The Increasing ADHD Drugging of Australia's Children
Is There Any Science Behind ADHD ?
ADHD Drug Risks
Withdrawal Syndrome
Is ADHD a Brain Disorder?
Is ADHD Like Diabetes ?
Education and Tutoring
In many parts of Australia, there are few families and teachers whose lives have not been interrupted by the prescription of mind-altering drugs to children. The information provided here has been drawn from many sources and is only a fraction of the available knowledge. It is provided so that parents, guardians and others can become more educated about Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) in order to make better informed decisions regarding their child's recommended treatment.
Children do experience emotional or behavioural problems, sometimes severe. Some have problems learning and sitting still; no one can dispute this.
Commonly, a psychiatrist or psychologist tells parents that their child suffers from a Learning Disorder (LD) – also labelled Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD), or most often today, ADHD. "Brain disease" or a "chemical imbalance" of the brain may also be mentioned, but parents are usually told that this is a well-recognised "medical problem" demanding continuous, prescribed medication. Look, research and decide for yourself. Ask for the evidence that this is so and ask for tests to prove it. Unlike medicine, there is no scientific basis for any of these "psychiatric disorders."
The diagnosis of ADD is entirely subjective….There is no test. It is just down to interpretation.1
Dr. Joe Kosterich, former Federal Chairman of the General Practitioners' Council of the Australian Medical Association.
Going down the 'diagnosis leads to medication pathway' is really dumbing down the whole process of understanding a child's behaviour.2
Dr Jon Jureidini, Child psychiatrist, University of Adelaide.
Important Note: No one should stop taking any psychiatric drug without the assistance of a competent medical doctor. The information on this page is not a substitute for medical advice. It is not and should not be considered medical advice. Competent medical advice should always be sought.
Is There Any Science Behind ADHD?
The high proportion of young people with ADHD could be influenced by diagnostic definitions and by rubbery diagnostic criteria… Many of these diagnostic conditions for ADHD are just part of the normal spectrum of childhood behaviour.3
Trevor Parmenter Foundation Professor in Developmental Disability Studies in the Faculties of Education and Medicine Sydney University.
In October 2004, The Western Australian Government completed its Inquiry into ADHD. One of the findings stated: "There are no tests that identify the existence of ADHD in a biological sense."4
The psychiatric Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) is the primary reference used in the diagnosis of ADHD and other psychiatric labels in Australia. Experts agree that it lacks any scientific basis. In 1987, members of the American Psychiatric Association (APA), the publisher of DSM, simply "voted" on a list of behavioural symptoms, called this new "disorder" ADHD and inserted the symptoms into the DSM, which Australia has since adopted.
Within a year of its publication, 500,000 American children were diagnosed as ADHD sufferers.
Our children's lives are being placed at risk by an alliance which works like this: The American Psychiatric Association invents disorders and adds them into the DSM. Drug companies then make drugs to match the new disorder and then apply to Australia's drug regulatory agency, the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) for authority to use them in Australia.
In some cases, a diagnosis from this manual is required to obtain psychiatric drugs on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme as well as for some Medicare rebates for psychiatric treatment.
The DSM IV (1994) entry for ADHD states: "There are no laboratory tests, neurological assessments or attentional assessments that have been established as diagnostic in the clinical assessment of Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder." The latest edition of DSM which Australia has also adopted, DSM 5 (2013) states: "No biological marker is diagnostic for ADHD."5
DSM IV states: "Signs of the disorder may be minimal or absent when the person is receiving frequent rewards for appropriate behaviour, is under close supervision, is in a novel setting, is engaged in especially interesting activities, or in a one to one situation (e.g., the clinician's office)." DSM 5 states: virtually the same except with the addition of "has consistent external stimuli (eg via electronic screens)" as an additional reason why signs of the disorder may be minimal or absent.
Therefore, the DSM, itself, says that there are no tests or biological markers to prove ADHD exists as a medical condition and signs of the "disorder" may be absent when the child is taken to the doctor (clinician's office). Cancer or diabetes do not "disappear" in one environment, while are evident in others.
Despite the lack of objective proof of its existence, millions of children worldwide have been harmed because of the use of this diagnosis. In Australia over 62,000 children aged 2-16 years were taking mind-altering ADHD drugs in 2013, based on subjective and arbitrary "expert" opinion about their behaviour.6
Since 1992/93, a staggering 861,324 prescriptions for ADHD drugs for all ages were written on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (this does not include any private prescriptions).
If there is no valid test for ADHD, no data proving ADHD is a brain dysfunction, no long-term studies of the drugs' effects, and if the drugs do not improve academic performance or social skills and the drugs can cause compulsive and mood disorders and can lead to illicit drug use, why in the world are millions of children, teenagers and adults…being labelled with ADHD and prescribed these drugs?
Dr Mary Anne Block, Author of No More ADHD.
Further, the "Father" of ADHD, Dr Leon Eisenberg, announced a few months before his death in 2009 that ADHD is a prime example of a "fictitious disease." In fact, ADHD was merely a theory developed by Eisenberg and was never proven as a verifiable disease.7
ADHD is a stigmatising psychiatric label. Once labelled, a child is considered to have a psychiatric disorder—to be mentally ill or diseased (euphemistically expressed as mentally disordered). This label can negatively affect a child's and others' perceptions of himself/herself, both now and in the future.
There are many reasons why a child might be displaying behavioural or educational problems. Psychiatric drugging can mask the real cause.
Parental Rights Regarding ADHD Drugs
It's dangerous to believe medication is the only answer." Furthermore, "The [ADHD] guidelines could push drugs on children before exploring what else could be wrong. The symptoms of ADHD are also the symptoms of many other childhood experiences and by putting drugs as the first line treatment you are going to increase the reliance on medication.8
Dr. Joe Tucci, President of the Australian Childhood Foundation.
Dr. Tucci is referring to Australia's Draft ADHD Guidelines, which were scrapped in December 2013 due to conflicts of interest, largely between the researchers cited and pharmaceutical companies that manufacturer ADHD drugs. This included the most cited psychiatrist in the guidelines having been under US Congressional investigation for financial conflicts.
The issue of forcing parents to drug their child in Australia came to the forefront in 2011, when Australia's ADHD Clinical Practice Points [ADHD CPPs- document used by psychiatrists and others to diagnose and drug ADHD] were being drafted. There was a proposal that if parents did not implement strategies to treat their child diagnosed with "ADHD" that Child Protective Services should be contacted—potentially having the right to remove a child from parental custody if the parents refused to drug the child. There was a huge uproar from parents and the general public.9
Subsequently, the new Australian ADHD CPPs, released in September 2012, specified that parents could not be forced to drug their child. (download the publications at the bottom of the webpage, see page 3 of the Health Advice and see also page 20 of the ADHD Clinical Practice Points) This was a considerable improvement protecting parents from being forced or pressured to administer potentially-damaging mind-altering ADHD drugs to their child.10 And, more importantly, this also protects the child.
Rather, "Parents/carers must be given information on the diagnosis and management plan, including any potential adverse effects of treatment in order to fully inform them and to have them make a decision regarding the treatment that is offered to their child," according to a key statement in the ADHD CPPs.11 Knowing this right, parents should insist upon this should their child be "diagnosed" with ADHD and drugs are recommended.
The key drugs prescribed to "treat" ADHD (control behaviour) are Ritalin, Concerta, Attenta (methylphenidate), dexamfetamine and lisdexamfetamine. They are Schedule 8 drugs in Australia; i.e. potential drugs of addiction or prone to abuse.
Therefore, it is not surprising that researchers of the first long-term outcomes stimulant study in the world, the 2010 Raine Study, conducted by the Telethon Institute in Western Australia, found that children receiving stimulants had significantly greater diastolic blood pressure (the pressure between heart beats) than children who have never received medication.12 This side-effect can predispose children to the risk of heart attacks and stroke.
Nor do stimulant drugs improve the child's academic results; quite the opposite. The researchers found that "stimulant medication use increased the odds of below-age-level academic achievement by a factor of 10 times" which "strongly suggests that medication may not result in any long term academic gains (as rated by a classroom teacher)." 13
A 2007 Oregon Health and Science University Evidence-Based Practice Centre review of 2,287 studies—virtually every study ever conducted on ADHD drugs at that time—determined that no trials had shown the effectiveness of stimulants and that there was a lack of evidence that they could affect "academic performance, consequences of risky behaviours, social achievements, etc."14
Anyone in Australia can report adverse reactions to prescribed drugs to The Australian Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA):
On-line, log onto: https://www.ebs.tga.gov.au/ebs/ADRS/ADRSRepo.nsf
Phone to report to a pharmacist: 1300 134 237; or to speak to the TGA: 1800 044 114
In April 2006, Australian authorities launched an investigation into the safety of ADHD drugs following 400 adverse reactions reported to the TGA and the disclosure that a 5 year old on Ritalin had suffered a stroke and a 7 year old died suddenly while on Ritalin. As a result, warnings were strengthened for the ADHD drugs dexamphetamine and methylphenidate to warn of cardiac problems and psychiatric episodes connected with these drugs.
Figures for Adverse Drug Reaction Reports (ADRs) linked to Ritalin and dexamphetamine as of mid-October 2016, show 9 more reports of suicidal ideation and behaviour since 2005 with 3 of those suicide attempts and 1 completed suicide.15
Strattera is an antidepressant marketed as a "non-stimulant ADHD" drug with the strongest warning that can be placed on a drug in Australia, called a "Boxed Warning," to warn of suicidal behaviour.16 Of the 146 adverse drug reaction reports received by the TGA by mid-2016, 41 were for suicidal ideation (28 were for children under 18), 4 suicide attempts and 3 completed suicides, one a child.17
Astoundingly, Australian experts have stated that it is thought that only between 1 and 10% of all ADRs are even reported to the TGA.18 So the number of incidents of serious side effects is likely very much higher, putting tens of thousands of Australian children at potential risk.
Despite this, ADHD drug use in Australia increased by 72.9% between 2000 and 2011. 19
Withdrawal syndrome is a side effect rarely explained at time of prescribing. It can occur when someone stops a psychiatric drug, decreases the dose or switches from one psychiatric drug to another.
Doing this without proper medical supervision can cause withdrawal syndrome. This is described as worsening of symptoms and/or new symptoms not before experienced. This can be severe in some cases.
The Australian Therapeutic Goods Administration has issued warnings for withdrawal syndrome and it is something known very well about by the psychiatric industry.
For this reason it is very important that no one stops taking a psychiatric drug without the advice and assistance of a competent medical doctor.
Click here to learn more about withdrawal syndrome.
Is ADHD a Brain Disorder? A Dutch Commission Finds Psychiatric Claim is False. ADHD is Not a Brain Disorder.
The Netherlands Advertisement Code Commission (Reclame Code Commissie) has ruled that the country's Brain Foundation cannot claim that ADHD is a neurobiological disease or brain dysfunction, as psychiatrists misleadingly tell parents and, indeed, paediatricians and family physicians. The Commission ordered the Foundation to cease making such false claims in their advertising.
In its decision handed down on 6th August 2002, the Advertisement Code Commission found that the Brain Foundation had falsely advertised and solicited funding by publishing ads in newspapers, magazines, flyers and on TV that stated ADHD is an "inherent brain dysfunction."
The Advertisement Code Commission decision stated, "The information that the defendant presented gives no grounds for the definitive statement that ADHD is an inherent brain dysfunction…. Under the circumstances, the defendant has not been careful enough and the advertisement is misleading."20
Is ADHD Like Diabetes?
Let me clear this up right now. ADHD is not like diabetes and [the stimulant used for it] is not like insulin. Diabetes is a real medical condition that can be objectively diagnosed. ADHD is an invented label with no objective, valid means of identification. Insulin is a natural hormone produced by the body and it is essential for life. [This stimulant] is a chemically derived amphetamine-like drug that is not necessary for life. Diabetes is an insulin deficiency. Attention and behavioural problems are not a [stimulant] deficiency.
Dr. Mary Ann Block
Author, No More ADHD
Psychiatrists argue that ADHD requires "medication" in the same way that diabetes requires insulin treatment; they further argue that to deny children such "medication" would be like denying insulin to a diabetic. The analogy is false.
Psychiatric drugs do not treat mental disorders in the same way as insulin treats diabetes. "What is implied in this statement is that psychotherapeutic drugs correct known chemical deficiencies (or excesses, or other instances), in the same way that insulin does. This analogy is repeated over and over again, not only in promotional material… and in articles published in professional journals, but, judging from reports from patients, every day in offices of psychiatrists and other physicians," wrote Elliot Valenstein, Ph.D., Biopsychologist and author of Blaming the Brain.
According to Dr Linda Graham, Senior Researcher at the Faculty of Education and Social work at Sydney University, resources would be better spent on giving teachers the skills and support to deal with a variety of children's behaviour rather than singling out so-called disorders. A letter to the Education Minister by 14 researchers,21 including Dr Graham, criticised moves to instruct teachers to look out for ADHD, stating that this could cause teachers to miss signs indicating other difficulties at home or with learning. "The diagnostic criteria for ADHD over the past 15 years has been expanding and it is now possible to diagnose one of my cats," 22 Dr Graham told The Australian.
Education has regressed with the introduction of psychological concepts into the curriculum. For example, in some areas phonics are ignored and children have been forced to memorise nearly every word without understanding the logical sequence of letters or their sounds. Over the years it has had different names: "Look-Say" in the 1940s and 50s, "sight-word" method in the mid- to late-1960s, to "psycholinguistics" and "Whole Language" or "Whole Word" in the 1980s.
Consequently, students simply don't understand what they are being told to study.
Therefore, educational basics and tutoring should be key tools to address "challenging behaviour." If a child is behind in a subject, tutoring on that subject should also be considered.
Furthermore, in many cases the child is inattentive in school because he is extremely talented and is bored. Former US President Bush's 14-year-old nephew, Pierce, is an example of this. In 2000, he appeared on the Larry King Live TV show in the United States, with his father, Neil, who explained how Pierce was told he was ADD and needed a stimulant, which the boy refused to take. Instead, Pierce was given 3 1/2 days of assessment and was found to be a "gifted and talented kid." 23
There is no question that at times children have problems and sometimes these problems can be severe and they need help. This is not in dispute. What care each and every child receives is what is important. The actual cause of the problem for each child needs to be found and the child then helped with addressing that cause, until it is rectified and they can live happy, normal lives again.
Parents are not being informed about the alternatives: that their children could suffer underlying physical problems manifesting as symptoms of "ADHD," that the child may need to be assessed for special talents and gifts, or that exercise, communication, diet or discipline might be lacking or they may need tutoring if they are behind in school.
Children, indeed all of us, must be provided with proper and effective medical care. Sound medical attention, good nutrition and a healthy and safe environment can prevent the stigmatising and discriminatory effects of psychiatric labels and treatment.
Children have every youthful right to expect protection, care, love and the chance to reach their full potential in life. Psychiatry's labels and drugs deny these rights. There are non-psychiatric alternatives that do exist and do work.
That educational policy is implemented preventing psychiatric or psychological assessment of schoolchildren, especially based on any edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders or the "Mental Disorders" section of the International Classification of Diseases (ICD). That teachers and all school personnel's educational duties do not involve suggesting or being expected to coercing parents into placing their child on psychiatric drugs, as a requisite for their education. That teachers have the inherent right as educators to refuse to do this. Education policy must be devoid of any proposal or recommendation that "teachers and other school personnel be trained to identify ADHD and other psychiatric disorders and to be able to contribute to the treatment which has been implemented…." This is a parent's decision, not educators.
That government-funded information pamphlets be placed in all state and private schools, as well as issued to Parents and Teachers' Associations, providing parents and teachers with full information about the diverse and conflicting medical opinion about "ADHD" and "learning" or "behavioural" problems; that this opinion includes scientific evidence that allergies and toxic reactions, and sleeping problems, may manifest as so-called ADHD, for which a competent doctor should first conduct tests for. Additionally, a child may need educational basics—acknowledging the value of the phonetic-based method of teaching reading, and thereby the value of defining key words—and/or tutoring.
That parents and/or appointed representative or guardian are informed of all non-drug non-abusive therapies, to educate them, and thus ensure full informed consent. The information must include any so-called advantages, and very clearly, the disadvantages, the side effects and known risks, as well as available alternative treatments.
That on admission to a psychiatric unit, the child or youth must have the right to a full and thorough physical and pathological examination performed by competent personnel to determine whether or not the presenting symptoms are, in fact, due to an undiagnosed medical condition.
That strong criminal penalties be implemented for any psychiatrist prescribing stimulants or other psychotropic drugs to children or young people, without the full, informed consent of the age-appropriate young person and parent or appointed representative. Informed consent should include information about all alternatives.
That given the increasing youth drug abuse, Federal and State Governments review the funding of all mental health programs, studies, research costs in schools to ensure accountability as determined by results, or lack of. Review, also, how these funds could be re-appropriated towards proven non-psychological/psychiatric teaching methods and extra teachers and tutors.
Dr DL Edmunds, They Say My Child Has 'adhd' Debunking the Bio-psychiatric Paradigm, presented at the 4th Annual Alternative Education Resources Conference June 2007, Russell Sage College Troy, NY, p.12.
Cathy O'Leary, "Drugged kids, Surge in WA children given stimulants to combat ADHD," The West Australian, 10 Dec 2014, front page.
Justine Ferrari, "ADHD 'symptoms' normal behaviour," The Australian, 20 August 2008, p.3.
"Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder in Western Australia, Report No.8, 2004," Western Australia Legislative Assembly, Education and Health Standing Committee, October 2004, p 39. http://www.parliament.wa.gov.au/parliament%5Ccommit.nsf/(Report+Lookup+by+Com+ID)/A8838813E981CEE948257831003E9611/$file/ADD+final+report+pdf+version.pdf
Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition, Text Revision, DSM-IV-TR, American Psychiatric Association, pages 88 & 89; Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition, DSM-5, American Psychiatric Association, p.61.
"Report for MI1687- 2 Sep 2014, Report 1 A for ADHD, Number of Unique Patients by Patient Age Group and Patient State for requested ADHD items supplied in calendar year 2013," Australian Government Department of Human Services, Run Date: 29 August 2014.
Paul Fassa, "Prominent psychiatrist admits he helped invent ADHD as a disease," Natural News, 2 August 2013. http://www.naturalnews.com/041607_psychiatry_ADHD_fake_diseases.html
Kate Sikora, "ADHD drugs pushed," Daily Telegraph, 12 July 2008, p.8; Anthony Deceglie & Elini Hale, "New row on ADHD drug rule: Fears for children," The Sunday Times, 20 July 2008, p.3.
"Draft Clinical Practice Points on Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) in children and adolescents," Australian Government, National Health and Medical Research Council, 2011, p.15
"Health Advice on Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD):Questions and Answers; Clinical Practice Points on the Diagnosis, Assessment and Management of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder in Children and Adolescents (the CPPs), Australian Government, National Health and Medical Research Council, p.3. "Clinical Practice Points on the Diagnosis, Assessment and Management of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder in Children and Adolescents," Australian Government, National Health and Medical Research Council, 2012, pages 8 & 20.
Clinical Practice Points on the Diagnosis, Assessment and Management of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder in Children and Adolescents," Australian Government, National Health and Medical Research Council, 2012, p.16.
"Raine ADHD study: Long term outcomes associated with stimulant medication in the treatment of ADHD in children," Government of Western Australia Department of Health, Feb 2010, p.6. https://www.health.wa.gov.au/publications/documents/MICADHD_Raine_ADHD_Study_report_022010.pdf
"Drug Class Review on Pharmacological Treatments for ADHD, Final Report," Oregon Health and Science University, Dec 2007, p.16.
Generate reports on TGA website for atomoxetine, methylphenidate, lisdexamfetamine and dexamfetamine at: https://www.tga.gov.au/database-adverse-event-notifications-daen These reports were generated by CCHR on 8 August 2016; Freedom of Information Request Number 016-0506, Australian Government, Department of Health and Ageing, Therapeutic Goods Administration, 2006.
Medicines Safety Update, Volume 4, Number 5, October 2013, "Atomoxetine and suicidality in children and adolescents, Therapeutic Goods Administration, https://www.tga.gov.au/publication-issue/medicines-safety-update-volume-4-number-5-october-2013#atomoxetine
Generate a report on TGA website for atomoxetine at: https://www.tga.gov.au/database-adverse-event-notifications-daen ; Medicines Safety Update, Volume 4, Number 5, October 2013, "Atomoxetine and suicidality in children and adolescents," Therapeutic Goods Administration, https://www.tga.gov.au/publication-issue/medicines-safety-update-volume-4-number-5-october-2013#atomoxetine
Jon Jureidini, "Systematic checks can avert crisis from adverse drug reactions," The Weekend Australian, 1-2 April 2006.
Chris P Stephnson, Emily Karanges and Ian S McGregor, "Trends in the utilisation of psychotropic medications in Australia from 2000 to 2011," Australian and New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry, 6 December 2012. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23144164
Kelly Patricia O'Meara & Zoli Simon, "Netherlands Panel Rejects ADHD Diagnosis as a Mental Illness," Insight Magazine (Washington, D.C.), 9 Sept. 2002.
http://sydney.edu.au/news/84.html?newsstoryid=2512
Justine Ferrari, "Alert over ADHD Guidelines," The Australian, 19 August 2008, p.11.
"Republican National Convention: George W Bush Cements Nomination, Cheney Accepts Vice Presidential Nod; Ford Hospitalized," Larry King Live, CNN.com transcripts, aired 2 August 2000.


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MSCJ Student Jamie Faulkenberry Named Jail Administrator of the Year
Mary Wuestewald
The OU College of Professional and Continuing Studies is known for graduating students of high caliber, and our alumni network is full of Sooners who have gone on to make a difference in their communities both at home and abroad. We are very proud to report that our current students are following in their footsteps by bringing home some pretty impressive titles of their own.
Jamie Faulkenberry, a criminal justice student pursuing her master's degree with PACS, was named the Jail Administrator of the Year by the Oklahoma Sheriff's Association this August. The award recognized her outstanding contributions and performance above and beyond the call of duty.
Sequoyah County Sheriff Larry Lane nominated Faulkenberry for the award, praising her for her part in developing a new booking station and improvements to the inmate commissary system in the Sequoyah County Jail in Sallisaw, Oklahoma. The upgrades provided a more secure environment for booking officers, improved efficiency, and increased revenue by eliminating the need for outside vendor services.
"I am honored for the recognition by Sequoyah County Sheriff Larry Lane and the prestigious Oklahoma Sheriff's Association, and I hope I represent the esteem of this award with the integrity it deserves."
"Jamie has been a huge help to me utilizing her lengthy experience in dealing with employee issues as well as legal matters in the jail," Lane said.
Faulkenberry has worked with the Sequoyah County Jail for 11 years, where she has served as jail administrator since 2009. Because the jail is a small facility, her responsibilities there are diverse. Her duties include payroll and accounting, employee training and development, managing contract services, researching statutes and legislation, ensuring regulatory compliance, and more.
"The coursework from the graduate studies I have received in Criminal Justice from OU has been a tremendous advantage for me at my job," she said. "Oftentimes, the coursework directly relates with struggles I see on a day-to-day basis that deal with inmates, the effects of incarceration, effective policy implementation, incarcerating the mentally ill, recidivism and overcrowding. The education I have received has helped me by enhancing the strategic planning and critical thinking skills that I believe are essential for administrative tasks, such as drafting new policies and problem-solving in corrections.
Mary Wuestewald specializes in digital and content marketing at PACS. She is an editor and contributor for Insight magazine, the Insight blog and PACS social media efforts.
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Associate Weddings
Jennifer Hyde
Soon to be Hazzard's
In 2014 at Old Settlers Days, Alex and Mackenzie were with a big group of people and Alex happened to be standing next to Mackenzie in that group. They made just a little bit of small talk before Mackenzie left the concert with her friend Bryanna who she was with. When they went to leave, Bryanna looked at her and said "I am calling this now, you two are going to get married someday because your a sucker for tall guys with pretty blue eyes." Mackenzie thought she was crazy since said only a couple of words to him. Alex and her didn't see or talk to each other for a couple of weeks until he messaged her on a Wednesday in July and by Saturday he was driving 3 hours to take her out on their first date in Iowa City where she went to college.
Alex's first impression of his soon to be wife is that she was the tall, blue eyed cutie he was looking for. <3
Mackenzie says that her 1st impression was that Alex's eyes were the nicest eyes she had ever seen and she was immediately drawn to them. His personality of trying to be cool and easy going while obviously having a shy side was completely adorable.
When you know they are the ONE, you just KNOW!
While at her friend's friends wedding, Alex was the best man and she was a guest. She remember's looking at Alex standing at the altar in the church supporting his best friend, Joel, in a black tux and thinking, "I want to marry him someday." It was completely out of the blue and scared her at first, but the more she thought about it, the more Mackenzie realized she couldn't live without him.
Alex honestly had no idea when Mackenzie was the one. One day he just
woke up and wanted to go look at rings so that way he could ask her to marry him.
I asked these 2 soon to be Husband and wife what their favorite memory of dating was, and I got some seriously cute answers!
Mackenzie says her favorite memory when they first started to date was one night when they went to their first wedding as a couple. After they left, Alex surprised her and brought candles, music, and blankets so him and her could sit under the stars in the back of his truck. They just laid there looking up at the stars and talking...it was like something from a movie!
Alex says their very first date when Mackenzie was trying to show me around the
Iowa City campus and they ended up in a torrential down pour so had to sit on the landmark in Iowa City, The Old Capitol steps, for the 3 hours until it let up. They just sat
there where it was covered and talked while looking over the city
I love hearing how couple's pop the big question! Here is how Alex asked Mackenzie! On September 22, Alex and Mackenzie were joining friends for a couples weekend in
Iowa City where the Hawkeyes played the Badgers in Football. While taking
pictures with everyone in front of Kinnick Stadium, Alex got down on one
knee and asked her to marry him...She had NO IDEA this was coming and
thought he was messing with her at first as we both talked that the next step was going to be awhile. Alex made it unbelievably special as they had friends and her cousins there to celebrate with while being in the town where we first started our journey together.
I absolutely can not wait for these two to tie the knot! It is going to be an absolutely gorgeous day, I mean look at them! Like Dan and Shay sang, I feel I am gonna be speechless seeing this beautiful bride!!
Thank you for letting me be apart of your big day, I am incredibly honored to capture these stunning moments between you!
Brittany & Steve
Kyle & Cynthia
Soon to be Stoeckel's


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Investment In Debt Securities
Investment in debt securities is a type of debt-based investment. Investing in debt securities allows you to earn interest on the money you invest. Interest payments on a debt security are based on the value of the underlying asset and the interest rate that the debt security carries. However, investors must be aware of certain risks that can arise.
Debt securities are sold and bought periodically and are reported at their fair value. If the price of the security falls below that price, the entity must determine whether it can hold it until its value increases. In other words, the entity must determine whether it can hold the debt security until it reaches its maturity date.
Debt securities are issued by companies and represent the right to receive principal and interest at a future date. These securities include debt notes, bonds, convertible bonds, redeemable preferred stock, and other investments that are obtained by securitizing financial instruments. Debt securities are generally not traded in the open market but are classified as trading investments.
The principal amount and interest payments of fixed rate debt securities are payable in U.S. dollars. However, some debt securities are payable in foreign currencies. In these cases, it may be necessary to convert the principal amount into a different currency. Fortunately, there are exchange rate agents. However, you must note that the exchange rate agent is not an affiliate of the dealer offering the investment.
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Jeremy Wariner Inspired By Hard Work Of Jermaine Gonzales
Jeremy Wariner believes Jamaica's Jermaine Gonzales will be the danger man in the men's 400 metres next season. The American also admits that the Caribbean star has put some life back into the way he will start to prepare for races.
By Gary Smith | Published on November 28, 2010
Wariner, a former world and Olympic champion and a man many believed would have eclipsed Michael Johnson's world record in the event, said he has been monitoring Gonzales' progression ever since he was a junior and revealed that his outing last season showed that he was on a mission.
"I've seen him (Gonzales) mature throughout the years," Wariner said in the Jamaica Observer on Sunday. "He has, unfortunately, been injured a lot through his career and last year he was finally able to stay healthy and move up and start running consistently and anyone who runs consistent 44 like he was doing last season is a competitor."
Gonzales managed to shake off those injuries which set him back in the past to set a Jamaican record last term.
Training at the Racers Club under the watchful eye of likes of Bert Cameron and Glen Mills, the former Commonwealth Games bronze medal winner broke Roxbert Martin's 13-year-old Jamaican national record in July at the IAAF Monaco Diamond League meeting.
His time and personal best of 44.40 seconds was better than the 44.89 previous mark held by Martin and Wariner knew it was coming. The American also admits that Gonzales' work ethic will inspire him to train even harder.
"He's (Gonzales) going to come out there and give it all he has," Wariner said.
"Last year… he showed it every time he stepped on the track. He ran his hardest and was pretty much done at the end of the race and people like that is great for me because it makes me train even harder at practise… knowing that I have to step my game up to make sure I stay ahead of him," he added.
Gary Smith is one of the leading writers for World-Track.org. He has over 10 years of running experience, as well as 12-years of coaching while covering several events, from the international to college level. Smith, who has covered events for publications such as Caribbean Net News, Cayman Net News, AFP and Caribbean Media Corporation (CMC), is also a frequent contributor of SportingAlert.com and TrackAlerts.com.
Adams State Ranked No.1 Heading Into NCAA DII XC Champs
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Acuity Brands Announces 2021 EarthLIGHT Report
Achieves Carbon Neutrality in Operations, Targets 100 Million Metric Tons of Carbon Avoidance by 2030, and Shares EarthLIGHT Progress
Atlanta, GA, Nov. 23, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Acuity Brands, Inc. (NYSE: AYI) ("Acuity") a market-leading industrial technology company, today announced it has published its third annual EarthLIGHT Report, highlighting its Fiscal Year 2021 accomplishments and ongoing progress on its initiatives. EarthLIGHT–a central tenet of Acuity's strategy–reflects its comprehensive approach to manage, organize and report Environmental, Social, and Governance ("ESG") topics. Through EarthLIGHT, Acuity improves its performance, increases transparency, and better highlights results on its numerous ESG priorities.
"We are committed to lessening our carbon footprint and helping our customers do the same," said Neil M. Ashe, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer of Acuity Brands. "We are reducing waste, lowering costs, minimizing carbon impacts, optimizing energy usage, and helping our customers reduce their energy use and carbon emissions to achieve their own goals and priorities."
The 2021 EarthLIGHT report includes Acuity's progress:
Reducing its Carbon Footprint:Acuity achieved carbon neutrality in its operations and targeted a goal of helping its customers avoid 100 Million Metric Tons of carbon emissions by replacing older technologies with LED luminaires, lighting controls, and building management systems. As part of these efforts, Acuity is offsetting emissions by investing in forestry and landfill gas-to-energy projects that reduce atmospheric carbon. The Company also released a 2020 EarthLIGHT Handprint report entitled Lighting the Way Toward Net-Zero, detailing its methodology.
Launching Acuity Anywhere: Acuity Anywhere, a hybrid work model, allows associates to contribute and achieve results whether they work on-site or remotely. This model helps Acuity attract and retain the best talent, reach its EarthLIGHT goals, and build on its foundation of productivity, collaboration, and innovation.
Enhancing Governance:Acuity enhanced several governance practices to further emphasize long-term value creation. The Company created Diversity, Equity and Inclusion and ESG Councils, both including Senior Leadership, to ensure Company-wide alignment and impact. Acuity continued its Board refreshment to ensure a variety of perspectives and a mix of experience and tenure. The Company also made changes to compensation programs based on stakeholder input. The EarthLIGHT report also includes information on Acuity's enhanced data privacy and information security practices.
For more information and to download a copy of the 2021 EarthLIGHT report click here.
About Acuity Brands
Acuity Brands, Inc. is a market-leading industrial technology company. We use technology to solve problems in spaces and light. Through our two business segments, Acuity Brands Lighting and Lighting Controls ("ABL") and the Intelligent Spaces Group ("ISG"), we design, manufacture, and bring to market products and services that make the world more brilliant, productive, and connected. We achieve growth through the development of innovative
new products and services, including lighting, lighting controls, building management systems, and location-aware applications.
We are based in Atlanta, Georgia, with operations across North America, Europe, and Asia and are powered by approximately 13,000 dedicated and talented associates.
Visit us at www.acuitybrands.com.
This press release and the related EarthLIGHT report include "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, that are based on management's beliefs and assumptions and information currently available to management. Forward-looking statements are subject to known and unknown risks and uncertainties, many of which may be beyond our control. We caution you that the forward-looking information presented in this press release is not a guarantee of future events, and that actual events may differ materially from those made in or suggested by the forward-looking information contained in this press release. In addition, forward-looking statements are statements other than those of historical fact and may include statements relating to goals, plans, market conditions and projections regarding Acuity Brands' strategy, and specifically include statements made in this press release regarding: 100 million metric tons of carbon emissions avoidance, reducing waste, lowering costs, minimizing carbon impacts, optimizing energy usage, and helping our customers reduce their energy use and carbon emissions to achieve their own goals and priorities, investments in forestry and landfill gas-to-energy projects that reduce atmospheric carbon, the benefits of Acuity Anywhere hybrid work model, and enhanced governance practices. Generally, forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "may," "plan," "seek," "comfortable with," "will," "expect," "intend," "estimate," "anticipate," "believe" or "continue" or the negative thereof or variations thereon or similar terminology. A number of important factors could cause actual events to differ materially from those contained in or implied by the forward-looking statements, including those factors discussed in our annual report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended August 31, 2021, filed on October 27, 2021 and those described from time to time in our other filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC"), which can be found at the SEC's website www.sec.gov.
Any forward-looking information presented herein is made only as of the date of this press release, and we do not undertake any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking information to reflect changes in assumptions, the occurrence of events, or otherwise.
2021 EarthLIGHT Report Cover
Investor Deadline Alert: Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLP Reminds Investors of Securities Fraud Class Action Lawsuit Filed Against Marathon Digital Holdings, Inc. (MARA)


Cimetière parisien de Thiais, Val-de-Marne (94), Île-de-France #4: Joseph Roth
Libellés : France, Île-de-France, Paris, Roth (Joseph), Thiais (Val-de-Marne), Val-de-Marne (94)
Our search for the graves in Thiais which follow was greatly assisted by an extremely helpful man who wishes simply to be known as Mister H. Many thanks to you: you saved us a great deal of time!
'JOSEPH ROTH
ÉCRIVAIN AUTRICHIEN
MORT À PARIS EN EXIL
2.9.1894 – 27.5.1939'
Roth's books – which were due to be destroyed by the Nazis – were marked by nostalgia for the Jewish past. Roth exiled himself as soon as Hitler took power in 1933, eventually settling in Paris. In 1939 he collapsed in front of his local – the Café Tournon, above which he lived – and died four days later of alcohol-related illness.
Some of his noted works are Hôtel Savoy (1924), Le poids de la grâce (1930), La Marche de Radetzky (1932), and La Crypte des Capucins (1938).
Cimetière parisien de Thiais, Val-de-Marne (94), Île-de-France #3: Marcel Thiébaut
Libellés : France, Île-de-France, Thiais (Val-de-Marne), Thiébaut (Marcel), Val-de-Marne (94)
'MARCEL THIÉBAUT
1897–1961'
Thiébaut was a literary critic who ran Revue de Paris almost on his own for some years. He also wrote plays, including Doris (1946), Le Prince d'Aquitaine (1947), and Les Bonnes cartes (1949).
Cimetière parisien de Thiais, Val-de-Marne (94), Île-de-France #2: Étienne Hadju
Libellés : France, Hadju (Étienne), Île-de-France, Thiais (Val-de-Marne), Val-de-Marne (94)
'Je suis amoureux 1957
ÉTIENNE HADJU 1907–1996'
These words, which of course translate as 'I'm in love', are in fact the title of this work of sculpture by Étienne Hadju, made in 1957, which forms Hadju's gravestone: the 'folds' presumably represent a couple under a sheet in a bed, and this is quite a remarkable sight.
Hadju was a sculptor of the nouvelle École de Paris persuasion. He was born in Romania of Hungarian parents and went to Paris in 1927, where he was for a brief time a student of Antoine Bourdelle, and then of Paul Niclausse. He then discovered Fernand Léger and from 1930 he associated with Vieira da Silva Árpád Szenes.
Cimetière parisien de Thiais, Val-de-Marne (94), Île-de-France #1: Paul Celan
Libellés : Celan (Paul), France, Thiais (Val-de-Marne), Val-de-Marne (94)
'PAUL CELAN
The large number of stones laid here in tribute are an indication of Paul Celan's fame. Celan (born Paul Pessach Antschel (or Ancel – an anagram of Celan)) was a Romanian poet who wrote in German.
Celan's parents died in an internment camp during World War II, which deeply affected him throughout his life. He was sent to a work camp in Moldavia and freed by the Russians in 1944, changed his name and began earning his living as a translator in Romania. Moving to France, he became reader and translator of German at the ENS.
In 1970 he threw himself into the Seine.
Two important series of letters – the first to his wife Gisèle de Lestrange, the second to Ingeborg Bachmann – were published in 2001 and 2008 respectively.
Jean-Paul Sartre and Simone de Beauvoir in the 14th arrondissement, Paris
Libellés : Beauvoir (Simone de), France, Montparnasse, Paris, Sartre (Jean-Paul)
Hôtel Mistral, 24 rue Cels, Montparnasse.
'Dans cet hôtel ont habité, entre 1937 et 1939, puis à diverses reprises durant la guerre
"Je trichais quand je disais: on ne fait qu'un. Entre deux individus, l'harmonie n'est jamais donnée, elle doit indéfiniment se conquérir."
(S. de BEAUVOIR, La Force de l'Âge)'
'I cheated when I said that we're one. Between two individuals, harmony is never a given, it must be achieved by great effort.'
(As in André Malraux's famous quotation 'La culture ne s'hérite pas; elle se conquiert', 'se conquérir' has often been lazily (and a little meaninglessly) translated literally, so I've avoided it above.)
'JEAN-PAUL SARTRE
"Mais il est une chose qui ne change point, ni ne peut changer: c'est que quoi qu'il arrive et quoi que je devienne je le deviendrai avec vous."
(J-P. SARTRE, Lettres au Castor)'
'But there's one thing that never changes, nor can ever change: that is that whatever happens and whatever I become, I shall become it with you.' (Sartre's nickname for Beauvoir was of course "The Beaver".
'Soucieux de préserver leur liberté mutuelle, ils occupaient à l'hôtel deux chambres séparées dominant le cimetière du Montparnasse où la mort les a réunis.'
'Mindful of keeping their individual freedom, they occupied two separate rooms near Montparnasse cemetery, where death has reunited them.'
'Association la Mémoire des Lieux'
Olivier Adam: Je vais bien, ne t'en fais pas (1999)
Libellés : Adam (Olivier), French Literature
This is Olivier Adam's first novel, and bears some of the hallmarks of the two other novels of his I've read (À l'abri de rien and Les Lisières), but above all identity crisis.
Claire (a name too ironic for its own good) is twenty-two and, in spite of her bac, works as a supermarket cashier with no ambition to 'better' her existence. This is no doubt because two years previously her brother Loïc, two years younger and evidently much brighter than Claire, just disappeared. Claire had been away at the time and her parents Paul and Irène had to break the news to her.
And this news comes out of the blue like, well, like any other cliché you might want to attach to it. Claire was deeply attached to Loïc, a little like the twin brother the film version of this book (which I've not seen) depicts: they did so many things together, enjoyed the same things, and so on.
Claire isn't, er, clear about the reason for Loïc's disappearance, and all she knows is that he had an argument with his father. She slips into depression and then a postcard comes from him to tell her, as the title of the book says, that he's fine and not to worry.
Claire's work is monotonous, ok, but Adam over-emphasizes this by the constant repetition of consumer products bought: we get the message only too well, don't lay it on so heavily! But the message Loïc has recently sent Claire from Portbail in the Cotentin peninsula is enough to send her off in a hired car for a week's 'holiday' in search of her brother. She meets a guy there (who will later only add to her alienation, her sense of inferiority) but she also sees her father appear out of nowhere and post a letter.
Loving parents? Well, perhaps, but also lying parents. It will take the mysterious Julien – who has discovered that Loïc didn't just 'disappear' in the English sense, but 'disappeared' in the French sense of died two year before – but the reader feels that here is a man who will know how to heal Claire, cut through her parents' lies.
Some first novels are written by people who have everything to spell (or spill) out first time round, but this was obviously not the case with Olivier Adam. The book is on the surface a very easy read (which I think has slightly irritated some reviewers): short sentences, uncomplicated syntax and vocabulary, etc, and for me too many coincidences, but how much does all this actually reveal about what Olivier Adam is trying to say in this novel? Or are some things just supposed to be left as mysteries?
My other posts on Olivier Adam:
Olivier Adam: Les Lisières
Olivier Adam: Des vents contraires
Olivier Adam: Le Cœur régulier
Olivier Adam: Falaises
Olivier Adam: À l'abri de rien
Cimetière de Montrouge #10: De Colins de Ham
Libellés : De Colins de Ham, France, French Literature, Montrouge, Paris
'J. G. C. A. H.
DE COLINS DE HAM
PHILOSOPHE SOCIALISTE
'L'ORDRE MORAL, C'EST L'HARMONIE
ÉTERNELLE: ENTRE LA LIBERTÉ DES
ACTIONS, ET LA FATALITÉ DES
ÉVÉNEMENTS'
Jean Guillaume César Alexandre Hippolyte de Colins de Ham was one of the first theorists of socialism, his condemnation of bourgeois society having a profound effect.
Many thanks to the employees of the Cimetière de Montrouge for being so helpful and making the job of finding the graves so much easier for us.
Cimetière de Montrouge #9: Joselia (aka Joseph Blanchard)
Libellés : Blanchard (Joseph), France, Joselia, Montrouge, Paris
'JOSELIA
LUIGIA
SON ÉPOUSE
Very little appears to be known of Joselia, apart from the fact that Mirèio Doryan and Joseph Maurelle paid 'eloquent' homages to him.
Cimetière de Montrouge #8: Henri Queffélec
Libellés : France, French Literature, Montrouge, Queffélac (Henri)
'Henri Queffélec
The son of Yann Queffélec who won the Goncourt in 1985 with Les Noces barbares, Henri was born in Brest and is seen as a great French writer of sea novels. He wrote over eighty books, many inspired by his native Brittany and the sea. His Un recteur de l'Île de Sein was filmed as Dieu a besoin des hommes.
Cimetière de Montrouge #7: Coluche
Libellés : Coluche, France, Montrouge
This is by far the most visited grave in the Cimetière de Montrouge. The comedian Coluche (1944–86) – born Michel Colucci – was the son of a man born in a small Italian village, and adopted the name at the beginning of his career.
He delighted in attacking taboos, politics, and used risqué language. France is a country that seems to be proud of the many anarchists it has had, and Coluche was certainly an anarchist.
Anarchists loved Coluche, and some even agreed with his running in the 1981 election, although of course he was never a serious contender, and (after death threats) withdrew from a course he no doubt never intended to pursue.
In 1985 Coluche founded Les Restaurants du cœur, a charity designed mainly to feed the poor, and which is better known as Les Restos du cœur. Unfortunately, Coluche died in a motorcycle accident the following year.
Cimetière de Montrouge #6: Mirèio Doryan
Libellés : Doryan (Mirèio), France, French Literature, Montrouge
Mirèio Doryan (1901–89) was a poet and essayist born Germaine Drilhe. Very little biographical information seems readily available on her, although Jean-Jacques Rabaud wrote a biography La Vie intense d'une femme-poète about her in 1987. Her first (assumed) name inevitably leads me to think of Frédéric Mistral's famous book of the same name, and I doubt if this is coincidental. She wrote a homage to the poet Joselia (real name Joseph Blanchard), also buried here in Montrouge.
'Ici repose un poète authentique
que l'on nomma
Mirèio Doryan
et qui vécut un grand rêve lyrique'
'Il est vrai qu'il faut bien recouvrir notre écorce
Et ne jamis trembler de faiblesse et de peur,
Pour qu'extérieurement, le reflet du bonheur
Soit pour tous un exemple et pour nous une force.
Extrait de "Le Pretexte de Psyché"
(poème: "La Vie")'
Cimetière de Montrouge #5: Gustave Geffroy
Libellés : France, French Literature, Geffroy (Gustave), Montrouge
The currently rather hidden grave of Gustave Geffroy (1855–1926), who was a writer (novelist, journalist, art critic, etc) and one of the founder members of the Académie Goncourt. His L'Enfermé (1897) was about the revolutionary socialist Auguste Blanqui, and was originally published in serial form by Félix Juven, who also published Alphonse Allais, Willy, Tristan Bernard, and so on. Cézanne did a portrait of Geffroy in 1895.
Cimetière de Montrouge #4: Ernest La Jeunesse
Libellés : France, French Literature, La jeunesse (Ernest), Montrouge
'ERNEST LA JEUNESSE
HOMMES DE LETTRES
CHEVALIER DE LA LÉGION D'HONNEUR
1874 – 1917'
La jeunesse was a novelist, caricaturist and literary critic. He wrote and drew for a number of newspapers and magazines, and was appreciated by Guillaume Apollinaire, Paul Léautaud and Jules Renard.
He was unkindly criticised for his high-pitched voice and his eccentric clothes, but supported by Octave Mirbeau, a defender of outsiders.
In Le Forçat honoraire, roman immoral (1907), La Jeunesse attacked the popular crime litterature of the time.
Cimetière de Montrouge #3: Carlo Bourlet
Libellés : Bourlet (Carlo), France, French Literature, Montrouge
'CI-GÎT PARMI LES SIENS
CARLO BOURLET
MATHÉMATICIEN D'EXCEPTION
ET PIONNIER DE L'ESPERANTO
KORPO POLVIĜAS SED PLUVIAS
TIES IDEARO'
Along with writing several works in Mathematics and having a great interest in Esperanto, Bourlet wrote several publications on bicycles, including Traité des bicycles et des bicyclettes, suivi d'une application à la construction des vélodromes (1895).
Cimetière de Montrouge #2: Albert Simonin
Libellés : France, French Literature, Montrouge, Paris, Simonin (Albert)
'ALBERT SIMONIN
Crime novelist Albert Simonin published a dictionary of slang in 1957 and used such expressions meticulously in his novels, paving the way for writers such as Frédéric Dard and Jean Vautrin.
He was imprisoned for five years for collaborationist activities.
Simonin's greatest success was Touchez pas au grisbi (1953), the first of a trilogy about the old criminal Max le Menteur. His autobiography was Confessions d'un enfant de la Chapelle (1977).
Cimetière de Montrouge #1: René Crevel
Libellés : Crevel (René), France, French Literature, Montrouge, Paris
'RENÉ
CREVEL
René Crevel's father killed himself when his son was fourteen. He went to the lycée Janson-de-Sailly and then the Sorbonne, where he skipped his classes in law to read or to talk with artists. He met André Breton and joined the surrealists when he was twenty-one, initially creating a very strong impression, but later joined Tristan Tzara and the dadaists.
Suffering from tuberculosis, he gassed himself in 1935. Klaus Mann, son of Thomas Mann and a close friend of Crevel's, wrote that he had killed himself because he feared madness, because he thought the world was mad.
Jean Aicard: Maurin des Maures (1908)
Libellés : Aicard (Jean), French Literature, Les Maures, Province
A brief pause from the Paris posts as I just happened to be reading this book.
The poet, novelist and playwright Jean Aicard (1848–1921) is perhaps not a name readily associated with the literature of Provence today, as opposed to, say, Alphonse Daudet, Jean Giono, Frédéric Mistral or Marcel Pagnol. In Fanton-Latour's famous painting Un coin de table (1872) of the 'Vilains Bonshommes', the concentration is always on Verlaine and Rimbaud in the foreground, not Aicard at the back.
But Aicard's novel Maurin des Maures was once a very famous novel that was adapted to film. Many of its qualities suit it to the cinema: the action, the scenery, the love interest, the sharply drawn characters, etc.
Maurin des Maures is set in the massif des Maures in southern Provence, and the main character Maurin may be considered as a kind of rival in readers' affections to Alphonse Daudet's Tartarin de Tarascon.
Maurin is a poacher who lives in a primitive home in Provence, but is more often away from it chasing game but not chasing women because they just have a habit of falling into his lap, although he never keeps them there long: he appears to believe that men are naturally polygamous.
Although always in trouble with the police (particularly Sandri), Maurin always manages to escape from them: oddly, there's something of the Arsène Lupin in this illiterate son of Provence who has a great many friends, and whose reputation is known throughout the country.
There's a love interest too: Tonia the Corsican is (far from her own volition) engaged to Santi, although she becomes increasingly in love with Maurin, to the point of tumbling into bed with him and wanting to marry him. But Maurin is not for marriage, and anyway he refuses to stay faithful to a woman – it's not in his nature.
The story – which is in some respects a number of stories loosely held together within the main story, variations on folk tales (such as the flying donkey from Gonfaron), long episodic digressive passages, etc – seems to be leading to a convention conclusion: Tonia is increasingly in Maurin's thoughts, so surely he'll just change his ways and lead the young woman to the altar and stick with her?
Well, at the end it seems otherwise, as Maurin has been shot dead. Or has he? Maybe not: there's a sequel called L'Ilustre Maurin.
Jean Aicard died in Paris but was buried in Toulon.
Joachim du Bellay, Île de la Cité, 4th arrondissement, Paris
Libellés : Du Bellay (Joachim), France, French Literature, Paris
ÉTAIT LA MAISON
LE POÈTE
JOACHIM DU BELLAY
EST MORT
AGÉ DE TRENT-SEPT ANS
LE PREMIER JANVIER 1560'
This plaque is on Île de la Cité on the corner of rue Massillon and rue Chanoinesse.
Félix Arvers on Île Saint-Louis, 4th arrondissement, Paris
Libellés : Arvers (Félix), France, French Literature, Paris
'LE POÈTE FÉLIX ARVERS
est né dans cette maison le 23 JUILLET 1806'
This plaque is on 1 rue Budé. Arvers died in 1850 and, although now virtually unknown even in the country of his birth, was very popular in the 19th century. The sonnet below was so well known that several pastiches were made of it:
'Mon âme a son secret, ma vie a son mystère :
Un amour éternel en un moment conçu.
Le mal est sans espoir, aussi j'ai dû le taire,
Et celle qui l'a fait n'en a jamais rien su.
Hélas ! j'aurai passé près d'elle inaperçu,
Toujours à ses côtés, et pourtant solitaire,
Et j'aurai jusqu'au bout fait mon temps sur la terre,
N'osant rien demander et n'ayant rien reçu.
Pour elle, quoique Dieu l'ait faite douce et tendre,
Elle ira son chemin, distraite, et sans entendre
Ce murmure d'amour élevé sur ses pas ;
À l'austère devoir pieusement fidèle,
Elle dira, lisant ces vers tout remplis d'elle :
"Quelle est donc cette femme ?" et ne comprendra pas.'
Lise Lamarre in Versailles, Yvelines (78): Cimetière des Gonards #5
Libellés : France, Île-de-France, Lamarre (Lise), Versailles (Yvelines), Yvelines (78)
Lise (or Louise) Lamarre was a poet and a journalist.
'LISE LAMARRE
DONT LA VIE FUT VOUÉE
À L'ART ET À L'AMITIÉ...
15 JUIN 1951'
'Esprit pur, je connais enfin la Vérité.
La Lumière, l'Amour, et ma force sereine
retrouve le but où tend l'humanité
Lise Lamarre'
Louise Bryant in Versailles, Yvelines (78): Cimetière des Gonards #4
Libellés : Bryant (Louise), France, Île-de-France, Versailles (Yvelines), Yvelines (78)
Louise Bryant (1885–1936) was an American writer who espoused socialist and anarchist causes. Her first marriage was to John Reed – who died in 1920 – and she moved to Paris with her second husband, William Bullitt, in 1923. A few years later she was diagnosed with Dercum's disease. Bulitt divorced her due to her heavy drinking and her lesbian relationship with Gwen Le Gallienne, and Bryant died in in Sèvres of a brain hemorrhage.
The film Reds (1980) is a representation of the Bryant and Reed story.
Robert de Montesquiou-Fezensac in Versailles, Yvelines (78): Cimetière des Gonards #3
Libellés : France, Île-de-France, Montesquiou-Fezensac (Robert de), Versailles (Yvelines), Yvelines (78)
A superb image of a dandy: the gay poet Robert de Montesquiou-Fezensac (1855–1921) was the model for Esseintes in Huysmans's À Rebours (1884) and one of the models for the Baron de Charlus in Marcel Proust's À la recherche du temps perdu.
The statue on this anonymous grave is the angel of silence is from Vitry-sur-Seine château. Montesquiou is buried next to his secretary and lover Gabriel Yturri (1860–1905).
Armand Renaud in Versailles, Yvelines (78): Cimetière des Gonards #2
Libellés : France, Île-de-France, Renaud (Armand), Versailles (Yvelines), Yvelines (78)
The Renaud plot in the Cimetière des Gonards includes a rather impressive bust of the poet Armand Renaud (1836–95).
Armand Renaud was born in Versailles and was a civil servant, progressing to inspector of fine arts. He wrote a great deal of poetry, some influenced by Persian and Japanese literature, and some of which was put to music by Camille Saint-Saëns (1835–1921).
Edith Wharton in Versailles, Yvelines (78): Cimetière des Gonards #1
Libellés : France, Île-de-France, Lenox (MA), Versailles (Yvelines), Wharton (Edith), Yvelines (78)
'EDITH WHARTON
NÉE EDITH NEWBOLD JONES
24 JANVIER 1862 – 11 AOÛT 1937'
Edith Wharton's grave in the Cimetière des Gonards, Versailles. Below is a link to a long earlier post I made on Wharton in the Mount, Lenox, Massachusetts, with many images of her home there:
Edith Wharton in Lenox, Massachusetts
Cimetière parisien de Thiais, Val-de-Marne (94), Î...
Jean-Paul Sartre and Simone de Beauvoir in the 14t...
Cimetière de Montrouge #9: Joselia (aka Joseph Bla...
Joachim du Bellay, Île de la Cité, 4th arrondissem...
Félix Arvers on Île Saint-Louis, 4th arrondissemen...
Lise Lamarre in Versailles, Yvelines (78): Cimetiè...
Louise Bryant in Versailles, Yvelines (78): Cimeti...
Robert de Montesquiou-Fezensac in Versailles, Yvel...
Armand Renaud in Versailles, Yvelines (78): Cimeti...
Edith Wharton in Versailles, Yvelines (78): Cimeti...
Benjamin Fondane and René Descartes in the 5th arr...
Raymond Queneau in Juvisy-sur-Orge, Essonne
The bouquinistes, Paris
Bernardin de Saint-Pierre, 5th arrondissement, Paris
Boris Vian in Ville d'Avray, Hauts-de-Seine (92)
Cimetière de Passy #7: Renée Vivien
Cimetière de Passy #6: Gérard de Villiers
Cimetière de Passy #5: Haroun Tazieff
Cimetière de Passy #4: Henri Bernstein
Cimetière de Passy #3: André Siegfried
Cimetière de Passy #2: Francis de Croisset
Cimetière de Passy #1: Gordon Bennett
Roger Martin du Gard in Maisons-Laffitte, Yvelines...
Arthur Koestler in Maisons-Laffitte, Yvelines (78)
André Foulon de Vaulx, 7th arrondissement, Paris
Alphonse Allais, 8th arrondissement, Paris
Georges Brassens, 14th arrondissement, Paris
Léon Dierx, 17th arrondissement, Paris
Tristan Bernard in the 17th arrondissement, Paris
Lycée Janson-de-Sailly, 16th arrondissement, Paris
George Gissing in the 16th arrondissement, Paris
Monique Proulx: Les Aurores montréales (1996)


Co-op Bank unveils new ethical policy that bans lending to tax-avoiding companies
The bank is trying to restore its ethical credentials with a new customer blacklist
By Marion Dakers 20 January 2015 • 6:00am
The Co-op Bank is seeking to restore its reputation Credit: Photo: Getty Images
The Co-operative Bank has officially banned lending to companies involved in payday lending and those gambling and tax avoidance activities that it deems irresponsible as part of an effort to restore its ethical credentials.
The troubled bank, which last year gave majority control to its lenders as part of a £400m fundraising, has rewritten its ethical policies in response to a poll of 74,000 customers and staff.
Chief executive Niall Booker said the people surveyed had highlighted these types of borrowers as particular ethical worries. "While they know we are not doing a large amount of business with these [corporate customers], they still said this was a big driver for them," he said.
Mr Booker said the Co-op Bank will take outside advice when it comes to setting the scope of tax avoidance that would bar a company from getting a loan from the bank. "There's bona fide tax management and there's tax avoidance. Some of this will be factual, and some of this will be judgmental," he said.
The Telegraph understands that the bank will also introduce the living wage, currently set at £9.15 an hour in London and £7.85 in the rest of the UK, from its next pay review in April. This compares with the national minimum wage of £6.50 an hour.
The Co-op Bank worked with the Institute of Public Policy Research and other bodies to consider its new ethical policy, which also encompasses the bank's existing priorities such as upholding human rights, protecting the environment and promoting animal welfare.
The company said it has turned down £1.4bn in potential business since it first introduced an ethical policy in 1992.
In 2013, the bank unearthed a £1.5bn black hole in its accounts that sparked more than a year of soul-searching for the wider Co-operative Group and brought about the resignation of two chief executives.
Euan Sutherland, who quit in March 2014 after 10 months leading the Co-op Group, described the mutual as "ungovernable". The turmoil was compounded by a drugs scandal involving Paul Flowers, the reverend who chaired the Co-op Bank's board leading up to its financial problems.
The society has since overhauled its structure and introduced a council of up to 100 members to safeguard its principles. The Co-operative Group has owned just over 20pc of the bank since a fundraising last May that handed majority control to the hedge funds that own the bank's debts.
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Making The Change: Graduation and Awards to Savage, Starbucks
Today was a joyous day. We graduated our largest cohort of MCDM'ers at a beautiful open-air ceremony. Here's what I told all those who attended:
"To give you a sense of the strong personalities that populate our Master of Communication in Digital Media, one of our graduating students updated (Brook Ellingwood) his Facebook status with this today.
Today, after years of struggle and hard work, I will at last achieve my lifelong dream: To wear clothes based on what priests wore in the 12th century.
Our students appreciate and respect the institution that is granting them this well-earned accreditation today. But we also recognize the seismic changes that are occurring across every institution as technology continues to disrupt business models.
Including the time-tested business model of the university. Maybe that's why I'm wearing a suit instead!
The MCDM is a rigorous master's degree for accomplished communication professionals who want to navigate this disruption and seek out the opportunities that are emerging every day. The graduating students who will walk across this stage represent the very best of their fields and have exerted true blood, sweat and tears to earn this degree.
During their time in the program, they've produced social media strategies for non-profits like the United Way, video campaigns for the Pacific Science Center, strategic communication plans for startups. They've pushed themselves intellectually to understand where communication is going with regards to mobile platforms, gaming and in emerging markets. They are leaders in every sense of the word, and we applaud them wholeheartedly for their achievement today. Especially during this tumultuous time.
Indeed, just today, we announced that we will recognize two Puget Sound-based initiatives of national impact that embody our philosophy of disrupting traditional communication models with innovative digital solutions. One is Starbucks, for its innovative new Digital Network, which is in essence a media outlet available to everyone who frequents their stores across the United States. The other is Dan Savage and Terry Miller for their groundbreaking "It Gets Better" Campaign on YouTube, as a beacon of hope to gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender teenagers.
We're granting each of these initiatives the Anthony Giffard "Make The Change" award. And that's exactly what our graduates have done by achieving this degree, and what they will do as they engage the world with their talent and vision. They will all, "Make The Change."
Join me now as we recognize the largest graduating cohort in the history of the MCDM. My colleague Anita Verna Crofts will read the names. Scott Macklin will capture the digital media."
Tomorrow, at our Screen Summit event, we'll be honoring Dan Savage and Terry Miller for their "It Gets Better" campaign to support gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender teens (connecting to two of our Four Peaks of "Community" and "Story"). See our Flip The Media post with Savage last year.
And after hosting Adam Brotman in our Strategic Research class last fall, we recognized the "game-changing" nature of his Starbucks Digital Network (representing our Peaks of "Innovation," "Entrepreneurship").
We intend to seed our nominees earlier this coming year, and hope to engage our community in the process as we move ahead. Until then, join us in congratulating our award winners. GeekWire just published their story, and thanks to our relationship with Weber Shandwick, we've pushed out this press release throughout the state:
SEATTLE, June 9, 2011 /PRNewswire/ — The University of Washington's Master of Communication in Digital Media (MCDM) program has awarded two Seattle-based initiatives with its Anthony Giffard "Make The Change" Award for digital disruption in communication. The awardees are Dan Savage and Terry Miller for their "It Gets Better" campaign on YouTube, and the Starbucks Digital Network in partnership with Yahoo!
The Anthony Giffard "Make The Change" Award is given annually to a local individual or organization that disrupts traditional communication models with innovative digital solutions. The MCDM seeks to identify the seismic shifts occurring in media, and "Make The Change" Award signals where these types of shifts are having the most significant impact on society.
"Digital technology has dramatically leveled the playing field in communications, making it easier for change-making ideas to be recognized and shared with the world," said Hanson Hosein, Director of the University of Washington's Master of Communication in Digital Media program. "With their passion and innovative work this past year, Dan Savage and Terry Miller and Starbucks have shown just how powerful a great idea can be in today's digital society."
The Stranger editorial director and columnist Dan Savage and his partner Terry Miller merely wanted to provide a beacon of hope to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) teens when they created their own video, "It Gets Better." Within weeks, regular citizens, movie stars, musicians, mayors and heads of state were posting their own videos of support and sharing them on the YouTube channel (http://www.youtube.com/user/itgetsbetterproject). The campaign has produced more than 20,000 videos and substantive policy change. "It Gets Better" exemplifies the ability of anyone to effect seismic social change at a near instantaneous pace — through the equalizing access of readily available digital platforms.
"I want to thank everyone for awarding us the Giffard 'Make the Change Award,'" said Dan Savage. "As Tony
Starbucks created its own in-store media channel through the Starbucks Digital Network, in partnership with Yahoo!. By curating premium content including news, sports, film and music for nearly 6800 company-operated stores, the coffee retailer has become a media brand in its own right, even as it provides dynamic opportunities for other brands. As a result, Starbucks has given customers more reason to frequent its stores, cultivated community and provided access to premium content.
"We are thankful and humbled by this recognition from the University of Washington's MCDM program," said Adam Brotman, Vice President for Starbucks Digital Ventures. "We are fortunate that our customers have trusted us over the years to pick great content to offer up to them in our stores; and we are very excited about the opportunities that the Starbucks Digital Network opens up for us to not only enhance their in-store experience through great digital content, but also to engage with our customers on a personal and local level over time."
The "Make The Change Award" commemorates Professor Tony Giffard, the founder of the MCDM (a disruptive model to academia itself) and a renowned international journalist and scholar. Giffard challenged the social and legal circumstances in his native South Africa in the 1970s as a professional seeking change during the height of Apartheid. In collaboration with the MCDM leadership, Giffard will present the awards at the MCDM Screen Summit event on June 10th at the Portage Bay Cafe in South Lake Union, starting at 5:30 p.m. RSVP: http://mcdmscreensummit.eventbrite.com/About the University of Washington's MCDM program
As an internationally-renowned graduate degree program in professional communication, the MCDM operates through the optic of the "Four Peaks" – Innovation, Entrepreneurship, Community and Story – core elements that all communicators must now draw upon if they wish to engage with trust and persuasion in this noisy, chaotic digital age. These Peaks imply the creation and curation of compelling stories in partnership with communities of interest, as we avail ourselves of connective technologies that by their very nature subvert our ability to entirely control the process.
adminMaking The Change: Graduation and Awards to Savage, Starbucks 06.09.2011


Paloma Faith stars in new advert for ŠKODA
ŠKODA has launched the next installment of its Driven by Something Different series, featuring British recording artist, Paloma Faith.
Milton Keynes, 20 March 2018: ŠKODA's latest creative is based on the brand's Driven by Something Different ethos that celebrates individual spirit, self-confidence and a desire to stand out from the crowd; attributes shared by its customers.
Taking a starring role is ŠKODA's latest partner, music artist Paloma Faith. The advert follows Paloma through a series of flashbacks as she fights to make it in the music industry. It depicts her struggling to fit in as a young child to performing to empty pubs, to an iconic moment early in her career where she rebukes a music executive for not listening to her sing. The flashbacks are juxtaposed with images of her now as she enjoys chart-topping success and a new period in her life as a mother.
Paloma's forthright determination is eminently captured in the advert, which has also been turned into a feature-length music video for the ad's soundtrack, Make Your Own Kind Of Music, performed by the songstress.
Created by Fallon London, the advert was directed by acclaimed music video director, Georgia Hudson, who has recently worked with P!nk and Ellie Goulding. The multi-channel campaign kicks off on 24 March with the full 60 second version that will air during ITV's The Voice. The soundtrack, specially chosen by ŠKODA to mirror its message of self-confident individuality is available to listen to via streaming services.
Speaking about the new advert, Paloma Faith said: "It's been strangely emotional to see my life on screen and I think ŠKODA has done a fantastic job capturing my journey. 'Make Your Own Kind of Music' is a song that really resonates with me. It's about a fearlessness of being who you are and it's a message that stands out strongly in the advert."
Kirsten Stagg, Head of Marketing, ŠKODA UK, commented, "Paloma is an inspirational person who champions confidence and individuality and she stood out as the perfect choice to take Driven by Something Different that one step further. Her new role as a working mum reflects the modern-day family pressures that a lot of our customers will identify with and she will be the face of our family-friendly SUV, the ŠKODA KAROQ."
Paloma Faith is also working with ŠKODA for its Driver's Seat Initiative, in partnership with The Prince's Trust – a programme which aims to give young adults a platform to learn new skills in a discipline matched to their artistic interests; such as music, art and photography. The Driver's Seat Initiative is open to those aged between 16-25 who are not currently in employment, education or training and who exude a Driven by Something Different attitude.