about 18 months ago, what I found was a technology team that was over-sized and over-committed—to the tune of 800 projects we had underway. We were overly rigid in how we operated, and we were far too reliant on third-party contractors. In fact, contractors accounted for about 70 percent of the team, while just 30 percent were team members. It was untenable. We had to change the way we worked. And I’m proud to say that Target’s technology team has done just that, and we’ve got tangible results to show for it. We’ve eliminated hundreds of project and flipped that team member-contractor ratio to 70-30. We’ve also enhanced Target’s technology—in terms of both stability and flexibility—and we can now remedy issues far faster than we could just two years ago. In many ways, our progress thus far and our continued success boils down to three things. First is ruthless prioritization. I employed Post-It Notes with my peers throughout the company to whittle that technology to-do list of 800 projects down to size. No PowerPoint decks. No spreadsheets. Make it fit on a few Post-It Notes. Because in technology, less is often more. We must focus on doing fewer things better. Second, we brought our engineering team in-house by hiring more than 700 new engineers and by drastically culling our contractor base. We need to have a great, in-house engineering team and culture, and that’s why we’re focused on hiring more women technologists. In fact, we’re working toward an ambitious goal of 50 percent female hires for entry-level engineering roles over the next year. Third is working in an agile way. What I’m perhaps most proud of is how our new way of working is taking root in other parts of Target, beyond technology teams. Agile sets us up for more innovation and for becoming a leader in how technology and data science can (and will) enhance the retail experience. We’ve got lots of work to do still, of course, but I’m excited about the progress we’ve made and what’s in store for Target’s future. This week’s NRF show was all about the future and transformative technologies. Some of the best stuff I saw ranged from technologies designed for online fulfillment centers to chatbots to virtual and augmented reality experiences—both for shoppers and retail employees. Some of my favorites included: I was impressed by a robotic arm designed for filling online orders that employs a suction system to grab items without damaging them. The brains of the robot employs machine-learning so that it will take a different approach to moving an item should it run into any issues. Another standout, also designed for a distribution center, was a virtual reality technology that’s built into eyeglasses to help a team member identify and pick product, with a virtual indicator notifying the team member where to place the product. There was buzz about chatbot technologies that essentially help power text messages that guests can use to conduct e-commerce, or simply use for help with basic store information such as hours and location. I also am among the chorus who strongly believes that voice-activated applications—think Google Home, Amazon Echo or Siri—are bound to see lots of commerce exploration over the next few years. There were some impressive novelties, including a machine that can knit a customized sweater in less than an hour, and also lots of technologies designed to harness data to enhance the store experience. I saw some really exciting new systems in this space that can help retailers deliver more relevant product recommendations to guests while they’re shopping and also make it easier for them to shop—and buy—from expanded online assortments. As I mentioned in my talk on Monday, neither Target nor these technology vendors can predict the future and which emerging trends will catch on. But it’s clear that we in technology are creating the future of retail. And I can’t wait to see how it turns out! How Our Faith Networks Help Create a More Inclusive Target These Product Designers Turn Small Details into Meaningful Moments for Target’s Guests Target’s Offering Team Members Exciting New Family Care Benefits on Top of our Industry-Leading Pay This Target Partnership Helped Us Find Team Members with Amazing Stories How My Mom and an A+ Teacher Helped Me Discover a Career in Tech	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6627
__label__cc	0.617146	0.382854	The wait is almost over—Netflix’s hit series “Stranger Things” drops its highly anticipated third season on July 4. Target guests of all ages are huge fans of the show, and thanks to our ongoing partnership with Netflix, we’re already their favorite destination for exclusive “Stranger Things” gear. But an epic moment like this calls for something big. To help guests celebrate the release, Target is taking them deep into the world of the show—Hawkins, Indiana, in the summer of 1985—with new exclusives and experiences across our stores and digital channels. Here’s what to look for: Throw it back to the ’80s with exclusives and collectibles Gear up with our broad assortment of “Stranger Things” products, including awesome ’80s-inspired toys and games, apparel, bedding, pool party products and more. That includes dozens of products guests won’t find anywhere else—like collector’s edition Blu-Ray + DVD Season 1 and Season 2 sets, new collectible figures from Funko and a special edition bike inspired by the one Max rides on the show. Take a look at a few of our favorites: Our teams worked closely with Netflix to create exclusive custom-branded packaging for products across our assortment. Check out these limited-time-only Baskin Robbins ice cream pints, including a U.S.S. Butterscotch flavor from the Scoops Ahoy Ice Cream Parlor in the Starcourt Mall. And of course, guests will find special-edition throwback products from many of their favorite national brands including Polaroid Originals and Schwinn. Coca-Cola even re-released its famous New Coke for the occasion. Rewind with these retro ads Keep your eyes peeled for a series of ads in our social media and digital channels. Each one harkens back to Target’s retro roots … and ends with an ominous plot twist. Watch them here, if you dare. Shop Target’s full assortment of “Stranger Things” products on Target.com, and don’t miss these rad ‘80s faves over at Target Finds. Can’t Wait for Taylor Swift’s New Album 'Lover'? Pre-Order The Four Exclusive Deluxe Versions, Only at Target	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6628
__label__wiki	0.924014	0.924014	Museum, Theatre, Interpretive Centre \| Visitor or Interpretive Centre Fernie C.P.R. Station \| Fernie, British Columbia Authentically preserved mountain-style railway station now a community centre for the arts and live entertainment. Built in 1908, the former C.P.R. station is the last survivor of a type designed specifically for the Crowsnest Route. Sometime after passenger service was ended in 1964, the station was donated to the City of Fernie and converted into a community arts and crafts centre. A well-intentioned renovation in 1986 kept the building intact but coloured the exterior a cheerful but historically inappropriate blue. This was partially remedied in 2008 when the original chocolate and cream paint scheme was reapplied. (It’s still not quite right, since some of the siding was incorrectly coated in the maroon of the mid-twentieth century.) The recent restoration also saw the station’s many windows replaced with technically modern but historically accurate substitutes. While the C.P.R. had a history of demolishing its stations as it abandoned passenger service, this time the railway, under more englightened management, contributed substantially to the cost. The station is once more the bustling hub of downtown Fernie. Live music and theatre enliven the former baggage room. The Blue Toque is a restaurant. The platform is now a deck where you may enjoy a snack and watch mile-long coal trains on their way from nearby mines to a shipping terminal near Vancouver. Latitude: 49.5037538 Longitude: -115.0598252 Elevation: 3317 ft Old Dairy Ice Cream Shoppe \| Crowsnest Pass, Alberta Arlee Pow wow and Fourth of July Celebration \| Arlee, Montana Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump, World Heritage Site \| Fort Macleod, Alberta Station restaurant is open daily for breakfast and lunch. Open Seasons and Months Year-round. Driving Directions from Nearest Town or Landmark. Downtown Fernie, 6th Street, by the railway tracks. The Arts Station Fernie, BC V0B 1M0 CA info@theartsstation.com Local Point of Interest: Unique Shopping Polar Peek Books \| Fernie, British Columbia The Guide's Hut \| Fernie, British Columbia Museum, Theatre, Interpretive Centre: Museum Fernie Museum \| Fernie, British Columbia	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6635
__label__cc	0.713954	0.286046	Never Say Nevermore… Again! Well, the last Kickstarter crowdsourcing campaign did not get funded. But the creative genius behind these cryptid figures, R. Todd Broadwater, has started a new Kickstarter crowdsourcing campaign that is very doable and will bring these ultra cool cryptid action figures to market by Halloween! By pledging as little as $80, you can get a complete set of all four figures: Momo, Mothman, El Chupacabras and the Jersey Devil! I featured these action figures in a post here on Cryptomundo back in 2006, when I was sure they would never happen. This is the original brochure that was made for these figures in 2000. One of these original brochures, signed by the designer R. Todd Broadwater, will be awarded to the Cryptomundian who pledges the largest amount during this Kickstarter campaign. Come back here and record your pledge, the highest of which will win this original signed brochure. Cryptomundians who pledge at least $100 will receive a copy of the newly produced brochure, shown below, also signed by R. Todd Broadwater. C’mon Cryptomundians, let’s make this happen! I’m in for $255, how about you? About Craig Woolheater Co-founder of Cryptomundo in 2005. I have appeared in or contributed to the following TV programs, documentaries and films: OLN's Mysterious Encounters: "Caddo Critter", Southern Fried Bigfoot, Travel Channel's Weird Travels: "Bigfoot", History Channel's MonsterQuest: "Swamp Stalker", The Wild Man of the Navidad, Destination America's Monsters and Mysteries in America: Texas Terror - Lake Worth Monster, Animal Planet's Finding Bigfoot: Return to Boggy Creek and Beast of the Bayou. Email • Facebook • Twitter • Pinterest • Instagram • This entry was posted on Thursday, February 14th, 2013 at 5:20 pm and is filed under Bigfoot, Bigfoot Report, Chupacabras, Crowdsourcing, CryptoConsumerism, Cryptozoologists, Cryptozoology, Jersey Devil, Momo, Mothman, Pop Culture, Replica Cryptia, Sasquatch, Swamp Monsters, Videos. You can follow responses via our RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is not allowed. In Search of Monsters Momo Is Here! New Book Coming Soon... Momo! Forthcoming Cryptozoology Books in 2019 The Devil's Creek 7 Responses to “Never Say Nevermore… Again!” Kjak75 responds: February 14th, 2013 at 6:08 pm I always thought these figures looked cool, when I saw them on Kickstarter I wanted to pledge but thought the goal was unachievable. Now that the project has had a relaunch, I had pledged my $120, so I will be getting a full set, and I hope some backer rewards are added if the funds reach or exceed their goal. cor2879 responds: February 18th, 2013 at 1:06 pm Is there a link to the actual kickstarter? I can’t seem to find it if so. Craig Woolheater responds: February 18th, 2013 at 2:13 pm cor2879, I apologize for not linking to the new Kickstarter campaign. I added the link to the post and here it is also. Thanks for bringing it to my attention! Redrose999 responds: February 21st, 2013 at 10:12 am OMG! Craig these are totally awesome! My guys would adore them! I adore them! They are gorgeous! BronzeSteel responds: February 23rd, 2013 at 8:18 am The Action Figures are really awesome. I can’t justify eighty dollars for four action figures, my sons would pester me without end once they saw these ‘toys’ and I did not let them play with them. If the product at a later time is reduced in price, count me in. Jason P. responds: February 27th, 2013 at 11:01 am His goal is still too high. He won’t reach it. I don’t understand why he isn’t using IndieGogo, so he could at least collect whatever money was pledged, even if he didn’t hit his goal. The simple fact of the matter is that these are figures for a niche market. apesculptor responds: March 1st, 2013 at 10:50 am Very nice figures!	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6636
__label__cc	0.651871	0.348129	Catapult Programme Cell and Gene Therapy Catapult Compound Semiconductor Applications Connected Places High Value Manufacturing Medicines Discovery Offshore Renewable Energy Catapult model Working with researchers Working with companies Preclinical database Clinical trials database Manufacturing surveys 12th Floor Tower Wing, Guy’s Hospital, Great Maze Pond, London SE1 9RT Our advisory panel Regulatory news - April 2019 Keep up to date with regulatory news from around the world with the Cell and Gene Therapy Catapult regulatory newsletter. European Commission (EC) Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) Food and Drug Administration (FDA) International Conference for Harmonisation (ICH) Commission Outlines How EU Data Protection Rules Affect Clinical Trial Sponsors The EC has published a document detailing the interplay between clinical trial rules and the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). The document sets out the data protection requirements of the incoming Clinical Trials Regulation (CTR) and how they interact with GDPR. The CTR places stronger requirements on sponsors to record, process, store and handle data in ways that enable accurate reporting and interpretation, without threatening the confidentiality of the records. However, the data are also subject to requirements of GDPR and the Commission thinks the onus is on sponsors to ensure data are processed in accordance with data protection rules. How CTR and GDPR apply depends on whether data is being processed purely for research or if the activity has a health protection objective. The question and answer document created by the Commission sets out the regulations that apply in each situation and their implication for sponsors. To read the full Q&A document, see here. Two Additional Countries to Benefit from the EU-US Mutual Recognition Agreement for Inspections The FDA has confirmed the capability of two additional EU Member States to carry out good manufacturing practice (GMP) inspections at a level equivalent to the US. Bulgaria and Cyprus were included into the mutual recognition agreement between the EU and US on the 29th April 2019. This means that these Member States inspection results can replace the FDA’s own inspections. For further information, see here. EMA Grants PRIME Designation for Dystrophic Epidermolysis Bullosa (DEB) Gene Therapy The EMA have granted Krystal Biotech PRIME designation for KB103, a first-in-class topical gene therapy for the treatment of the rare genetic skin disease dystrophic epidermolysis bullosa (DEB). KB103 is a gene therapy to treat DEB, which is caused by a mutation in the COL7A1 gene responsible for the formation of collagen type C7 protein that anchors fibrils that bind the inner and outer skin layers together resulting in fragile skin. KB103 is a replication defective, non-integrating viral vector HSV-1 that has been engineered to deliver functional human COL7A1 genes directly to a patient’s dividing and non-dividing skin cells. The EMA awarded PRIME designation for KB103 based on the clinical data to date from an ongoing phase I/II study coupled with non-clinical data. To read the full article, see here. MHRA Offers Additional No-Deal Brexit Guidance The MHRA has released updated information for biopharma companies related to substantial amendments to a clinical trial, updated guidance on applying to release a vaccine or blood product and an updated webinar on making submissions via MHRA Submissions. The guidance on clinical trials makes clear that in the event of a no-deal Brexit, the UK would require the sponsor or legal representative of a clinical trial to be in the UK or a country on an approved country list, which would initially include EU/European Economic Area (EEA) countries. The MHRA have added that if the trial sponsor is from the rest of the world and the legal representative is established in the UK and there are sites elsewhere in the EU/EEA, the sponsor will need to assign an EU/EEA legal representative for these sites. Sponsors will be required to submit a substantial amendment to the MHRA to add or replace any investigational medicinal product (IMP) manufacturing, importation or certification site relevant for the supply of IMP in an ongoing UK trial. “If the sponsor chooses to retain an existing UK IMP release site for the ongoing UK trial but includes an additional EU/EEA site for trials in the EU/EEA only, then no substantial amendment to the MHRA will be required,” MHRA says. For further information, the MHRA guidance is available here. Regarding the guidance on releasing blood products or vaccines to the market, the MHRA has added a section with guidance for the Official Control Authority Batch Release (OCABR) Release and Marketing Information Form processes in the event the UK leaves the EU without a deal. See here for the MHRA guidance. There is also new content added to the MHRA Submissions webinar. To read the full article, see here (MHRA’s guidance here). MHRA Offers No-Deal Guidance On Pharmaceutical Product Certificates The Certificate of Pharmaceutical Product (CPP) is a certificate issued in the format recommended by the World Health Organisation, which establishes the status of the pharmaceutical product and of the applicant for this certificate in the exporting country. The MHRA has published additional guidance covering the process for applying for a CPP in case the UK leaves the EU without a deal. Clarification is included on the CPP request service the MHRA provide and the process for issuing a CPP for a grandfathered centrally authorised product (CAP). A grandfathered CAP is a CAP marketing authorisation (MA) which is automatically converted to a UK MA. This guidance is part of a series of 41 MHRA guidances and publications on a possible no-deal scenario that have been in development since January. For further information, see here (MHRA’s guidance is here). FDA Propose Removing Specific Methods for Mycoplasma Testing in the Regulation to Allow for Alternative Methods to be used The FDA have proposed to remove specific methods to detect the presence of Mycoplasma in virus harvest pools and control fluid pools of live and inactivated virus vaccines produced from in vitro living cell cultures, as currently required by 21 CFR 610.30. The proposal is part of the FDA’s implementation of the Trump Administration’s “two out, one in” executive order to reduce regulatory burden and provide additional flexibility, and FDA noted the action is needed since “it has become increasingly clear that the test for Mycoplasma requirements is too restrictive… because they specify particular methodologies when alternatives may be available that provide the same or greater level of assurance of safety”. However, removing this regulation would not remove the requirements for Mycoplasma testing in biologic licence applications (BLA). “A manufacturer of a live virus vaccine produced from in vitro living cell cultures and inactivated virus vaccines produced from such living cell cultures would continue to be required to follow the Mycoplasma test requirements specified in its BLA, unless the BLA were revised to modify or replace the test through a supplement,” the proposal says. For more information, see here (the FDA article is here). FDA to Step Up Stem Cell Enforcement and Look Into Pathway for Low-Risk Treatments The FDA warns that the agency will step up its enforcement efforts against companies illegally marketing stem cell therapies. The agency are looking into new ways to “delineate an efficient development path” for low-risk stem cell therapies being developed by firms that have filed investigational new drug applications. For more information, see here (the full article is here). When a REMS is Necessary: FDA Finalises Guidance The FDA finalised guidance from 2016 detailing the factors that the agency uses to determine whether a risk evaluation and mitigation strategy (REMS) is necessary for a drug. REMS is a required risk management plan that can include one or more elements to ensure that the benefits of a drug outweigh its risks. The use of REMS is decided upon on a case-by-case basis and the finalised guidance explains the requirement to consider the following six factors in deciding whether a REMS is required: The seriousness of any known or potential adverse event that may be related to the drug and the background incidence of such events in the population likely to use the drug; The expected benefit of the drug with respect to the disease or condition; The seriousness of the disease or condition that is to be treated with the drug; Whether the drug is a new molecular entity; The expected or actual duration of treatment with the drug; The estimated size of the population likely to use the drug. All six factors are considered together to inform the FDA’s REMS decision making process and no single factor is determinative as to whether a REMS is necessary. The relative importance or weight of each factor is a case specific inquiry according to the guidance. For further information, see here (the FDA guidance is here). International Conference on Harmonisation (ICH) ICH Updates: What’s Coming in 2019 and Beyond The FDA and Health Canada held a joint regional consultation on ICH guidelines that have reached Step 3 of the ICH process to highlight what to expect from the ICH over the coming year. The following guidelines were key topics of discussion: E8(R1) Revision of General Considerations for Cinical Trials This revision of the E8 guideline includes the adoption of quality-by-design framework for clinical studies and expansion of the scope to include a broader range of study designs and data sources. The aim is to ensure the guideline is pertinent to today’s world reflecting the variety of clinical trial designs and ability to use more real-world data sources. The guideline is expected to reach Step 2b in early May 2019 and be issued for public consultation. E19 Optimisation of Safety Data Collection (Guideline in development) A new guideline is proposed to provide harmonised guidance on when it would be appropriate to use a targeted approach for safety data collection in some late stage pre-marketing or post-marketing studies, and how this approach would be implemented. Selective safety data collection might be able to occur in some subsets of patients in a trial, or when a drug is already approved by one regulator. However it is emphasised that such a selective approach must be discussed early on with regulators. The guideline is currently at Step 3 with EU setting comments due by 29th September 2019. S11 Nonclinical Safety Testing in Support of Development of Paediatric Medicines S11 deals with the nonclinical safety testing in support of paediatric medicines and industry groups recently called for changes to be made to reduce the need for juvenile animal studies. The guidance is at Step 3 and public comments will be discussed at the ICH meeting in June 2019. M10 Bioanalytical Method Validation This guidance provides recommendations for the validation of bioanalytical assays for chemical and biological drug quantification and their application in the analysis of study samples for both non-clinical and clinical studies. The document will be discussed at the ICH meeting in November 2019 to bring it into Step 3.To read the full article, see here. The full agenda of the meeting is available here. Consultation Period Guideline on quality, non-clinical and clinical aspects of medicinal products containing genetically modified cells Draft guidance EMA Regulatory Science to 2025 – Strategic reflection 19 Dec 2018 to 30 Jun 2019 Guideline on quality, non-clinical and clinical requirements for investigational advanced therapy medicinal products in clinical trials 21 Feb to 01 Aug 2019 A Risk-Based Approach to Monitoring of Clinical Investigations Questions and Answers 15 Mar to 14 May 2019 Draft questions and answers Optimisation of Safety Data Collection Regulatory news - June 2019 Regulatory news - May 2019 Regulatory news - February 2019 RT @Phacilitate: Today @CGTCatapult have published their Annual Review 2019. Take a look online at the impact of their work over the… https://t.co/geNY28iM8m — 13 hours 1 min ago Follow @CGTCatapult Catapult Cell and Gene Therapy We work with innovate UK	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6638
__label__wiki	0.778628	0.778628	UAE To Invest AED 85… BEST Bus At Just ₹5… UAE To Invest AED 85 Billion In Airport Upgrades Dubai International Airport Facebook Dubai retains its rank as the third busiest airport in the world welcoming 88.2 million passengers in 2017 and it’s all set to grow. A new announcement has revealed that the UAE is investing AED 85 billion in various Airport Development and Expansion Projects that will have a combined capacity to handle more than 300 million passengers a year. The airport projects include AED 30 billion in developing Al Maktoum International Airport, AED 28 billion expansion of phase four of Dubai International Airport and AED 25 billion for the development and expansion of Abu Dhabi International Airport while Sharjah International Airport is undergoing an AED 1.5 billion investment in the expansion of its terminal. Also Read: 5 Places In Dubai Where You Can Eat Edible Gold Currently, the UAE has 14 airports, airstrips and airfields served by 113 airlines with total annual take-offs and landings exceeding 540,000. In addition to these, the four UAE airlines, Emirates Airline, Etihad, FlyDubai and Air Arabia are also investing billions of dollars in acquiring the latest aircraft models that will help the UAE economy to grow and increase combine fleet size to more than 525 in 2018. Also Read: Dubai Gold Souk To Get A Glittery Face Lift Statement by GCAA Saif Mohammed Al Suwaidi, director-general of the UAE General Civil Aviation Authority, said UAE airlines and airports have been ranking consistently as among the best internationally. In fact, conservatively, we anticipate accommodating 118 million passengers by 2023 at Dubai International Airport, and 120 million passengers upon completion of phase two of Dubai World Central, and 200 million passengers upon its completion, all in ultra-modern infrastructure that match, if not surpass, the best in the world. Also Read: Dubai Gets A New House Party Bar You can subscribe to our newsletters Jui Nikita Fly With Emirates & Stay For Cheaper In Dubai This Summer 5 Eid Getaways Under Six Hours From The UAE Dubai Visa for Indians, Indian Passport: Types, Application Fee, Form, Requirements And Visa On Arrival Rove Hotels Opens New Branch At Dubai Parks And Resorts	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6639
__label__cc	0.724786	0.275214	Fic: Sleeping with the Enemy (Gilmore Girls, Jess/Dean) (10/?) A/N: Am gone for the weekend to a place with no internet access (yes there are places like that still out there!) but I wanted to post this one before I left. Sorry for the mistakes, not enough time to proofread. There is no SPN or Vampire Diaries this week right? Good weekend to go away I say heh. Previous Chapters: One \| Two \| Three \| Four \| Five \| Six \| Seven \| Eight \| Nine Jess couldn’t believe what he’d gotten himself into. Here he was, in the middle of the night, halfway up the tree that flanked the Forester house, sweating profusely from running all the way from Luke’s and now climbing this tree that was damn near impossible to climb. “You can do it, Mariano. Come on…” he hissed to himself, and hauled his weight up another branch until he was almost three-fourths of the way there. Please let that be Dean’s window, Lord, and not his mom’s. Or his sister’s. Someone up there heard him, because when he finally made it up to the window ledge, he sighed with absolute relief. It was a guy’s bedroom alright, and right next to the window stood a low bed with a tall figure stretched out diagonally across it. Dean lay face down, his shoes and tattered soil-ridden jeans still on, like he’d walked in from work and just dropped like the dead. Jess sighed, and once again prayed for cosmic assistance as he tried the latch. Once again luck favored him (Jess was a believer now and forever from this night on) and the window slid open soundlessly. He crept in, knocking a decorative lamp or something to the carpeted floor and the soft thud almost gave him a heart attack. He waited for footsteps running up the stairs, or women screaming, anything. Jess exhaled in relief, then quietly closed the window behind him. He crouched up beside the bed, next to Dean’s face that lay turned his way. “Dean…” he whispered, so low he could barely hear himself. But he loved saying it nonetheless, his beloved’s given name, loved the thoughts of adoration it conjured in his mind, how it rolled off his tongue so sexily. How could Rory have let go of something so precious? Jess shook his head, feeling sorry for the girl and thanking his own stars over and over again. Quietly, he also thanked his partner, Dillon, for convincing him to spend a part of his break with his uncle Luke in Stars Hollow. Of course the fact that he ended up spending all of it here and even took additional time off was all thanks to this amazing man sleeping before him. Dean’s mouth was slightly open, again, one hand curled up right under his chin as if he were holding a microphone in his dreams. His hair was all over the place, as usual, and Jess couldn’t resist reaching out to stroke it softly. Gently he pushed a few stray locks behind Dean’s ears, so they wouldn’t block his view of the chiseled face anymore. And God those lips! How he possibly be expected to just watch from a distance, when he could reach out and actually touch them, the impossible softness of them? Would it really be so hard to believe if he couldn’t stop himself from kissing them? Dean woke up then, at the first feeling of pressure against his lips. He stirred and Jess pulled back ever so slightly, not all the way though. Part of him felt guilty for disturbing Dean's much needed sleep, but Jess just missed him so much. Dean hadn't shown up at the diner for two nights straight. Dean’s eyes slid open at last and a second later, he jumped. “Wh-Wha…? Where…?” “Shhh,” Jess put a hand on Dean’s cheek, his thumb coming to rest on top of his reddened lips. “You’re in your own bed. You didn’t sleepwalk, relax. I came to you.” Dean frowned. “H-How?” Jess grinned. “Perfectly planted tree right next to your window, that’s how.” Dean just gawked at him in silence for another few seconds. And then together, as if in perfect synchrony, they both started sniggering. Dean shushed him hurriedly, just in case his family woke up. “The door!” He hissed, and started to get up. Jess pushed him down. “I’ll get it.” Quickly he padded over to the bedroom door that was only slightly ajar and clicked it shut. Then he turned to find Dean sitting up in bed, watching him carefully. The room was mostly dark with a dim yellow night light still on by the other side of the bed, enough to allow Jess to see Dean’s face. His eyes were no longer heavy with sleep but were instead bright with excitement, and hope and… a little something else. Jess practically ran back to the bed, straddling the taller boy’s torso without asking for permission and capturing Dean’s lips with his own. Dean put his arms around Jess, wrapping him up and holding him close as he surrendered to the invasion of his mouth happily. Jess leaned down with his entire body weight until Dean understood and lay back down on the bed with the shorter boy still on top of him. And still they continued to suck at each other‘s tongue like it was the last time they‘d ever be together. The thick denim of two pairs of jeans wasn’t enough to keep their arousals hidden from each other. Soon Dean started to thrust upwards with just as much force as Jess who was grinding down. Their erections slid against each other in perfect alignment, the two bodies moving together in musical harmony, back and forth, up then down, urging each other deeper and deeper into a pleasure-ridden state of masculine bliss. Jess had never felt this raging lust for anyone else ever before. It overwhelmed his senses, captivated his body, mind, heart and soul, until every thought and every sensory perception that did not somehow revolve around Dean, ceased to exist. Part of him, a very tiny, miniscule one, wondered if this… rabid, out-of-control obsession with another person qualified him to be clinically insane. The rest of him couldn’t care less even if it did. It took superhuman strength to wrench himself away from the kiss (and the humping) but he had to, or he was sure he’d die. “Dean, let me in…” Dean paused. “What?” Jess looked into his eyes, licking his lips every now and then. “I wanna be inside you, Dean, I wanna die inside you. Please…” He bent lower to lick at the long column of Dean’s gulping throat, until he reached the crook of his neck, where he closed his teeth around it and bit down, hard. “S-Stop” “Jesse, no…” Dean whimpered softly as Jess continued to leave his mark on the boy’s neck, reaching down with a hand to fondle his generous package. “Jess… stop!!!” Dean suddenly hissed sharply, making Jess pull away and frown, only for Dean to shove him hard until he fell off the bed and to the floor with a loud thud. “Owww!!!” but he still had the sense of keep his voice down even though Dean seemed to have no such compunction left. “What the hell, Forester???” Dean sat up in his bed. “I told you not to treat me like a fucking girl, Mariano!” “Wha-? I didn’t…” “I wanna die inside you?!?!?! What the fuck kinda crazy chick-feed line is that? And then you tried to give me a fucking hickey?!?!” “Okay so the line’s a little corny. But what the fuck’s wrong with a hickey?? Everyone gives everyone hickeys! Hell you gave me a hickey!!” “No I didn’t!” “Yes you did.” “Did not.” Jess threw his hands up in the air, in no mood to do this with Dean again. “Dude, seriously?” Dean folded his arms and his legs, pushing them underneath himself. “Well I don’t want a hickey, you idiot! What if someone saw it? What if they found out about us?!?!” Jess huffed and got back up on the bed, sitting on the far edge seeing how Dean had crawled up to the other end as far away from Jess as possible. “Okay, I’m confused. What are you upset about, exactly, Dean? One thing at a time, please?” “Dean?” “I don’t know, okay! Just, I think you should go.” “Go???” Jess panicked. “No, no, no… not until you tell me what’s going on in your head. Come on, Deano, talk to me.” “Don’t call me Deano.” “Whatever. Forester.” Dean glared harder. Jess sighed, putting a hand up in placation, wondering why they always ended up arguing so much, even in what was supposed to be a romantic setting. “Sorry. Dean.” Dean pulled a pillow to his chest and hugged it hard. He seemed breathless but he continued to glare at Jess almost petulantly, and Jess, wheezing a little himself, continued to keep his distance. “What… what did I do wrong?” “Dean, talk to me, man.” “I told you, not a girl,” he whispered quietly. Jess laughed. “I know that, idiot. It’s part of why I like you so much.” “You’re a virgin, right?” “Noooo..” Jess rolled his eyes. “You know what I mean.” Dean didn’t respond. Jess bit back a smile. “Okay, so let me tell you something you already know, genius. Gay sex goes both ways. We can do whatever you want, however you want it. You can be inside me too, you know. I like it both ways. God knows I want to do you more than anything I’ve ever wanted all my life, but I would never force you if you’re not ready. I can wait.” “Wh-what if I’m never ready?” Jess shrugged. “Let’s put it this way. Seven years ago was the first time I kissed a boy and I swore to myself then I’d never do it again.” “I was a kid, give me a break.” Jess leaned back and relaxed. “Ten months ago, I was sitting in a Starbucks in Stamford, and I found myself staring at this guy across the room… at his mouth. I-I just, couldn’t stop staring.” “Took me awhile to let go of my… my fears, I guess, but once I did, it just opened a whole new world of possibilities. I didn’t think I’d start liking guys more than I like girls but I changed. My point is, things change over time, Dean. And… even if they don’t, with you, it doesn’t change the way I feel about you right now.” Dean looked into Jess’ eyes, as if trying to decide if he believed Jess or not. When he still wouldn’t say anything, Jess forged on. “You know we don’t have to start with the big stuff. We could always do other things, and that way also find out if you’re likely to, you know, like it.” “Trust me?” Jess mock-scowled at which Dean chuckled, his petrified expression softening ever so slightly. He shrugged. “Okay, wh-what did you have in mind?” That had to be good enough. Jess climbed up further on the bed. “Lie down for me.” Dean narrowed his eyes at him suspiciously. “Please? Just trust me, okay? If you don’t like it, I will stop. I promise.” “You stop when I say stop. I shouldn’t have to repeat myself.” Jess put on his best, most sincerest face. “Cross my heart and hope to die.” Dean still pouted but put the pillow down. Jess moved closer. “Okay, come on here.” He tugged at Dean and made him stretch out on the bed face up. He could feel Dean’s body shake a little and he stroked his flanks lovingly, trying to reassure him. “It’s okay. Close your eyes.” “It’ll feel better, I promise.” Dean closed his eyes reluctantly. Jess had a feeling Dean wasn’t a complete novice and he definitely knew what was about to come, which made it slightly easier for him to proceed. “I’m going to take off your pants.” Dean trembled, and Jess shushed him quietly. He took his time with it. There was something so surreal, so incredibly hot about stripping those ugly, shapeless work clothes that hid Dean’s magnificent body. He drew it out for as long as he could, caressing Dean all the way down his flanks, over his jeans and once they were off, over his boxers. Dean bunched up the bed sheet in his fists by his sides, and he bit his lip to keep from making any sounds he’d be embarrassed about later. “Boxers now,” he waited for Dean to bolt, who didn’t. Encouraged, Jess put his fingers inside the waistband and gently peeled the fabric down. Dean trembled some more, but at Jess’ insistence, managed to arch his hips up long enough for Jess to be able to push the boxers down. Jess took both his pants and boxers off and dropped them to the floor, then spread Dean’s legs to make space for himself where he sat back on his haunches. Of course Dean had no way to know, but spread out, open and vulnerable like he was right now, Jess thought he’d never looked so incredible, so... ethereal. The shaft was already at half-mast (which made Jess smile), beautifully long and slender, a healthy pink far as he could guess in the dull glow of the lamp. It was lightly framed by a small bush of downy hair above it. The balls lay heavy and hairless, the skin soft like velvet to the touch and made Dean shiver visibly when Jess casually stroked it. “So beautiful,” he whispered with reverence, watching Dean’s clothed chest rise and fall shortly. Between the V of his spread legs lay the secret temptation that called to Jess like water to a man stranded in a desert dying of thirst. It took all of his determination and mental strength to not plunge in right there and then. “You’re perfect, Dean. So absolutely God-like perfect…” Dean moaned softly, but kept his eyes shut tight. Jess pulled a tube of lubricant out of his jacket pocket (Nothing wrong with always being prepared, is there?) and squirted some out on two fingers of his right hand. “Here we go,” Jess murmured softly. “You have to relax for me, okay?” He waited for an answer, and didn’t start until Dean had curtly nodded. Dean gasped at the feeling of the first finger, dipped in the cold slick, prodding at his entrance. In his shock he spread his legs further open even as his internal muscles clamped up. “Shh, relax baby, it’s just me…” Jess quietly celebrated the fact that Dean was too distracted to protest the almost reflexive little endearment. He was patient and persistent, waiting for Dean to calm down before pushing in again. After a few more stops and starts, Jess’ second knuckle was in. When he started to wriggle inside, Dean gasped louder. “Ahh! Oh God…” Dean spoke in minced words, as if to hold back other sounds he didn‘t want to make. “Like… like… I don’t know. Full, I guess.” “Wait till we get to the good part.” And Jess started to push his second finger in. Dean twisted his face to one side and stuffed a fist into his mouth. Jess smirked and with his free hand grabbed Dean’s already rapidly rising erection by the base. Dean moaned deep in his throat. “Shhh, keep it down, or your mom will come checking on you.” Dean whimpered miserably at that and tried to gag himself, which only made Jess laugh. By this time both his fingers were all the way in, deliberately curling upwards. He started to twist around to find the sweet spot that could make Dean scream the roof of his house down. And when he found it, Dean nearly did. Dean pulled his pillow from under his head and put it over his face instead, hiding the bright hot blush rising to his cheeks along with muffling his moans with it. Jess chuckled and continued to tickle and scratch at the little nubbin of pleasure inside Dean, making him writhe harder against him. He also kept fisting the shaft until it started to leak precum, and then he continued until at last Dean let go, releasing his pleasure right into Jess Mariano’s waiting hands. His own erection strained against the restraint of his jeans and Jess moaned, but he decided to wait. This was Dean’s night. He needed to make sure Dean was taken care of first. “With me, dude?” He asked a minute later, when Dean’s chest wasn’t heaving as hard anymore and his moans had petered away and his erection now lay completely satiated, still cradled gently in Jess’ left hand. Dean eventually emerged from behind his pillow, suddenly conscious of his nakedness and lifted his legs to get around Jess and push them back together again, forcing Jess to shift to one side on the bed. Getting with the program, Jess pulled up the blankets and without waiting to be asked, he covered Dean up till his waist with them. Dean quickly grabbed hold of the fabric, wringing his fingers into the frayed edge like he did few days ago at the diner. He looked up into Jess‘ face then, with eyes hesitant and blown wide open, still breathing hard and audibly so. “Guess its safe to assume you’re gonna like it then, huh?” Dean bit his lip, looking away until Jess held his face by the chin and made him meet his eyes. “Dean… talk to me, man.” “I…I, can we just.. not tonight?” Jess smiled. “Whatever you say.” And he bent lower, making his intent crystal clear. Dean understood and craned up slightly, indicating his consent. They kissed. Again and again and again, before curling up around one another and settling in for the night. Dean rested his chin on top of Jess’ head and Jess entwined his legs with Dean’s longer ones tightly. They stayed like that, quiet, resting, listening to the other‘s heart beating. “Um, Dean?” “Yeah, Jesse.” Obviously, Dean had chosen his own endearment for Jess, the sheer nonchalance of it making his spine quiver. “Think you’re up to… maybe returning the favor?” Dean pulled away, looked into Jess’ eyes and smirked. “Thought you’d never ask.” Tags: fic: gg: sleeping with the enemy, misc fic Thanks :) I'll update soon.	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6646
__label__wiki	0.98767	0.98767	Home BBC News World News of the Day India readies Mars probe for launch India readies Mars probe for launch by Sinh Vien 2015 November 04, 2013 Source BBC News@ tienganhvui.com 4 November 2013 Last updated at 17:42 ET The Mars Orbiter Mission will launch from Satish Dhawan Space Center in Sriharikota India is preparing to launch a robotic spacecraft towards the Red Planet - a first for the South Asian country. The head of India's space agency told the BBC the mission would demonstrate the technological capability to reach Mars orbit and carry out experiments. The Mars Orbiter Mission (MOM) will lift off at 0908 GMT on Tuesday atop an Indian-built rocket from Sriharikota. If launch goes well, the spacecraft is set to travel for 300 days and should reach Mars orbit in September 2014. Officials from the country's space agency began a 56-hour countdown to the launch on Sunday. Some observers are viewing the launch of the MOM, also known by the informal name of Mangalyaan (Mars-craft), as the latest salvo in a burgeoning space race between the Asian powers of India, China, Japan, South Korea and others. Please turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play. India's space ambition takes off Prof Andrew Coates, from the UK's Mullard Space Science Laboratory, told BBC News: "I think this mission really brings India to the table of international space exploration. Interplanetary exploration is certainly not trivial to do, and [India] has found some interesting scientific niches to make some measurements in." Those niche areas include searching for the signature of methane (CH4) in the Martian atmosphere, which has previously been detected from Martian orbit and telescopes on Earth. However, Nasa's Curiosity rover recently failed to find the gas in its measurements of atmospheric gases. CH4 has a short lifetime in the Martian atmosphere, meaning that some source on the Red Planet must replenish it. Intriguingly, some 95% of atmospheric methane on Earth is produced by microbes, which has led some to propose the possibility of a biosphere deep beneath the Martian surface. But the gas can be produced by geological processes too, most notably by volcanism. Definitive conclusions are likely to be elusive, but the spacecraft's Methane Sensor for Mars (MSM) instrument will aim to make measurements and map any potential sources of methane "plumes". The spacecraft will also examine the rate of loss of atmospheric gases to outer space. This could provide insights into the planet's history; billions of years ago, the envelope of gases around Mars is thought to have been more substantial. India approved the project in 2012, so mission scientists have worked around the clock to ready the craft in order to take advantage of a favourable alignment of the two planets that would allow the MOM to save on fuel during its journey to Mars. The orbiter will be lofted on an evolved version of the Indian-developed Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle, taking it into an elliptical orbit around Earth. It will then begin a series of six small engine burns to lift it to a higher orbit. A final burn will send the craft off on an interplanetary trajectory, to begin its 300-day, 780-million km journey to the Red Planet. In order for the MOM to embark on the right trajectory, the mission must launch by 19 November and carry out its final orbital burn by 30 November. The difficulty of visiting the Red Planet will not be lost on Indian officials; fewer than half the missions launched towards Mars have succeeded. But Prof Coates said that the planned mechanics for getting to Mars were on a sound footing, and that the probe stood a good chance as long as its engines fired correctly. Some commentators have wondered whether India should be spending £60m on a scientific mission when the country has one of the highest rankings for childhood malnutrition in the world. But those who defend such projects say the MOM is comparatively cheap and that the technological development required to mount this mission could indirectly benefit the country's other activities. Nisha Agrawal, chief executive of Oxfam in India, told the BBC: "India is home to poor people but it's also an emerging economy, it's a middle-income country, it's a member of the G20. What is hard for people to get their head around is that we are home to poverty but also a global power. "We are not really one country but two in one. And we need to do both things: contribute to global knowledge as well as take care of poor people at home." K Radhakrishnan, chair of the Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro), told the BBC's India Business Report: "Why India has to be in the space programme is a question that has been asked over the last 50 years. The answer then, now and in the future will be: 'It is for finding solutions to the problems of man and society.' He added: "A great revolution has taken place over these last 50 years in the country by a meagre expenditure that has been put into the space programme." Mr Radhakrishnan played down talk of a race between China and India in space, commenting: "We are not in a race with anybody, but I would say we are in a race with ourselves. We need to excel, we need to improve, and we need to bring new services." But a successful launch would allow India to surge ahead of regional rival China, at least in the exploration of Mars. China's Yinghuo-1 spacecraft was to have reached Martian orbit in late 2012. But it was piggybacked on the Russian Phobos Grunt spacecraft, which became stranded in low-Earth orbit shortly after launch in November 2011. The MOM was to have been launched as early as 28 October, but rough weather in the Pacific forced officials to delay the launch. India readies Mars probe for launch Reviewed by Sinh Vien 2015 on November 04, 2013 Rating: 5 Tags : BBC News World News of the Day World News of the Day Frank Dane Mary Chase Walt Kelly Herman Wouk Joss Whedon, Zack Whedon, Maurissa Tancharoen, and... Nick Diamos Amanda Cross Norman Brenner Ernest Rutherford M. C. Escher England 34-6 France England 22-30 New Zealand George Gallup Tendulkar retires with India victory Dame Rose Macaulay Malcolm Forbes Armstrong vows '100% transparency' McCoy claims 4,000th career victory Bieber charged over graffiti stunt Joan Klempner Immigrants 'make net contribution' Check price rises, water firms urged UN: Millions more Syrians need aid MPs recall police in 'plebgate' row Prostate cancer test 'may save ops' Morsi trial starts in tense Egypt Aircraft carrier costs 'to double' Henry Allen Man questioned over crash deaths Not reporting abuse 'must be crime'	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6647
__label__cc	0.561001	0.438999	California’s new consumer privacy law has its limits On the surface, it will force tech leaders like Facebook and Google to be more transparent. But despite the hype, many questions remain as to whether it will actually protect consumer privacy. For example, while the new privacy law allows consumers to opt out of the sale of personal information, many companies maintain they do not sell users’ personal information. Even if they sell information, the law provides them with nine exemptions to avoid complying with a consumer’s request to delete their personal information. Also, nothing in the law prohibits businesses from offering tiered pricing for different levels of goods or services, suggesting they could offer higher pricing for greater privacy. Source: California’s new consumer privacy law has its limits \| The Sacramento Bee  July 6, 2018 Legislation law opinion regulation US House Lawmakers Target Autumn for Data Privacy Bill California Considers Amending New Privacy Law Why Is America So Far Behind Europe on Digital Privacy? The EU Cybersecurity Act Introduces Certifications and the New Cybersecurity Agency	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6649
__label__cc	0.660867	0.339133	You Don't Love This Man: A Novel by Dan DeWeese “You Don't Love This Man is an exquisite puzzle….Which is more gorgeous, more satisfying here, the story itself, or the language DeWeese uses to tell it?” —Mary Rechner, author of Nine Simple Patterns for Complicated Women Set in the Pacific Northwest, Dan Deweese’s debut novel delivers a witty, heartfelt, and keenly observed day-in-the-life of one father of the bride, casting luminous insight into marriage, fatherhood, and bank robbery. Readers of Benjamin Kunkel, Joshua Ferris, and Kevin Wilson, as well as fans of contemporary American masters like Philip Roth and Tobias Wolff, will be enthralled by Deweese’s evocative, literary exploration of an everyman protagonist’s quiet struggles and tender joys on one of the most monumental days in his life. Publisher: HarperCollinsReleased: Mar 1, 2011ISBN: 9780062036971Format: book Early to Death, Early to Rise iDrakula Bekka Black Song of Slaves in the Desert Alan Cheuse Arlington Park: A Novel Bill Clegg Bird in Hand: A Novel Christina Baker Kline The Beginner's Guide to Preserving Food at Home: Easy Techniques for the Freshest Flavors in Jams, Jellies, Pickles, Relishes, Salsas, Sauces, and Frozen and Dried Fruits and Vegetables Janet Chadwick Man in the Dark: A Novel Jane and the Raven King Recipes from the Root Cellar: 270 Fresh Ways to Enjoy Winter Vegetables Andrea Chesman A Disobedient Girl: A Novel Ru Freeman The Life You've Imagined: A Novel Kristina Riggle Rum 1000: The Ultimate Collection of Rum Cocktails, Recipes, Facts, and Resources Ray Foley Come and Find Me: A Novel of Suspense Hallie Ephron Nemesis: A Miss Marple Mystery 86'd: A Novel Dan Fante Fall On Your Knees Ann-Marie MacDonald Love, Lust & Faking It: The Naked Truth About Sex, Lies, and True Romance Bringing Adam Home: The Abduction That Changed America Les Standiford Black Is the New White The Confessions of Max Tivoli: A Novel Andrew Sean Greer Commuters: A Novel Emily Gray Tedrowe Tommy Cooper: Always Leave Them Laughing: The Definitive Biography of a Comedy Legend Star Trek: Myriad Universes #3: Shattered Light David R. 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It’s PAGES 348 \| GENRE Fiction REVI EW BY Leah Greenblatt @Leahbats LET US NOW PRAISE DIFFICULT books: the ones whose refusal to play by the conventional rules of form and storytelling confound and dazzle us, and maybe even aim to drive us a little bit 30 Books in 30 Days: Commonwealth In the 30 Books in 30 Days series leading up to the March 16 announcement of the 2016 National Book Critics Circle Award winners, NBCC board members review the 30 finalists. Today, NBCC board member Jane Ciabattari offers an appreciation of fiction f 30 Books in 30 Days Alexander McCall Smith: In Praise of W.H. Auden 10 Bookish Questions for the Great Nuruddin Farah You Don't Love This Man - Dan DeWeese I LOST MY DAUGHTER ONCE. She was three. It was after dark on Halloween, and we were standing on the sidewalk in front of a house down the street from our own. She wore yellow rain boots and a fuzzy brown puppy dog costume that zipped from her feet to beneath her chin—black spots dotted the costume’s body, and two black ears flopped atop the hood as she peered with undisguised suspicion at the cement walk that led to the door of this stranger’s home. When I told her to go ahead, the door was right there, she shook her head and put her mittened hand in mine. No, she said. You go with me. I told her she was big now, she could do it herself—did she remember what to say? She mumbled the phrase, and I gave her a little pat to move her up the walk, but she turned back and hugged my leg, wordlessly holding on. Miranda, I said, exasperated, I’ll be right here. You can do it. No, she said, clutching even more tightly. "No." A group of six or seven ghosts, animals, and witches roughly her age or a bit older shuffled up behind us, bunched together in the dark. A few carried flashlights with orange plastic pumpkins over the bulbs, spheres that wobbled through the damp night air. A woman in charge of the group—in the dark it was just the shape of a woman, really—looked down at Miranda as the other kids moved past. Did you want to go up, too? she asked. And as if the words of a single stranger were all it took to hypnotize her, Miranda moved obediently up the walk with the others, the woman following. I watched them make their way up three stairs and congregate on a small concrete porch beneath the glow of a weak light above the door. A middle-aged woman in orange sweatpants and a black sweatshirt opened the door and asked with great astonishment who all these little creatures were, and the kids eagerly extended their bags. The homeowner distributed candy, the kids sang their ragged chorus of thanks, and the woman in charge herded the group laterally across the front yard toward the next house. Once beyond the reach of the porch light, only the orange glow of the flashlights betrayed their location, and when they passed behind a thick laurel and some rhododendrons that bordered the yards, even those lights disappeared from view. My breath rose in a mist as I navigated the tilted and cracked sidewalk slabs toward the next house. It had rained earlier, and fallen leaves covered the concrete. They had formed a tapestry of rich browns and reds and golds during the day, but at night had become a slick material that slid easily beneath the pressure of a foot, so I chose my steps with care. I heard kids chattering nearby—whether it was the group I was following or just one of dozens of other groups nearby, I couldn’t tell—but when I reached the head of the walk to the next house, I saw the little group of creatures and their trailing chaperone scramble up the four wide wooden steps that led to the next porch. The woman caught one stumbling little ghost by the arm, raising it up the steps to where it could join its fellows, and a brave lion pressed the bell next to the red front door. An old man in slacks and a cardigan appeared, dispensed treats into the pails and bags, and after another chorus of thank-yous, the woman herded the group off the porch and brought them out to where I stood on the sidewalk. They seem to have the hang of this, I said, searching the group for my puppy. It’s the incentive, she said, laughing. I started to grab what I thought was a puppy, but realized it was a bear. Present also were the lion, a Darth Vader, a ladybug, witch, and ghost, and a gorilla. But no puppy. But she was right with us, the woman said. I walked toward the house and checked the porch, but it was empty. I crossed into the dark area between houses then, calling Miranda’s name, but all I heard was the woman telling the children in her group to wait, that everyone should stay together. The glare of porch lights pushed the space between houses into deeper darkness, and I could easily have tripped over any child dawdling there. I called Miranda’s name into the void between the twisted rhododendrons, and called it again as I moved behind and around a laurel, but there was no response. Children’s voices carried from multiple directions, their shouts and laughter bouncing through the cool night air. A car coasted slowly up the street, and I thought, But what if…, and found myself running toward the street, intending to head right onto the pavement to throw myself across the car’s hood and bring everything to a halt. I stopped at the curb, though, and gazed breathlessly into the section of street illuminated by the vehicle’s headlights while I shouted Miranda’s name again, as if the sound of my voice would prevent her from appearing in their pale sweep. The car passed without incident, its taillights dissolving in the distance. I hear you’re missing one, a voice behind me said. I turned and saw a man in blue jeans, a jacket, and a ball cap. It was the same outfit I myself wore, as did any number of other fathers in the neighborhood that night. Two boys stood silently beside him: the taller was a pirate with an eye patch, the other wore a bathrobe and held a sword. Yes, I said. Somewhere between these houses. Could she have wandered home? Not in the dark. She wouldn’t find it. Which direction is it? he said. We can head that way. I pointed down the street. She’s three. Dressed as a puppy. The man patted his boys on the back and they headed off. I walked again into the dark section of lawn between houses, calling her name. If she didn’t make it across the lawn with that group, then where did she go? Did she double back and return to the house she’d just visited? Did she wander into a backyard? I shuddered at thoughts of dogs and chains and darkness, but decided a child wouldn’t do that—she would follow the lights, the people, and the candy. I heard the approach of another car, but when I planted my foot to move toward the street, I slipped and fell in the wet grass. My knees hit, but I steadied myself, fingers in the sod, and pushed myself up, calling her name until the car passed and disappeared down another street. I continued through lawns, past groups of parents and children who must have wondered why a lone figure was cutting through the darkness. Which way had the woman with the group of children gone? There was no way I would find them, or that they would find me. What had the man with the two boys looked like? I had hardly glanced at him. I wondered how I was going to walk into the house and announce to Sandra, my wife, that I’d lost our three-year-old. It wasn’t possible. Jack-o’-lanterns sat in windows and on porches, flames dancing behind their grins, while knots of adults and costumed children strolled the sidewalks. What would I say? That my only job had been to keep track of our child, and I had failed, and she was gone? Someone had probably stolen her, with the intention of doing unspeakable things? Sandra would run out the door and through the neighborhood, screaming. There would be police and questions and a massive search. If I can just find her right this moment, I thought, then none of that needs to happen. So I will find her. The sky, a sodden wash of clouds during the day, had become a great charcoal swath at night. Every breath clouded silver in the air and then vanished, and I jogged to the far end of the street so that I could turn and start slowly back. Miranda knew not to cross the street, and no adult would stand by and watch a three-year-old step alone onto the asphalt, so she couldn’t have left the block. I tried to walk casually, while still examining every tree and bush and yard and adult and child I passed. From one lawn a whining motor powered a scarecrow that waved its arm and turned its head, and from elsewhere a stereo played a loop of creaking doors and demented cackling. I listened for her voice or cry or laugh, but there was nothing, and the closer I came to our house, the bolder I was about scouring other people’s property: I circled cars, walked through side yards, and flattened bushes. By the time I reached the yard of the house next to my own, I felt as if I were floating, and walked through the grass in silence. A couple and a small boy in a vinyl skeleton costume walked past on the sidewalk. The couple nodded politely to me while the boy looked into his pail and talked excitedly about candy he had received at my own house. I was at the foot of the porch by then, and had a last, desperate thought: Maybe she came home. The broken gate to the backyard stood ajar as always. I made my way through it and to the concrete pad behind the back door, where the dark sphere of the barbecue grill sat atop spindly aluminum legs. Miranda’s tricycle lay on its side in the grass, as did her broken plastic lawn mower—in the weak glow of the back porch light, everything appeared bronzed. Beyond the light’s reach, in the dark back corner of the yard, sat the little wooden playhouse I’d bought at the beginning of the summer. It had a little doorway without a door and a little window without a pane, and it was through the window that I saw movement—the shift of a shadow within shadows. I reached the house in a few quick strides, looked through the window, and my knees buckled: there was the puppy, sitting amid her scattered candy. I breathed, collecting myself, and knelt at the window. What are you doing? I said. She looked up with an excited, guiltless smile. Putting my candy away! Come out of there. Right now. I reached through the door and grabbed the scruff of the costume’s neck. She struggled and cried, demanding to be released so she could gather her candy, but I was stronger, and pulled her kicking and wailing out the door. She watched anxiously as I swept the candy toward me, gathered it up, and dropped it into her bag. When she was satisfied that not a piece had been lost, she let me pick her up and carry her around to the front of the house. What have you been doing? I said. She opened her mouth, displaying the contents. Eating candy? Well, that’s enough now. Halloween is over. We can go again. No. You can only go once. She twisted in the direction of the street, but I pressed her to my chest, and it was a crying and struggling Miranda that I ended up carrying through the front door. Sandra didn’t question the tears—they were an expected part of Halloween, as well as a daily event in the life of a three-year-old. She pulled the costume off Miranda and threw the crumpled thing down the basement stairs to be washed, wondering aloud how it had gotten so filthy. I didn’t answer. Later, after Miranda was asleep and Sandra, too, had gone to bed, I stayed awake, manning the door for late-evening visitors. When I stepped out onto the porch at only ten-thirty, though, I found the neighborhood empty. Even the candle of our jack-o’-lantern had gone out, the monster turned to nothing but an empty gourd with a sinking lid. The woman with the children, the man with the boys: the absence of police cars or of anyone running through the neighborhood must have convinced them the situation had been resolved. As I locked the door and turned out the lights, I reminded myself that children are lost and found every day. A brief episode did not necessarily need to be mentioned. TWENTY-TWO YEARS LATER, on the night before my daughter’s wedding day, I dreamed of that Halloween. This wasn’t a surprise, as by that point I’d been suffering the dream for months. I had never in my life had trouble sleeping until that year I turned forty-nine. A whirling of image and sound began to descend on me in the small hours, and I would find myself again in the dark, hearing children’s voices and laughter as I marked the progress of those wobbling orange flashlights. Often it seemed I wasn’t even dreaming, but was trapped instead in an undreaming and unthinking bewilderment. So before dawn on the morning of Miranda’s wedding, exhausted by my mind’s interminable running through darkened yards, I rose and stumbled down the hall, dread trailing me like a nightshirt’s ragged hem. It was cold in the house—strangely cold for what the forecasters had warned would be one of the hottest days of the summer—and outside it was raining. I squinted in the kitchen light’s harsh fluorescence until I had successfully started the coffee, and then I turned the light off and stood in the dark, listening to the machine hiss and cough. On the microwave, a glowing digit flipped from one minute to the next—a relief—and I wondered if across town Sandra, too, was awake. If so, she would be stealing her own glances out a window, probably while ironing or folding or wrapping or arranging something—whatever she could to stay in perpetual movement. Though we had been divorced for almost a decade, the thought of her bustling created a sympathetic nervousness in me, as if we were still a team, and I, too, should have been doing something for the cause. I had warned Sandra the previous evening that it would rain in the night, and that she shouldn’t panic when it did. This was after the rehearsal dinner, when Miranda and her friends had led us to a bar where, despite its old-sounding Irish name, the bartenders were two college kids, Asian and Hispanic, respectively. A large adjoining room held a number of pool tables, and the whiplike snap that announced each game of eight ball was heard at regular intervals. Classic rock blared from a jukebox in the corner, forcing me to incline my head in Sandra’s direction so I could hear her ask how I knew it was going to rain. When I told her I could just feel it, she laughed and said, Feel it how? In your knees or in your nerves? Neither, I said. In the air. She raised an eyebrow. In the air? That seems suspicious. It’s just a feeling. I’m telling you to reassure you. Any rain or clouds will burn off. Everything will be fine. I think it’s cute that you’re reassuring me, she said, patting me on the arm. Sandra had remarried four years after our divorce, and her new husband, a genial insurance agent named Alan, was engaged in an earnest conversation with Sandra’s sister and brother-in-law a couple tables from where we sat. It sometimes seemed that because I hadn’t remarried, Sandra didn’t quite know what to do with me. That was my guess, at least, as to why regardless of what I said, she often responded as if she found me mildly amusing. Before I could say more, though, an unfamiliar woman sitting to the other side of Sandra—the mother of a bridesmaid, perhaps—asked Sandra to identify the friends and family gathered in the bar. Sandra began by pointing out a few people at various tables, a spatial strategy that allowed her to point out my husband, Alan and then several other people before arriving at our own table and saying, And this, of course, is Miranda’s father, Paul. Oh, the woman said, brightening at my identification. My daughter told me you gave quite a speech at dinner. I thanked her for what I accepted as a compliment, though it troubled me. I had assumed that standing before family and friends to express some thoughts about my daughter and her marriage would be easy, so I hadn’t bothered to prepare anything ahead of time. As a bank manager, I was perfectly used to speaking extemporaneously to customers and staff about accounts, cards, procedures, and regulations, and I didn’t see any reason a few remarks at a dinner would be different. In the moments before I was to speak, though, I was surprised to find my hands trembling, and when I struck my spoon too hard against my glass, nearly knocking it over before I managed to control the force of my tapping, I realized I was in the grip of an anxiety whose intensity I hadn’t seen coming. So though I did speak, afterward I retained no memory of what I had said. I remembered that clang of the spoon against the glass and could recall polite applause when I stopped, but the panic I suffered during the actual speech was such that, like film exposed to intense heat, my memory had been almost entirely fogged. So I couldn’t help but note that, technically, the woman’s comment that it had been quite a speech was not necessarily a compliment. I hope I didn’t go too long, I said. Well, you’re the father of the bride, so you have every right to, the woman said. But where is the groom I’ve heard so much about? Will he be here? I don’t know, Sandra said, and turned to me. Do you? I shook my head. I’m sure he’s in charge of his own schedule. No guarantees, then, Sandra said. Oh well, the woman said, disappointed. I guess I can wait. Someone at a nearby table called Sandra over. She stood with what I suspected was relief, gave me a quick pat on the back as she apologized for having to leave us, and headed across the room. And what about you? the woman asked. Do you have a significant other somewhere here? Do I have a significant other? I repeated as if it were some kind of quiz. I actually looked around the bar as if one might appear. No. Not even a date? She had already been at the bar when I arrived, and though it was an ungenerous evaluation—maybe she was just a friendly person—I noted that the drink in front of her was probably not her first. I guess I forgot to ask someone. That’s understandable, she said. I’m sure it’s stressful being the father of the bride. But listen. She placed her hand atop mine and leaned toward me. If you need someone to dance with at the reception, I’ll be happy to be your partner. Be careful, I said. I’m afraid I have two left feet. She glanced at my shoes. Those feet look fine to me. All right, I said. I have to mix right now, but I may come looking for you tomorrow. I’ll make sure I’m easy to find, she said. I made sure to shake a few hands and trade a few greetings, but it was only a few minutes later that I made my escape from the bar and headed home. That next morning, though—as I stood there in my dark kitchen, arms crossed and shoulders hunched while I listened to the coffeepot—I felt like calling Sandra and asking that she acknowledge the correctness of my prediction. I was confident she was awake, and that she would have laughed. But there are times of day that one simply doesn’t call. WHEN I STEPPED OUTSIDE not much later, coffee in hand, it was to discover that the rain was really no more than a mist that hung ghostlike in the air before me, and only slightly fuzzed the surface of the courtyard lawn. The weather here often does this: it gives every appearance of rain, and then doesn’t quite deliver. In summer especially, early threats made above are often false, and I could see that watery patches of sky to the east were already fading to a thin blue-gray. The ground-level mist disappeared as I walked through it, a diaphanous curtain endlessly parting, and in movement I took stock of myself. A click of cartilage dispensed its hurtful little jolt in my shoulder, a reminder that the ball caught in the socket there on occasion. A dull pain lay behind my right knee, the result of spending an entire day helping Alan move sofas and tables and beds in preparation for the arrival of Sandra’s house-guests. My townhouse had two bedrooms, and I had offered the empty one as potential lodging for visitors, but Sandra hadn’t taken me up on the offer. The visiting guests were from her side of the family—maybe she worried that placing someone with her ex-husband would be considered a slight. A pair of joggers, a man and a woman, announced they would be on my left, and then they were, two sets of nylon shorts whisking past as I continued my inventory. Eyesight? I trained my gaze on the lady jogger’s round bottom, rejected that as an unscientific test, and squinted instead at the nearest street sign, pleased to find I could read it, though my already knowing the answer certainly helped. And hearing? The breeze in the firs, tisk of a sprinkler, hum of distant traffic, throb of my pulse in my ears: everything was there, present and accounted for. I was not old. I told myself. The joggers continued down the street and into the mist while I kept my own pace, covering the route I took most mornings, a neighborhood walk that provided a good half hour in which my thoughts were my own. Satisfied I was in working order physically, I gave myself the mental challenge of recalling that speech. I’d believed I would be able to say something true and moving in two minutes, without preparation. Had I managed this? I knew I had started by dramatically clearing my throat, because immediately upon doing so I chastised myself for already having lapsed into cliché. I clasped my hands before me in order to quell their trembling, then decided I looked odd holding them that way, and shoved one hand into my pocket. The other found its way to my stomach, and I gave up the struggle there—if the pose was good enough for Napoleon, I thought, it was good enough for me. Throughout my search for a natural posture, though, I had been speaking. But about what? Nothing came back. It was a toast—had I raised my glass? Did people drink? I hadn’t the slightest, and neither could I estimate how long I’d spoken. I just remembered Miranda, seated next to me, giving me a kiss on the cheek when I sat down. It’s okay, she had whispered to me. Everything is fine. I didn’t know what she meant, though. Had I apologized for speaking too long, or for the arc of my entire life? Drunk on the moment, the moment had escaped me. A calico cat eyed me with suspicion from the edge of a shrub before it turned and disappeared within. A young man pressing a bundle of newspapers to his chest ran past and commenced firing the papers toward doorways. A seagull floated in for a wide-winged landing on the sidewalk not thirty feet ahead of me. There was something clumsy and ad hoc about its landing, but it had succeeded, and when it extended and refolded its brown and white wings I was surprised to note, even from a distance, the flick of a thin red tongue. The lizards are their cousins, I guess. The gull monitored my approach in the sidelong way birds have of turning parallel to their object of examination. A few desultory hops carried it into the street, but one wide blue eye remained trained on me. It opened its beak silently, again displaying that tongue, and then snapped it shut. Had the gesture been directed at me, or was it just the avian mechanism adjusting itself? I continued past the bird and onward, and when I looked back, it was to see the inscrutable creature twitch its head in another direction and hop off, pecking the asphalt every few steps—as if it expected to find something. The morning walk was a new habit for me, adopted from the last woman I had dated, with whom I’d broken up six months earlier. Trish, a Realtor who had just moved into the city from the suburbs, began every morning—or every morning she awoke with me, at least—with a brisk walk through the neighborhood in one of her clean, pressed, nylon sweat suits. She owned these sweat suits, which she called warm-ups, in a number of colors: baby blue with white piping, wine red with yellow stripes, and a neon green with electric blue trim were three of her more consistent choices. I’ve never particularly been one for athletic wear, and walked with her in my usual weekend-morning outfit of jeans and a jacket. That relationship had been over for a while, but I’d kept her ritual of the morning walk. I liked it. IT WAS AT THE breakfast table in Sandra’s house later that morning that I received the call. It was just after nine o’clock, and I had been listening to her brother, Bradshaw, read aloud from a sports Web site he was looking at on his laptop. He’d been noting various teams’ victories and losses, pulling up detailed information on recent draft picks and trades, and estimating likelihoods of future success. I did my best to nod at appropriate intervals. I was supposed to be at Sandra’s disposal that morning to run errands, pick up guests from the airport, or take care of any other pressing tasks, but I had been there almost half an hour and she had yet to come down from her room. Bradshaw’s own wife and two teenage daughters were also upstairs, and though we heard occasional disputes among them over space in the bathroom, not one of them had shown her face yet, either. So I was trapped, drinking another cup of coffee while I watched Bradshaw take his own breakfast in what struck me as the ensemble of a teenager: oversized red nylon athletic shorts and a white T-shirt memorializing a slo-pitch softball tournament. Between installments of sports gossip, I asked him why the w had been deleted from slo, and Bradshaw pressed his chin to his chest to examine the usage. It’s a different word, he said. The pitching is slow, I said. So why do they spell it that way? "The word is slo-pitch, he said. It’s a different word. He took an overlarge, tearing bite of his toasted bagel, the butter and cream cheese of which had gathered into points of glistening white at the corners of his mouth. Miranda once told me, rather gleefully, that Bradshaw had said he was surprised Sandra had ever married me in the first place, since I was such a finicky guy." I don’t think Bradshaw always understands the words he uses. And I was pleased when my cell phone produced its little trill and I was able to consider something other than his T-shirt. We were just robbed, my coworker Catherine said when I answered. Everyone’s fine, it’s under control, but I thought you would want to know. It was silent, no weapon. Just a guy who pushed a misspelled note across the counter to Amber. The rest of us didn’t even notice until it was over. She used the same disdainful tone she had when she had called me at home one Saturday morning to report that a stray, floppy-eared terrier was in the bank, had evaded capture for over twenty minutes, and was hiding behind the change machine in the back corner. I had driven to the bank, rattled the machine, and stamped my foot, but it was only after I told the staff to return to business as usual that the creature had emerged from his hiding place and loped out of the branch with a sad look in its eyes, as if disappointed we’d given up the game. I’ll be there in a few minutes, I told her. You don’t need to, she said. I watched Bradshaw continue to work at the bagel—his movements were tense, relentless. I have nothing else to do right now. I know that’s not true. Oh, here they are, we’re all saved now. The police. They just pulled up. What was misspelled? It was a robbery, she said. "One b. I’ll talk to you later." I folded the phone in time to watch Bradshaw stuff the remainder of the bagel into his mouth and commence strenuous bovine chewing. He swallowed dramatically, and then again, and then a third time, tipping his head back to better reveal the contortions of his trachea as it convulsed beneath the slack skin and gray stubble of his neck. There’s a problem? he said finally, feigning concern. Yes. Do you think Sandra will be down soon? He shrugged. You can go up there. Upstairs, someone was running the sink in the bathroom, a hair dryer roared from the master bedroom, and I sensed the press of footsteps within one of the smaller bedrooms. Miranda was staying in her old room here for the weekend, which meant there were, theoretically, at least five women trying to share the single upstairs bathroom. To my relief, though, all I was currently faced with was an empty hallway with four closed doors, so I knocked quickly on the door to the master bedroom and called Sandra’s name. The hair dryer ceased, there was some shifting and rustling as she told me to come in, and then the hair dryer resumed. I found her seated at her dressing table bundled in a white terry-cloth robe, her head inclined toward the hand in which she held and waved the dryer while with her other hand she tugged at her long, blond hair. She has always kept her hair long, and in concert with her quick, dark eyes, her looks have held a slightly intimidating power over me. I waited for her to shift her gaze to mine before I told her, over the hair dryer’s howling, that the bank had been robbed. She immediately killed the dryer, creating a portentous silence. "Your bank? she said. Was anyone hurt?" Can you get out of going? She restarted the hair dryer, waved it through her hair a few times, and turned it off again. It’s your daughter’s wedding day. It will only take an hour. I’ll talk to the police, fill out the forms, hand tissues to the tellers. And you don’t need me this morning, anyway. There’s nothing left to do. She arched an eyebrow, just as she had the previous evening. There’s nothing left to do? You’re all going to the hotel. Why are you doing your hair when it’s supposed to get done at the hotel? The hair dryer erupted, undead, and I made it out of the room and to the top of the stairs before the machine was strangled silent again. Have you heard from Miranda? she	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6653
__label__wiki	0.797998	0.797998	Raymond Patriarca v. United States of America, Ronald J. Cassesso v. United States of America, Henry Tameleo v. United States, 402 F.2d 314, 1st Cir. (1969) Filed: 1969-01-20 Precedential Status: Precedential Citations: 402 F.2d 314 Docket: 7126-7128 saveSave Raymond Patriarca v. United States of America, Ron... For Later United States v. Arias, 1st Cir. (2017) State v. Webster, Ariz. Ct. App. (2015) United States v. Ferguson, 4th Cir. (2006) United States v. Amador Rodriguez-Ramos, 704 F.2d 17, 1st Cir. (1983) United States v. Parham, 4th Cir. (1998) United States v. Robert Marvin Jacobs, Sr., 872 F.2d 420, 4th Cir. (1989) United States v. Lloyd Ray Bradshaw, 787 F.2d 1385, 10th Cir. (1986) United States v. Emil K. Schandl, 947 F.2d 462, 11th Cir. (1991) Pacer Document on Christensen Trial Push Back State v. Abbott, Ariz. Ct. App. (2015) C. Addison Hutton, Guardian of the Estate of Eddie Graybeal, a Minor v. Joseph Fisher, Florence Fisher, His Wife, and Howard Fisher. Joseph Fisher and Florence Fisher, 359 F.2d 913, 3rd Cir. (1966) Benjamin S. Sacharow v. Irving Vogel, 428 F.2d 1389, 2d Cir. (1970) United States v. Thomas Jefferson Clark, United States of America v. Jeff McHenry, 456 F.2d 1375, 10th Cir. (1972) People of the State of New York, respondent, v Chad E. Towsley, appellant. KA 10-00187. Appellant's Brief. United States v. Williams, 4th Cir. (2010) Us v. Avenatti Stipulation to Continue Trial Date United States v. Ralph F. Deleo, 422 F.2d 487, 1st Cir. (1970) United States v. Sampson, 4th Cir. (1998) United States v. James Abbott Jones, 945 F.2d 747, 4th Cir. (1991) United States v. Gonzalez-Martinez, 1st Cir. (2016) Raymond PATRIARCA, Defendant, Appellant, UNITED STATES of America, Appellee. Ronald J. CASSESSO, Defendant, Appellant, Henry TAMELEO, Defendant, Appellant, Nos. 7126-7128. United States Court of Appeals First Circuit. Certiorari Denied January 20, 1969. See 89 S.Ct. 633. Francis J. DiMento, Boston, Mass., with whom Charles A. Curran, Providence, R. I., and DiMento & Sullivan, Boston, Mass., were on brief, for Raymond Patriarca, appellant. Ronald J. Chisholm, Boston, Mass., for Ronald J. Cassesso, appellant. Joseph J. Balliro, Boston, Mass., for Henry Tameleo, appellant; William E. Searson, III, Boston, Mass., of counsel. Edward F. Harrington, Asst. U. S. Atty., with whom Paul F. Markham, U. S. Atty., and Walter T. Barnes, Special Atty., Dept. of Justice, were on brief, for appellee. Before ALDRICH, Chief Judge, McENTEE and COFFIN, Circuit Judges. COFFIN, Circuit Judge. These are appeals from judgments of conviction following jury verdicts on an indictment in three counts. The first count charged all of the appellants with conspiracy, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 371, to travel and use the telephone in interstate commerce with intent both to commit murder to further an unlawful gambling enterprise, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1952(a) (2), and to promote such enterprise, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1952(a) (3); and thereafter to attempt to commit such murder and acts of promotion. The chief witness for the prosecution, one Baron, was named as a co-conspirator but not a defendant. Other substantive counts charged appellant Tameleo with using a telephone facility in interstate commerce and appellants Patriarca and Tameleo with causing Baron and appellant Cassesso to travel in interstate commerce pursuant to the same intent, followed by an attempt. The district court is alleged to have erred in denying a motion for continuance and change of venue because of prejudicial publicity; in refusing to grant a mistrial for prosecutorial expression of belief during the closing argument; and in denying various motions to strike part of the indictment, to grant a severance, to enter judgments of acquittal, and to make a requested instruction. MOTIONS FOR CONTINUANCE AND CHANGE OF VENUE Appellants, in alleging error by the court in refusing their motions for continuance and change of venue filed on February 20, 1968 and at the opening of trial on March 4, 1968 refer in their brief to "* * * a long history of publicity, beginning with the widely publicized `Valachi hearings', so-called, of 1963, which named the defendant Patriarca as `Boss' of the New England `Cosa Nostra' or `Mafia' and the defendant Tameleo as one of his subordinates. It is a matter of common knowledge that the publicity, surrounding Patriarca, at least, multiplied and persisted uninterrupted down to May, 1967, when the Government disclosed, in connection with a taxevasion prosecution in Rhode Island, unconnected with Patriarca, that his office in Providence had been `bugged' for three years and that both he and Tameleo had engaged in highly compromising conversations with others." Subsequently, in May of 1967, newspapers in Boston published stories that a Mafia "strongarm", one Joe (Barboza) Baron, had been "singing" to the FBI, referring to appellant Patriarca as a Cosa Nostra boss. Then on June 20, 1967, the date of the indictment in this case, there were more newspaper headlines and accounts concerning all appellants and Baron. The newspaper clippings included as exhibits in the record before us contain no items between July 10, 1967 and October 27, 1967, when appellant Tameleo was named as having been indicted, after grand jury testimony by Baron, for a slaying unrelated to these appeals and as being an aide to "New England Cosa Nostra boss Raymond Patriarca". On October 30, 1967, pursuant to appellants' first motion for change of venue on July 26, 1967, hearing was had in camera. Counsel for appellant Patriarca, alleging nationwide publicity, waived his motion for a change of venue and requested a continuance of four or five months. The court stated that the case would not be tried until after the first of the year and on January 22, 1968 set the date of trial for February 6. In the meantime, on January 16, 1968, there had been several newspaper accounts of the indictment of appellant Cassesso for conspiracy to incite a fellow prison inmate to confess falsely to a murder. These, however, were of small moment compared to the figurative and literal bombshell of January 30, 1968 when Baron's attorney, John E. Fitzgerald, Jr., was almost killed by a bomb wired to the ignition of his automobile. Widespread reporting of and editorializing on the bombing ensued. On February 2, 1968, appellants moved for a continuance, which was granted until March 4. On February 20 motions for continuance and a change of venue to New York were filed, hearing was had in camera, and the motions were denied on February 27, the court observing in a memorandum that the newspaper articles on which the motions were based concerned the Mafia and Costa Nostra and made no specific reference to defendants; that such articles are constantly appearing in New York as in New England; and that the climate for a fair trial was far more favorable than on October 30, 1967. Similar motions were filed on the day of trial, March 4, based on recent publicity, and were denied for the reasons given on February 27. These two rulings are now before us. Appellants argue that the prejudice created by the February news accounts, was "the connection of the defendants, in the public's mind, to the bombing incident." The record of newspaper clippings before us, apparently assembled through a clipping service, contains, exclusive of duplications, seventy items from newspapers in Boston and five other major Massachusetts cities covering the period from January 31 to March 4. While not complete and not including any data on television and radio reports, we must take it as reasonably representative. We report the results of our scrutiny in the margin.1 In none of the newspaper accounts were appellants linked with the Mafia or Cosa Nostra or with the Fitzgerald bombing. In none were the acts alleged in the indictment reported. In only one article, published one month before trial, was Baron labelled a Cosa Nostra informer; he was elsewhere uniformly referred to as an underworld or gangland informer. Even more significant are the facts that the amount of coverage diminished sharply after the week following the bombing and that, subsequent to appellants' filing motions on February 20, the subject matter was almost wholly that of the making and disposition of the motions themselves. Under these circumstances, we cannot say that the court abused its discretion. Indeed, the sharp diminution of decibels after the first week following the Fitzgerald bombing indicates that a month's delay was a realistic estimate. That a rash of stories centered about moves for further delay was inevitable; if such could be ground for continuance, cases would never be tried. We are mindful of the authorities relevant to this issue. But there is here lacking as of the time of the relevant motions, the kind of incriminating nexus that was present in Rideau v. State of Louisiana, 373 U.S. 723, 83 S.Ct. 1417, 10 L.Ed.2d 663 (1963) (out of court confession widely seen); in United States v. Dioguardi, 147 F.Supp. 421 (S.D.N.Y.1956) (publicity of recent trial testimony incriminating defendants); in Delaney v. United States, 199 F.2d 107 (1st Cir. 1952) (widely publicized Congressional hearings on the "scandal" involving defendant); in Marshall v. United States, 360 U.S. 310, 79 S.Ct. 1171, 3 L.Ed.2d 1250 (1958), and in Coppedge v. United States, 106 U.S.App.D.C. 275, 272 F.2d 504 (1959), cert. denied, 368 U.S. 855, 82 S.Ct. 92, 7 L.Ed.2d 52 (1961) (widespread publicity of excluded or inadmissible information). Nor do we find a suggestion of the kind of prejudicial statements or records of conviction, arrests, or indictments emanating from a public official, zealous attempts by the media to arouse a community on a particular trial, reports of refusal to submit to certain tests, pejorative characterizations of a defendant, description of evidence against the accused or reports of plea negotiation cited as presenting the "greatest hazards" to a fair trial by the ABA, Standards Relating to Fair Trial and Free Press, (Tentative Draft, Dec. 1966), pp. 25-40.2 Following the denial of the motions for continuance and change of venue, there was another opportunity for counsel to mitigate any possible effect of pretrial publicity on the voir dire. Counsel for one of the appellants requested that the court "ask a question of the jury in connection with this case, in the light of all the publicity." The court replied that it would "put to them a general question and ask them if there is any member of the jury here who feels that he would not be able to give the defendants a fair and impartial trial." Counsel said, "Fine, thank you, your Honor." The question was put. No response was forthcoming. The court stated that it assumed that all were "in agreement on this particular question." The jurors were then sworn and thereafter sequestered. While the court did all that was requested at this juncture, and cannot under the circumstances of this case be charged with error in not inquiring further, sua sponte, we feel bound to concede that such a single question posed to the panel en bloc, with an absence of response, achieves little or nothing by way of identifying, weighing, or removing any prejudice from prior publicity. In cases where there is, in the opinion of the court, a significant possibility that jurors have been exposed to potentially prejudicial material, and on request of counsel, we think that the court should proceed to examine each prospective juror apart from other jurors and prospective jurors, with a view to eliciting the kind and degree of his exposure to the case or the parties, the effect of such exposure on his present state of mind, and the extent to which such state of mind is immutable or subject to change from evidence. In this we are in accord with the suggestions of section 3.4 of ABA, Standards Relating to Fair Trial and Free Press, (Tentative Draft, Dec. 1966), pp. 130-137.3 PROSECUTORIAL SELF-REFERENCE Appellants seek not only reversal of their convictions but judgments of acquittal because of the conduct of the prosecutor in injecting his own belief into his closing argument. They describe the comment as "outrageous", in bad faith, and utterly unprovoked by any defense argument. Appellee denies that any comment was made by the prosecutor expressing personal belief in the testimony and that even if such comment were to be so interpreted, it was justified by the "vicious attacks" of appellants' counsel. Finally, appellee argues that the comment could not have been prejudicial. We disagree with all but the last of these positions. We hold that the comment was a prohibited one, to which timely objection was made, that it could not be justified by the argument of appellants' counsel, even though parts of such argument might be interpreted as provocation, but that there was no possibility of its prejudicing the jury under the circumstances of this case. F.R.Crim.P. 52(a). This conclusion stems from our evaluation of the challenged comment against the background of all the arguments which we now summarize. The gist of the alleged conspiracy was a plan involving the appellants and Baron to kill one Marfeo, the proprietor of a gambling establishment in Providence. This establishment, which continued to operate after once being raided, had caused overt police surveillance in the area to increase to the point where it caused a decline in the patronage of another gambling establishment in which appellant Patriarca allegedly had an interest. Marfeo refused Tameleo's and Patriarca's requests to cease operations and the decision was made to kill him. Baron and appellant Cassesso agreed to do the job, travelled to Providence and viewed places such as restaurants and bars which Marfeo was known to frequent. Further action was postponed since the police had learned of Tameleo's and Patriarca's dispute with Marfeo. The testimony of Baron was central to the prosecution's case. All of the evidence of the plan, the phone calls, other conversations, travel, and visits to Marfeo's haunts to implement the plan came from his lips. Other witnesses, principally police and federal agents, filled in the background the raid on Marfeo's establishment, Marfeo's continued operations, accelerated surveillance in the area, a police request to appellant Patriarca to try to persuade Marfeo to close shop, the large scale gambling activities of appellant Tameleo, the identification of places Marfeo frequented. Baron was a highly vulnerable witness. Not only had he spent almost half of his life in prison, but he had been assured that he would not be indicted for the crime at issue here if he testified before the grand jury. In addition he was told that his cooperation in this matter would be brought to the attention of the prosecution in other pending criminal cases. Money from his unlicensed loan operations continued to be sent to him while in prison. Fears for the safety of his wife and child led to her being allowed to live with him in protective custody. On at least two occasions discussions were had on his behalf with writers relating to a book based on his revelations and movie rights, both promising large returns. Letters which he sent from prison referred to FBI representatives saying to him "If you help us, we will help you"; to the purpose of his transfer to the Barnstable House of Correction as being "to brainwash me"; to having "a few aces" up his sleeve; to his doing something sensational with the result that "30 would go" whether innocent or not. After he began to talk to the FBI about the subject matter of this case, there were some fourteen visits in each of which he would add some new detail either previously overlooked or concealed. Appellants' three counsel zeroed in on their target. They touched all the bases in vigorous, evocative language. The theme was clearly enunciated in these words of the argument: "I say to you that Mr. Barboza Mr. Baron is just a liar. That his story is fiction, and it was made up, coolly calculated, in that very cold blood that he admits he has and for very good reasons." Counsel then colorfully delved into the reasons which he described as "the most tremendous inducements for anybody to lie * * * sex, * * * liberty, and * * * money." In the course of the ensuing argument for the defense, on the whole proper and evidence-oriented, counsel occasionally made remarks which could be construed as either a personal belief or an attack on the integrity of the prosecution. A failure to introduce evidence alluded to in the prosecution's opening, because of defense counsel's objection, was made the basis for rhetorically asking the prosecution where the promised witnesses were and for remarking to the jury that "that was put in your mind". The word "inducement" was used six times.4 The problem with "inducement" is that it does not merely mean "motive". Its primary meaning is "the act or process of inducing", Webster's Dictionary (3d Int. Ed.) p. 1154; it can be easily understood as connoting purpose on the part of the prosecution as well as response on the part of the prospective witness. This possible understanding was reinforced by an appellant's counsel stating, "He is not going to be found guilty of anything" implying without foundation in the evidence that, with regard to other prosecutions pending against Baron, more than calling the attention of the prosecutor to his cooperation had been promised. A similar observation may be made of counsel's question whether the fact Baron was allowed to live with his wife was "because he is delivering something? Is that the consideration for his being with his wife?" Again the interpretation of a two-way bargain between the prosecution and Baron for incriminating testimony is not unreasonable. Another oblique remark is a reference to the government's "advantage of everything else they might have going for them here". So also with "Now let me get back to show you the type of job that they are trying to do on my client. * * " and " * * I'm going to show you the artfulness in this thing." One counsel for appellants occasionally also spoke in a way permitting the inference that personal belief was being expressed. For example, "When * * * [Baron] looked at [counsel who was cross-examining] in a cold stare and he said yes, and I have seen a lot of things and I have tried murder cases but it made me wince, and do a little shuddering"; "* * * I believe the evidence was that not one of these persons is guilty"; "* * * I think [a verdict of not guilty] is justified by the evidence." Counsel for the prosecution began by paraphrasing the defense as saying that "* * * Baron's testimony is not fact, it's fiction." He added, "If you accept that, you also accept the fact that that fiction was written, produced and directed by the United States Attorney's office, by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, by the police in Revere and the police in Boston. * * " Objection was taken and the argument was ordered stricken. The prosecutor then addressed himself to the theme of the defense that Baron had made up the story he told. He sought to verify it by corroboration from other witnesses. In his catalogue of corroboration he cited testimony that Baron knew Tameleo and Cassesso, that Marfeo was running a crap game, that Tameleo was a large scale gambler, that a Providence police captain told Patriarca that he wanted the Marfeo gambling operation closed down, that there was a raid, reconstruction of the premises, renewed operations, increased surveillance or "heat", that Baron's description of the interiors of places of alleged conversations and observations was both detailed and not challenged, that Baron's identification of Marfeo hangouts checked with police identification. At this point the prosecutor noted the coincidence of police identification of Marfeo hangouts as of a time prior to the alleged conspiracy with that of Baron. He asked if that was fiction. Then he said, "I say that is an insult to your intelligence, and I also say that if Joe Baron is guilty of making it fiction, then I am guilty of making it fiction, and the FBI is guilty of making it fiction and every other witness who testified in this case is guilty of making up fiction." Objection was taken but the court said "That may be argued" and the questioning continued. A short time later the argument concluded and counsel for appellants moved for a mistrial, citing as a second reason the above quoted argument. The court, referring to its prior ruling at the commencement of the prosecution's argument, asked if the prosecutor had again "put himself in the picture". The prosecutor said, "No, Judge. I said if this is fiction, then every witness who appeared here is fiction." When asked again by the court "You weren't a witness. Did you put yourself in there?" the prosecutor answered, "I asked a few leading questions on occasion, Judge." The court noted that all lawyers commit such an error and denied the motion for mistrial. The case was adjourned overnight and the jury was charged the following day. The question sharply posed by appellants is whether Rule 15 of the Canons of Professional Ethics of the American Bar Association, as applied by us in Greenberg v. United States, 280 F.2d 472 (1st Cir. 1960), has been violated. Greenberg (having to do with a flagrant self-vouching of a prosecutor as a "thirteenth juror") thrusts farther than Rule 15 and some other judicial authorities. Rule 15 proscribes a lawyer from asserting a personal belief in his client's innocence or the justice of his cause. Such authorities as Lawn v. United States, 355 U.S. 339, 359-360 n. 15, 78 S.Ct. 311, 2 L.Ed.2d 321 (1958); Gradsky v. United States, 373 F.2d 706, 710 (5th Cir. 1967); United States v. Medlin, 353 F.2d 789, 795 (6th Cir. 1965), cert. denied, 384 U.S. 973, 86 S.Ct. 1860, 16 L. Ed.2d 683 (1966); Jones v. United States, 119 U.S.App.D.C. 213, 338 F.2d 553, 554, n. 3 (1964); and United States v. Battiato, 204 F.2d 717 (7th Cir.), cert. denied, 346 U.S. 871, 74 S.Ct. 118, 98 L. Ed. 380 (1953) seem to define the impermissible conduct as any expression of belief which indicates that the prosecutor is relying on information other than that which has been presented in court.5 Greenberg proscribes expression of personal belief in the testimony, not only because counsel would then in effect be a witness not under oath or subject to cross-examination but because the false issue of credibility of counsel, with government having the advantage, would be injected. In Greenberg we recognized that at times "special circumstances" may justify a reply but found no such circumstances. Nor do we find such here. We concede that the prosecutor could interpret parts of the defense argument as a subtle, veiled attack on the prosecution's motives and integrity. But we cannot say that counsel for appellants deliberately indulged in excessive argument. At most their comments, as we have endeavored to show, were cloaked in ambiguity. Moreover, if seriously disturbed, counsel for the government concealed that fact for he raised no objections. At least under these circumstances we do not consider that a trespass by the defense gives the prosecution a hunting license exempt from ethical restraints on advocacy.6 Coming to the prosecutor's remarks, we observe first that just as the defense argument was ambiguous, so were these. In context, the prosecutor was pointing to corroborating items of testimony given by police and other witnesses, such as places Marfeo was known to frequent, which matched testimony given by Baron. He was arguing that either such items were true or false. If false, not only one police witness was lying, but all were. And since the instruments of the lies were the prosecutor who asked the questions and the witnesses who answered them, it could arguably be said that on this hypothesis the statement that he was "making fiction" was simply factual and not a statement of belief. This interpretation, while arguable, is not probable. A more likely interpretation is that this was a back-handed way of laying one's credibility on the line. Prosecuting attorneys and law enforcement officials wear an invisible cloak of credibility by virtue of their position; to make it explicit may too easily tip the scales. Moreover, the same play on the "fiction" metaphor had overcarried earlier, stimulating an objection which was sustained. Nevertheless, viewing the case as a whole, the arguments, and the charge, we cannot find any possibility of prejudice. First, while the case depended wholly on the credibility of Baron's testimony, all of the many factors which made it susceptible to impeachment were fully presented and fully argued. The occasional oblique expressions of opinion from both sides against the background of a long trial, much evidence on the issue, and lengthy argument addressed to the evidence could not loom sufficiently large to have influence. 7 Second, all available timely action was not taken to confront the court with the precise language which had been used. The nature of the objection was not clear to the court at the time, as the subsequent colloquy in the motion for mistrial indicated. The appellants see bad faith in the prosecutor's turning off the court's inquiry with a quasi-humorous admission, in answer to a question whether the prosecutor had been a witness and injected himself into his argument, that he had indeed asked a few leading questions. While the prosecutor's answer was clearly not responsive, we do not understand from oral argument that it was devious or calculated to mislead, there having been a superficial response accepted as such at that point. In any event it is clear both that the court did not recall the precise language which the prosecutor had used and that counsel did not feel it important enough to have such language read back. There is an obligation on counsel to make a reasonable effort to see to it that the court has before it the facts on which a requested ruling is predicated. Cf. Corley v. United States, 124 U.S.App.D.C. 351, 365 F.2d 884, 885 (1966); Camps v. New York City Transit Authority, 261 F.2d 320, 323 (2d Cir. 1958). Had this been done, the court, even if it is likely that a mistrial would not have been granted, could have taken pains to devise a proper instruction. For this was not such an egregious comment as to be incurable. As it was, the charge was not given until the following day. The court did include a general instruction that only the evidence must be considered. No special requests were made on this point and no objections taken. For these reasons we deem this error harmless within the meaning of Fed.R. Crim.P. 52(a). OTHER ALLEGED ERRORS Two other asserted errors related to the fact that Baron was named in the indictment as a co-conspirator but not a defendant. The first is that this form of the indictment stemmed from improper prosecutorial influence on the grand jury. The second is that in the course of trial the court went out of its way to say that the government had the privilege not to indict a co-conspirator and in so doing undercut defense efforts to impeach Baron's "inherently suspect testimony". The first point is based solely on pre-grand jury promises by the prosecutor to Baron that he would not be indicted if he testified. Testimony from an accomplice in a criminal conspiracy is often a sine qua non for effective prosecution. Hoffa v. United States, 385 U.S. 293, 311, 87 S.Ct. 408, 17 L.Ed.2d 374 (1966). Such testimony will often not be available in the absence of a prosecutor's commitment to grant immunity from prosecution for the criminal acts which are the subject of such testimony. Whether or not a promise of immunity from indictment is technically within the prosecutor's unfettered power to implement, cf. United States v. Cox, 342 F.2d 167 (5th Cir. 1965), cert. denied, Cox v. Hauberg, 381 U.S. 935, 85 S.Ct. 1767, 14 L.Ed.2d 700, and Fed.R.Crim.P. 48 (a), it is highly improbable that a grand jury, on understanding the circumstances resulting in Baron's testimony before it, would indict him. This is entirely proper. Here there is no suggestion of anything more, such as participation by the prosecutor in the deliberations of the grand jury which occurred in United States v. Wells, 163 F. 313 (9th Cir. 1908). Nor have appellants cited any authority requiring that Baron's designation in the indictment as a "coconspirator but not as a defendant" be struck under the circumstances of this case.8 Appellants' second contention, that the court erred in twice interjecting the comment in the course of cross-examination about the promise that Baron would not be indicted if he testified to the grand jury, that it was the government's privilege not to indict a co-conpirator as a defendant, is no more substantial. Not only was this a correct statement of the law, Cox, supra, but defense counsel made no objection to the first sua sponte comment by the court nor to the same instruction in the final charge. The impeaching effect of the promise of immunity from indictment was not only fully argued at trial but overargued when counsel said "He is not going to be found guilty of anything". The court's charge contained standard provisions both as to assessing credibility in general and as to scrutinizing the testimony of an accomplice with great care. Nothing more was requested. We see no error. Appellants' final argument is that motions for judgments of acquittal on the substantive counts were improperly denied because of a failure of any evidence to establish an "attempt" to commit a crime of violence. Both sides agree, however, that the imposition of concurrent sentences on both the conspiracy count and the substantive counts would require decision on this issue only in the event of a new trial. Articles mentioning the bombing and subsequent investigations were published 31 - Feb. 6 (1 week) 7 - Feb. 20 (2 weeks) 21 - Mar. 4 (13 days) In addition, between February 21 and March 4, there were 8 articles reporting only appellants' February 20 request for change of venue and decision thereon. These made no reference to the bombing. Only two articles (apart from one report of the court's memorandum of February 27, summarized above) mentioned the Cosa Nostra, these occurring a month before trial. Two of three articles mentioning Baron as a government witness appeared over a month before trial as did two references to Fitzgerald being a possible witness. There was only one reference to appellants Cassesso and Tameleo, this in connection with another indictment. Of the fourteen references to appellant Patriarca, one referred to the indictment, five to the February 2 postponement, and eight to the February 20 motion for change of venue. What we have said on the issue of pretrial publicity also disposes of appellants' motions for severance which were sought on the same basis as the original motions for change of venue, preceding the continuance granted on October 30, 1967, and not thereafter renewed. Absent "a strong showing of prejudice", Sagansky v. United States, 358 F.2d 195, 199 (1st Cir.), cert. denied, 385 U.S. 816, 87 S.Ct. 36, 17 L.Ed.2d 55 (1966), which we do not find here, it is customary to try conspirators together. Opper v. United States, 348 U.S. 84, 95, 75 S.Ct. 158, 99 L.Ed. 101, 45 A.L.R.2d 1308 (1959). To the extent that claimed prejudice may arise from association with others, such association would be revealed in any event from the factual situation presented at the trial These pages of the tentative draft were specifically endorsed by the Report of the Committee on the Operation of the Jury System on the "Free Press-Fair Trial" Issue, p. 39 n. 37. This Report was formally approved by the Judicial Conference of the United States on September 19, 1968 The analysis of the evidence began with the statement "I don't think they [sex, liberty, money] necessarily have to be argued in any particular order, but let's try it this way: inducement." One example referred to the promise of immunity from indictment for the present offense in the words: "I suggest that it is a pretty darned good inducement for some of them to lie and say anything he might think somone wants them to say, because what the heck he doesn't have to worry, he is not going to be indicted." Appellants argue that the prosecutor's reference to the FBI, when only one agent testified, implied that that agency was in possession of secret evidence. We think it clear from the context, however, that the reference was to the corroborating evidence adduced in court which the prosecutor had just summarized Our approach may differ from some other circuits. If such cases as Baiocchi v. United States, 333 F.2d 32, 38 (5th Cir. 1964); Isaacs v. United States, 301 F. 2d 706, 737 (8th Cir.), cert. denied, 371 U.S. 818, 83 S.Ct. 32, 9 L.Ed.2d 58 (1963); United States v. Kiame, 258 F.2d 924, 934 (2d Cir.), cert. denied, 358 U.S. 909, 79 S.Ct. 236, 3 L.Ed.2d 230 (1958); Ochoa v. United States, 167 F. 2d 341, 344 (9th Cir. 1948); Malone v. United States, 94 F.2d 281, 288 (7th Cir.), cert. denied, 304 U.S. 562, 58 S.Ct. 944, 82 L.Ed. 1529 (1938) stand for the proposition that the mere fact that there has been provocation by the defense justifies retaliatory expression of belief which would otherwise be error, we respectfully disagree. At most, we feel, serious provacation would be weighed as a factor in evaluating possible prejudice Our survey of cases involving expression of personal belief has revealed reversals for far grosser improprieties than were exhibited here. See, e. g., Greenberg, supra; Gradsky, supra, ("[The government] has every opportunity to check out and judge the credibility and truthfulness of Mr. Zane and Mr. Gilmore in this case, and in that context * * we offered you this testimony."); Dunn v. United States, 307 F.2d 883, 885 (5th Cir. 1962) ("This case is replete with fraud and is one of the most flagrant cases we have ever tried in the Southern District of Georgia.") We have also noted gross improprieties not resulting in reversals. See, e. g., Del Cristo v. United States, 327 F.2d 208, 209 (5th Cir. 1964) ("My final word, ladies and gentlemen, is my sincere belief and again I must say that defendant's counsel lead you to believe that I don't believe this story, that I am here because I have a job to do but I believe this man is guilty of the crime charged or I would not be standing here right now prosecuting him. * * "); Henderson v. United States, 218 F.2d 14, 19, 50 A.L. R.2d 754 (6th Cir.), cert. denied, 349 U.S. 920, 75 S.Ct. 660, 99 L.Ed. 1253 (1955) ("I am going [to prosecute] * * if I believe a man guilty. And if I don't believe he is guilty, no one is going to make me * * * prosecute him * * *."); United States v. Battiato, supra, 204 F.2d at 719 ("If I, in my own mind, thought for one minute that these defendants were not parties to this case I certainly would not have the courage to stand up here and argue before you that they were guilty. It is never our intention to prosecute and try innocent men.") All of these relied to some extent on the justifying effect of provocation, which we have said we do not recognize as automatically absolving the prosecutor. We have found no case reversing for a statement of as marginal an impropriety as that here considered, whether or not provocation was present. Had the district court granted the request and stricken these words, we do not see how appellants' position would have been improved. The facts surrounding Baron's testimony would necessarily be the battleground of the case Social Institutions Documents Similar To Raymond Patriarca v. United States of America, Ronald J. Cassesso v. United States of America, Henry Tameleo v. United States, 402 F.2d 314, 1st Cir. (1969) NewsTeam20 Steven Getman Anonymous 7EngESDPvM United States v. Leath, 4th Cir. (2001) Mock Trial.docx Patricia Baldonedo Government of the Virgin Islands v. Robert E. Williams, 438 F.2d 1085, 3rd Cir. (1971) Paris Reizakis v. Albert E. Loy, 490 F.2d 1132, 4th Cir. (1974) Continuous Trial System Clarissa Manuel 682 SCRA 724 United States v. Ivy Leo Cherry, 940 F.2d 653, 4th Cir. (1991) State v. Boucher, Ariz. Ct. App. (2016) Oregon Court of Appeals Ruling on Polk County conviction Statesman Journal United States v. George Crutcher, Hampton C. Hazel, Also Known as Robert Jones, and John Payne, 405 F.2d 239, 2d Cir. (1969) Popular in Justice LL.B. 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UNITED STATES FIRST AMENDED COMPLAINT FOR FORFEITURE FILED IN US DISTRICT COURT ON NOVEMBER 5, 2014.pdf Emanuel McCray United States v. Dagoberto Enamorado, 4th Cir. (2012) wulan TAX REV - Case Digests (Arce, Aya M.) Aya Arce Innocence of Muslims .. New Complaint jeff_roberts881 Employment Rights (Amendment)Act 2013 darksnow-skywalker Paul Casaje December 2013 Philippine Supreme Court Decisions on Civil Harold B. Lacaba Muhamet Muriqi v. Attorney General United States, 3rd Cir. (2014)	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6654
__label__cc	0.674318	0.325682	Arcana.fm Step into classical… Ten Pieces of Glass – An 80th Birthday Tribute to Philip Glass Posted on January 31, 2017 by arcanafm Today is the 80th birthday of one of the biggest composers of the ‘minimalist’ movement in music. Philip Glass, together with Steve Reich, Terry Riley and John Adams, has exerted considerable influence on today’s electronic music artists, and it’s easy to forget just how pioneering his works, the early ones in particular, still are. Within classical music circles there is a large group of people who think Glass has got lucky, and that his music is little more than repeated arpeggios that don’t really go anywhere. From personal experience I can see why some of the material in the more recent works gets tarred with that particular brush, but I also think that if you look in the right parts of Glass’s massive compositional output there are many treasures to be found. Steve Reich might be regarded as the more trendy composer, being referenced by pop acts as an influence with great regularity. Yet while he worked recently with Radiohead material in Radio Rewrite, giving him extra credibility, let’s not forget Glass completed three symphonies based on themes by David Bowie and Brian Eno. Granted, Reich is probably more progressive in his musical thinking, and is certainly more economic with his musical material, but to assume his music is ‘better’ is to misunderstand Glass. There is definitely room for both! So to shout the corner of Reich’s former business partner – the two ran a removal business in the 1970s – here are my Ten Pieces of Glass, given in the order in which I discovered them: Company (1983) When I first heard the celebrated Kronos Quartet recording of this, Company – Glass’s String Quartet no.2 – it was the first time I had encountered the composer’s music. It had a lasting effect, for despite its incredible simplicity Company contains moving harmonic progressions and propulsive music that somehow serves as a soothing balm. All four movements are untitled, their only indication a metronome marking, but that only adds to the simplicity, and when the opening begins it is as though Glass has turned his attention back several centuries. Dances nos.1-5 (1980) When I first listened to this I remember my mother calling up the stairs to check my CD player wasn’t malfunctioning! Dance no.1 is a confrontational listen but in the best possible way, hurling joyful notes at its listener without ceasing. It is a strange but rather wonderful ritual: Dance no.4, meanwhile, visits another world entirely, and once heard on the church organ is unlikely to be forgotten. The recording I have in mind is that by Christopher Bowers-Broadbent, recorded in great splendour by ECM, though the original from the composer himself is very fine too. The arpeggios are pure Glass, but once the circular harmonic progression begins the listener is invited on a flight of fancy that gets ever more powerful as it moves on: Powaqqatsi (1988) In contrast the music Glass’s score for the film Powaqqatsi goes straight for the jugular as soon as it begins. Serra Pelada, the opening salvo, has a rush of saxophones and rocking children’s voices, a real thrill for the senses from start to finish: One of the film scores that got Glass his name as a composer for the big screen was his music for Francis Ford Coppola’s Koyaanisqatsi in 1983. The soundtrack is one of those ‘once heard, never forgotten’ moments, the slow-moving organ and subterranean bass voice combining to make a sonorous yet otherworldly sound. Metamorphosis One from Solo Piano (1988) This piece is simplicity itself – no doubt one of the reasons you’re just as likely to hear it in Café Nero as anywhere else. There are three very basic strands to the music – the stern opening chords, then an oscillating arpeggio, then a statement from the right hand that takes a slightly unexpected harmonic twist. It’s that twist that sets Glass apart and gives the music its uncertain air. Early keyboard Music Glass’s early work has absolutely no frills, as the titles prove. Music in Contrary Motion, Two Pages and Mad Rush – all contain music of the utmost simplicity, with notes running in sequence or against each other. And yet the energy conjured up here is remarkable, and as the pieces continue a trance can fall over the listener. Steffen Schleiermacher’s recordings of these are highly recommended, but in their absence here is an alternative arrangement of Two Pages (1968): Symphony no.3 (1995) The most concise of Glass’s eleven works in the form, the Third Symphony tones down the excesses of the Second to offer a piece for 19 stringed instruments that is a remarkable work of economy. Different sides of the string orchestra talk to each other, exchanging ideas over an impressive dynamic range – the second movement could be lifted from a Shostakovich scherzo. It is, like Company, music that talks with the utmost simplicity to leave a lasting impression: Satyagraha (1979) Some time ago, English National Opera delivered a winning setting of Glass’s opera about Mahatma Gandhi. The crucial element in their success was the use of remarkable visual props to complement the colourful, trance-like music. Not only that, the staging confirmed that Glass’s music is so much more than Western classical – it searches out other customs, religions and cultures on its path. Very little happens in the plot of Satyagraha but that’s not really the point, for as the music unfolds this becomes a surprisingly stirring statement and tribute to the work of Gandhi. Repetitious it may be, but again with each statement of his material Glass focuses the listener’s mind on only one thing. Symphony no.7, ‘Toltec’ (2005) Some of the classical world get a bit annoyed that Glass calls these works ‘symphonies’, as though they are not deserving of the title. Yet works like the Toltec symphony, performed at the BBC Proms back in 2009, prove that whatever label you put on it, this is a deeply meaningful and powerful piece of work. Glass’s ‘Choral’ symphony has music of grace and power that moves surprisingly close to the world of Bruckner in its tactful use of silence. (not available on Spotify) Escape from The Hours (2002) This proves that Glass is not all boundless energy and fast-moving arpeggios. On the playlist, Amy Dickson’s soulful saxophone is the icing on the cake on this haunting piece of music – yet further proof that Glass can write film music with lasting appeal. This entry was posted in Uncategorized and tagged Philip Glass by arcanafm. Bookmark the permalink. © Ben Hogwood and Arcana.fm, 2015. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this site’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Ben Hogwood and Arcana with appropriate and specific direction to the original content	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6655
__label__cc	0.533933	0.466067	National Geographic : 1938 Sep TRANS-AFRICA SAFARI BEDLAM BREAKS LOOSE WHEN THE LAMIDO IS READY TO APPEAR IN PUBLIC Faithful subjects, frenzied by the news that the ruler of Rei Bouba is to sally forth before their eyes, gather before his palace and create as much noise as possible to show their delight. Some twang crude stringed instruments, others blow blasts on trumpets; but most merely shout. Only once or twice a year does the monarch leave his dwelling. On this occasion, he emerged to permit the authors to take his picture. Ice the Lamido had never seen; and he was most puzzled by the "hard water that burned the hand." But when we set up the sound-recording apparatus, had him say a few words into the microphone, followed by some of the court chanters, and then played the recording back to him immediately, he was overcome. We presented him with a record which he gravely hung about his neck, on a cord, as a truly potent juju. After four days, when Tom had photo graphed the local population and the army to a state of exhaustion, we took a pro longed farewell from the Lamido. A con tingent of cavalry escorted us to the river frontier. North of Garoua we spent several days in the mountains, with an officer from the fort, visiting the savage pagan tribes that inhabit these fastnesses. We stopped at a tiny village of four grass huts with only one old man in sight. The officer told him to call the tribe. This he did by letting out a series of piercing yells that echoed and re-echoed from the crags. There were answering yells and soon black figures, like a troop of baboons, came clambering over the rocks. The men and women of the tribe gath ered in a little band before the huts, and at the finish of the talk broke into a dance. A quick "trucking" tempo was thumped on the drums; the men and women divided into two lines, faced each other, and did a sort of Virginia reel. We were not sorry to leave these primi tive hill people of the filed teeth. One minute they are doing a dance for you, and gratefully accepting your salt, while the next they are hidden behind rocks taking pot shots at you with poisoned arrows. Just before we left, the little gorilla died. He had been ill for a fortnight and getting steadily worse. The fact that we could no longer get the fresh fruits of the coastal belt probably was responsible. Peggy and the boy who had charge of him nursed him very tenderly for days. Poli Poll would hold her hand like a baby while she brushed flies off him and fed him a teaspoonful of milk or rice water every few minutes. We were 355 1938 Aug	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6657
__label__wiki	0.629268	0.629268	Salt Lake City to recognize opposition to 'Citizens United' ruling · December 9, 2014 7:43 am Mayor Ralph Becker and the City Council are scheduled to sign a joint resolution Tuesday recognizing opposition to the 2010 "Citizens United" Supreme Court decision that opened funding floodgates in political campaigns. The action, set for 7 p.m. in the City Council chambers, 451 S. State, would acknowledge that 89 percent of Salt Lake City voters who responded to the city's 2013 opinion question opposed the "Citizens United" ruling. It ruling found that corporations were people and money was speech and government could not legally restrict independent political contributions. According to a statement from the Utah Chapter of the national grassroots organization called Move to Amend, Salt Lake City will join over 600 U.S. cities opposed to the Supreme Court ruling. "This marks the end of Phase One of the Move to Amend, Utah Chapter effort," the statement said. "And is the beginning of Phase Two, which seeks an ordinance to ban contributions by corporations at the city level and limit individual contributions to no more than $500." Christopher Smart	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6659
__label__wiki	0.503637	0.503637	Items Florida Express. Florida Express. The Miriam and Ira D. Wallach Division of Art, Prints and Photographs: Photography Collection Image ID G92F134_009F Stereoscopic views of Florida. Additional title: American views ; Standard series. Shelf locator: MFY Dennis Coll 92-F134 Carts & wagons RLIN/OCLC: NYPG92-F134 Universal Unique Identifier (UUID): 8fd734a0-c537-012f-14a4-58d385a7bc34 The Miriam and Ira D. Wallach Division of Art, Prints and Photographs: Photography Collection, The New York Public Library. "Florida Express." The New York Public Library Digital Collections. 1850 - 1930. http://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/510d47e0-bb62-a3d9-e040-e00a18064a99 The Miriam and Ira D. Wallach Division of Art, Prints and Photographs: Photography Collection, The New York Public Library. "Florida Express." New York Public Library Digital Collections. Accessed July 17, 2019. http://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/510d47e0-bb62-a3d9-e040-e00a18064a99 The Miriam and Ira D. Wallach Division of Art, Prints and Photographs: Photography Collection, The New York Public Library. (1850 - 1930). Florida Express. Retrieved from http://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/510d47e0-bb62-a3d9-e040-e00a18064a99 <ref name=NYPL>{{cite web \| url=http://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/510d47e0-bb62-a3d9-e040-e00a18064a99 \| title= (still image) Florida Express., (1850 - 1930) }} \|author=Digital Collections, The New York Public Library \|accessdate=July 17, 2019 \|publisher=The New York Public Library, Astor, Lennox, and Tilden Foundation}}</ref>	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6660
__label__cc	0.660405	0.339595	Study of factorial moments and intermittency in pp collisions at [special characters omitted]= 13 TeV Khadeejah Mohammed ALGhadeer, Louisiana Tech University Lee Sawyer Modeling of the charged-particle multiplicity dependence on transverse momentum, pseudorapidity and the relationship between the mean transverse momentum and charged-particle multiplicity are presented for pp collisions at center of mass energy [special characters omitted]= 13 TeV with two different Monte Carlo event generators, Pythia 8 and Herwig++ 2.7.1, including studies of light quarks and heavy quarks, tt production. The results are achieved with charged particles with transverse momentum larger than 500 MeV and absolute pseudorapidity less than 3, in events with at least one charged particle, and in events with at least six charged particles filling these kinematic requirements. Intermittency studyies the distributions of particles in the phase-space regions to analyze the dynamics of hadroproduction. Intermittency is an increase of factorial moments with decreasing bin size, where dynamical fluctuations are noticed. In this dissertation, the study of intermittency phenomena and correlations of multiplicities of charged particles in one-dimensional phase-space of rapidity are presented. The aim of this analysis is to study the dynamical correlations of many-particle systems that are produced in pp collisions carried out at higher energies, where one cannot separate lower-order correlations from higher-order correlations. Theoretical approaches do not explain the origin of the dynamical fluctuations. The behaviors of particle distributions that are intermittent provide a strong test of QCD. The interactions with a small number of very hard scattering processes is more sensitive to multi-particle correlations. The structure of the cascade of the gluon-quark fragmentation characterizes multifractal shapes of the multi-particles by Renyi dimensions D q which depend on the rank q. ALGhadeer, Khadeejah Mohammed, "" (2016). Dissertation. 125.	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6661
__label__wiki	0.946108	0.946108	LacrosseMen's LacrosseSports Maryland men’s lacrosse overcomes Towson in 14-13 NCAA tournament victory Eric Myers·@EricMyers531·May 12, 2019 Maryland men’s lacrosse beat Towson in overtime, 14-13, in the first round of the NCAA tournament May 12, 2019. (Julia Nikhinson/The Diamondback) TOWSON, Md. — Maryland men’s lacrosse senior defender Curtis Corley struggled to hold back laughter and a smile during the Terps’ postgame press conference. Minutes later, when it was Towson’s time to meet with the media, senior attackman Brendan Sunday fought back tears as he reflected on his college career. The juxtaposition captured the reality of an NCAA tournament game, especially an overtime contest with an abrupt ending that followed a winding battle of back-and-forth scoring runs. Seated to Corley’s left was the overtime hero for the Terps, attackman Louis Dubick. Over halfway through the extra session, Dubick freed himself in the middle with an off-ball cut, reeled in a pass and finished the game-winning goal to extend Maryland’s season with a 14-13 win over Towson at Johnny Unitas Stadium on Sunday. “These are the games, especially at the end of the year, it’s hard to see either team lose,” Maryland coach John Tillman said. “That was a huge difference for us. … The ability to kind of hang in there and fight and get the next play.” The Terps’ resiliency was a welcome sight for Tillman after two straight losses to Johns Hopkins ended the regular season and bumped them from the Big Ten tournament. In those defeats, which left Maryland unseeded in the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2012, early leads turned into blowout losses. On Sunday in the first round, though, Tillman’s team needed to lean on a mental toughness that didn’t appear in its last two losses. The Terps fell behind 1-0, faced a trying second quarter and needed an unlikely sequence to even force overtime. In the improbable ending to regulation that preceded Dubick’s game-winning goal, Towson ran the shot clock all the way down before attempting a shot that would have all but sealed its spot in the quarterfinal round. After that try sailed wide, the Tigers surrendered possession on a shot clock violation, giving the Terps one last chance with 28 seconds remaining. “I felt very confident,” Towson coach Shawn Nadelen said. “I had all the confidence that the guys were gonna buckle down and be strong on-ball, be disciplined off-ball and cover up what we needed to.” Needing to go the full length of the field to find the tying score, Maryland overcame an aggressive Towson ride and cleared the ball. Upon clearing, the ball ended up in freshman midfielder Kyle Long’s stick. Despite the single-digit numbers on the clock, the freshman calmly waited out a pass until attackman Jared Bernhardt opened himself up. Upon catching Long’s feed, Bernhardt quickly squared himself for a shot and delivered past goalkeeper Tyler Canto. “I just thought the offense, when they got the ball, they knew exactly what they were doing,” Corley said. “Our offense just really canned the looks that they had to can today.” Capitalizing on offensive opportunities was imperative for Tillman’s squad given the disparity it faced at the faceoff X, where Towson won 21-of-30 draws. Senior faceoff specialist Alex Woodall, who entered the game second in the country with a 74.5 faceoff win percentage, returned from injury for Towson and showed no ill effects. Woodall’s faceoff success played a key role in Towson opening up a four-goal lead in the second quarter, turning a tied game at the end of the first period into a 7-3 advantage. Attackman Logan Wisnauskas and midfielder Bubba Fairman added scores at the end of the first half to narrow the Terps’ halftime deficit to 7-5. The possession advantage continued in the second half for the home team, but Maryland goalkeeper Danny Dolan helped his team stay close — as he did all day with 15 saves — with five third-quarter stops. During that third quarter, the Terps tied the game at 8-8 with an extra-man goal from Dubick. But Towson answered with goals from attackman Brody McLean — off a feed from midfielder Timmy Monahan, who transferred to Towson from Maryland — and Sunday to reclaim the lead at 10-8 and set the stage for the final 15 minutes. In the fourth quarter, the teams exchanged scores, with a total of eight goals, three ties and two lead changes. “It was a little bit of a boxing match,” Nadelen said. “Exchanging blows. We had some lulls in our play, both offensively and defensively, and they capitalized. We created opportunities and we capitalized.” Sunday gave Towson what would be its final lead of the game at 13-12 with 1:50 remaining, and set up a crucial draw for possession. Midfielder Wesley Janeck was inserted as a change-of-pace faceoff specialist for Maryland and found the most success in terms of percentage against Woodall, going 3-for-11. But even though Janeck didn’t allow the star specialist to win the draw cleanly, Towson still collected possession. Towson, however, could not finish off its chance to end the Terps’ season off of that draw. And it failed to do so once again on the opening faceoff win in overtime. During the overtime’s first possession, Maryland long-stick midfielder Matt Rahill forced a turnover with a tipped pass. Less than a minute later, Dubick’s goal incited a jubilant celebration as players spilled onto the field from the Maryland sideline. “It’s special. A moment I’ll never forget,” said Dubick, a third-generation Maryland lacrosse player. “This week, we kinda felt it — like we had something special going.” The journey for this Maryland team will continue on Saturday against third-seeded Virginia in the quarterfinals in Hempstead, New York. “I’m just smiling,” Corley said. “Having another week with these guys is just amazing. [We’re] just embracing the moments that we have together.”	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6669
__label__wiki	0.891579	0.891579	SpiceJet-Emirates MoU signals wider partnership ahead By DB POST Digital // April 22, 2019 New Delhi:In what suggests a beginning of larger partnership, low-cost carrier SpiceJet has announced to enter into a code-share agreement with Dubai’s flag carrier Emirates. The development assumes significance as grounded Jet Airways’ resurrection seems difficult throwing opportunity for other carriers to grab. So far, SpiceJet has led the race of capturing the domestic market share by inducting dozens of Jet’s grounded B737 aircraft. Abu Dhabi-based Etihad has 24 per cent strategic stake in now-grounded Jet Airways. Following the strategic investment, the two carriers significantly raised flight numbers on India-Abu Dhabi route and bolstered onward connect ions. “SpiceJet, India’s favourite carrier, and Emirates have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to enter into a reciprocal codeshare agreement, which is set to open new routes and destinations for passengers travelling between India and popular destinations across America, Europe, Africa and the Middle East,” the Gurugram-based carrier said in a statement. The airline Chairman and Managing Director Ajay Singh said that the MoU is part of the airline’s international expansion strategy. “This new partnership should immensely benefit passengers travelling on both airlines. While SpiceJet passengers from across India will be able to enjoy seamless connectivity leveraging Emirates vast network across Europe, Africa, America and the Middle East, those travelling to India on Emirates will b e able to travel to 51 destinations across our domestic network,” he said. SpiceJet had last Thursday had said it will induct as many as 27 planes in a record time of less than two weeks. The low-cost carrier is the second biggest carrier by domestic market share of 13.7 per cent (as on February). It has a fleet of 48 Boeing 737s, 27 Bombardier Q-400s and one B737 freighter. (With inputs from IANS)	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6670
__label__wiki	0.96179	0.96179	← Public Health Profiles 2016 (Public Health England) Seven Day Hospital Pharmacy Services (NHS England / BBC News) → National Advisory Group on Health Information Technology in England: New Wachter Report (Department of Health / BBC News) The National Advisory Group on Health Information Technology in England, chaired by US clinician / digital expert Professor Robert Wachter, has produced a report on achieving “digital excellence” in the NHS. New / extended digital services for patients have been announced. Full Text Link New plans to expand the use of digital technology across the NHS. London: Department of Health and Rt Hon Jeremy Hunt MP, September 7th 2016. Using information technology to improve the NHS. London: Department of Health, September 7th 2016. This relates to: Wachter, RM. Chair (2016). Making IT work: harnessing the power of health information technology to improve care in England. Report of the National Advisory Group on Health Information Technology in England. Robert M. Wachter MD, Chair. London [Online]: Department of Health, August 2016. There is also an Executive Summary. NHS: health apps to inform patient records. London: BBC Health News, September 7th 2016. Digital Exemplars Twelve NHS hospital trusts have been selected to be “Digital Exemplars” in the exploration of digital technology for the achievement of improvements in patient care: 12 NHS Hospital trusts to trail blaze NHS’s Digital Revolution. [Online]: NHS England, September 7th 2016. An earlier announcement on funding: NHS to get £4bn in drive for ‘paperless’ health service. London: BBC Health News, February 7th 2016. About Dementia and Elderly Care News Dementia and Elderly Care News. Wolverhampton Medical Institute: WMI. (jh) View all posts by Dementia and Elderly Care News → This entry was posted in Acute Hospitals, Assistive Technology, BBC News, Commissioning, Community Care, Department of Health, For Carers (mostly), For Doctors (mostly), For Nurses and Therapists (mostly), For Researchers (mostly), For Social Workers (mostly), In the News, Integrated Care, National, NHS, NHS England, Person-Centred Care, Personalisation, Quick Insights, Standards, Telecare, Telehealth, UK, Universal Interest and tagged Access to Electronic Care Records, Access to Personal Health Records Online, Ageing Population, Andy Williams: NHS Digital Chief Executive, Back-End Systems, BBC Health News, Blue Button app (USA), Brief History of NPfIT Failings, Business Process Support, Cambridge University Hospitals (Addenbrooke’s), Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (CUH), CCIO Leaders Network Advisory Panel, Chief Clinical Information Officers (CCIOs), Collaboration for Leadership in Applied Health Research and Care (CLAHRC), Connecting Patient Facing and Enterprise Health IT Systems, Culture Change in Health and Care, Data Security, Data Sharing, Digital Awareness, Digital by Default, Digital Capability, Digital Care Records, Digital Data Capture, Digital Diagnostics, Digital Excellence, Digital Exemplars, Digital Health, Digital Innovation, Digital Innovations in Health, Digital Maturity, Digital Maturity Assessments, Digital Maturity Index, Digital Maturity Self-Assessment by Secondary Care Providers, Digital NHS, Digital Roadmaps, Digital Service Transformation, Digital Services for Patients, Digital Skills, Digital Skills of NHS Workforce, Digital Skills Training, Digital Technology, Digital Technology and Innovation, Efficiencies and Productivity Gains, Efficiency and Effectiveness, Efficiency Opportunities, Efficiency Savings, Electronic Booking, Electronic Care Planning, Electronic Care Record (ECR), Electronic Health Records, Electronic Health Records (EHRs), Electronic Medical Record Adoption Model (EMRAM), Electronic Medicines Management, Electronic Palliative Care Coordinating Systems (EPaCCS), Electronic Patient Record (EPR), Electronic Patient Record Systems, Electronic Patient Records: NHS, Electronic Prescription Service (EPS), EMRAM Ratings, EPIC IT System for Clinical Records (Addenbrooke’s), Epic's eHospital System, Eric Brynjolfsson's Productivity Paradox, Faculty of Clinical Informatics, Five Year Forward View (NHS England), Former Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt, Future NHS Digital Landscape, Global Digital Excellence, Go Paperless by 2020, GP Computer Systems, GP Systems of Choice (GPSoC), Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust, Health and Care of Older People, Health and Care Technology, Health Apps, Health Information Exchange (HIE), Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act (HITECH), Improving Access to Diagnostics, Improving Access to Healthcare, Increasing the Value of Information, Information and Data Linkage to Support Transformation, Information and Intelligence, Information and Support for Patients and Carers, Information Exchange, Information Needs of Patients, Information Pathways, Information Revolution, Information Sharing, Information Sharing: Care Plans, Integrated Digital Care Records (IDCRs), Integrated Digital Care: An Information Revolution, Integrated Health and Care Records, Integration of Health and Care, Interoperability, Interoperability Standards, Interoperable Electronic Health Records, Library of NHS Assessed apps, Local Digital Roadmaps, Local Health and Care Services, Local Service Providers (LSPs), Luton ad Dunstable University Hospital NHS Trust (Digital Exemplar), Making IT Work: Harnessing the Power of Health Information Technology to Improve Care in England (2016), Managing Patient Flow, Meaningful Use (aka Meaningless Abuse in USA), Meaningful Use Criteria, Medical apps, Milestones in Digitising the NHS, MyNHS, MyNHS: Information on Performance of Health Services, National Advisory Group on Health Information Technology in England, National Chief Clinical Information Officer (CCIO), National Information Board (NIB), National Information Board’s Plans to Improve Digital Services in Health and Care, National IT Network (N3), National Programme for Information Technology, National Programme for Information Technology (NPfIT), National Reporting and Learning System (NRLS), NHS as Digital Pioneer, NHS Centres of Global Digital Excellence, NHS Choices Re-Named as NHS.UK, NHS Choices Relaunched as NHS.UK, NHS Connecting for Health (NHS CfH), NHS Digital Academy, NHS Digital Ecosystem, NHS Digital Excellence, NHS Electronic Patient Records, NHS Endorsement Model for apps, NHS Endorsement of Third Party Apps and Digital Services, NHS England's Digital Technology Team, NHS Five Year Forward View, NHS Health and Care Innovation Expo (2016), NHS Investment in Digital Technology and Infrastructure, NHS Workforce, NHS-Approved Health apps, NHS.UK: Formerly NHS Choices, NHS’s Chaotic IT Systems, Office of the National Coordinator for Healthcare Information Technology (ONC), Online Triage Service (NHS 111 Non-Emergency Service), Optimising Benefits of Digital Technology, Optimising Patient Outcomes Using Digital Technology, Optimising Use of Digital Technology, Overall Failure of NPfIT, Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (Digital Exemplar), Oxford University Hospitals NHS Trust, Paper-Free NHS, Paperless Systems, Patient Access to Records, Patient Choice, Patient Choice Framework, Patient Facing Portals, Patient Portals, Phased Digitisation, Picture Archiving and Communications System (PACS), Productivity Improvements, Productivity in NHS Hospitals, Productivity Paradox (Eric Brynjolfsson), Professional Record Standards Body (PRSB), Professor Bob Wachter: IT Exoert, Professor Keith McNeil: Chief Clinical Information Officer at NHS England, Professor Robert Wachter: University of California San Francisco (UCSF), Real Time Locating Software (RTLS), Reducing Digital Illiteracy, Reducing Drains on the NHS, Reducing Expenditure, Reducing Harm, Reducing Health Inequalities, Reducing Waste in the NHS, Royal College of General Practitioners – British Medical Association Joint Computer Group (RCGP-BMA JCG), Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust (Digital Exemplar), Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen University Hospitals NHS Trust (Digital Exemplar), Rt Hon Jeremy Hunt MP: Former Secretary of State for Health, Salford Royal Hospitals NHS Trust, Salford Royal Hospitals NHS Trust (Digital Exemplar), Service Redesign for Productivity, Services Maximising Reducing Use of Hospitals, Smartphone and Tablet Apps, Smartphone apps, Summary Care Records (SCRs), Supporting Patient Choice, Sustainability and Transformation Plan (STP), Sustainable Health and Care Services, Taunton and Somerset NHS Foundation Trust, Taunton and Somerset NHS Foundation Trust (Digital Exemplar), TeleTracking, Trafford Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG), Transformational Technologies, Transformative Technology, Transforming Participation in Health and Care, UK’s National Programme for Information Technology (NPfIT), University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust, University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust (Digital Exemplar), University Hospitals Bristol NHS Foundation Trust, University Hospitals Bristol NHS Foundation Trust (Digital Exemplar), University Hospitals Southampton NHS Foundation Trust, University Hospitals Southampton NHS Foundation Trust (Digital Exemplar), User-Centered Design, Vital Signs Monitoring, West Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust, West Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust (Digital Exemplar), Wirral University Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, Wirral University Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust (Digital Exemplar), Workforce Competencies, Workforce Development, Workforce of Trained Clinician-Informaticists, Workforce of Trained Clinician-Informaticists at Trust Level, Workforce Training, Working Across Boundaries. 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__label__wiki	0.572175	0.572175	Created by Meg Albus, last modified on Feb 27, 2019 Are you using the Media Manager API? Click here for Media Manager developer documentation Please submit a support ticket to request access to the Media Manager console. Already have a Media Manager login? Start adding content Media Manager is a content management system (CMS) used by the PBS community to publish and distribute videos across platforms. It seeks to improve the way stations, producers, and users search and view digital content, and provides the ability to organize, relate, and present it in ways that streamline searchability. What does all of that mean? Generally speaking, it means that searching for videos on PBS.org and station and producer sites is now much easier than ever. When your video is mapped properly in Media Manager, it's possible to locate it through more granular searches such as through a particular show within a season or a specific episode within a show. Your video content can be organized within the following categories: Some key features of Media Manager include: Detailed and organized digital assets. New and improved console. Auto-detection and manual selection of time zone. Enhanced metadata and detailed hierarchy allowing viewers to easily find a specific episode of a show. Detailed presentation of shows, including season, episode, and special. Presentation of videos by availability (e.g.: pre-air, just-aired, Passport, expired). A history feature that logs and tracks all changes in the CMS. Franchise/Show genre mapping right from the console. Content sharing between PBS stations. Ability to embed video on third party websites. The following diagram illustrates the relationship between each object in Media Manager. It shows which objects can hold clips, previews, or full length video assets and displays the relationship between franchises, shows, collections, seasons, specials, and episodes. Ready to begin using the Media Manager console? Let's get started! Visit the FAQ page for answers to your questions and quick tutorials on how to perform common tasks in Media Manager. Audience and Availability Rules How to Rearrange or Reassign Content Remote Assets Image and Text Specs Video Specs History Logging	cc/2019-30/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line6678

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