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Update 04.12.17 Earlier today BMWNA and the BMWCCA responded to our story distancing themselves from any individual chapters who have banned any cars with colesion avoidance systems from track days. Now the BMWCCA chapter that started the debate is officiallly reversing its decision to ban some new BMWs. Earlier this week, we inadvertently distributed a statement to participants of our HPDE events regarding the acceptance of BMW’s and vehicles of other manufacturers equipped with certain safety features. Unfortunately, this premature statement was made public before our discussions and research had been concluded. While advancements in safety features are certainly issues to consider as HPDE schools continue to evolve with technological advancements, we’d like to emphasize that our post was in no way meant to reflect BMW CCA’s position or policy at a national or chapter level. The BMW Car Club of America and the Genesee Valley Chapter have no HPDE event vehicle ban for BMW’s equipped with the drivers aids in question. BMW CCA continues to work with BMW NA to educate and develop a nationwide procedure for including BMWs with drivers aids in HPDE schools. We apologize for any confusion this may have caused. Update 04.11.17 Due to this story BMW of North America and the BMW CCA have provided an update to BimmerFile that should help to both clarify these rules and provide a sigh of relief for some BMW owners. The Genesee Valley BMW Car Club of America (BMW CCA) Chapter created and published an unauthorized policy banning BMW’s with Driver Aids from participating in their High Performance Driving Education (HPDE) schools. The national BMW CCA office does not share their opinion and is discussing the issue with the chapter. BMW of North America LLC. is working closely with the national BMW CCA office to educate and develop a nationwide procedure for including BMWs with driver aids in HPDE schools. Advanced driver aids like Lane Departure Warning and Blind Spot Detection and Lane Keep do not affect the ability of the driver to control the car on-track at high speed. In addition, the systems can be shut off so that they are also not a distraction to a novice student. Some drivers may find Frontal Collision Warning w/City Collision Mitigation to be intrusive on-track but this system can be adjusted in the iDrive menus to warn the driver later or completely shut off by pressing and holding the Driver Aids button on the dash until the green light goes out. The system defaults to ON upon re-start so this switch would need to be pressed at the beginning of each on-track run. It should be noted that Driver Aids Button in the OFF mode also indicates that all other Driver Aids installed on the car are also shut off. This is a fantastic update to a story that none of us wanted to read. track days are a right of passage for BMW enthusiasts and provide one of the best and safest ways to full understand what a car is capable of. Kudos to both BMWNA and BMWCCA for stepping in and giving us some clarity on the matter. Original story 04.09.17 The day many of us have feared is here. For the first time that we know of a BMWCCA Chapter (not the entire BMWCCA) is banning all cars with collision avoidance systems from the time honored tradition of track days. More specifically the Genesee Valley Chapter is banning cars with “automatic emergency braking” and/or “lane keeping assistance” systems. According to the club, this ban is due to the systems causing cars to behave in unpredictable and undesirable ways on a racetrack. Yes these systems can be turned off in modern BMWs. But that’s not enough for the chapter given user error in doing so. What does this mean for BMWs? The current radar cruise control that is optional on BMW also includes a automatic emergency braking component to it. Additionally the new 5 and 7 Series offer lane keeping assistance as part of their light autonomous driving features. Any car with either of those options would fall under this particular BMWCCA Chapter’s ban. Why is this is a big deal? For one this is notable given that the GVC runs some of the best HPDE on the east coast, including Watkins Glen (long considered BMWNA’s home track). This will also impact newer BMWs at these events (where BMW typically is well represented) and MINIs with Active Cruise. But it’s not just this one BMWCCA chapter. We’ve now confirmed that several others across North America have begun banning cars with these systems. Given the proximity to Woodcliff Lake, BMWNA had previously participated in some of these track days for marketing purposes in the past. Here’s the official announcement: Attention Genesee Valley Chapter HPDE Participants — As you know, the automotive world is rapidly deploying a variety of safety-related driver aids, and we are heading toward a brave new world of semi- and fully autonomous vehicles. This will undoubtedly be of great benefit to traffic safety, especially given the rise in accident rates attributed to smartphone use. However, some of these new driver aids may adversely impact the use of such vehicles on a racetrack. In particular, cars with “automatic emergency braking” and/or “lane keeping assistance” systems may behave in unpredictable and undesirable ways on a racetrack. Because there is so much uncertainty about how these systems behave in a variety of conditions, GVC have decided to ban all vehicles equipped with Automatic Emergency Braking and/or Lane Keeping Assistance systems (or their equivalent) for use in our HPDE events, even if these systems may be disabled by the driver. Please consult your local new car dealership for assistance if you are unsure whether your vehicle is equipped with these collision avoidance systems. If your vehicle is so equipped, your only course of action will be to find another vehicle without said systems to use at the event. Please let us know if you will be driving a different car than the one you chose during registration so we can update your registration profile. Note: GVC will deny participation, and forfeit the entry fees, of anyone arriving at our events intending to use a car equipped with these systems in the driving school. For more information, I refer you to the article entitled “Ten Ways to Avoid a Crash” in the April 2016 edition of Consumer Reports. You may also find the following links useful: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Collision_avoidance_system http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2016/03/17/470809148/automatic-braking-systems-to-become-standard-on-most-u-s-vehicles |
The video will start in 8 Cancel Get the biggest Sunderland AFC stories by email Subscribe Thank you for subscribing We have more newsletters Show me See our privacy notice Could not subscribe, try again later Invalid Email Sunderland travel to Bury on Thursday evening, as they take on Lee Clark's side in the first round of the Carabao Cup. The Black Cats will bring a squad mixed with youth and experience to Gigg Lane as they look to advance to round two of the competition. Simon Grayson's men kicked off the season with a 1-1 draw with Derby County on Friday, as Lewis Grabban's penalty was enough to cancel out Bradley Johnson's opener. Sunderland actually played the League One side at Gigg Lane four weeks ago, as a brace from Josh Maja and a goal from Jack Rodwell helped secure a 3-2 win. The Shakers are managed by former Sunderland midfielder Clark, and there is certainly no love lost between the Black Cats fans and the Geordie manager. What time does Bury vs Sunderland kick-off? The action gets under way at 7.45pm. It is the final first round game, with the rest of the fixtures taking place on Tuesday and Wednesday evening. Is Bury vs Sunderland on TV? How can I follow it live? Yes, this one is on TV, with Sky Sports broadcasting the game on both their Main Event and Football channels. You can also follow all the action on ChronicleLive with our matchday live blog. We’ll be bringing you all the pre-match talk, live match commentary and any post-match reaction and analysis. What are the injury concerns? Who is in the teams? The Black Cats are missing Paddy McNair and Donald Love, while Jack Rodwell has missed much of pre-season with an injury. Left-back Bryan Oviedo picked up a knock while on international duty with Costa Rica and hasn’t featured in pre-season. Grayson also has a big decision to make over Wahbi Khazri, Jeremain Lens and Lamine Kone, with all three rumoured to be leaving Wearside before the window closes. Robbin Ruiter is in line to make his competitive debut, after fellow summer signings Jason Steele, Tyias Browning, Brendan Galloway, Aiden McGeady, Lewis Grabban and James Vaughan all made their bows against Derby. Bury likely XI: Murphy; Jones, Aldred, Thompson, Leigh; Reilly, Dawson; Maguire, Ismail, Ajose; Beckford Sunderland likely XI: Ruiter; Love, O'Shea, Browning, Matthews; Gibson, Cattermole; Honeyman, McGeady, Gooch; Asoro Who is the ref? Robert Jones will be the man in the middle on Thursday evening. What are the bookies saying? Bury 5/2 Sunderland evens Draw 11/4 |
Being a mascot is serious business. And especially, when one aims to become a mascot of the opposition — a sort of counter-force against a mass leader whose popularity remains high — it is but natural that the responsibilities of that role would trump all other accountabilities. We should allow Arvind Kejriwal that space and time and be a little more lenient with his failures. After all, he is shouldering the burden of emerging as the tour de force who could finally take Narendra Modi down. Critics of Delhi Chief Minister, who say that his measures to tackle Delhi pollution are too little and too late, miss this obvious point. Many critics are pointing out that the dangerous levels of pollution in Delhi, that has the affluent scampering away from the toxic Capital to other parts of the country like Kolkata (one of history's many ironies), wasn't an overnight development and that the Kejriwal government got enough time to plan its response to a calendar-bound event. Critics say that for a landlocked city where construction work never ends, vehicular pollution remains high at all times and winter brings vigorous burning of solid waste (scrap wood, tyres, rubbish) as security guards or the poor on the street battle to keep away the bitter cold, there should have been a standard operating procedure in place. Was it unknown to the Delhi Chief Minister who has been in power for two years, allege critics, that with the onset of winter all of these factors would combine with the seasonal ritual of paddy stubble-burning in neighboring states and create a lethal cocktail of pollutants? If Delhi now stands on the cusp of becoming 1952-era London where deadly smog resulted in around 4,000 premature deaths, who is responsible, ask critics. The Indian Express, quoting an advocacy group which relies on government data, finds that the smog that has enveloped Delhi is the worst in the last 17 years. The concentration of PM 2.5, tiny particulate pollution that can clog lungs, averaged close to 700 micrograms per cubic meter. That’s 12 times the government norm and a whopping 70 times the WHO standards. Apart from a host of cardiovascular diseases triggered by sustained exposure to that concentration of PM 2.5, it is akin to children smoking 40 cigarettes a day, The New York Times quoted Sarath Guttikunda, the director of Urban Emissions, an independent research group, as saying. These particulate matters, says the report, penetrate lungs and enter the bloodstream, increasing the risk of stroke and heart failure, and can cause severe respiratory problems including asthma and pneumonia. Some critics, motivated no doubt by their dislike towards Kejriwal, are accusing the Delhi chief minister of dereliction of duty. They say that Kejriwal should have not waited for Delhi to turn into a gas chamber and then announce a slew of largely ineffective measures. Instead of accusing the Modi government of bringing "Emergency", the Delhi CM should instead concentrate on tackling the real emergency that has put at risk the lives of all its residents, they allege. What has added to the chorus of criticism against Kejriwal is a report, according to which the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) had warned the Delhi government last year of a calamitous pollution in 2016 if AAP government fails to act on the 42-point advisory. "We have had nine meetings in the last one year and a 42 point advisory was provided to the government. The CPCB had recommended the use these 42 points to avoid repetition of the pollution that Delhi witnessed in December 2015," Union Environment Minister Anil Madhav Dave was quoted, as saying by Times Now. According to the report, the CPCB provided the AAP government with 15 specific action points including drive against polluting vehicles, green buffers along traffic corridors to check emissions and recommended stringent action against the open burning of biomass and tyres. The loudmouth critics want to know that if the Kejriwal government had creditable information to act upon and check the pollution in Delhi, why did the Chief Minister wait until Sunday to announce the emergency measures? Many of the steps hastily announced by the Delhi CM on Sunday, it is being said, are a rehash of the Supreme Court orders passed last year which were not either properly implemented or applied selectively, which implies that its effectiveness is doubtful. Also, the unilateral steps smack of muddled thinking as is the wont of an administration that is too busy locking horns with the Centre to properly administer its responsibilities, say indignant critics. For instance, it's not clear why school were ordered to be shut down for three days. Will the smog that permeates every school, stay away from residences? Instead of shutting down schools and throwing totally out of gear their schedule and syllabus and thus adversely affecting thousands of students, the Delhi CM could have run a timely awareness campaign to inform residents of the hazards of burning solid waste, a regular occurrence during winter. According a study conducted by an NGO, burning of municipal solid waste (MSW) resulted in roughly 10% of PM 2.5 (finer pollutants) and PM10 (coarser pollutants) in winters, with 17% of it attributable to the fires lit by security guards. A report in The Times of India, quoting the study, finds that up to three per cent of Delhi's daily generation of 8,390 tonne of MSW was being openly burned in this manner, creating 2,000 kg/day of PM10 and around 1,800 kg of PM 2.5. But such a pro-active step would require planning. Delhi has outgrown its usefulness for Kejriwal who sees himself as destined for bigger things. When does the CM have the time to sit back and plan to tackle pollution when he has to fly to Una in Gujarat to mobilise Dalits against Modi, rush to Bhiwani and see if the suicide of an ex-serviceman can be turned into a political capital or dash down to JNU and use the disappearance of a student to organise a bigger movement against fascist Modi government? The truth is, a moth-eaten Delhi where he has to share power with the Centre is nowhere in Kejriwal's scheme of things. Pollution, or no pollution. Firstpost is now on WhatsApp. For the latest analysis, commentary and news updates, sign up for our WhatsApp services. Just go to Firstpost.com/Whatsapp and hit the Subscribe button. |
When Skylanders Trap Team comes to Android, Fire OS and iOS tablets this October, it will bring with it an abundance of innovation, technological firsts and surprises, both good and bad. The game will be the first AAA title to make the leap to tablet with the full experience, on the same day it arrives on every other platform. It will ship with its own, tablet-holding Portal of Power and include a surprisingly well-designed wireless controller. It features special streaming technology that will install and uninstall game levels and characters on the fly while you play. The game, which ships with two Skylanders characters, two traps, the controller and portal, will cost a penny shy of $75 and, fully installed, will suck up a shocking 6 GB of space. "From what we can tell, no one has dropped a triple-A game on tablet day and date with consoles," said Karthik Bala, chief creative officer at developer Vicarious Visions. "It's one thing to take an older game and bring it over, but to be able to ship it to all of those consoles at the same time takes a lot of planning." It makes sense that Skylanders would be the first game to make that leap of faith into mobile, portable and console release synchronicity. Last year, Skylanders Swap Force was the largest video game and largest action figure sold. It's the sort of game that when it gets a sequel, Toys R Us sends a vice president to speak; a game that has spawned 175 Skylanders figures and 175 licensing and product partners. But the true impetus for this push into mobile is the continued need to go where the gamers are. Tablets are everywhere, and often they're in a child's hands. At a recent meeting in New York, Bala described introducing the tablet version of Swap Force to his young daughter. He said he asked her if she wanted to play the game in her room. "She said, 'I can't. I don't have a TV,'" he said. And then Bala showed her how she could play the full game on a tablet, with her familiar toys and a controller. "She was laying on the floor with all of her toys around her playing the game," he said. "Now there's no reason to fight for the living room television." Magic Much of the design behind Skylanders is powered by the magic of the game's fiction. Skylanders toys aren't just hunks of plastic; they are characters that will be injected into your game and given life. Trap Team, due out on everything Oct. 5 in North America, is meant to do the opposite. Take a character in a video game and squirt it out into the real world, into a bit of plastic called a trap. Skylanders wouldn't be Skylanders without these toys and the portal, and Vicarious knows that, so the studio set out to create a portal that made sense for tablets. Surprisingly, that portal is much larger than the one that comes with the console versions of the game. That's because the portal is doing triple duty. On one side of the large circular puck is a hole designed to hold a trap; on the other side is a slot designed to hold a tablet at the perfect viewing angle for hands-free playing. Finally, the custom controller pops into the underside of the Bluetooth-based Portal of Power. Like other portals, this one lights up and glows when you place a character on it and play the game. But there is one significant thing missing from the design. On the console versions of the game, the illusion of trapping an enemy character in the game and sending them to the real-world trap is created in large part through the use of a speaker on the Portal of Power and a television's speaker. When a creature is trapped, you can hear its voice travel from television to portal through those speakers. The audio solidifies the experience. But the tablet version's portal doesn't have a speaker; instead, the developers continue to work on their use of 3D sound positioning as they tweak the software. Bala promises me the end result will be just as good as, if not better than, the console experience. The same seems to be true of gameplay on the tablet. In my short time with the mobile Trap Team, I was impressed with the game's look and responsive controls. "Visually, this is the HD console graphics," Bala said. "Pixel for pixel. "It's crazy how much faster tablets are getting." At launch, the tablet version of the game will support the third- and fourth-generation iPad, Retina iPad mini, iPad Air, Kindle Fire HDX, Google Nexus 7 and the Samsung Galaxy Tab Pro, Tab S and Note 10.1. "As new devices come out, we're going to support them as well," he said. On top of the console version's fidelity, the game also includes cooperative play with two controllers for every level, every moment, every character from the console versions. It even delivers experiences not available on other platforms, like touch controls and the ability to play the game without having to cart the portal around — a first for the franchise. Don't have Skylander, will travel On-the-go play will let players control two exclusive characters, "Instant Snapshot" and "Instant Foodfight," and use two virtual traps. The key difference is that playing this way won't allow players to upgrade their toy characters. It's simply a way to play on the go. All of those features come with a cost, though in this case that cost is purely one of storage space. The game itself will be a free download, though players will only be able to play a bit of the early game with the on-the-go characters unless they buy the starter kit. A full install of the game will take up 6 GB of space, well above the maximum download for a single app allowed by Apple. Vicarious was able to get around that by creating a game that only needs to install approximately 1 GB of software to function. "The initial app is about a gig," Bala said. "It will serve as the intro to the game." As players make their way through that introduction, the game will continue to download and install in the background, he said. While a full install of the game is 6 GB, players can get away with a 3 GB install using "smart storage." "What we do is that there are levels that will be downloaded and buffered," Bala said. "When you are connected to Wi-Fi, it's downloading ahead of time." And characters are downloaded on demand. So the second a character is placed on the portal, a download is triggered. The game does the "magic moment" flashing lights and shoots the toy in, all while the character is being installed, a process that takes about 10 seconds. "Most users have 13 toys in their collection," Bala said. "Pretty much all of the levels can be downloaded and most of your toys in 3 GB." A lot of the rest of the space is taken up by other languages besides English, and all of those 175 characters. If you're using smart storage, the game will fill up the space you've allowed and then will automatically delete the least played levels on your device, automatically reinstalling them when you decide to return to that area. Finally, a good tablet gamepad? "I finally got to tick off that box: 'design a gamepad controller,'" Bala told me as he handed over the diminutive controller created for Trap Team. The controller feels good resting in my hands: It's small, but not so small that I find it uncomfortable. The gamepad is flat, but there's a lot of promise in those thumbsticks, buttons and directional pad. Playing the game with it for a few minutes, I start to think this is one of the better mobile controllers I've tried. It will also be the first dedicated Bluetooth low energy gamepad to hit the market. That's in part because there is no Bluetooth LE standard like there is for classic Bluetooth, Bala said. Since Apple doesn't currently include specs for BLE controllers, this one won't be "Apple certified," meaning it won't get a sticker when it hits stores. While the game can support cooperative play with two controllers, Bala said the company hasn't decided yet if it will be releasing the controller as a stand-alone device. All of the hardware that Vicarious Visions makes, be it the Guitar Grip for the Nintendo DS' Guitar Hero or a controller for Skylanders on tablet, is designed for a specific game, a specific experience, Bala said. "They are built with purpose," he said. "In this case, we knew we wanted to create a full triple-A experience, and that required us to build a controller with a certain level of responsiveness, quality of sticks, in a portable way with Bluetooth support. "We didn't want players to buy the starter pack and then say to them, 'Go buy a controller too.' Designing something that would work as a total package was really important." The controller design was a hard problem to crack, he said. It was an iterative process that created a graveyard of different failed controllers and portals. Finally, while on a fishing trip with some buddies, Bala stumbled across the solution. "It just came to me," he said. "I drew it on a napkin, came in Monday morning and drew it on a whiteboard." By that Thursday they had 3D-printed it and had a working model along with the portal design. That's what they took to Activision. "We said, 'This is how we're going to bring the full Skylanders to tablet,'" Bala said. "One of the awesome things about Activision is that you can go in with something crazy and people might look at it and go, 'Yes, do it.'" Bala said he knew he had found the right design when he left the meeting without the portal and controller. "They kept the prototype," he said. "It was the only one I had." Castle Grayskull The hope was that the team could create "the Castle Grayskull experience for Skylanders," Bala said. "We wanted to do something that is very unique, that has the Skylanders play pattern. "When you immerse yourself in it, you forget about the screen, about the tablet." Bala thinks that's exactly what they've achieved, but he knows it's still a big gamble. "What we're trying to do is very contrarian," he said. "But it's exciting to be pushing the envelope. "It's new, but it's also where a lot of our audience is." |
Issue 2 of 'Optic Nerve.' All images courtesy of Adrian Tomine In 1991, a teenage Adrian Tomine began self-publishing Optic Nerve, a semi-autobiographical comic series starring an affable cast of oddballs and misfits. The stories were short, steeped in realism, and drawn with elegance and subtlety—the beginnings of what would become Tomine's trademark style. The series soon gained a cult following, as readers responded to Tomine's channelling his own detachment and lack of social interaction into his work. By the fifth issue, he received a handwritten letter from Chris Oliveros, the then publisher of Canadian Independent comics powerhouse Drawn & Quarterly and, with Chris's help, Tomine's stories eventually reached a worldwide audience. Like finding a box of old school memories or discovering a battered Nokia 3310 filled with forgotten text messages, Tomine's stories have an ability to transport you back to the social awkwardness, unrequited love, and emotional growing pains of your own adolescence. His first collection, Sleepwalk, is charged with lonely, haunting short stories taken from Tomine's early Optic Nerve series. The most memorable charts the small acts of rebellion that are easy to indulge in during a banal summer job, as well as the sometimes depressing reality of people who are trapped in roles most people use merely as temporary employment. The cover of 'Summer Blonde.' Developing a harmless crush on an attractive person whom you regularly encounter is something most people are guilty of (girl from the café with the stripy T-shirt—where are you now?). In Tomine's second collection, Summer Blonde, the principal story explores how an unhealthy infatuation with a local shop assistant and neighbor's girlfriend snowballs as the desperation and neurosis of the central character takes hold. With grander themes and more refined, minimal artwork, this collection exploring the pain and loneliness of the modern urban existence was the moment Tomine's graphic novels truly hit the mainstream, earning widespread plaudits from the notoriously elitist book industry. Tomine's third and most substantial release, Shortcomings, charts the tumultuous relationship of an Asian-American protagonist as he lusts after a bevy of seemingly unattainable white blondes—much to the chagrin of his long-suffering girlfriend. The relationship unravels as his cynicism and wandering eye drives her to move to New York to find a new partner. Tomine's latest release, Killing and Dying, is a collection of full-color tales of physical and emotional upheaval, creative ambition, and navigating the often-difficult realities of family life. I caught up with the cartoonist to talk about his newest release, his creative process, reaching middle age, and the fear of failure. Tomine's latest release, 'Killing and Dying.' "I didn't set out to make the book with any specific themes in mind, so I'm probably not the best person to answer this question," Tomine explains after I ask him to describe the concept behind his latest work. "To be honest, the whole writing process is kind of mysterious to me, and a lot of the best material is more surprising than strategic. "But looking at the book now, it seems like there's a lot of stuff about parents and children, and I think there's some recurring anxiety about trying to be creative in some way, and maybe something about the positives and negatives of putting yourself out there into the public. "But on a broader level, I think this book is the result of moving away from California after 30 years, and trying to capture certain moods and emotions that I associate with the places I used to live." Indeed, much of Tomine's early works is concerned with the upheaval and fear of change. In Shortcomings, the emotional gulf between the two principal characters is reflected in a physical distance that ultimately destroys the relationship. Tomine's work often deals with the angst and uncertainty of growing up and finding a place in the world, as well as the fragility and complexity of relationships in your twenties. I wondered about how having a family of his own affected the stories he chooses to write: "When I found out my wife was pregnant, I made a conscious choice to work on short stories—rather than a graphic novel—because I sensed that my working life was about to get very unpredictable," he replies. "Having kids also forced me to become a lot more focused and disciplined in my work habits, basically 'clocking in' the minute they were out of the house rather than waiting for inspiration to strike." With each new release, Tomine seems to push himself in terms of the scale and intent of his stories, weaving longer narratives with greater complexity and emotional depth. I wondered if he considered Killing and Dying to be his most ambitious work to date. "Sometimes just answering email or getting the laundry done feels very ambitious when I'm home with both my daughters," he says. "So while I hope I never actually utter the phrase, 'This is my most ambitious work to date,' I will say that I'm kind of amazed that I ever finished this book at all." Reminiscent of a sprawling, open-ended Linklater film, I've always thought Tomine's collections feel a lot like a series of snapshots of a certain period in a character's life, typically without a conventional resolution. Tomine disagreed with my interpretation: "If anything, I honestly try to tell stories as clearly as possible. Look at the end of Hortisculpture. When I finished that story, I was like, 'Now no one can say that I intentionally avoid resolution,' but what do I know?" From 'Killing and Dying' "I feel like all my characters are just weird stand-ins for myself," Tomine explained as we discussed a mutual admiration for the honesty of autobiographical comics from artists like Dan Clowes and Joe Matt. I wondered how many of his contemporary characters were still based predominantly on himself: "To varying degrees, all of my stories are somehow autobiographical. But not having to explain which parts are made up and which parts are taken directly from my life frees me up quite a bit. But I'm totally with you... autobiographical comics are great, and I wish there were more. Where are you, Joe Matt?" With so much of his life, personal failings and experiences laid bare within his work, I asked Tomine if he still feels nervous at the release of a new collection, despite his accomplished career: "Of course. I feel like I'm constantly on the verge of just calling it quits and getting a respectable job because I'm too weak to handle criticism or failure. "But that's been going on for 20 years now, so maybe that's like my security blanket. It's actually very comforting to know that there's a lot of other things I could do with my life that would probably be more anonymous and also more lucrative." Throughout Tomine's work, his stories explore many pertinent issues, particularly those surrounding mental health and his own experiences of racism as an Asian American. Some of the narratives in Killing and Dying confront serious issues around family and mortality, yet Tomine argues that too much emphasis is put on the importance of focussing on serious issues: "At this point, I think there's a sense that the best 'graphic storytelling' always tackles big, important issues, and I don't think that's necessarily the case." Indeed, the simplicity, subtlety, and purity of Tomine's writing are part of the reason for its success. It's easy to identify with any number of his characters as they struggle to connect and build healthy social relationships in an increasingly disconnected world. After reading Killing and Dying, it seems that even as we age, it never gets any easier. Killing and Dying will be released on October 6 in North America and the UK by Drawn & Quarterly and Faber & Faber respectively. Follow Joseph Marczynski on Twitter. |
AMHERST – Police on Sunday evening responded to a noise complaint about a Ding Dong ice cream truck and a call from a woman after her neighbor complained that she was interfering with his NASCAR viewing because of her enthusiasm for the World Cup. Just after 6 p.m. Sunday, a caller living at Palley Village Place reported that a Ding Dong ice cream cart driver was continuing to play the music and did not have a permit to operate. When police investigated the cart was no longer there, but police later found the cart and informed the driver the cart could not operate in town until the company had a permit to do so. Later that night, police received a call from a woman who had received a call from her a neighbor scolding her for taking jobs away from Americans. He called her a name and said he wanted to watch the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing and listen to Lynyrd Skynyrd, but her celebration for the World Cup was disturbing him, according to the police report. She is from South America and said she had been wearing various team jerseys during the competition in Brazil. Police reported there were no direct threats and the number of the caller was blocked so she was unable to contact the phone company to have the calls blocked in the future, according to the report. She wanted to document the call, so she contacted police. She told police she felt safe enough to stay at her home with her child. |
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The Hamilton Tiger-Cats enter 2017 free agency in search of answers to the question of how to get better. The Ticats could be aggressive in free agency and overspend in order to get over the hump, but I doubt they will. The team could make a splash or two but I believe General Manager Eric Tillman and Head Coach Kent Austin will primarily focus on maintaining the talent they have in house and count on a fully healthy season from their starting quarterback to advance past the Eastern Semi-Final, where they crashed out of the playoffs in 2016. RELATED » CFL reveals 2017 schedule » Fulton re-ups with Ticats » View Free Agent Tracker For the second year in a row, I believe the most important free agent the Black and Gold would like to keep in house is a defender. In 2016, Ted Laurent was the prettiest girl at the dance and decided to dance with the one who brought him to prominence. In 2017, Emanuel Davis will receive plenty of attention after two stellar seasons starting in Hamilton — including this past season which saw him battle through injury for most of the season en route to becoming the one constant in a battered Ticats secondary. Offensive tackle was a concern for Hamilton until the team traded for Xavier Fulton late last season from Saskatchewan and re-signed him just days ago to a two-year contract. Factor that with the expected return of offensive tackle Jake Olson from a lower body injury, which saw him miss all of 2016, and you would have to think outside of adding depth, the Ticats will already have addressed their edge protection. The one position I find intriguing is that of Andy Fantuz’s field slotback position. Fantuz is in for a long recovery from ACL knee surgery and while his national status is unquestionably important, I wonder if Hamilton would entertain finding a productive external solution and find a national starter somewhere else in the lineup. If the Ticats decided to look around — knowing that Fantuz could miss the majority or entirety of the season — the home run shot would be former Tiger-Cats slotback Greg Ellingson. » FA MOST WANTED: Toliver a can’t-miss target Ellingson enjoyed his time in Hamilton and left for Ottawa at the urging of then newly acquired REDBLACKS quarterback Henry Burris. Getting Ellingson back next to a healthy Luke Tasker could be dynamic. If the team loses Terrence Toliver, there will be work to do in finding a replacement for his explosiveness but finding a talented tall, lanky, international boundary wide receiver is not impossible. The Tiger-Cats don’t need to do anything crazy in free agency 2017. They have solid Canadian depth, including a returning free safety in Craig Butler; a pair of great linebackers in Larry Dean and Simoni Lawrence; a veteran left tackle; a cohesive national interior offensive line; and most importantly, their starting quarterback. The secondary could use a revamp and there are always good ways to spend money to improve a football team, but it all starts by maintaining in house developed talent. The Tiger-Cats decision makers know that. |
Frank Seravalli TSN Senior Hockey Reporter Follow|Archive MONTRÉAL — When Dylan Strome was sent back to the OHL on Nov. 20 by the Arizona Coyotes, Mathew Barzal fired him a text message. “Need to win gold at World Juniors,” Barzal typed, having been shuttled back to the WHL by the New York Islanders just 11 days earlier. “It’s been the goal of mine ever since I got sent down,” Barzal said Thursday. “Dylan had the same thought. There’s 22 other guys there all thinking the same thing.” Barzal and Strome are two of the five returning players on Team Canada who shouldered a disappointing defeat in last year’s quarterfinal in Finland. That loss is absolved now. But they know years from now, no one will remember their semi-final pummelling of Sweden if Team Canada can’t finish the job against the United States in the gold-medal game at the Bell Centre on Thursday night (7:30pm et/4:30pm pt across the TSN Network, TSN GO and the TSN Radio Network). “We’re not content,” captain Strome said. “We’re not okay with just having a silver medal. It’s not what this country’s about. It’s not what Canadians are built for. Canadians want to see us win a gold medal and we were born and raised to do that. “The way we think is to win, as Canadians. We want to be the best country in hockey, and we want to be the country that is singing our national anthem at the end of the game.” If history is any indicator, Thursday’s gold-medal matchup will be a border battle royal. The three previous gold-medal meetings between Canada and its southern neighbours (1997, 2004, and 2010) have been decided by a total of four goals. The United States has topped Canada for two of its three gold medals, including each of the last two matchups, in Saskatoon and in Helsinki. “It’s two heavyweights going to slug each other back and forth,” Team USA coach Bob Motzko said Thursday. It is notoriously tough to beat the same team twice in one tournament, but the United States will have to do that twice to win gold. They beat Russia for the second time in an epic shootout on Wednesday to advance to the gold-medal game. They knocked off Canada, 3-1, on New Year’s Eve in Toronto. The loss remains the only blemish on Canada’s record (5-1). The Americans were most certainly watching Canada on Wednesday night. “They brought the heat. They dismantled Sweden,” Motzko said. “We all saw it. Pretty impressive. That’s what you’re going to get this time. We’re going to play our best. The two best teams are playing tonight.” Motzko said the United States “has the ground attack” Canada showed against Sweden. They proved that in their New Year’s Eve win, outmuscling Canada all over the ice. Neither of the two goaltenders in that clash at the Air Canada Centre will play for gold. Tyler Parsons will oppose Carter Hart, who stole the show against Sweden. Strome said the Americans taught Canada the price of a win, a lesson they carried over to Sweden. Wednesday’s semi-final was the first time Canada asserted itself physically, which coach Dominique Ducharme called “playing the Canadian way.” “The confidence grew in that game. [But] it doesn’t make us win tonight,” Ducharme said. “It gives us the chance to play for gold. We want to be even better than we were [Wednesday] night.” It will be a battle, Ducharme said, but not the time to avenge the loss of defenceman Philippe Myers, who suffered a concussion on a hit by Team USA captain Luke Kunin. Myers has been around the team, telling roommate Thomas Chabot how much he wants to play and wants to win a gold medal, but will not be in the lineup. “There’s no time for that,” Ducharme said. “We need to be disciplined. We need to be in control, to be intense and hard and physical and everything else. But we need discipline. We’re thinking about doing everything to win.” Strome and Barzal have been thinking about doing everything to win for a long time. Like most Canadian players, Sidney Crosby’s golden goal in Vancouver in 2010 is Barzal’s best U.S.-Canada hockey memory. Canada has a similar rare opening tonight, the opportunity of a lifetime to deliver on home soil. “We’re playing for gold. Our guys want it,” Ducharme said. “You don’t get too many chances like this. When you have one, you have to make the most of it.” |
Once upon a time a small female of Latrodectus geometricus was fascinated by humans and the designs their wove. She marvelled in their complexity and wanted to learn more... to do that, she would have to grow. And the little spider did. Eating her way through many smaller, then bigger things, before she was the biggest spider around. She could see them from their level, but she still could not move among them, but one day she suddenly lost her many legs and walked on two legs. The humans seemed to be as fascinated by her form as she was with them, allowing her to feed all her appetites. Eventually she found a man of no morals and many vices. He wanted to only use her and throw her away, but she had other plans, for he had money and connections she could use. So one day the man died, and she devoured his flesh and took on his body, becoming the man known as Klaus Benz. Klaus Benz became a modest businessman - an expediter and transporter based in Tanzania. His business was efficient and lowkey... but it only served as cover for the spider. The Spider learned that Man wanted a great many things he could not have or worse yet, shouldn't have. So Klaus Benz made sure the rich, the powerful and useful got their little toys and walked into its web. Thousand Strands is a Ananasi (werespider) shapeshifter in our Ahadi game for Werewolf the Apocalyspe. |
O Palmeiras anunciou nesta terça-feira o seu quarto reforço para 2017. O meia venezuelano Alejandro Guerra, do Atlético Nacional, acertou com o Verdão por três temporadas. O nome do jogador de 31 anos vinha sendo analisado pela diretoria palmeirense desde a disputa da Taça Libertadores da América, competição na qual Guerra foi eleito o melhor jogador após o título conquistado pela equipe colombiana. Campeão da Libertadores, Guerra acerta com o Palmeiras por três anos (Foto: Jorge Natan) As partes voltaram a conversar em novembro, quando o acordo foi encaminhado. Guerra também interessava ao Santos. Segundo nota divulgada no site oficial do Palmeiras, o jogador virá ao Brasil no início de janeiro para realizar exames médicos e assinar contrato. – Oi, amigos... Quem saúda vocês é Alejandro Guerra. Esta mensagem é para a toda a torcida do Palmeiras. Obrigado por todos os bons desejos, pelas mensagens. Quero dizer que estou muito contente por chegar a este grande clube. Um forte abraço. Logo nos veremos. Tchau! Muito obrigado – disse Guerra em mensagem divulgada pelo clube (veja acima) O Verdão já tinha anunciado as contratações de Hyoran (Chapecoense), Keno (Santa Cruz) e Raphael Veiga (Coritiba), além de estar perto de acerto com Felipe Melo. O técnico da equipe será Eduardo Baptista, que dirigiu a Ponte Preta nesta temporada. |
Disclaimer this was written before Alex Boone was cut. As it stands right now, Minnesota is about $11 million under the 2017 salary cap. Assuming that number rolls over into 2018 and we get a $10 million increase to the salary cap as overthecap.com predicts, Minnesota will go into 2018 with about $50 million in cap space to re-sign the players listed below. Now, I am no NFL contract negotiation expert so I will be dealing in rough figures in this article. There may be places the Vikings can trim cap spending that I don’t anticipate, but big picture we should be able to get a look at the challenges facing the team in the future. Sam Bradford himself is certainly going to, conservatively, fetch a figure near $20 million per year barring a huge setback in 2017 (whether it’s with Minnesota or somewhere else, I’ll get into later). Eric Kendricks, Danielle Hunter, and Stefon Diggs are no brainer extensions and will certainly be getting long term deals. Anthony Barr’s 2018 contract is already accounted for at $12 million in 2018 and I would imagine his cap hit will if anything be decreased with his extension in the immediate future. The other 3 are under contract for 2018, so for any extension only the signing bonus should have a major affect the 2018 cap unless the Vikings tear up their current deals. As we look at the situation, the first thing we need to do is account for rookies. Without a 4th rounder due to the Bradford trade in 2016 and with a winning record in 2017 (let’s not be pessimistic) Minnesota will probably be around $6 million in total rookie salary. Since they will be displacing other players on the bottom of the roster the effective cost for them is our estimated $6 million minus the number of picks (6) times the NFL minimum salary ($465k in 2017) which gives us about $3 million rounded. So we begin with $47 million, remove Bradford’s cap hit and get $27 million to work with for extensions. I am going to use Richard Sherman’s contract extension in 2014 as a base to predict how Hunter’s deal will look. Like Hunter in this scenario he was a proven elite player at his position before the 4th year in his rookie deal and was not a 1st round pick, so he did not have a 5th year option. Sherman is still currently in the top 5 in average money per year for CBs even in 2017, and I will assume Hunter will make the same compared to the NFL’s edge rushers. Sherman got his last year in his rookie deal fully guaranteed and an $11 million signing bonus, which boosted his cap hit in his 4th year from around $600k to $3.6 million. I’m not sure how the Vikings will format Hunter’s guaranteed money, but I do think as far as cap hit you will see, like Sherman, a small cap increase his 4th year with his 5th year making him one of the highest paid at his position in the NFL against the cap. With the premium for edge rushers a little bit higher than CBs, and after looking at Justin Houston get $20 million as a signing bonus negotiating on the franchise tag, I think we see a signing bonus around $15-20 million or so for a 5 year extension, with the bonus mostly prorated over the first 5 years of the now 6 year deal. That would make Hunter’s 2018 cap hit about $4-5 million in 2018 and around $21 million in 2019. Not a bad gig, if you can get it. But before we get to 2019, we need to continue on with our extensions in 2018. Stefon Diggs is in a similar scenario as Hunter with no 5th year option to worry about and some proven production. He won’t demand nearly as much money, but should still make a good chunk of change. Where Hunter is a physical specimen, prototypical edge rusher with unlimited potential, Diggs is a new age wide receiver who makes up for his lack of stature with impeccable route running and explosiveness in his breaks both before and after he gets the ball. At this moment before the 2017 season, he won’t command WR1 money and if that’s what he’s looking for, he may not stick in Minnesota even if the Vikings want to keep him. Even though Diggs is 10 times the player Tavon Austin is, I think his contract could end up looking similar. Austin will never be Calvin Johnson or Odell Beckham JR, but the Rams saw him (for some reason) as a very valuable playmaker and paid him accordingly. This turned out to be a horrible mistake, but all we are really interested in is how a non-prototypical WR gets paid when his team values him. Like Tavon, his value is mostly capped at $9-$10 million or so until he starts putting up Antonio Brown numbers, which would lead to around a $10 million signing bonus over 5 years, and $8 million or so per year in salary. This would make his 2018 cap hit about $3 million and his 2019 cap hit about $10 million. Eric Kendricks is the same story as Diggs and Hunter as far as timing and lack of a 5th year option. The best inside linebackers in the NFL earn around $10 million per year, and I expect Kendricks to make every penny of that. In fact, I would think his contract looks very similar to Diggs’ deal. Again, in 2018 the Vikings will get a bargain but will be paying full price come 2019. His cap hits each year should be $3 million and $10 million, respectively. Jerrick McKinnon is in the same spot as these other 3, but with Dalvin Cook emerging as a possible bell cow running back and Latavius Murray having 20% of his contract guaranteed in 2018, McKinnon is either re-signing on an inconsequential deal or playing elsewhere in 2018. With little room to sign free agents and wanting to carry over as much cap space as possible, Minnesota may also be looking at a late compensatory pick if he signs elsewhere, which further adds to the mountain of evidence against his return. Shariff Floyd is another big name for Vikings fans, but considering he has still not been confirmed to be able to get onto the field and that nerve damage is so fickle and tricky to find a timetable on, I am going to assume that Floyd leaves as a free agent after 2017. So where does that leave us heading into 2019? After allotting space for rookies, the 3 extensions and the re-signing of Sam Bradford, we still have $16 million in cap space to fill out the roster and sign free agents. I am guessing we see most of that saved as Minnesota still has pieces to sign for 2019 in Anthony Barr and Trae Waynes. Even assuming an increase to $190 million in cap space, per Overthecap.com, in 2019 Minnesota would have less than $1 million in space if you didn’t carry any cap space over from 2018 even before Waynes, Barr, and rookies are accounted for. The good news, however, is that Minnesota has planned for this and has loads of easy-to-cut contracts, which I will expand upon later. In order to pay Waynes, When looking at Barr’s contract, there is more precedent to learn from as most elite pass rushers are signed to extensions before or during the year of their 5th year option. His 5th year is 2018 and he’s set to make $12 million. It gets a little tricky whether Barr falls under the 4-3 OLB designation or the Edge Rusher designation, considering the way he is used in Mike Zimmer’s blitz happy defense and where he often lines up. It’s possible this contract gets a little messy as the difference between the top 4-3 OLB and the top Edge Rusher is over $6 million per year, and I’m sure Minnesota will try to pay him as an OLB while Barr tries to get the lucrative Edge Rusher money he could conceivably deserve. How much Barr makes is also going to depend on whether he bounces back to his 2015 form in 2017, or if he repeats his disappointing performance from 2016. As of now, I am going to project his cap hit to stay at $12 million in 2018 and possibly see it be the same in 2019. This is by far the hardest contract for me to project so far, so there could be error either way here. Waynes in 2019 will be set to make around $10-11 million on his 5th year option and I think at this point we can safely say he won’t be playing for Minnesota at that amount. A cap hit only $2 or $3 million less than Xavier Rhodes would require a serious leap in performance from Waynes. With Mike Zimmer’s ability to develop cornerbacks and with an already talented (albeit still raw) CB in Mackenzie Alexander who will cost Minnesota only $1 million, the improvement will need to be dramatic. All that being said, if we do see an improvement and Waynes is deemed a core player who must be re-signed, Minnesota has set itself up to be flexible and able to cut salaries to open cap space. We can conclude that if we carry over $16 million, that would leave about $2 million of cap space after paying rookies and all the players we have extended and re-signed earlier. (Assuming Waynes, Floyd, and McKinnon become FAs) Going into 2019, Minnesota has the following veterans signed to deals, and I’ve listed the cap savings vs the amount of dead money on their contracts to illustrate how much money the team could save by cutting them. In this chart, anything close to 1.0 on the savings to dead cap ratio is going to prevent the team from cutting that player. (I used 10 as a maximum for the ratio, infinity tends to skew the graph) For example, even if Xavier Rhodes has a down year in 2018, it wouldn’t save much money to cut him compared to the amount of guaranteed money you’d have to still pay. Guys like Boone, Rudolph, and Sendejo who have zero guaranteed money would be easy cuts if their play falls off or if the Vikings desperately need cap space for a more important position. This is also a good time for teams to re-negotiate deals as they have a ton of leverage over players who know they could be cut and making nothing at any time, or could be playing in the most violent sport in America with no injury guarantees. Player Cap Number (millions) Dead Money (millions) Ratio Rhodes $13.4 $7.2 1.86 Griffen $11.9 $1.2 9.92 Reiff $11.7 $6.6 1.77 Smith $10.7 $4 2.68 Joseph $10.7 $3 3.57 Rudolph $7.6 $0 10.00 Boone $6.7 $0 10.00 Remmers $6.3 $1.8 3.50 Murray $5.6 $0.6 9.33 Sendejo $5.5 $0 10.00 Thielen $5 $2 2.50 Wright $4.3 $0.5 8.60 So, at minimum, Minnesota will be able to choose to free up whichever amount of roughly $40 million they would like out of the Griffen, Rudolph, Boone, Sendejo, Wright, and Murray contracts at a maximum cost of $2.36 in dead money. Some of these players, like Sendejo, Murray, or Wright might not even make it to 2018 on the roster and may be replaced by rookies, but we can just assume that they did in this scenario in order to figure out if Minnesota can handle a worst-case scenario. If they were cut the year prior, the Vikings would have even more money assuming they rolled it into the 2019 cap, creating even more flexibility. None of this is factoring in Teddy Bridgewater, who Vikings fans know was en route to being the Vikings franchise quarterback for the next 10+ years until his horrific knee dislocation in the 2016 preseason. If we were to imagine a 2nd scenario where Bradford either takes a step back, or Minnesota is confident in Bridgewater and chooses him as the franchise QB, Minnesota could see a significant savings over Bradford. If his contract is tolled, Minnesota would instantly save $18 million or so in 2018, and would likely save money in an extension negotiation vs Bradford’s hypothetical deal as Bradford is set to be a free agent or tagged for around $24 million, where Bridgewater would still be under contract for a measly $1.3 million. I don’t think there’s any question that a fully healthy Bridgewater signing an extension after being tolled is the best possible option for Minnesota overall, but it’s also not the most likely outcome and wouldn’t come without the Player’s Union fighting the tolled deal and some awkward conversations in Vikings HQ as they decide to jettison Sam and underpay Teddy. Still, Teddy’s injury immediately cost the Vikings $25 million in cap space that was paid to Bradford and truly set the franchise back in terms of cap space flexibility, and this pipe dream could set them back on that track. It is amazing that Minnesota is still in position to sign its young core even with the addition of Bradford’s contract, a reality that just goes to show the true value of Rick Spielman and especially his cap guru Rob Brzezinksi. In the end, the Vikings may not have the immediate room to re-sign every young player on their team and also fill out the roster with the smaller deals that make up most of an NFL team, but they can at least get very close. The ace up their sleeve is their ability to wait and see how these players develop, and have the cap flexibility to choose between keeping vets and extending players on rookie deals due to the way they have structured player contracts. We may not be certain right now if Kyle Rudolph or Trae Waynes is more important to the team in 2019, but by the time the decision must be made there will be more clarity and freedom to move whichever way the front office chooses. Given the amount of surprise money the Vikings have had to spend on Bradford and the number of elite young players they must extend, it’s fair to say maintaining that flexibility is something only the best front offices in the NFL could do. Like this: Like Loading... |
Marwan Ibrahim, AFP | Iraqi security forces inspect the scene of a twin suicide attack at shopping area in Iraq's disputed Kirkuk city on November 5, 2017. Two suicide bombers struck in the northern Iraqi city of Kirkuk on Sunday, killing at least five people and wounding more than 20 others, police and medical sources said. ADVERTISING Read more The interior ministry said the attacks targeted a Shi'ite Muslim mosque on Atlas Street in central Kirkuk and gave an initial casualty toll of one killed and 16 wounded. It is the first such attack since the central government in Baghdad seized the oil-rich city last month from Kurdish forces, who had been controlling Kirkuk for three years. The central government in Baghdad launched an offensive on Oct. 16 to recapture the city and other territories in northern Iraq claimed by both Baghdad and the Kurds, in retaliation for a referendum on Kurdish independence. Iraqi security forces advanced on the city, forcing the Kurdish Peshmerga to withdraw. The retreat also allowed Baghdad to take control of all oil fields operated by the state-owned North Oil Company in Kirkuk's northern province. No group has claimed responsibility for Sunday's attacks but the suicide bombings are a trademark of Islamic State militants. Police sources said the two attacks happened in quick succession and said the death toll might rise because some of the wounded were in critical condition. "It's a crowded street and a place for street vendors. The terrorists wanted to kill large number of people," said a Kirkuk police major. Iraqi security officials have said Islamic State is likely to wage an insurgency in Iraq after their self-proclaimed caliphate all but collapsed and they were dislodged from large territories in the west and north on the country. Iraqi security forces have recaptured nearly all territories once controlled by Islamic State. Fighting is ongoing in the border areas with Syria where militants are entrenched in the small town of Rawa and nearby border areas. (REUTERS) |
This article is about Joseph-Ignace Guillotin. For other uses, including the device named after him, see Guillotine (disambiguation) Dr. Joseph-Ignace Guillotin ( French pronunciation: [ɡijɔtɛ̃]; 28 May 1738 – 26 March 1814) was a French physician, politician and freemason who proposed on 10 October 1789 the use of a device to carry out death penalties in France, as a less painful method of execution. Although he really did not invent the guillotine, and in fact opposed the death penalty, his name became an eponym for it. The actual inventor of the prototype was a man named Antoine Louis. Early life and education [ edit ] Guillotin wrote an essay to get the degree of Master of Arts from the University of Bordeaux. This essay impressed the Jesuits so much that they persuaded him to enter their order and he became a professor of literature at the Irish College at Bordeaux. However, he left after a few years and travelled to Paris to study medicine, becoming a pupil of Antoine Petit. He gained a diploma from the faculty at Reims in 1768 and later won a prize given by the Paris faculty, the title of Doctor-Regent.[1] Career [ edit ] In 1784, when Franz Mesmer began to publicize his theory of "animal magnetism", which was considered offensive by many, Louis XVI appointed a commission to investigate it and Guillotin was appointed a member, along with Benjamin Franklin and others.[1] Political career and guillotine [ edit ] In December 1788, Guillotin drafted a pamphlet entitled Petition of the Citizens Living in Paris, concerning the proper constitution of the States-General. As a result, he was summoned by the French parliament to give an account of his opinions, which served to increase his popularity. On 2 May 1789, he became one of 10 Paris deputies in the Estates-General of 1789 and was secretary to the body from June 1789 to October 1791.[1] As a member of the assembly, Guillotin mainly directed his attention towards medical reform. On 10 October 1789, during a debate on capital punishment, he proposed that "the criminal shall be decapitated; this will be done solely by means of a simple mechanism."[1] The "mechanism" was defined as "a machine that beheads painlessly". His proposal appeared in the Royalist periodical, Les Actes des Apôtres. At that time, beheading in France was typically done by axe or sword, which did not always cause immediate death. Additionally, beheading was reserved for the nobility, while commoners were typically hanged.[1] Guillotin assumed that if a fair system was established where the only method of capital punishment was death by mechanical decapitation, then the public would feel far more appreciative of their rights.[citation needed] Despite this proposal, Guillotin was opposed to the death penalty and hoped that a more humane and less painful method of execution would be the first step toward a total abolition of the death penalty. He also hoped that fewer families and children would witness executions and vowed to make them more private and individualized. It was also his belief that a standard death penalty by decapitation would prevent the cruel and unjust system of the day.[citation needed] On 1 December 1789, Guillotin made a remark during a follow-up speech to the Assembly about capital punishment. "Now, with my machine, I cut off your head in the twinkling of an eye, and you never feel it!" The statement quickly became a popular joke, and few days after the debate a comic song about Guillotin and "his" machine circulated, forever tying his name to it. The Moniteur of 18 December 1789 deplored the joking but repeated Guillotin's "twinkling of an eye" statement for posterity.[1] For the remainder of his life, Guillotin would deeply regret that the machine was named after him.[2] Towards the end of the Reign of Terror, a letter from the Comte de Méré to Guillotin fell into the hands of the public prosecutor, Fouquier-Tinville in which the Count, who was to be executed, commended his wife and children to Guillotin's care. The authorities demanded Guillotin inform them of the whereabouts of the Count's wife and children. As Guillotin either would not or could not give the information, he was arrested and imprisoned. He was freed from prison in the general amnesty of 9 Thermidor 1794 after Robespierre fell from power, and abandoned his political career to resume the medical profession.[citation needed] Resumption of medical career [ edit ] Guillotin became one of the first French doctors to support Edward Jenner's discovery of vaccination and in 1805 was the President of the Committee for Vaccination in Paris. He also founded one of the precursors of the National Academy of Medicine.[citation needed] Personal life [ edit ] Family [ edit ] The association with the guillotine so embarrassed Dr. Guillotin's family that they petitioned the French government to rename it; when the government refused, they instead changed their own family name. By coincidence, a person named Guillotin was indeed executed by the guillotine – he was J.M.V. Guillotin, a doctor of Lyons.[3] This coincidence may have contributed to erroneous statements that Guillotin was put to death on the machine that bears his name;[4] however, in reality, Guillotin died at home in Paris in 1814 of natural causes,[4] specifically from a carbuncle,[5] and is now buried in the Père-Lachaise Cemetery in Paris.[6] He was married to Louise Saugrain, sister of the physician and chemist Antoine Saugrain. Freemasonry [ edit ] Joseph Guillotin was initiated into Freemasonry, in 1765 at "La Parfaite Union" lodge in Angoulême. Very active as a mason, he joined several other lodges. As a deputy of the Grand Loge from 1772 he took part in the birth of the Grand Orient of France and to all its conventions until 1790. In 1773 he became Worshipful Master of the lodge "La Concorde Fraternelle" in Paris. In 1776 he founded the "La Vérité" lodge and was often attending Les Neuf Soeurs.[7] In modern fiction [ edit ] Guillotin features in Andrew Miller's Costa prize winning novel Pure[8] and in the Vampire Dawn series for teenage emerging readers by Anne Rooney. He is also a primary character in the 1992 novel Dr Guillotine, written by the actor Herbert Lom. Notes [ edit ] References [ edit ] Bailly, J.-S., "Secret Report on Mesmerism or Animal Magnetism", International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis , Vol.50, No.4, (October 2002), pp. 364–368. doi=10.1080/00207140208410110 , Vol.50, No.4, (October 2002), pp. 364–368. doi=10.1080/00207140208410110 Franklin, B., Majault, M.J., Le Roy, J.B., Sallin, C.L., Bailly, J.-S., d'Arcet, J., de Bory, G., Guillotin, J.-I. & Lavoisier, A., "Report of The Commissioners charged by the King with the Examination of Animal Magnetism", International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis, Vol.50, No.4, (October 2002), pp. 332–363. doi=10.1080/00207140208410109 Media related to Joseph Ignace Guillotin at Wikimedia Commons |
A photojournalist specializing in underwater photography, Daniel Botelho has made a living out of tracking down fearsome sharks, crocodiles and manta rays. But the Brazilian-born Botelho went above and beyond in a rare opportunity to swim with and photograph the elusive, beautiful narwhal. Sometimes called the "unicorn of the sea," the narwhal is a rare, pale-colored porpoise that lives in cold coastal waters and rivers. The mammal's most eye-catching characteristic is its long, spiraled tusk, most commonly found on males. SCROLL FOR PHOTOS At the time of his narwhal sighting, Botelho was at the North Pole, gathering material for a book and other projects, reports Grind TV. According to LiveScience, between 50,000 and 80,000 narwhals exist in the wild. Of these, the majority live in northern Canada. According to National Geographic, the elusive creatures are a source of nutrition for Inuit peoples in the Arctic, who hunt and eat them for their Vitamin C. "I always knew it would be very tough to get close to a narwhal whale,” Botelho told Grind TV. “It is notoriously hard to get close to one. But while all the staff could only stand a half-hour in the water, I took advantage of my cold resistance and stayed for three hours.” The waters at the pole were so frigid that ice got inside Botelho's camera and his face grew red with painful blisters, according to posts on his Facebook page. But after his three-hour wait, a female narwhal decided to shadow him. "She followed me until the time I left the water, and people around me were amazed, including the [native] Inuits," Botelho said to Grind TV. "They are very mystic with narwhals and they know how shy they are, so having a narwhal touching me was like magical to them. … I cried.” According to the World Wildlife Fund, the narwhal is a "near threatened" mammal, meaning it is "[l]ikely to qualify for a threatened category in the near future." |
10. So the drunk boys decide, like infinite drunk boys before them, to take dad’s car out for a late-night spin—although in this case, dad’s car is a billion-dollar inter-dimensional teleporter. Reed even calls up his old friend Ben, who was there way back at the start, to come join them. (Remember Ben? He’s been stuck back in Oyster Bay all this time, a fact which the movie subtly conveys by presenting him wearing a shirt that says “Oyster Bay.”) So the four boys get into their space suits, hop in the teleporter, and zap themselves into another dimension. Amazingly, none of them thinks to invite Sue, who has of course (unlike Ben) been working with them on the project this whole time. Classy move, bros. 10a. It’s important to remember that for the remainder of the movie we’re expected to continue to take the side of these ridiculous drunk kids whenever they get into an argument with the awful corporate types who wanted to bring in trained grownup explorers from NASA. 10b. It’s also probably worth noting here that the movie has no theory whatsoever of what an alternate dimension might signify. The teleporter always sends matter to the exact same spot on the other-dimension planet, and there is never any suggestion that it could teleport anywhere else. That other planet basically just seems like an ordinary planet, except for the fact that it has some kind of green, liquefied power source coursing just beneath its crust like magma. (If anyone involved in the movie had any sense, the product tie-in for an energy drink practically writes itself.) 11. Upon arrival on this new world, the boys get out of the capsule to explore. (The chimp did not do this, but it’s probably safe, right?) They’re intrigued by the green energy liquid and decide they want to know more about it. When Reed notices that it seems to be pooling down at the base of a 300-hundred-foot cliff, he encourages his pals, “C’mon, let’s go check it out!” They climb down and examine the energy pool, which they decide is “alive.” (What this means is anyone’s guess.) Moreover, to their surprise—though not that of any possible moviegoer—this green goo turns out not to be completely safe. It begins erupting from the ground, like volcanic discharge or an aggressively manipulated zit, and it swallows Victor as they climb back up the cliff. (There’s no chance we’ll see him again, is there?) The other boys run to the capsule and zap back to Earth, but all of them are spattered with some of the goo. So, too, is Sue—who’s been minding her own business back at the lab all this time—when the capsule explodes upon arrival. 12. This is where the movie takes a turn for the grim and self-serious, a tonal mode that almost no one other than Christopher Nolan has made work in a superhero movie, but one which pretty much everyone apart from Marvel Studios continues to attempt. (Again, Fantastic Four is a Fox property.) Josh Trank’s only previous film as a director, Chronicle, had many fans, but I was not among them. In it, three teenagers stumbled upon an energy source that gave them great powers, and they then spent the bulk of the film petulantly bickering among themselves over the proper use of those powers. Trank’s Fantastic Four follows a similar script, but it is much, much worse. |
We are almost through the book of Genesis. What remains is a discussion of the Joseph story or stories as we shall see. A close reading of Genesis 37-50 would reveal that the Joseph story is a composite of two once separate versions of this story. When these two versions were later edited together minor narrative inconsistencies and contradictions were created. Since Joseph is a hero of the north, it is not surprising that most of the Joseph story as it now stands comes from the pen of the Elohist, and exhibits many of the Elohist’s features. The Elohist has an additional political stake in the Joseph story. Not only are Joseph’s two sons, Manasseh and Ephraim, eponymously two northern tribes, but the text legitimates and explains how the tribe of Ephraim came to rule over the other northern tribes (Gen 48). This is not a coincidence. The founder of the northern kingdom, Jeroboam I, was from the tribe of Ephraim, and we will learn more about Jeroboam when we start looking closely at passages from the Exodus narratives. Commentators usually note that the conflict presented in the Joseph story between Joseph and his brothers may only include Dan, Naphtali, Gad, and Asher—i.e., the northern tribes—in one version of the story, while the other version suggests that it is with all his brothers. This contradiction, however, is barely visible in the text, and I only list it here because after we look at contradictions #71-73, it will become more apparent that chapter 37 is indeed a composite, a cut-and-paste job, of two once separate Joseph stories. Thus the story’s beginning may have existed in two slightly different versions as well. If we reconstructed the beginnings of both version, they would look something like this: Genesis 37:2+3b Joseph, at 17 years old, had been tending the sheep with his brothers, and he was a boy with the sons of Bilhah and the sons of Zilpah, his father’s wives. And Joseph brought a bad report of them to their fathers. And he made him a coat of many colors. Genesis 37:3a+4 And Israel had loved Joseph most of all his children because he was a son of old age to him. And his brothers saw that their father loved him most of all his brothers. And they hated him, and they were unable to speak peaceably toward him. Both accounts are whole and complete narratives in and of themselves. Moreover, in one account only the sons of Bilhah and Zilpah despise Joseph because he brings a bad report against them. Yet in the other account all of Joseph’s brothers hate him for a different reason: because he is most loved by his father. Here also in this version our author uses quite consistently the name Israel. Again, further support for seeing these as two different beginnings of the Joseph story will come in contradictions #71-73. |
The Blasco Library in Erie, Pennsylvania, hugs the waterfront of Presque Isle Bay. If you’re in the library and it’s your lucky day, you’ll hear a librarian come onto the PA system to announce that the U.S. Brig Niagara is pulling in to moor right outside the big windows. No one in Erie wants to miss that. The Niagara is the replica of an elegant flagship that was part of the fleet that defeated the British in the Battle of Lake Erie during the War of 1812, and Erie is its proud homeport. Until two decades ago, the library sat up the hill on South Park Row, in a Beaux Art building in a more traditional location in the center of downtown. In the late 1980s, the General Services Administration proposed taking over the building to expand the space needed for the Erie Federal Courthouse. A hot debate ensued over where to build a new library, formally called the Raymond M. Blasco, M.D. Memorial Library: keep it in town, or move it to the then-derelict waterfront. The site had been part of the town’s old generating station, and the library would be the first modern resident of the space. “It was feral cats, rats, and sludge,” said the library’s executive director, Mary Rennie. The County Council voted 4–3 in favor of the waterfront location, and the building went up, which now is applauded as a brilliant decision that began the revitalization of the town’s scenic waterfront. Today, the library is an anchor among good neighbors. It shares next-door space with the Erie Maritime Museum and sits in the lee of Erie’s Bicentennial Tower. You can hear tinkle of sailboat halyards in the small marinas. This sound is imprinted in me from growing up as a sailor on Lake Erie in the small town of Vermilion, Ohio, about 150 miles west of Erie. Commerce is arriving as well: the Bayfront has two new hotels, a convention center, an intermodal transportation center, and a few restaurants. I watched small wedding parties staging their photographs on one of the piers, as fishermen stepped out of the way. People come for the spectacular sunsets over the water to the west and the Presque Isle State Park with nearly a dozen beaches for summer crowds. Tourists line up to ride on the kitschy pirate ship, manned by crews in full-regalia who cry out for customers in the old-time vernacular of ahoys and aarrs! The nautical theme moves indoors as well. That’s a good thing, especially when the infamous lake effect dumps yards of snow onto Erie. People can move protected back and forth between the library and the museum. The first thing you notice is the installation of what I would call sails, and is officially called “Aquatic Dancers” by local artist John Vahanian, that fly above the broad stairways in the main atrium under the skylights. Upstairs is a lovely collection of art, including Summer Afternoon, Isle of Shoals by Frederick Childe Hassam, which, heartbreaking for me, was on tour when I visited, and a Lalique glass fish sculpture. On the main floor is the quiet Peninsula Room, so named for its view of the Presque Isle peninsula, with its high windows and concert-ready acoustics. It’s no wonder that tourists who come in for the computers or wi-fi connections are immediately distracted by the views and locations. |
A white supremacist who killed a security guard at a Holocaust memorial museum in the US has links to the British National party, which gained two MEPs in last week's European elections. Thousands of visitors fled the museum in Washington on Wednesday after James von Brunn opened fire, killing a security guard. In the gunfight that followed, the 88-year-old was shot, and is now in a critical condition in hospital. Yesterday it emerged that Von Brunn, a longtime antisemite, had attended meetings of the American Friends of the British National party (AFBNP), which was set up to raise funds from far-right activists in America. Mark Cotterill, who ran the US-based organisation before it folded in 2001, said: "He did attend meetings. I have just checked my database and he is down as 'meetings only', so he was not a major donor, although he may have put some money on the plate when it was passed round." The AFBNP treasurer, Todd Blodgett, also told the Washington Post that he and Von Brunn had attended fundraising meetings in Arlington County. The BNP leader, Nick Griffin, spoke to at least two AFBNP meetings and said the money raised by the organisation made a "significant contribution to the BNP's [2001] general election campaign". Yesterday a spokesman for the party said: "You get a lot of people coming to meetings but I don't think you can blame us for that. Even if he did go to meetings, it was nothing to do with us." However, anti-racism campaigners said Von Brunn's links to the BNP underlined its extremist agenda. "It is clear that Nick Griffin is at the centre of an international network of white supremacists," said Dan Hodges, of Searchlight. "The BNP must explain the full extent of his organisation's links with this antisemitic gunman." The far-right party gained its first two MEPs in last week's European elections – Griffin in the north-west and former National Front leader Andrew Brons in Yorkshire and the Humber. During the campaign, photographs emerged of Griffin alongside the former Ku Klux Klan grand wizard Stephen "Don" Black, who was banned from the UK by the then home secretary, Jacqui Smith. He was also criticised for defending a BNP leaflet that said black and Asian Britons should be referred to as "racial foreigners". Yesterday Von Brunn was charged with murder and killing in the course of possessing a firearm at a federal facility, both capital offences under US federal law; police said hate crime charges were also possible. At a press conference in Washington, Cathy Lanier, the Washington police chief, said security guard Stephen Johns was shot when he opened the door of the museum for Von Brunn. Other guards opened fire, and Von Brunn slumped to the ground. In his car, officers found a notebook with a handwritten note saying, "You want my weapons, this is how you'll get them. The Holocaust is a lie. Obama was created by Jews," according to a court affidavit. Von Brunn's .22-calibre rifle held 10 more bullets and investigators found more in his car and at an apartment in nearby Annapolis, Maryland, that he shared with his son and his son's fiancee. Joseph Persichini, assistant director of the Washington FBI field office, said Von Brunn was known to the police as an antisemite and a white supremacist, who had a website that espoused hatred against African-Americans, Jews and others. "We know what Mr Von Brunn did at the Holocaust museum. Now it's our responsibility to determine why he did it," said Joseph Persichini, assistant director of the Washington FBI field office. "We have to ask ourselves did all these years of public display of hatred impact his actions." A self-described artist, advertising man and author, Von Brunn wrote an anti-semitic treatise, Kill the Best Gentiles, decried "the browning of America" and claimed to expose a Jewish conspiracy "to destroy the White gene-pool". In 1983 Von Brunn was convicted of attempting to kidnap members of the US federal reserve board. At the time, police said he had wanted to take the members hostage because of high interest rates and the nation's economic difficulties. On the website, Von Brunn blames his six-year imprisonment on "a Jew judge" and "Negro jury". Last night civil rights groups said they had been monitoring Von Brunn for decades. Heidi Beirich, director of research for the Southern Poverty Law Centre's intelligence project, said: "He thinks the Jews control the Federal Reserve, the banking system, that basically all Jews are evil. He's an extreme antisemite." |
Irc it (ii) ii is a minimalist FIFO and filesystem-based IRC client. It creates an irc directory tree with server, channel and nick name directories. In every directory a FIFO in file and a normal out file is created. The in file is used to communicate with the servers and the out files contain the server messages. For every channel and every nick name there are related in and out files created. This allows IRC communication from command line and adheres to the Unix philosophy. example Join a channel as follows: $ echo "/j #wmii" > in and ii creates a new #wmii (channel) directory with in and out files. irc/irc.oftc.net |-- #wmii | |-- in | `-- out |-- #ii | |-- in | `-- out |-- #suckless | |-- in | `-- out |-- chanserv | `-- out |-- nickserv | |-- in | `-- out |-- out `-- in It consists of <= 1000 lines of code and is the big brother of sic Download Development You can browse its source code repository or get a copy using the following command: |
Hey blog readers! We had our first dev stream for this game and it means a lot to us that many came out to watch and support us (even after a really rough start). Aside from the video update every week on the Ninesquirrels channel, we will also be updating this blog to monitor our progress and hopefully share some helpful insights with our fellow devs. But more importantly, we are doing this because of the experience we had during our Early Access for our first strategy game, Legends of Callasia. We had so many great responses from our early adopters, so we want to replicate that and get everyone involved early on in Last Regiment. So as we start this blog, we’d like to do a little post-mortem on LOC to explain why we are making this new game. What we learned from Legends of Callasia Let’s start with what people loved about Legends of Callasia. It’s a turn-based game that can be played in a reasonable amount of time, largely because of the simultaneous gameplay. You can play multiplayer on a desktop or a tablet with your friends in an hour and a half – it doesn’t take forever! But as with any game, there are bunch of things we thought we had to improve or wished we could have done. No level editor. The whole game is structured in a way that creating a map starts from a hand drawing, transformed into several layers of Photoshop, then an Excel file. It was frustrating every time someone asked if they can make their own maps – it was a cool idea that we would have liked to have done but only possible if we start over from scratch. The learning curve. Though people enjoyed the game, many didn’t understand how things worked when they first played it. They got confused about the combat system: how armies work, what do the unit stats mean, how much is the actual damage, who gets attacked first, etc. The game had a system but we weren’t able to explain it very well. The battle screen felt like a game of its own which players couldn’t understand. It became a huge barrier for getting first-time players to become interested in the game, and though we had people in the community helping out the newbies, we would very much prefer if the mechanics can be easily grasped when you hopped into the game. The story / lore. Admittedly, the story was not something we had focused on in LOC. We had assumed our players would only want to move their armies around and not deeply care about the story – we were wrong. We went for classic fantasy characters such as humans, elves, dwarves, and the undead. People were asking us about the lore, and as we went along we tried to add story. This is another big change we plan to do in Last Regiment – to create a real world, write meaningful stories with original characters that stray a bit from the obvious fantasy tropes. Faction and unit structures. With each faction having only 6 units each, there were limited unit combinations or synergies that a player can come up with. You cannot use units from different factions. Once players have figured out the best way to play each faction, it shortened the lifespan of the game, even if we released new updates. There was no challenge to find new synergies that no one else has figured out. Now these were the things we wanted to change, but unfortunately were not possible at the stage Legends of Callasia is in. Thus, the idea for Last Regiment was to take the things that people loved in LOC and address all the issues we had to make a much more improved strategy game. The Game Reveal Last Regiment will also be a fantasy-themed game like LOC, with story-driven single-player campaigns, and maps to play in skirmish or multiplayer with AI or human players. It would also have its built-in map editor, which is made possible now that we’re using hex-based maps. Main Menu We are also working on an improved UI for the main menu, with a dedicated space for news and announcements, instead of the notification pop-ups in LOC which players found annoying. Note that the images in the screenshot are mostly placeholder. Gameplay Unlike in LOC, there won’t be any lands or kingdoms to conquer, which usually takes a few turns before any action happens. We go straight to the fighting and let you control units from your pre-formed regiment and capture specific structures. Aside from the hexes, we are also implementing fog of war and will be introducing mana, which will allow you to summon new units on the map. You can have units from different factions and go into battle without going into another screen. You can watch Chris playtest the game in the video (#1.2) to get a clearer idea on how movement and combat work. Built-in Map Editor We’re making the map editor as easy to use as possible and adding different terrains, structures, and decals in order to have that same fantasy map feel from LOC. The buildings you’ll have are based on the lore and the different factions in the game. Some will also have special abilities and features – more on that in the video (#1.3). Story and Characters The idea for the story begins with an old, European-style world who colonized a brand new continent called Kothia, leading to incredible colonial wars. Humans from the old world brought constructs made of magic and machinery, and these encouraged the natives to fight back. The Highborne, one of the original inhabitants of Kothia, needed magic to fight this with and so they summoned spirits of the forest, currently known as the Woodspawn. Meanwhile, the Orcs summoned the spirits of death and brought forth fungal growths that infected people and rotted out their brains. The new world becomes a desolated wasteland. The humans went back to the old world to develop better tools and technology, which we based on modern, 1750s technology such as cannons and galleons. With these new powers, they returned to Kothia and the Reconquest began. But back in Kothia, the people who had retreated created stronger magical factions to fight the chaos happening in their world. New units such as apes and vampiric lemurs had spawned. The game now takes place in a world controlled by little armies and mercenary kings fighting each other. There will be units based on different factions, races, and technology. You, as the player, will be constantly putting together mercenary armies based on these warring factions. Olivia We introduced Olivia in our previous post, but this time we show you her full portrait. She was previously in one of the early colonial armies during the Reconquest, but after some events, she ends up being a pirate at the seaport of Saltia Ruma. The story begins with Olivia returning to Kothia and forming her own mercenary army. Yes she is a one-armed female pirate, and we’re excited to tell you about her journey. Other Questions We also answered some of other questions from the viewers during the stream such as: Will there be non-unit stuff from each faction that you can take? Answer: Yes, there will be powers and abilities, but instead of putting them in the regiment bar, we gave those to the units who can only use in specific ranges at certain positions in the map. Answer: Yes, there will be powers and abilities, but instead of putting them in the regiment bar, we gave those to the units who can only use in specific ranges at certain positions in the map. Can any creature activate the different buildings on the map? Answer: We like the level of humor where ridiculous creatures can do ridiculous stuff, so yes. Also, we don’t want to give any very specialized characteristics for the units, because when you implement those kinds of rules, it complicates the gameplay and it has to be explained in the game really, really well. Answer: We like the level of humor where ridiculous creatures can do ridiculous stuff, so yes. Also, we don’t want to give any very specialized characteristics for the units, because when you implement those kinds of rules, it complicates the gameplay and it has to be explained in the game really, really well. Will the story be on a level that I can stream during my story playthrough time and enthrall my audience? Answer: Definitely. We’re still aiming for missions that take 30 minutes to two hours, similar to LOC. The story will be made up of number of maps and it won’t just be about conquering territories. It will be about moving through different hexes and telling stories based on places and characters on map. The answers are explained in detail in the video (#1.4), so go check that out for more info. So there you have it – this is what you can expect from Last Regiment. If you have questions, just leave a comment or visit our Discord. Or you can drop by our stream next week to ask us directly. Thanks for reading this to the very end. And we’ll continue updating this blog for all things Last Regiment. |
Most countries with active organ transplant programmes have a system of registries to track the donation and allocation system. The latest to join this club is China, which launched an online registry this March. With the registry launch anyone above 16 can log on to the website and become a volunteer.China launched its organ donation system in 2010 after a trial run. The country's National Health and Family Planning Commission mandates that donated organs be assigned to patients by a computerized system. Organs go to those with the most medical need, regardless of social status or wealth. About 300,000 Chinese need organ transplants each year, but roughly 10,000 get one because of shortages. The ratio in the US is one in four.While individual states in India have taken steps to set up such registries, there is none at the national level though the amended organ transplant law seeks such a network of registries.In the US, the National Organ Transplant Act came into force in 1984 and an Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network (OPTN) was created. It's run by a private non-profit United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS).Government provides a regulatory framework. Nearly 300,000 people are registered as donors — over 167,000 deceased donors and more than 130,000 living. All organs put together, the US has a waiting list of over 134,000. The UNOS organ-sharing system maximizes efficient use of deceased organs combining medical utility with justice. Key factors include: attaining the longest patient survival time; striving to improve a patient's quality of life; and a cost-benefit ratio.The 'justice' component includes factors such as: priority to patients whose needs are most urgent; to those who've spent the longest time on the waiting list and local access to organs. Selection of recipients from the waiting list uses a point system, which varies by organ.The European Union has a European Registry linking national and regional databases to allow seamless sharing of national data. The EU registry has a legal framework on donor selection, waiting list and organ allocation which tries to harmonize different donation laws in EU countries.The European Framework for Evaluation of Organ Transplants was constituted to promote a common definition of terms and methodologies to evaluate transplantation results and promote a registry or network of registries.In the UK, the National Health Service Blood and Transplant was set up in 2005 to ensure efficient supply of blood, organs and associated services to the National Health Service. The UK too has a comprehensive policy for selection and allocation of organs. In 2013-14, UK had 1,320 deceased donors who made over 3,500 transplants possible. There were over 1,100 living donors.Globally, several registries are set up simultaneously to track the organ transplantation systems to ensure ethical and safety norms as recommended by WHO. |
About We are Atomic Dynamics Inc. and we are RPG developers who have passion for playing and creating games. Although we work full-time for other companies we are creating this side project for fun and to see if there is any interest. Many side projects have grown out of the need to create and contribute back to society such as Linux, Apache, Twitter, & Wikipedia, etc. We share their same passion and offer this game for your consideration, or we hope to light the flame in your imagination so that you can take this brainstorm and improve upon it. Jonathon Rosenberg, Adviser to the Google CEO has stated, “the balance of power has shifted from companies to consumer…and that is why they nurture the new breed of employees, called the smart creative.” This basically turns your standard "company organizational charts" upside down. Atomic Dynamics are going to take that community interaction a step further. Taking a similar concept from hit reality shows like Thee Voicee or Americann Idoll (treading lightly spelling), we are going to let the gamers decide on exactly what they want to play. Using our new IP “Angels and Daemons” we will present several themes, main character designs, gameplay previews, music and let the gamers vote on what would be the best combination. This is a chance for backers to get even more involved in the development process and choose the winner for what would be the best game to bring to the public. This is for all the people who played a game, and say “you know what would have been cool” or “I wish the developer had…” In our games, the player will explore and roam the world they helped design and create. From the deepest dungeon, the powerful enemies you encounter, even that crystal spire reaching into space. Everything you will encounter would come from the creative mind and imagination of the players. This is the chance to do all that, will you take it? This is your chance to play an integral part in producing a game world thousands upon thousands of people will admire – will you take it? gels & Daemons. This program will be offered by participating universities across the globe, celebrating international goodwill, promoting global communication, and rewarding education. Welcome to our world. |
Energy-efficient LED light bulbs will be available on a special one-day sale in celebration of Earth Hour and conserving energy. Toronto, ON (March 27th, 2015) - In celebration of Earth Hour and conserving energy, eLightful Products and Services is offering 40 watt equivalent Energy Star Certified A19 LED light bulbs for a special price of just $1.00 plus tax, using an applicable saveONenergy coupon. These bulbs regularly retail for $9.95 but will be sold for one day only at just $6.00. Once a $5.00 saveONenergy coupon is applied, the cost of the bulb will be $1.00. The sale will take place in store only, March 28th from 10am to 5pm, while supplies last and the coupons will be available in store. (Limit of one coupon per product purchase and a limit of five coupons per product per customer) ------ On March 28th, people around the world will observe Earth Hour from 8:30-9:30 pm local time. Earth Hour is a movement that encourages individuals and businesses to turn off non-essential lights for one hour as a symbol of their commitment to the planet. In 2014, Toronto Hydro stated that power usage dropped by six per cent during Earth Hour. This shows how a small act like conserving energy with lighting can have a huge effect. People and businesses can save energy and money all year round by switching to more efficient lighting. Typically, LED light bulbs use at least 75% less energy than comparable incandescent bulbs and can last up to 30 times longer. This results in serious power savings over the lifespan of the bulb, as well as significant cost savings and added convenience. eLightful is helping consumers save, and showing a commitment to Earth Hour and energy conservation with this one-day sale. eLightful is a participating retailer in the saveONenergy program and accepts saveONenergy coupons on a wide range of eligible energy-efficient products to help reduce energy use. These coupons are part of a consumer program designed to make it easier than ever to manage your electricity bill. eLightful Products and Services sells a wide variety of light bulbs to individuals and businesses in downtown Toronto and the surrounding GTA. The local Canadian company sells light bulbs from its downtown storefront as well as online with same day delivery to Toronto homes and businesses. eLightful also offers installation services as well as free pickup and recycling/disposal. The company’s storefront is located on Wellington Street West, between John Street and Blue Jays Way and can be found online at elightful.ca or contracted directly at 647.470.BULB (2852) For more information, please contact: Nick Majors, President eLightful Products and Services 270 Wellington Street West, Suite 103 Toronto, ON M5V 3P5 647.470.2852 nmajors@elightful.ca |
Asking lawyers about Star Trek is a bit like asking bike mechanics what their favorite beer is. Even if it’s not their area of professional expertise, they have lots of clear, well thought-out opinions on the subject. One day last month, I put out a quick call for Trek-minded attorneys, and they flooded in. Within minutes, this actual e-mail message landed in my inbox. Sir: I suddenly had five people e-mailing me saying I had to chat with you! I aver that I am a lawyer who defines himself first and foremost as a Starfleet officer. May I help? CWW Christian W. Waugh Waugh Law, P.A. Sent from my Starfleet Communicator I should add that this guy goes by the handle @AdmiralWaugh on Twitter. I knew I had hit on something great. As a Trek fan—I'm a child of the 1980s, TNG was my first foray into the universe—and someone who reports frequently about legal issues, I wanted to honor the 50th anniversary of the series with a look at the legal issues at play across Star Trek. Sure, entire books have already been written on this subject, but this was boldly going into terra nullis for yours truly. From copyright to civil law After reviewing various episodes (research, I swear!), I was reminded of how many Picard-as-counsel episodes there are. Court-style procedurals are no rarity across the various series and movies. According to a recent panel discussion at Comic Con (SDCC) entitled "Star Trek: Where Lawyers Boldly Go," there are a number of landmark legal-themed episodes ranging from TOS "Court Martial," to TNG’s "Measure of a Man," to DS9’s "Tribunal," to Enterprise’s "Judgment." This panel, I should add, included various legal luminaries such as California Supreme Court Justice Mariano-Florentino Cuéllar, and former US Magistrate Judge Paul Grewal, now a vice president and lawyer for Facebook. The point is there are many legal roads to go down in the Star Trek universe, and some even have direct parallels to our own time. The ongoing case of Naruto v. Slater (currently before the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals) involves the question of whether a non-human (in this case, a macaque) can hold copyright of a photograph. Nearly this exact same question is explored in Voyager’s "Author, Author," where the Doctor, a holographic medical program, tries to assert intellectual property rights over a holonovel. In the Star Trek universe, of course, the most important "law" is more of an overarching policy and social norm. It's called the Prime Directive, and interpreting its meaning is one of the major preoccupations of show characters and fans alike. As one of the organizers of that SDCC panel, Joshua Gilliland pointed out to me during a conversation over coffee, that in itself is quite true to life. "What is law but a civil contract as to how we’re going to behave?" Bending the rules In canonical Trek, the Prime Directive is never explicitly stated in its full, legalistic glory. Introduced as a concept in the 21st episode of TOS, "Return of the Archons," it is a commandment of the highest moral authority to not interfere in the natural cultural and scientific development of a civilization, particularly those that are pre-warp. That's a pretty difficult rule to follow, given how hard it is to define a concept like "natural cultural and scientific development," let alone loaded terms like "civilization" and "interfere." So this was the precise question that I put forward to the best human legal minds I could find: Could the Prime Directive actually work as a law? How should we, in 2016, think about United Nations law or whatever our existing equivalent is, as being precursors to an interstellar directive (should we even think of it as a law? Or merely a guidepost?) to the Prime Directive? Here on early 21st-century Earth, the Prime Directive is probably most similar to something like the Law of the Sea—a "law" that nearly every country on Earth follows—establishing rights and norms for the usage of the world’s oceans and waterways. (Interestingly, while the United States essentially accepts the Law of the Sea, it has not formally ratified it.) "The Prime Directive is a lot like international law in that it is often not enforced depending on who breaks it," Greg Della Posta, a tenancy lawyer in Buffalo, New York, e-mailed Ars. "Famous captains, or ones in important circumstances, are usually forgiven, much like large nations generally don't face consequences from international courts for breaking treaties." In short, if international law doesn’t always work all that well now in the 21st century, is there any hope that an interstellar law could work in the future? Many officers of the court seemed to dismiss the idea of a truly universal law binding the members of the planet, much less something approaching the United Federation of Planets. "The concern probably is not military takeover, but communication that violates the Prime Directive, because that doesn’t require unrealistic interstellar travel," Scott Moss, a law professor at the University of Colorado, wrote. He wondered what would happen if interplanetary communications began before Earth united under one government. "What if a highly religious regime like Iran sees a need to spread a religious message to other planets by giving a less advanced civilization the communications technology necessary to share (or impose) theological views?" Moss wondered. Moss continued his thought experiment: |
Robert Musil, in his Man Without Qualities, wrote that a Soul is “That which crawls away and hides whenever someone mentions algebra.” According to his friend, Elias Canetti, Musil “felt at home and seemed natural among scientists,” as distinct from most “people against whom his only defense was silence.” These sentiments might be attached to Cormac McCarthy, hence the astonishment of many to his recent article in this magazine, “The Kekulé Problem,” where his scientific imagination set out for a wide-ranging constitutional in the territories of linguistic provenance before returning to the sanctuary of our mountain community. The region Cormac sought to explore was the intersection of organic and cultural evolution as revealed by that remarkable human instrument—combinatorial grammar. It is the enigma of the material brain—in almost all particulars indistinguishable from those of our nearest primate cousins—acquiring through the unknown mechanics of culture an ability that enables the gifts of poetry, prose, mathematics, and material and temporal transcendence. Readers wrote to Cormac with appreciation, suggestions, criticisms, prior claims, essays, unpublished and unpublishable monographs, and genuine interest in an author condensing into a scholarly mind from the mists of narrative invention. Here is his reply. It is an honest work of discussion leavened by mischief. I would reckon that this contribution marks a close to Cormac’s participation in this public debate. —David Krakauer President and William H. Miller Professor of Complex Systems, Santa Fe Institute (SFI) My brother Dennis has brought me a fat stack of comments on “The Kekulé Problem” as published in Nautilus. A few of these I thought might be commented on in turn. I havent read the William Burroughs book that several people mentioned in which apparently language is compared to a virus. The only Burroughs book I’ve read is Naked Lunch. One reader seemed to know that that is just what I would say. Bloody McCarthy lies about everything. Naked Lunch was supposedly so named by Jack Kerouac. When Burroughs wanted to know what it meant, Kerouac said that it was that frozen moment when everybody sees what’s on the end of the fork. Or so the story. Sarah wrote with a number of questions that are my questions too. I would not have thought that the distinction between useful and necessary—as regards language—would pose a difficulty for the average bear. The fact that language has found its way into the portfolio of but a single species should be all that one needs to know in order to properly categorize it. But apparently not. Some of the biolinguistic people do admit that the mission upon which they are bent is looking increasingly intractable. But the notion that language is a human invention—like parcheesi or marmalade—seems to be distressing to them. Resistance to reasonable ideas in science and elsewhere is often influenced more by what we know than what we dont. Entrenched ideas can be difficult to dislocate. There is nothing in nature to suggest that a sound can be representative of an object. One reader writes: “The vast majority of dreams and reveries dont involve major problems in the history of science.” Baffling. Who would suggest such a thing? The difference between the conscious and the unconscious is not a function of language and the paper suggests no such thing. There is no claim in the paper that the unconscious is “language free.” Quite the opposite. I would have thought that everyone knows why we have diverse languages. It’s why we cant read Old English. It’s why Finns and Hungarians cant converse. Some were exercised about the paper’s claim that the pictorial arts preceded language in our evolutionary history. How do we know that? Here’s how we know that: The pictorial is a first order representation. A picture of a deer can be understood to be a deer without further explication. But the word deer represents another category. It is a second order representation. It cannot be understood on its own. The naming of things is a wholly artificial construct. There is nothing in nature to suggest that a sound can be representative of an object. Before you leap to your computer to argue please reflect on this. It is what takes place at the well in The Miracle Worker. The word water is water and it is so solely because we say it is. Children raised in a feral state do not learn to speak. Do they learn to draw? Some readers wrote about the subconscious. I dont know what that is. What is true is that the world has a great deal to tell us while we have nothing at all to tell it. The evolution of the eye has been frequently trotted out by the intelligent designers as an example of the designated. The teleological. Some very thoughtful evolutionary biologists think that there is something missing in the present Darwinian schema. Darwin himself is among them. The eye has been constructed—and several times over—in the absolute absence of any idea of such an apparatus—by simply deleting anything not conducive to eyehood in what we have as we go along. There are other ways of putting this. Some of them fairly brutal. Moving along. Language being so useful it would most likely have showed up—if it were biological—a number of times in a number of species by now. Everything else did. You probably dont even need to be all that smart. Granted that even dull humans are fairly bright on the general scale of intelligence, still you have to dredge fairly deep to find people who cant talk. Feeding and dressing oneself may actually be more difficult. Until fairly recently it was at least conjectured that faculties such as vision might well have a single ancestor. The thinking was that anything so unique was unlikely to appear with any great frequency. Today our view is pretty much the opposite and we have hard evidence for the evolution of vision—our popular example—quite a number of times. What we have no evidence for is language evolving a number of times. The reason being of course that language is not a biological innovation. It is a human invention, and human inventions are magical in that they give life to what heretofore had no existence. Our good working ideas have the capacity to direct our lives in a manner indistinguishable from any other reality. There’s more. The way in which the reality of the world becomes incorporated into our being, while poorly understood, is the salient fact of our existence. It is not true of course that we are born blank slates. What is true is that the world has a great deal to tell us while we have nothing at all to tell it. Also in Linguistics A Linguist Responds to Cormac McCarthy By Julie Sedivy In his recent Nautilus essay, “The Kekulé Problem,” Cormac McCarthy suggests that our unconscious mental processes are a modern echo of the prelinguistic minds of our prehistoric ancestors. He sees a stark contrast between language as a fairly recent cultural...READ MORE At least one reader wrote in to say that McCarthy is not writing about linguistics. Nevertheless other readers wrote in to suggest that he take some “classes in basic linguistics.” Actually at SFI we’ve tracked the doings of the linguistic folks out there for some time. With a certain bemusement. Finally Murray Gell-Mann—one of the founders of the Santa Fe Institute and a long time friend of this writer—established a linguistics program for us, using money given to him by the MacArthur Foundation. We were immediately swamped with queries from top linguists all over the world. Sergei Starostin became an active member immediately and spent a good part of each year with us until his untimely death in 2005. He published his Etymological Dictionary of the Altaic Languages while at SFI and I worked with him on the English translation until we got it done. You could hear us laughing all over the building. Lovely man. I seldom had a better time. If this seems unlikely, you’ll find my name acknowledged in the book. Sergei’s son Georgiy Starostin—himself a distinguished linguist and a good friend—is on our faculty and spends time with us every year. A few years ago there was a lengthy piece in The New York Times that aimed at bringing their readers up to date on the status of the science of linguistics. We read it with some interest if not trepidation. It was close to book length but we persevered. And we breathed a sigh of relief to find that the linguistics program at the Santa Fe Institute was not even mentioned. A good part of the work that our linguists at SFI have been engaged in consists in tracing the histories of the world’s languages. We believe that these languages share a common origin. We believe in an Ur language. We believe that language is based on an idea. The idea of representation. And although this seems a simple enough notion it apparently is not. And while there is every evidence that language is an idea there is no evidence that it was thought of more than once. Which of course is all that would be required. They are the languages of this world but they are not—that we know of—languages of the universe. No one seemed particularly interested in Helen Keller. Or the question of how her unconscious managed to communicate with her. It could neither speak to her nor draw pictures. Isnt that tantamount to saying that for all practical purposes she had no unconscious? Something missing in this scenario. The universe in its billions of years remains a creation of total silence and total blackness. The incendiary explosions of the novae can be no more than optical constructions and no matter what your view of the nature of reality they can have no existence in the absence of an eye or something very like it. And the likelihood of such an instrument coming into being anywhere other than in the natural history of the earth seems more than vanishingly slim. The truth is that there is limited evidence for the existence of the visual. (What? What’s he saying?) To what might it be compared? That which is seen is pretty much left to speak for itself. As is that which is said. There is more to be considered concerning the structure of language. Our understanding of the world at large is formed by our experience of that world in a way which is difficult to exaggerate. This is Nietzsche on the subject, even if he doesnt go far enough: However far human knowledge may extend or however objective that knowledge may appear to be it is nevertheless largely only our own life stories. We’ve little reason to assume that the common structure of language—which all human languages share—is either the most effective or indeed the only form which language can take. The fact that all languages can be translated one into the other should tell us something about the common nature of their histories. The structure of these languages—their syntax and grammar and their general form—more than suggests that they have a single origin. But it further elicits the question as to whether or not this is a structure which enjoys an independent standing. Or whether other forms might be not only possible but even preferable. If intelligent beings from other parts of the universe should attempt to converse with us would their language be translatable? Would it share enough of our notions of how to go about describing the world for us to correlate it? Our languages in their form and in their structure are a single language. They are the languages of this world but they are not—that we know of—languages of the universe. We’ve no reason to believe that there is, or could be, such a thing. We might further consider that the form of language and its usage have at once influenced our view of reality as indeed has our experience of the world continued to influence our language. There is little evidence for selection in the shaping of language. A good part of what we experience appears in the form of frozen accident. As indeed does a good part of human experience in general. Before language men did not know that other men dreamt. Cormac McCarthy is a board member and senior fellow of the Santa Fe Institute. Lead photo: Jim Spellman / Contributor / Getty Images |
Well, Hello there. Freely here again with some insight into Poke. This, my dear friends, will be a very long read Overview: What is a Poke Comp? In its very nature is Poking. In League, this refers to taking out chunks of HP off of your opponent from a long distance. Most often using two or three champions with exceptional poking abilities. The team composition based around Poking has some key features and gameplay alterations. In its core are champions able to siege and disengage. Around it, is the ability to force laning phase to end sooner, control buffs (blue in particular) and kite. How does one Siege? Sieging is the act of forcing your enemies into an uncomfortable situation and wearing them down. Usually this is around a turret/ lane, however you can siege at some objectives as well. For one to Siege, the enemy must have two things. Firstly you can't siege into a place where the enemy can leave. You have to put them into a Lose-Lose situation. Sort of like saying "Stay and get poked, Leave and lose your Inhibitor". Another key factor is the lack of engaging forced upon them. You would benefit greatly from outsustaining any back-poke trough Zeke's or WotA on some champions. What is this, Disengage thing you are talking about. They are low HP why not fight? In very few situations the poke comp would gain more from engaging or letting them get engaged upon. You are in a very favorable position when you siege and losing that position is bad for you. If you bring an entire team to low HP, they cannot afford to blue-pill or engage properly, so you can start forcing bigger and bigger things as they will always wear out faster than you. If they do Engage however you need to disengage. Some champions are good at disengages and some items as well. Having many Shureliya's is favorable and so is a Randuin's. But what if they do engage properly? Help me Kite. When they do engage, the entirety of the team should be semi-spread out whilst still heading in the same direction. Follow your trail with skill shots and keep running. Avoid that full-on engage and when they start retreating POKE harder. Simple, no? Ashe 101. Is that all? But i can't poke my own lane. The main goal in the laning phase is to control Blue buff and take the outer turrets down. Ever seen an AD carry come to your precious mid after dominating their lane. Well, that has to happen. Win any lane and start pressuring another one. Sooner or later both teams will be down there and the sieging can begin. But poking early is harder. You need to supply your main pokers with Blue and provide a safe environment for them to do their business. Going to town with a Janna ult on cool down is not favorable. Champions: So I can get Rammus and start poking now, right? You need to build your TEAM COMP around this strategy if this wasn't obvious enough. Some champions fit the role better than others and some excel, incredibly so. Some champions fitting this role are: Top Laners: 1. Nidalee (AP) - The best Poker. Her Q shredding and her E sustaining, paired up with some disengage and kite trough her R make her a beast at this. 2. Ahri - While laning Can be tough or easy depending on the match-up she is one of the few Tops who handle the role well. Her Disengage and Kite are REALLY good and her poke is up there too. 3. Dr. Mundo - With a high amount of favorable matchups, Nice disengage and very good poke his a very good candidate for this role. 4. Urgot - With Decent poke and the ever-threatening ultimate he can sort-of fill this role. He can dominate his lane easily however and can do heavy long-range damage if itemized towards it. Jungle: 1. Trundle - Definitely odd. He is good at the early jungle and has a lot of favorable matchups in the jungle. Can secure buffs at ease but what's really impressive is how he sets his teammates up to the poke with the pillar and how he can disengage with it. 2. Maokai - The best at this. Huge disengage, Buff control and Poke with saplings (as their base damage is nothing to laugh about). His R is devastating. 3. Dr.Mundo - Once again Great poke and disengage. Huge meat-wall not to harm the squishies in the back. Fast jungler can help end Laning phase early as well. 4. Cho'Gath - Really fast and dominant jungle. He is like Trundle in that he sets his team up to poke but is lacking in the disengaging department. Definitely not top tier. AP Mid: 1. Kog'Maw (AP) - The absolute best. So devastating it's unreal. His W and R poke at HUGE range with HUGE damage and his E is an amazing disengage. 2. Twisted Fate - A little bellow Kog in that he has higher cooldowns, however less blue dependency. His Q still shreds and Red card kites very well. 3. Ziggs - His small cooldowns are what make him a great pick. His W also forces players to either position less carefully and bare witness to other poke or go into slowing damaging mines. Also his E allows him to get away safely. He can kite very well too. 4. Gragas - His Q poke is surreal. He can run away with E, sustain with W and disengage (god mode) with R. Nothing more you could want. 5. Ahri - Her Kiting and Disengage are just far too superb. Definitely subpar compared to other choices but still a pretty god damn good one, coupled with the good lane she has. 6. Janna (AP) - Her Ult man Her ult. Her tornados can poke very well too and her W does some heavy damage. 7. Lulu (AP) - with her E->Q combo you can reach unimaginable range. Paired up with Speed-up, Shield and her ult She is almost perfect for this position. AD Carry Bot: 1. Caitlyn - The best one for this. Her high range allow her to tear with auto-attacks and still be safe. Her Q does very well in this position. Her W forces people to lose the same way as Ziggs' and her E disengages. Her R is also good poke. 2. Ashe - Her W is very good poke, but where she shines is her kite. Leave the poking to your solos and keep them safe if enemies engage. 3. Ezreal - One of the very few situations in which he is better than Corki. Take note of this as you can hear it only once from me: In this situation Trinity over IE is better *cringe* 4. Corki - A tad bit bellow Ezreal, still no reason not to have Cait or Ashe. Only other available pick for an AD. Support: 1. Janna - Her ult. 2. Lulu - Her W and ult. No real reason to pick her over Janna if she is up however. 3. Lux - Whoooot? Lux? She can actually disengage pretty well and save her teammates reasonably well as well. Her laning however is questionable. Example: CLG ran Nidalee, Kog'maw (AP), Maokai, Caitlyn and Janna when they fought 4not at GGChronicle's Tournament. They forced their lane over early and kept sieging at mid (eventually rotating bot) and disengaging every time Amumu wanted to catch them trough their various abilities. Conclusion: Well this was long and I believe I did mention a lot of common sense, however i hope you still enjoyed it. It might not be fun to watch but it's a viable and to me at least very interesting strategy. If you have any questions, PM me at Reddit : Fr33ly. Regards, Freely. |
Chongqing, China (CNN) — The tunnel darkens beneath eerie red and blue lights, the only beacons in the otherwise black surroundings. The cave's air is chilly, rich with the odor of dust and freshly washed concrete. Pressing past a giant People's Liberation Army green iron door, a concrete cavern the size of a football field opens up in China One wall, stretching over a hundred feet high, displays neon lit movie panels with images of atomic weapons and plutonium processing. Across the hall, another wall displays a fiery orange atomic mushroom cloud. Beneath this mock Armageddon is a field of sand filled with miniature Chinese army trucks and a life-size replica of China's first atomic bomb, which was detonated during a nuclear test in 1964. In front of it all, Chinese families and friends stop and pose for photos and selfies. Welcome to the belly of China 816 Nuclear Military Plant, a decommissioned Cold War-era plutonium and weapons processing facility buried in the Chongqing mountains that contains one of the world's largest man-made caves. Nuclear spelunking in Chongqing: A colorful experience. Christopher Cottrell/CNN Construction commenced in 1967. According to government figures, more than 60,000 soldiers worked on it for 17 years before it was shut down in 1984. It opened for the Chinese public briefly in 2010 but was closed shortly after. The 104,000 square meter facility, filled with 18 caves and 130 tunnel roads, recently opened again -- this time as a tourist destination accessible to international visitors. Nuclear spelunking Past the nuclear bomb display hall visitors make their way through a tubular tunnel rimmed with blue, red, and green lights, which project onto the walls for stunning visual effects. Out of this corridor lies a warren of concrete rooms bathed in orange, blue and green hues. Ascending staircases lead to rooms with reactor meters and Cold War-era history displays. Avant-garde green lighting in several areas highlights where radioactive processing occurred. Anything that might have been radioactive is encased in protective glass. Other rooms are lit by simple lights, exposing original white and blue walls and tiles. There are deep, dark gaps with exposed wrought iron, and vast areas with rooms that are off limits. Not that they need to be marked -- even the most curious Dungeons and Dragons enthusiast would be terrified to start idly poking around 816. Red books and gas masks The latter third of the tour takes visitors into a labyrinth of concrete rooms lit with sci-fi-like light displays. Plaques note heroic engineering and Cold War, Chinese communist lore, while one room features a glass box with Chairman Mao red books and nuclear gas mask and fallout body garb. Another sprawling room contains a depression the size of an Olympic swimming pool. The former nuclear bunker is filled with rooms highlighting the site's work. Christopher Cottrell/CNN An art installation of plastic tubes sprouts up from this basin in lime green, representing the nuclear rods once housed here. Above this, once sterile walls bleed with rust. Corroding staircases dangle off them. Final halls resemble fabled mines with 200-foot ceilings cut out of rock and lit with white lights. One room offers overhead views into a sort of mad science lab, its ghoulish green lights shooting up through the glass floor. An exhilarating and refreshing tour Only a third of 816 is currently open, with other areas of the mountain still highly restricted to tourists. Officials are planning to open other sections in the future. But what is on offer during the two-hour exploration is already enough, making 816 an exhilarating and refreshing experience. It combines interesting science and dramatic history with the thankful sentiment (if set in a deeply Chinese patriotic language) that the Cold War is over. Given the edgy lighting and space design, one might imagine 816 transforming into the largest underground nightclub on Earth. Until then, it will have to settle for being the coolest nuclear bunker spelunking site there is -- no serious cave exploring gear required. Chongqing info Thirty minutes by train from downtown Chongqing and one hour drive into Fulin county, 816 rests in the hills that overlook the Wu River, a southern tributary of the Yangtze that flows down to Guizhou. Located in southwestern China, Chongqing -- often referred to as "River Town" -- is the country's largest municipality. It's home to over 30 million people -- 10 to 12 million bustling around its multiple riverfront downtown and 18 million or more peppered across rolling hills and mountains that abut the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau. The 816 bunker complex is one of several destinations Chongqing tourism authorities have dubbed "cave cool." Famed for its inferno-on-the-tongue peppercorn hot pot cuisine, the province is also legendary for caves owing to the ancient Yangtze river and karst limestone geology. These caves form an essential element of Chongqing's culture and history -- with some of the most popular ones being refurbished into entertainment, dining, and tourist attractions. Others have been preserved for scientific research only. |
The Roma pitted against Hungary's far right Tension is rising in a small Hungarian town over threats by a far-right group to tackle crime it alleges is being committed by a Roma minority, as the BBC's Nick Thorpe reports. It is cold in Balint Bernath's kitchen, but the silverware radiates a glow of success unusual in Roma homes. There is a row of championship cups, won by Mr Bernath's stepson - a 19-year-old boxer. Balint Bernath warns the far right should not "pour oil on the flames" A tall, pale-faced youth stares from a photograph, his head in protective gear, his gloves almost touching the camera. The next big fight is in June, Mr Bernath says, in Germany. He is out there now, training. Mr Bernath sees the question in my eyes - his son does not look very Roma. "We are six brothers and sisters," he explains slowly to make sure I understand, "and five of us have married Hungarians." That is shorthand for non-Roma. Unemployment is huge and the Roma feel humiliated How does he feel about the fact that his town has been picked by the Hungarian far-right as the next place to impose law and order on his allegedly unruly people? They should neither kindle the fires, he says, nor pour oil on the flames. If they do come, he will organise a counter-demonstration. Contingency plans are already in place. "Relations with the police are good," says Mr Bernath, the deputy leader of the Roma at county level. But unemployment is huge and the Roma feel humiliated. Work for the local council, like street-sweeping and grass-cutting, has been halved to just four hours a day - for those lucky enough to get it. And now the council has made welfare payments dependent on keeping your house and yard clean. Officials come poking around, checking the toilets and bathrooms, he says. One of his neighbours lost his unemployment money because they found dog excrement in the yard, he adds. Public order Hajduhadhaz, a town of 13,000 people, stretches out below the striking twin towers of the Calvinist church, which is painted, rather surprisingly, lemon yellow. There is little sign of spring and a sharp northerly wind sends pedestrians hurrying home before another rain squall, to tidy single-storey houses, each with a small garden. There are regular white buses bound for Debrecen, half an hour away. The coffee shop closes early. The apple pie is not as fresh as I had hoped. The local parliamentary deputy of the far-right party Jobbik, 32-year-old Gergely Rubi, meets me in the main square. Mr Rubi says his vigilante group is bringing in reinforcements He is keen to talk. He even poses for a photograph in his black uniform with the words "Civil Guard for a more Beautiful Future" in big letters on the back. On the side of his car is the emblem of Hungary's ancient red-and-white-striped flag with a Turul superimposed on it - a mythical bird, which guided the Magyar tribes to what is now Hungary. Mr Rubi offers a rather different view on life in Hajduhadhaz - one of increasing robberies, violent attacks, and child prostitutes along Route Four, which passes the town on its way to the east. He alleges that there are also fewer police than before and that public order has ceased to exist. He claims that it was only when his own vigilante group was set up eight months ago that the theft of timber from the nearby forest fell drastically. His vigilante group is bringing in reinforcements from all over Hungary, he says, to alert the government to the problem. What is the difference between his men and the Hungarian Guard, a group in almost identical uniforms, disbanded by the courts for terrorising the Roma? He smiles disarmingly. The guard protected Hungarian traditions, he says, and were banned because of political pressure. Our group is legal, simply there to help the police. Regaining control In the sandy streets of the Roma ghetto, whole families are getting ready for church. The church community paints a very different story of the Roma people Is there a crime problem here? Usury, a Roma mafia which gives loans then extorts huge interest payments, is a scourge, they say. But the father of one household says that since he found religion, he has avoided their attentions. It is better to be poor, he says, than to borrow, "and in the Kingdom of Heaven, we will surely be rich." The new Pentecostal church is full of Roma and a few Hungarians for the Sunday afternoon service. They pray aloud in a fervent cacophony. There are electric guitars, a women's choir and even a former Hungarian police major and his wife, who reads a poem aloud. The congregation erupts in applause and a chorus of "Amen" and "Hallelujah". In his office beside the handsome church sits the young mayor, Denes Csafordi. Only elected in October, he has big plans. There are new roads, better sewage, and 16 new lamp-posts, to brighten up dark, outlying streets. More discipline is needed, he admits, but he fears the vigilantes will paint his town black - as a nest of crime and ethnic tension. Leaving town I see no less than three police cars, parked at strategic places. The state seems suddenly keen to reclaim its monopoly on public order. BBC Radio 4: Saturdays, 1130. Second weekly edition on Thursdays, 1100 (some weeks only) BBC World Service: See programme schedules Download the podcast Listen on iPlayer Story by story at the programme website Bookmark with: Delicious Digg reddit Facebook StumbleUpon What are these? E-mail this to a friend Printable version |
Special Counsel Robert Mueller has asked the White House to provide a wide variety of documents related to his investigation into Russia’s attempted meddling in the 2016 election, Fox News has confirmed. Mueller’s office has provided a list of documents requested from the White House counsel’s office, a legal source says. The broad request covers multiple White House staffers and includes actions Trump has taken as president. The request was expected, a source said. The president’s legal team declined to comment. "Out of respect for the special counsel and his process, the White House does not comment on any specific requests being made or our conversations with the special counsel,” White House attorney Ty Cobb said in a statement. “I can only reaffirm that the White House is committed to cooperating fully with Special Counsel Mueller." MUELLER RATCHETS UP PRESSURE ON PAUL MANAFORT, BUT WHO IS LEAKING THESE DAMAGING DETAILS? Mueller wants documents from 13 different areas including Trump’s firing of former national security adviser Mike Flynn and former FBI director James Comey, a source said. He also wants documents related to Trump’s Oval Office meeting with Russian officials and Donald Trump Jr.’s infamous June 2016 meeting with a Russian attorney. A source also told Fox News that the scope of the request shows that Mueller is operating well within the parameters of his mandate to look into Russian interference in the election – and has not strayed outside the lines. The New York Times, which first reported the request for documents, said Trump’s attorney has told Mueller’s office he will turn over many of the documents this week. Fox News’ Catherine Herridge and Kristin Brown contributed to this report. |
Breaking News Emails Get breaking news alerts and special reports. The news and stories that matter, delivered weekday mornings. Oct. 8, 2015, 8:47 PM GMT / Updated Oct. 9, 2015, 2:32 AM GMT By Tracy Connor and Andrew Blankstein A Utah man busted for pretending he was an Air Force fugitive-hunter to get into a fantasy convention told NBC News he's just a Star Wars fan who "made a stupid mistake." Jonathon Wall, 29, was indicted Wednesday on charges of impersonating a federal officer and making a false statement to a federal agent during the three-day confab in Salt Lake City, which drew 120,000 devotees of comics, science-fiction and anime. Wall, who works for the Air Force as a refrigerator mechanic, said a friend gave him a VIP pass worth $250 that included lots of perks, but he wanted access to the green room, where the celebrities who make appearances hang out. "I had this bright idea to tell them I was with the [Air Force Office of Special Investigations] and that we were looking for a certain person," Wall said in a telephone interview. Before Wall was able to get into the VIP area, though, a retired Salt Lake City police officer working security got suspicious and started questioning him. Then real Air Force OSI agents were brought in to continue the interrogation. The indictment alleges that Wall claimed his lie was spontaneous when he had actually pre-planned the ruse, though he insisted to NBC News that he only came up with it after he arrived at the convention. |
UPDATE: It has now been confirmed that the alleged shooter died from the injuries he sustained on the scene. United States Rep. Steve Scalise (R-La.) and several Capitol Police officers were shot by a rifle-wielding gunman early Wednesday during a congressional baseball practice in Alexandria, Virginia. According to the Washington Post, federal law enforcement officials have identified the alleged suspect as James T. Hodgkinson, 66, of Belleville, Illinois. While information about the alleged shooter is still emerging, political analyst Phil Kerpen dug up details from Hodgkinson's Facebook page, where he allegedly indicated he was a climate change activist with an intense hatred of President Donald Trump. Warning: Shooter's Facebook posts below contain foul language. Alleged shooter's views of the president. pic.twitter.com/ckvu446pzP — Phil Kerpen (@kerpen) June 14, 2017 Alleged shooter was at the climate march. pic.twitter.com/lwNvaHQUMP — Phil Kerpen (@kerpen) June 14, 2017 Alleged shooter is a Koch hater. pic.twitter.com/pGiVmcYBKl — Phil Kerpen (@kerpen) June 14, 2017 Alleged shooter liked @neiltyson. Does not like God. pic.twitter.com/qrW14HO0KT — Phil Kerpen (@kerpen) June 14, 2017 Alleged shooter supports impeaching the president.https://t.co/Ya2uiMVvIR — Phil Kerpen (@kerpen) June 14, 2017 Alleged shooter compares the president to Hitler. pic.twitter.com/GiUrr5ORSg — Phil Kerpen (@kerpen) June 14, 2017 Scalise is currently undergoing surgery and is said to be in stable condition. Both Capitol Police officers who were injured are currently in "good" condition, according to a statement from Capitol Police. This story will be updated as details continue to emerge. |
WASHINGTON -- Former Senate Majority Leader and ex-presidential candidate Bob Dole (R-Kan.) said Sunday that he is somewhat dismayed by the current state of Congress, where gridlock has prevented many legislative pushes from getting through. "It seems almost unreal that we can't get together on a budget or legislation," he said on "Fox News Sunday." "We weren't perfect, by a long shot, but at least we got our work done." Dole, who served in the Senate from 1969 to 1996, wasn't fully critical of the president, but said part of the problem is that he "lacks communication with Congress" and should have gotten together with members earlier in his presidency. Dole joked at first when asked by host Chris Wallace to quickly give his thoughts on President Barack Obama. "He's a great golfer, very articulate," Dole responded. Still, he acknowledged it's not easy to work with the Senate, where he said "no doubt about it," cloture is being abused. He didn't spare the Republican Party his criticism, saying they need to be "closed for repairs" and come up with more plans and a vision for the future before the end of the year. Wallace asked him whether he'd even fit in with the Republican Party today. "I doubt it," Dole replied. "Reagan wouldn't have made it, certainly Nixon wouldn't have made it, because he had ideas. We might have made it, but I doubt it." It's tough to be a leader, he said, but his strategy was to get people together and then ask them to call him when they came to a deal. In the end, the leadership gets the blame when things go wrong, he said. |
Editor's note: Amy Gahran writes about mobile tech for CNN.com. She is a San Francisco Bay Area writer and media consultant whose blog, Contentious.com, explores how people communicate in the online age. (CNN) -- Recently, Google announced that the Android version of its Google Maps app now automatically routes users around traffic when providing directions. According to the Google Blog, Google Maps navigation previously "would choose whichever route was fastest, without taking current traffic conditions into account. It would also generate additional alternate directions, such as the shortest route or one that uses highways instead of side roads. "[Now], our routing algorithms will also apply our knowledge of current and historical traffic to select the fastest route from those alternates. That means that navigation will automatically guide you along the best route given the current traffic conditions." It will be interesting to see, as this feature develops, how well it adjusts for recurring or special events that not only cause congestion but also block traffic. For instance, could Google Maps navigation account for street closures for fairs and marathons -- especially if they're held in the same location annually? What about drawbridges that tend to open at regular times? Or St. Patrick's Day parades? Or what about when streets get flooded, or when public safety agencies shut down access to an area in an emergency? Or what about when Critical Mass bikers or zombie hordes overtake city streets? So far, the iPhone Google Maps app lacks this traffic-avoiding feature, but it's probably coming soon. For now, iPhone users of Google Maps can still use the "alternate routes" feature, with the live traffic layer enabled, to find their own ways around traffic. Or you can try the HD Traffic feature on the TomTom iPhone app, which, according to Pocket-lint, has offered traffic-dodging functionality for some time. The opinions expressed in this post are solely those of Amy Gahran. |
The family of a man with special needs has condemned an attack on him at a public park in Dublin, which left him needing stitches for a large wound to his head. During the attack, believed to have involved three teenagers, Paul Deaton, 31, was told he would be set on fire and the youths laughed when he fell hurting his head after they tripped him. "Paul is traumatised by what happened," said his sister Linda Deaton, who stayed with him in Beaumont Hospital where he had four staples inserted to close his head wound. The attack has also been condemned by Dublin's Lord Mayor Christy Burke. "I sincerely hope this is an isolated incident," he said. "Are we getting to the stage where we need to put in park rangers to patrol the park?" Ms Deaton said her brother "is really gentle and wouldn't say boo to anyone". He lives at home in Marino with his older brother Brian and their mother Dorothy. The family said Mr Deaton left his home to go to Fairview Park and to look at JCBs, which are being used for work near the park. "Paul loves tractors and diggers and he was taking pictures of them on his phone," Ms Deaton explained. He went to the park at around 7pm, where he was approached by three youths, who began to harass him. They tried to hit him and bully him and he tried to get away a number of times. Ms Deaton said: "He was kicked and eventually he got away, but not before one of them tripped him to stop him. They laughed at him and took out their phones to take pictures of him." After the attack, Mr Deaton was covered in blood and a stranger came to his aid and brought him to a nearby pharmacy. "We want to thank the young woman who came to help him. We don't know who she is but we are grateful," she said. Ms Deaton went to the hospital with her brother, where he had his head stapled and other injuries treated. The family are hoping that the culprits will be brought to justice and they have reported the attack to gardaí in Clontarf. They also think the gang may have recorded the attack on their phones. Ms Deaton said they know one of them had a bicycle. One was wearing a grey top, the second had a black jumper and the third was possibly in a red jumper. They want anyone who saw anything or can help to come forward. Mr Burke offered his sympathies and support to Mr Deaton and his family. "This is an act that is deplorable, despicable and cowardly. I hope it is not a trend. I hope anyone with any ounce of information will report it to the gardai," Mr Burke said. A garda spokesperson confirmed that the gardai in Clontarf are investigating an assault that was reported to them at 7.45pm on Wednesday. |
DETROIT, MI - DECEMBER 07: Matthew Stafford #9 of the Detroit Lions looks to throw a first quarter pass against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Ford Field on December 07, 2014 in Detroit, Michigan. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images) DETROIT, MI - DECEMBER 07: Matthew Stafford #9 of the Detroit Lions looks to throw a first quarter pass against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Ford Field on December 07, 2014 in Detroit, Michigan. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images) By: Mike Sullivan Sporting News came out with their top 25 NFL Quarterbacks for 2015 rankings. The top five, in order, are the following: 1. Aaron Rodgers 2. Ben Roethlisberger 3. Tom Brady 4. Tony Romo 5. Andrew Luck Detroit Lions QB Matthew Stafford was not in the top 10, or the top 15. Sporting News ranked Stafford as the 20th best QB in the NFL. Here’s their reasoning: “Detroit made the playoffs in 2014 despite Stafford, not because of him. On one hand, he was rattled by a shaky line. But then again, the Lions installed an offense under Joe Lombardi with the intent of making him more efficient. The results should have been better with two top receivers in Calvin Johnson and Golden Tate, but his big arm was a little out of sorts in the system. This is a critical season to see if he can ever reach the Top 10.” The QB’s ranked 15-19, just ahead of Stafford, are Teddy Bridgewater (15), Alex Smith (16), Colin Kaepernick (17), Carson Palmer (18), and Andy Dalton (19). Stafford threw for 4,257 yards, 22 TD and 12 INT in 2014 while completing 60.3% of his passes. He made the Pro Bowl and was named the Offensive MVP of the game. Does Matthew Stafford deserve to be ranked higher than 20? If so, who would you put him ahead of? |
The Mana party is promising to give Maori no deposit, low interest home loans funded from the Government's coffers. Mana's Ikaroa-Rawhiti candidate Te Hamua Nikora and leader Hone Harawira made the announcement in policy announced in Pomare this morning. They said Maori were being driven out of the market by property developers and foreign owners who were driving up prices. Maori families were left renting substandard accommodation, they said. "[Our] loan scheme will encourage Maori to become homeowners and not just renters of dumps owned by property developers," Nikora said. The scheme was similar to the Maori Affairs Housing Scheme that was canned in 1989. Only Maori first-home buyers would be eligible, he said. It would be run through Te Puni Korkiri to "cut out banks and their mean-spirited attitude to Maori". No deposit would be needed and low interest rates would be charged. Up to $200,000 could be borrowed to buy a house or build, he said. Mana is looking to reintroduce Maori apprenticeships to help with the building. The scheme had not been costed, and Harawira said he had not spoken to other parties about getting support. "The issue isn't about cost; it's about priorities." The Government was willing to give money and assistance to rich people who did not need it, he said. He said it could build quality houses for $200,000. "Not something big and flash, but something comfortable ... That's the thing about Maori; we do have land," he said. Mana also pledged to build 10,000 state houses a year, starting with 500 in Ikaroa-Rawhiti, the electorate where a by-election will take place next week. Harawira said it was "not just unethical, it's immoral" that people were being kicked out of state houses, including in the Pomare area of Lower Hutt where the announcement was made. He said he would not get arrested again in Pomare. "One arrest in each electoral term is enough." Harawira was arrested while protesting about state house redevelopment in Glenn Innes, Auckland. He intends to represent himself in court next month and said his trail was a political statement about the housing situation in New Zealand. |
In the aftermath of the GOP losses on Tuesday night, Democrats across the nation were celebrating. In politics, a win is a win so you have to give credit where due. But there were also some folks looking to take credit it seems, with varying degrees of credibility behind those claims. You may recall that after her stunning 2016 defeat and a bit of time spent wandering around in the woods, Hillary Clinton formed a new PAC named “Onward Together.” The purpose of the group was to fundraise and promote the resistance… or something. Well, on Tuesday night, the former Secretary of State took to Twitter to make sure everyone knew who was responsible for putting a couple of races in the win column. Last night was a great reminder of what’s possible when we come together and fight for what we believe in. So I wanted to take a few minutes to celebrate the extraordinary successes of a few groups I—and Onward Together—proudly fight alongside. — Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) November 8, 2017 As we celebrate, let’s also remember the work ahead. Proud that groups that Onward Together supports—including @SwingLeft, which is laser-focused on taking back the House—have been making incredible progress in the fight for 2018 and beyond. Onward! — Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) November 8, 2017 The first of those two tweets actually garnered more than 18K retweets and 100K likes. That must have made her feel better I bet. But over at Redstate, Carl Arbogast was unable to contain a bit of stunned amazement that Hillary Clinton still can’t seem to get away from the idea that this is all about her. It is hard to fathom a person exists so full of their self-importance, yet so lacking in self-awareness, they can take credit for something that had nothing to do with them. No, I am not talking about Donald Trump (this time). It’s Hillary Clinton and her latest attempt at relevance is rather funny… She’s delusional if she thinks she had anything to do with the Democrats gains last night. Here is a wake-up call for Hillary, her rabid supporters and anybody who else who buys into her nonsense. Hillary did help the Democrats last night. By losing to Donald Trump a year ago. There are two parts to this critique, dealing with the original premise and the conclusion. I’ll agree wholeheartedly with the former for starters. Hillary Clinton does seem to be caught in some sort of whirlpool of self-importance bordering on delusion. I understand how hard losing that election must have been after the entire political world had assured her she had it in the bag right up until the polls closed. But at some point she really needs to let it go. Clinton was an unpopular and largely unlikable candidate who failed to capture the imagination of her own base, say nothing of a sufficient number of other voters in the key states needed to win the election. And yes, I’m sure there are still plenty of activists willing to take her money to work on upcoming races, but I don’t see anyone of any serious tenor running around saying, let’s win this one for Hillary, guys! The other question deals with whether or not Trump is truly responsible for the Democratic victories. Perhaps to a certain degree, and no doubt more so than Clinton, but it’s simply not as black and white as that. New Jersey is a blue state where the election of Chris Christie was something of an aberration. By the time he was well into his second term his popularity at home had plunged far enough that the Democrats who had previously supported him were disenchanted and ready to return to their roots. His Lt. Governor was a fine candidate in her own right, but I don’t know if there was any Republican who could have won that race. And Virginia? Yes, that was always going to be tight and the race definitely should have been winnable for Gillespie. But even if he’d pulled it out it would have been by an equally small margin. (Probably smaller.) Hillary Clinton carried Virginia in 2016 so there was clearly already enough of a Resist base present to pull off a victory. Also, the northern end of Virginia has turned into an extension of D.C. at this point. The state may still lean purplish, but from here on out it’s going to be tough sledding for the GOP there in the foreseeable future. So did Donald Trump cause the Democratic victory there? It’s an iffy proposition. But I’ll agree that he at least had a lot more to do with it than Hillary Clinton. |
Update 13: Dark Sectors is live and ready for action! Take the upper hand with new fighting styles in Melee 2.0, build Solar Rails to lay claim to outposts on the Solar Map in the Dark Sectors and harness the power of the Hydroid Water Frame. See what our Devs have to say about this huge update here: www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nt8bVNEnDxg&feature=youtube There’s so much in this update we can’t list it all but here are some of the highlights: NEW WARFRAME - Rising from the ocean depths, HYDROID harnesses the power of water with a devastating effect. HYDROID 's powers include: Tempest Barrage - Calls down a barrage of liquid fury Undertow - Become a water trap and drown unsuspecting enemies Tidal Surge - Crash through enemies in a ferocious wall of water Tentacle Swarm - Summon a watery creature from the deep to wreak havoc www.youtube.com/watch?v=z2BHfrR3ikE MELEE 2.0 - Your melee weapons have never been so powerful. Fully equip your melee weapon, add Combo Chaining, Equip State and Stance Mods and realize an entirely new melee system for your Warframe. DARK SECTORS - Tenno are building Solar Rails to bring back the light to the Dark Sectors throughout the Solar System. Ready your Clan and build Solar Rails to lay claim to these lost outposts. Collect Tribute from everyone who uses your rail but stay alert, Tenno -- other Clans can try to overtake your Sector. NEW WEAPONS ATTICA - Quickly fire off a volley of deadly bolts with the Attica Repeating Crossbow. NAMI SKYLA - Like the surge and crash of storm waves, a master of the Nami Cutlass and Skyla Dagger turns these two separate weapons into one fluid attack. NIKANA - The Nikana Katana reintroduces a lost Tenno blade and with it another fragment of the old ways. NEW PRIME WEAPON - Lex Prime joins the ranks of Elite Prime weapons. MELEE WEAPON ATTACHMENTS - Five new SUGATRA Melee Weapon Attachments display the martial finesse and skill of its master. NEW WEAPON SKINS - The Shock Camo Skins' bold patterns are designed to confuse the optical processing of both robotic and organic enemies. NEW ENEMIES - Vay Hek's Prosectors and Guardsmen pose new threats. Find the elemental damage type they're vulnerable to and take them down! NEW SENTINEL SKIN - Add the Para Skin to your Carrier -- The perfect companion for the new Hydroid Warframe! EXPANDED TILESET - Explore this new Grineer Shipyard Tileset in the Ceres planetary region. DOJO CUSTOMIZATION - Ten new Dojo Rooms are now available! |
Details Published on Tuesday, 08 July 2014 17:46 If open-carry (“OC”) is not yet in the morgue, it certainly is in the ICU on life-support. Things were looking much better for OC supporters in the 2015 Texas Legislative Session. The NRA and TSRA have been working on OC since the end of the 2013 legislative session and they had obtained preliminary commitments to file and work bills in the House and Senate. Both Greg Abbott and Wendy Davis came out in support of OC, but only Greg Abbott really meant what he said. Still, it was interesting that the Democrat candidate for the Governor’s mansion felt the need to at least claim she supported OC. All this changed when groups supporting OC launched a campaign of demonstrations that has generated a huge political backlash. These demonstrations involve carrying long guns into stores and other private property. Some demonstrations are well-planned with prior notice to property owners and the local police or sheriff’s department, but many are impromptu with no prior notice. Still others are nothing more than one or two people choosing to carry their AR-15s into Wal-Mart and taking photos. At best, the major media are typically lukewarm to Second Amendment issues and they are more often openly hostile to gun rights. The in-your-face style of OC demonstrations gave TV reporters and their cameramen an unprecedented opportunity to take photos and videos of people with AR-15’s and other rifles and shotguns walking into Wal-Mart, Home Depot and other stores. Of course, they then talked to anyone they could find who would express fear and anguish at having their children subjected to such dangerous conduct. Never mind that there was no danger, no one was injured and no one lost any sleep that night. The media successfully attacked the concept of OC and they were able to convince enough Texans that the in-your-face types represented the majority of Texas gun owners that OC is far less likely to pass in 2015. One of the larger organizations supporting OC purported to abandon the tactics of carrying rifles and shotguns in demonstrations and trips to the grocery store, but other organizations and individuals continue to do so. In spite of calls by experienced legislative advocates, OC demonstrations continue in one form or another, including the carrying of black powder revolvers made prior to 1899 or replicas thereof. While this approach doesn’t seem to have generated the backlash caused by those carrying long guns, it nevertheless keeps the issue on TV news and this works to the detriment of OC. A question often asked is “can OC still pass?” The answer is an unequivocal “who knows?” Based upon calls and emails to Senators and House Members already made by irate constituents, OC may well be dead on arrival in Austin come January 2015. If there is any chance of passing OC, then it will depend upon OC supporters and groups standing down and being as quiet as proverbial church mice so that the political dust can settle. If their prior responses to calls for a change in tactics is any indication, then there likely will not be a period of calm before the Legislature convenes in January, 2015. |
Almost every schoolchild in America for generations learned the following ditty: “Lizzie Borden took an ax and gave her mother forty whacks. When she saw what she had done, she gave her father 41.” Editor's note: On September 14, 2018, a new biographical thriller "Lizzie", starring Chloë Sevigny and Kristen Stewart, will be released. The movie's plot is based on the true story of Lizzie Borden, who was accused and acquitted of the ax murders of her father and stepmother in Fall River, Massachusetts, in 1892. Today we take a look back at Borden's Irish maid who witnessed the murders. ~~~~~ "Lizzie Borden had an axe She gave her mother 40 whacks When she saw what she had done She gave her father 41." The famous rhyme commemorates the most infamous double murder of the 19th century and it happened in Fall River, MA, on Aug. 4, 1892. In 2014, a TV movie about the murders attracted huge ratings. It was the OJ and Charles Lindbergh baby trial of its day and an Irish maid was a central figure. Wealthy businessman Andrew Borden and his wife Abby were murdered by someone unknown, though suspicion fell quickly on his daughter Lizzie, who did not get on with her father’s second wife. However, in the trial of the century, she was cleared. A key witness was Irish maid Bridget Sullivan, part of whose testimony is reproduced here. It also gives an invaluable insight into the lives of Irish domestics at the time. The facts as they are known are that wealthy Falls River businessman Andrew Borden had breakfast with his wife and made his usual rounds of the bank and post office, returning home about 10:45 am. The Bordens' maid, Bridget Sullivan, testified that she was in her third-floor room, resting from cleaning windows, when just before 11:10 am. she heard Lizzie call out to her from downstairs, "Maggie, come quick! Father's dead. Somebody came in and killed him." (Sullivan was sometimes called "Maggie", the name of an earlier maid.) Andrew was slumped on a couch in the downstairs sitting room, struck 10 or 11 times with a hatchet-like weapon. One of his eyeballs had been split cleanly in two, suggesting he had been asleep when attacked. Soon after, as neighbors and doctors tended Lizzie, Sullivan discovered Abby Borden in the upstairs guest bedroom, her skull crushed by 19 blows. Police found a hatchet in the basement which, though free of blood, was missing most of its handle. Lizzie was arrested on August 11, a grand jury began hearing evidence on November 7 and indicted her on December 2. She was found not guilty and the murders were never solved. Bridget eventually moved to Montana and died there aged 66, never again discussing the infamous case. Here is Bridget’s opening testimony: (There are references in the testimony to people, including herself, feeling sick. Some have speculated that Lizzie tried to poison her parents first through poison in the milk but that did not work.) “In the household, I was sometimes called Maggie, by Miss Emma and Miss Lizzie. I am twenty-six years old, unmarried; have been in this country seven years last May. Was born in Ireland; came first to Newport, Rhode Island. After a year there went to South Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. I came to Fall River four years ago; went to work for Mrs. Reed. Had been working for Mr. Borden two years and nine months at the time of his death. There was no other domestic servant, but a man from the farm used to come and do chores; his first name was Alfred; I don't know his other name. They used to keep a horse in the barn until about a year before Mr. Borden died. After the horse went they didn't use the barn for anything. My work was washing, ironing and cooking and sweeping. I did not have the care of any of the bedchambers except my own. My room was in the third story, right over Mr. Borden's, and his was over the kitchen. Q. Who did the chamber work in Mr. Borden's room and Mrs. Borden's? A. I don't know. Themselves did it. I don't know which of them. Q. Who took care of the rooms belonging to the daughters? A. Themselves took care of them, as far as I know. I remember Mr. Morse (brother of Borden’s first wife) coming to the house sometimes, and staying overnight. I saw him after dinner on the Wednesday before the deaths. Mrs. Borden got dinner for him; I washed the dishes. I did not go out that afternoon; I guess I was ironing. Monday was the regular washing day. I dried the clothes on Tuesday, that week. Did the washing down cellar in the washroom. I locked the cellar door after I hung out the clothes. There was no change in that door, down to the time of the murders; so far as I know it stayed bolted. There was more or less traffic on Second Street-folks, carriages and teams. I went up to my room Wednesday afternoon, say about a quarter to five. I left the screen door hooked. Mr. and Mrs. Borden were sick on Wednesday morning. I was well until Thursday when I got up with a headache. When I went to the front door on Wednesday to let Dr. Bowen in, the door was spring-locked; when I went out to my friend's on Third St. that evening, I left the back door locked. I let myself in with a key. The back door had two spring locks and a bolt; I locked all of them when I came in, and hooked the screen door, too. I went to the ice chest, took a glass of milk and went to bed. The milk was left at the door every morning at five or half-past. I washed a can every day and left it on the doorstep at night; the milkman took that can and left a full one, so there was an exchange of cans every day. Next morning I felt a dull headache as I got up. I came down at 6:15, went down cellar for wood, started my fire and went down again for coal. Then I unlocked the back door, took in the milk and put out a pan for the iceman, and a pitcher with some water in it. When I went in again, I hooked the screen door. I worked in the kitchen and dining room, getting breakfast, and didn't go in any other rooms. Mrs. Borden was the first one I see that morning; she gave me orders about breakfast; it was about half-past six. Mr. Borden came down in about five minutes; he went into the sitting room and put the key of his bedroom on the shelf. He kept it there. He then came out into the kitchen, put on a dressing coat and went outdoors with a slop pail he had brought downstairs. The screen door was locked until he went out. I was in the kitchen; the windows of the kitchen look out into the backyard. Mr. Borden emptied the slop pail; then he unlocked the barn door and went into the barn. Then he went to the pear tree, picked up a basket of pears and brought them into the house. He washed up in the kitchen and went into breakfast. When I put the breakfast on the table I saw Mr. Morse. For breakfast, there was some mutton, some broth, and johnnycakes, coffee and cookies. The broth was mutton broth. After they had their breakfast, I ate mine and commenced to clear things up. Then I see Mr. Borden and Mr. Morse going out by the back door. Mr. Borden let him out, came to the sink and cleaned his teeth at the sink, and took a big bowlful of water and took it up to his room. First, he took the key off the shelf in the sitting room. Five minutes later Miss Lizzie came through to the kitchen. I was washing the dishes and I asked her what did she want for breakfast. She said she didn't know as she wanted any breakfast, but she guessed she would have something, she guessed she would have some coffee and cookies. She got some coffee, and she was preparing to sit down at the kitchen table. I went out in the backyard. I had a sick headache and I was sick to my stomach. I went out to vomit, and I stayed ten or fifteen minutes. When I came back, I hooked the screen door again. I didn't see Mr. Borden after he went up to his room. I finished my dishes and took them in the dining room. Mrs. Borden was there; she was dusting the door between the sitting room and dining room. She had no covering on her hair. She said she wanted the windows washed, inside and outside both; she said they are awful dirty. After that, I didn't see Mrs. Borden anymore until I found her dead upstairs. I didn't see Miss Lizzie anywhere about. I can't say exactly, but I think this was about nine o'clock. Then I cleaned off my stove, went in the dining room and sitting room, shut the windows I was going to wash, and went down cellar and got a pail for to take some water. I didn't see anybody in the rooms. I got a brush in the kitchen closet, filled my pail and took it outdoors. As I was outside, Lizzie Borden appeared in the back entry, and says, "Maggie, are you going to wash the windows?" I says, "Yes." I says, "You needn't lock the door; I will be out around here; but you can lock it if you want to; I can get the water in the barn." I went to the barn to get the handle for the brush. First I washed the sitting-room windows-on the south side of the house-the Kelly side. This was away from the screen door. Before I started washing, Mrs. Kelly's girl appeared and I was talking to her at the fence. Then I washed the parlor windows: the two front windows. Between times I went to the barn and got some water. I washed the dining-room windows and one parlor window on the side. I went to the barn for water twice while I was on the south side of the house-went round by the rear-and went three or four times more while I was working in front or on the other side of the house. Then I went past the screen door to the barn. During all that time I did not see anybody come to the house. Then I got a dipper from the kitchen and clean water from the barn, and commenced to wash the sitting-room windows again by throwing water up on them. When I washed these windows, I did not see anyone in the sitting room, and I did not see anyone in the dining room when I washed those windows. I went round the house rinsing the windows with dippers of water. Then I put the brush handle away in the barn and got the hand basin and went into the sitting room to wash those windows inside. I hooked the screen door when I came in. I began to wash the window next to the front door. Had not seen anyone since I saw Lizzie at the screen door. Then I heard like a person at the door was trying to unlock the door but could not; so I went to the front door and unlocked it. The spring lock was locked. I unbolted the door and it was locked with a key; there were three locks. I said "pshaw," and Miss Lizzie laughed, upstairs. Her father was out there on the doorstep. She was upstairs. She must have been either in the entry or at the top of the stairs, I can't tell which. Mr. Borden and I didn't say a word as he came in. I went back to my window washing; he came into the sitting room and went into the dining room. He had a little parcel in his hand, same as a paper or a book. He sat in a chair at the head of the lounge. Read more: Irish women who lived as men in the US Civil War, British Army Miss Lizzie came downstairs and came through the front entry into the dining room, I suppose to her father. I heard her ask her father if he had any mail, and they had some talk between them which I didn't understand, but I heard her tell her father that Mrs. Borden had a note and had gone out. The next thing I remember, Mr. Borden took a key off the mantelpiece and went up the back stairs. When he came downstairs again, I was finished in the sitting room, and I took my hand basin and stepladder into the dining room. I began to wash the dining-room windows. Then Miss Lizzie brought an ironing board from the kitchen, put it on the dining-room table and commenced to iron. She said, "Maggie, are you going out this afternoon?" I said, "I don't know; I might and I might not; I don't feel very well" She says, "If you go out be sure and lock the door, for Mrs. Borden has gone out on a sick call, and I might go out, too." Says I, "Miss Lizzie, who is sick?" "I don't know; she had a note this morning; it must be in town." I finished my two windows; she went on ironing. Then I went in the kitchen, washed out my clothes and hung them behind the stove. Miss Lizzie came out there and said, "There is a cheap sale of dress goods at Sergeant's this afternoon, at eight cents a yard." I don't know that she said "this afternoon", but "today". And I said, "I am going to have one." Then I went upstairs to my room. I don't remember to have heard a sound of anyone about the house, except those I named. Then I laid down in the bed. I heard the City Hall bell ring and I looked at my clock and it was eleven o'clock. I wasn't drowsing or sleeping. In my judgment, I think I was there three or four minutes. I don't think I went to sleep at all. I heard no sound; I didn't hear the opening or closing of the screen door. I can hear that from my room if anyone is careless and slams the door. The next thing was that Miss Lizzie hollered, "Maggie, come down!" I said, "What is the matter?" She says, "Come down quick; Father's dead; somebody came in and killed him." This might be ten or fifteen minutes after the clock struck eleven, as far as I can judge. I run downstairs; I hadn't taken off my shoes or any of my clothing. Q. What was the usual dress that Miss Lizzie Borden wore mornings? Will you describe it? MR. ROBINSON. Wait a moment; we object to that. MR. MOODY. Not as having any tendency to show what she had on that morning. MR. ROBINSON. I object. MR. MOODY. I don't care to press it against objection. The WITNESS. Well, she wore a— MR. ROBINSON and MR. MOODY. Wait a moment. Q. I will call your attention, not asking you when it was worn or what part of the time it was worn, to a cotton or calico dress with light blue groundwork and a little figure. Does that bring to your mind the dress I am referring to? A. No sir; it was not a calico dress she was in the habit of wearing. Q. I did not ask you about the habit, but— MR. ROBINSON. That should be stricken out. MR. MOODY. Certainly. The CHIEF JUSTICE. Let it be stricken out. Q. Do you remember a dress of such a color with a figure in it? A. Yes sir. Q. Will you describe that dress that I have referred to as well as you can? A. It was a blue dress with a sprig on it. Q. What was the color of the blue; what was the shade of the blue? A. Light blue. Q. And what was the color of what you have called the sprig on it? A. It was a darker blue, I think, than what the under part was. Q. Did it have any light spots or light figures in it? MR. ROBINSON. This is very leading now A. I don't remember. MR. ROBINSON. I would like to have the witness describe the dress; she is competent to do that. Was the last question answered? [Question read] MR. ROBINSON. I move that that be stricken out. MR. KNOWLTON. I object. I contend that the question is not leading. MR. ROBINSON. I understand he does not propose to go any further with it. MR. MOODY. I do not. MR. KNOWLTON. That is all-to negative the fact of a white figure in it. MR. ROBINSON. Well, we will have no talk about it now. Let it stand as it is. When I got downstairs, I saw Miss Lizzie, standing with her back to the screen door. I went to go right in the sitting room and she says, "Oh, Maggie, don't go in. I have got to have a doctor quick. Go over. I have got to have the doctor." I went over to Dr. Bowen's right away, and when I came back, I says, "Miss Lizzie, where was you?" I says, "Didn't I leave the screen door hooked?" She says, "I was out in the backyard and heard a groan, and came in and the screen door was wide open." She says, "Go and get Miss Russell. I can't be alone in the house." So I got a hat and shawl and went. I had not found Dr. Bowen when I went to his house, but I told Mrs. Bowen that Mr. Borden was dead. I went to the house, corner of Borden and Second streets, learned that Miss Russell was not there; went to the cottage next the baker shop on Borden Street, and told Miss Russell. Then I came back to the Borden house. Mrs. Churchill was in the house and Dr. Bowen. No one else, except Miss Lizzie. She was in the kitchen, and Mrs. Churchill and I went into the dining room, and Dr. Bowen came out from the sitting room and said, "He is murdered; he is murdered." And I says, "Oh, Lizzie, if I knew where Mrs. Whitehead was I would go and see if Mrs. Borden was there and tell her that Mr. Borden was very sick." She says, "Maggie, I am almost positive I heard her coming in. Won't you go upstairs to see?" I said, "I am not going upstairs alone." I had been upstairs already after sheets for Dr. Bowen. He wanted a sheet, and I asked him to get the keys in the sitting room, and Mrs. Churchill and I went up to Mrs. Borden's room and she got two sheets, I guess. Mrs. Whitehead is Mrs. Borden's sister; she lives in Fall River. Mrs. Churchill said she would go upstairs with me. As I went upstairs, I saw the body under the bed. I ran right into the room and stood at the foot of the bed. The door of the room was open. I did not stop or make any examination. Mrs. Churchill did not go in the room. We came right down. Miss Lizzie was in the dining room, lying on the lounge; Miss Russell was there. Q. Up to the time when Miss Lizzie Borden told her father and told you in reference to the note, had you heard anything about it from anyone? A. No sir, I never did. Q. Let me ask you if anyone to your knowledge came to that house on the morning of August 4th with a message or a note for Mrs. Borden? A. No sir, I never seen nobody. * Originally published in 2014. |
The Mets are in a race for the playoffs and most nights Juan Lagares is on the bench. It’s not something most of us, much less his avid supporters, pictured coming into the season. Yet, viewed within the roller coaster ride that’s been his career with the Mets, it makes perfect sense. Lagares’ rise to the majors was anything but typical and his career path continues to make more turns than a two-lane mountain road. Most of the top Latin ballplayers sign in July when they’re 16. But Lagares was a latecomer to baseball and did not sign until he was 17. He was a raw shortstop but instead of being given plenty of time to hone his skills, he was placed in a full-season league at age 18. Lagares spent parts of four seasons in Savannah and converted to the outfield in his third season in the South Atlantic League. In his fourth season in Savannah, Lagares finally produced a good year with the bat, putting up a .777 OPS in 307 PA and earning a promotion to Hi-A. But he struggled mightily in St. Lucie, earning a return ticket to Hi-A in 2011. That year would be the breakout season that would put Lagares in the front of prospect hounds’ minds. Lagares had a terrific year in the Florida State League, putting up an .873 OPS in 335 PA. That earned him a ticket to Double-A, where he performed even better. In 170 PA at Binghamton, Lagares put up a .903 OPS, thanks in large part to a .439 BABIP. He returned to Binghamton for the 2012 campaign, which was spent entirely in Double-A. That year he put up a more normal .337 BABIP and saw his OPS fall from .903 to .723 which cooled his prospect status, considerably. The conventional wisdom at the time was that Lagares could play center field but was probably more suited for a corner spot. He did set a personal-best with 21 steals, however. It seemed he was destined for a reserve outfielder role. Lagares could hit some singles, run and cover all three outfield spots. That was the type of profile that could get you to the majors; it was not one that you would expect a club to be so excited that they would buy out your arbitration years plus one year of free agency. We’re so used to players getting bad breaks in the game of baseball. But all of the planets aligned for Lagares in 2013. After wowing observers in Spring Training with his defense, Matt den Dekker broke his wrist. Collin Cowgill was told he was the starting center fielder and then lost his job after one week and was sent to the minors after 52 PA. The corpse of Rick Ankiel was brought in and he was terrible, as expected. Meanwhile, Lagares opened the year in Las Vegas, where he put up a .346/.378/.551 line in 82 PA. Also, this was the Mets’ first year with their Triple-A affiliate in the desert. We knew that the league and the park inflated offense but no one knew yet how to properly view numbers produced there. In Buffalo, those would have been insane numbers. In Las Vegas, they were considerably less impressive. By our research, those numbers translated to a .306 OBP and a .363 SLG in the majors. But the result in 2013 was a promotion to the big club. Lagares mostly sat on the bench after his recall. He didn’t hit but he looked like a complete natural in center field, making a mockery of those minor league reports that said he was better suited for a corner spot. And then Lagares went on a hot streak at a perfect time. From June 20 to August 1, a span of 113 PA, Lagares posted a .340/.384/.524 line. Combined with his defense, which was now at Gold Glove levels, he looked like a future All-Star. Anyone who pointed out that he had a .442 BABIP in this stretch was viewed as nothing more than a killjoy. Lagares was a success in a season where good stories were hard to come by in the majors for the Mets. In the final 54 games of 2013, Lagares recorded a .212/.255/.291 line over 218 PA. His OPS struggled to exceed his SLG from his earlier hot streak. In the fans’ mind, that didn’t matter; the story had already been written. But the suits had a different take. Instead of viewing CF as a position wrapped up for the next 15 years, they saw a potential problem, instead. Chris Young was imported prior to the 2014 season. He would fill one of the corner outfield spots but he was there if necessary to take over in center if Lagares failed to reproduce his numbers from a season ago. Here’s how Adam Rubin reported the situation in November of 2013: ”This is an issue that came up with Chris, and I actually think there were other clubs that offered to play him in center field without condition,” Alderson said Tuesday afternoon. “In our case we talked about Juan, talked about his defensive ability, his need to be more productive offensively. We didn’t rule out Chris playing center field by any means. But I told him, and I think Terry [Collins] told him as well, that the best player defensively — assuming that there’s productivity offensively — will play center field.” Still, conspiracy specialists insisted that Young was brought in only to play center. However, Young started the year injured, Lagares hit right out of the box and the bottom line was that Lagares kept his job. While the front office was rightfully skeptical about Lagares following the 2013 season, it discarded those fears without hesitation following 2014. First, Lagares signed a long-term deal that included an option for the 2020 season. Then they sent den Dekker out of town, eliminating the system’s best option for CF should anything happen to Lagares. The Mets went all-in on Lagares as a star. Meanwhile, the fact that he played only 121 games and ended the season on the disabled list was not considered a worry. Neither was the fact that Lagares needed a .341 BABIP to produce a .703 OPS in 2014. The average CF posted a .726 OPS last season. The 2014 season ended early for Lagares because of an injured elbow. And the elbow continues to be a problem today. There are even rumors he may need TJ surgery to fix it. Additionally, Lagares has also had problems with his ribs this year. The various injuries have affected him on both sides of the game. He’s seen his UZR/150 fall from 25.3 to 6.5 this year. And Lagares has a .253/.280/.336 line after 378 PA. It’s important to note that his current .616 OPS comes with a .300 BABIP. Meanwhile, the Mets imported Yoenis Cespedes at the deadline to be a big bat in the middle of the order. And most nights now, Cespedes is roaming CF while Lagares sits on the bench, only to come in as a late-inning defensive replacement. Cespedes is built like a tank but if nothing else passes the eye test in his brief time in Citi Field. Obviously, he’s nothing like 2013-14 Lagares out there. But no one dreads seeing a ball hit to him, either. Cespedes was brought on as a rental, a guy to play for a couple of months and then move on to greener pastures. But since he’s been here, the fans have welcomed him with open arms and at the very least, Cespedes is saying all of the right things. Again, from Rubin: ””This is something I can’t control,” Cespedes said through an interpreter Tuesday afternoon. “I don’t know what the front office is thinking about. But with what I see so far, I would love for everything to work out and stay as a Met for a long, long time, because I like the atmosphere.” It’s very possible this is nothing more than an athlete playing the PR game. But let’s say the Mets make the playoffs and make a little noise along the way, too, with Cespedes playing a key role. Is it beyond a shadow of a doubt that the Mets would let him walk? And with Curtis Granderson turning back the clock to 2012 and Michael Conforto ready to take over in the other corner, wouldn’t Cespedes fit best in center? To be sure, it’s a lot of speculation. But if this situation actually developed, Lagares would be the odd man out. It would be a remarkable turn of events for 99% of players in MLB. But if it happened to Lagares, it would just be the latest in a career that has never played out in an ordinary way. Share this: Email Facebook Print Reddit Twitter More Pinterest LinkedIn Tumblr Google |
Courage and principle are, for once, in the news. I'm referring, of course, to Glenn Greenwald of The Guardian, and Edward Snowden, the whistleblower. They both, at considerable risk to their own freedom, have done everything in their power to defend our freedoms as Americans. By exposing the vast NSA spying operation that the Obama Administration has been running, both Greenwald and especially Snowden may face prosecution. And Snowden, rather than remain anonymous, has chosen to come forward as the source of Greenwald's expose, saying with great fortitude: "I have no intention of hiding who I am because I know have done nothing wrong." He has no illusions about being safe. "I understand," he said, "that I will be made to suffer for my actions," and he reportedly is now in hiding somewhere in Hong Kong. As with Bradley Manning, Snowden's critics are already charging that he's helping America's enemies. But he's doing no such thing. "My sole motive," he said, "is to inform the public as to that which is done in their name and that which is done against them." He added: "I can't in good conscience allow the U.S. government to destroy privacy, Internet freedom, and basic liberties for people around the world with this massive surveillance machine they're secretly building." Already, Greenwald and Snowden have sparked a much-needed debate about the USA Patriot Act, the powers of the NSA, and our vanishing Fourth Amendment. Glenn Greenwald deserves a Pulitzer Prize for this scoop, and Edward Snowden deserves all of our thanks. He is an American hero. If you liked this story by Matthew Rothschild, the editor of The Progressive magazine, check out his story Stop the Trial of Bradley Manning. × Follow Matthew Rothschild Follow Matthew Rothschild @mattrothschild on Twitter. |
In 1926, strong man and physical culture enthusiast Earle Liederman wrote a book called Endurance. In it, Liederman makes the case that every man should be physically fit enough to save his own life in an emergency. He sets out five fitness benchmarks that indicate whether a man is up to this task. None require you to be able to bench press 500 pounds or have six pack abs. Rather, the benchmarks focus on having the strength and endurance to run, swim, or pull yourself to safety. If you’re looking for a fitness goal, the five fitness benchmarks Liederman lists are a good place to start. According to Liederman: “Every man should be able to save his own life. He should be able to swim far enough, run fast and long enough to save his life in case of emergency and necessity. He also should be able to chin himself a reasonable number of times, as well as to dip a number of times, and he should be able to jump a reasonable height and distance. A man should be able to: Watch the Video Swim at least half a mile or more Run at top speed two hundred yards or more Jump over obstacles higher than his waist Pull his body upward by the strength of his arms, until his chin touches his hands, at least fifteen to twenty times Dip between parallel bars or between two chairs at least twenty-five times or more |
Dark Phoenix, the upcoming X-Men film about the classic Jean Grey storyline, is gonna be even more dazzling than other installments: EW can confirm that mutant pop star Dazzler, who not only can sing and dance but also manipulate light, will appear in Phoenix. Fans might remember that X-Men: Apocalypse actually had a deleted scene where Jean Grey (Sophie Turner) and Scott Summers (Tye Sheridan) came across Dazzler’s album at a mall record store. Turner revealed the shot on her Instagram page. Turner also made a 1989 reference which led folks to think that this image of Dazzler was Taylor Swift (the scene was ultimately cut from the final film). Casting notices for Phoenix hit the Internet weeks ago with several parts open for new actors including one that sounds like Dazzler. For Phoenix, EW has learned Dazzler will pop up but only in a small role and there is no plan at the moment to have Swift play her. Dark Phoenix, directed by Simon Kinberg, will begin shooting this summer and stars Turner, Sheridan, Jennifer Lawrence, James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender, Nicholas Hoult, Alexander Shipp and Kodi Smit-McPhee. Jessica Chastain is also in talks to play the film’s villain. It’s scheduled for release on Nov. 2, 2018. |
Ohio is just one of many states attempting to outdo the Feds in anti-choice zealotry, and it makes me scared for the future of reproductive rights in this country. How many laws restricting abortion will it take for people to recognize that their rights are being taken away? How far do the zealots have to go before there’s a widespread outcry? How many women will be forced to carry unwanted pregnancies to term before we demand our legislators stop making it harder for us to exercise our legal, constitutionally protected, right to abortion? (Cross-posted from VeritiesandVagaries) Oh, Ohio, you’re breaking my heart. For a couple years there, things were really looking up in my home state: we elected a smart, sensible governor in 2006, went for Obama in 2008, and were generally looking positively blueish, or at least respectably purple. This November put a stop to all that, and now that Republicans are back in charge of, well, everything, surely they must be Getting Stuff Done. Much like the national GOP, Ohio Republicans ran and won on promises to get the state economy back on track and, you know, JOBSJOBSJOBS. Awesome. Where are the jobs? Get the facts, direct to your inbox. Subscribe to our daily or weekly digest. SUBSCRIBE What’s that? What’s that you say? You say you have some pressing business to attend to first, over in the realm of restricting women’s bodily integrity and reproductive decision-making? Oh, sure, that makes sense, I’m sure you’ll get to the jobs AFTER you conclude the important work of stomping all over women’s rights. Yessirree, Ohio lawmakers didn’t want Mike Pence et. al. to keep all the woman-hating fun to themselves. In fact, one of the scariest things about the eroding of abortion rights is how much of the eroding goes on at the state level– and how little most people notice. Connie Schultz, columnist at the Cleveland Plain Dealer, takes on the topic this week, pointing out that already this legislative session, SIX bills to restrict abortion rights have been introduced. The only jobs I see coming out of this bait-and-switch will be the ones held by lawyers hired to challenge the constitutionality of any of these bills signed into law. The bills run the gamut from banning all abortions after 22 weeks (this one, charmingly enough, introduced by a Democrat) to banning all abortions after 20 weeks (so that Republicans can claim the Democrat who introduced the first bill is still not pro-life enough?). Then there are the two bills making it harder for minors to obtain abortions. Of course there’s the health care related bill, because heaven forbid any woman get any health insurance coverage for a LEGAL MEDICAL PROCEDURE she might need. And lastly, there’s the “the whole point of this legislation is to challenge Roe v. Wade” bill, which would ban abortions as soon as the fetus has a heartbeat–which can be as early as 18 days into pregnancy, before many women even realize that they’re pregnant. Lest you think I’m being hyperbolic about the Roe challenge, here’s what one of the authors of the bill, Janet Folger Porter, has to say about it: We don’t bury people with beating hearts, because the heartbeat is a sign of life. We are just applying that same measurement to this end of life and I believe the court is going to recognize — just like it does with life at the other end of the spectrum — it’s going to recognize this line of life early on. [emphasis added] The only upside here is that this bill has sparked dissension among the anti-choice community, because unlike Folger Porter, some people recognize that the Supreme Court actually might not “recognize this line of life”– and as the executive director of Ohio Right to Life says, “We certainly don’t want the courts to reaffirm Roe with a decision in Ohio.” Ohio is just one of many states attempting to outdo the Feds in anti-choice zealotry, and it makes me scared for the future of reproductive rights in this country. How many laws restricting abortion will it take for people to recognize that their rights are being taken away? How far do the zealots have to go before there’s a widespread outcry? How many women will be forced to carry unwanted pregnancies to term before we demand our legislators stop making it harder for us to exercise our legal, constitutionally protected, right to abortion? |
Indonesia executions: Prisoners can take up to 15 minutes to die, priest says Updated A Catholic priest who was present at Nusakambangan prison in Indonesia during this week's executions has said in the past it has taken up to 15 minutes for prisoners to die. Father Charles Burrows, who is based in Cilacap near the prison, was called there to speak with two of the 14 people originally scheduled for execution, but who were later spared. Deputy Attorney-General for General Crimes Noor Rachmad confirmed one local and three Nigerian drug convicts were executed by firing squad. Father Burrows said he had not "got word" as to whether the executed prisoners suffered. He said he had been present in the past when it has taken several minutes for prisoners to die. "The first time, it was seven to eight minutes, and then there were some of the other times it was 15 minutes and they still weren't, hadn't expired," he said. "And the captain has to wait with a pistol and shoot into the brain." Father Burrows said he went with the other ministers from different spiritualities to the "shooting place", because there was no time to speak with them in their cells, with great confusion in the lead-up to the execution. He said it was a "traumatic experience". The ministers prayed together while four ministers spoke to the four men who were executed. "They were given some minutes to talk to the prisoners or console them somewhat. Then they came back and the prisoners were tied to the stakes," he said. "And then they went, were given another few minutes. They were shot pretty quickly after that." 'They tried to die with dignity' Father Burrows said the executed prisoners were "seemingly" blindfolded first, and remained dignified until the end. Australian drug smugglers Myuran Sukumaran and Andrew Chan chose not to be blindfolded when they were executed last year. "There was a lot of anger in the first state, not last night," Father Burrows said of the latest executions. "But eventually … they realise they're going to die, so you best try and die with dignity." The Indonesian Attorney General has refused to explain why 10 prisoners, including one Indonesian woman, received an 11th hour reprieve from the firing squad. Indonesian authorities gave the inmates 72 hours' notice before they faced the firing squad. Amnesty International condemned the executions, with the group's Rafendi Djamin labelling them "a deplorable act". "Any executions that are still to take place must be halted immediately. The injustice already done cannot be reversed, but there is still hope that it won't be compounded," he said. There were claims a number of prisoners had received unfair trials and some had allegedly been tortured to confess. Topics: death, crime, indonesia First posted |
Like LSD and PCP Mixed with Insanity Scopolamine Citation: J. Moore. "Like LSD and PCP Mixed with Insanity: An Experience with Scopolamine (exp54912)". Erowid.org . Oct 10, 2007. erowid.org/exp/54912 DOSE: 30 mg oral Scopolamine (powder / crystals) 30 mg IM Scopolamine (powder / crystals) BODY WEIGHT: 160 lb This experience was so radical I still remember it vividly after 30 years.My friends came up on a pallet load of expired drugs from a hospital headed for the hazmat dump site. We went thru the hard stuff MS, Diluadid, Dexoxyn, etc. With a rip roaring drug habit I started digging thru all the little bottles of unknown stuff. Thats when I came across the vial of pure Scopolamine Hydrobromide used for compounding and formulation.The Drug Reference said it was used in over the counter sleep tablets, and I needed some sleep bad. I swallowed about ½ grain and injected ½ grain. BIG MISTAKE.It was about 9:00pm and I dont remember much of the next 12 hours. My stepson said I crawled around all night eating lint balls off the shag carpet and mumbled to myself. At times I felt perfect, except I couldnt walk and the hallucinations were so vivid I thought they were real. I was so bad my stepson helped me get to a payphone to call the ambulance but the numbers on the phone were backward like in Russian.The fire department came and took me to the ER. My body was like on a PCP overdose, and I could not even stay on the exam bed but kept slipping off onto the floor. It was funny cause I would go from a clear mind to talking to people who were not there. They shot me with valium 3 times to no effect. My heart rate was over 200 and my mouth so dry I could not talk.The cops came, accused me of resisting arrest, and put me in a choke hold. After beating my butt right in front of the nurses, they took me to jail and tossed me into the rubber room. There I kept seeing a detective shove his handgun into the cell and pull the trigger. Click but no shot. He would laugh and pull his hand out. This happened over and over. Then I saw my grandma get thrown into the bull pen right across the hall. I saw the thugs rape her over and over. I was sure I could knock down the cell door and slammed into it with all my weight over and over. It was screaming I would kill those punks and they were all pointing and laughing at me.It was 12:00 am the second night, the watch commander opened the cell to check on me at change of shift. I leapt from flat on my back like a cat and bit him so bad he had to go on work comp then retire. After that, they called me the biter. All the time I was in the padded cell I thought I saw pills all over the floor. I kept eating the pills hoping to come down. I thought there was a bowl of valiums in the middle. It was really the crap hole in the rubber room. Gross.They took me upstairs the 3rd day to a medical unit. I thought I had a long sword stuck down my pant leg. I was walking with a stiff leg and the cops kept asking why I was walking funny. Over the next 12 hours my toilet was singing do-wop, my towel was Popeyes kid Sweetpea swinging around the bars, and I was stuck in a standoff between the Hells Angeles and the Black Panthers. I must have killed a dozen men with my sword.The third night I was afraid to move because I would set off a war and I was right in the line of fire. I lay frozen for at least 10 hours. The Black Panthers kept throwing dead cats into my cell.The fourth morning I had to go to court so Mental Health interviewed me. I denied taking any illicit drug, knew who was president, what day it was, and where I was. I told them everything was fine cept they keep throwing dead cats into my cell.When I got back to my cell I noticed I could see more clearly, was able to shave (Had to threaten a fellow prisoner with beheading if he didnt give me a razor) and went to court. I mustered every ounce of strength and told the judge it was all a big mistake. My wife had filed a police brutality report over the hospital incident and they let me go.It took over a week and a lot of downers for it to wear off completely. I know what it is to be insane and come back. Dont recommend it. |
Sen. Allen would make church mandatory. God help us. CLOSE EJ Montini: Our Father who art in heaven ... could you please take a moment and come down here? Sen. Sylvia Allen (Photo: Rob Schumacher / The Republic) Our Father who art in heaven ... could you take a moment out of your busy schedule and come down here, please? We need You to explain a few things to Arizona state State Sen. Sylvia Allen. (I know. You're shaking your head, aren't you? This might be too daunting a task even for YOU.) Allen, as You know, is a Republican from Snowflake, a Tea Party favorite who wants to pretend Arizona is an independent country rather than a state, and who believes government should stay completely out of people lives -- unless she can use her position to help out a son-in-law who got into some hot water over behavior with some of the inmates he was guarding at a women's prison. But that's another story. Anyway, Big Guy, they were debating a gun bill at a legislative committee meeting at the State Capitol this week so, naturally, Allen brought up religion. (In Arizona, complete lack of logic is natural. But, you know that, too) This was one of those crazy bills in which lawmakers want people to be able to bring concealed weapons into public buildings. Allen got upset because a few people expressed common sense opposition to the idea. Lawmakers here cannot abide common sense. Allen said, "Probably we should be debating a bill requiring every American to attend a church of their choice on Sunday to see if we can get back to having a moral rebirth," adding "that would never be allowed." She hinted that guns in public buildings might be necessary until there is a moral rebirth. (I couldn't find anything about that in the New Testament, but I'm no biblical scholar.) "I believe what's happening to our country is that there's a moral erosion of the soul of America," she said. Allen later told the Arizona Capitol Times that she wished things were more like they were in the 1950s. (Again, I know what you're thinking: Civil rights problems. Women's rights problems. Voting rights problems. Segregated schools.) Allen told the Times, "People prayed, people went to church. I remember on Sundays the stores were closed. The biggest thing is religion was kicked out of our public places, out of our schools." NEWSLETTERS Get the Opinions Newsletter newsletter delivered to your inbox We're sorry, but something went wrong Our best and latest in commentary in daily digest form. Please try again soon, or contact Customer Service at 1-800-332-6733. Delivery: Mon-Fri Invalid email address Thank you! You're almost signed up for Opinions Newsletter Keep an eye out for an email to confirm your newsletter registration. More newsletters I'm not sure that even a Supreme Being such as yourself could get through to the lesser beings in the Arizona Legislature, but perhaps You could take a moment and explain to them the Constitutional reason for a separation between church and state. And perhaps explain as well that religion and morality are not something that comes from public schools, but from our faiths, our families and, ultimately, ourselves. I'm not one for mixing religious faith with newspaper work, but I say this with both exasperation and solicitation: God help us. Read or Share this story: http://azc.cc/1CdGDGo |
Who the Clix? is a series of articles featuring information on comic book characters that have been made into figures for the popular tabletop game Heroclix. These articles are meant to help Heroclix players learn more about the characters behind their favorite pieces. Today we look at the secret first child of Zeus and Hera: First Born Appearances in Heroclix: Superman/Wonder Woman First Comic Appearance: Wonder Woman vol. 4 #13 Team Affiliations: N/A Created By: Brian Azzarello and Cliff Chiang Before recorded history, Hera and Zeus have a son. This son is their first born and on the day of his birth a witch foretold his future. She predicts that Mount Olympus will be under his sole absolute control with death and destruction in his wake. Because of this vision Zeus fears that history will repeat itself with his infant son one day slaying him, just as he had done to his father and his father had done to his grandfather. Zeus orders the boy killed though Hera cries out for her child’s life. The witch takes pity on the boy and leaves him on the African plains were he is adopted and raised by a pack of hyenas. While he grows, the First Born instinctively knows he is the son of Zeus and endeavors to gain his father’s attention through feats of strength and savagery. Once he reaches manhood he realizes he will never gain Zeus’ favor from the plains and instead chooses to conquer the emerging human world. With his pack he creates an armgy of Hyena-men and conquers the human lands with it. Still, his father ignores him. Growing more and more frustrated the First Born decides that rather than wait for his father, he will seek him out. The First Born gathers his army and marches on a recruitment drive to every corner of his kingdom. The massive force stands before Mount Olympus and First Born demands his father come out before throwing a spear at the mountain. In answer, Zeus sends a tidal wave that decimates his son’s army and nearly drowns his son. Zeus finally appears before the defeated First Born and condemns him, letting the Earth swallow him to its core. After this day only five beings stood witness to this rebellion: Zeus, Hera who believes her son dead, Poseidon who commanded the wave, Hades who received the First Born’s army and the witch, who chronicled the tale on her skin. The First Born survives his imprisonment and spends the next seven thousand years clawing his way back to the surface. In the modern day he bursts from ice in the Antartic not long after Apollo takes the throne of Olympus. The First Born is approached by a group of scientists, led by Cassandra who had learned of his tale from the mummified witch’s tattoos, who do not understand his alien tongue. He eats one of them and then is able to communicate with them in their own tongue. The group offers to help him but he refuses their help and sets about his revenge. He first collects his weapons and armor made from dragon’s hide and bones. He then bargains for his army from Hades and Posiedon, promising to leave them alone in return as well as killing the Last Born: Zeke. This brings him into conflict with Wonder Woman who is unprepared for his strength. While Wonder Woman and her allies retreat to New Genesis, the First Born lays claim to London and waits three days for their return. Upon their return, Wonder Woman, Orion and Ares join together to the defeat the First born at the cost of Ares’ life. This leads to Wonder Woman ascending to become the new God of War. Apollo takes the First Born and attempts to torture him into subservience. This backfires, however, as the First Born escapes and takes Mount Olympus. The First Born then goes on a campaign of revenge: he kills Hades and feeds him to Chronos, he nearly kills Demeter and prepares to invade Themyscira. Recommended Reading: |
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