Upsetting the Applecart
Donald Trump called for a boycott, although only after he had “just thought of it.”[1] Bill Gates, initially at least, thought it was fully justified. Edward Snowden called it “the most important tech issue in a decade” and of course for Tim Cook, CEO of Apple, it is not just an issue of “privacy as a fundamental human right”, but indeed an issue of personal security versus public security.[2] It is risking “something more important than money – we risk our way of life.”[3] Most of Silicon Valley has rallied to Tim Cook’s support. Naturally, the FBI and government think otherwise. But what does the public think about it?
As far as the immediate issue is concerned it is all about whether or not the iPhone of Syed Rizwan Farook could contain vital information about his act of terrorism, apparently in sympathy with ISIS, in the county of San Bernardino, California. The federal authorities obtained a court injunction under the All Writs Act of 1789 that in essence gives US government agencies the right, in the absence of any specific law, to demand access to data when issues of national security are involved. According to the federal authorities, this is a reasonable demand and a reasonable use of the Act in this specific case. But it isn’t quite that specific. The federal case was upset by a subsequent ruling in the New York Eastern District court which turned down a request by the federal authorities in a drugs case to require Apple to access data on an iPhone using the same All Writs Act. The judge ruled that such an expansive interpretation of the Act would “cast doubt on its constitutionality if adopted.”[4] Round One to Apple and a raspberry to the Feds.
So much for the law and its interpretation. What about the privacy, private and public security issues, which are after all what most folk are concerned with. Apple lost no time in pointing out that the owners of the iPhone, the San Bernardino public health department, had chosen not to pay for the $4 a month mobile device management system that would have opened the phone, while the Feds had messed up when trying to crack the phone’s password by instructing San Bernardino to change its iCloud password. Now they wanted Apple to write a code, basically a new operating system that would by-pass the mechanism which wipes the data from the phone after 10 failed password attempts. Slightly hypocritical of Apple to say you could have opened it easily, but we won’t help you?[5]
So, story so far: the federal authorities say this is a one-off for this particular phone given the terrorist implications. Everyone knows this is not a one-off as the drugs case illustrates. Does that invalidate the Fed’s argument, not about the use of the law, but about the rights and wrongs of the case? Apple does not appear to deny the reasons for wanting to crack open the phone, but they argue that once such a new code is written it cannot be unwritten. Like the H-bomb, once one country or person has it then many will have it, and the world moves onto a new level of risk and insecurity. The argument appears to be in the best traditions of sophistry. H-bombs threaten life; insecure iPhones do not, and may even protect life. The difference, of course, is between private and public security, as indeed Apple has argued. The Apple argument grows stronger when it has to be admitted that iPhones today, Internet-of-Things tomorrow, and so on. It is the ubiquity that gives rise to genuine fears. If the insecurity stopped with iPhones, only Apple’s share of the smartphone market would be at stake. President Obama has added his thoughts: ““It’s fetishizing our phones above every other value and that can’t be the right answer. I suspect the answer is going to come down to how do we create a system that the encryption is as strong as possible, the key is as secure as possible, it is accessible by the smallest number of people possible for a subset of issues that we agree are important.” [6]
The arguments about how important is personal privacy and security versus public is, to put it bluntly, irresolvable. It will always be a balance and the balance will shift according to circumstances. Governments will always exaggerate and vendors will always downplay. Technophiles and anti-state conspiracy theorists will always get indignant, xenophobes and nationalists will always champion state security, and most of the rest of us will either be bemused or blasé. But for the immediate future, one question seems to hang in the balance, namely if Apple are so very concerned that once they have written an un-password code they will be the subject to continual hacking attempts, why cannot very ingenious hackers write such a code themselves? And according to Wired magazine, not only has one Israeli company called Cellebrite done just that, but the FBI even has a contract with it.[7] Of course, it is entirely possible that the NSA has done likewise and do not want to reveal it by sharing with the FBI. Anything is possible in this weird world of insecurity. Recently, FBI Director James Comey, argued before the House Judiciary Committee hearing on encryption that he had faith in Apple’s ability to safeguard any iPhone password by-pass programme.[8] That may prove to be a moot point. But at least Donald Trump seems to be on the side of openness and transparency on behalf of public security, which is probably going to swing a lot of serious-minded people to support Apple. I just thought of that.
[1] AFP News 20 February 2016, “Trump calls for Apple boycott”, https://sg.news.yahoo.com/trump-calls-apple-boycott-011256547.html
[2] See all these quotes in the Wall Street Journal 19-21st Feb 2016, p.A5
[3] Financial Times 20/21 February 2016, “Apple Chief takes the fight over privacy to Washington”, p.11
[4] New York Times 29 February 2016, “Apple Wins Ruling in New York iPhone Hacking Order”,
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/03/01/technology/apple-wins-ruling-in-new-york-iphone-hacking-order.html
[5] New York Times 1 March 2016, “F.B.I. Error Locked San Bernardino Attacker’s iPhone”
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/03/02/technology/apple-and-fbi-face-off-before-house-judiciary-committee.html
[6] ABC News, “President Obama Urges Americans Not to Be ‘Absolutist’ in FBI, Apple Debate”
http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/president-obama-urges-americans-absolutist-fbi-apple-debate/story?id=37579367
[7] Wired Magazine 2 March 2016, “How the Feds Could Get Into iPhones Without Apple’s Help” http://www.wired.com/2016/03/feds-might-get-iphones-without-apples-help/
[8] The Wall Street Journal 3 March 2016, “FBI: ‘Mistake’ Made Over iPhone”
Tagged with: apple, encryption, fbi, johnure, justathought


Carolyn was born on June 25, 1964 and passed away on Friday, February 2, 2018. Carolyn was a resident of Empire, Alabama at the time of passing. Funeral services will be 12:00 PM Wednesday, February 7, 2018 at Bell Sumiton Chapel with burial in Little Vine Cemetery. Visitation will be 11:00 AM to 12:00 PM Wednesday at the funeral home Bro. Otto Tolbert will officiate.


Resolution – ulimited. Organized Layers and folders. Editable.
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YFU USA Treasurer and Chair of the Finance Committee Martin Nichols is the Chief Information Officer at Altair Engineering Inc. Nichols oversees Altair's global IT and communications infrastructure, their enterprise business systems and corporate human resources.
Martin Nichols of Bloomfield Hills, Michigan is the Chief Information Officer at Altair Engineering Inc. As CIO, Nichols oversees Altair's global IT and communications infrastructure, their enterprise business systems and corporate human resources. He was previously Altair's Executive VP of Global Alliances and Operations. Since joining Altair in 1992, Nichols' accomplishments include opening and managing the UK operation as well as directly managing the China operations. He also helped develop Altair's operations, business presence and distribution channels in several other global markets, including Spain, France, India and Brazil. Nichols volunteered with the US Peace Corps in Lesotho and then spent two more years’ in-country working on a USAID-funded project. Nichols received his Bachelor’s in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Michigan in 1986.


Which All-Star festivities are the best?
By Bay Area Duck Guy
The Major League Baseball All-Star festivities are fast approaching, and it got me thinking: which league’s All-Star festivities are the best?
Each league has a pretty similar approach to the festivities, but there are some differences.
Here is a breakdown of each league:
Pro Bowl played in Hawaii each year the week before the Super Bowl.
Rosters voted on by fans, players, and coaches – each accounts for one-third of the vote.
Although the NFL has the least amount of extra festivities around the All-Star game, it draws higher television ratings than any other sport. The last Pro Bowl was reported to have 13.5 million viewers. Despite the high ratings, many fans (and media) were not fond of the game because, as the article previously linked puts it, players were “hitting each other as though they were having a pillow fight.”
Game takes place in February each year, around the half-way point in the season in a different venue each year.
Starters for Eastern and Western Conference teams are voted on by fans, rest of roster filled out by coaches vote (coaches cannot vote for their own players).
Dunk Contest, 3-Point Shootout, and other skills competitions accompany the game as part of the festivities.
Rookie-Sophomore game takes place.
Celebrity-Legends game takes place as well.
The NBA has done a good job in the last few years making the All-Star Weekend a celebration of the sport and its athletes while keeping fans connected to the festivities. Fans have a huge say in the Dunk Contest because voting for the champion is done via fans text messaging in their vote.
A professor of mine at the University of Oregon’s Warsaw Sports Marketing Center, Paul Swangard, often remarks about the high quality of the marketing done by the NBA, and told my class that they do it best based on their advertising, fan connection, and celebratory feeling.
Although not as lackluster as the Pro Bowl, the NBA All-Star game is not a true basketball game until the fourth quarter when the teams start to buckle down. Until then, it’s pretty much a playground game (usually), which can be fun to watch in its own regard.
Roster selection seems to be a happy medium in this case where fans control who starts but coaches control the rest of the roster. However, players are removed from the mix, which seems a little unfortunate since it is a celebration of the talent of the players.
Game played at a different ball park each season on second Tuesday in July (hence the nickname “Midsummer Classic”).
Starters determined by fan voting, roster filled out by players ballot and manager selections.
Accompanied by Home Run Derby every year the day before.
Celebrity-Legends Softball game played as well.
Players wear their own team uniforms during the game rather than a new uniformed denoting which All-Star squad they are a part of.
Despite its problems, the MLB All-Star game probably has the most tradition and importance of all of the leagues. This makes the game more intense, and it is marketed accordingly.
Recently, the Home Run Derby has become more fantasy-like with the players actually picking the teams. It’s clear this has made it a bit more fun for the players (just look at how into it they all are while watching the Derby), but it’s also helped downplay the worry that the Derby curses players for the remainder of the season since the players who participate really want to.
Game played at season’s midway point in January.
Rosters selected by fans and NHL Hockey Operations Department.
Rather than having East vs. West, the teams are picked through a fantasy draft conducted by the players themselves.
Game accompanied by Skills Competition.
Talk about making it fun for the players. Each team captain (chosen by his peers) gets the chance to put together a true dream team from a pool of the best players the NHL has to offer. Ratings wise, the NHL is the least popular sport in the United States, but this change has begun to pick up some momentum for the NHL All-Star festivities as other leagues are beginning to do similar fantasy-style drafts in their festivities.
All in all, each league does things a little different. MLB has the tradition, the NHL has the new idea, the NBA has the celebration package, and the NFL has the viewers (although I’m still not sure why based on the way the players play the game).
It seems that only time will tell if the NHL’s new format will really catch on, but it certainly has potential. MLB still has the most important game, but the NBA has a better package for the fans.
Which league has the best All-Star festivites?
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The Building Products Connection magazine arrived in the mail yesterday, our first issue since joining the Northwestern Lumber Association as an Associate Member. The web edition is available here. There’s plenty of interesting information between the glossy ads – I was particularly drawn to an article entitled “The Facebook Employee: Employment Issues in a Web-Based World.” A lawyer, Ken Wentz cautions “the infusion of technology, electronic communications, and networking in the workplace carries risk.” And while he expresses the usual concern about the drain on productivity from “social NOTworking” sites, he acknowledges their power in generating contact lists, potentially leading to questions of ownership between employers and employees.


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A special thanks to Lampyridae who saved me the bother of finding the right thread. When you report off topic stuff (via report to mod) giving the place you suggest that we move things to? Really helps a lot and is really appreciated.
If the primary purpose of the domes are access to natural sunlight/outside view without a spacesuit, with plants in it for primarily psychological/aesthetic benefits (even if they are also edible plants), then they probably don't have to be all that large.
More, smaller domes might be better - less structurally demanding, and if the smaller domes have a higher glass-to-framework ratio, they might *feel* just as open if not more so.
If the domes are a primary food production area, though, you'd probably want them larger.
I renew my objection to any "window" exposed directly to a line of sight leading to the atmosphere on Mars. That atmosphere will hardly slow or filter or burn up incoming rocks or radiation of any kind, leaving a necessity for complex support and emergency repair systems as well as thicker and more complexly produced glass, itself.
I think the Mars atmosphere would stop micrometeorites. Larger meteorites probably are not common enough to worry about; even if the rate is 1000x what it is on Earth, what percentage of buildings on Earth have ever been damaged by meteorites?
Especially since the concept here seems to be domes as a fairly small portion of a mostly subterranean Mars colony ... they will not be very large targets.
Mirrors can be used to bring light and images (properly erected) to properly protected windows, but I have seen no evidence that lack of external lines of sight is the kind of psychological problem that has been evinced in theses parts.
I don't think there would be any way to get that evidence... You really don't have situations on Earth where people have no access to natural light/outdoor views for longer than, say, a nuclear sub tour of duty - except maybe some prisons with poor conditions, and that's not even close to a representative psychological sample.
Referring to the ISS or to the LEM isn't of much help as both of those are horrendously expensive and not easily translatable to hectare size exposures.
I do think plastics are likely to be the way to go... I wouldn't be surprised if bioplastics end up being an extremely important tool for a Mars colony (since you could skip most of the complex industrial infrastructure). By the time we get to manufacturing structural elements on Mars, bioplastics and genetic engineering technology will likely be a lot more advanced.
While it's not near term, at some point you might even get to engineering the organisms to grow in the open, unpressurized... Mars atmosphere has enough CO2 to support photosynthesis, and the thermal environment isn't beyond what some lichens can handle (lichens living at Mars pressure/temperature has actually been demonstrated).
I'm curious how much difference it would make if the glass wasn't flat but was domed. For eg, doming it inwards (towards the pressure) would put some of the force in compression. AIUI, glass has a compressive strength better than two orders of magnitude higher than its tensile strength.
I still mean a mundane outward curving shape, but the individual glass panes would curve inwards, to convert tensile forces on the glass into compressive force. (The frame is still tensile.) I'm curious if it would make glass more viable.
outward curving shape, but the individual glass panes would curve inwards, to convert tensile forces on the glass into compressive force.
Good point. But you could have an outermost pane that's unpressurised and flat.
Would look like one of the walls made from beer bottles :-) Perhaps no much good for looking out but ok for light.
Glass both inside and out may need a protective coating from dust and scratches.
The dome did survive the fire, that happened in 1976, and is still used today, but with an open structure. I want to stay away from exaggerated concern so there are certainly ways to mitigate this. But glass doesn't burn :-) so that's solving the problem at the source.
It does make for some lovely symmetries from the interior.
I wonder if using small batch processes we might be able to mass produce glass that was tougher than classic soda glass. I'm thinking small panes less than 1 foot across. These would not be safe from sabotage but should survive most likely accidents. Smaller panes would make the result of the break like the one shown less dramatic.
Is there any way to make the laminate for Laminated Glass?
My understanding is polyvinyl butyral (PVB) or ethylene-vinyl acetate (EVA) are primarily used on Earth, and you can produce Polyethylene relatively easily on Mars.
Could that be used? or would you need more.
I suggested glass safety film a few pages ago. Surprisingly thin, just a few mills, and it is very tough. Simply stuck to the glass. It could come from Earth at first, then be produced locally.
Assuming you're building a glass dome that has buildings in it like we usually see in SF, one way to reduce the amount of glass required is to make the buildings tall enough that they reach the roof. Those sections where they are effectively part of the roof are made of opaque materials, steel, concrete. You could cut down on the glass requirements by 50% or more. With walkways and such you can make more use of the "open to sky" volume. Alternatively you could make more use of the roof space if you have buildings. Real estate development being what it is, I guess you'd see a bit of both.
We've also previously suggested (in the Envisioning Amazing Habs thread, I suspect) hanging buildings from the frame. The weight of the buildings is much less than the outward force from the atmosphere, but reduces the load on the frame a little. Similarly, to run tensile structures from the frame to the foundation, to warp the pressure vessel into a more useful shape, then hang buildings off those tensile "pillars".
Maintenance safety hazards aside, isn't a tall dome useful in itself? Isn't a a high air mass and distance from particle impacts beneficial towards radiation protection?
Maintenance safety hazards aside, isn't a tall dome useful in itself?
Except you aren't starting with a dome. A dome isn't a natural shape for a pressurised volume. So if you want to distort your pressure-vessel into more of a dome-like shape, you are going to need tricksy engineering voodoo.
You don't think the shuttle involved engineering witchcraft? You were not paying attention.
Geodesic dome with small panes.
Small panes undergo much lower stress, and the breakage of a pane is much less important.
Nodes further away are covered by a concrete dome with a window line. Ground is removed.
This is the industrial area of the colony, and the dome houses the cafeteria.
Given the updated radiation transport models with pion dose contribution, I think we're going to need at least 6m of regolith cover to achieve satisfactory radiation protection. Once the effect of atmosphere is taken into account 1m or so may do nothing or maybe even make things worse. I haven't found any papers testing the updated HZTERN models with regolith, but anything more than 20g/cm^2 of aluminium starts counteracting the shielding and 70g/cm^2 makes things worse than if there were no shielding at all.
Currently we use comparisons between atmosphere to simulate regolith depth, but pions have a short decay path and would probably not show up at kilometres of very low density shielding like they would for a metre or so of shielding.
This might be a half baked idea, or one that's been discussed already, but what about building a dome within a soil retaining dam filled with a heavy gas like sulfur hexaflouride or a suitably dense easily in-situ produced gas. Gas phase might be easier than liquid phase at these pressures, though it wouldn't provide anywhere near the same counter-pressure.
it would make suited excursions a bit easier in the immediate area outside the hab within the dam for construction or repairs.


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Bern is a natural encourager. He will often notice minute details or qualities that others usually miss. He then articulates his discoveries in such a way as to build up those around him.
I believe my children were comfortable with him in our house because he did not judge them or their ideas. He always treated them with respect and regard.
Before the twins were born, Bern spent time with our son and won his affection immediately. He is patient and kind when dealing with our spirited boy. He takes the time to not only let Samuel “help” in projects, but to explain what they are doing in ways that are easy to understand. Samuel always asks if Bern is coming! When the girls came, we got to see how easy Bern is with little babies. He was never awkward or uncomfortable holding them, even though they were tiny little premies. He continues to be very peaceful with them, and it is reflected in how comfortable they are with him. He wipes spit up without a second thought, holds and soothes them when they are fussy, lulls them to sleep. He stays calm even with two screaming!
He is an excellent role model and care giver for our two sons, ages 4 and 8. Bern plans thoughtful activities for the boys, such as building balsa wood boats, planes and simple kites-then brings then out to test their creations. In addition he prepares healthy meals and snacks.
Most importantly he is calm, patient and has a strong moral compass.
A former teacher of my charge often saw us at the playground during the summer. At the end of summer he came to me and said.
“Bern, L seems very happy this summer and I think that is a good thing. He was in my class and I know how he struggled with being in class and our need for him to be still physically and verbally. It is nice that he can now express himself in ways that he wants. It is also very nice that you listen to him, coach and assist when needed. I see you with him and you give him lots of room to be himself but are right there when adjustment and corrections need to be made. And he respects you during all of this.


Yoga is a great form of physical and mental exercise for anyone. Moreover, children can greatly benefit from youth yoga programs. Yoga can help increase strength, flexibility, coordination, self-esteem, stamina, and confidence among children. Yoga is also an activity that allows children to participate in a non-competitive, relaxing physical fitness program.
Toomey, M., Fogarty, K., Diaz, A.


People around the world are buying face masks amid the coronavirus outbreak. But can a mask really protect you from Coronavirus?

The hard truth is they probably won't protect you from your illness.

Of the many preventative measures, you can take to protect yourself from the new coronavirus, wearing a face mask is one of the most visible. But for members of the general public, health experts don't think it'll help much.

“There's little harm in it,” Eric Toner, a scientist at Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security, told Business Insider. “But it's not likely to be very effective in preventing it.”

The statistics

Since the coronavirus outbreak started Wuhan, China, in December, more than 81,000 people have been infected and at least 2,760 have died. Cases have been recorded in 40 other countries. (For the latest case total and death toll, see Business Insider's live updates here.)

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the best precautions for the public are the standard, everyday ways to avoid all germs: wash your hands frequently, try not to touch your face, and avoid close contact with sick people.

In healthcare settings, however, the CDC has issued stronger directives: Any patients that present flu-like symptoms or have recently traveled to China's Hubei province should wear surgical masks. That lowers the risk that a potentially infected person could spread the coronavirus to others via saliva or phlegm.

The agency also directed doctors and nurses treating potentially infected patients to wear N95 respirator masks and goggles.

US healthcare providers are preparing for the coronavirus's potential spread in the US. The CDC said on Tuesday that the prevalence of the disease could worsen and that it “might be bad.”

Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar said yesterday that the US needs at least 300 million N95 respirator face masks for healthcare workers as the country braces for a potentially rapid spread of the coronavirus. The US currently has 30 million masks.

But for the average person, a mask is still probably not necessary. And as mask shortages continue, buying them up can take them away from medical workers that need them.

Two types of face masks

Face masks are designed to catch large contaminants and particles. There are two common kinds: surgical masks and N95 respirators.

N95 respirators filter out most airborne particles from the surrounding air, preventing wearers from breathing in particles down to 0.3 microns in diameter. These types of masks are often used when air quality is poor due to wildfire smoke or pollution, and they're designed to fit tightly against one's face. When worn correctly, N95 respirators block out at least 95% of small airborne particles. So the respirators can filter out some droplets carrying coronavirus. The coronavirus itself measures between .05 and 0.2 microns in diameter, according to a recent article in The Lancet. Healthcare workers are required by law to undergo a “fit test” every year to ensure they know how to use N95 respirators properly. How the mask works

“While you're wearing this mask, somebody sprays something really nasty around you — it's a chemical that makes everybody cough their brains out if it gets in their mouth, and it's a test to see if that mask is really working,” Robert Amler, a former medical officer at the CDC and a dean at New York Medical College, told Business Insider. More than 3,000 medical workers in China — the epicenter of the outbreak — have gotten infected by the virus. No health agencies in the US have issued recommendations for the public to wear N95 respirators. Surgical masks, meanwhile, are designed to keep droplets and splatter from passing from a person's mouth to nearby surfaces or people. So they're primarily meant as a physical barrier to keep healthcare providers or sick people from spreading their own mouth-borne germs to patients. The fit of a surgical mask is far looser than an N95 respirator, with openings around the edges. Many people do not wear either type of face mask properly, however — wearers often move the masks to the side to touch their faces throughout the day, breaking the barrier that the mask is supposed to create. This makes the protection ineffective. Extended facial hair, as well, can break the seal. Anyone exhibiting symptoms should wear a mask, the CDC says. They should also call their doctor before visiting a medical office or hospital. Sales of face masks are spiking

In Wuhan, China, authorities are requiring all citizens to wear masks in public places. The virus seems to have an incubation period of up to two weeks, so people could be sick and spreading germs before they show any symptoms. The city is currently under quarantine. Many stores in China and cities around the world have reportedly sold out of masks. Cao Jun, general manager for mask manufacturer Lanhine in China, told Reuters on January 23 that demand had already reached 200 million masks per day. Lachine's normal production rate is 400,000 per day. 3M, which produces goods like Scotch tape and Post-Its, announced on January 28 that it would boost production of face masks. Americans looking to buy face masks, meanwhile, have depleted many official Amazon sellers. The vendors are warning against counterfeit masks being sold on the site. Resellers on Facebook are charging up to four times the price and also selling fraudulent masks. When to use a mask If you are healthy, you only need to wear a mask if you are taking care of a person with the suspected 2019-nCoV infection.

Wear a mask if you are coughing or sneezing.

Masks are effective only when used in combination with frequent hand-cleaning with alcohol-based hand rub or soap and water.

If you wear a mask, then you must know how to use it and dispose of it properly.

How to put on, use, take off and dispose of a mask Before putting on a mask, clean hands with alcohol-based hand rub or soap and water.

Cover mouth and nose with mask and make sure there are no gaps between your face and the mask.

Avoid touching the mask while using it; if you do, clean your hands with alcohol-based hand rub or soap and water.

Replace the mask with a new one as soon as it is damp and do not re-use single-use masks.

To remove the mask: remove it from behind (do not touch the front of the mask); discard immediately in a closed bin; clean hands with alcohol-based hand rub or soap and water. Coronavirus myths ‘Face masks don’t work’ Can a mask really protect you from Coronavirus?

Wearing a face mask is certainly not an iron-clad guarantee that you won’t get sick – viruses can also transmit through the eyes and tiny viral particles, known as aerosols, can penetrate masks. However, masks are effective at capturing droplets, which is a main transmission route of coronavirus, and some studies have estimated a roughly fivefold protection versus no barrier alone (although others have found lower levels of effectiveness). If you are likely to be in close contact with someone infected, a mask cuts the chance of the disease being passed on. If you’re showing symptoms of coronavirus, or have been diagnosed, wearing a mask can also protect others. So masks are crucial for the health and social care workers looking after patients and are also recommended for family members who need to care for someone who is ill – ideally, both the patient and carer should have a mask. However, masks will probably make little difference if you’re just walking around town or taking a bus so there is no need to bulk-buy a huge supply.

‘It is mutating into a more deadly strain’ All viruses accumulate mutations over time and the virus that causes Covid-19 is no different. How widespread different strains of a virus become depends on natural selection – the versions that can propagate quickest and replicate effectively in the body will be the most “successful”. This doesn’t necessarily mean most dangerous for people though, as viruses that kill people rapidly or make them so sick that they are incapacitated may be less likely to be transmitted. ‘It is no more dangerous than winter flu’ Many individuals who get coronavirus will experience nothing worse than seasonal flu symptoms, but the overall profile of the disease, including its mortality rate, looks more serious. At the start of an outbreak, the apparent mortality rate can be an overestimate if a lot of mild cases are being missed. But this week, a WHO expert suggested that this has not been the case with Covid-19. Bruce Aylward, who led an international mission to China to learn about the virus and the country’s response, said the evidence did not suggest that we were only seeing the tip of the iceberg.

‘You need to be with an infected person for 10 minutes’ For flu, some hospital guidelines define exposure as being within six feet of an infected person. This includes a person who sneezes or coughs for 10 minutes or longer. However, it is possible to get the virus with shorter interactions or even by picking the virus up from contaminated surfaces. Although, this is thought to be a less common route of transmission.


I made this card for a friend of ours who recently celebrated his 50th birthday.
love this, Becky! great color combo.
such a fabulous masculine card Becky!!!
Love this Becky! Clean fun and funky! Nice to visit your blog after my "hopping" hiatus!!!!
Great card, Becky! The colors are great!
Awesome card, Becky! I love that star and the dp design. It's perfect for a 50th birthday card. Hey, I haven't used spiral punch from SU for such a long time. I'm always not sure how to apply it to my cards. Great idea!! It makes for a nice border!
Very nice card! I love that lined paper stamp and the way you used your punch too!
That is one awesome card!!
Great card Becky! The colors and the bold lettering are awesome.
Ooo, what a fantastic card! Love this!!
This is awesome Becky, I love it!!


The idea of God doing magic like Jimminy Cricket or Santa Clause is as amusing as it is frustrating. God obeys the laws he puts in place. Imagine that, a lawmaker that follows his own laws!! So, if I read this right, you think he could just pop all of creation out in a single instant, like a miraculous passing of gas upon which blew in all of existance. Oh the wonders of Devine flatulance!


This coming weekend, I have the privilege of presenting three sessions at the Breathe Christian Writers Conference in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
One of the sessions is titled, Create to Connect: How to Find and Build Meaningful Community Online.
I realized after preparing my talk that while we do in fact create to connect, I could’ve also titled the presentation, Create(d) to Connect — or even, Created to Create.
As people made in the image of a triune, Creator God, I believe one of the ways we reflect His image and our identity in Him is through creating.
Maybe that looks like whipping up a meal for those new parents in your church. Or perhaps for you, creating involves Bible journaling with stamps and stickers. Maybe it looks like building that treehouse your kids have been begging to have for years. Perhaps your role is to create space for the outcasts and marginalized.
As Christian writers, we string letters into words, words into sentences, sentences into paragraphs, paragraphs into pages. We do the work not only for ourselves or for our readers, but for the One who gave us the ability to create.
Need something new to get those creative juices flowing?
This post is Day 3 of 31 Days in the Life of the Christian Writer, written in five minutes flat in conjunction with 31 Days of Five Minute Free Writes.
Yes! I love this and recognize when I am writing that it’s what I feel like I was created to do, and doing it, honors Him. It’s harder to constantly check my heart and make sure that I’m doing it for His glory and not my own praise, but I think that’s all part of the journey.
I’m loving this series, and while I’m too busy this moth to comment on each post, I’m definitely following along and excited to see what’s next.
This is true, Kate. “Creating” takes so many different forms, and allows us to manifest something bigger than ourselves.
I’ll be writing about ‘art’ next week, and it’s importance in our lives, so this is a great resource! I wish I could be at the conference! One of these days, I’ll make it (my teaching schedule always seems to interfere :/).
Holy Spirit was speaking to us along this similar vein. Makes my heart smile with confirmation. He is in this! Creating through us… What a privilege!
I have found much inspiration from the poets on TweetSpeakPoetry.


The Divine House, Inc. has been providing wavered services since 1985 in the Willmar area. We at Divine House, Inc. believe that small community based homes are ''the only way to go''. At Divine House, Inc. we don't forget that the little things really do matter. Flexibility and empathy are often the keys to success.


In an effort to conserve water and prevent the expensive water importation in the future, Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti recently published a new directive for city-wide water conservation.
With strained water supplies a growing problem throughout the Southwestern U.S., cities from Austin to Los Angeles are using carrots and sticks to coax homeowners into adopting drought-resistant landscapes. Not all are pleased to see the grass go.


c. Totaling should be done as per the periodicity of Vat return.
d. Totaling Should be done annual Seperately.
e. Sales Rerturn & Purchase Return should be shown separately.
f. Net Sales & Purchase,Gross Sales & Purchased should be clearly showned.
g. Opening Balance of Vat Credit should be shown clearly.
h. Vat liability should be calculated at the end of every period as per the periodicity.
i. Vat Return figure should Matched With the Tax Audit Figure & Original Vat Returns.
Note : In case if there is any deviation between Tax Audit Figure & Original Vat Returns, different Vat Working should be prepare for the same.
4 Tax Challan for each Return.
5 Penalty Challan & Interest Challan separately, if any.
As soon as your are ready with Working , Prepare the Financial Ratios as per the Annexure – F of From 704.
In a different excel sheet, Customer wise Vat sales figures (Showing Net & Vat Separately)along with TIN Number.
Above figure must be given after the effect of Debit Note. Each TIN should be verified separately on Website.
Note : It has been advised to take all tin number of Supplier as far as possible.
then it will increase our work burden to revise J1 after the FORM 704 is filled.
In a different excel sheet, Supplier wise Vat Purchase figures (Showing Net & Vat Separately) along with TIN Number.
Above figure must be given after the effect of Crebit Note.
Each TIN should be verified separately on Website, if TIN is worng then Party will not get set off.
In a different excel sheet, Customer wise transaction of Direct Export and High Seas Sales Under the CST Act.
In a different excel sheet, Supplier wise CST Purchase figures (Showing Net & Vat Separately, other Items if any) along with TIN Number.
In a different excel sheet, details of all C Form From Sales.
Containing Name of the dealer, Type of Certificate, Issuing State, Declaration No., Gross amount as per Declaration.


In every generation, there was only one slayer. Then, Buffy Anne Summers happened.
One of the biggest stories to emerge from Comic-Con this summer is the announcement of the Buffy the Vampire Slayer reboot. The reboot would serve as a sequel/spinoff with a black lead and with series creator Joss Whedon and Monica Owusu-Breen at the helm.
The excitement and fanfare for the new series continue to grow and for good reason. BTVS is considered by many critics and academics to be one of the greatest television series of all time. More than that both BTVS and Whedon have proven themselves to be game-changers in terms of storytelling, speculative fiction, and pop culture.
A black female protagonist would no doubt result in an extraordinary heroine immersed in new compelling epic narratives. After all, the audience was allowed a glimpse of such #BlackGirlMagic in the form of one Kendra Young, the Vampire Slayer.
Debuting during the second season of the original series, Kendra was a Jamaican slayer who was activated after Buffy was hypnotized, drowned, and briefly died at the hands of season one Big Bad, The Master. This resulted in Kendra gaining her powers and for the first time in history, there were two active slayers. Like Buffy, Kendra possessed superhuman strength, speed, reflexes, agility, natural fighting ability, and the occasional prophetic dream.
However, that’s where the similarities end. Whereas Buffy is independent and headstrong in terms of personality, Kendra was precocious and most Spartan. All business, Young was aptly referred to by Buffy as “The She-Giles.” Buffy and Kendra’s dynamic was not unlike what one finds in a buddy cop action comedy. Over time, the relationship evolved from adversarial to reluctant allies, eventually moving to that of mutual respect with the unspoken bond of a sisterhood between the chosen two.
Sadly, like most slayers, Kendra’s fate would be a brief and tragic one. She would die at the hands of the vampire Drusilla while protecting Buffy’s loved ones at the end of season 2. Kendra’s death would result in a troubled bad girl Faith succeeding her. Although she only appeared in three episodes, Kendra ranks to date as one of the most popular and beloved Buffy alumni.
To play such a groundbreaking character requires a most gifted actress as Bianca Lawson proved. In addition to being Beyonce and Solange’s step-sister, Lawson is an accomplished actress whose credits include Saved by the Bell: The New Class, Teen Wolf, The Vampire Diaries, Nikita, Pretty Little Liars, and Queen Sugar. More than that, Lawson has the distinct achievement of playing a 17-year-old in films and movies for over 17 years. If that doesn’t epitomize black excellence (and how black don’t crack), then nothing does.
What makes Kendra such a pioneering heroine is because in many respects she was the superior counterpart to the white chosen one. Black characters, particularly black teens, are often reduced to one-dimensional tropes. Too often they are reduced to simply being the jocks, the comic relief, byproducts of the “hood”, or other deplorable minstrel shows. Kendra was precocious, more skilled, and all business. She was a weapon who honed herself to be a machine. Such exceptional qualities are rarely shown by black characters.
To compare Buffy and Kendra would be similar to comparing Harry Potter and Hermione Granger. When it comes to innate ability and taking to one’s power and destiny like it’s second nature and redefining what that entails, Potter and Buffy are superior in that regard. When it comes to being the superb ideal student, witch, and slayer, Hermione and Kendra aka #TeamBlackGirlMagic are easily without peer.
In comparing both classes of characters, it showcases how they are different yet equally superb in their own right. After all, Kendra being on the losing end of her first fight against Spike (the only vampire to ever kill two slayers), and the use of hypnosis in her death at the hands of Drusilla were symbolic throwbacks to Buffy’s previous defeat and near death at the hands of William the Bloody and her brief death when she faced off against the Master. In essence, Whedon reminds us that Buffy’s fate is a curious one because she cheated death twice and overcome impossible odds when “superior” slayers than her have fallen in identical predicaments.
Kendra’s legacy to both the Whedonverse and speculative fiction are undeniable. A prime example is that she has served as a template for future Whedon heroines of color. Super soldiers such as Zoe Washburne from Firefly and Serenity as well as Melinda May of Marvel’s Agents of SHIELD are patterned after Kendra.
Whether it’s the upcoming reboot and/or other inspired characters, the next chapter of Kendra’s legacy continues to be written and there is certainly more is to come.
Next articleWhat You Need to Know About ‘Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald’ From the Movie’s Stars!


Currency converter result page of conversion 5296 Guernsey Pound in EU Euro. Exchange rate of this pair updated every day. FXConvert.net is free, fast and easy to use online tool which give latest rates of pair GGP-EUR.
Price of five thousand, two hundred and ninety-six Guernsey Pound, cost 6119.32 EU Euro and converted with today exchange rate.
This graph show how much is 5296 Guernsey Pounds in Euros - 6119.31579 EUR, according to actual pair rate equal 1 GGP = 1.1555 EUR. Yesterday this currency exchange rate was on 0.0002 EUR higher than today. On the last week currencies rate was on €0.0019 EUR higher. Last month was lower on - € 0.0011. Price for 1 Guernsey Pound was 1.15436 Euro, so 5296 Guernsey Pound was worth 6113.502515677 in EU Euro. On this graph you can see trend of change 5296 GGP to EUR. And average currency exchange rate for the last week was € 1.15651 EUR for £1 GGP.


At DCC Workshop, we have highly qualified engineers who can fix your Sony XperiaZ3Compact	screen. if you have smashed screen, broken LCD of Sony XperiaZ3Compact, touch screen faulty or battery repair, our engineers can fix it and make it fully working order. Get your phone fixed anywhere, work with DCC Workshop for a quick and reliable solution. We offer a variety of Sony XperiaZ3Compact repairs from liquid damage to charger ports and more! You can review our many repairs below before you go anywhere else.
At DCC Workshop, we repair hundreds of Sonys each month and have seen damages of all kinds. The most common repair provided is the front glass Repair however, we offer many more Sony XperiaZ3Compact	repairs and services including, Charging Port Repair, liquid damage repair service; loudspeaker repair, and mute button repair. The majority of our repairs come with a one year warranty.


It seems there are some powerful forces, spiritual or physical, that are all out to frustrate the military in it's battle to flush out the dreaded Boko Haram sect from the troubled North East. Few days after the last crash, yet another Nigerian military helicopter has crashed again in Yola, Adamawa state.
According to eyewitnesses, the helicopter stalled in the sky for some minutes before crashing to the ground in a ball of fire. We await the military's official reaction on the cause(s) of this latest crash.


strace is a system call tracer, i.e. a debugging tool which prints out a trace of all the system calls made by a another process/program. The program to be traced need not be recompiled for this, so you can use it on binaries for which you don't have source.
System calls and signals are events that happen at the user/kernel interface. A close examination of this boundary is very useful for bug isolation, sanity checking and attempting to capture race conditions.


<!DOCTYPE HTML>

<html>
<head>
<script type="text/javascript">
/* global RPMAddMessageListener, RPMSendAsyncMessage, RPMRemoveMessageListener */

RPMAddMessageListener("Ping", function(message) {
  RPMSendAsyncMessage("Pong", {
    str: message.data.str,
    counter: message.data.counter + 1,
  });
});

RPMAddMessageListener("Ping2", function(message) {
  RPMSendAsyncMessage("Pong2", message.data);
});

function neverCalled() {
  RPMSendAsyncMessage("Pong3");
}
RPMAddMessageListener("Pong3", neverCalled);
RPMRemoveMessageListener("Pong3", neverCalled);

function testData(data) {
  var response = {
    result: true,
    status: "All data correctly received",
  };

  function compare(prop, expected) {
    if (JSON.stringify(data[prop]) == JSON.stringify(expected))
      return;
    if (response.result)
      response.status = "";
    response.result = false;
    response.status += "Property " + prop + " should have been " + expected + " but was " + data[prop] + "\n";
  }

  compare("integer", 45);
  compare("real", 45.78);
  compare("str", "foobar");
  compare("array", [1, 2, 3, 5, 27]);

  return response;
}

RPMAddMessageListener("SendData", function(message) {
  RPMSendAsyncMessage("ReceivedData", testData(message.data));
});

RPMAddMessageListener("SendData2", function(message) {
  RPMSendAsyncMessage("ReceivedData2", testData(message.data.data));
});

var cookie = "nom";
RPMAddMessageListener("SetCookie", function(message) {
  cookie = message.data.value;
});

RPMAddMessageListener("GetCookie", function(message) {
  RPMSendAsyncMessage("Cookie", { value: cookie });
});
</script>
</head>
<body>
</body>
</html>


Radiographers take X-rays (called radiographs) of objects and materials, including welds, metal castings and tubing, poured concrete structural members, and molded plastics. Unlike other industrial radiography technicians, radiographers work in a variety of settings. They are employed any place where structural integrity needs to be secured or parts and components need to be checked for flaws or defects. The aerospace industry in particular uses this technology to assess the integrity of airplane structures.

Radiographs are taken by placing an object in front of a photographic plate and exposing the plate to a source of radiation. This work is generally done in a special lead or concrete room. The radiographer sets up the material, secures the room, and takes the X-rays from a protected location.

An important part of the X-ray procedure is preparing the object to be examined. Radiographers align the object between the source of X-rays or gamma rays and the film or plate. Sometimes this is done manually; but often it requires electric trucks, chain hoists, or cranes. They may also need to mask off peripheral areas (areas that are not to be examined) with lead shields.

Radiographers select the proper type of radiation source, film, exposure distance, and time. They process the film and assist in the analysis of the X-ray plates and readings, checking for cracks, weak points, foreign objects, and other flaws.

Radioisotopes are the unstable form of an element that produces radiation. Most are produced by enclosing a naturally occurring element within a specially designed container and then bombarding it with neutrons. This process is known as irradiation. Isotope production technicians place specified amounts of chemicals into these containers to be irradiated in a nuclear reactor or other similar equipment. Technicians prepare the containers for shipping to the irradiation facility by securing vacuum pumps to the containers and replacing the air in the container with inert gas. This ensures that no chemical reaction will occur within the container.

Isotope production technicians also receive back the irradiated chemicals, which are delivered inside shielded cells. They operate manipulators to open the containers and transfer the irradiated contents into glass vessels. Using the manipulators, they add specified types and quantities of chemical solutions into the glass vessels to produce the desired radioactive product.

In addition, isotope production technicians control manipulators to perform standard chemical analyses of the radioactive materials. They may also extract radioactive samples that are transported to chemical laboratories for analysis. Once approval of the sample has been received, they fill shipping containers with specified quantities of radioisotope material for shipment to users of the product.

Hot cell technicians work with materials that have been exposed to radiation, but do so indirectly from outside a hot cell—a room totally enclosed in radiation-shielding materials such as lead or concrete. The room is completely filled with nitrogen and cannot be entered unless protective clothing is worn.

Hot cell technicians conduct work inside the hot cell by using "master-slave manipulators," remote-controlled mechanical devices that act like arms and hands inside the cell. While looking through thick lead-glass windows, these technicians operate the manipulators to test chemical or metallurgical properties. They also set up and operate machines to cut, fold, stack, polish, and chemically treat test samples, all according to blueprints, sketches, and X-ray negatives.

To perform the various tests, hot cell technicians use a wide variety of equipment, including tensile testers, hardness testers, metallographic units, and micrometers and gauges. Hot cell technicians also use special environmental chambers to test the reaction of irradiated nuclear fuels to temperature changes. Technicians record test results for further analysis by engineers, scientists, or customers. They place specimens in shielded containers for removal from the cell, using manipulators; devise adapters and fixtures for use in hot-cell operations; and participate in cleaning and decontaminating the cell during maintenance shutdowns.

Other types of work performed by industrial radiological technicians range from health and safety work to sales and personnel supervision. Some technicians collect data concerning radiation exposure levels in locations where potential human exposure exists, including radioisotope laboratories, nuclear fuel processing facilities, particle accelerator complexes, and nuclear reactor installations. Industrial radiological technicians also research the limits of human exposure, as well as the effects of radiation on the plants and animals of a region.

Design, testing, application, manufacture, sales, and maintenance of nuclear instrumentation and radioisotope or X-ray quality-control equipment are other common activities for industrial radiological technicians.


Jan. 31, 2018 - Endress+Hauser is offering Heartbeat Technology with its Liquiline CM44 and CM44R transmitters for use with Memosens pH and conductivity sensors.
Endress+Hauser describes Heartbeat Monitoring as minimizing the probability of a sudden breakdown or failure of the measurement point, while helping to define when maintenance may be needed. Monitoring function benefits are sensor health trending, tracking the quality of calibrations and integrating a maintenance timer to ensure optimal sensor performance is delivered, it notes. According to the company, the Heartbeat Diagnostics follows the NE-107 standardized NAMUR-compliant message structure for categorized event severity level with remedy instructions provided for operations or maintenance. Heartbeat Verification permits a measurement point to be assessed at any time in situ, without removing the sensor or shutting down the process. This qualitative function checks the entire measurement loop, verifying sensor and transmitter performance, says Endress+Hauser, adding that verification results are provided via an audit safe report automatically generated by the transmitter. The report is saved in PDF format and can be preserved on an SD card for transfer to a computer. These reports can be used when regulatory, quality or safety documentation is needed.
When the Liquiline transmitter is connected to a PLC, SCADA or distributed control system via fieldbus digital communications, Heartbeat Technology provides the host system with a range of sensor information that can be combined with process data to identify trends. This information, along with key performance indicators can be used for process optimization and predictive maintenance. Heartbeat Monitoring information is available over Profibus DP, EtherNet/IP, Modbus TCP or Modbus 485 protocols.
Heartbeat Technology is now available as an option in Liquiline CM442, CM444 and CM448 transmitters and all DIN-rail mount versions, and works with Memosens pH and conductivity sensors, and Liquistation CSF34 and CSF48 samplers.


The Founder of a New Amazon Competitor Explains How They Did $3 Billion After Year 3

Like many of you, I’ve never heard of Wish, a five-year-old commerce startup founded by a two ex-Googlers. Apparently, though, this newish Amazon competitor is absolutely killing it. They reportedly recently turned down a $10 billion all-cash offer from Amazon, which is mind boggling, and had sales in the “single-digit billions” only three years after launching.

Wow.

Here’s the gist:

Wish sells cheap but stylish products. A $2,470 watch for $69, a $399 camera for $89, or $229 stilettos for $32. However, most of the products are under $25. Most of Wish’s vendors are sellers based in Asia so, unlike Amazon, Wish doesn’t spend lots of money on infrastructure or trying to get items to customers in a few days. Instead, each item arrives a week or two (sometimes more) after purchasing.

Their layout looks a lot like Pinterest except everything is for sale. Since launching in 2011, they’ve raised $578 million.

The most interesting part about Wish, in my opinion, is how they’ve completely stayed under the radar and, for the most part, avoided the press. Last year when Business Insider reached out to Wish’s CEO for an interview request, he said he was ‘humbled and a bit surprised’ to find himself on Business Insider’s radar, since he and the company ‘try to keep a very low profile.'”

Maybe it’s just me, but I’m in awe of how Wish has built a $10 billion company in only five years, all while staying mostly anonymous.

Last week, Wish’s founder and CEO Peter Szulczewski, gave a rare interview at StrictlyVC, an event for founders and VCs. This is only the second time I’ve heard about Szulczewski, and his story was too good not to cover.

On his background:

Szulczewski, a computer scientist by training, noted that he’d spent 6.5 years at Google solving “really big matching problems” before cofounding his company, ContextLogic, from which Wish evolved. The idea was to build a next-generation mobile ad network to compete with Google’s AdSense network, whose tech was “relatively stale” at the time, in 2011. Szulczewski and his co-founder, Danny Zhang, realized they were “pretty bad at business development,” though, so eventually they pivoted to Wish.

Wish began as an app that asked people to create wish lists, then the company approached merchants and let them know a certain number of customers wanted, say, a certain type of table. Things took off from there, he said.

On how big Wish is, and how they make money:

Homepage of Wish.com

“Last year, sales were single-digit billions. It took us just under three years or so to get there. We do charge a take rate of 15 percent. Part of the reason is we do a lot more than, say, Alibaba, which doesn’t charge a take rate.

Take your local merchant in Shenzhen, where the majority of the world’s goods are manufactured, both branded and unbranded. That merchant has no idea how to sell to people in the Netherlands, France, Brazil, the U.S., Australia. He also has no idea how to communicate with those customers, so we take care of all of that. What merchants get in return [is] suddenly, they get an additional audience of more than a billion smartphone users who don’t really cannibalize their existing market.”

“We realized early on that unless you set out to build a really massive, self-sustainable business, you’re just not going to be able to do it.

Basically, really big companies have these people in corp dev, god bless you [laughs], but there’s this asymmetry, which is like: the founders’ time is the most precious commodity that you have. You only have 24 hours a day. But there are corp dev people at these companies who have an infinite amount of time to spend with these founders, and it’s actually, I think – my point is: We want to build a self-sustainable business.

We think that just like Alibaba, just like Walmart, we can get to hundreds of billions [of dollars in market cap]. I think both those companies were built on the same premise of saving time and money for their consumers. We’re doing the same thing on your phone.”

On how the company — which has “hundreds of millions of users,” said Szulczewski — has managed to see so much traction:

Peter Szulczewski and Danny Zhang, the founders of Wish.com

“Two years ago, the merchants were like, ‘I’ll try this. I don’t know what the hell it is, but I hear other merchants are making money, so I’ll give it a shot.’ And if you tell them, ‘Hey, if you take this inventory and put it in the U.S. or Germany or Spain, you’ll make more money,’ they’re like, ‘No. You’re the fifth thing on my mind. There’s Amazon, Taobao, my own e-commerce site.’

But after you have two or three years of these merchants getting meaningful revenue and sales and it’s growing month over month, then you get their buy-in. Then it’s, ‘Okay, now you’re the third thing on my mind. Now you’re the second. Now, you’re the first or second. How can I get more sales?’.

“It isn’t like network effects in social networks, but it is leverage effects.”

What do you think – ever heard of these guys? Seems pretty cool. Think I’ll give them a shot. Let me know what you think in the comments!

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iEmboss plugin creates a colorful emboss which can be applied over an image or pattern. You can simulate various embossing surfaces like melted glass, stamping foil, curved stone, decorative concrete, iron castings, ets. A smart random settings generator helps you to create your artwork by simply clicking on the Dice.

iEmboss plugin creates a colorful emboss which can be applied over an image or pattern. You can simulate various embossing surfaces like melted glass, stamping foil, curved stone, decorative concrete, iron castings, ets. A smart random settings generator helps you to create your artwork by simply clicking on the Dice.

Manco Shapefile Editor 3.1.0.0(2015-02-01) update
Manco Shapefile Editor is a powerful tool for creating and editing shapefiles. You can edit geometry of shapes easily. Add multiple images as backgrounds and enable an OpenStreetMap provider. You can create and edit all the layers data at any moment....

GIMP 2.8.8(2015-01-15) new
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Born in the Northeastern region of China in 1983, Liu Zining graduated from Lu Xun Academy of Fine Arts in 2006. His artistic style is expressed though the use of colour and perspective to explore visual power. He is currently emerging as one of China’s most significant contemporary painters.

Moscow Image Credit: Vladimir Klabukov

The eye is a common part ofthe human and animal body, a means for mutual communication, and an opportunity to
glance into each other’s inner worlds.

With “Looking at me, Looking at you” and “Us”, Liu Zining’ causes an intense emotional tremor within the visitor. Overlooking the Museum’s monumental staircases, the eyes of the shark, somewhat with an indignant
and sorrowful expression, intend to elicit from mankind an admission of guilt and demands reconsideration of his actions.


Description : Live at Late Late Show With Craig Ferguson 02-04-08.
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Description : Kylie Minogue - Interview - On Air With Ryan Seacrest - 2004.
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Clarets boss Sean Dyche feels it is far too early to talk of a promotion charge – despite picking up a sixth win in eight games.

Burnley beat Bolton Wanderers 2-0 at Turf Moor on Saturday to climb to fifth place in the Championship, level on points with second, and four adrift of leaders Brighton.

Dyche returns to former club Nottingham Forest tonight, but is sticking to the mantra which served him well two seasons ago, one game at a time: “It’s way too early (to talk about promotion).

“We’ve all seen the ups and downs of the division and how it changes.

“Our main focus is on the next game, it’s as simple as that.

“The group work hard and in a correct manner I feel and they’re supported by a good staff, so we focus on that. We get the next one, we take it on and see where it takes us.

“That’s been a focus of mine for a long time. It’s not just words, it’s how I believe how it should be done.

“We’re not so deep in thought that we think we can plan three games ahead, we plan for the next game. That’s the most important one.”

A brace from Andre Gray claimed the headlines, but a third third clean sheet of the season was also welcome: “We’re really pleased with that because we’re talking about a centre forward but it takes a team behind that and the structure of the side was again good. That’s a valuable part of it and the two centre halves were excellent. They dealt with everything that was thrown at them.

“I think there’s a good feel about the group at the moment but it has to be looked after. It doesn’t just maintain itself. We have to look after it as a staff and the players have to look after it as individuals, stay focused on the next one.

“We’re realistic about the division, we know it’s tough, so as much as we enjoy the win, we know there’s another big game (at Nottingham Forest) so the focus will quickly swerve towards that.”

Of Gray, Dyche waxed lyrical, after he took his tally to four goals in five starts: “We’re enjoying Andre and I think he’s enjoying being here.

“He’s getting a connection with Vokesy, which is always interesting to see, two strikers linking up.

“He has a rawness and desire to score goals, and that’s a fantastic thing.

“I think there’s an edge to Andre’s football. All strikers need that. They smell a goal and he certainly does, and that’s the real magic of a striker. They’ve got that relentlessness, they don’t get fazed easily. We just want to nurture that and keep him in that mindset.

“There’s no fear in him, and that’s a golden thing for strikers. The best ones have no fear. They miss, they don’t care, they just go ‘give me another chance’. He’s definitely showing that.

“He’s a player who’s adapting and learning. If you look at his pathway to where he is now a lot of it is the rawness of learning as he goes and that’s a fantastic thing to have, it makes him slightly different. He’s not a player who has come through the academy system who’s making the runs he’s been coached, he actually works in a different manner.”

His £6m fee isn’t weighing heavily on his shoulders at all, and Dyche continued: “There’s no pressure on him, we certainly don’t work in that environment here.

“I don’t think he overthinks it - he’s with a group that don’t overthink his situation, moving for money - we just get on with it. The market’s out of these players’ hands, it’s just what it is. They’re just humans, they just want to adapt and do well for us.”

Dyche will check on George Boyd’s fitness after he was forced off in the second half against Bolton with an ankle problem.

Boyd has started every game so far and Dyche said: “Boydy rolled his ankle so we’re hopeful on that one, but we’ll see.”

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Geyser Service Centre in Moosarambagh comes with technicians; customers support staffs and administrative team in each and every locality of their service centre. With much dedication and commitment, these service centers work in order to perfectly solve the major and minor issues put forward by their esteemed Geyser customers within a stipulated time period. In the open market, they are popularly known for their hard work that is blended in a professional manner. Most of their services comes with affordable and reasonable service charges for its esteemed existing and potential customers in the market with lot of perfection.
The Geyser consumers should be aware that authorized Geyser Service Centre in Moosarambagh comes with doorstep service. You can perfectly hire their unique and expert service, when your Geyser products are under warranty period and out of warranty period. Whatever minor or major components have to be instantly changed, they will bring to your home plus change them in the front of you and your family members only. Whenever you avail their unique service, the nearby service center will send immediately their technician and experts in order to attend your complaint related to Geyser Geysers and Water Geysers products.


Charmglow Electric Fireplaces are amongst the leading manufactures of the electric fire places in the industry sector. One of the factors that helped different this one of several leading sellers is the ease of which you can find and purchase them. Obtainable in most of the local Home Depot’s and Lowes, they give new meaning to the terms plug and take part in. Available in many different styles it is not to pick a qualified one for you personally personally room has to have. The different fireplace mantels, the wood or stone that surrounds the fireplace is easily obtainable in different materials also.
OIf in order to a glass door installation, secure it with a rod involving inside recording. Burglars will generally try to get in your house unseen and in addition they tend to favor glass door installation as many people forget to lock them. Selected you lock all sliding doors and windows.
Always occasion pup outside after feeding time every half hour (for puppies) to every hour (for adult dogs). Many dogs relieve themselves right to begin with eat. Benefit of of it is a good training strategy. Taking your dog out regularly reduces chance to of foresee. You take your dog outside whenever you’re pretty sure your dog needs to go. Your dog does his or her thing, then applying step a handful of.
The 14.htm,Working at ADS Inc itself remains very traditional with looms threaded by craftsmen just as if a Persian carpet. Indicates is each kikoy could be said become unique choices will be minute carribbean cruise each batch of looming.
In the summertime when the little guys are active, keep fresh fruit refrigerated in no way laying from the withstand. Ants thrive on the sucrose appearing in fruit. Any food that you possess on the counter must be in tightly sealed pots. I learned that a metal cake cover does not qualify to be a tightly sealed container as i came home from a couple day stop at find a line of ants running from the sliding glass doors, across the dining room, up a counter wall and into the chocolate treat.
Tip: old wax could be hard to clean, so if you have two metal cans one slightly bigger the other you can use this instead of a double boiler. Before getting you can just chuck the ball cans out when you are finished in conjunction with your project.
Stained glass appliances are various and the beauty with the art is astonishing. Keep in mind created the actual light passing through a stained glass pane is fascinating. Either you want to know stained glass window and even interior decoration for your apartment, every piece of glass possesses its own story use is good to get involved in it.


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Rimmel London Scandal Eyes Waterproof Kohl Kajal Eyeliner, Brown 0.04 oz.
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A central feature of public librarianship in the United States is that librarians have worked to develop aclimate of openness by defining library policies to create an institution where all are welcome. In 1990 the American Library Association adopted the policy, “Library Services for the Poor,” in which it is stated , “it is crucial that libraries recognize their role in enabling poor people to participate fully in a democraticsociety, by utilizing a wide variety of available resources and strategies.” ( ALA Handbook of Organization , 1999-2000, policy 61). This policy was adopted because there had been a shifting level of emphasis in the interpretation of “openness” since the establishment of the public library. Open doors are very different from proactive service. In this chapter the socio-economic context of poverty isexplored to gain an understanding of the role librarians can play today to provide opportunity for poorpeople to participate in democracy. A brief review of key writing and documents that define publiclibrary service is provided to establish the historical foundation.
McCook, Kathleen de la Peña, "Poverty, Democracy and Public Libraries" (2001). School of Information Faculty Publications. 111.


This is a special order item. Note the listing may say color vinyl; we cannot guarantee its accuracy. Our suppliers will not open factory-sealed item to verify content. Please allow 4 to 6 weeks for delivery.
** Note: We'll adjust shipping charge for order that weigh 3lbs or more and ship by USPS Priority Mail.


/*
 * Copyright (C) 2015-2017 PÂRIS Quentin
 *
 * This program is free software; you can redistribute it and/or modify
 * it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by
 * the Free Software Foundation; either version 2 of the License, or
 * (at your option) any later version.
 *
 * This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
 * but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
 * MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. See the
 * GNU General Public License for more details.
 *
 * You should have received a copy of the GNU General Public License along
 * with this program; if not, write to the Free Software Foundation, Inc.,
 * 51 Franklin Street, Fifth Floor, Boston, MA 02110-1301 USA.
 */

package org.phoenicis.win32.pe;

import org.phoenicis.win32.DWord;
import org.phoenicis.win32.Word;

public class ImageFileHeader {
    public static final int IMAGE_FILE_HEADER_SIZE = 20;

    final Word machine;
    final Word numberOfSections;
    final DWord timeDateStamp;
    final DWord pointerToSymbolTable;
    final DWord numberOfSymbols;
    final Word sizeOfOptionalHeader;
    final Word characteristics;

    public ImageFileHeader(byte[] bytes, int offset) {
        if (bytes.length != IMAGE_FILE_HEADER_SIZE + offset) {
            throw new IllegalStateException(
                    "An ImageFileHeader should be " + IMAGE_FILE_HEADER_SIZE + " bytes long. Got " + bytes.length);
        }

        machine = new Word(bytes, offset);
        numberOfSections = new Word(bytes, 2 + offset);
        timeDateStamp = new DWord(bytes, 4 + offset);
        pointerToSymbolTable = new DWord(bytes, 8 + offset);
        numberOfSymbols = new DWord(bytes, 12 + offset);
        sizeOfOptionalHeader = new Word(bytes, 16 + offset);
        characteristics = new Word(bytes, 18 + offset);
    }
}


When one travels south from Moose Jaw one soon enters a vast upland area rising from the flat prairie. This is the Missouri Coteau. The water in the streams and rivers east of the Coteau flow into the Assiniboine River and eventually into Hudson’s Bay. Streams and rivers of the Coteau flow to the Missouri River, then the Mississippi and finally the Gulf of Mexico.
Many years ago this was all grassland, with water in all the low spots between the hills. There are a few larger bodies of water, the largest being Old Wives Lake, just north of the town of Mossbank. Wildlife is abundant in the hills; the lake is a migratory bird preserve. Buffalo no longer roam these hills; they are now partly cattle country, partly grain-growing country.
But for hundreds of years the Missouri Coteau was home to vast herds of buffalo and prime hunting ground for indigenous people. The Lakota people inhabited an area that extended from Old Wives Lake south into Montana. The Lakota medicine man Sitting Bull always claimed to have been born on the north side of the Medicine Line (the USA-Canada border). I don’t believe there is any reason to doubt the accuracy of his memory.
The Nakota people, closely related to the Lakota and speaking the same language, lived further east but also came to these hills to hunt buffalo. The Cree people who lived northeast along the Qu’Appelle Valley also hunted in this area. These people all respected each other and made no trouble for each other.
The Blackfoot people lived far to the west and did not come to these hills to hunt. However, sometimes a group of young braves ventured into the hill to seek an occasion to prove their manhood.
And so it happened on a day many years ago that a Cree hunting party had set up camp not far from the body of water now known as Old Wives Lake. The buffalo hunt was a family affair. The men killed the buffalo and brought them back to the camp. The women and children busied themselves scraping and drying the hides, collecting wild berries and pounding the meat and berries into pemmican.
Toward evening a scout returned to camp with the chilling report that a large group of Blackfoot braves was encamped in a nearby valley. Everyone knew that at the crack of dawn the Blackfoot’s braves would come galloping over the hill and slaughter everyone in the camp. The Blackfeet had done this many times before and their hidden presence left no doubt as to their intentions.
The men gathered around a campfire to plan a way of escape. There was a small chance they could drive off the Blackfeet, but many lives would be lost, especially of the women and children. To slip away during the night would silence the drums and let their campfires go out; that would send a signal to the Blackfeet to attack immediately. Their situation seemed hopeless.
At first the men refused to consider this idea. But as they talked it became clear that this was the only way to save their young women and children. So they slipped away silently in the night, heading back toward the Qu’Appelle Valley.
The old women remained, kept the campfires burning, beat the drums and sang all night. In the morning the Blackfoot braves swept over the top of the hill, attacked the camp and killed the few old women who had stayed behind.
From that time the lake and the small river that flows into it have been known as Notukeu (old woman) by the Cree. When French-speaking people came into the area and heard the story they translated the name to la Vieille. On English language maps the river is labelled Notukeu and the lake is Old Wives Lake.
The Bible tells us that God loves us the same way that these old women loved their children and grandchildren: “Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee” (Isaiah 49:15).
In the New Testament, Jesus compares Himself to a mother hen: “ how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!” (Matthew 23:37).
All the material posted here is written by me, Bob Goodnough, unless specifically attributed to another author, and is copyright. Feel free to re-blog any post but please include my name as author and this blog as the source.


At this training day, I remember sharing with teachers on my table some ideas I had regarding the use of Twitter with my class, i.e. posting a request for my followers to respond to. This thought stemmed from a Marco Torres session I had attended earlier that year, where during our session, he communicated with colleagues from around the world (his PLN) and demonstrated the powerful nature of real time interaction.
Marco also shared a project he completed with his class with the help of his PLN. His class was looking at the environment, so within a 24 hour time frame, he asked his PLN to go outside and take a photo of a leaf, then email it to him. He compiled the images, created a movie and shared this with his students the next day. Marco shared that the conversation he had with his young students was incredible because they noticed the leaves were different, so it opened up the opportunity for them to explore their curiosities, i.e. seasons, northern and southern hemispheres, night and day, etc… Inquiry learning at its best!
This year I discovered a number of classes at my school had set up class Twitter accounts. I thought this was a fantastic way of reinforcing the home-school communication channel. Students could tweet comments during the day to keep their parents and other classes up-to-date with their learning experiences. Within a few weeks of setting up my class Twitter account, @MLC_6Michelle, a number of my own students joined Twitter. I was a little concerned at first, but used this as an opportunity to talk about Cyber Safety and Cyber Bullying. A lot of my students have parent-approved Facebook accounts, so talking about social media and the dramas that can arise, should it be abused, proved to be beneficial. One thing I did stress to my students was to protect their tweets and not follow or allow themselves to be followed by someone they did not know. I also encouraged them not to use their full (real) name.
At present, there are quite a few classes at my school using Twitter. It is wonderful, during the day, to read tweets mentioning the learning experiences and discoveries of prep through to year 8 students. It is also flattering to see positive tweets regarding the day’s lessons by my students.
One thing I am noticing more and more during this learning journey with iPads is the way my students like to sit on the floor in pairs or small groups to discuss their learning and what they are doing on their iPads. I have always given my students the choice to sit at their tables or on the floor whilst undertaking independent work tasks, but I’m becoming more aware that very few students are remaining at their tables. After being involved in 1:1 laptop programs for two to three years, I’m seeing a greater degree of collaboration amongst my students with the iPads than I did with laptops. They hand their iPads between each other like they are workbooks. They are happy to share them. They are happy for someone else to use theirs. They are happy to work together. They are happy to learn with and from each other. Upon reflection, I find I am like this too. I am happy for my students [and young nephews] to use my iPad and show me what they can do; however, I wouldn’t be as comfortable having them use my laptop. What does this say about iPads and how we use them in the classroom? What does this say about iPads and how students view them in relation to their learning? What does this say about iPads and how we should use them in the classroom?


A professional portrait studio in a great location.
Matthew Kleinrock creates his portraits and headshots at Softbox Studio, an open 950 square foot photographic studio located in Fairfax/Merrifield, VA. The studio is 20 minutes by car from Washington DC and only a few blocks from the Dunn Loring Metro Station, near the Angelika movie cinema and other great shops.


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President Donald Trump focused, in part, on his massive infrastructure plan during the State of the Union.
The plan will attempt to goose $1.5 trillion in investments from state and local governments and private investors, with $200 billion in federal grants.
There are many questions about the plan that remain unanswered, including how it will be funded.
President Donald Trump used part of his State of the Union speech on Tuesday to detail parts of a forthcoming $1.5 trillion infrastructure plan , but key questions and caveats remain in regards to the package.
"I am calling on the Congress to produce a bill that generates at least $1.5 trillion for the new infrastructure investment we need, " Trump said in the speech. "Every Federal dollar should be leveraged by partnering with State and local governments and, where appropriate, tapping into private sector investment -- to permanently fix the infrastructure deficit."
The exact details of the plan so far are vague. For one thing, no one was sure of the actual size of the plan until Tuesday with Trump suggested the final investment goal would be anywhere from $1 trillion to $1.8 trillion.
Despite the headline investment number, the infrastructure package will include only $200 billion in direct federal investment. Trump expects the other $1.3 trillion to come from a combination of local, state, and private investment, incentivized by the federal seed money.
$100 billion (50% of the total federal investment) in grants on "infrastructure incentives" designed to encourage investment from state governments, local governments, and private companies on "core infrastructure." Each state could only receive up to 10% of the total, and federal grants couldn't make up more than 20% of the total spent on a project.
$20 billion (10% of federal investment) on the "Transformative Projects Program." The program would give federal money to swing-for-the-fences type projects that can't get money from private markets due to the "uniqueness of the program." Included in the possible programs that could receive money are "commercial space" ventures.
$50 billion (25% of federal investment) on rural infrastructure. This is to ensure that projects in rural areas, which usually have lower returns on investment, do not get left behind.
$14 billion (7.05% of federal investment) to grow existing federal credit programs for infrastructure.
$10 billion (5% of federal investment) towards a "Federal Capital Financing Fund" that would assist federal agencies in purchasing land for new projects or indicatives.
Another key question is how the Trump administration will come up with the $200 billion. Many Republicans would likely balk at adding more to the federal deficit, so administration officials suggested previously that the investment would be financed through cuts to other programs.
Trump's 2018 budget proposal included cuts to Amtrak, infrastructure investment grants, and the Army Corps of Engineers' civil works programs.
Therefore, some opponents suggest that the plan is not new investment at all, but simply shifting around existing funding.


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Business woman driven insane hitting a man. Business woman driven insane strangling a business man.
Young caucasian business man wearing a blue shirt and holding an electronic tablet to integrate technology into his presentation taking place during a meeting with a wealthy female business inverstor.
Close up image of businessman and businesswoman busy working together on an electronic tablet, the woman holding a pen and the man holding the tablet.


I thought I’d share some wedding images of some wonderful couples I’ve had the privilege of marrying so far this summer.
Kat and Sarah were the most gracious and lovely brides ever and they both looked stunning on their big day.
Kat and Sarah had their wedding at Te Arai Point Lodge which they’d hired out for the weekend. The pontoon on the lake was where we held the ceremony. A fabulous day for a fabulous couple.
Lora and Bruce chose the most idyllic spot fot their wedding. It was a mission to get there but ‘Wow’ what a backdrop!
Sandra and Mark are no strangers to creating fabulous family events at their Riverhead home. Their wedding was no exception, where they involved all their grandchildren – 2 of them even signing the marriage papers.
It was a small but friendly gathering on a fab Auckland summer’s day.
Brad and Jen were the picture of happiness on their wedding day at Gracehill.
Despite being called ‘A typical No 8 fencing wire Good Kiwi Bloke’, it didn’t stop Brad getting a bit emotional when he saw he’s beautiful bride. Aww!
It was a ‘Golden Age of Hollywood’ theme for Anna and Tigger’s action packed fun wedding at Motu Moana.
Anna and Tigger are LARPers (Live Action Role Players) so it was only natural they had a multitude of sword raising friends to share their fabulous day.
Sarah and Sam are a beautiful big hearted couple and they couldn’t share their big day at Fisher House without including their favourite dog. Makes sense really!
Okay so I wasn’t actually the celebrant for Kial and Dennis’s Renewal of Vows, as Kial’s Dad led the ceremony, but I was delighted to have the event here at my home – Casabella.
Kial had planned the event secretly as a surprise for Dennis, who thought he was coming to collect some chairs. What a fabulous surprise and a touching gesture for this special milestone that coincided with their wedding anniversary.
Congratulations to all the above beautiful couples and their whanau!


I was watching the U.S President Donald Trump`s much anticipated debut address to Congress on February 28. A speech that was big on rhetoric and I think investors will need to wait for any tax cuts and infrastructure investments.

In his one hour speech, there was one thing that was mind-blowing to the listeners. Nearly everyone in Capitol Hill said: Wowww to Trumps innovation.

President Donald Trump is in war with the MSM and in his speech he said the U.S must support law enforcement and victims of crime, adding it will provide a voice to people ignored by the media and silenced by special interests.

Trump have ordered the Department of Homeland Security to create an office to save American victims, and the office is called: VOICE (Victims of immigration Crime Engagement). After announcing the initiative on Tuesday, you could hear people in Capitol Hill were surprised.

The new office will publish a weekly list of all crimes committed by immigrants, which means people with or without U.S documents could find their names on the list.

Freedom of speech is understood to be fundamental in a democracy, and it’s not something new. It is thought that ancient Athens’ democratic ideology of free speech may have emerged in the late 6th or early 5th century BC.

The values of the Roman Republic included freedom of speech and freedom of religion.

Concepts of freedom of speech can be found in early human rights documents. England`s Bill of Rights 1689 legally established the constitutional right of ‘freedom of speech in Parliament’ which is still in effect.

The Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen, adopted during the French Revolution in 1789, specifically affirmed freedom of speech as an inalienable right. The Declaration provides for freedom of expression in Article 11, which states that:

The free communication of ideas and opinions is one of the most precious of the rights of man. Every citizen may, accordingly, speak, write, and print with freedom, but shall be responsible for such abuses of this freedom as shall be defined by law.

This leads us back to Paris and Charlie Hebdo. A French satirical weekly newspaper that features cartoons, reports, polemics and jokes. The publication is irrelevant and stridently non-conformist in tone, is strongly secularist, nonreligious, and left-wing.

They had a lot of fun with nearly everybody like athletes, Kings, Presidents, religions and pop stars to name a few. The cartoonists didnt just mock President Nicolas Sarkozy and Francois Hollandes politics. They also regularly amplified their sexual appetites and diminished their sexual appurtenances.

Charlie Hebdo`s editor, Stephane Charbonnier, said at that time: “We thought the lines had moved and maybe there would be more respect for our satirical work, our right to mock. Freedom to have a good laugh is as important as freedom of speech.”

Its offices have been firebombed, Facebook page suspended for 24 hours and its website hacked. They were attacked by Al-Qaedas Islamist terrorist group because they where kidding with the prophet Muhammed.

Cartoonist Stèphane “Charb” Charbonnier, murdered in the attack on the magazine, had been the editor-in chief of Charlie Hebdo since 2009. Two years before the attack he stated: “We have to carry on until Islam has been rendered as banal as Catholicism.” In 2013, al-Qaeda added him to its most wanted list.

We have also seen how the MSM tried to bring President Donald Trump down to the ground especially before the election. Now, they are trying to figure out a new campaign to try to get rid of him. Is all this funny things responsibility?

Who said: «Je suis Charlie.»

Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are those of the author and may not reflect those of Shiny bull. The author has made every effort to ensure accuracy of information provided; however, neither Shiny bull nor the author can guarantee such accuracy. This article is strictly for informational purposes only. It is not a solicitation to make any exchange in precious metal products, commodities, securities or other financial instruments. Shiny bull and the author of this article do not accept culpability for losses and/ or damages arising from the use of this publication.