Note: the following study presents exciting new research identifying the descendants of the ancient lost house of Israel. It has tremendous bearing on Bible prophecy, the fulfillment of the covenants, and the duties and obligations of God’s chosen people in the world today.
Ashe states that Anglo-Israel (sometimes called British-Israel) believers “do not claim that the British people are the lost tribes because of the legends and alleged linguistic coincidences which are cited in support of that view. Their starting-point is the Bible, read in a fundamentalist spirit.” Mr. Ashe is correct in that observation; Christians who uphold the Bible as the Word of God base their belief upon it. Their starting-point is the Bible! But we are confident that historical proofs such as archaeology and linguistics will also verify the Scriptural record. For those who do not find Bible prophecies alone convincing, we present proof of language links in this study.
The author continues, “The prophets foretell various things about Israel which have not been fulfilled in the Jews: that God’s people will be powerful, that they will be ‘a nation and a company of nations,’ and so forth. Also, a few passages (notably Ezekiel 36:15-25) certainly seem to keep up the distinction between Israel and Judah after the exile of both, and to foreshadow a final return and reunion... The British-Israelite, or any other theorist who thinks on these lines, feels no obligation to produce scholarly proofs that the lost tribes exist. He already knows that they do because, on biblical grounds, they must. Their reality is an axiom, not a conclusion. His non-Biblical arguments are offered mainly as indications confirming the belief he already holds.” These are key points: The lost tribes of Israel must continue to be in existence as a separate people somewhere, even though they have not yet been identified; there will be a final reunion with Judah at the end of the age. Further, the Jewish people have not fulfilled all of the prophecies given to Israel, so we must look elsewhere to find these prophecies fulfilled. But in which people? Having answered this from Bible prophecy in a separate tract, we are now addressing it through linguistics, the study of languages.
Having said this, however, Mr. Ashe closes with a caveat: “But while a case could be made out for the Empire being Israel in some symbolic sense, the case for literal ethnic links with the lost tribes could not be sustained. It was altogether too complicated... [it] reduces the lost tribes to a theme of speculation only.” This statement is best answered by analogy. If a robbery or murder occurred, would we accept a police explanation that, ‘there is a solution here, but we won’t try to solve it because it is altogether too complicated’? Of course not! Where lives are at stake, a solution is necessary. In a Spiritual sense, lives are indeed at stake, who can be transformed by a knowledge that the Bible is true and the prophecies fulfilled. A mystery is a subject for “speculation” only until the solution is found, and we believe that the identity of the lost tribes of Israel is now proven, as we shall show.
Since Mr. Ashe believes that a solution is “altogether too complicated,” we will simplify our answer to two basic principles of linguistics, the science of languages.
“Guttural” consonants “Kh”, hard “G”, and hard “C” are interchangeable.
Vowels are very frequently interchanged, added, or substituted.
This interchangeability of hard consonants was also true in ancient Mesopotamia. In the Assyrian Cuneiform Alphabet, the same character stands for both the hard “G” and “Kh,” as can be seen in the box at left.3 A moments’ reflection will indicate to you that the same part of the mouth and throat is used to sound out all three hard consonants: Kh, hard G, and hard C, and that a change of spelling is easily and logically made from one to another, because virtually no change in pronunciation is involved. This is verified by modern Hebrew language and literature scholar, Dr. Isaac Elchanan Mozeson, who teaches language studies at Yeshiva University in Jerusalem. He states, “The Hebrew G, the Gimel, is often a K in Greek and other Western tongues. [The Hebrew letter G] resembles a backwards K.”4 As an example, Mozeson gives the word, “colossus,” which originated as “Golios,” the Hebrew word for the Biblical giant, Goliath. He states, “The Greek pronunciation would sound like “kol-ios” - just as the [Hebrew word for camel], Gamal, was rendered “kamelos.”5 Note again the interchanges between the K, G, and C.
We will be applying this interesting principle shortly in connecting several seemingly unrelated ancient tribes.
Nineteenth-century scholar, Sir William Betham (1779-1853), was knighted by the King of England for his research into ancient history, language, and archaeology. He had this to say concerning vowels in ancient languages: “Vowels are often substituted for each other: the same words are written promiscuously with an a, o, and u, an e or an i.”6 As an example, he discussed the ancient inhabitants of western Britain, “the Welsh, who have ever called themselves by the name of Cymri, Cimbri, or Cumbri.”7 As can be easily seen, the name of this ancient tribe has been variously spelled with differing vowels: Y (often called a “pseudo-vowel”), I, and U. Such variations are a good example of the common vowel shifts which are found in the name of this historic people, who we will learn more of shortly.
Another scholar of renown was Dr. Richard Cumberland (1632-1718), Anglican Bishop of England in the early 17th century. He authored several celebrated books, and was well regarded in his day for his expertise in ancient history and languages. He wrote, “The learned will not wonder at change of vowels in a name, especially when its made by authors of different countries and times, because they know this is a thing very usual; yet for the service of readers that are not much used to such changes, I will give proof thereof.
“Wherefore, I have observed, that in Jeremiah 48:23, our translation calls a place in Moab, Beth Meon, which signifies the house or temple of Meon, agreeably to the Hebrew text and to the Chaldee paraphrase. But the Septuagint calls it the house of Maon; and so doth the vulgar Latin. The Moabites agreed with the Egyptians in their idolatry, who worshipped their first king and planter as a god, under the name of Osiris. But when they speak of him as a man who first reigned among them, they call him Meon or Menes, with a Greek termination: Which word, Bochart well observes, signifies habitations or places to dwell in, which he brought them to and settled them in.” Samuel Bochart (1599-1667) was a well-known Huguenot scholar.
On the subject of vowels, Dr. Isaac Mozeson states, “The Bible has no vowel marks in the original, handwritten parchment form.”9 Similarly, Professor Cyrus H. Gordon, who is perhaps the leading American archaeologist of the twentieth century, stated concerning a Hebrew Old Testament name, “The ancient Hebrew text... has only the consonants...which were later supplied with vowels to make a verbal noun of it.”10 It is true that some Semitic languages, such as Hebrew, originally contained no written vowels at all, but only consonants, with the vowels supplied by the reader. The drawback to this is obvious: Different speakers might use different vowels, creating a slightly different pronunciation of the same words. As an example, the name of God in Hebrew consisted of the four consonantal characters, YHVH, and is therefore called the tetragramation, meaning “four letters.” Centuries later, a scholarly argument is raging concerning whether the name of God was originally pronounced Yahweh, Yahvee, Yahvah, or something similar. The solution may perhaps never be known, because of the absence of vowels in ancient written Hebrew. Indeed, it is possible that more than one pronunciation was in use in ancient times, due to the absence of stated vowels to guide the speaker.
Repetition of consonants, as seen in the second and third names above, was also a common occurrence. Therefore, by the grammatical rules governing language, all four tribes must be one and the same people. Who were they? Let’s examine them one at a time.
When the conquering armies of the nation of Assyria came against the ten-tribe kingdom of the house of Israel late in the eighth century, B.C., they did not refer to God’s People as “Israel” or “Jews.” Instead, the Assyrian word for them was, “Khumri.” This has been established through the deciphering of Assyrian “cuneiform” clay tablets. Ancient historian, Alan Ralph Millard, in his recent book, “Treasures from Bible Times,” says, “In 1846 men working for Henry Layard on the site of the ancient Assyrian city of Calah (Nimrud) uncovered a block of polished black stone, carved and inscribed. The ‘Black Obelisk’ records the triumphs of the Assyrian king, Shalmaneser... The first panel in the second line of pictures proved exciting. The text above the kneeling figure lists tribute brought to the king from ‘Yaua son of [Khumri]’ that is, Jehu, who took the throne from a descendant of Omri, king of Israel.”11 Millard reproduces the Assyrian words mentioning Israel, along with a literal translation.
So the first mysterious tribe of our ancient list, the Khumri or Gomri, are definitely identified by ancient inscriptions as Israelites of the so-called, “lost ten tribes,” who disappeared from history in the Caspian Sea region of Medo-Persia during the late 8th century and early 7th century, B.C.
It is fascinating that the Gimirrai suddenly appeared out of seeming nowhere in the same century as the lost tribes of Israel disappeared, yet no scholar ventures to investigate a link between them. The additional mention of “Iranian” (i.e., Medo-Persian) words in the Gimirrai vocabulary indicates some physical contact between the Gimirrai and Medo-Persians, such as the captive Israelites might have been expected to have had. Historian Sharon Turner, in fact, stated that he identified 262 Medo-Persian loan-words in the Anglo-Saxon-Cimmerian vocabulary.16 Who were these mysterious people? According to scholars, the Gimirrai, Gomer, Cimbri, Teutons, and Celts are all linked together as the same people. By applying the rules of language, we realize that the “Gimirrai” were also the same people as the “Khumri,” who have been positively identified as Israelites of the lost ten tribes. It is therefore no coincidence that the lost tribes of Israel disappeared in Medo-Persia-Iran (II Kings 17:6), the birthplace of the Gimirrai.
The same Encyclopedia Britannica article has this to say about the people known today as Cimmerians: “An ancient people of the far north or west of Europe, first spoken of by Homer (Odyssey, xi. 12-19), who describes them as living in perpetual darkness. Herodotus (iv. 11-13), in his account of Scythia, regards them as the early inhabitants of South Russia (after whom the Bosporus Cimmerius and other places were named.)”17 The same encyclopedia reference also traces the European “Cymry” and “Celts” to this same people. There seems to be no question in historian’s minds, that whoever these Cimmerians were, they were the ancestors of a significant branch of the modern people of Europe. (See box below) Again, by applying the two basic linguistic rules mentioned previously, it may be seen that the Cimmerians were none other than the Khumri or Gomri, the lost ten tribes.
The eminent Christian historian and archaeologist, Dr. Henry Sayce, stated, “Gomer is the Gimirra of the Assyrian inscriptions, the Kimmerians of the Greek writers.”18 Many reference works associate the names Gimirrai and Cimmerians with Gomer, connecting all three together (see box at right) using the very same established linguistic rules we have presented. In fact, because the ancient Hebrew language did not contain vowels, the present rendering of “Gomer” is a later construction. Since it is now known that the original Assyrian word for Israel was pronounced “Khumri,” and the Babylonian was “Gamir” or “Gimirrai,” it is probable that the original vowel-less Hebrew word was pronounced similar to these actual forms, as well. This information is known through the reading of ancient source documents which give us an accurate view of the 7th century, B.C. world that was not possible until recent years.
The first reference (at right) tells us that the Gimirrai suddenly appeared in history during the reign of Sargon II, 722-705 B.C. He was the Assyrian king who conquered Samaria and deported the Israelites to the Assyrian-controlled province of Medo-Persia. It is amazing that historians never notice the tremendous “coincidence” of this: The first historical notice of the existence of the Gimirrai was during the same 17 years that the Israelite-Gomri-Khumri were deported and lost to history in that same province!
But the connection of “Gomer” or “Gimirrai” with ancient Israel has been clouded by confusion over reference to them in the tenth chapter of Genesis, the so-called “register of nations.” In Genesis 10:2-3, we read, “The sons of Japheth; Gomer, and Magog, and Madai, and Javan, and Tubal, and Meshech, and Tiras. And the sons of Gomer; Ashkenaz, and Riphath, and Togarmah.” A literal, racial interpretation of these verses would make Gomer (or Gimir) a son of Japheth, and not of Shem as the Israelites were. But there are at least two important reasons why this is not so. First, Japheth lived at the time of the Noahic flood, which has been dated by Christian scholars to about 3400 B.C., more than 2,500 years before King Omri, who reigned about 882 to 871 B.C. As shown previously, the Israelites were called “Khumri” or “Gimirri” after King Omri; clearly, the “Gomer” in Genesis chapter ten is ages before his time!
JEZREEL: “Scattered” into Assyrian dispersion 762-676 B.C.
LO-RUHAMAH: “Not pitied” by God because their sins received a just recompense.
LO-AMMI: “Not God’s People,” because they were divorced by Him and sent away to a far land. Scholars have traced their migration through the Caucasus Mountain region and into Europe in the early pre-Christian centuries.
SONS OF THE LIVING GOD: “Christians” -Israel’s ultimate restoration would later come when they accepted Christ as Savior, becoming His Bride at the marriage supper of the lamb.
One last important reference to Gomer needs to be mentioned, which appears in Ezekiel chapter 38. Gomer is listed as joining a confederacy led by “Gog, chief prince of Meschech and Tubal.” Gomer apparently does not lead this confederacy, nor are the other listed confederate nations Israelites. In addition, one should not assume that all of the lost tribes, Gomer/Gamir, are allied with Gog, but only one portion. So it is primarily a non-Israel invading force, which also includes some number of Israelites. Therefore, dispensationalists who identify Gomer as Europe may be at least partially right in that identification, because the Celtic-Cymry race did spread throughout Europe, before colonizing North America, Australia, South Africa, and other lands. But because Gog’s army invades the “mountains of Israel,” they assume that Gomer itself must not be Israelite. That assumption has little basis. Israelites have warred among themselves since the kingdom was divided into Israel and Judah after the time of Solomon, about 975 B.C. Whether the battle typified in Ezekiel is literal or allegory is impossible to predict beforehand, but that it represents to some degree yet another fratricidal war between Israelites seems obvious.
One possible fulfillment was addressed in the old nineteenth-century prophecy, “George Washington’s Vision,” a prophetic vision received by America’s first President during the Revolutionary War. It speaks of a confederacy comprised of “Europe, Asia, and Africa” coming in battle against America: “Then my eyes beheld a fearful scene: From each of these countries arose thick, black clouds that were soon joined into one.” The late Professor C.A.L. Totten of Yale University wrote in the year 1898: “The third and last peril clearly indicates a future invasion of our country by the Old World. The drift of events and Bible prophecy indicate that a great combination of powers will be the actor.”25 In the prophecy, help against this peril comes in the form of divine assistance, apparently the Second Advent.
The Encyclopedia Britannica article we quoted states that it is “certain” that the tribe of Gomer is identified with the Celts, Teutons, and related peoples of Europe. We have found through linguistics (the study of languages), as well as through Bible prophecy in Hoseh, that the people called Gomer or Gimir are in fact Israelites. Linguistically, Israel’s name, Khumri, is the phonetic equivalent of the European, Cymri; and Gomri/Khumri is also the consonantal equivalent to Gomer, Gimir, and Cimmiri. Therefore, if it is indeed a certainty that Gomer is found in the Europeans of today, then it is an equal certainty that those same Europeans are Israelites.
It is odd that scholars so easily admit to certainty concerning the relationship between the names Gomer, Gimirrai, and Cimmeri, yet are silent concerning the name Khumri. It is never mentioned or investigated. Author and historian Geoffrey Ashe, mentioned earlier, states that it is “altogether too complicated” and “a theme for speculation only.” That argument is rather specious, since it never appears “too complicated” for them to positively link the other three names Gomer, Gimirrai, and Cimmeri, using the same rules!
Mr. Ashe also speaks of “alleged linguistic coincidences” which support the Anglo-Israel view. But there is nothing either alleged or coincidental about it. The information we have presented is based upon standard, accepted grammatical rules, and the known fact that Israel was the Khumri of the ancient inscriptions. Since the name Gomri/Khumri is the consonantal equivalent of Gomer, Gimir, and Cymri, it would indeed be a strange “coincidence” if they were not identical peoples! Scholars don’t consider the identity of the latter three as coincidence, but as fact!
Geoffrey Ashe, article: “Lost Tribes Of Israel,” in “The Encyclopedia of Myth and Magic,” 1995, xi:1644-1646.


Inspectorii RAR au descoperit că multe maşini diesel nu mai au filtru de particule, adică sunt şi mai poluante. Şoferii dau 1.200 de lei unor mecanici care le măsluiesc maşinile. Service urile depistate că au încălcat regulile sunt amendate cu cel mult 10.000 de lei.

După ce au citit pe site-ul uni service auto că mecanicii pot să scoată filtrul de particule al maşinii, inspectorii Registrului Auto Român s-au dus incognito sa își măsluiască mașinile.

Discuţie mecanic auto - inspector RAR:

-Întâi o să îi scoateţi filtrul, şi după aia îi faceţi şi softul?

-Da, trebuie scos filtrul, şi în acelaşi timp îi facem şi o modificare de soft.

Filtrul de particule al maşinilor diesel are rolul de a reduce emisiile poluante. Atunci când se umple de particule, trebuie schimbat, însă preţul unui filtru poate ajunge şi la 1.500 de euro. Aşa că mecanicii auto au venit cu o soluţie: pentru 1.200 de lei, scot filtrul de tot.

Practica este însă ilegală, nicio documentaţie tehnică nu permite acest lucru.

Discuţie mecanic auto - inspector RAR:

-Știţi că urma să faceţi o lucrare strict interzisă? Nu aveţi voie să faceţi activităţi de demontare a filtrului de particule.

-Clientul are aceeaşi vină ca şi mine, nu?

-Nu, pentru că dumneavoastră aveţi o reclamă că faceţi astfel de activităţi şi nu aveţi dreptul să faceţi.

Inspectorii spun ca această procedură are urmări drastice asupra mediului înconjurător.

„Excesul de fum care poate fi constatat şi vizual şi mai mult poate afecta sănătatea cetăţenilor prin emisiile de particule care nu vor mai fi reţinute. Pentru operatorul economic verificat în cauză, amenda a fost dată către maxim”, spune Mihai Burcea, inspector RAR.

Amenzile ajung la 10.000 de lei.

Şi un service din Arad a primit o sancţiune de 5.000 de lei, însă proprietarul susţine că mecanicii săi nu încălcat regulile.

Discuţie inspector RAR - proprietar service:

-Reclama pentru ce o ţineţi?

-Noi am încercat să facem, a rămas doar scriptic acolo. Am rămas doar la stadiul de reclamă, atât.

Inspectorii Registrului Auto Român vor verifica şi alte service-uri din ţară.


Ms. Salanieta T. Tamanikaiwaimaro
Submitted by Anonymous on 8 June, 2010 - 17:23
Pasifika NEXUS
Salanieta Tamanikaiwaimaro is the Founder of Pasifika NEXUS. A lawyer by profession, her interests span across diverse areas regarding social and national transformation through empowering communities through the use of Information Communication and Technology.
She has also served in previous positions as co-coordinator of the Civil Society Internet Governance Caucus (IGC) the oldest civil society organization formed since before the creation of the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS). She has also served within ICANN’s At Large Advisory Committee (ALAC) where she represented the Asian Australasian Pacific Regional At Large Organisation comprising of Accredited At Large Structures like the South Pacific Computer Society. She is the new President of the South Pacific Computer Society.
In 2011, she was the inaugural Chair of the Fiji Cyber Security Working Group under the Ministry of Defense and facilitated National Cyber Security Workshops involving stakeholders from all over the country. She now acts in an advisory capacity to the Fiji Cyber Security Working Group and is Chair of the Legal Sub-Committee tasked with developing the Cyber Security National Strategy, Policy and related laws.
She has been a past Fellow with the International Bar Association (IBA). She has presented in numerous forums and avenues including the International Bar Association, New South Wales Bar Association, Hawaiian State Bar Association, Internet Governance Forums, Asian Pacific Regional Internet Governance Forum, APNIC, ICANN, Pacific Science-Inter Congress etc. She is an Alumni of the US Department of State having been a Fellow at the American Bar Association, in Washington DC.
Ms Tamanikaiwaimaro is a member of the Global Advisory Council of BrightPath Foundation and organization dedicated to empowering communities through ICT. She is a member of Global Leadership Interlink (GLI) and has been a member of Fiji Red Cross since 1993.
She is currently concluding a research project involving the Republic of Marshall Islands, Republic of Fiji, Niue and Cook Islands in the area of Cyber Security.


Total Free Audio Converter provides support for more than 50 audio formats and it also provides support for multiple video formats. So take some audio and/or video files, load them into the application, and quickly convert them to the format you want. You can batch convert media files to WAV, MP3, WMA, OGG, and other formats.

The system requirements for running Total Free Audio Converter are: 1GHz process (2.4GHz recommended), 512MB of RAM (1GB or more recommended), 60MB of free disk space, Internet Explorer 7 or newer, Microsoft Windows operating system (XP or newer; 32 or 64-bit version). Please note that the setup wizard that will install Total Free Audio Converter on your PC will invite you to install some extra software: Smiley We Love and Mobogenie.

Total Free Audio Converter has a wizard-like interface. This means that the interface will guide you through all the steps you need to take to convert media files. The interface will guide you through the following steps: Step 1 – load media files into the application. Lots of audio and video formats are supported for the input. Step 2 – select the output directory, the output format (WAV, MP3, WMA, OGG, AAC, M4a, FLAC, MP2), pick a preset. Step – launch the conversion process and let the application do its job. You can set it so a sound will be played when the conversion is finished. You can also set it so your PC will be automatically shut down when all tasks are finished.

There is so much to like about Total Free Audio Converter. It has a user frineldy interface, it supports multiple formats for the input and output, it has a wizard-like interface, it quickly converts the media you specify, and it is free. You’re very well advised to go get it if you want a free and useful tool to convert audio files and extract audio from videos.

Pros A modern PC will easily meet this application’s system requirements. The application has a wizard-like interface. Numerous audio and video formats are supported for the input; multiple formats are supported for the output. Total Free Audio Converter is easy to use and free.

Total Free Audio Converter has been reviewed by George Norman on
03 Feb 2014. Based on the user interface, features and complexity, Findmysoft has rated
Total Free Audio Converter 5
out of 5 stars, naming it Essential


Nvidia GeForce GTX 1080 Ti round-up: which one is the best?

ASUS, EVGA, Gigabyte, Inno3D and MSI compared

By Tomas HochstenbachMonday 12 June 2017 04:59

Conclusion

The quality of the custom GeForce GTX 1080 Tis is high, without any exceptions. Every manufacturer has given their own twist to the cards, however none of them left a bad impression. That doesn't mean that we don't have our favourites however. The Gigabyte GeForce GTX 1080 Ti Aorus Xtreme is not the cheapest card in this test, however it is the fastest and the quietest card. It only gets beaten in the throttling test by a couple of cards. If you want to get maximum performance from your card, Gigabyte - just like ASUS and MSI, by the way - offers an 'OC mode', which you can activate using the included software. In this mode the clock speeds will increase even more. Lastly, Gigabyte also offers the longest warranty period (after registration).

If you want to spend less, MSI has the best alternative. The GTX 1080 Ti Gaming X is significantly cheaper than the Gigabyte card while not being loud or slow, however it's a bit worse in every aspect. The cooling efficiency is excellent and if you tweak the fan profile you can easily get it to be as quiet or even quieter than the Gigabyte Aorus.

The ASUS Strix OC is also definitely not a bad buy at all. It's a bit faster than MSI's card, however in return it also produces more noise. You have to decide for yourself what is more important. The FanConnect feature can potentially help reduce noise in any case, since the case fans will be able to help keep temperatures low. ASUS also offers the most features in terms of RGB lighting with Aura Sync, so that is also something to keep in mind. Lastly, ASUS includes a free game if you buy the card before June 26th, so this 1080 Ti is all the more interesting, if you were planning to buy Dawn of War 3 anyway.

Lastly we have the EVGA SC2 and the Inno3D iChill X3 Ultra. EVGA has made an excellent piece of hardware for those who want to meticulously monitor their card, due to all the present sensors and included software, however due to the fact that it's a dual-slot card the fans have to work pretty hard to dissipate all the generated heat, which means that noise levels will be higher in return. Unless you really need to save space inside your case, we would not recommend the card. Inno3D really needs the bang-for-the-buck factor, however at the time of writing it is only about 10 pounds cheaper than the MSI card. In our opinion this price is too high for a reference PCB with an unimpressive cooler.

Gigabyte has taken a huge step forward with the GTX 1080 Ti Aorus and also delivers the best card in our opinion, however for those with slightly different preferences there are also the MSI GTX 1080 Ti Gaming X and ASUS GTX 1080 Ti Strix OC. The relative differences are so small, that we award all three with an Excellent Choice Award.


In my opinion, everyone knows that Donald Trump brains and his mouth do not seem to work in tandem, anything new.
Here we have an individual who wants to become the most influential person in the world and diplomacy is not a part of his personality and those around him surely they know that.
According to the media, his comments regarding the Khan family is so outrageous that even Republicans condemn the remarks. This lady loses her son fighting in the US army, and anyone who is a parent knows how devastating the loss of a child can be. So if she did not want to speak at the convention she has every right not to do so.
I would wholeheartedly agree with Mrs. Khan that Donald Trump is ignorant about the Islamic faith and knowing what sacrifice means.
The American people need to ensure that he does not become President because it would be a disaster not just for the US but the world. The qualification for holding that office, in my opinion, is integrity, dignity, humanity and above all compassion. Does Donald Trump have all or any of that criteria, well from the gaffes and blunders that are attributed to him I would have to reserve my opinion on that score?


If you attempt to pay off a debt by making minimum payments only, an important factor to keep in mind is how much total debt you have on that account. In some instances, a minimum payment may or may not fluctuate based on how much you owe. If the minimum payment does not change, it can provide a false sense of security to continue to commit the least amount of money to your debt. Without making a large enough contribution, your debt can exist for a long time.
Having a small amount of debt would make a minimum payment ideal for a monthly contribution. One of the larger factors of your FICO score is your payment history and how often you keep up with your monthly payments. Building your payment history can ultimately work in your favor if you are looking to increase (or maintain) your credit score. Also, keeping a smaller balance can help your FICO score as well, as the amount of debt you have also contributes to your FICO score.
If you hold a large amount of debt (like a maxed out credit card in the thousands) then a minimum payment might be too small to make a substantial difference in the amount. If your debt exceeds 30% of your total amount of credit then it may have a negative effect on your credit report. In the long run, your FICO score may end up suffering while you make only minimal progress in trying to whittle down your debt.
If you constantly take a credit balance through the months, you’ll have to contend with interest rates being added to your debt. Interest will be added to your principle amount of debt every time you carry a balance with you. Since the interest rate is a percentage of your balance, the higher your balance, the higher your interest payment. Having a large amount of debt carry over might result in an interest payment that is as much as (if not larger than) a minimum payment amount.
In the event that your interest payment negates your minimum payment in this manner, you would end up not making any real progress in paying your debt down. Your minimum payments would be wiped out by the month interest rate. The main issue with this cycle is the lack of progress in bringing down the principle amount of debt. This will make sure you continue to maintain the same level of debt even though you’re making payments on time every month.
The best way to remedy this situation is to break down your total debt into the amount of months you’d like to have the balance paid off. Aside from interest, this will show you exactly how much you should be paying each month to completely eliminate your debt. In order to make sure you stay on track, add the interest amount to each payment whenever you’re scheduled to pay. A few tweaks to your monthly budget might see you handle your debt faster than you could have realized.
Calculating how long it would take you to finish paying off your debt through minimum payments can be a great way to estimate how long it would take you to completely payoff your debt. Factoring in interest for higher balance debts (like the aforementioned credit cards), it is possible to end up spending years to pay off just one credit balance. Even if you cease all purchases with that credit card, it wouldn’t make much of a change.
Without having the ability to alter your budget and pay more than your minimum amount, you might end up paying much more than what you originally owed. If you have a substantial amount of debt and you don’t have a foreseeable way to eliminate it, you might be in need of some professional debt relief. While having a debt balance isn’t always a bad thing, having too much debt can negatively affect not only you finances but your FICO score and your credit report.
Reaching out to a debt relief company can help relieve your stress as well as your debt. Guardian Debt Relief has been granting people that relief for years, and we are prepared to do the same for you. Our debt relief specialists can answer any of your debt-related inquiries and show you how to get started down the road to debt freedom. Through the power of debt settlement, we might even have you avoid paying the entirety of your debt. Our consultation is free, so don’t hesitate to give our experts a call. If you’re dealing with an overwhelming amount of unsecured debt and you’re not sure how to handle it, don’t wait to seek debt freedom. Take the first step and contact Guardian Debt Relief today.


Cabinet has offered its booth to representatives from the Institute for Creative Destruction. The Institute, which traces its roots to the work of the Cold War Austrian-American economist Joseph Schumpeter, works in various ways to support research, teaching, and innovative thought at the fertile junction of innovation and annihilation. In what ways can disruptive forms of enervation and excess be assimilated to orderly production? How can unpredictable and destructive insurgencies generate positive ROI? What is the best way to yoke degenerative autolytic processes to dynamic growth? These are the questions that motivate the thinkers associated with the Institute, and these are the problems that guide its diverse range of creative and destructive efforts.
The most significant public face of the Institute is its consulting agency, the Creative Destruction Consultancy (CDC; “Where the end is always a means”). This is a unique consultancy, grounded in the ecstatic traditions of the avant-garde, which specializes in delivering carefully aimed blows to complicated organizations, the kind of interventions that can bring out an institution’s natural and generative healing processes.
The CDC’s dynamic engagement staff has an extensive background in performance art, ludic activism, and parodic mischief, and decades of experience orchestrating subtle and unpredictable insurgencies in companies small and large.
The enormous range of untapped resources for creative destruction represent a vital future resource, as representatives of the IDC will demonstrate at the 2013 IDEAS CITY StreetFest. Come and learn (and even volunteer). Consider bringing documents or other material in need of generative obliteration.


December is National Impaired Driving Prevention Month
More than 10,000 people—29% of all traffic fatalities—died in 2017.
President Trump joins every president since 1981 to declare December National Drugged and Drunk Driving Awareness Month, or more recently, National Impaired Driving Prevention Month.
According to the National Highway Safety Administration, the 10,874 people killed in drunk-driving crashes last year amounted to one every 48 minutes. Drugged driving—being impaired by any substance other than alcohol—is an increasing problem on Texas roadways, according to law enforcement.
Drug Prevention Resources (DPR) is responding by offering impaired driving awareness classes at the local driving schools in Waxahachie and Ennis. Shelley Miller, DPR staff member who conducts the Ennis classes once a month and twice each month during the summer, says that students are educated in the short- and long-term effects of alcohol on the body. Fatal Vision Goggles simulate alcohol and marijuana impairment and a “real-time” awareness.
The classes are provided through DPR’s IMPACT Communities coalitions. Miller is the coalition coordination for IMPACT Ennis.
“We are proud to offer these educational sessions to community members,” says Becky Vance, DPR’s president and CEO. “All too often kids think, ‘it will never happen to me,’ but when they get experiential learning that shows them how impairment looks and feels, their attitudes tend to change. And that’s what it’s all about.”
DPR is Texas’ oldest non-profit agency focused on preventing substance use disorders among children and teens. The organization operates six IMPACT Coalitions. Each coalition is a group of community volunteers who work together to provide public education and public policy strategies to prevent youth substance use disorder and build healthy, drug-free communities. For more information, visit drugfreegeneration.org.


1. What book in this field has inspired you the most?
Three types of books have inspired my work on the filmmaker Robert Guédiguian and the role that friendship plays in his career. First, general books on film and philosophy: Bazin’s What is cinema?, Cavell’s The World Viewed or Pursuits of Happiness, Laura U. Marks The Skin of the Film, and classic works on the philosophy of friendship. I should give individual credit to my colleague and friend Todd May and his book Friendship in an Age of Economics. In French film: I have always admired books like Alan Williams’ Republic of Images, or Phil Powrie’s books, authored or edited, on separate decades in French cinema: these works move deftly between film analysis, theory, and historical context. Finally books on single filmmakers: though I have written another book on a pair of filmmakers (the Dardenne Brothers) I do not often read such work. However, the Manchester series of French filmmakers has several excellent models I have read in preparation for this or other projects (O’Shaugnessy’s Jean Renoir, Reader’s Robert Bresson, Cooper’s Chris Marker, Harris’ Bertrand Blier come to mind, but there are others).
2. Did your research take you to any unexpected places?
Since friendship plays such an important part in the project, I had to think long and hard about the links between the cinema as a practice and the ways in which people, through their relationships with each other, give meaningfulness to their lives. This somehow lifted Guédiguian’s work out of the cinema and made it, for me, a project that deals in some of the widest and most important aspects of life.
4. What did you enjoy the most about writing your book?
The book describes one particular lifelong project: the career of Robert Guédiguian and how that career is in many ways a collective act, even a monument, built in a particular space, by individuals who love each other and who are concerned about each other’s wellbeing. It was for me a pleasure to discover or rediscover some of the classic philosophical writings on the concept of friendship, to digest them, and to learn to express their ideas in a coherent (I hope) way. It was also a chance to do what the cinema invites us to do at every turn: examine my own life and consider my own friendships and how they contribute to my own flourishing. I hope the book will appeal not only to people interested in Guédiguian, but also to people interested in cinematic practices and their relation to philosophical concepts and social struggles.
5. What did you find hardest about writing your book?
Guédiguian’s work has sometimes been discounted as being full of “bons sentiments,” or good feelings, perhaps a bit mawkish, and politically simplistic. I actually agree with some of these criticisms and find some of Guédiguian’s films less compelling than others, and at times it was a challenge to get past some of my reticence so that I could see what I believe is profoundly original in his work. This is, in fact, something deep about friendships in general: from the outside, individual friendships can seem silly or incomprehensible (“god those two are so obnoxious when they’re together!”), and at times it was not entirely easy to feel “inside” the films themselves. I hope that my readers will let Guédiguian’s films convey to them their very deep coherence and originality.
6. Is this your first published book, or have you had others published?
I have also published a book on the Dardenne brothers (Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne, University of Illinois 2010).
7. How did you feel when you saw your first published book?
Happy, but also as if someone had just caught me doing something extremely embarrassing and published a photo of it online.
8. Why did you choose to publish with MUP?
With my first book, I wanted to begin a critical discussion of the works of the Dardenne brothers. With this one it was the series itself that interests me. I wanted to examine a coherent, long-term project, that had these philosophical roots, and a series that aims at describing the career of a filmmaker once it has taken pretty definite shape was inspiring (not that every book in the series needs to do that). The project really showed me how fragile a lifetime can be, and how much responsibility an academic has in describing someone’s career.
9. Did you approach writing this book differently to any of your previous work?
Only in keeping constantly in mind this overarching perspective on Guédiguian’s work as a career.
10. Have you had time to think about your next research project yet? What are you working on now?
I continue to be interested in how film can make its viewers explore philosophical, ethical, and political problems. I am reflecting on the cinema of Arnaud Desplechin, for instance, and have been working on the cinema of Rithy Panh as well for some time (in addition to its exploration of trauma and genocide, it introduces many interesting questions about the nature of “world cinema”). I am also crossing my fingers on a long project to translate an important film text from French to English. Since nothing is certain at this point I prefer to keep the title to myself!
Joseph Mai is the author of Robert Guédiguian, now available from Manchester University Press.
By Bethan Hirst
Category: Author Q&A, Blog, Cinema, Film & Media, French Film	0 Comments.


There is a book called "Meals That Heal Inflammation" by Julie Daniluk. Very informative. She has her own website. I heard her talk at a lifestyle show in my city and she is occasionally on morning talk shows.
Hope this helps.


Bike Oxford is fast approaching and Aspire has once again secured some places for this fantastic cycling challenge. This challenge takes in the stunning sights of Oxford and the surrounding countryside, with three different routes available.
In 2018 seven cyclists completed over 500 miles for Aspire, with over £2,000 raised. Why not get on your bike and help us to beat last year’s total?
You can set up a fundraising page for your chosen event or challenge through our website. It's quick, easy and means you can share your challenge with friends and family!


I have a client located in Kings Mountain, NC area that has an immediate need for a Project Cost Engineer.
A Project Cost Engineer responsible for establishing a project WBS (work breakdown structure), monitoring budgets, invoicing and cash flow forecasting. Able to provide look-ahead forecasting and comprehensive cost reports to monitor project progress at a TIC (True Interest Cost) level.
This is a 6-month long contract assignment with the possibility of being extended if funding is approved for 2019. For more information, please send your updated resume to sgwinner@selectek.com and I will give you a call to discuss this opportunity with you in greater detail.


After having read several standard works about Northern religion and mythology in German of 25 to 125 years old, there is finally a brandnew book and in Dutch too. With its 384 pages, it is much thinner than for example the Altgermanische Religionsgeschichtes that I have. Still this new book is big enough to be a reference work. Older books about the subject usually have a part with the history of mythology and the investigation of it, a part with information about spirits, giants, dwarves, etc. and the different gods and goddesses and a part with the (religious) life of the Norsemen. Van Gilst -however- starts with a part about the stone-, bronze and iron-ages to give you an idea of the earlier history. The writer appears to me of a follower of the school of Dumezil, meaning that the Northern tradition is placed in a larger Indo-European context and that parallels are sought with the religion and mythologies of other traditions. Others -however- see in Van Gilst more of a “naturalist” deminicing the gods to natural events or divined human beings. Therefor you will sometimes find other ideas or opinions than in other books or the conclusions of the writer differ from you own. This doesn’t matter, but it may be helpfull to know this in advance. In general I am delighted by this book, the fact that there is finally a recent one about the subject and the fact that it is written in Dutch. The writing is sometimes a bit sloppy, but this doesn’t effect the contence. So, all who can read Dutch are advised to get a copy of “The Eternal Order”.
Extra note, I know people very well informed in the Germanic religion who are not at all happy about this book. I like it myself, but just keep this in the back of your head.


First gaining recognition through Gilles Peterson’s BBC1 WorldWide radio show with their 2008 track “Combiner”, Danish collective Boom Clap Bachelors (comprised of Robin Hannibal of Plug Research’s Quadron, Ronni Vindahl, Thomas Bisballe, and David Cytryn, with additional vocals from Coco O. (also of Quadron), and Liv Lykke) have quickly made a name for themselves through their soulful sounds infused with subtle synth and pop influences.
Signed to Plug Research Music in 2011, following Robin Hannibal and Coco O.’s Quadron deal, Boom Clap Bachelors say they’re most excited (and anxious) to see how the Danish lyrics of their upcoming EP release MELLEM DINE LÆBER (Between Your Lips) will be received by English-speaking listeners. But one listen to the organic simplicity of “Løb Stop Stå” (“Run, Stop, Stand”), the dancefloor beckoning “Testikularitet” (“Testicularity”), or the fluidity of “Skynd dig langsomt” ("Hurry Slowly") is proof enough that with Boom Clap Bachelors, nothing gets lost in translation.
Who said the words “Soul” and “Denmark” can’t be used in the same sentence?


California’s uninsured rate declined last…
California’s uninsured rate declined last year despite federal efforts to roll back ACA
By California Healthline |
PUBLISHED: September 13, 2018 at 7:44 pm | UPDATED: September 14, 2018 at 7:09 am
By Phil Galewitz, California Healthline
The percentage of people without health insurance continued to decline in California last year, according to a closely watched report from the Census Bureau, released this week.
The state’s uninsured rate edged down even as Republicans in Washington, D.C. sought to roll back the Affordable Care Act. The rate of uninsurance dropped in just two other two states: New York and Louisiana.
In the Golden State, the rate of uninsured residents stood at 7.2 percent last year, compared with 7.3 percent in 2016. Since 2013, the year before the coverage-expanding provisions of the federal health law took effect, California’s uninsurance rate has dropped 10 percentage points — the largest decrease of any state, according to the Census Bureau.
“California hasn’t wavered in its efforts to expand coverage under the Affordable Care Act” despite the federal efforts to curtail it, said Laurel Lucia, director of the health care program at the University of California-Berkeley’s Center for Labor Research and Education. Because of that, “California will be able to maintain more of the progress we have made than other states,” she said.
Covered California, the state’s ACA exchange, noted in a press statement that about 59 percent of the nearly 3 million people in the state who still lack insurance are ineligible because of their immigration status.
“When you exclude those that are ineligible for coverage, California’s ‘eligible uninsured’ rate drops to roughly 3 percent,” the exchange said.
Adult immigrants without legal documents do not qualify for full benefits in Medi-Cal, the state’s version of the Medicaid health insurance program for low-income people, or for coverage through the exchange. They can purchase coverage in the private market if they have enough money.
Nationally, the percentage of Americans without health insurance was virtually the same in 2017 as in 2016 — the last year of the Obama administration — despite the Republican efforts against the ACA.
“The overall Census report shows that even in the face of incredible national turbulence, the Affordable Care Act is still working across much of the nation,” said Peter Lee, Covered California’s executive director. “The places where you are seeing failures in coverage, these are failures of states to act on behalf of their citizens.”
The uninsured rate rose in 14 states. It was not immediately clear why, since those states — Texas, Florida, Vermont, Minnesota and Oregon among them — varied dramatically by location, political leaning and whether they had expanded Medicaid under the federal health law.
An estimated 8.8 percent of the U.S. population, or about 28.5 million people, did not have health insurance coverage at any point in 2017. That was slightly higher than the 28.1 million who lacked coverage in 2016, but the rise did not affect the uninsured rate. The difference in the rate between the two years was not statistically significant, according to the Census report.
In 2013, 14.5 percent of Americans were uninsured, and by 2017 that number had dropped to 8.7 percent, according to the Census Bureau.
The Census numbers are considered the gold standard for tracking who has insurance, because the survey samples are so large.
alysts credit the health law with helping drive down the number of uninsured. But the decline of the U.S. unemployment rate in recent years has also played a role: The proportion of people without insurance typically falls as unemployment rates decline, because more people can get health coverage at work or can better afford buying insurance on their own.
The nation’s unemployment rate has generally been falling since before 2011 and was 4.1 percent for the last quarter of 2017, the lowest level since before the Great Recession began in December 2007.
Critics of the health law said the report emphasized its deficiencies. “Today’s report is another reminder that Obamacare has priced insurance out of the reach of millions of working families,” Marie Fishpaw and Doug Badger of the Heritage Foundation said in a statement. “Despite a growing economy and very low unemployment rate, the uninsured rate remains virtually unchanged.”
But the law’s supporters instead saw the glass as half full.
“These numbers show the resilience of the Affordable Care Act,” said Judith Solomon, senior fellow at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. She said people still value the coverage they receive from the health law even as it’s been under attack by President Donald Trump and Republicans who want to repeal it. “It’s good news because the numbers show the strength of the ACA but bad news in that we have not seen further progress.”
Solomon expressed concern, though, about the large number of states seeing uninsured rates increase.
Uninsured rates last year ranged from a high of more than 17 percent in Texas to low of just under 3 percent in Massachusetts.
West Virginia had one of the sharpest increases in uninsured.
About 14 percent of the state’s residents were uninsured in 2013 before the ACA’s premium subsidies and Medicaid expansion began. That rate fell by nearly two-thirds by 2016. Last year, however, West Virginia’s uninsured rate crept up 0.8 percentage points to 6.1 percent, according to the Census report.
Carol Bush, 58, of Elkins, W.Va., expects to lose coverage Oct. 1 because her job is ending.
It’s an unfortunate irony: Elkins has served for the past three years as a navigator helping people in her community find coverage in the health law marketplaces. Federal officials have largely scrapped that program.
The Trump administration cut funding by more than 80 percent during the past two years, saying it had no proof that navigators were helping people find coverage. Only if consumers signed up in the presence of the navigator was a session considered a success.
Bush had coverage through the University of West Virginia, which has a navigator contract that ends at the end of this month. Without employer coverage, Bush said, the cheapest insurance she could find would be about $1,100 a month. She won’t qualify for a federal subsidy to lower her premium because of her family’s income. Her husband is insured through Medicare.
Although she said she has strongly considered going without insurance because of the cost, she knows she needs it.
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“In all honesty, I’ve always had some kind of health insurance, and the thought of being without it worries me,” she said. “I can’t risk getting seriously ill and incurring enormous debt at this point in my life. Peace of mind has a value too.”
Shenandoah Community Health Center, a federally funded health clinic in Martinsburg, W.Va., has started to see an increase in uninsured patients the past year, although it’s still below levels it saw before the health law’s coverage expansion began in 2014, said CEO Michael Hassing. Hassing said he believes many patients have dropped coverage, thinking the ACA’s individual mandate was repealed.
“Folks say, ‘I don’t need to have it anymore,’ and they let it go,” he said.
While the GOP failed last year to repeal the law, Congress was able to strip out one of its key features — the individual penalty for not having coverage. The vote last December eliminated that penalty starting in 2019 — meaning Americans are still required this year to have health coverage or face the consequences on their 2018 taxes.
KHN senior correspondent Anna Gorman contributed to this report.
Here’s a new nonprofit group bringing soccer to kids in Redlands
The banana psoriasis ‘cure’
Relationships with students key to campus safety and security
Redlands Mall overhaul unveiled. Here’s what the city, developer have planned


July 28, 2010 by Andreas
That’s be Oasis Special Purpose Battalion 300, in English. This peculiarly named unit proves that the Wehrmacht was not averse to a practical joke being played on its soldiers, since they probably never got anywhere near an Oasis. Instead of being based in a palm-studded Arabic paradise with tough war-like men on horses and beautiful women wearing veils they found themselves in dusty and stony dirtholes on the Libyan-Egyptian border, until they were forced to surrender in January 1942.
I understand the battalion was formed in summer 1941 in reaction to General Paulus visit to the desert in April/May, when he found the defensive position on the border too weak.[Correction to follow below]. The battalion was formed in response to a request made by the D.A.K. HQ to O.K.H. on 30 March, for garrison troops for oases through the desert, such as Gialo. The original request asked for five independent companies. The thinking was that these companies could act as flank and rear-area protection for traffic links and water supply points.
The battalion consisted of soldiers who had been to Africa before the war. While it is often given as part of Division z.b.V. Afrika (later 90th Light Division), I think that at least for this battle any association with the division was purely administrative, and honestly I don’t think there was much of a connection at all. See e.g. the OOB of Division zbV at this link. No mention of Oasis Battalion 300. In the Panzergruppe OOB it is given as being directly under command of the Panzergruppe HQ. It would be interesting to see who first came up with the idea they were under Division zbV.
The battalion consisted of a battalion HQ, and five (on paper) identically equipped rifle companies, numbered 2., 6., 10., 12., and 13. The only explanation I can come up with for the peculiar numbering is that each of the comapnies was supposed to form the nucleus of a battalion, if it was planned to extend the battalion to a regiment later, with 13 company providing the nucleus for the support companies.
Each company had 12 light machine guns, 3 light mortars (50mm), and 6 light anti-tank rifles (7.92mm). The 12 light machine guns were more than a normal battalion would field, and indicates that either there were either 12 sections (could be three in four platoons, or four in three platoons), but the three mortars indicate three platoons), or six sections with two light machine guns each. The reported company strength of 152 of all ranks (see here) makes me think it was probably a case of 12 sections of nine or ten men each, but I’d be happy to be corrected on this. Regardless, it was a considerable amount of firepower for a company, and in line with lessons learned in the desert up to this point. What it wasn’t though was strong in anti-tank firepower. In consequence, in position the companies of the battalion were supported by Italian and German artillery, including 88mm AA guns. The article at Lone Sentry is very good in describing the situation.
The last remnants of the Oasis Battalion 300 went into Commonwealth captivity when General Fedele de Giorgis surrendered his forces on 17 January 1942, with the last organised elements surrendering in Sollum on 12 January, apparently. The battalion was not reformed to my knowledge, and provided little more than a footnote to the overall battle.
This entry was posted in Content and tagged 90th Light, Axis forces, German forces, Oasis Battalion 300. Bookmark the permalink.
← Order of Battle of the Italian 55th Infantry Division Savona – November 1941
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15 thoughts on “Oasen Bataillon z.b.V. 300”
Jon Sowden | July 29, 2010 at 2:28 am
“The battalion consisted of soldiers who had been to Africa before the war.”
“The last remnants of the Oasis Battalion 300 went into Commonwealth captivity when General Fedele de Giorgis surrendered his forces on 17 January 1942.”
… and with it, all the men who had prior expeirnce of the desert. Thus the risk of forming special purpose units then using them for banal purposes.
Andreas | July 29, 2010 at 2:07 pm
Pure speculation, but I think this probably shows some of the naivete of the German Army’s personnel planners in Berlin, who seem to have had little conception of the desert. I highly doubt that there was a need for specifically trained (beyond the basics) or experienced troops in this setting. I can understand why they formed the Afrika-Rgt. out of former members of the French Foreign Legion, but this battalion puzzles me.
Jon Sowden | July 30, 2010 at 12:15 am
as a line formation, I agree. There are too many examples of regular combat units from all four corners of the world operating quite successfully in the desert environment, as long as they had /some/ time for acclimatisation, their kit was broadly suitable, and they were logistically supportted to a reasonable degree.
However, in any environment, especially extreme ones, I think there is certainly a place for highly trained and or experienced personnel. Whether it be for things like the LRDG or Gebirgsjagers, or something more banal like providing advice or expert knowledge about the location of roads, water, landmarks, local contacts and customs and culture, whatever.
By concentrating all their guys with this experience in one unit, then using them as a single formed unit in an exposed location, the Germans pretty much ensured they wouldn’t be around for any other purposes should the need arise.
ken griffin | July 29, 2010 at 1:49 pm
Great article that answered all my questions on
Oasen Bataillon z.b.V. 300 Thanks again Ken
My pleasure Ken. Sorry it took so long.
Dili | July 30, 2010 at 8:23 am
Well could end in Giarabub, Gialo even maybe Siwa if things went well.
btw i have found this:http://www.scribd.com/doc/33472952/WWII-1942-Libya-Military-Campaign
Andreas | July 30, 2010 at 8:37 am
Nice find!
Still, I don’t think a special unit would have been required to hold any of these Oasis. 🙂
Dili | July 31, 2010 at 11:36 pm
When GGFF went to Siwa in Ju-52 didn’t went also a Oasen unit?
Andreas | August 1, 2010 at 6:05 am
I must admit I have no idea about that. Would be interesting if you could confirm that. What’s the date for that?
Frank Chadwick | August 2, 2010 at 12:43 am
The company numbers for the Oasis companies were those of the Wehrkreis from which each company was raised. The number of LMGs in the company is the standard infantry allocation, which was one per rifle squad plus a “floater” at platoon — three platoons with 4 LMG each = 12 guns. 12 LMG and 3 light mortars is right for a standard rifle company; it’s the number of light AT rifles which is high — two per rifle platoon instead of just one. I bet that’s because they were intended to operate in a semi-isolated environment.
Many than ks Frank. I wasn’t aware of the floater.
Dili | August 2, 2010 at 4:44 am
Well second half 1942 to El Alamein . That was the biggest airborne lift(30 Ju 52) in desert war that i know.
Andreas | March 27, 2016 at 10:13 pm
Did the companies still exist then?
Pingback: A Hard Lesson Learnt « The Crusader Project
Post updated today with new info on the origin of the battalion.


Paul Butler makes how much a year? For this question we spent 10 hours on research (Wikipedia, Youtube, we read books in libraries, etc) to review the post.
Total Net Worth at the moment 2019 year – is about $69,7 Million.
:How tall is Paul Butler – 1,84m.


A statement by Adoke’s solicitor, Femi Oboro on Friday said “I have today 20th July 2017 filed a complaint on behalf of my client Mr. Mohammed Bello Adoke, SAN, former Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Federal Republic of Nigeria, against the Federal Government of Nigeria and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) for unmitigated acts of persecution, intimidation, harassment, threat of deprivation right to life, unlawful interference with right to family life and livelihood.
Titled “Re: Complaint To The United Nations Human Rights Committee (CCPR) On Violation Of The Rights Set Forth In The International Covenant On Civil And Political Rights,” the statement said “This complaint has become necessary in view of the constant harassment, intimidation and persecution that my client has enduraDOKEed in the hands of the Federal Government of Nigeria and its agencies.
Mr. Mohamed Bello Adoke SAN is constraint to adopt this measure as a last resort aimed at protecting his right to life, right to family life and livelihood since the Nigerian Authorities have taken measures to deprive him the opportunity to earn a decent livelihood since leaving office.
“His constant harassment and raids on his home coupled with unmitigated media campaign have prevented him form practicing his profession, attending to the needs of his family, particularly to his wife and children, attending to his aged Father and other relations that depend on him for their sustenance.
“My client has taken reasonable steps to engage with appropriate Nigerian authorities such as the Office of the President, Vice President, the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, the Director- General of the Department of State Security Services and the Chairman of the EFCC to explain his plight. But it appears that the State through its agencies especially the EFCC is bent on persecuting and humiliating him in order to satisfy the whims and caprices of some powerful families and political associates of the present administration intent on punishing him for refusing to allow his Office to be used to further their personal interests especially with respect to the ownership and control of Malabu Oil and Gas Limited and the proceeds from the disposal the of the assets of Malabu Oil and Gas Limited held in OPL 245, to Shell and ENI.
The Complaint will afford the UNHRC the opportunity to apprise Nigeria’s criminal justice system, the operational modalities of law enforcement agencies such as the EFCC, the Constitutional mandate of the Office of the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, on whether such agencies and persons are conducting their operations in accordance with human right standards and norms applicable to civilized democratic societies and/or they can be allowed to ride rough shod over the rights and liberties of citizens under the guise of fighting corruption.
“We expect the UNHRC to expeditiously consider the Complaint and make its ruling and recommendations public in order to end my Clients persecution and once more provide an enabling environment for Mr. Mohammed Bello Adoke, SAN to enjoy his family, return to the practice of his profession and assume his roles as the bread winner for his immediate and extended family” the statement said.


A graduate of Stanford who played in the Final Four, Collins says he had no intention of becoming any sort of trailblazer:

"I didn't set out to be the first openly gay athlete playing in a major American team sport. But since I am, I'm happy to start the conversation. I wish I wasn't the kid in the classroom raising his hand and saying, 'I'm different.' If I had my way, someone else would have already done this. Nobody has, which is why I'm raising my hand."

Collins, 34, was an All-American in 2000-2001 while at Stanford who was later drafted 18th overall by the Houston Rockets in 2001 before being traded to the New Jersey Nets. He’s averaged 3.6 per game during a career in which he's played for six teams.

His twin brother, Jarron, played with him at Stanford, and was in the NBA until 2011. Jarron says he's there for his brother, noting, "At the end of the day, this is what matters: He's my brother, he's a great guy, and I want him to be happy. I'll love him and I'll support him and, if necessary, I'll protect him."

It remains to be seen how Collins' announcement is received by others, but, so far, early indications are all positive. It's also unclear whether Collins' decision to reveal his homosexuality will have any impact on a team signing him for next season.

Collins' revelation is the latest breakthrough among homosexuals in the sports world. In 2007, retired NBA player John Amaechi revealed in his memoir that he was gay, making him the first former player in the league to go public with his sexuality.


7 (quote) Uploaded 2.6.3.1 with SELINUX kernel.
TeamWin is proud to present TWRP 3.0.2-0 for the Samsung Galaxy Note 2 (Sprint)!
Thanks for letting me test this, you guys are great!!
Thanks for allowing me to test this for you guys last night on irc.
can wait for a deodexed stock rom zip to build my jellybomb rom!
AND THANKS TO VIPERBOY AS WELL!
I love waking up to the fresh smell of TWRP in the morning!
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AUDUSD: has broken important resistance(0.7390) last week, and paused near 7 month high on Monday, its highest level since July 2015. can it continue?
AUDUSD: Remains in Long-term Downtrend.
AUDUSD: fails to Break Resistance.


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I am a political scientist with a master degree on Development Studies for which I wrote my dissertation on “SSE as a transition path towards a degrowth society”. Based in Geneva, I am now working at NORRAG, a network on international education policies, and interning at UNRISD on the SSE project.
Abstract: In the current context of multidimensional crises, this paper aims to evaluate the potential of Social and Solidarity Economy (SSE) as a transitional path towards a degrowth society. This research is motivated by the urgent need to find alternative ways to build a fairer and more responsible society in harmony with Nature. While recognizing the limitations of the Geneva case developed in this paper, this work examines the common dimensions between degrowth and SSE. It will be shown that the plausibility of this transition, though real, is subject to some critical issues.
Abstract: In the context of today’s multidimensional crisis there is an urgent need to rethink some of the main social institutions, in order to improve them and better adapt them to the current challenges. One of them is education which has been for ages one of the most precious and powerful instrument to enlighten the individuals but also to shape their behaviour, values, skills and knowledge. From the degrowth perspective however, there is an apparent lack of analysis of the issue. This short paper intends to explore the potential transitional role of education by analysing some key elements and offering some clues to stimulate reflection and debate.


Here’s what we’ve been up to in the final week of term. We’ve enjoyed trying out lots of different collage techniques and materials! Next term we’ll be focusing on sculpture.
Our reception, year 1 and year 2 classes became robot designers this week! We invented different kinds of robot by arranging pieces of cardboard onto a background. We painted the parts gold using acrylic paint. We then used a variety of metallic card shapes, washers and rivets to add detail to our collages. We added mechanical drawings in the background using metallic crayons. We got some great results!
Our year 3 and 4 artists built on their Picasso-inspired portrait work from last week. They started with an angled face shape, adding features cut from cardboard. They painted their portraits in acrylics, taking ideas from some of Picasso’s Cubist paintings. They also added some extra details using lolly sticks and pipe cleaners!
Our year 5 and 6 artists continued with their Matisse-inspired collages. Last week, following Matisse’s working processes, they painted sheets of paper using Gouache. This week, they cut organic shapes from the painted paper to create collages inspired by natural forms. They created some lovely designs!
This week our reception, year 1 and year 2 artists built nests! We talked about the purpose of nests and what they need to be able to provide for the eggs and the young birds. We discussed the properties of various materials, choosing hard, spiky materials for the outside of the nests for protection, and soft, warm materials for the interior. Our eggs looked very cosy!
Our year 3 and 4 artists investigated Cubism this week. We looked at examples of portraits by Pablo Picasso, noting his use of bright colours and how the features are often distorted. We collected together drawings of eyes, noses and mouths taken from some of Picasso’s paintings, then chose our favourites to assemble into a portrait of our own. We added colour using oil pastel and wax crayon.
This week our year 5 and 6 class investigated the collage work of Henri Matisse (see examples). Matisse was a prolific painter, draughtsman, printmaker and sculptor, turning to his ‘cut-out’ technique later in life when age and mobility affected him. We learned about his process of cutting shapes from paper which had been painted with gouache by his studio assistants, and talked about the organic and geometric shapes we could see. We spent time preparing our own coloured papers, painting them with gouache and watercolour paint. We added some patterns and textures to our papers too.


FIRST DISTRICT COURT OF APPEAL
                STATE OF FLORIDA
                 _____________________________

                         No. 1D18-323
                 _____________________________

TONY DWAINE JONES,

    Appellant,

    v.

STATE OF FLORIDA,

    Appellee.
                 _____________________________

On appeal from the Circuit Court for Union County.
Aymer L. Curtin, Judge.

                        August 8, 2019

PER CURIAM.

    AFFIRMED.

RAY, C.J., LEWIS, J., and SHARRIT, MICHAEL S., ASSOCIATE JUDGE,
concur.

                 _____________________________

    Not final until disposition of any timely and
    authorized motion under Fla. R. App. P. 9.330 or
    9.331.
               _____________________________
M. Stephen Stanfield, Ponte Vedra Beach, for Appellant.

Ashley Moody, Attorney General, and Tabitha Herrera, Assistant
Attorney General, Tallahassee, for Appellee.

                               2


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This month we’re celebrating makeovers of all types with our friends at Birchbox: whether it’s with your beauty regime or your at-home furnishings and decoration, March is the time for renewal, renovation and refreshment across the board.

Plus we are offering you free delivery on your first Birchbox by using the promo code: HBSHIP. Just visit www.birchbox.co.uk/habitat to redeem it.

*Terms & Conditions: The prize is a year’s free subscription to Birchbox worth £90 + £2.95 P&P per month. There is no cash alternative. All steps listed must be followed to ensure the proper qualification into the competition. A winner will be picked at random on Monday 23rd March 2015. UK Entrants only. The winner must respond to this contact within 7 days or forfeit the prize. Another winner will then be chosen. The prize will be provided directly by Birchbox. The winner will be contacted by email. Employees of Home Retail Group are excluded from entering the competition. Habitat registered address: Saffron House, 118-124 Saffron Hill, London EC1N 8TS.


1.In a bowl, combine the chicken, mayo, grapes, green onion, celery, apple, salt, and pepper. Combine until well blended.
2.Serve on rolls, bread, or croissants sprinkle with some cashews or pecans. This can also be served on a lettuce leaf.
For frosting, cream butter and confectioners' sugar in a large bowl. Add milk and vanilla; beat until smooth. Stir in remaining toasted pecans. Spread frosting between layers and over top and sides of cake. Yield: 12-16 servings.
I can remember the first time that I made these it was in Mrs. Wathens home-ec class and I had never heard of them before but it was a class assignment to make a potato dish and there were 4 groups of us to come together for a delicious taste test. I have been making them every since I hope you enjoy them as well.
Preheat oven to 200 (400 degrees F). Scrub potatoes, prick with fork and bake for about an hour or until tender. Remove from oven and let potatoes sit for 15 minutes to cool slightly.
Heat milk and butter over medium low heat in saucepan until butter is melted. Add to mashed potatoes; cream together well. Stir in sour cream, and 2 Tbs cheese if using. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Place potatoes in baking dish; bake another 20 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from oven, garnish with chives and serve.


You can't help but feel blissful the moment you walk into your divinely airy Deluxe Superior Room at Villa La Estancia Los Cabos. With an essence saturated in relaxation, this distinguished room features two queen-size beds, a full bathroom and terrace with furniture. The calming décor makes it an ideal place to unwind from your hectic life and enjoy the tempo of a Mexican vacation.


Shopping bliss!

Enjoy shopping, then relax in comfort.

Leave some extra space in your luggage, and hit the local shops with a $25 gift card and coupon booklet. It's the perfect package for a ladies' weekend, back-to-school shopping or some "me time."

Book today and receive a $25 gift card to Rockvale Square Outlets, a shopping bag and a coupon booklet with $500 worth of savings. The Shopping Package is available at the Country Inn & Suites By Carlson, Lancaster (Amish Country), PA now through December 31, 2015. Plus, Club CarlsonSM members will earn 2,000 bonus Gold Points® per stay. Not a Club Carlson member? Join now.

As if this offer isn't tempting enough, you'll also enjoy everyday amenities* including:

Complimentary, hot breakfast

Free high-speed Internet access

Fitness center

Business center

Free weekday newspaper

Read It & Return Lending LibrarySM

Swimming pool

*Amenities may vary by location

Terms and Conditions

The Shopping Package is available for Eligible Stays at participating Country Inns & Suites By Carlson Hotels in the United States, Canada and Latin America (“Participating Hotels”) through December 31, 2015. An Eligible Stay is defined as a stay of one or more consecutive nights at the same Participating Hotel, regardless of the number of check-in or check-outs, for which the guest specifically booked the Shopping Package. Guests who book and complete an Eligible Stay will receive one coupon or gift card (or one collection of coupons or gift cards) with a minimum retail value of $25 for use during their Eligible Stay as specified by the Participating Hotel at time of booking. 2,000 bonus Gold Points® offer (“Bonus Point Award”) is available to Club Carlson members only and only one Club Carlson account per Eligible Stay will be credited with the Bonus Point Award. Maximum of one Bonus Point Award will be credited per Eligible Stay. Member must provide Club Carlson number at the time of reservation or at check-in. Allow 6-8 weeks for Gold Points to appear on account. Gold Points are subject to all Club Carlson program rules and conditions. Extra person charges will apply if exceeding double occupancy. Three day advance reservations required. Rates for each night may vary. The Shopping Package is subject to availability and blackout dates may apply. The Shopping Package may not be used in conjunction with any other Package, promotion, group or convention rate, or any discounted rate. Participating Hotels are subject to change at any time without notice and the number of rooms available for this Shopping Package at Participating Hotels may be limited. All Package components, including any additional amenities that may be offered by an individual Participating Hotel, may vary and/or be subject to additional terms or restrictions. Country Inns & Suites reserves the right to add, modify, or discontinue these terms and conditions or the Shopping Package at any time without notice. Void where prohibited by law. By booking the Shopping Package, you agree and consent to these terms and conditions.


The moon has been the Earth's companion in the Solar System for almost five billion years. It is the only place beyond Earth where humans have set foot.

The brightest and largest object in our night sky, the moon makes Earth a more livable planet by moderating our home planet's wobble on its axis, leading to a relatively stable climate.

EARTH AND MOON ARE NOT 'IDENTICAL OXYGEN TWINS,' RESEARCHERS SAY

In addition, it has guided the way humans live for thousands of years.

The moon is the fifth largest of the 190+ moons orbiting planets in the Solar System.

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Earth's only natural satellite is simply called "the moon" because people didn't know other moons existed until Italian astronomer Galileo Galilei discovered four moons orbiting Jupiter in 1610.

Here are five interesting facts you should know about the Earth's moon.

1. Theories about how the moon was formed are varied

Although theories about the formation of the moon vary, the leading explanation remains that a "Giant Impact" or "Big Whack" created the ingredients for the moon off the primitive molten Earth and into orbit.

Scientists have suggested that the impactor was about 10 percent of the mass of Earth — just larger than Mars. A cloud of vaporized rock was kicked up after the event and went into orbit around the Earth. The cloud then cooled and condensed into a ring of small, solid bodies, which then gathered — forming the celestial object.

According to Space.com, because the Earth and the moon are so similar, researchers have come to the conclusion that the collision must have happened around 95 million years after the formation of the Solar System, which is roughly 4.6 billion years old.

Studies in 2015 that uncovered differences in the abundance of the element tungsten-182 detected in the Earth and the moon gave weight to this theory.

2. There's water on the moon

"Unambiguous evidence" of traces of water have been found on the surface of the moon that may have originated from deep under its surface.

Detailed in the journal Science, evidence of lunar polar water ice was recorded by NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter. While the moon remains drier than any desert on Earth, water is said to exist on the moon in very small quantities. One ton of the top layer of the moon's surface has the capacity to hold about 32 ounces of water, researchers said.

When the Apollo astronauts returned from the moon, they brought back several samples of lunar rocks. The rocks were later analyzed for signs of water and, while trace amounts were detected, they were assumed to be contamination from Earth. The consensus then became that the rest of the moon was dry.

However, later observations of the surface made with Chandrayaan-1, NASA's Cassini spacecraft, and NASA's Deep Impact probe called that assumption into question after detecting the spectral signal of either water or the hydroxyl group. The findings exhibited that not only is the moon hydrated, but the process that makes it so is a dynamic one driven by changes in solar radiation hitting any given spot on the surface.

3. The moon's gravitational pull affects our oceans' tides

The moon's gravitational force pulls on the Earth's oceans. The pull causes two bulges of water on the Earth's oceans — one where the ocean waters face the moon and the pull is strongest and one where the ocean waters face away from the moon and the pull is weakest.

As Earth rotates underneath, the bulges move around it -- one always facing the moon, the other directly opposite. This is created because gravity pulls Earth toward the moon more than it pulls at the water.

The combined forces of gravity, the Earth's rotation, and other factors usually cause two high tides to two low tides every day.

At the full moon and the new moon, the sun, Earth, and moon are aligned, producing higher than normal tides called "spring tides." When the moon is at first or last quarter smaller tides form; when the moon is closest to the Earth in its orbital path, spring tides are even higher. Those tides are called Perigean spring tides.

The pull of the moon means that some of the Earth's rotational energy is stolen, causing the planet to slow down by 1.5 milliseconds every century.

Lastly, the moon is moving away from us. The energy the moon takes is used to propel itself about 3.8 centimeters higher in its orbit.

4. The moon has moonquakes

Small moonquakes several miles below the surface are believed to be caused by the gravitational pull of the Earth. Tiny fractures may appear at the surface and gas escapes.

Scientists report that the moon has a core that is hot and potentially partially molten much like the Earth's core. However, data from NASA's Lunar Prospector spacecraft showed in 1999 that the moon's core is tiny compared to that of the Earth, likely between two percent and four percent of its mass.

5. The craters on the moon were formed by asteroids

The craters which pockmark the moon are formed by asteroid impacts millions of years ago. The craters have not eroded much over the years.

The moon is not geologically very active, so earthquakes, volcanoes, and mountain-building do not alter the landscape as they do on Earth. There are also no weather events, as the moon has virtually no atmosphere. There is no wind or rain, so very little surface erosion occurs on the moon.

NASA, LiveScience, Space.com, and National Geographic contributed to this report.


“Hot Press” is the always anticipated full-color newsletter published bi-monthly by NWWS and sent directly to the in-box of all members in good standing. It is filled with current news, artist interviews, important information, event notices, and much more.
Hot Press is published in January, March, May, July, September, and November and wonderfully edited by NWWS Member, Jeffrey Waters.
DEADLINE: The deadline to have something published in an issue is the 10th of the month prior to its publication. For example, June 10th is the deadline for July’s publication.
Click to view Hot Press due dates. Click to view HotPress Article & Ad Size Guidelines.
The very popular Hot Press newsletter is filled with news and education. We think you’ll enjoy the many past issues we’ve stored right here for you. Enjoy!
November 27 - Daniel Smith Store/Seattle: November Splash KATE BARBER, MARY SCHUMAKER, ERIC WIEGARDT & LOIS YOSHIDA. There is no December Meeting.
May 29 - Daniel Smith Store/Seattle; Carla O’Connor. Article: Watercolor Essentials, Putting it in Perspective by Donald W. Patterson.
Mar 27 - Daniel Smith Store/Seattle;Maria Coryell-Martin. Apr 24 - St. Andrews/Bellevue; Mark Mehaffey. Article: The Value of Watercolor by Laurin McCracken.
Jan 23 - Daniel Smith Store/Seattle; Eric Lin; Pizza & Paint. Feb 27 - St. Andrews/Bellevue; Digital Slideshow; Logo Design Submission; Signature Show Special Recognition Recipients; Waterworks 2017 Awards; Watercolor Reading List by Jeff Waters.
Nov 28 - November Splash - Jean Pratt Beouy, Molly Murrah, Joe Mac Kechnie and Cheryl Schmardebeck; No December Meeting; "Watercolor Portraits on DANIEL SMITH Iridescent Gold Watercolor Ground" by Molly Murrah; 78th Annual International Open Exhibition - Prospectus available online Nov 12.
Nov 24 - Demo-Molly Murrah; December - No Meeting; NWWS Shines in New Cascadia Art Museum.
Sept 22 - Demo-Bev Wozwiak; Oct 27 - Demo-Eric Wiegardt; Northwest Watercolor Society Members and Guests Are Invited to an Extraordinary Grand Opening of a New Art Museum in Edmonds, Washington!
Jan 27 - Demo-Mareth Curtis-Warren; Feb 24 - Demo Joe Mac Kechnie; Featured Artist - Thomas Schaller on "Light"
May 27 Demo-Anna Roedel; June - No meeting; Waterworks Prospectus.
Jan 28 Demo-Carla O'Connor; NWWS Paint-Out by Shirley Jordan; The Competition by Eric Wiegardt.
Step-by-Step Art Lesson by Soon Y. Warren; Interview with Artist Paul Jackson.
"The Business of Being an Artist-2" by Charlene Collins Freeman; Interview with Artist Nicholas Simmons.
"The Business of Being an Artist-1" by Charlene Collins Freeman; Interview with Artist Mary Whyte.
May 28 Demo-Lola K. Deaton; Interview with an Artist-Carla O'Connor.
March 26 Demo-Molly LeMaster; April 23 Demo-Mark Mehaffey; Interview with Artist Jeannie McGuire.
Jan 22 Demo-Kay Barnes; Feb 26 Demo-Cindy Briggs & Theresa Goesling; Interview with Artist Earnest Ward.
Nov Demo-Catherine Gill Nov 27; No Dec Meeting. Interview with Artist Charles Reid.
January Kathy Collins Demonstrator – Loose paintings done quickly - February Slide show of 2011-12 exhibition entries. Watercolor Reading List by Jeff Waters.
November - Dotti Burton, Demonstrator – Abstract watercolor and acrylics; No General Meeting in December – Enjoy this magical season!


Over the years, I have written about various guidance aimed at those working to resolve disputes. This includes RICS’ guidance on how to deal with conflicts of interest and how to be an adjudicator. Two more pieces of guidance have recently been published.
This post considers Surveyors acting as expert witnesses (fourth edition), which RICS published in July. Next time I’ll be looking at the latest guidance from the Civil Justice Council, Guidance for the instruction of experts in civil claims 2014, which was published earlier this month. Both take effect this autumn. Judging by some of the recent cases (which Matt is considering), this guidance is essential as the message still isn’t getting through as clearly as many would hope.
Surveyors acting as expert witnesses is available to RICS members to download from the RICS website and to non-members to buy from www.ricsbooks.com. It has a foreword from Lord Neuberger of Abbotsbury and includes sample terms of engagement (in appendix A), as well as an explanation (in appendix B) of an expert’s duty of care following Jones v Kaney, which removed an expert’s general immunity from being sued (changes are also made to GN21 to reflect this lack of immunity).
It is made up of a practice statement (PS) and a guidance note (GN). It is mandatory for RICS members to comply with the PS and there may be disciplinary consequences for not doing so. The recommendations in the GN represent “best practice”, although it is not mandatory for RICS’ members to follow them.
He concludes by suggesting that following the guidance will enhance an expert’s credibility and promote confidence in the use of chartered surveyors as experts which, in turn, will promote best practice.
High words of praise indeed, but just what does the guidance say?
Further, an expert must not “stray from the duties of an expert witness” and act in a partial, misleading or untruthful manner.
The principal message is unchanged from the third edition (which came into effect in January 2009), and sums up the key duties with which experts must comply. A quick glance at the contents list suggests that not much else has changed. However, looks can be deceiving and the devil is in the detail.
The section on the application of the PS remains the same from the third edition. The evidence an expert gives to a tribunal, drawing upon his “professional experience, knowledge and expertise” is distinct from other evidence that an expert may give, such as evidence of fact or advocacy of a case (PS1.3).
The expert’s duties are largely the same and the expert must take “special care” to ensure his evidence is not biased towards the party instructing or paying him (PS2.1). Note also that an expert “must not malign the professional competence of another expert witness (PS2.7).
Acting as an expert (PS3) is also largely unchanged, although it does now expressly state an expert’s appointment cannot take the form of a conditional or success-based arrangement (PS3.6). This reflects changes that were introduced as part of the Jackson reforms. Similar amendments are made in GN19.
The section on reports and oral evidence (PS5) has undergone an overhaul, with additional paragraphs reminding an expert to maintain “professional objectivity and impartiality at all times” (PS5.2) and to provide “objective, unbiased opinions” (PS5.3). New wording is also included in the expert’s declaration (PS5.4) to reflect CPR 35.
It is one thing for the expert to change his mind, quite another for those instructing him to ask him to change his report. This is dealt with in PS6, with an expanded section highlighting that it is OK for an expert to change his mind after a meeting of experts or the disclosure of new evidence, but not for other reasons (unless the changes “accord” with the expert’s true opinion).
The role of the single joint expert (PS8) and the section on advocacy (PS9) have been expanded, but the emphasis in PS9 remains on the distinction between acting as a surveyor-advocate and as an expert, and the issues that arise if the surveyor accepts a dual role.
A new section on conditional fees has been added (PS10), which confirms an expert witness appointment should not take the form of a conditional or success-based arrangement (although it may be permissible when acting in a dual role (PS10.3)).
The section on the application of the GN has been overhauled since the third edition. The GN should be read in conjunction with the PS, providing direction on “good practice” when an expert is required to give expert evidence before a tribunal. The expert should also comply with any specific rules a tribunal may have (GN1.3). It still emphasises the need for impartiality (GN1.7) and continues to refer to the Ikarian Reefer, although reference to a number of other judgments has gone.
The general duties of an expert have been expanded to include acting independently and impartially, to assist the tribunal and to provide a range of opinions, as appropriate (GN2.1).
GN3 continues to emphasise the distinction between acting as an advisor and acting as an expert, particularly in relation to the potential for disclosure of any initial advice.
If an expert cannot fulfill the duties set out in PS2, he should decline the appointment (GN4.1). GN4.2 now refers to resigning as an expert, if these issues arises after appointment.
The section on instructions and inspections has also been overhauled (GN5), but the emphasis remains on conflicts of interest and how to deal with them.
Although the purpose of expert evidence no longer has its own section (it was GN6 in the third edition), I’m sure the message about assisting the tribunal is incorporated else where.
The section on factual evidence is largely the same (GN6), but opinion evidence (GN7) has been expanded and starts with a helpful reminder of what expert evidence is (opinion based on experience and knowledge).
GN8 and 9 deal with written questions and documents. Some changes here too, but the overall messages remain the same.
More detail is provided on what is expected of an expert when it comes to giving oral evidence (GN 10), not only in terms of preparation but also what form oral evidence takes and how to deal with questions and adjournments.
Connected to giving evidence is assisting advocates, both before and during any hearing. GN11 provides details of what an expert should expect to do in this regard.
There are now two sections on written reports. GN12 addresses the purpose of the report; details of how to set out the report are in GN13. It is worth noting that there are several references in GN12 to the mandatory requirements set out in PS5. Interestingly, it is suggested that if the expert has more than one opinion (because the issues lead to a range of opinions), the expert should articulate these and explain the reasoning behind them (GN13.4(c)).
The without prejudice meeting of experts prior to a hearing is an integral part of most litigation and aims to narrow the issues, allowing a tribunal to focus on only those issues that are in dispute. Consequently, the guidance on the meetings of experts (GN14) and narrowing issues (GN15) has been enhanced. It now includes guidance on what to do before, during and after the meeting, including preparing the document reflecting any agreement reached.
Conditional fee arrangements are prohibited and GN 19 has been amended to reflect this. Other issues related to fees are dealt with in GN18 and GN20. One change is to the need to provide an estimate at the outset. The guidance suggests this should only be provided when the expert has a good understanding of the case and the scope of his appointment (GN18.3). However, it is worth noting that the courts’ cost budgeting rules require the parties to exchange budgets prior to the first CMC, which may be much earlier in the process than the expert is comfortable with.
The changes seek to reinforce the duties an expert owes to the tribunal, as identified by Lord Neuberger and in the PS’ principal message.
Follow the requirements of both the PS and GN and you shouldn’t get into the type of bother that some experts have got themselves into.
Make certain that your expert has complied with the PS and GN, and consider making express reference to this in your instructions. While you might be happy that an expert supports your client’s case wholeheartedly, there’s little point if a tribunal subsequently finds that his or her views are somewhat leftfield.
Part 2 of this blog, looking at the CJC’s Guidance for the instruction of experts in civil claims 2014, has been published.